Home
Search transcripts:    Advanced Search
Notable New     Yorkers
Select     Notable New Yorker

Frances PerkinsFrances Perkins
Photo Gallery
Transcript

Part:         Session:         Page of 912

Perkins:

Yes. They were well irritated with Lewis, you see. Lewis had made himself very unpopular. They both said, “Oh, this is no way to do, and yet it has to be done. It's probably the only way to do it,” and so forth. They seized the mines and Ickes operated them, and Ickes set the wage, and it all went on.

Of course, Truman's big fights with Lewis came later, and after I was out of the picture.

Interviewer:

May 4 was the second cabinet meeting, and all accounts seem to agree it was the shortest meeting in the history of the Cabinet, lasted about forty minutes and consisted mainly of Truman saying, “You two fellows settle that between you.”

Perkins:

What two fellows?

Interviewer:

Whatever two fellows had any problems at all-- “You two settle that between you.”

Perkins:

Yes, that's right. He did not encourage the bringing up of inter-departmental differences.

Interviewer:

He wanted no trouble, no beefs, no--

Perkins:

No, that wasn't his business. “You settle that.” That's right. Who put that down? Somebody wrote a diary, didn't they?





© 2006 Columbia University Libraries | Oral History Research Office | Rights and Permissions | Help