I AM THE MEXICO In these Americas, A breath of happy music, A rioting of colors in the desert places; I sent you a simple and straightforward people, And they were humble, but not servile. The herds of cattle, the green fields, the groves Of California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada The place names of your whole Southwest, The flat houses, the speech, and the ornament of Attest them; I sent artisans to work silver and leather for you, The works of their hands are in your homes, shops, Of me you have Covarubbias, Rivera, Orozco, And Chavez and Guizar, the best of my musicians. And my songs, the gay peasant lyrics, You who dance them and sing them in all your cafes? Is there one of you insensible To the loveliness of my women and the music of Their names? How shall you forget these things? I AM CANADA Whose dominions cover the Americas northward, The good neighbor that builds no walls. I am the Canada Of those Bretons and Bristol seamen Whose sons sent carvels southward Into New England, Virginia, the Carolinas, The Great Lakes, and the tangled rivers of Ohio. Your American democracy. You shall not forget me. The brother that is present always Against your north borders. And I have sent you men and women Whose names are written in your book, Eaton to grace your arts. The useful Canadian timbers in the houses Of Wisconsin, Michigan, Maine, Ohio, New York The useful produce of New England's mills Attest me. You will not forget me. I AM THE SWEDEN In these Americas, A stream of blue northern water That stains a deep pool. How shall you forget me? The endless miles of yellow wheat In Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin, Nebraska Attest me. The tall plumes of tasseling corn in Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota Attest me. My peoples built stone houses And broke the fields of the Carolinas Before there were even dreams of a nation- I gave in the beginning; And, in these days, the solitary Lindbergh. I have yielded you humble folk To make fertile fields in the Dakotas, Idaho, Oregon, Utah My blood reaches everywhere among you. How shall you forget these things? I AM THE COOL BREATH OF NORWAY In the Americas, A reminder of the cold mountains and the icy coast line, How shall you pass me by? The farmlands of Minnesota, Washington, Oregon, The dairy lands of Idaho, Montana, Wisconsin, And the timberlands of the West Coast Attest me. The choir of St. Olaf's I gave you, And Rolvaag to your men of letters, Steiniger to your sciences, And Veblen to your governing. How shall you overlook these men? A million of mine have passed by Ellis Island And accepted the obligations of American democracy, How shall you forget these things? (A narrative poem by the Utah Federal Writers Project, Works Progress Administration, called "Immigrant America.”) WHAT AMERICA EXPECTS Out of her abundant resources, out of her profound belief in the worth and dignity of every man, America offers you much. She offers freedom and opportunity, and a full share in all the rights and privileges of selfgovernment. To every citizen she extends the assurance that if he wills it, if he has the courage, the enterprise and the faith, then both materially and spiritually his life can be gloriously fulfilled. . . . What does America ask in return: America expects Personal Character. America is not a separate entity, apart and distinct from its people. America is the people. America is All-of-Us, incorporated. Therefore, whether America is strong or weak, virtuous or mean, valiant or faltering, depends upon the character of the citizens who compose it. As our collective lives are lived, so is the life of the nation molded. Nothing, then, is worthy of a citizen that is not worthy of America. America expects a Sense of Values. It expects you to value duty above privileges; to value truth above mere phrases; to value wisdom above cleverness; to value quality above quantity; to value tolerance above any racial or religious prejudice. In every way it expects you to value spirit over matter. America expects Unity. It expects you to think and act in terms of the whole nation, and not of any one state or section; of the whole people and not of groups or creeds or classes. It expects you to know that America is greater than any of its parts, and that the flag is the emblem of our unity as well as of our glory. America expects Knowledge-knowledge of our history, knowledge of our literature, knowledge of our ideals. And it expects you to realize that no one can gain this knowledge thoroughly, no one can call himself a real American, unless he speaks and reads and thinks in the language of Americans—which is English. It expects you to learn our language thoroughly, and to value it above all others. America expects Faith-faith in its form of government and faith in your own capacity to be part of that government. When America gives you the vote it expects you to use it as a self-reliant American. The so-called "IrishAmerican" vote, "German-American" vote, "Italian-American" vote, or other hyphenated votes, are not American votes at all. They are alien votes. Whatever his birthplace, the candidate who appeals for votes on such a basis is no true citizen. And whatever his origin, the candidate who seeks to weaken or tear down the American form of government is no true citizen. America believes that the right to vote is the right to rule, and expects you use that power wisely, confidently, loyally, and well. Today, especially, liberty means responsibility. America expects Effort. In America the key to opportunity bears the label, “work.” The men and women who wrested homes and farms from the wilderness, the millions who have here achieved new and successful lives, all turned this key with the diligent labor of hands and minds. And today whether he works in mine or factory or field, in business or in the arts, every citizen stands at the door of opportunity with the same unfailing key in hand. No true American accepts the despairing creed that government "owes him a living." His pride is in his own strength and courage; in his will to serve family, community and nation. * * * And, above all, America expects Patriotism. Patriotism in word and thought and deed. It expects you to so live that America will be a better place because you are a part of it. It expects you to put into practice all that you have learned by studying the Constitution and the laws and the principles of this country. It expects you to attest in your every activity an unswerving devotion to America-the America to which you have sworn allegiance, the America in whose service you are proud to live, the America in whose defense you are willing to die; America, the hope of humanity. RAYMOND PITCAIRN. (Excerpts from TODAY WE ARE AMERICANS ALL. Copyright. 1942.) Let us no more be true to boasted race and clan, With love our only law and faith our only fort. New thoughts, new hopes, new dreams, new starry worlds to scan, THOMAS CURTIS CLARK. ON FAIR PLAY "Put yourself in his place!" -CHARLES READE These words, the title of one of Charles Reade's novels, have remained in my memory for more than half a century. The story tells of an English village at a time when workers believed that the introduction of labor-saving machines meant taking bread out of the mouths of their wives and children. Living in this community was Dr. Amboyne. He was a wise physician who tended alike to mill owner and mill worker, to the mind as well as to the body. And whenever he found one man denouncing another, he always asked the same question: "What would you do if you were in his place?" JOSEPHUS DANIELS. HEIRLOOMS AND MEMORIES "All true civilization is ninety percent heirlooms and memories-an accumulation of small but precious deposits left by the countless generations that have gone before us. Only very proud or very ignorant people imagine that our muddle-headed present can begin everything all over again every day-and invent a new alphabet, a new multiplication table, a new code of laws, and a new religion." -REVEREND ROBERT I. GANNON, S. J. |