Eleanor Roosevelt – My Day (May 1940)

21

May 24, 1940

Arthurdale, W. Va., Thursday –
Just before coming into Elkins, we stopped at the camp for underprivileged children which I had heard about before, but never had had an opportunity to visit. It is one of the best examples I have seen of what cooperation between various agencies can accomplish. Once it was a CCC camp and two buildings were added to serve as schoolrooms, built by WPA and NYA combined, I think. All the workers are paid by WPA, which results in a complicated schedule. However, the staff works in two shifts and is so planned that in spite of WPA layoffs, there are no gaps in the children’s care and life goes on smoothly from week to week.

The State Public Assistance pays for the food, part of which is furnished by the Federal Surplus Commodities Corporation. The cost per child is about 26¢ per day, and every child gets a quart of milk daily and a well balanced diet. The camp is now run winter and summer. The children look remarkably healthy. They are being inured to a certain amount of the discomforts to be found in the neighboring rural homes, but the essentials of decent living are all here and there is evidently a spirit of cooperation among all the workers and real happiness in the children.

The county provides three teachers and school is held here through the eighth grade. A county worker is in charge of finding foster homes for the children and they are carefully watched. Some of the children have been in the camp as long as four years, but the average stay is a few months. In all the time the camp has been running, there has never been an epidemic. One child developed scarlet fever and was promptly isolated and no one else came down with it.

Tygart Valley, which we reached at 5:00 in the afternoon, has improved tremendously. When I was there last, they had no school and no industry. Now they have both. The school is a modern compact building and will serve their purpose admirably. The factory also is a modern building and extremely well run and they hope by the end of the year to have all their workers trained to the proper speed for economical production. They can probably give all the employment which is needed by the homesteaders in addition to the necessary farming.

This homestead seems to me like one of the best I have seen. There were about 23 boys and girls in the graduating class, and they were such nice looking youngsters. This is not yet a full high school, so they could only graduate from the ninth grade, but next year they hope to have a tenth grade.

The news which came over our little portable radio from England this afternoon was interesting. When a nation voluntarily sets up the kind of self-discipline that is implied in the control over industry and private wealth, as well as the supervision of every citizen’s activity, it shows a willingness to give for the sake of preserving what it happens to believe.

22

May 25, 1940

Wheeling, W. Va., Friday –
Yesterday began with a very pleasant breakfast on the porch at the Arthurdale Inn, which has a delightful view of the community center and some of the homesteads spread out below. Then I met the homesteaders’ committee, after which a band led by a WPA instructor, played on the grass in front of the community center. We visited the craft shop which is now doing very good work and has sales for its pieces in many of the larger furniture stores in the East.

An NYA resident project has been started here, but it is not yet in full swing. There are some forty boys in a woodworking shop, who also cultivate their own gardens. The girls work in the school at a variety of jobs.

I am wondering if enough emphasis has been laid in these communities on the importance of developing the democratic processes in the government of the community. It is hard to sense this when one is only there for a short time, but I was so very conscious in the Farm Security Camps for migrant workers, of the scrupulous care which the managers exercised in developing self-government. I do not come across the same signs in these homesteads. This is such fertile ground for real lessons in democracy, that it would be a pity if we were not taking full advantage of our opportunities.

I went into the new little pottery kiln back of the school, which is used by the school children and adults in the community again under the instruction of a WPA teacher. They are not really very proficient as yet, though some of their pieces have a lovely glaze.

The janitor of the school does the nicest work of anybody in the community. He made a very delicate figure of a man holding his rifle against his knee and presented it to me for the President. He also gave me a lovely lamp he had made.

Following this interlude, a school meeting took place. Then I went to Morgantown for my broadcast and a greeting to the Queen of the Campuses, a charming young University of West Virginia girl. We returned for lunch and commencement exercises in Arthurdale. In the afternoon, we visited Scotts Run, where some measure of improvement can be seen in the work of the cooperative. There is more work in the mines too, which in itself will bring in cash and an increased standard of living.

Commencement at the University High School was a revelation in what may be worn this year by the well dressed young lady. The girls looked such a pretty picture in their light colored dresses and quite outshone the boys. Following their graduating exercises, I went to one of the fraternity houses on the campus for a few minutes, then a dinner at the Hotel Morgan and, finally, a dedication of a new high school auditorium. So ended yesterday. So far, I can record a delightful ride and hope that we may have a much quieter schedule.

23

May 27, 1940

Washington, Sunday –
Mrs. Morgenthau and I rose early on Friday morning and went with the NYA State Director, Mr. Callahan, to see the four houses in which the resident NYA boys at Arthurdale are living. These boys certainly do a thorough job of housekeeping. Everything was spic and span and I think this project will develop into something really valuable for the community. Immediately after this inspection, we started on our drive from Arthurdale to Wheeling, W. Va., which seemed short. Strange to say, we found ourselves ahead of schedule.

Our first stop was to be a few miles outside of Wheeling. A mine superintendent had written to ask me if I would spend five minutes beside the road, for some of his men wanted a chance to see me. I did so and they presented me a letter from which I quote, because it shows what can be done when people of goodwill meet together.

There exists here a fine spirit of cooperation between the employees and the employer. Under the union agreement, all grievances are taken up with the proper officials and a settlement reached that is satisfactory to all concerned.

In tribute to the efficient and humanitarian policy adhered to by the management, I might say that the mines are operating with a minimum of labor saving machinery and everything that is humanly possible has been done to provide work for as many men as possible under the circumstances. This is all the more noteworthy when one takes into consideration the fact that competition is very keen in the coal business and the installation of modern machinery by the other companies has made that competition the harder to meet.

The officials of the coal company are also to be commended for their treatment of the aged coal miners, since not a single employee has been laid off due to advanced age.

Next, we stopped off at the little WPA nursery school in a room over a garage. In that one room the food for the children is cooked in a corner. Their cots are put out when it is time to sleep. All their clothes and washing things are neatly hung on pegs along the wall and the few toys and educational material which they have are kept on shelves and brought out when the room is cleared of cots and food. Not the most ideal situation under which to care for little children, but still the children looked well and those in charge told me they had gained in weight.

Then we lunched at Oglebay Park. This park is something pleasant to think about, but it seems a little hard to reach if you are short of cash and have a family to take out for a holiday. It is wild and beautiful in spots, the different camp sites are charming and the bridle paths and walking trails are a joy. I am very proud of the swimming pool and the building which goes with it where dances and parties may be held, for it is one of the best construction jobs I have seen done by WPA.

24

May 28, 1940

New York, Monday –
I must finish telling about my day in Wheeling, West Virginia. The Coal Area Council gave us a tea soon after we reached the hotel. Then I had a visit with the Junior League Group, which is running a small settlement house where they are trying to interest unemployed boys in a program of recreation and, through that making an attempt to find them jobs. Later a group of Democratic women called and a little girl came as a delegate from her school to get an autograph book signed.

Finally, I went to my lecture. While there, poor Mrs. Morgenthau was told that no one could find the copy of my column, so she spent a harrowing evening trying to locate it. The loss was partly my own fault and partly that of the messenger boy, who evidently decided that the word “press” on the copy meant that it had to be taken to a newspaper, instead of meaning the rate at which it was to be sent. I had not explained carefully enough that it had to go to the telegraph office. Someday, perhaps, I shall learn all the different ways in which one may lose a column.

We took the night train to Washington. Saturday was largely spent catching up on mail, although I drove out to Mrs. William Corcoran Eustis’ place, “Oatlands,” in the afternoon to meet some of her neighbors, teachers, social workers and others.

They were a most interesting group. I enjoyed being with them and having them ask me certain questions which I did not always feel adequately prepared to answer. I have not been in Mrs. Eustis’ garden since 1918, and it is now one of the most beautiful formal gardens I have ever seen. Great bushes of box make it fragrant and I do not wonder that Mrs. Eustis is proud of what she has achieved in the way of grace and beauty.

Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Gould and their young daughter were with us for the night, and also Mr. and Mrs. Rundle Gilbert with their small son. With Diana Hopkins this makes three children in the house and it is nice to hear their voices.

Sunday was a fairly busy day and, in the late afternoon, I flew up to New York City to go to a meeting of the New York City Council of the American Youth Congress. This morning I am leaving for Philadelphia to spend the day with Mrs. Curtin Winsor and to see our grandson, Bill Roosevelt, and her other little boy. This evening she will drive me over after early dinner to Haddonfield, NJ, where, after my lecture, a car from Washington will pick me up and motor me to New York City.

I have said little or nothing the past few days about European news. When in Washington there is little else that one can think about, but one tries to avoid it as a topic of conversation. Since the President was preparing his speech last weekend, everyone in the house was keenly aware not only of the aspects of the European situation, but of its implications for each and every one of us.

25

May 29, 1940

New York, Tuesday –
It is interesting to note in some of the papers during the last few days, the suggestion that to insist that the hours of labor shall not be increased is a short-sighted policy in view of the fact that rapidity of production is necessary. It seems to me that the people who say this are forgetting the fact that an employed nation is necessary for the survival of a democratic form of government, and that it will be time enough to increase the hours of labor when we have cut our unemployment to the minimum. It may be said that the type of workers needed are not those who are unemployed. It seems to me, with industry really wishing to cooperate on this defense front, it might be possible to train some of those who are now unemployed and who have not previously been mechanics, so that they would be able to go to work when new factories are ready to receive them.

Some people seem still unable to realize the fact that it is important to make democracy worth fighting for. Unless that challenge is met, we are apt to find ourselves with large numbers of people in our midst who care very little under what form of government they have to exist.

Many of us noted with admiration the action of the British Parliament, which practically conscripted all available materials for the use of the government in its present emergency. But others have been saying that this action means an acknowledgement, either that a democracy must meet a dictatorship by becoming a dictatorship itself or, that England has never really been a democracy and therefore is making little or no change by accepting these new conditions.

It seems to me that this reasoning is unsound, because there is a great difference between a dictatorship imposed by an individual who gathers unto himself a following and allows them the ruthless use of force, and the temporary dictatorship imposed by a people who discipline themselves by accepting dictation in order to preserve their liberty.

It seems incredible to hear of the surrender of the Belgian King. Yet, I suppose, there comes a point where human endurance can bear up no longer. One more country is now officially under Nazi domination.

I had such a pleasant day yesterday with Mrs. Curtin Winsor and her two children. She has just taken over a new house and I can never see a house being done over without wanting to have a hand in it. I think I would have enjoyed being an interior decorator.

I spoke in the evening in the Haddonfield, New Jersey, Memorial High School and arrived in my New York City apartment about 12:30 last night. It is still raining today and this does not add to one’s cheerfulness, but nothing I am doing will be much affected by the weather.

26

May 30, 1940

New York, Wednesday –
In various places I have moved about recently, I have been confronted with red poppies. I hurriedly look in my bag to see if I still have the last one to show, but finding it gone each time, I fish out more money and buy a new one. Veterans of the last World War are still in the hospitals and it is fitting that we should make their lot pleasanter by remembering them in this week before Memorial Day and by paying our share to the veterans’ fund.

I want to congratulate the Amalgamated Clothing Workers on their silver jubilee, which they have just celebrated. This union has pioneered in many fields. Of course, their primary purpose has been to obtain the best possible wages and working conditions for the workers in the clothing and related industries, but they have undertaken labor banking, cooperative housing, unemployment insurance, life insurance and a real program of cultural activities.

I visited two crowded rooms used by the “Youth Services” at 400 East 71st Street yesterday morning. There were so many activities going on that I decided whatever else was being done, the young people were learning concentration, which is valuable in any kind of work. A real job is being done by these young people. They surveyed their district, which runs from 59th to 96th Streets, and Lexington Avenue to the East River. They know there are 31,000 young people between the ages of 16 and 25 living there and that 16,000 of them are out of school and unemployed. They know that they have succeeded in getting some twenty jobs in the course of the last few days. That isn’t enough, however. They have discovered that most of these young people were educated in high school to go on to college and the majority of them are now trying to go to work and need training in some skill.

They also told me that three out of four of them have never taken the trouble to vote when they reached the voting age. I think they are discovering valuable facts. If they find a way to get these facts over to the community, they will have done a real service not only to their own community, but to many others. In addition to that, I think that the fact that they are all working together is giving them a sense of security which is essential if you are going to persist in looking for a rather elusive job.

After my broadcast, we lunched in a nearby restaurant with my cousin, Mr. Monroe Robinson, and then motored to Trenton, New Jersey. There I visited the State Home For Girls, which is one of the most encouraging institutions I have seen in a long time. These girls are treated like human beings. Their time is filled with educational and recreational activities and most of them looked happy. We dined with Mr. and Mrs. Robert Bowman, and after my lecture motored back to New York City. Today I am going to Olean, New York, for a lecture tonight.

27

May 31, 1940

New York, Thursday –
All day yesterday we journeyed by train through the familiar scenery of New York State. Usually I motor through this part of the country, but the Erie Railroad takes one through some lovely places. The light green of the hillsides, darkened here and there by evergreen trees, with the full and swiftly flowing brooks and rivers, makes the trip very delightful. Mountain laurel brightens the hills, and the lilacs and many of the flowering shrubs and spring bulbs are out in people’s gardens. I wonder if my own lilacs will be gone when I next go home.

The familiar names which I have never attached to any railroad station before, and the parts of towns and villages which lie near the railroad tracks, but which you do not often see when motoring, were very interesting – Hancock, Owego, Elmira, Hornell, Corning went by like an unfolding panorama. I liked the name “Friendship” for a town. It would be reassuring if you were a stranger.

Finally, we came to Olean. I had not been in Olean for a good many years, and then I was organizing for the Democratic State Committee. Coming back to give a nonpartisan lecture seemed odd, but I must say I found it easier to talk about things which do not center around a political party.

I had the pleasure of seeing Judge Dowd and his two daughters. He is an old and loyal friend and it is always good to see him. We had supper with him after the lecture, while we waited for our train back to New York City. He is coming to Washington Tuesday, so I’ll see him there.

Today I saw two gentlemen before going to my broadcast. I left immediately after that for Westchester County, where I am giving a Memorial Day address at Ferncliff Cemetery. In the evening a few friends dined with me in New York City.

Tomorrow the members of the Good Neighbor Tour of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs will sail for a visit to the South American Republics. I think it is very significant that they are going at this time to cement friendship between us and our sister nations to the south of us when the countries across the Atlantic Ocean are engaged in a life and death struggle which cannot fail to bring untold suffering to many, no matter which way it turns.

I hope these women will take my good wishes to all those whom they visit and that they will have a safe and pleasant journey. On their return they will have the satisfaction of knowing they have made new contacts and new friendships between peoples who desire to remain at peace.