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Frances PerkinsFrances Perkins
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Thomas', and Senator Elmer Thomas rose and went in through the door.

“Ah, I thought, this is a private audience, and I settled back for a good long sleep, you know, thinking that private matters were going to be discussed, and perhaps we'd get in eventually.

“In less than four minutes, the official appeared at the door again and read off the names of all the rest of us. So we all went forward, the remaining fifty or sixty people-- we all filed through into another ante-room and from that into the reception room where the Pope was waiting for us. Senator Thomas was there. He'd been there about four minutes--three or four minutes he'd been there, and he'd had, to that extent, a word with the Pope alone. What they could have settled I can't imagine. But then we all stood around and looked properly impressed, and the Pope made us a very attractive little speech in English. He made it in Italian also, but the people in the group were mostly English-speaking. He spoke in three languages--French, Italian and English. I only understood the English parts.

“Then the Pope said, standing behind his desk (we were all standing), ‘I have made it a practice when people come to give them a little momento of their visit. There are some rosaries here that I have blessed, and I should be very glad to give them to you, if you will come forward and take them.'





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