Part: 123456789         Session: 1         Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460461462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534535536537538539540541542543544545546547548549550551552553554555556557558559560561562563564565566567568569570571572573574575576577578 of 578

big public works program.

He said this to me gruffly, “Public works is all right, but it ain't enough. We'll never get going with public works. We'll all be dead before the public works program begins to employ people.”

Well, of course, I did know that was one of the problems of a big public works program is that the people are hungry, and while you hire some architects and engineers and they start out and it does make work for the architects and engineers, that's only a handful of people. I knew that. I knew it takes you a long time to get the program into the phase where it employs lots of people. Johnson kept stressing that. I said, “Yes, but we have to start sometime.”

“It isn't enough. We've got to do something else,” said he.

By the time of my second or third conversation with him I got him over to the house. Mary Rumsey and I, who were living over in Georgetown at the time, asked him over for dinner one night. We had taken a temporary little house and asked him over. I don't remember that anyone else was there, but there must have been.

At any rate, either the first night he came to the house, or the second, he began to be more talkative. I elicited from him what his concept of public works was.