The Story of the American Legion: The Birth of the LegionWheat, George Seay
History
The Story of the American Legion: The Birth of the Legion
Wheat, George Seay
American Legion; World War, 1914-1918 -- Societies, etc.
MR. HILL (of Pennsylvania): "The original resolution that is before
the convention, I am frank to say, has been forwarded to me by a
soldier from Allegheny County, who walked the streets of Pittsburgh
for eight or nine weeks pleading this principle. A resolution adopted
by the Mothers of Democracy was sufficient for him to get back his
job, because he held a position as a county employee of Allegheny
County and he invoked this principle and vitalized every military
organization in Allegheny County, and by means of that he got back his
job and his back salary and his mother's allowance which was cut off
since January 1, 1918. This resolution was originally presented by me
as a member of the National Resolutions Committee from the State of
Pennsylvania. The National Resolutions Committee appointed a
subcommittee of which I was a member, a committee of three, to
consider this and refer it back to the National Resolutions Committee.
That committee passed favorably upon it and the National Resolutions
Committee passed it.
"Now, if that resolution, as it stands before the house, was
sufficient to get a job back for him, playing almost a lone hand,
surely it is sufficient for any man here or for, this American Legion,
for all it provides for, and all that is necessary to be done is the
simple patriotism with the American Legion in back of it which can
place its hands on the shoulder of any substantial employer and say,
'Do you wish to rectify yourself on this thing called "patriotism?"'
Do you wish to give the soldier back his job who presents to you a
meritorious case? We give you a chance. If you do not take it we will
publish this thing and you will go down to contumely and
stultification."
MR. KNOX: "Gentlemen, I am speaking on behalf of the Resolutions
Committee. We spent all day yesterday listening to such requests as
this. Our final calculated judgment is represented in the resolutions
as presented. We found in the discussion that there was opposition to
an endorsement of the United States Federal replacement division.
(Applause.) And so we determined that the language as adopted covered
the cast. We proposed to create in this organization a reemployment
bureau of our own, and the resolution as presented is all the support
that bureau needs.
"I move you, sir, that all the substitutes for the original resolution
be laid on the table."
The motion was seconded.
MR. BENNETT CLARK: "I simply want to call attention to the fact that
under the rules of the House of Representatives that if you lay all
amendments on the table it carries the entire proposition to the table
and I don't believe this convention wants to do that."
MR. KNOX: "I ask a ruling on that, Mr. Chairman. If we lay all these
substitutes for this resolution on the table will that kill the
resolution?"
THE CHAIRMAN: "Unless you dispense with the rules."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account