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    "ocrText": "The original documents are located in Box D16, folder \"South High School, June 11, 1964\"\nof the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford\nPresidential Library.\nCopyright Notice\nThe copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of\nphotocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United\nStates of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.\nWorks prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public\ndomain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to\nremain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid\ncopyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.\nSouth High June 11, 1964\nA DAY IN JUNE\nTo the class of 1964 I express my congratulations and\nbest wishes. Your kindness in inviting me to be with you\ntoday is deeply appreciated. As a graduate of South High\nin the Class of 1931 it is always a pleasure to return on\nthe significant day in June knowNas \"Commencement\" or\n\"Graduation.\"\nGraduation from high school is a land mark in any per-\nson's life. It is the day signifying accomplishment and\na day signifying a new beginning. It's, therefore, a joy-\nous and a meaningful day. It is a day in June when \"if \"if\never there come perfect days; then heaven tries earth if\nit be in tune, and over it softly her warm ear lays.\"\nI trust that on this day these words from James Russel\nLowell are loved by all of you. I trust that in the past\nthree or four years you have developed that appreciation\nof poetry and that respect for literary excellence which\nGERALD\nDigitized from Box D16 of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library\n-2-\n80 enriches the lives of all of us. It doesn't have to\nbe Lowell; it can be Milton with that wonderful line, \"They\nalso serve who only stand and wait.\" Then you may enjoy\nsuch a simple ditty as,\nI never saw a Purple Cow;\nI never hope to See One;\nBut I can tell you, Anyhow,\nI'd rather See than Be one.\nIn the school days now concluded we hope that you have found\nthat, \"A thing of beauty is a joy forever,\" and that these\nliterary bits could be recalled from time to time to add\npleasure to our everyday existence.\nBut with this knowledge of the poets and other lit-\nerary giants we trust that you have learned how to write\nclearly a simple letter and that in addition you will not\nforget to put your return address someplace on the paper.\nToo many letters come to my office and I'm sure to others\nwith the writer's address only on the envelope.\n-3-\nAs we contemplate the past on this day in June we can\ncount among our blessings the life and work of a William\nBrewster or a Father Marquette. We remember Valley Forge,\nGettysburg, and Pearl Harbor. I trust that there is in\nthe heart and mind of each of you a sincerity which can\nappreciate the devotion of a Nathan Hale who regretted that\nhe had only one life to give for his country. May we al-\n80 remember young Sam Davis who could have lived but\nsealed his doom when he said, \"I would rather die a thousand\ndeaths than once betray a friend.\"\nToday I hope that you can clearly recall John Han-\ncock's leadership in 1776 and James Madison's momentous\nwork in 1787. Then there was Thomas Jefferson and \"we\nhold these truths,\" and Abraham Lincoln \"with malice to-\nward none.\" There is the Muse-Argonne in World War I\nand Mount Suribachi in the last World War. There is\nThomas Edison and George Washington Carver. As we look\nahead today we trust that these names, places, and events,\n-4-\nstirring as they are, have been used to build within each\nof you a love for that common heritage which we all possess\nand which draws all of us together into one strong and\ngood family of Americans.\nYou've become familiar with Archimedes' principle\nand Boyles' law and the theory of relativity. This is\nall so good and necessary but we hope that the young men\ncan also repair a leaky faucet and change a tire and the\nyoung ladies can darn a sock and cook a bit.\nMany of you have done your geometry well, have mas-\ntered trigonometry and differential equations - and\nnothing can be more important in this scientific age as\nour nation zooms upward in the age of space and beyond.\nBut I hope that by this day in June you have also ac-\nquired some knowledge on how many feet it takes to stop\na heavy car going 50 miles an hour, and have learned the\nundeniable fact that two automobiles can't occupy the same space\n-5-\nat the same time.\nAs a Member of Congress you would expect me to empha-\nsize an interest in government and politics. I do hope\nthat you understand the three branches of our government,\nthat you can name important officials, and that you know\nhow our system of checks and balances works under our fed\neral constitution. I hope that you know and are ready and\neager to practice all the qualities of good citizenship.\nI trust, that you are thoroughly familiar with the Bill of\nRights and are staunch in your defenseof them. But, my\nfriends, I hope, too, that you are just as familiar with\nthe Ten Commandments and more importantly use them in\nyour heart and mind as guidelines in your daily life.\nSome years ago high school students throughout the\ncountry were asked without prior warning to write a para-\ngraph on the topic \"What Democracy Means to Me.\" Over 70\npercent mentioned all the rights and privileges of which\nwe are justly proud. Regrettably, however, only a few\nGERALD\nARV.\n-6-\nsaid anything about the obligations and duties of a citizen.\nYet we know that every right, every privilege is accompanied\nwith corresponding dutées and responsibilities.\nSome of you have learned to conjugate verbs in a\nforeign tongue and know the habits and customs of people\nall around the globe. This, too, is good and desirable\nprovided of course have also learned to say \"please\" and\n\"thank you\" in our own language and to show a sincere res\npect for our parents, our elders, our classmates. That\nis one of the distinguishing marks of truly sensitive and\neducated citizens.\nOn this day in June we glance backward only briefly\nfor the past is gone and can only be recalled in memory.\nToday we cherish that past, we learn from that past, but\nnow we must take the forward look. What now? What can\nwe glean from the wisdom of the ages that is worth mention-\ning on this day in June 80 significant in the lives of each\n-7-\nof us. Without attempting to summarize all wisdom nor to\ntouch on every basic principle of life, I would like to\nshare five thoughts with the members of the 1964 graduat-\ning class.\nFirst:\n\"The Moving Finger writes; and having writ,\nMoves on: nor all your Piety or Wit\nShall lure it back to cancel half a line,\nNor all your Tears wash out a Work of it.\"\n(Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam)\nGiven to us over 1000 years ago by a Persian poet who re-\npresented a philosophy of fatalism which we do not accept,\nthe wisdom of his statement is proved over and over again.\nJust recently there was in my office a young man with\nhis wife and infant som, The young man was in desperate\nneed of employment so that he could continue his college\neducation and support his family. He had tried private\nindustry and the federal government but was passed over again\n-8-\nand again. The Federal Civil Service Commission requires\nthe prospective employee to fill out the Standard Form 57.\nOn this form the applicant is asked to list any arrest other\nthan parking violations. This young man had been arrested\non two different occasions while serving in the Armed Forces.\nThese convictions were not too serious, but sufficiently\nsignificant to have him passed over by the employment officials\nand others taken when there was a job opportunity. \"The\nMoving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on...\"\nThis man was now deeply repentant, disturbed, but he could\nnot change the record. The personnel officers to whom he\napplied always pointed out that his behavior pattern made\nhis employment too great a risk for them, especially when\nthere ware others available who have no such pattern of\nmisadventure.\nLet me give you one more illustration. During my\nyears in Congress many men who served during World War II\n-9-\nhave come to our office literally begging that something\nbe done to change the discharge they received from the\nArmed Services. Here is a father of four fine children,\nsome of them in high school. He is employed in a res-\nponsible position by his company. He may have an oppor-\ntunity for advancement, but he lives in constant fear that\nhis children and his employer will learn about this dis-\nhonorable discharge from the Army.\nNow the Army does\nmake provision for altering discharges when it can be\nproved that an error was made. But in this case and in\nmost cases there was no error; the man deserved the type\nof discharge he received because of his record in the Army.\nIt cannot be changed. \"The Moving Finger writes, and,\nhaving writ, Moves on...\"\nOn this day in June we can do nothing to change our\npast record, but we can do everything to insure that our\nrecord from now on will be one which will never embarrass\n-10-\nfur\nus or loved ones and never cause us any difficulty. In\n1\nthe future we can guide the \"Moving Finger\" 80 that it writes\na record of accomplishment of which each of us can be proud.\nSecondly I would like to stress the fact that \"It is\nthe little things that count.\" The story has been told\nof a man who some years ago walked across Americanfrom\nCalifornia to New York. When he had completed the journey,\na newspaper reporter askedhim, \"What was your greatest\ndifficulty? Was it the mountains, the plains, the rivers\n-- what was your greatest difficulty? To which the man\nreplied; \"It was neither the mountains, nor the plains,\nnor the rivers; my greatest difficulty was with the sand\nin my shoes.\" Yes, it is the little things that count.\nSome time ago following the death of Speaker Sam Ray-\nburn the House of Representatives had to elect a new Speaker.\nThere were a number of candidates, among them a very com-\npetent gentleman who was not elected. One of his colleagues\nremarked: \"I have served with him in the House of Representatives GERA\n-11-\nfor seven years and he never spoke to me. I am not voting\nfor him for this high office now.\"\nSo often it is the little things, the words spoken or\nnot spoken, the simple act done or not done, which make\nthe big difference: how we talk to our parents; how we\nreact to the orders of the boss; how we treat the next door\nneighber. Not too many of us will have an opportunity to\nmake the great decisions involving the welfare of thousands\nor millions of people. Only a few thousand out of 200\nmillion Americans will do the great deeds of the next few\ndecades. But all of us will be doing little things --\nlittle things every day -- which help or hinder other\npeople, little things which give us a finer community or\na sadder place in which to live. It is the little things\nthat really count. I suggest that we give attention to\nthem - now and in the future.\nIt is the little things of life that add up to the\nwhole. And I presume that one thing which all of us seek\n-12-\ncan be summarized in the word \"happiness.\" The libraries\nand the book shelves are filled with books on how to obtain\npeace of mind, or peace of soul, how to stop worrying and\nstart living; in other words, how to achieve happiness. Let\nus think together for a moment on the personal quest for\nhappiness.\nDr. Elton Trueblood, Professor of Philosophy at Earl-\nham College who served as an advisor to President Eisenhower,\nhas written extensively on this important subject. Dr.\nTrueblood points out that: \"Blasphemous as it may sound to\nour generation, peace of mind is not the ultimate ideal in\nthe life of the individual.\" Peace of mind may exist on\nmany levels. For instance, the self-righteous man who is\nsure of his virtues may have peace of mind. Another may\nfind peace of mind after he has had a sumptuous dinner and\nhas sat down with his pipe. \"But,\" says Dr. Trueblood,\n\"There are many conditions under which men ought not to\nhave peace of mind and under which a good man will not have it.\" \"\n-13-\nHe goes 80 far as to charge that \"our very concern for per-\nsonal happiness is really one of the chief symptoms of\nour moral disease\" and then points out that \"our heroes\nare men and women who have cared about justice or truth and\nhave not even raised the happiness question at all.\"\nBut Dr. Trueblood contends that the proper type of\nhappiness is a desireable goal, and outlines a means of\nachieving that goal. He points out that \"to obtain happi\nness one must forget about it.\" Happiness is not attain-\ned by enjoying the good meal and a pipe, nor is it obtain-\ned by a wild quest of pleasure of one type or another, nor\ndoes it come from an accumulation of things. Happiness is\na by-product of full and active participation in a cause\ngreater than ourselves. \"Few joys,\" says Dr. Trueblood,\n\"are greater than the job of participation in a dedicated\ngroup, and this is the boon which we ought to covet for all\nmen and women.\" This by-product, happiness, is something\nwhich we probably see only in retrospect as we look back\n-14-\nupon a life or period of life in which we were actively\nengaged in a good cause and can say \"then I was happy.\" Dr.\nTrueblood goes on to make the point that the \"best cause\nis that cause which harms no other person and which is big\nenough to require and consequently unite all of our powers.\"\nOn the negative side I think Dr. Trueblood also makes\na contribution to thought in this area. He agrees that\nthere are many causes for unhappiness. Among these can be\nlisted poor health, misfortune, or the lack of money and\nmaterial necessities. But then he makes this striking\nstatement: \"Man can bear great physical and spiritual\nhardship but what he cannot bear is the sense of meaning-\nlessness.... The ultimate enemy is not pain or disease or\nphysical hardship, evil as these may be, but triviality.\"\nSo much unhappiness comes because we do not feel that the\nwork we are in, or the efforts we are putting forth, are\ntruly meaningful and significant.\nGERALD\n-15-\nIf this is true, and I believe it is, those who are grad-\nuating here today have the task of so directing their lives\nthat they find for themselves useful and meaningful act-\nivity, that they obtain satisfying work. As Dr. Trueblood\nsummarizes it: \"There are many unhappy and frustrated\npeople in the world but not many of them are persons who\nhave found ways. of productive work.\" Happiness cannot be\nbought but it comes freely to those who discover for them-\nselves meaningful work and useful service.\nThis leads me to my fourth thought - \"The Greater\nVision.\" There must be a greater vision; the moving finger\nwrites, little things count, personal happiness can be\nachieved, but there must remain the greater vision. Just\nas this world grew and developed enormously before any of\nus arrived, so is there in it today a vast area and a throng\nof people of many races, creeds, and nations far beyond the\nreaches of our home, our community, our state, our country.\nWe live in this world and we must see it for what it is.\nGERALD\n-16-\nWe see the major conflict, the great struggle, on the\ninternational scene between the forces of communism and\nthe forces of freedom. This is a conflict which may or\nmay not be resolved in our lifetime. But it is one which\nchallenges us and challenges our way of life. Do we have\nsomething worth preserving, worth fighting for, or is our\npossession so transient, of such little value that it can\nbe diluted and destroyed with impunity? Do we have here\nin our country and in the free world, social and political\ninstitutionswhich permit the best in man to develop, and\ngrants to all, or to nearly all, the finest opportunities\nthat any human has ever enjoyed. I am convinced we do have\nsomething worth preserving, worth working for and worth fight-\ning for. Our way of life has meant wonderful opportunities\nfor the mental, spiritual, and emotional development of man\nand has given to men the highest standards of living the\nworld has ever known. I trust that in our better moments\nwe can see the greater vision and be grateful that we are\nCERADO\n-17-\nliving in times such as these which do provide a challenge\nbut also assure to each of us the best that has ever been\nknown to man.\nBecause of this greater vision Americans today are\nfighting, unselfishly and manfully, in distant lands to\nhelp a far-away people preserve their freedom, and to\nhelp a free world remain free.\nBecause of this greater vision there is being debat-\ned in the United States Senate this month legislation which\naims to assure to all American citizens the rights and priv-\nileges and responsibilities of American citizenship. This\nis no easy task, there are no easy answers; but in our better\nmoments when wesare most honest with ourselves, we can all\nagree that all responsible American citizens should enjoy\nall the rights of responsible American citizenship. The\ngreater vision calls for us to look beyond ourselves, be-\nyond our family, our community, our state, even beyond our\nnation to see what we can do to build a better world for\nCERALD\n-18-\nall mankind. Selfishness, greed, the abuse of power will\nalways be with us, but men of good will working together\ncan hold in check many of the forces of evil.\nAs the poet has said:\n\"Truth forever on the scaffold\nWrong forever on the throne\nYet that scaffold sways the future.\" \"\nYou who are graduating here, along with those who are\ngraduating in every high school throughout our land, hold\nin your hands one of the keys to the greater vision for\nthe world of tomorrow. While individually you may not\nbelieve your influence is great, collectively the entire\nanswer rests with you.\nWe are told that in a certain village in Europe there\nlived a man well along in years who had a reputation for\nsagacity and wisdom. One day some youngsters, undoubtedly\na bit cynical, came to him with a bird in hand and this\nquestion. \"Is this bird alive or dead?\" The old man\nGERALD\n-19-\nrecognized his dilema; if he saad the bird were dead the\nboy could open his hand, release the bird to fly away,\nproving the old man wrong. If the old man said he is\nalive, the boy simply had to crush the bird in his hand\nand present a lifeless creature. So the man in his wis-\ndom replied, \"It is as you will.\"\nSo my young friends the future is as you will, as you\nand all those like you choose to make it.\n\"Not gold, but only men, can make\nA nation great and strong;\nMen who, for truth and honor's sake\nStand fast and suffer long.\nBrave men, who work while others sleep,\nWho dare, while others fly,\nThey build a nation's pillars deep\nAnd lift them to the sky!\"\n-Emerson\nGERAL\n-20-\nI come now to my parting thought. As we receive our\ndiplomas and leave high school days behind, let us turn\nour hearts and minds toward \"whatsover things are true.\"\nWith Paul of Tarsus let us take the grand look and con-\nstruct the grand design. I leave you with his noble ad-\nmonition:\n\"Whatsoever things are true,\nWhatsoever things are honorable,\nWhatsoever things are just,\nWhatsoever things are lovely,\nWhatsoever things are of good report;\nIf there be any virtue, if there be any praise:\nThink on these things.\"\nAs a man thinketh in This heart so is he. Let us fill\nour hearts and our minds with the true, the honorable, the\njust, the pure and the lovely that we may live on the nobler\nplain to serve ourselves, our God, and our fellowmen. Yours\nGERALD\n-21-\nis the accomplishment, yours is the reward, yours is the\nchallenge, yours is the future. With God's help, \"It\nis as you will.\"\nGERALD\nSouth High School\nJune 11, 1964\nA Day in June\nTo the class of 1964 I express my congratulations and best wishes. Your\nkindness in inviting no to be with you today is deeply appreciated. As a\ngraduate of South High in the Class of 1931 it is always a pleasure to return\non the significant day in June known as \"Commendement\" or \"Graduation.\"\nGraduation from high school is a landmark in any person's life. It is\nthe day signifying accomplishment and a day signifying a new beginning. It's\ntherefore, a joyous and a meaningful day. It is a day in June when \"if ever\nthere come perfect days; then heaven tries earth if it be in tune, and over it\nsoftly her warm ear lays.\"\nI trust that on this day these words from James Russel Lowell are loved\nby all of you. I trust that in the past three or four years you have developed\nthat appreciation of poetry and that respect for literary excellence which so\nenriches the lives of all of us. It doesn't have to be Lowell; it can be\nMilton with that wonderful line, \"They also serve who only stand and wait.\"\nThen you may enjoy such a simple ditty as,\nI never sav a Purple Cow;\nI never hope to See One:\nBut I can tell you, Anyhow,\nI'd rather See than Be one.\nIn the school days now concluded we hope that you have found that, \"A thing\nof beauty is a joy forever,\" and that these literary bits could be recalled from $\ntime to time to add pleasure to our everyday existence.\nGERALD\n&\nBut with this knowledge of the poets and other literary giants ve trust\nthat you have learned how to write clearly a simple letter and that in addition\nyou will not forget to put your return address someplace on the paper. Too many\nletters come to my office and I'm sure to others with the writer's address only on\nthe envelope.\nAs ve contemplate the past on this day in June we can count among our\nblessings the life and work of a William Brewster or a Father Marquette. We\nremember Valley Forge, Gettysburg, and Pearl Harbor. I trust that there is in the\nheart and mind of each of you a sincerity which can appreciate the devotion of\na Nathan Hale who regretted that he had only one life to give for his country.\nMay we also remember young Sam Davis who could have lived but sealed his doom\nwhen he said, # I would rather die a thousand deaths than once betray a friend.\"\nToday I hope that you can elearly recall John Hancock's leadership in\n1776 and James Madison's momentous work in 1787. Then there was Thomas Jefferson\nand \"ve hold these truths,\" and Abraham Lincoln \"with malice toward none.\" There\nis the Mase-Argonne in World War I and Mount Suribachi in the last World War. There\nis Thomas Edison and George Washington Carver. As we look ahead today we trust\nthat these names, places, and events, stirring as they are, have bean used to\nbuild within each of you a love for that common heritage which ve all possess\nand which draws all of us together into one strong and good family of Americans.\nYou've become familiar with Archimedes' principle and Boyles' law and\nthe theory of relativity. This is all so good and necessary but ve hope that the\nyoung men can also repair a leaky faucet and change a tire and the young ladies\ncan darn a sock and cook a bit.\nMany of you have done your geometry well, have mastered trigonometry and\ndifferential equations - and nothång can be more important in this scientific age\nas our nation sooms upward in the age of space and beyond. But I hope that by\nGER\nLIBRARY\n-3-\nthis day in June you have also acquired some knowledge on how many feet it\ntakes to stop a heavy car going 50 miles an hour, and have learned the undeniable\nfact that two automobiles can't occupy the same space at the same time.\nAs a Member of Congress you would expect me to emphasise an interest\nin government and polities. I do hope that you understand the three brenches of\nour government, that you can name important officials, and that you know how\nour system of checks and balances works under our federal constitution. I\nhope that you know and are ready and eager to practice all the qualities of\ngood stätesenship. I trust, that you are thoroughly familiar with the Bill of\nRights and are staunch in your defense of them. But, my friends, I hope, too,\nthat you are just as familiar with the Ten Commandments and more importantly use\nthem in your heart and mind as guidelines in your daily life.\nSome years ago high school students throughout the country were asked\nwithout prior warning to write a paragraph on the topic \"What Democracy Means to\nMe.\" Over TO percent mentioned all the rights and privileges of which ve are\njustly proud. Regrettably, however, only a few said anything about the obligations\nand duties of a citizen. Yet we know that every right, every privilege is\naccompanied with corresponding duties and responsibilities.\nSome of you have learned to conjugate verbs in a foreign tongue and know\nthe habits and customs of people allæround the globe. This, too, is good and\ndesirable provided of course we have also learned to say \"please\" and \"Thank you\"\nin our own language and to show a sincere respect for our parents, our elders,\nour classmates. That is one of the distinguishing marks of truly sensitive and\neducated citizens.\nOn this day in June ve glance backward only briefly for the past is\ngone and can only be recalled in memory. Today we cherish that past, we learn\nfrom that past, but now we must take the forward look. What nov? What Ban we\nglean from the visdom of the ages that is worth mentioning on this day in June\nso significant in the lives of each of us. Without attempting to summarise all\nvisdom nor to touch on every basic principle of life, I would like to share five\nthoughts with the members of the 1964 graduating class.\nFirst:\n\"The Moving Finger writes; and having writ,\nMoves on: nor all your Picty or Wit\nShall lure it back to cancel half a line,\nNor all your Tears wash out a Word of it.\"\n(Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyan)\nGiven to us over 1000 years ago by a Persian post who represented a philosophy\nof fatalism which we do not accept, the visdom of his statement is proved over\nand over again.\nJust recently there vas in my office a young man with his wife and infant\nson. The young man vas in desperate need of employment so that he could continue\nhis college education and support his family. He had tried private industry and\nthe federal government but vas passed over again and again. The Federal Civil\nService Commission requires the prospective employee to fill out the Standard Form\n57. On this form the applicant is asked to list any arrest other than parking\nviolations. This young man had been arrested on two different occasions while\nserving in the Armed Forces. These convictions were not too serious, but sufficiently\nsignificant to have him passed over by the employment officials and others taken\nwhen there was a job opportunity. \"The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves\non...\"\n-5-\nThis man was now deeply repentant, disturbed, but he could not change the record.\nThe personnel officers to whom he applied always pointed out that his behavior\npattern made his employment too great a risk for them, especially when there\nwere others available who have no such pattern of misadventure.\nLet me give you one more illustration. During my years in Congress many men\nwho served during World Var II have come to our office literally begging that\nsomething be done to change the discharge they received from the Armed Services.\nHere is a father of four fine children, some of then in high school. He is\nemployed in a responsible position by his company. He may have an opportunity for\nadvancement, but he lives in constant fear that his children and his employer will\nlearn about this dishonorable discharge from the Army. Now the Army does make\nprovision for altering discharges when it can be proved that an error vas made.\nBut in this case and in most cases there vas no error; the man deserved the type\nof discharge he received because of his record in the Army. It cannot be changed.\n\"The Moving Fanger writes, and, having writ, Moves on...\"\nOn this day in June we can do nothing to change our past record, but we\ncan do everything to insure that our record from now on will be one which will\nnever embarrass us or our loved ones and never cause us any difficulty. In the\nfuture we can guide the \"Noving Finger\" so that it writes a record of accon-\nplishment of which each of us can be proud.\nSecondly I would like to stress the fact that \"It is the little things\nthat count.\" The story has been told of a man who some years ago walked across\nAmerica from California to New York. When he had completed the journey, a newspaper\nreporter asked him, \"What was your greatest difficulty? Was it the mountains, the\nplains, the rivers - what was your greatest difficulty\" To which the man replied;\nIt was neither the mountains, nor the plains, nor the rivers; my greatest difficulty\nvas with the sand in my shoes.\" Yes, it is the little things that count,\nGENALD\nTORARY\n-6-\nSome time ago following the death of Speaker San Reyburn bille House of\nRepresentatives had to elect a new Speaker. There were a number of candidates,\namong them a very competent gentleman who vas not elected. One of his colleagues\nremarked: \"I have served with him in the House of Representativesffor seven years\nand he never spoke to me. I am not voting for him for this high office now.\"\nSo étten it is the little things, the words spoken or not spoken, the\nsimple act done or not done, which nake the big difference: how ve talk to our\nparents; how we react to the orders of the boss; how ve treat the next door\nneighbor. Not too many of us will have an opportunity to make the great decisions\ninvolving the velfare of thousands or millions of people. Only a few thousand out\nof 200 million Americans will do the great deeds of the next few decades. But all\nof us will be doing little things - little things every day ---- which help or\nhinder other people, little things which give us a finer community or a sadder\nplace in which to live. It is the little things that really count. I suggest that\nwe give attention to them - now and in the future.\nIt is the little things of life that add up to the whole. And I presume\nthat one thing which all of us seek can be summarised in the word \"happiness.\"\nThe libraries and the book shelves are filled with books on how to obtain peace of\nmind, or peace of soul, how to stop worryang and start living; in other words,\nhow to achieve happiness. Let us think together for a moment on the personal\nquest for happiness.\nDr. Elton Trueblood, Professor of Philosophy at Earlham College who served\nas an advisor to President Eisenhower, has written extensively on this important\nsubject. Dr. Trueblmod points out that: \"Blasphemous as it may sound to our\ngeneration, peace of mind is not the ultimate ideal in the life of the individual.\"\nPeace of mind may exist on many levels. For instance, the self-righteous man who\nis sure of his virtues may have peace of mind. Another may find peace of mind\nBRARY\n-7-\nafter he has had a sumptuous dinner and has set down with his pipe, \"But,\" says Dr.\nTrueblecH,, \"There are many conditions under which men ought not to have peace of\nmind and under which a good ann will not have it.\" He goes so far as to charge\nthat \"our very concern for personal happiness is really one of the chief symptoms\nof our moral disease\" and then points out that \"our heroes are men and women who\nhave cared about justice or truth and have not even raised the happiness question\nat all.\"\nBut Dr. Trueblood contends that the proper type of happiness is a desireable\ngoal, and outlines a means of achieving that goal. He points out that \"to obtain\nhappiness one must forget about it.\" Happiness is not attaineM by enjoying\nthe good meal and a pipe,nor is it obtained by a wild quest of pleasure of one\ntype or another, nor does it come from an accumulation of things. Happiness is\na by-product of full and active participation in a cause greater than ourselves.\n\"Few joys,\" says Dr. Trueblood, \"are greater than the job of participation in a\ndedicated group,end this is the boon which we ought to covet for all men and\nwomen.\" This by-product, happiness, Ramesomehhing which we probably see only in\nretrospect as we look back upon a life or period of life in which ve were actively\nengaged in a good cause and can say \"then I was happy.\" Dr. Trueblood goes on\nto nake the point that the \"best cause is that cause which harms no other person\nand which is big enough to require and consequently unite all of our povers.\"\nOn the negative side I think Dr. Trueblood also makes a comtribution to\nthought in this area. He agress that there are many causes for unhappiness. Among\nthese can be listed poor health, misfortune, or the lack of money and material\nnecessities. But then he makes this striking statement: \"Man can bear great\nphysical and spiritual hardship but what he cannot bear is the sense of meaning-\nlessness.... The ultimate enemy isnot pain or disease or physical hardship, evil as\nthese may be, but triviality.\" So much unhappiness comes because we do not feel\n&\nthat the work we are in, or the efforts ve are putting forth, are truly\nmeaningful and significant.\nIf this is true, and I believe it is, those who are graduating here today\nhave the task of so directing their lives that they find for themselves useful\nand meaningful activity, that they obtain satisfying work. As Dr. Trueblood\nsummarizes it: There are many unhappy and frustrated people in the world but not\nmany of them are persons who have found ways of productive work.\" Happiness cannot\nbe bought but it comes freely to those who diseover for themselves meaningful work\nand useful service.\nThis leads me to my fourth thought - \"The Greater Vision.\" There must be\na greater vision; the noving finger wittes, Aittle things count, personal happintes\ncan be achieved, but there must remain the greater vision. Just as this world grov\nand developed enormonsly before any of us arrived, so is there in it today a vast\narea and a throng of people of many races, creeds, and nations far beyond the\nreaches of our home, our community, our state, our country. We live in this world\nand we must see it for what it is.\nWe see the major conflict, the great struggle, on the international scene\nbetween the forces of communism and the forces of freedom. This is a conflict which\nmay or may not be resolved to our lifetime. But it is one which challenges us and\nchallenges our way of life. Do we have something worth preserving, worth fighting\nfor, or is our possession so transient, of such little value that it can be diluted\nand destroyed with impunity? Do ve have here in our country and in the free world,\nsocial and political institutions which permit the best in man to develop, and grants\nto all, or to nearly all, the finest opportunities that any himan has ever enjoyed.\nI am convinced ve do have something worth preserving, worth working for and worth\nfighting for. Our way of life has meant wonderful opportunities for the mental,\n8\nspiritual, and emotional development of man and has given to men the highest GERA standards\nRAR\n-9-\nof living the world has wer known. I trust that in our better moments ve can\nsee the greater dsion and be grateful that we are living in times such as these\nwhich do provide a challenge but also assure to each of us the best that has ever\nbeen known to man.\nDecause of this greater vision Americans today are fighting, unselfishly\nand manfully, in distant lends to help a far-away people preserve their freedom,\nand to help a freeworld remain free.\nBecause of this greater fision there is being debated in the United States\nSenate this month legislation which aims to assure to all American citizens the\nrights and privileges and responsibilities of American citizenship. This is no\neasy task, there are no easy answers; but in our better moments when we are most\nhonest with ourselves, we can all agree that all responsible American citizens\nshould enjoy all the rights of responsible American citizenship. The -reater\nvision calls for us to look beyond ourselves, beyond our family, our community,\nour state, even beyond our nation to see what we can do to build a better world\nfor all mankind. Selfishness, greed, the abuse of power will always be with us,\nbut men of good will working together can hoad in check many of the forces of evil.\nAs the poet has said:\n\"Truth forever on the scaffold\nWrong forever on the throne\nYet that scaffold aways the future.\"\nYou une are graduating here, along with those who are graduating in every high school\nthroughout our land, hold in your hands one of the keys to the greater visitn for\nthe world of tomorrow. While individually you may not believe your influence is great,\ncollectively the entire answer rests with you.\nGERALD FORD VIBRARY\n-10-\nWe are told that in a certain village in Europe there lived a man well\nalong in years who had a reputation for sagacity and visdom. One day some\nyoungsters, undoubtedly a bit cynical, came to him with a bird in hand and this\nquestion: \"Is this bird alive or dead?\" The old man recognized his dilemma; if\nhe said the bird were dead the boy could open his hand, release the bird to fly\naway, proving the old man wrong. If the old man said he is alive, the boy simply\nhad to erush the bird in his hand and present a fifeless creature. So the man\nin his wisdom replied, \"It is as you will.\"\nSo my young friends the future is as you will, as you and all those like\nyou choose to make it.\n\"Not gold, but only men, can make\nA nation great and strong;\nMen visg,for truth and honor's sake\nStand fast and suffer long.\"\nBrave men, who work wile others sleep,\nWho dare, while others fly,\nThey build a nation's pillars deep\nAnd lift them to the sky!\" - Emerson\nI clame now to my parting thought. As we receive our diplomes and leave\nhigh school days behand, let us turn our hearts and minds toward \"whatsewver things\nare true.\" With Paul of Tarsus let us take the grand look and construct the grand\ndesign. I leave you with his noble admonition:\nGERALD LIBRARY\n-11-\n\"Whatsoever things are true,\nWhatsoever things are homorable,\nWhatsoever things are just,\nWhatsoever things are lovely,\nWhatsoever things are of good report;\nIf there be any virtue, if there be any praise:\nThink on these things.\"\nAs a man thinketh in this heart so is he. Let us fill our hearts and\nour minds with the true, the honorable, the just, the pure and the levely that we\nmay live on the mobler plain to serve ourselves, our God, and our fellowmen. Yours\nis the accomplishment, yours is the reward, yours is the challenge, yours is the\nfuture. With God's help, \"It is as you will.\"\nGERALD\nA DAY IN JUNE\nTo the Class of 1964 I express my congratulations and best wishes.\nYour kindness in inviting me to be with you today is deeply appreciated. As a\ngraduate of South High in the Class of 1931 it is always a pleasure to return\non the significant day in June known as \"Commencement\" or \"Graduation.\"\nGraduation from high school is a land mark in any person's life. It\nis the day signifying accomplishment and a day signifying a new beginning.\nIt's, therefore, a joyous and a meaningful day. It is a day in June when \" if\never there come perfect days; then heaven tries earth if it be in tune, and over\nit softly her warm ear lays.\"\nI trust that on this day these words from James Russell Lowell are\nloved by all of you. I trust that in the past three or four years you have\ndeveloped that appreciation of poetry and that respect for literary excellence\nwhich so enriches the lies of all of us. It doesn't have to be Lowell; it can\nbe Milton with that wonderful line, \"They also serve who only stand and wait.\"\nThen you may enjoy such a simple ditty as,\nI never saw a Purple Cow;\nI never Hope to See One;\nBut I can tell you, Anyhow,\nI'd rather See than Be one.\nIn the school days now concluded we hope that you have found that, \"A thing of\nbeauty is a joy forever,\" and that these literary bits could be recalled from\ntime to time to add pleasure to our everyday existence.\nBut with this knowledge of the poets and other literary giants we trust\naddition\nthat you have learned how to write clearly a simple letter and that you. will\nTor\nnot forget to put your return address someplace on the paper. So many letters\nof I'm sume to others\ncome to my office with the writer's address only on the envelop.\n1\nBERAL R.FORD LIBRARY\n2\nAs we contemplate the past on this day in June we can count among our\nblessings the life and work of a William Brewster or a Father Marquette. We\nremember Valley Forge, Gebrysburg, and Pearl Harbor. I trust that there is in\nthe heart and mind of each of you a sincerity which can appreciate the devotion\nof a Nathan Hale who regretted that he only had one life to give for his country.\nMay we also remember young Sam Davis who could have lived but sealed his doom when\nhe said, \"I\" would rather die a thousand deaths than once betray a friend.\"\nToday I hope that you can clearly recall John Hancock's leadership\nin 1776 and James Madison's momentous work in 1787. Then there was Thomas\nJefferson and \"we hold these truths\" and Abraham Lincoln \"with malice toward none.\"\nThere is the Muse-Argonne in World War I and Mount Suribachi in the last World War.\nThere is Thomas Edison and George Washington Carver. As we look ahead today we\ntrust that these names, places, and events, stirring as they are, have been used\nto build within each of you a love for that common heritage which we all possess and\nstrong + good\nwhich draws all of us together into one 1 family of Americans.\nYou've become familiar with Archimedes' principle and Boyles' law and the\nall so mechang\nthe youg\ntheory of relativity. This 1s, good, but we hope that you can also repair a leaky\nfaucet and change a tire. t The young latin dam a wh + cork a bit,\nMany of you have done your geometry well, have mastered trigonometry and\n1\ndifferential equations - and nothing can be more important in this\nas one nation zooms upward an the age b space + beyond\nacquired some\nscientific age. But I hope that by this day in June you have also learned how\n1\nmany feet it takes to stop a heavy car going 50 miles an hour and have learned\nunderstand\nthe fact that two automobiles can't occupy the same space at the same intersection\nat the same time.\nBERALD R.PURD LIBRARY\nAs a member of Congress you would expect me to emphasize an interest in\ngovernmentand politics. I do hope that you understand the three brances of our\n3\ncan\ngovernment, that you/name important officials, and that you know how our system\nWORKS\nof checks and balances under our federal constitution works. I hope that you\nknow and are ready practice all the qualities of good citizenship. I trust,\n& lager to\nof are stanch in your defense ofthem\nthat you are thoroughly familiar with the Bill of Rights. But, my friends,\nI hope, too, that you are just as familiar with the Ten Commandments and more surgestantly\nuse them in your heart + mind as guidelines in your daily life.\nSome years ago high school students throughout the country were asked\nwithout prior warning to write a paragraph on the topic \"What Democracy Means\nto Me.\" Over 70 percent mentioned all the rights and privileges of which we are\njustly proud./ Regrettably, however, only a few said anything about the obligations\nyet we know that\nand duties of a citizen. ^ Very right, every privilege is accompanied with\ncorresponding duties and responsiblities.\nSome of you have learned to conjugate verbs in a foreign tongue and\nknow the habits and customs of people all around the globe. This, too, is\nbecome\ngood and desirable provided we have also learned to say \"please\" and \"thank you\"\nin our own language and to show a sincere respect for our parents, our elders, our\nclassmates. That is one of the marks of truly sensitive and educated citizen$,\nOn this day in June we glance backward only briefly for the past is\ngone and can only be recalled in memory. Today we cherish that past, we learn\nfrom that past, but now we must take the forward look. What now? What can we\nglean from the wisdom of the ages that is worth mentioning on this day in June\nso significant in the lives of each of us. Without attempting to summarize all\nwisdom nor to touch on every basic principle of life, I would like to share five\nthoughts with the members of the 1964 graduating class.\nGERALE R.EORD LIBRARY\n4.\nFind:\n\"The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,\nMoves on: nor all your Piety nor Wit\nShall lure it back to cancel half a line,\nNor all your Tears wash out a Work of it.\"\n(Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam)\nGiven to us over 1000 years ago by a Persian poet who represented a philosophy\nof fatalism which we do not accept, the wisdom of his statement is proved over\nand over again.\nJust recently there was in my office a young man with his wife and infant son. The\nThat could contraine his only education & support his family\nyoung man was in desparate need of employment. He had tried private industry and\nfederal\nthe federal government but was passed over again and again. The Civil Service\n1\nCommission requires the prospective employee to fill out Standard Form 57.\nOn this form the applicant is asked to list any arrest other than $67 parking\nviolations. This young man had been arrested on two different occasions while\nserving in the Armed Forces. These convictions were not too serious, but\nby The employment\nsufficiently significant to have him passed over, and others taken when there was\na job opportunity. \"The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on. 10\nThis man was now deeply repentant, disturbed, but he could not change the record.\nThe personnel officers to whom he applied always pointed out that his behavior\npattern made his employment toogreat a risk for them, especially when there were\nmesadvesture\nothers available who have no such pattern of micbohavier.\nmore\nLet me give you one other illustration. During my years in Congress\nmany men who served during World War II have come to our office literally begging\nthey\nthat something be done to change the discharge 1 received from the armed services.\nHere is a father of four fine children, some of them in high school. He is\nemployed in a responsible position by his company. He may have an opportunity\nfor advancement, but he lives in constant fear that his children and his\nFORD is LIBRARY GERALD\n5\nemployer will learn about this dishonorable discharge from the Army. Now the\nArmy does make provision for altering discharges when it can be proved that an\nerror was made. But in this case and in most cases there was no error; the man\ndeserved the type of discharge he received because of his record in the Army.\nIt cannot be changed. \"The Moving Finger writes, and, having writ, Moves on. \"\nOn this day in June we can do nothing to change our past record but we\ncan do everything to insure that our record from now on will be one which will\nnever embarrass us or our loved ones and never cause us any difficulty. In the\nfuture we can guide the \"Moving Finger\" so that it writes a record of accomplishment\nof which each of us can be proud.\nSecondly I would like to stress the fact that \"It is the little things\nthat count.\" The story has been told of a man who some years ago walked across\nAmerica from California to New York. When he had completed the journey a newppper\nreporter asked him, \"What was your greatest difficulty? Was it the mountains,\nthe plains, the rivers ---- what was your greatest difficulty?\" To which the\nman replied: \"It was neither the mountains, nor the plains, nor the rivers; my\ngreatest difficulty was with the sand in my shoes.\" Yes, it is the little things\nthat count.\nsome ago\nA\nCollowing the death of Speaker Sam Rayburn the House of Representatives\nhad to elect a new Speaker. There were a number of candidates, among them a\nvery competent gentlemen who was not elected. One of his colleagues remarked:\n\"I have served with him in the House of Representatives for seven years and\nhe never spoke to me. I am not voting for him now for this high office.\"\nSo often it is the little things, the words spoken or not spoken, the\nsimple act done or not done, which makes the big differences: how we talk\nFORD i LIBRARY GERALD\n6\nto our parents; how we react to the orders of the boss; how we treat the next door\nneighbor. Not too many of us will have an opportunity to make the great decisions\ninvolving the welfare of thousands or millions of people. Only a few thousand out\nof 200 million American will do the great deeds of the next few decades, But all\nof us will be doing little things -- little things every day -- which help or\ngive us\nhinder other people, little things which make-a finer community or a sadder place\nsupport that we\nin which to live. It is the little things that really count. Give attention to\n10\nthem now and in the future.\nIt is the little things of life that add up to the whole. And I presume\nthat one thing which all of] us seek can be summarized in the word \"happiness.\"\nThe libraries and the book shelves are filled with books on how to obtain peace\nof mind, or peace of soul, how to stop worrying and start living; in other words,\nhow to achieve happiness. Let us think together for a moment on the\npersonal quest for happiness.\nDr. Elton Trueblood, Professor of Philosophy at Earlham College who served\nas an advisor to President Eisenhower, has written extensively on this important\nsubject. Dr. Trueblood points out that: \"Blasphemous as it may sound to our\ngeneration, peace of mind is not the ultimate ideal in the life of the individual.\"\nPeace of mind may exist on many levels. For instance, the self-righteous man who\nis sure of his virtues may have peace of mind. Another may find peace of mind\nsumptions\nafter he has had a good dinner and has sat down with his pipe. \"But,\" says Dr.\nTrueblood, \"There are many conditions under which men ought not to have peace of\nmind and under which a good man will not have it.\" He goes so far as to charge that\n\"our very concern for personal happiness is really one of the chief symptoms of our\nmoral disease\" and than e points out that \"our heroes are men and women who have\nGERALD LIBRARY\ncared about justice or truth and have not even raised the happiness question at all.\"\n7\ncontents\nBut Dr. Trueblood agrees that the proper type of happiness is a desirable goal,\nand outlines a means of achieving that goal. He points out that \"to obtain\nhappiness one must forget about it.\" Happiness is not attained by enjoying the\ngood meal and a pipe, nor is it obtained by a wild quest of pleasure of one type\nor another, nor does it come from an accumulation of things. Happiness is a by-\nproduct of full and active participation in a cause greater than outselves. \"Few\njoys,\" says Dr. Trueblood,\" are greater than the job of participation in a\ndedicated group, and this is the boon which we ought to covet for all men and\nwomen.\" This by-product, happiness, is something which we probably see only in\nretrospect as we look back upon a life or period of life in which we were actively\nengaged in a good cause and can say \"then I was happy.\" Dr. Trueblood goes on to\nmake the point that the \"best cause is that cause which harms no other person and\nwhich is big enough to require and consequently unite all of our powers.\"\nOn the negative side I think Dr. Trueblood also makes a contribution to\nthought in this area. He agrees that there are many causes for unhappiness. Among\nthese can be listed poor health, misfortune,or the lack of money and material\nnecessities. But then he makes this striking statement: \"Man can bear great\nphysical and spiritual hardship but what he cannot bear is the sense of\nmeaninglessness. The utlimate enemy is not pain or disease or physical hardship,\nevil. as these may be, but triviality.\" So much unhappiness comes because we do\nnot feel that the work we are in, or the efforts we are putting forth, are truly\nmeaningfúl and significant.\nIf this is true, and I believe it is, those who are graduating here today have\nthe task of so directing their lives that they find for themselves useful and\nFORD\nmeaningful activity, that they obtain satisfying work. As Dr. Trueblood summarizes\nERAL\nLIBRARY\nit: \"There are many unhappy and frustrated people in the world but not many of them\n8\nare persons who have found ways of productive work.\" Happiness cannot be bought\nbut it comes freely to those who discover for themselves meaningful work and useful\nservice.\nThis leadsme to my fourth thought - \"The Greater Vision.\" There must be a\ngreater vision; the moving finger writes, little things count, personal happiness\ncan be achieved, butthere must remain the greater vision. Just as this world\ngrew and developed enormously before any of us arrived, so is there in it\ntoday a vast area and a throng of people of many races, creeds, and nations far\nbeyond the reaches of our home, our community, our state, our country. We live in\nthe great stough,\nthis world and we must see it for what it is. We see the major conflict, on the\ninternational scene between the forces of communism and the forces of freedom.\nThis is a conflict which may or may not be resolved in our lifetime. But is is\none which challenges us and challenges our way of life. Do we have something worth\npreserving, worth fighting for, or is our possession so transient, of Isuch little\nvalue that it can be diluted and destroyed with impunity? Do we have here in our\nfor world\ncountry and in the West, social and political institutions which permit the best\nin man to develop, and grants to all, or to nearly all, the finest opportunities\nthat any human has ever enjoyed. I am convinced we do have something worth\npreserving, worth working for and worth fighting for. Our way of life has meant\nwonderful opportunities for the mental, spiritual, and emotional development of man\nand has given to men the highest standards of living the world has ever known. I\ntrust that in our better moments we can see the greater vision and be grateful that\nwe are living in times such as these which do provide a challenge but also assure\nto each of us the best that has ever been known. to man\nFORD is LIBRARY GERALD\n9\nBecause of this greater vision Americans today are fighting, unselfishly\nand manfully, in distant lands to help a far-away people preserve their freedom,\nand to help a free world remain free.\nBecause of this greater vision there is being debated in the United States\nSenate this month legislation which aims to assure to all American citizens the\nrights and privileges and responsibilities of American citizenship. This is no\neasy task, there are no. easy answers; but in our better moments when we are\nmost honest with ourselves,we can all agree that all responsible American citizens\nshould enjoy all the rights of responsible American citizenship. The greater vision\ncalls for us to look beyond ourselves, beyond our family, our community, our state,\neven beyond our nation to see what we can do to build a better world for all mankind.\nSelfishness, greed, the abuse of power will always be with us, but men of good will\nworking together can hold in check many of the forces of evil.\nAs the poet has said:\n\"Truth forever on the scaffold\nWrong forever on the throne\nYet that scaffold sways the future.\"\nYou who are graduating here, along with those who are graduating in every high school\nthroughout our land, hold in your hands one of the keys to the greater vision for the\nworld of tomorrow. Wile individually you may not believe your influence is great,\ncollectively the entire answer rests with you.\nWe are told that in a certain village in Europe there lived a man well along\nin years who had a reputation for sagacity and wisdom. One day so me youngsters,\nundoubtedly a bit cynical, came to him with a bird in hand and this question.\n\"Is this bird alive or dead?\" The old man recognized his dilema: if he said the\nRAL\nLIBRARY\nbird were dead the boy could open his hand, release the bird to fly away, proving\nthe old man wrong. If the old man said he is alive, the boy simply had to crush\n10\nthe bird in his hand and present a lifeless creature. So the man in his wisdom\nreplied, \"It is as you will.\"\nthose\nSo my young friends the future is as you will, as you and all shawe-like\nChoocet\nyou make it.\n\"Not gold, but only men, can make\nA nation great and strong;\nMen who, for truth and honor's sake\nStand fast and suffer long.\nBrave men, who work while others sleep,\nWho dare, while others fly,\nThey build a nation's pillars deep\nAnd lift them to the sky!\"\n-Emerson\nI come now to my parting thought. As we receive our diplomas and leave high school\ndays behind, let us turn our hearts and minds toward \"whatsoever things are true.\"\nWith Paul of Tarsus let us take the grand look and construct the grand design. I\nleave with you his noble admonition:\n\"Watsoever things are true,\nWhatsoever things are honorable,\nWhatsoever things are just,\nWhatsoever things are pure,\nWhatsoever things are lovely,\nWhatsoever things are of good report;\nIf there be any virtue, if there be any praise:\nThink on these things.\"\n#\nAs a man thinketh in his heart so is he. Let us fill our hearts and our minds with\nthe true, the honorable, the just, the pure and the lovely that we may live on the\nnobler plain to serve ourselves, our God, and our fellowmen. Yours is the\naccomplishment, yours is the reward, yours is the challenge, yours is the future, BERALE\nLIBRARY\nWith God's help, \"It is as you will.\""
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