of Governor Herbert R. O'Conor 701

mediate. With all the world disturbed, youth rebels against restraint, against
the routine performance of daily tasks no matter how useful these may be in
themselves. Yet it is important that the graduate, the college student, who
have been privileged to drink of the Fountain of Eternal Truth, who have
directly or indirectly come under the influence of the teachings of St. Thomas
Aquinas and those learned interpreters of the eternal truths, avail themselves
of the opportunity to become leaders in this time of trial and menance.

How long would the gallant defenders of Bataan have held out if each in-
dividual soldier felt free to undertake whatever mission he preferred, instead
of keeping himself subject at all times to the orders of his Commanding Officers?
The answer is obvious.

There is need today, of course, and urgent need, for soldiers and air pilots,
for sailors and marines. Likewise is there need, increasing need, for other to
man production lines that are playing such a vital role in the war today. But,
in the stern necessity that faces us, we must utilize completely every resource
at our command, and emphasize that the education which our young men have
acquired or can acquire ranks high among the resources that are most valuable.

If ultimately a young man's place is in the armed services, he will be the
more valuable, they point out, if he is adequately prepared by education for
leadership in such services. Likewise, if his best potentiality is in the labora-
tory or the industrial plant, that too must be considered by him.

In. the matter of preparing for that future post-war day, it is essential, too,
that our young people give thought to the necessity of pursuing their studies
whenever possible. Peace now seems far away but, in the eternal wisdom of
God, storms of afflicition do not last forever.

Some day, in the not too-distant future, let us hope, Germany and Italy and
Japan will go down in defeat, and the United States, in common with the rest
of the world, will face the problem or reconstruction. No man or group of men
is wise enough to chart the future, but it is possible to appreciate that great
changes lie ahead, changes that will affect the lives of every man, woman and
child in this Country.

To preserve a genuine Democracy under the impact of these changes, Amer-
ica will have need in every community of leaders who regard life, not as an
irrational anarchy of atoms going it blind, but as a magnificent opportunity
to contribute to the world stock of good. Their ability must include the ability
to think clearly, accurately and fearlessly, and to express their thoughts in
words that carry conviction. Their imaginations must be richly developed, for
mankind cannot rise higher than the state the imagination can picture. Their
emotions must be cultivated, because men cherish and defend the things they
love, and what they hate they seek to destroy. Strong wills must be theirs,
for the road will be hard. Most important of all, as the very thew and sinew
of their equipment, they must accept as their own the moral code which man-
kind has dug painfully out of experience in its long upward climb towards civili-
zation, and which has been scornfully discarded by the exponents of tyranny
as the contemptible babel of slaves.