Soon the people of the United States in big cities and small hamlets will
celebrate the anniversary of our independence. It was on July 4th 174 years
ago that we became a free people.
It is important that each year at this time we recall this day. Today we
enjoy a large measure of comfort and security because our forefathers, both
before and after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, suffered
hardships and were imbued with a pioneer spirit which conquered a savage
west and developed our country into the most progressive nation in the world.
Throughout the years of our country’s growth and development Ameri
cans have held fast to the individual rights guaranteed them under the Con
stitution. We have been a free people interested in our local, state, and
national government. The right to acquire property, the right to worship
as we please, and the right to work where we wish are among the factors
that have made the United States a great nation.
From other shores have come the persecuted whose inventive genius
and hard labor have been responsible to a great extent in building our coun
try. Our spirit of free enterprise has resulted in mass production and mass
sales that have given us the highest standard of living in the world.
Individual independence is synonymous with national independence
and on this Independence Day it is important to reaffirm our belief in the
dignity of man and make positive that we are not losing any of the rights
for which others fought so hard and sacrificed so much.