Remarks to the 73d General Conference of the National Guard Association.

FIRST, I would be happy to have that applause go on indefinitely, but you know, my schedule runs every 15 minutes, and as I told some people at a briefing the other day, the President spends most of his time trying to get people to do what they ought to do without being persuaded. That is my business.

You know, there is a great deal of talk about what a powerful and wonderful office the Presidency is. There is a book just out called "The Presidency," and if you will take a look at that, you will find that most of the powers of the President are troubles. And it is his business to see that they are straightened out.

Now, I am most happy to be over here again with you today. I was here last year, and I think I told you that my first military experience was in the National Guard of the United States, in 1905 in June--the 14th day of June, on Flag Day. I had been 21 since the 8th of May of that year, and I joined the National Guard. My father and mother wouldn't give me permission to join before I was 21, and in those days you had to have permission if you were under 21, because they were afraid I would have to wear a blue uniform.

Well, I had to wear one, and it was a beautiful thing. It had a red aiguillette over the shoulder. It had red stripes down the breeches leg, and it had gold buttons on it.

I wore it out to see my old red-haired grandmother, who had gone through the War Between the States, and she looked me over very carefully, and she said, "Harry, that's the first time since 1865 that a blue uniform has been in this house. Don't bring it here any more."

And you couldn't blame the old lady for feeling like that, because she had had to cook for a regiment of Federal soldiers all day until she wore blisters on her fingers, and they weren't satisfied with that, they went down to her barnyard--my grandfather was in Salt Lake City, Utah, with a wagon team--and killed 400 of her fat hogs and just cut out the hams and left all the rest. So you couldn't blame her for being a little bit disgruntled.

But in my generation, and the ones to come, those things are all forgotten. We are now the greatest republic in the history of the world, because we are united. When it comes to doing our duty as it is set out in the Charter of the United Nations, there is no south, no north, no east, no west--we are all together.

And it is gentlemen in positions such as you are in, who are willing to give of their time, and to work for the military welfare of the country, that gives us a chance to meet the necessities with which we are now faced.

It took us more than 30 years to find out that we have a place in the world that we have to fill. We were forced into it by two world wars. I am doing my best to prevent a third one. And the job that you gentlemen are doing is contributing to the prevention of that third world war.

I can't tell you how very much I appreciate your willingness to do what you are doing. You are working for 153 million people. Just keep it up!--and one of these days we are going to reach a position and a condition in the world where the Charter of the United Nations will be implemented just as the Constitution of the United States was.

You know, it took us 80 years to make that Constitution work, and as I said awhile ago, we spent 4 years whipping ourselves before we made it work completely.

We can, I think, implement that charter without another conflagration, because another conflagration, I think, would be practically the end of civilization. And I think everybody around the world appreciates that.

Gentlemen, I thank you for this invitation. I appreciate being here. I always feel like I am coming back to my first military education when I come here to the National Guard.

I hope that you have a successful conference here, and that you will continue to do just what you are doing to make the country safe.

Thank you very much.