The journal. (Caldwell, Ohio) 1934-1961, 1952-03-27
'Mr. Presidenf

Rather than go fishing encountered by Is Secret Service
men, photographers and special writer's, President Harry S.
Truman says he prefers to "stay in the White House back
yard and let them stare through the fence at the 'two-headed
calf"
Truman's personality, as set down by William Hillman in his
book, Mr. President" The volume is published by Farrar,
Straus & Young, and condensed in the April Readers Digest.
A plain-spoken, plain thinking President, who can poke
fun at himself and his associates one minute and be deadly
serious the next, emerges from MI. Hillman's book. Virtually
all of the text of the Digest condensation is in Truman's own
words, as taken from his diaries, offhand notes and memoS
scrubbed for his friends or his own amusement. Il want the
people to know me as l am, ne Sald &c f1lA1nan' a Wmte
House correspondent for the Mutual Broadcasting System,
permitting the author to quote freely from personal papers.
On corruption in government, the President declares,
There is nothing | detest so much as a crooked politician or
a corrupt government official | shall see that every fed
eral employee, guilty of misconduct, is removed and punish
ed He adds, Il am not very often mistaken in judgments l
make of people" but conceded that there are d~isappoint-
mentS."
AS a young man, Truman never dreamed of being Pres
ident." He still finds something awesome about the head of
the United Statesmen me, but the Presidency itself" On his
first interview with Franklin Roosevelt, he saw himself as
"a country boy calling on the President But he was cor
dial and nice to me" Remembering that visit, Truman tries
to put his own callers at ease.
Yet he processes continuing surprise at his privileges,
glimpse of him. A boy who presented hin with a plaque and
made a short speech won Truman'S admiration by refusing
to be bothered or impressed. ."At his age | would have
passed out if l had had to make a similar statement to the
town mayor. These modern kids are something to write home
about"
sence of his wife-his "only sweetheart from the time l was
six" In school he thought she "the most beautiful and the
sweetest person on eaTtn, anQ is SLlll OF t1aL opinion, aIter
rs years of being married to her"
Stunning the spotlight himself, even embarrassed when
his Secret Service men clear the way for him in a crowd, the
President is impatient with publicity-seeking "prima donnas"
among his aides. Some of my boys have trouble with their
dignity and prerogatives. The publicity complex is hell =. l..
When a man comes along without it try to grab him" %
Truman attends the First Baptist Church, for there he is
treated as a church member, not as the head of a circus"
Occasionally a dull service" gives him a chance to do some
thinking" He attributes much of the worlds trouble to con-
troverses between sects and creeds. Il never thought God
picked any favorites," one of his notes observes.
Among his favorite music: Mozart's Ninth Sonata, Beet
hovens Fifth Symphony, the Scherzo by Mendelssohn, Chop
ms Waltzes, some urn-of-the-century comic operas, Strauss
Blue Danube, Bach's preludes and fugues. In a letter to
Grandma Moses he wrote, my piano playing doesn't amount
to much"
Preventive war, however, is seen by the President as
1.-The most awful approach to the present problem We are
building our strength, not to march against the Russians but
to discourage them from marching against us and the free
world"
Of his office he wrote, Il am not my own boss any
MORE am the hired man of $50 million people The
people have no lobby in Washington looking after their in
terests except the President of the United States"