Part: 123456789         Session: 1         Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460461462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534535536537538539540541542543544545546547548549550551552553554555556557558559560561562563 of 564

At about that time Morgenthau came in. At that time the Office of Procurement - I don't know if that office still (1953) exists - was in the Treasury Department. I think the Office of Procurement in the reorganization of the government was taken out and put into the Bureau of Services and Supplies, which cleans the buildings. However, then it was the Treasury and bought everything that the government ever bought. If you were going to build a new building, they contracted for it. They bought the materials for it. They bought everything the government used. They bought the papers and the pencils. They bought the paint on the walls. If the walls needed redoing it was the Office of Procurement that you dealt with. So the administrator of procurement was an important person in the government. He was the one who decided what kind of chandeliers to buy, what lights to have and so forth. He was the one I had to deal with originally when we decided to have the wages fixed on public purchases.

All that was in the Treasury so that public buildings were in the Treasury. So the President said, “Henry, we've got a brand new idea. A lot of artists are out of work - painters, you know. We'll put them all to work ornamenting and decorating the public buildings. You've got the Office of Procurement. Let them hire these people and put them to work at painting pictures on public buildings.”