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Show H - in, M-i 1 . mm i - ..j- ii-m-u -m.i -m u lief j jj tJ,LH t- 111- II I I II I !. ' ' I iiRliiylwir I ORATORICAL CONTEST H Weber Academy won both positions H in the DrAEdward I. ftlch annual ora- H torical contest, held yesterday aftcr- H noon in theTabernacle. (?The success- H ful orators were Douglas Leishman H and Ernest Wilkinson, and their re- M -ward was ?35 and ?15 in cash, respec- H lively. Raymond Williams and Charles H Balch represented the Ogden High H school in the contest, but both re- H quired prompting and this . counted 1 materially against them in the final H summing up of points. ' The Judges j were Assistant United States District , m Attorney Davis S. Cook and Ashby i H Boyle of Salt Lake and Attorney Hal ' m Fa rr of Ogden. H Mayor Abbot R. Heywood was mas- j H ter of ceremonies and he delivered a I H brief talk on the development to be at- H talned through the medium of such H competitions. Similar talks were 1 made by Principal J E. Beeson of the M Ogden High school and Principal H James L. Barker 6f Weber academy. M The contestants were called to tlie H "platform by number, no previous an- fl nouncement of any kind having been m made as to which school they repre- M sented. H Douglas Leishman was number one M and in masterful style, displaying H splendid vocal development and un- M faltering command of the context of m his speech, he delivered an oration on M "Our Greatest Inheritance." He said: m Douglas Leishman. H "The most exalted heritage of Am- 1 erica today is patriotism. It is not H a possession, Jiowevcr, which can be H bought and sold, as other gifts of in- HJ heritance; but it has a definite value H which is superior to any other pos- B session of a true American. Palrio- Hl tism, according to John Hancock, the H first signer of the greatest example of H American ideals, is to mutually pledge m to each other our lives, our fortunes, M and our sacred honor. To inherit pa- M triotism is therefore to accord with M American ideals which have existed m since the beginning of our country. H "This ideal piloted our forefathers H through the struggles of the revolu- H tion, and gained for us a freedom H which was envied by all the world. H Patriotism is the soul of a country. m Greece, a few years before the com- m ing of Christ, had gradually reached H a. state where they no longer had a H conception of the beautiful expression, H 'My native land.' The patriotic Greek H soldier gave way to imported nrofes- H hional fighters; they were no longer M citizens of the nation; they were con- M cerned only in their personal welfare. When patriotism perished, there was no longer an Interest In higher civilization. civili-zation. History tells us that art, literature, lit-erature, architecture and all lofty ideals vanished from their lives. "The progress of tho United States will never fall because of the lack of patriots. With our country now entering enter-ing the great world war every Amcri-' Amcri-' can will be given an opportunity to manifest his governmental allegiance. i I3ut the men who render service to I their country nre not all heroes of i war. Men possessing American ideals servo their country in times of peace as devotedly as in times of contention "The world's greatest electrical inventor in-ventor has proved that service to mankind man-kind is the predominant feature of his life. In a lecture delivered by him to the students of Harvard university, he advised them to place patriotism, or service to their country, above all other ideals. Edison, himself, has pledged his time and resources to the United States. "Henry Ford, tlie commercial genius, gen-ius, does not devote his entire attention atten-tion tof business. He has visited Europe Eu-rope in attempts to hasten the coming of world peace; and he has made great strides toward this end in America. His idea of patriotism is actualized by his big brother movement in his factories fac-tories He has also tendered his abilities abil-ities and fortune to the United States of America in case of need. "The honor of serving the country cannot be given entirely to men. Julia Ward Howe created ,a sentiment for international peace during the year 1870 that will never die. When we read her masterpiece, the 'Battle Hymn,' we recognize an American spirit spir-it that has characterized the men and women of our country since its foundation. foun-dation. "It Is to a woman that we must give the credit for progress and origin of an organization that has higher ideals for the comfort of all humanity than any other group of people known to history. In 1904 when Clara Barton retired re-tired from the Red Cross she finished her work of nursing the entire nation, na-tion, which she had begun by nursing her brother during the Civil war. Clara Barton is a true American patriot. pa-triot. Woodrow Wilson says the greatest great-est organization of the day is the Red Cross association. "The priceless heritage of patriotism is felt by young Americans early in life. Last month in Los Angeles, Gal., eleven hundred boys, in order to become be-come Boy Scouts, pledged themselves to do their duty to God and their country; coun-try; they felt the first thrill of the most noble ideal of manhood. The hearts of these boys were glowing with patriotism like that set forth by the first signer of the Declaration of Independence. "This attitude has never ended at the boundary lines of our country. In the spring of 18SS all America showed a sympathy for their fellow men which is characteristic of tho foundation of our patriotism. For over fifty years the people of Cuba had been pressed by the iron hand of Spain. Rebellions ended in promises to the Cubans, but promises made only to be broken. These conditions grew more severe until un-til tho inhabitants of the island were driven from their homes at the point of the bayonoL They wero deprived of food and shelter, which resulted in starvation. They perished by thousands. thou-sands. The humanity of the United States came to tho aid of the dying Cubans. We fought their battle with a patriotism which sprang from love of justice. When the Spanish-American war ended, with tho defeat of Spain, we nursed the Cubans with a feeling which gave the immediate growth. Under our fostering care they soon progressed to a state where they were capable of starting life anew, i "It is this same American sentiment v.hlch has provided for the widows and orphans of devastated Belgium. When the voice of that suffering coun-. coun-. try cried out for help it was American patriots who supplied' them with food ( and clothing. "When we think of the condition of i European countries wc honor the man -rrrxnwr Trmn umswi-ia at the head of our nation His motive as long ns possible was peace, and still is peace, but with continued insults in-sults to our country and with tho murder mur-der of scores of Americans, and to be finally notified that our commercial vessels are liable to destruction by German submarines, his American patriotism pa-triotism will be no longer squelched "When our country had scarcely received re-ceived hor independence from England two countries, Tripoli and Tunis, who held an idea similar to that of Germany's Ger-many's at the present time, demanded cargoes from all nations of the world, for the privilege of sailing upon the high seas, the common property of all nations. The European powers were wealthy and paid millions of dollars dol-lars to these countries. Tho United States, just recovering from tho war of tho revolution, lacked wealth, but possessed patriotism. When we were notified that our flag would be no longer long-er honored by Tripoli, the members of the continental congress assembled, and Thomas Jefferson, in spite of our weakened conditions, suggested war. Commodore Dale was sent to Tripoli and there set an example to all the world by compelling the pirates to respect the American flag. No embargoes em-bargoes could have done that. It is the inheritance of this kind of patriotism patrio-tism that inspires us with these same motives today. "But tho sentiment of a real war patriot is founded on Ideals of peace and brotherly love. The heroes of war give themselves to the service of the nation because of love of their fellow-men, fellow-men, not love of war. But nineteen years ago, an admiral, generally recognized recog-nized as a war patriot, demonstrated a feeling of brotherly love which gives him a place among the heroes of our country. The Spanish fleet had been destroyed in Santiago bay; the seamen were struggling for life or death. The American sailors were cheering because be-cause of the great Spanish war victory. vic-tory. The admiral in charge immediately immedi-ately walked upon the deck and brought instant silence by the words, 'Don't cheer, boys; the poor fellows are dying.' The sympathy for fellow men was more prominent in his heart than the great naval victory. That was an embodiment of real American patriotism. "With the throne of nearly every European country struggling for its very existence, and with the first steps taken toward entering the greatest Avar of all times, wo test our ability for self-government. The Americanism American-ism we need now is created by manhood man-hood like that shown by John Jacob Astor, when he lost his own life to save scores of women and children from perishing on the deck of the Lusi-tania; Lusi-tania; and patriotism like that demonstrated demon-strated a few days ago when John Pierpont Morgan when he loaned the government one million dollars for war purposes and notified them that no interest would be accepted. In this hour of crisis every citizen of the country should remember that he is an American and Woodrow Wilson is the president of the wholo United States; that our flag upon which is written the blood stains of wars, stands out for purity, valor and justice. Then remember that patriotism is to bo mutually mu-tually pledged to our country and to each other, our fortunes and our sacred sa-cred honor. And then, above all, remember re-member that every patriot, living or i dead, is under the control of the Divine Di-vine Master; with this realized wo shall have done our part toward establishing estab-lishing throughout tho world a gov- ' ernment 'of the people, for the people, and by the people.' " The second speaker was Raymond Williams, his oration being on "Patriotism "Pa-triotism in ArL" His plea was for greater appreication of the beauties of art in painting and he gave an Interesting Inter-esting description of a number of the noted works of the masters, in oil and water colors. Ernest Wilkinson. Ernest Wilkinson, president of the ; Weber academy student body, delivered deliv-ered the third oration, his theme being be-ing "Americanj Ideals." His oration follows: "American Ideals." "When Columbus discovered America Ameri-ca in 1402 there was ushered In the ' greatest period in the history of the world. The great hemisphere, free ' from tradition, and conducive to new ideals, wns revealed as n place for colonization. "Tho settling of our Pilgrim Fathers on the Atlantic coast in 1620 gave birth to American ideals. Seeking a country for religious freedom, thev were willing to undergo any hardships". Inseparable from, and coexistent with this spirit for freedom was their hu- ;j ' 'j " - r - ' man desire for justice. These two ideals wero tho verybulwarks of their social dovolopment in tho establishment establish-ment of their commonwealth. "With tho arrival of other colonists these Bame ideals became more apparent. ap-parent. Rodger Williams and Ann Hutchinson founded the state of Rhode Island, dedicating it as a place of religious re-ligious and political freedom. William Penn and his colonists settled in tho city of 'Brotherly Love,' so as to enjoy en-joy the samo blessings. Janies Oglethorpe Ogle-thorpe founded Georgia, as a place ol refugo for honest debtors. From the advent of the first colony to tho settling set-tling of the last, tho fathers of every community for which Old Glory stands; cherished, exalted and made sacred, those ideals of justice and freedom. "These sacred beliefs gTcw until they became a part of social communication, communi-cation, community government and r.tato discipline. So strong was tho love for them that when Georgo III placed a tax on the goods of his col-oni3tsM.hore col-oni3tsM.hore arose from the southern end of Georgia to tho northern end of Maine tho cry, 'No taxation without representation.' It was because our fathers held this principle of right even more precious than life itself, that the revolutionary war was fought. But perpetual justice, without entire freedom from England was impossible. The war inevitably evolved into a struggle for both ideals. 'Give mo . liberty or give me death' was the cry ' heard throughout the world. , "Those samo Ideals epitomized the Declaration of Independence, which stoutly affirmed that these united colonies col-onies are, and of right ought to be, freo and independent states.' "It was through the superhuman efforts ef-forts put forth by our grandfathers that these ennobling Ideals materialized. material-ized. They gave all that they could In order that their posterity might enjoy en-joy the blessings they had so long sought. Their spirit was echoed in the words of Nathan Hale, when, on being led to the gallows, he said, 'My only regret is that I have but one life to give for my country.' "Their consistent endeavor won for them the revolutionary war, and they were able to inculcate in their government govern-ment their righteous desires. In their heavenly inspired constitution they decreed, de-creed, 'We, tho people of tho United States, in ordor to form a more perfect per-fect union, establish justice and secure se-cure tho blessings of liberty to ourselves our-selves and posterity, do ordnin and establish this constitution for tho United Unit-ed States of America ' "Later on, Great Britain, jealous of our rights and privileges, claimed the authority to seize and searcn our vessels, ves-sels, depriving us of freedom of the seas. Our fathers of 1812, who were the sons of '76, demanded of England that their ideal of liberty be honored. They, like our revolutionary fathers, were willing to sacrifice their existence exist-ence that freedom might continue. Many did lay down their lives for it and once more those grand and glorious glori-ous ideals of our Pilgrim fathers were preserved. "Not sinco then has England openly questioned or challenged our Ideals of justice or freedom. But in tho course of time It became necessary for our country to asserverate these principles. princi-ples. "The spirit of liberty that permeated the thoughts of our fathers was contagious. con-tagious. It spread to the struggling citizens of the state of Texas, who, imbued with the vivacity of our democracy, de-mocracy, revolted from the despotic government of Mexico. Then they asked for the privilege of confirming their lovo and friendship for our Ideals by joining our commonwealth of states and such was granted. Mexico refused re-fused to acknowledge the separation and challenged our national integrity. The ensuing war resultod In the liberation libera-tion of Texas and added one more free state to tho stars of Old Glory. "Twelve years later our country was again called upon to decide whether such -deals were to remain guiding principles. National conscience was already picking the sincere hearts of tho revolutionary grandsons Slavery was undermining the very essence of democratic government Several states had seceeded from the Union. The response from the Pilgrim states was instantaneous. Again ideals were to be fought for. and with all the strength available, and with more grim horror battles wero to be fought with their own brothers. Thousands of patriots gave their lives and the government of justice triumphed. Equality and freedom free-dom were granted the tolling negro. "In their national Gethsemane our great and noble forefathers followed the example of the Master; they died for their Ideals, and the spirit of liberty lib-erty was baptized in tho Blood of the nation's choicest martyrs. "But It remained for those of 1898 to prove to tho world that these ideals, so dearly bbught, were yet the Inherent rights of everyone in this hemisphere. Across the southern gulf came the cry of Cuba, asking for protection from the unprincipled power of Spain. "The response from our fathers was immediate and unflinching. The world, especially Spain, was notified that in thin hemisphere at least all men are created equal, and that they must be treated as such. "The battleship Maine was ordered to see this demand honored and on its,' mission of mercy was treacherously blown up. "The 'bloody bend' of San Juan hill and the destroyed fortifications of El Caney are monuments to the solidarity of thoso American ideals. "This victory gave birth to Cuba's freedom. Its triumph gave equality and justice to the Porto Ricans and Filipinos, and the ideals of tho Mayflower, May-flower, those of George Washington and the reerond fathers of the an- I ' SX U.U.U H-L1.. , L.I '.1 thors of. the Declaration of Independence Independ-ence and constitution of tho United States; the ideals of Abraham Lincoln and tho martyred McKinloy remained the guiding principles of Uncle Sam's children. "Todaj' these same ideals impel our president to act. For two long years Woodrow Wilson, with humble study and BOlemn prayer; has tried to avert war. With almost humiliation ho has hopes for peace. But it has all been in vain. "The utter destruction of the small neutral state of Belgium by the warring war-ring nation of Germany Avas cause enough for this great government to onco more shout the cry of equality , of nations, as well as of individuals. The unfair slaying of innocent Belgians Bel-gians cried out for an application of , our forefathers' ideals. "The 'bread line' and the thousands ( of starving Belgian children tell us : where to place the responsibility. Once a day the children form in line and wait for their single biscuit. The little lit-tle tots are weighed. Those of nearly normal weight are refused food until they are thin and weak. They then receive enough to sustain life, and that is all. And all in a country that was neutral. "More of our own citizens have bpn treacherously drowned in this so-called time of 'neutrality' than were killed in actual battle during the entire Spanish-American war. Their watery graves bear no tombstones of justice or freedom. free-dom. And today, in defense of these ideals, our country has declared war on Germany. "Fellow citizens, we must stop the unfair shedding of human blood, the uncivilized method of starving children chil-dren and tlie unlawful drowning of our own citizens. Many of our great novelists, novel-ists, inventors, leaders and financiers lie on tho bottom of the sea. Their bones rock to. and fro in their ceaseless cease-less cry for reparation. Our brethern are already on the high seas. Shall we let our fathers' Ideals forover perish? per-ish? Shall we bow to the burden of honoring the iron cross? Shall we lower low-er our democratic emblem to the banner ban-ner of despotism? As representing this great state of Utah, we must vindicate vin-dicate our ideals and emulate, the ox-ample ox-ample of tho pioneers. "In iSGO President Lincoln wired Utah's governor that he desired from this state a company of cavalry. The governor's answer was that volunteers would be on the road at 7 o'clock tho following morning, and at tho break of dawn the men, fully equipped, were in their saddles and on tho way. "This is the precedent we must measure up to. In this great national crisis let it be said 'Utah does willingly willing-ly accept any responsibility desired by national authority, that Utah's men and women are equal to any task that the wages of war may impose. As an integral part of this nation, wo stand united under the golden eagle of liberty lib-erty and justice. "These ideals caused tho formation of our Union they have been the preservation pres-ervation of our country; they are now the guiding thoughts of our democracy. These ideals our fathers fought, for these ideals we are now ready to enlist for and the sons and daughters of Utah will not be found wanting." Close of Contest. The concluding oration was given by Charles Balch on the subject of "Conservation of Man." In the oration ora-tion the preservation of natural resources re-sources of tho country and the newest methods of science and physics as applied to tho preservation and restoration restor-ation of health, were dwelt upon. All' of the orations proved of great interest to tho audience, mainly of students, that filled ,the Tabernacle. |