ADDRESS TO FREDERICK ROTARY CLUB

September 27, 1967

It is always a pleasure to visit Frederick, a special pleasure to at-
tend the Frederick Fair, and the opportunity to meet with you today
provides an extra dividend.

I must confess that when this invitation was extended to me last
March — and turned down more or less routinely because I knew
how busy I would be in Annapolis in October — I did not realize how
deeply ingrained was the tradition of the Governor attending this
affair. I soon found out. My arm is just now getting over the soreness
from the twisting applied by Mac Mathias, Ed Thomas and other
distinguished citizens of your community to reconsider the invitation.
And I can tell you frankly that I'm glad they did it.

While the rumor that I initially declined this invitation has some
foundation in fact, such was not the case with another rumor that
circulated around the same time.

Those of you who expressed some concern over the report that I
would not appear in Frederick can perhaps appreciate my concern
when I read in an evening newspaper that I had decided not to seek
a second term as Governor. After recovering from my initial shock
and chagrin, I was seriously tempted to copy Mark Twain's classic,
refutation of this type of unfounded speculation, a simple wire an-
nouncing "the report of my death is a great exaggeration. "

Let me assure you that those reports of my political death are great
exaggerations. I am very much alive and kicking. I couldn't feel better
and I intend to lead a long and vigorous life.

Much has been said and written recently about Frederick's distinc-
tion as the only Maryland county which defies designation in one of
the State's general, regional development plans. "Frederick stands
alone, " a Baltimore Sun editorial noted, "too far east to be a member
of the Maryland Appalachian Development Council, too far west to be
included in either the Baltimore Regional Planning Council or the
Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission. "

Yet, this very situation is to be celebrated and not bemoaned. This
inability to be geographically pigeon-holed signifies a series of options
for future expansion, a set of alternatives for future development.

Frederick is a city and a county that presents three faces to the
future — geographically capable to embrace the fortunes of Western