The Pittsburgh Press (September 18, 1944)
No talks for wife of Dewey
But she meets many individuals
By Kirtland I. King
Aboard Dewey campaign train (UP) –
Mrs. Thomas E. Dewey is enjoying every minute of her transcontinental campaign tour as the wife of the Republican presidential nominee – even to doing her own laundry.
With nearly two-thirds of the 6,700-mile trip behind her, Mrs. Dewey appears as fresh today as when she left New York City more than a week ago for the coast-to-coast campaign trip.
She said:
I am enjoying this trip tremendously, because I enjoy meeting people. Every day there is something new and interesting.
Mrs. Dewey has confined her part in the campaign to attending receptions and talking with the women privately. The speechmaking phase of the campaign will have to be carried by the Governor, she said.
Today was laundry day for Mr. Dewey and the more than 70 newspaper reporters accompanying him, but it is no problem for Mrs. Dewey as she has been keeping her washing up to date while the train speeds west.
Travels light
She said that she managed to pick up a few nylon underthings and blouses which require only a short time to dry and no ironing. Mrs. Dewey is traveling much lighter than most of the men on the train, carrying her clothes in two bags.
Simple suits and a plentiful supply of colored and white blouses have solved the clothes problem for her. She admitted that wearing the same clothes again and again got somewhat tiresome but said it was the most practical
Mrs. Dewey is up early each morning and after breakfast with the Governor in their private car she is ready for meeting with women’s groups while the Governor and GOP nominee is engaged in conferences with various political leaders.
Many of the women’s groups, which have sponsored receptions in her honor, have asked Mrs. Dewey to speak – to discuss issues of the campaign – but she always declines. She prefers to stay a little longer at the receptions and talk to the women individually.
“What do you talk about?” she was asked. She replied:
Oh, things women usually talk about – children, education and problems of the home.
Reads a lot
While the Governor is writing speeches on the train, Mrs. Dewey usually catches up on her reading. She reads every newspaper she can get and keeps Mr. Dewey up on current events.
When a speech is finished, Mrs. Dewey is given the final draft for her opinion.
She writes daily to her two sons (Thomas E. Jr., 11, and John M., 8), who remained in Albany with the Governor’s cousin, Katherine Dewey. She talked to them by telephone from Lansing, Michigan, to see if they were ready to start school.
Mrs. Dewey said beauty parlors are a problem, especially after riding in open cars, but so far, she has managed by fixing her own hair.
Her associates, Mrs. Carol Hogan and Mrs. Irene Kuhn, say she is one of the finest campaigners they have ever met.