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Andrew HeiskellAndrew Heiskell
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Session:         Page of 824

English Speaking Peoples. So next morning at ten o'clock I appeared at 10 Downing Street, and you won't believe this, but in those days you--I rang the bell, and a dustman opened the door and put me in a dingy little room and said', “Somebody will come for you soon.” But nobody did. Then he came back and he said, “Follow me.” And I got into the elevator and he said, “Push three.” And I got out on the floor--I forget which--and there was a nice, attractive young secretary there in the room, oh, a quarter the size of this one, lined by files. And she said, “Wait a minute; he'll see you in a few minutes.” And she disappeared. I looked around. The only thing I saw was one piece of paper between two file cases, and it was P.M.'s schedule--schedule, I guess you call it--and P.M.'s schedule had one luncheon on Thursday of the whole week. I thought to myself, “Oh, boy. Wouldn't Truman like to have that kind of a schedule?” The young lady reappeared, opened the door. There was Churchill's bedroom! He lying in a big brass bed in his zip-suit--you know the jumpsuit that he always wore, pale blue with a bed desk over him--a green and red plastic telephone, cigar, ashes all over him. And he said, “Draw up a chair, young man.” And we began discussing The History of the English Speaking Peoples: how to do it, when, in how many volumes, the illustrations, and so on.

Then from time to time he'd reach over and pick up a glass--it had yellow content in it--and take a sip. At one point he said to me, “Young man, you wouldn't tell on me, would you?” I said, “No, Sir. Absolutely not.” And we went on. Then he said, “Like a cigar, young man?” I didn't smoke cigars in those days. I said, “No, Sir, thank you.” And talked some more. And then he said: “Would you





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