Your thoughts on the Cross proclamation?

Here's what my highlighter found helpful in Chapter 20 of "On Writing Well" by William Zinsser:

Vomit your first draft, then clean it up (that's me, not Zinsser): "Even careful writers use quite a few (cliches) on their first draft. But after that we are given a chance to clean them out. Cliches are one of the things you should keep listening for when you rewrite and read your successive drafts aloud."

Good writing is taught by imitation: "Never hesitate to imitate another writer. Imitation is part of the creative process for anyone learning an art or craft. . . . Find the best writers in the fields that interest you and read their work aloud."

Words that last: "Writing that will endure tends to consist of words that are short and strong; words that sedate are words of three, four and five syllables, mostly of Latin origin, many of them ending in 'ion' and embodying a vague concept. . . . After verbs, plain nouns are your strongest tools; they resonate with emotion."

I'm curious what you thought of the Thanksgiving proclamation given as an example of words that had "weathered the passage of time." It's on pages 236 and 237 of my edition. Did the words of Gov. Wilbur Cross (portrait above) make you want to imitate him? Please comment.