[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 8]
[EXTENSION]
[Page 10902]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



            RECOGNIZING 225TH BIRTHDAY OF UNITED STATES ARMY

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. ROBERT B. ADERHOLT

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 13, 2000

  Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, on June 14, 1775, the Continental Congress 
adopted a resolution which authorized the enlistment of ten companies 
of riflemen to serve the United Colonies for a period of one year. This 
marked the birth of the Army and was the prelude to the birth of our 
Nation the following year on July 4, 1776.
  For the past 225 years, the Army's central mission has been to fight 
and win the Nation's wars. As General McArthur said, in a 1962 address 
at the United States Military Academy: ``Yours is the profession of 
arms, the will to win, the sure knowledge that in war there is no 
substitute for victory--and that if we fail, the Nation will be 
destroyed.'' Whatever the mission, the Nation has turned to its Army 
for victory.
  Throughout this Nation's history the soldiers of the Army have risked 
their lives to protect others. With patriotism, valor and sheer 
selflessness, from the Revolutionary War to the Gulf War, they have 
fought to protect our freedoms here and those abroad. In light of this, 
it is appropriate and fitting that the Army Recruiting Station, Jasper, 
Alabama, has organized a celebration of the Army's 225 years of 
dedicated service. I want to commend the soldiers of the Army 
Recruiting Station, Jasper, Alabama who are doing their part to ensure 
that this historic day is not forgotten.
  I want to publically say, not only to the soldiers currently serving 
in the Army, but to all soldiers who have served in wars to protect the 
interests and national security of the United States--thank you for 
protecting us. Thank you for your courage which has inspired 
generations on this shore and beyond. May God bless you, and may God 
bless America.

                          ____________________