Previous | Next
Part: 123456789 Session: 1 Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460461462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534535536537538539540541542543544545546547548549550551552553554555556557558559560561562563 of 564
it. If you wanted to make any theory, any abstraction, any generalization clear to him, you had to give him an example, and a fairly small one. You could describe to him the way steel is made if you didn't go into a laboratory process, but just described it in a particular steel mill - “the men go in here, come to this room, do this, then ingots come in here, furnaces are here, crucibles are heated, here they pour....” You could show him by words just now it is they make it and where the part of the process is that cannot be stopped for an instant, and he could see that. But if you tried to give him a dissertation on flexibility with regard to the hours of labor and put it in economic terms, he didn't get it at all. You could show him how it operated in a particular industry, however, and he got it and was clear about it.
On this first night he showed courage, an intention to deal with problems, and a determination to deal with them. The situation was terrible. That's what I mean by saying that he was formed by circumstances as much as he was formed by anything that was in his mind. Circumstances played upon him and forced him into situations where something had to be done or decided. I'm sure with agony of spirit, but with great activity, not only of his mind, but of his lower cranastic reflexes and all of his emotional life, he would
© 2006 Columbia University Libraries | Oral History Research Office | Rights and Permissions | Help