A Miracle? R. Hammond

When I attempted to point out This article is from a recent letter by Mr. Hammond, a Maryland business association executive. what the multiplicity of "Federal grants" was doing to our economy, our dollar, and Qur debt, I felt that I was looked at with· a fishy eye by the director, the chairman, and my fellow board members. When I suggested that we might save some money by obtaining good used equipment, I was told im mediately that the-Federal grant specified only new and the latest equipment. At a second meeting on the sub ject, and after further planning on how to qualify for the grant, I finally said, "Sorry, men, our mo tives are good, but our means are bad, and I'll just have to drop off the board. I can't go along. If you want to raise what money we need for serviceable equipment, on a voluntary basis, I'll do my best to help. But I can't be a part in taking the money, extracted from others by force, for e'ven as worthy a project as this."

Where's the miracle? Well, after 603 604 THE FREEMAN October P. S. I tried the same approach on another board I'm on ---- similar situation -- and was .voted .down. But it's fun trying. The one success described above makes .the trying more worthwhile. • where, we could get the equipment on our own; ideas on how to go about raising money. After the meeting, one of the members came up to me and said, "Thanks, Dick, for waking us up." At a subsequent meeting, a for mal motion was passed to do the job ourselves. And we're now on the way to doing just that. I had said this, one of the men said, "Maybe we could do it this way." Another said, "I don't par ticularly want to take tax money, but I don't see how we can do the job any other way." The chairman, who had for weeks given me the impression that he thought I was crazy, almost knocked me out of my chair when he said, "Actually, this is the way I re·ally would like to see it done too, if it's possible."

To shorten the story, from that point. on, the whole atmosphere of the meeting changed. Enthusiasm took over. Smiles and excitement came out. In a few minutes,. we had numerous ideas as to how, and * * * A Source of Strength I SOUGHT for the greatness and genius of America in fertile fields and boundless forests; it was not there. I sought for it in her free schools and her institutions of learning; it was 'not there. I sought for it in her matchless constitution and democratic congress; it was not the're. Not until I went to the churches of America and found them aflame for righteousness did I understand the great ness and genius of America. America is great because America is good. When America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great. ALEXIS'DE TOCQUEVILLE, Democracy in America A T(I MELVIN D. BARGER ONE of the games people play to day is to profess a belief in free dom while advocating more and more forms of governmental com pulsion. Yet those who play the game would insist that they do not like self-deception and abhor hy pocrisy. If they deceive themselves and practice hypocrisy on this mat ter of compulsion, it is ·because compulsory programs seem to get the results they desire, while vol untary methods appear to fail. "We detest compulsion as much as you do," they might say. "But what alternative can you offer?"