EIGHTEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART IH 141 



If I were going to give my notion of your business, or give you a new 

 name, I would say that you are the advertising agency of what has now 

 come to be recognized as the greatest industrial enterprise in the world, 

 and that is the business of producing what men and women and soldiers 

 must have to eat and wear. You know, I suppose, that it would be impos- 

 sible just now, here or anywhei-e in the world, for that matter to have any- 

 thing like even a moment's greeting in an address of welcome without some 

 word or expression about the great contest that is on in the world, and out 

 of that there has just come to me since I sat here this thought — that the 

 greatest benefit that will come to this country, and to every person in it, 

 and every community in it, out of this great world's war, will be the 

 unifying and harmonizing of every element in American life. You know 

 that once and for all, and now perhaps for the first time in the history 

 of this country, we are going to be united, man for man, and every man 

 that lives under the Stars and Stripes, no matter where he is or what 

 his business may be, is going to stand four-square for Uncle Sam. 



PATRIOTISM is the order of the day, and, if you will pardon me for 

 just a moment at that, I want you to know that I believe (and I know 

 jou do) that the patriotism of the men of this country, whether they 

 be interested in county or district fairs, or commercial affairs, whether 

 they be interested in consumption or production, or whatever it may be, 

 will be not measured by the contributions that may be made to the thou- 

 sand-and-one things that we must keep up, and that we must give our 

 money to, nor will the patriotism of the individual be measured by any- 

 thing like lip service; but the patriotism of every man in this country 

 now is going to be tested by his every-day conduct and his every-day 

 activities in pushing forward and advancing every important interest 

 of American business life and American social life. Because if we are 

 going to win out in this fight, if we are going to get any certainty of 

 compensation, men, for these thousands of splendid boys that we are giv- 

 ing up, many of us a great houseful of them — I say, if .we are going to get 

 any compensation out of the sacrifice of the boys and the money and the 

 thousand-and-one other thiols that we are going to have to contribute to 

 this contest, it must come in the way of a rebuilding and a solidifying of 

 the American people into one grand forward-march for the best there is in 

 the world. 



Now, it is greatly to the interest of every man interested in farming 

 in Iowa, and greatly to the interest every man interested in county and 

 district fair management, as it is greatly to the interest of every man 

 and woman in this capital city, to have the right kind of understanding 

 with the people of the state of Iowa and the right sort of relation between 

 the people — the farming interests, the business interests, the stock in- 

 terests, and with the capital city of the state. It is wonderfully important 

 that any sort of prejudice against the capital city, any sort of notion that 

 there is any sentiment here is contrary or repugnant to or in opposition 

 of the welfare of the best interests of the men and women of Iowa out- 

 side of the city. I say, it is important that that sort of thing be wiped out. 

 And so the people of the city of Des Moines are to be congratulated 

 that you men are here once a year to hold your annual meeting, and they 



