The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-04-24
Our New President as His Friends and Neis
By IRA McCARTY Of The aKnsaS City Star fxxJritta,, for NEA Service)

N"kAJsCAl AOA ANASHh ASA f@NNS
 DRESIDENT TRUMAN comes I from that now rapidly disap- bearing group of Americans that can point o home, rather than hos pital of cold brick and steel, as his birthplace.
 He was born in a small frame cottage at Lamar, Mo, May g, 1884. Two years later his parents moved to a farm near 1ndepen- dence and there he spent his boy hood. He lived in town with relatives much of the time he was attending school, because of the dis tances involved.
 He did not escape a full mea- sure of farm work, however, when he was at home. He exper- imented with other types of work as boy and once washed bottles for a drugstore at $3 a week. An other time, he worked in the mail ing room of The Kansas City Star
 Miss Caroline Stoll, now 85 years old, was principal of the old Columbian ward school during the seven-year period when Truman was pupil there.
 Harry was very Studious," Miss Stoll recalls. He never was involved in any boyish pranks and took his work seriously. His mother was in- terested in his education and she visited the school several times to see how Harry was doing.
 "A mothers interest in her children is one of the most im- portant things in child's life, and Mrs Martha Truman was devoted, God-fearing mother"
 WAS STUDIOUS
 Truman's interest in his stud- ieS and his lack of interest in sports is still one of the vivid memories of his friends in Independence.
 Ed Carnes, a reporter on the In- dependence Examiner, has known the President since 1908. T first met Harry when I was going with Caroline Southern, now my wife" he said. "Her father, William South ern, Jr., publisher of our paper, had a tennis court in his backyard and we used to congregate there "BesS Wallace (now Mrs. Tru- maD used to play tennis with us 1 Harry was on the farm then and he would hurry through his chores and hitch up his horse and buggy as soon as he got through to join us. Mrs. Southern would fix US a picnic supper on the lawn. Harry and Bess were about 10 years older than the rest of us, and we thought of them as antiquated. But Bess was lots of fun and we always liked to have Harry around because he was alway joking. After the picnic he would take Bess for a ride ln his phaeton, pulled by his nice bay horse. It had room for just two. Bess was the athletic type but Harry didn't care much for sports. He said he got enough exercise on the farm"
 Truman's devotion to he avy reading, even after he had left high school, didn't allow much leisure time after his days work was done. At one time he tried his hand at fencing but beyond the social life he allowed himself, his chief relaxation was music.
 In those early days before the radio and canned music, nearly every home, no matter how humble, had a piano. To this in- strument Truman devoted many hours. He plays we'll to this day. Ra- dio listeners who heard Truman's $ first broadcast as vice-president- elect on the night of November 2, 1914, caught the strains of Pader- ewski's minuet flowing from the piano of the Hotel Muehlebach's penthouse as the radio networks turned on the microphones for Truman's radio appearance. Tru- man was playing.
 Three weeks after his daughter Margaret, was born, Truman rushed into the house one after noon to announce proudly that he had a present for her. Mrs Truman, her attention drawn tc the street by the gesture of hel husbands hand, saw a crew oi draymen struggling up the front walk with grand piano.
 That gift and her fathers in. terest in music has had a pro. found effect on Miss Truman now 21 years old. She is looking forward to a career on the con. cert or operatic stage. During a recent summer vacation she ap. peared in the chorus of the Den yer summer opera. She is work. ing to complete her college degre, at George Washington University before embarking on a career as { singer. Meanwhile she studies musi, outside the university with prout