Part: 123456789         Session: 1         Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495050a51525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534536537538539540541542 of 542

His instructions at the end were that I should take charge of his body and his burial. I buried him from the Department of Labor. By the time he died there was dual unionism in the seamen's union and they were going to fight over the body of Andy Puruseth. That was why he said, “Let Miss Porkins take charge of all this and I'll be buried the way she says. That ‘ll be all right.” go we gave him a decent burial from the Department of Labor. His body lay in state in that great lobby entry in the Department of Labor for half a day. I knew that he was a Norwegian. He had very little use for religion, because he had vary little use for “the church,” as he called it, the organized clergy - “They take life too easy. They don't work hard.” He was against everybody who had things easy. Nevertheless, he believed in God. He used to say to me that God Almighty guided him, not only through the perilous seas, but through the perilous seas of the labor union movement. So I got in a Lutheran minister from somewhere or other to say a few prayers. We had our little choral society of Negro messengers and truck drivers, who always sang at all Department of Labor functions, sing a few spirituals, and a couple of hymns. The Lutheran minister read out of the psalm book and we laid him away.