Remarks in in Santiago, Chile

Your Excellency:

I am indeed anxious that you should believe the sincere appreciation which I and my colleagues feel for the welcome and the kindness which we have received upon our visit to Chile. The compliment to my country in the courtesy and generosity of your reception will find a full response from my countrymen, and I should be proud indeed if you would accept my visit as a symbol of that friendliness.

I could not allow this occasion to pass without expression of the sympathy of the people of the United States for the misfortune that has befallen the central area by the recent earthquake. While the courage, ability, and fortitude of the people of Chile will quickly repair the physical disaster, we must all mourn the loss of life that cannot be redeemed. Cities of Chile have risen from the ashes before, through the indomitable will of the people, and they will again prove that valor which is greater than may be shown on any battlefield.

I thank you for your eloquent expressions regarding my country.

There is abundant reason why friendship and understanding between us should be deeply rooted in the hearts of the people of both our nations. We have on both sides a history of common labor, of building in the New World a new form of government founded upon a new conception of human rights; the supreme experience of rebellion from the political and social systems of the Old World; the subjugation of the wilderness; of development of economic life through the application of the great discoveries of science; the effort to lift the moral and cultural levels of our countries.

Furthermore, we are fortunate in our relations with your country in that there is no basis, either political or economic, for rivalry. Our economic interests are reciprocal and our progress in prosperity and comfort can only be mutual. I have enjoyed with your able Ministers the privilege of exchange of experience in respect to the problems of development and economic progress in our two countries. They and you, Mr. President, are undertaking a great experiment of reform. The success which the Government of my country has attained is due to similar experiments. I do not entertain the slightest doubt that success will crown your achievements in Chile. The policy they have adopted of seeking external capital, whether by government or private enterprise, only for reproductive works is a restriction which could well be adopted by the entire world, including the municipalities and States of my own country. The import of capital for development of public works, of transportation, of communications, of power, of national resources, agricultural and natural, for the movement of goods, is a blessing both to the lender and the borrower. It creates the wealth from which the loans and investments can be repaid. It increases employment and the standards of living. Used for any other purpose, foreign capital becomes a dead weight of taxation upon the people.

Within these limits I believe the import of capital into your country will find its parallel, in the invaluable assistance in internal development, in a similar supply of capital from Europe to the United States in the years following our Civil War. Today, from the development of our natural resources in the United States, so greatly contributed to by the capital of Europe in the period I have referred to, we have discharged our foreign debts and are now able to produce a surplus of capital. From the great resources of South America, I am confident that this cycle will repeat itself, more particularly in this case, as capital is furnished in these days upon much less onerous terms than 40 years ago. The day will come when Chile will by her accumulation of wealth become a lender of capital.

I have likewise enjoyed discussion of your new educational program, the vigor of which is well illustrated by the recent single contract for 50 new public school buildings. And I should be derelict did I not emphasize to you and the people of Chile the admiration which I and the American people hold for the economic and cultural advancement which your nation has contributed to the Western Hemisphere. We are all struggling to a common aim; we not only learn from each other, but we receive inspiration from the heroism, leadership, and accomplishments of sister republics. A long list of distinguished Presidents and statesmen have contributed to the upbuilding of Chile and the Western Hemisphere—and you, Mr. President, occupy a large place in this category.