54 Presidential Addresses 



gun to assume that commanding position in the in- 

 ternational business world which we believe will 

 more and more be hers. It is of the utmost impor- 

 tance that this position be not jeoparded, especially 

 at a time when the overflowing abundance of our 

 own natural resources and the skill, business energy, 

 and mechanical aptitude of our people make foreign 

 markets essential. Under such conditions it would 

 be most unwise to cramp or to fetter the youthful 

 strength of our nation. 



Moreover, it can not too often be pointed out that 

 to strike with ignorant violence at the interests of 

 one set of men almost inevitably endangers the in- 

 terests of all. The fundamental rule in our national 

 life the rule which underlies all others is that, 

 on the whole, and in the long run, we shall go up 

 or down together. There are exceptions; and in 

 times of prosperity some will prosper far more, and 

 in times of adversity some will suffer far more, than 

 others; but speaking generally, a period of good 

 times means that all share more or less in them, and 

 in a period of hard times all feel the stress to a 

 greater or less degree. It surely ought not to be 

 necessary to enter into any proof of this statement ; 

 the memory of the lean years which began in 1893 

 is still vivid, and we can contrast them with the 

 conditions in this very year which is now closing. 

 Disaster to great business enterprises can never have 

 its effects limited to the men at the top. It spreads 

 throughout, and while it is bad for everybody, it is 

 worst for those furthest down. The capitalist may 



