Statement by the President on the Death of Prime Minister Harold Holt of Australia.

AMERICANS are proud of the friendship they enjoyed with Prime Minister Harold Holt. We mourn him with all the grief that Australians feel.

It is a cruel tragedy that he has been taken from us by this accident. For so many of his days were devoted to guarding a nation and a world against hazard. His dream was to bring order and design to man's brightest hopes. He fought with rare courage, tenacity, and vision to assure that men would live safe from peril in the promise of freedom.

My personal loss is heavy. Harold Holt was generous with the gift of a warm and wise heart. I found comfort in his friendship and strength in his partnership. He and the people for whom he spoke were always dependable and unshakable. Those blessings of his example cannot be removed. They are as eternal as the sea that has taken this good and gallant champion away.

Mrs. Johnson and I--and all Americans-mourn his death.