Evening star., 1948-04-25
A Candid Talk With Henry Wallace
Tells Inside Story OF
1914 Democratic
Convention

1874 Democratic
Convention
Madison Square, Garden in Sep
tember. 1916?
Mr.. Wallace: went to the White
House before going to New York
and handed him (Truman) copy
of my address. We sat by his desk
within 3 feet of each other while
he looked it over. When he turned
page, I turned page in my copy,
calling his attention to points that
I thought important. He didn't
ask many questions.
At one point where I had written.
IT want one thing clearly under
stood. I am neither anti-British
nor pro-British-neither anti-Rus-
sian nor pro-Russian," the Presi-
dent underlined the words and said
that was where he stood, too. I
wrote his approval into the speech.
sincerely believed the President
had no reservations about my max
ing the speech, and that he was
coming around to my point of view.
I didn't know then, and don't
think he knew, the extent to which
Vandenberg and Byrnes were COM
mitted to another policy. They
were both in Paris, and the Presi-
dent and I had had no discussions
to lead me to believe that our
foreign policy was closed issue in
the administration.
@. It is now history that you
omitted certain parts Of your Mad
ison Square Garden speech that
were critical OF the Communists
when the audience began to boo
you. Can you recall what went
through your mind at the time?
Stands by His Words
Mr.. Wallace: AS I remember,
got on very late and was sort of
galloping through the speech to
make my air time. I wasn't par
ticularly surprised at getting booed;
that happened to me plenty of
times. And I have omitted parts
of my speeches before and since,
when I felt the audience getting
restless. In this case I didn't see
any point in getting into platform
dogfght.
The whole speech had already
been released to the press. guess
I just figured it really didn't make
any difference if I read the whole
thing or not.
Looking back now, in the light
of the interpretations that have
been put on it. I think it would
have been better not to skip. But
II never indicated to anybody that
I wanted to back up on the words
in that speech, all of them. And !
still stand by them.
@. What happened when you got
back to Washington?
| Mr.. Wallace: AS you know, re-
porter. asked the President in his
press conference whether or not
| he had approved my speech. I
think the reporter was referring to
| that section in which had quoted
| the Presidents full-hearted agree
ment. But the President just said,
yes, he had approved the speech.
That was what set Vandenberg and
| Byrnes to work. (After giving this
answer, Mr.. Wallace asked me to
strike it out because, he added, he
didn't like to descend to PERSONAL
tiles; nothing is ever proved by
that This happened couple of
times, and / countered with the
argument that it was impossible to
record history accurately without
mentioning them. We let it go at
that. Their inclusion is on my own
responsibility
@. What about the subsequent re-
lease of the memorandum on for
eign policy you sent the President
in July?
Mr.. Wallace: I called up Charlie
Ross and asked him If it was now
all right for me to release the state
rment / had sent to the President
earlier in the summer, explaining
my position on the whole foreign
policy question. He said all right.
A few minutes later he called back
and said not to. BY that time the
press boys had already grabbed their
copies and gone.
President Appeared Upset
@. Dis you see the President?
Mr.. Wallace: OF course. He
seemed quite upset. He told me
that Jimmy Byrnes felt the whole
business was pulling the rug out
from under his feet in Paris. That
was the way the President put it
He asked me, and agreed, not to
deal with the foreign-policy issue
in the forthcoming congressional
campaign. Ill. . The President seemed
TO have been taken completely by