V.gabond Editorials

By Jack Dionne

They tell of an important Englishman who is now visiting in New York City, who made his last visit there ten ,years ago. A reporter asked him what he thought was the most marked change he noticed in this country in ten years. He said he thought the most pronounced change was that 'if he had walked down Broadway ten years ago with a bottle of whiskey in one hand and a ten dollar gold piece in the other, he would have been arrested for having the whiskey; today he'd be arrested for having the gold piece. That's .ene to think over.

,F**

The concensus of editorial opinion that I gleaned by reading what a lot of sound newspapers, both Democrat and Republican, had to say about President Roosevelt's remarks on the Supreme Court's NRA decision, seems to be that "he couldn't take it." t**

Instead of all those bitter words, wouldn't it have been swell if he had said something like this: "Well, folks, sorry it's illegal, but we did the best we knew how, and I think we've had a lot of good out of it, so let's just keep smiling, and keep pulling together, and keep climbing the hill." The stock market would have gone UP rather than down.

***

When the Supreme Court made its Gold Case decision, official Washington was tumultous in its praise of the decree (although that decision FOR the government was .NOT clean-cut as it was AGAINST the government in the NRA Case). The difference in the reception of the Gold Case decision and the NRA decision, reminded me of a grand old rrish storY' r >r< r ll Sne gaye him sevglal'other entries of bills to be collected. ,i "The total is eighty-nine dollars and fifty cents we have comin'," said Bridget. "Right you are," said Pat, "an' that grand mind of yours is perfect to the end."

Pat and Bridget had run a grocery store together for years. Bridget kept the accounts, such as they were. She was on- her death-bed, and Pat sat beside her. She said, "Pag get your pencil and paper. I want to give you a list of our accounts so you can straighten them out." Pat got the pencil and paper. "Murphy owes us eleven dollars," she said. "Listen to her !" said Pat. "ffer mind is as clear and bright as it iver was." "Cassidy owes us twenty-three dollars and a half," said Bridget. "Yer a wonderful woman," said Pat as he wrote it down. "Dugan owes us seventeen , dollars," went on Bridget. "Niver have f seen anything like ,.r you',': said Pat,''dyin', yet yer mind is as clear as a crystal."

"There's one thing *":,;J" said the dying woman. "We owe the wholesale store three hundred and eighty-one dollars." "Listen at the poor old lady," said Pat; "her mind's wandering."

No, friends, we aren't ,"t* Jo "n"rrru the Constitution to fit the theories of any man or group of ,men. V[/e've had that Constitution for a long time now. And, it is in time of stress and trouble that we need it most. These are not the kind of times in i,shich to change it. Its very changelessness is our foundation, our back-log' our Rock of Ages, our final hope in all material things. Administrations have come and gone and will continue to come and disappear into the past with their isms and their theories, their old and new deals, their passions and their prejudices, and all other things of the moment. But the Constitution, written by a band of inspired men whom God sent in His own good time to build this rock on which LIBERTY could establish its permanent citadel-is a PERMANENT THING. And you, Mr. American Citizen, every time you wake to face the problems of the day, or sink into slumber at night, thank God for that fact. When we begin monkeying with the Constitution we are blasting holes in our own levee-weakening the dyke that is our greatest protectign.

*>t* t'F+

I don't think this "Change the Constitution" talk is really as serious as the present hullabaloo might indicate. In time of bitterness people say things they don't really mean. So it is with this. It will pass. But one thing Mr. Roosevelt did when he criticized the Supreme Court. He gave his political enemies a slogan and a platform, and they will make big use of it. We are going to hear more "Save the Constitution" talk during the next two years than ever before in our history. But it will be mostly political. Don,t worry about the Constitution. Inherently, the Ame/ican people are sane.

John Henry Kirby, well known Houston lumberman, reminded us of a very interesting fact the other day, when he was addressing the Southern Pine Association in New OrIeans. He reminded us that the President of the United States is the only officer in the entire government who

(Continued on Page 8)

Irnagine, if you can, an extrernely wide roadway constructed entirely of lrr x l2rr Redwood lumber; and long enough to reach around the world! That will give you an approxirnate estirnate of the billions of board feet of standing Redwood tirnber on the Harnrnond acreage. By reason of such vast holdings in cornrnercial Redwood timber, Ilarnrnond & Little River Redwood Co. concentrates its operations chiefly in the production of Redwood lurrber. With lirnitless supply, large scale saw rnill facilities and a policy of adding new equiprnent constantly, you can depend on llarnrnond for prornpt delivery of California Redwood.