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Frances PerkinsFrances Perkins
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they call “face”, and so forth. He said he would take it as a favor if the Cabinet members and their families would make a point of accepting occasional invitations and not just boycotting the Embassy. Roosevelt backed him up and said, “Yes, that is important. That's one of the things to remember. We can't do too much.”

It was shortly after that that the wife of the Japanese Ambassador invited every Cabinet officer's wife to luncheon. She included me. There was some telephoning back and forth about what we were going to do. Everybody's husband, who had been in Cabinet meeting, apparently had told her that she'd better accept. Everybody accepted and I accepted. We all went to the Japanese Embassy. I seem to remember that there was nobody else there but wives of Cabinet officers. There may have been a few others, but at least they were ladies of high official position, or wives of high officials. The Japanese Ambassador's wife had made a very elegant, elaborate and magnificent luncheon, with favors. I remember that the favors at the places were exquisite little hand made fans, folded up and tied together with a small hand made silk cord. They were in little boxes. I still have mine. It was a beautiful little thing. She had laid one at every lady's place.

The Japanese have a custom of giving presents, but the nice ones, the good Japanese, never give elaborate or





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