Part: 12         Session: 123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536         Page 953954955956957958959960961962963964965966967968969970 of 1143

Now that's the Inauguration. Now beautification?

Yes. You only mentioned last time, and gae me the memo on suggestions which were passed over to the White House, to Mrs. Johnson, in November. That's all you said on beautification.

Well, in his State of the Union Message, the President said he wanted to have the Federal highways landscaped and he wanted the country to be more beautiful, to promote the beauty of the United States through landscaping and through the preservation of natural beauty and through the better design of cities.

Well, then Mrs. Johnson got in touch with me and said she wanted me to come to what she calls a “women's do-er lunch.” She's given a number of these lunches for women who do things, on any level in the country -- business, or state or Federal government, and different areas. And would I talk about what I'd done about the beautification of New York City. I was so enchanted at the thought that she had gotten the President interested in planting the highways and in doing something about the beautification of the country and the cities that, although I'm a very poor speaker and never speak if I can get out of it, I said I would.

Now, the President made a statement today which we ought to put in our records, about landscaping and the beautification of our country, additional parks.