Remarks of Secretary Benson

Mr. Vice President, distinguished ladies and gentlemen. This is an unexpected pleasure. I have only one regret today and that is the fact that I haven't had the privilege of being here for the 2 days of discussion. The demands of public office sometimes preclude our attending all the meetings we would like. I did, however, ask one of the finest Assistant Secretaries in America to represent the Department of Agriculture, a man from the great heartland of America, Mr. Marvin McLain. He will have much to report to me as will Mr. Edward Aiton, also of our Department. I look forward to the pleasure of getting these stimulating reports.

I have a very deep love for the youth of America. I have confidence in them. I'm very grateful that I have been acquainted practically all my life with young people. From the days of my youth, I have been a fortunate member of a church which has a very rich cultural, recreational, and spiritual program. As a Boy Scout and as a Scout Leader, I have taken great satisfaction in joining the boys and pledging them to keep themselves physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight. More recently, in the 4-H Club movement, where we talk about the head, the hand, the heart, and health, I have had other satisfying experiences. I have great confidence in youth for they are our greatest asset in America. I'm sure we want to do everything we can to see to it that they are fit—physicaly, morally, spiritually. I'm sure that in this important program, the time which you've devoted to this question of youth fitness has made a real contribution to the welfare of youth. I'm sure that the President appreciates your efforts. I, personally, appreciate them very, very much.

It is my hope that in all our work we will tend to strengthen, enrich, and focus attention on the programs of existing youth organizations and not develop an additional Federal Bureau in the Government. I think we are overly organized in this country. We have many rich organizations and wonderful facilities and we should stimulate those organizations to an even greater activity and greater service.

It is a real pleasure to have this opportunity to greet you, and I pledge to you our wholehearted support and cooperation in the Department of Agriculture. This applies not only to the program of fitness for rural youth, but for youth generally. The future welfare of our Nation rests with our youth. Thank you very kindly, and thank you, Mr. Vice President, for giving me this opportunity. I am sure we all hope for youth that they will be happy, successful, and wonderful citizens. Also, that they will find great joy and happiness in life, all of which demands fitness.

Thank you very kindly.

Closing Remarks

of the Vice President of the United States

at the West Point Conference

It always occurs to me that in conferences like this there is a tendency sometimes to overlook our assets. I think Secretary Benson reminded us of this great truth. We pick up our papers these days and read of juvenile delinquency, gang wars in some major cities of the country and the fitness deficiencies of our American youth. We very properly are concerned. Thus this President's Conference was called to consider how we might create better opportunities for the young people of America to lead a full and productive life in our society.

At the same time, we are aware of the fact that the youth of America are the most fortunate youth in the world. I have traveled a bit of the world in the past four-and-a-half years. I have visited 40 countries and what I say is no reflection on other nations or their young people. On the contrary, I found that if the young people of the world were able to get together occasionally we wouldn't have the conflicts and the differences between peoples that we seem to have at the present time.

I have always enjoyed the opportunity of visiting schools and other institutions in which the young people of other nations were represented. But you can't go abroad, you can't visit Asia or Africa or Latin America or Europe, without having the conviction that our young people are the best fed, the best clothed, the best housed and have the greatest opportunity for education. There are exceptions. Under some of the governments abroad in which mass programs of physical education have been adopted, there has been a certain progress made that we must note. That is one of the reasons we are here, because we want to see that our youth continue to have the maximum opportunity.

As we conclude this conference, I think all of you who have been active in youth activities will agree that we are not working on a problem which appears to be an immediate crisis or disaster. We are not going to allow it to reach these proportions. But in the traditional American way we are constantly trying to insure continued progress toward a goal of maximum opportunity for young people in all walks of life to develop to the fullest and to make their major individual contribution to our nation's greatness. I think this committee has made a significant contribution to the Nation. You will recall in my opening remarks that I said I hoped this Committee would not conclude with a type of report which read well but ended up as some others do gathering dust in the Library of Congress. I trust that

our report will be used so much that this will not happen. In any event, I hope this Committee, during the next year, will be able to point to specific cities, to specific states, to specific areas of the country and say "this happened because we met in West Point on September 9 and 10."

I believe, after listening to the capsule reports of the six groups and to the conversation and discussion, that this will happen. If there is any one theme that characterizes these reports, it is the call for action rather than words.

I trust that the report will be brief. It will be if it carries out the tone expressed by the group reports. It should nail down certain recommendations that are attainable and which can and should be reached in communities throughout the Nation within a foreseeable period of time. I hope that we will weed out what might appear to be very attractive resolutions or suggestions but which simply don't have any practical possibility of fulfillment. For example, I would hope in the major cities of our country that many would follow the lead of Flint, Michigan, Kansas City, and some of the others that have been most progressive in this field. Yesterday, when I spoke to the Mayors' meeting in New York, I asked Mayor Hines of Boston and he agreed to make available a copy of our report for the personal attention of each Mayor represented at that Conference.

I feel that if our report can have in it a section which indicates what can be done in specific areas we can expect follow-up action in many cities in which youth fitness programs are not presently in effect. I am going to ask our Executive Director to keep track of developments, as he has in the past, so that he can report to this Committee and inform you of the results of your work. This is only one indication of the progress that can be made as the result of your meeting here.

It is my sincere hope that because of this meeting the communication media of the country will be able to arouse the American people and emphasize to the parents that we all must become aware of this problem and deal with it effectively at the local level. Perhaps a Youth Fitness Week would have results in creating the proper public opinion in local communities.

As a result of the national consciousness being stirred I hope that our various voluntary organizations will have greater success in expanding programs in these fields. These organizations are the very heart of America and characterize the difference in our approach to the problem from that of totalitarian nations. The programs they support should emphasize fitness not only from a physical standpoint, but from a mental and spiritual standpoint. This creation of awareness of youth fitness problems will also result in support being given to our youth organizations.

I have one concluding thought pertinent to this subject. I read in today's newspaper that a group was meeting on the problem of juvenile delinquency.

Various suggestions had been made as to how that problem should be handled. It was indicated that one way would be a more liberal use of the night stick and voluntary curfew. I think all of us will agree that the use of a night stick and a curfew may control juvenile delinquents, but it is never going to cure juvenile delinquency. I believe the work that we are doing, although its primary purpose does not deal with the problem of juvenile delinquency, can in the long run present one of the means of attacking this problem which confronts the American people. This applies not only to our major cities but to some of our smaller communities.

I hope that as a result of this meeting higher standards for those engaged in fitness work will be adopted and that in the future more people will be encouraged to take up this work. If because of this meeting we find that in the planning of new projects-housing projects and the like-more attention is paid to recreational activities and that an impetus has been given to the drives of our voluntary youth organizations for support, I think you will agree that the time you spent here was worth while.

I should like to extend an expression of thanks to those who have made the meeting possible. I know the group chairmen and vice chairmen and secretaries worked around the clock. We thank you for guiding and helping us in our deliberations. I know you will join with me in expressing our sincere appreciation to General Davidson and his staff for all that they have done to make our meeting at West Point such a pleasant and successful

one.

List of Conferees

National Director, Camp Fire Girls, Inc. Benson, Mr. Ezra Taft, Secretary