Part: 12         Session: 123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536         Page 651652653654655656657658659660661662663664665666667668669670671672673674675676677678679680681 of 1143

succeed done.

With the end of the war and many pressures that came to President Truman at the beginning of his term, I worried that perhaps he would not remember to send this message or when he saw it discard it. Consequently, when Anna Rosenberg asked me whether I wanted to have an appointment with him, I said, “Of course.” She arranged it for the 8th of September, 1945 through Robert Hannegan, who was then the Postmaster--General.

You had discussed with her your concern. . .

Oh, yes.

This was the first time I had met President Truman. He received me pleasantly but was much less self-assured and much less confident than he later became, after he was elected on his own in '48. His manner was tentative and he said various things which made one feel that he was almost giving excuses for the position he found himself in, which at the moment seemed unfamiliar and tedious to him.

I spoke to him about the need for the health message which Sam Rosenman had prepared and I said, “If you send this message to Congress you will go down in history as the first President to show any interest in the health of the people of the United States. It will be the first such message.” This statement seemed to move him and he said he would go ahead with it.