America's Task

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 58, Issue 69, 23 April 1929, Page 7

America's Task

By Telegraph— Press Association— Copyright

Australian Press Association

United Service

REIGN 0F. LAWLESSNESS President Hoover To Make A Move POWER OF THE PRESS

(iteceived This Day, Doon.) NEW YQRK, April 22. President lloover, addressing the annual lunclicon of the Associated Press to-day, deelared that life and property in tlie United States wero rclativoly 11101*0 unsafo than in * any other civilised country in tlie world. Twentv times as many people in proportion to population were lawlessly killed in tlie United States as in Great Britaiii. "I11 many of our cities, murder can apparently be eommitted with impunity. I wonder whether the time lias not come to realise that we are confrcmted witli a national neeessity of first degree, that we are not sufl'ering from ari ephemeral erime wave, hut from the subsidence of our foundations. "No individual has the right to determine what law shall be obeyed and what law shall not be enforced. If a law is wrong, rigid enforcement is the surest gunrantee of its repeal. If it is right, enforcement is the quickest method of compelling respect. "It is the purpose of the Administration to strqngtlien the law enforcement agencies by steady pressuro and the steady weeding out of all incapable and negligent oflicials. "The press is almost fmal in its potency to arouse the interest and conscience of the people. It can eitlier destroy their finer sensibilities or it can invigorate tliem." The President appealed to the press to tlirow their iiiflueiice unreservedly into the fight for law enforcement. He deelared that prohihition was merely a part of tho problem, pointing out that only eight per cent of felon convietions in 1928 came from that source.