Home
Search transcripts:    Advanced Search
Notable New     Yorkers
Select     Notable New Yorker

Frances PerkinsFrances Perkins
Photo Gallery
Transcript

Part:         Session:         Page of 915

make a few remarks which obviously had never been thought of in advance at all, in a tone of voice so low and soft that it could scarcely be heard. That dining room is not a room of terrific proportions. It's like Carnegie Hall. It's a large room, but as a hall it's a small hall. It's perfectly easy to be heard if you speak up. But he spoke in a low voice, a kind of hesitant voice. He didn't seem to have anything on his mind. He didn't seem to have thought about it in advance at all. Nobody had even scribbled him an outline of what might be said on this occasion. There was no emotion except a courteous, “You know, I'm glad to have you all here. I wanted to see all of you. It's a great pleasure to have you. It makes me think of a lot of old things. It's been one of the greatest experiences in my life knowing you all. I thank you all.” It was sincere all right, but it didn't seem to me that it penetrated down to any depths.

What I really laid all this to was to the lack of any preparation, either intellectual, emotional or technical for the moment. I daresay that he'd had a busy day. Mrs. Truman's mother was dying up on the upper floor. So far as they had any personal life, their personal life for that day must have been somewhat concerned about the old lady. There was nothing they could do for her, but it's a hard thing to have that going on. He'd been thinking of other things. His mind was





© 2006 Columbia University Libraries | Oral History Research Office | Rights and Permissions | Help