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Frances PerkinsFrances Perkins
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we could catch on as to what it was they were worried about, but it was obvious they were worried about something.

After a long time a man came in and said, “By God, I've found someone.”

Harry said, “Who'd you get?”

He said, “I got a Mormon elder. He's going to say the prayer and ask the blessing.”

Harry said, “Thank God for the Mormons!”

The truth is that they couldn't start the meeting until they got somebody to offer prayer. Such was the general attitude of the community and of the Democratic party in those days that you wouldn't have thought of opening a political meeting without prayer. They hadn't been able to get a single parson in Independence, though there were a great many churches of all kinds of religions, to ask the blessing on that meeting, because of Smith and perhaps because of fear. I take it that things like the Klan were operating there. You didn't see the Klan, but there was a subterranean movement of threat at people. One saw that. They threatened them as to what they would do if they went to the meeting. They talked about tar and feather, and one thing and another - very rough stuff! They talked about how they'd show these smart girls from New York. It was very nearly stuff. They





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