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Calls for Bededication.....Jack ||ionne

'In 1776 our lorelcthers mcde c down pcyment on our liberties,. our iob every dcy is to keep up the instqllments."

Thct stciement brought--m9 c decided thriU. It wqs mqde by George Peddy, cr vetercnr oI both World Wqrs, in c tclk he wqs mcrking on the subiect oI our prelent *otid situction, crnd the- grect -need lor outw<rrd demonstrqtions oI pctriotism by every recl American citizen in this world crisis thct fcces us.

I hcve, oI course,_ hecrrd thct_ thouglt- expressed before, but never in such homely, im- pressive, understqndqble terms. Mr. Peddy,wgnt on to scy thqt those grect cnrd inspirea men who founded this rurtion bcrck in 1776 did NOT mcke cr purchcse in lee simple dI o.tt liberties, and then hcnd them to us to possess lor cll time to come. Thct they could- NOT do. Whct they could and did do wqs to mcrke thct "down pcyment" on it, crnd-lecve it to those who were to follow cte_r to preserve our liberty cnrd oui fiterties by continuing the *installments" thct make.trnd keep us "the lcmd ol the free cnd the home-otr the brcv-e."

My thcnt<s to lvlr._ Peddy lor thct mcrgnificent thought. It is the linest thing thcrt hcs been said or written by cmy Americcm on this scme subiecl since the terminqfion oI the late wqr brought us lcce to lqce with the world twilight thqt now enlolds us. Our loref<rth. ers gcve us our grect heritcge "to hcrve and to hold," but with the qccent on the "hold." Let us be sure not to overlook where the accent lies.

Wlrct better day thcrn this coming grect Fourth of Iuly could we lind on which to redediccrte ourselves qnd our nation to the ccuse oI freedom,. especicrlly in these times when our nationcl hecrlth cnd hcrppiness is threatened lrom both within and without crs it hqs seldom been in our whole histgry. Witlicm Penn scid: "Those who cre not governed by God will be ruled by'tyrcnts." Those who live on the rcmparts cand crre in p6sidon to see cnd to iudge-men like George Peddy-recrlize how extreme is our dcnrgerl and how grecrt our need for estimcting cnd understcnding it thcrt we mcy the better meet cnrd bect il.

No need to cttempt to detail our dcrnger in_this writing. All oI us lnow, cmd knowing, lgt "t not dodg_e the issue. Let us not hide our heads in the scrnd, lecrving our tcil fecrtheis showing, crnd think we ccrn thus evade our responsibilities, A glcurce oier the hecdlines every dcy should convince even the most optimistic that it is the immedicrte duty oI every he mqn crnd she wom(m in this nation to be both brcve cnd energetic, in ordei that the genercrtion now being born mcy with iustilicction thank us lor pr-serving both its liberty and its recson. Let love ol country tcke precedence in cll our thoughts, wo-rds, curd cctioni,

"Love oI country" sclid the late H. M. Garwood, "is the noblest emotion ol the humcrn mind. Synthetic in its nqture it tckes lrom every pcssion its purest portion As pcssioncte qs love, it is more unsellish. As tender qs lriendship, it is rnore enduring. Witli religious Icith, it !"" vq! c brocrier chcrity. Under its sacred inlluence the pcntiicrn becomes the pctriot,'the soldier, the hero; the scholcr, the statcismqn,. the prophet, the seer."

-- - !.t every Americcn on this Fourth oI JuIy pledge himseU to so cct thct this government "oI the people, by the people, card lor the peopte," ltrctt not, under God, perisir lrom the earth.