Friday, August 19 Nice dya. Letter recd from Ben L Rich. He is sick with duodenal ulcer I do little work around home. Nothing special I write to Ben L Rich THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, Saturday, August 20, 1949 Hoovers Star Shines On Ever Brighter By DAVID LAWRENCE WASHINGTON Herbert Hoover has just been the recipient of an amazing tribute from his fellow countrymen. From everywhere message of congratulations poured in on him on the occasion of his 75th birthday. But there was something more significant in this than the celebration of a birthday or the manifestation of the popularity of a prominent man. It is the tendency to be more objective about his record in office. An entirely new generation has been born since Herbert Hoover was president. Twenty year have elapsed since he took the oath of office. Only a part of the adult population of today remembers the Hoover administration and its trials and tribulations through a period of world wide depression and economic convulsion. Blamed for Depression Only a part of the reading public of today recalls how Herbert Hoover was abused as being responsibile for the depression in America when in fact the United States was caught in a whirlpool of economic currents that affected every nation in the world. As history is written, Herbert Hoovers courageous fight against the depression was virtually won by the time he was leaving office. It was only in the interval between election and inauguration that panic seized America because of the uncertainty of what the new administration would do and the apparent inability of the outgoing and incoming administrations to collaborate in a nonpartisan way. The late Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt distrusted the Hoover administration because it was Republican. Mutual Distrust Something of the same distrust permeated the Republican administration about the Democratic regime that was to come into power. The responsibility for collaboration was plainly imposed upon the incoming president. Many books have been written about that fateful period and, of course, hindsight is better than foresight. Yet, contemporaneously with the happenings, many people familiar with the moves that were made behind the scenes in an attempt to avoid the financial collapse felt that the bank holiday could have been prevented as late as January 1933. Actually, the United States was solvent and the frozen assets in the banks could have been liquidated. in an orderly fashion. The record shows that in subsequent years the liquidation of those assets did occur and the losses to depositors were relatively small. In fact, it was a higher average of return to bank depositors than had been experienced. in bank losses of a half century before. The operating plan for the bank holiday was drafted by Mr. Hoovers associates in the treasury department in February 1933 and was accepted by the incoming adminstration. Faithful to Party Herbert Hoover is faithful to his Republican party, but he has shown again and again how to rise above partisanship. What he has done since he left the White House has proved conclusively that he knows how to be first an American and second a partisan. Even now, at the advanced age of 75, Herbert Hoover has not ceased his labors in the nonpartisan cause. Both political parties paid him honor by supporting resolutions in both the houses of congress. A democratic president sent him a message of congratulation. What Herbert Hoover has done as an ex president is unprecedented. Other ex presidents have performed some service but Herbert Hoover has been in almost continuous public service. This has not been entirely for the government directly because the late Pres. Roosevelt declined to make use of Mr. Hoovers services. Friction Unhealed The friction that developed in the interval between the election in 1932 and the inauguration in 1933 apparently was never healed. It is regrettable that the services of Mr. Hoover were lost to the country so far as the government was concerned from 1933 until Mr. Truman took office. One characteristic that will always be written on the pages of history as outstanding in the case of Herbert Hoover is his intergrity and character. Men can win public office, they can amass votes, they can make speeches lambasting their opponents, they can be great orators, and they can be bitter partisans and the nation will not disapprove of any of these. But let a president lack anything in character or integrity, let him exercise bad taste and violate what is conceded to be public morals, and he will go down into oblivion. Herbert Hoovers name will shine because his character is unblemished and his record as custodian of the peoples funds and the peoples interests stands untarnished through the years. Sunday, August 21 My Father Apostle Charles c Richs 140th birthday. God bless his memory. We go to Sunday School and evening meeting Royal & cleone go to Salt Lake Aug 21 1949 Rich Lewis Dr. and Mrs. Junior Edward Rich have issued invitations for the wedding reception of their daughter, Miss Sharon Rich, to Oliver Marvin Lewis, son of Mr. and Mrs. Alfred Marion Lewis, Sept. 2 at Ogden Golf and Country club. Mr. and Mrs. J.W. Brewer and Mr. and Mrs. Jack Reddish entertained Saturday at a picnic supper at the Brewer camp in South Fork canyon for Miss Rich and Mr. Lewis. Miss Joyce Bradley will entertain for the prospective bride Wednesday at a shower. Mr. and Mrs. A.M. Lewis entertained at a picnic supper in their garden, 1335 Marilyn dr., Aug. 12 for Miss Rich and their son.