The Coolidge Examiner

THANKS TO COLUMBUS

Since that fall day in 1492 when Christopher Columbus landed his ship at San Salvador and thus opened the door to the discovery of the American continent, America has made rapid strides. When we consider that 450 years ago America wasn't even on the white man's map, it seems almost miraculous that it is now populated by hundreds of millions of educated people who have money luxuries, more riches, more skyscrapers, more automobiles and more of practically everything than any other continent or country in the world. America is so young that your great-great-great-great grandfather might have come over on Columbus' ship. Measured in generations, it was only seven full generations ago that Columbus came over and only five generations ago that efforts began to settle this country. Compared with European countries, which have been going through periods of culture and decay for thousands of years, America stands as a monument to the progress which can be made under a system of free enterprise. When Christopher Columbus sailed on his perilous voyage, he came to America looking for riches. With sufficient assistance, he might have found riches- of all kinds in our natural resources our gold, our silver and our other mountains-full of wealth. But it was the Pilgrims who came to America seeking spiritual freedom rather than gold who really discovered the greatest riches offered by America-the opportunity to live as they pleased, to have equal opportunity for all and to found a nation on the principles of equality and freedom. We can thank Columbus for putting our country on the map, but our greatest thanks should go to those settlers who decided what kind of a nation to build in America. If they had come here to seek material riches and to plunder, we might today be the slaves of a king or a dictator. But fortunately they came here seeking freedom and freedom has always continued to be the foundation stone of our country.