The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers, Digital Edition > My Day
JULY 20, 1938
[Original version of the column. Text in red are tagged with <sic> (needs correction); text in purple are tagged with <orig> (needs regularization); and text in blue are tagged names of persons or organizations. View emended version]
HYDE PARK , N. Y., Tuesday—Our flight back to New York was very comfortable and the weather was good all the way until just before we got into Newark. There we had gray skies and a little bumpy weather. James had so many things to do in the morning before we left that he entirely forgot to bring a bottle of milk on the plane.
While you eat little at a time, under the treatment they have been giving him, you take something every hour. So I was glad to get to Chicago, where we went into the restaurant with C. R. Smith and James had a glass of milk while I sipped orange juice.
We then began to consider what James could have for lunch. They brought us the menu of what they would have on the plane and it didn't sound exactly right, so we compromised on canned tomato soup, ice cream, a glass of milk and a piece of melba toast. This time we did take two bottles of milk with us, thanks to Mr. Smith, who made all the arrangements.
He is so kind about meeting us and doing things for us! We all are so fond of him that I think we feel lost when he doesn't appear at the airport. I was glad all we found necessary on this trip was a little special food!
The restaurant at the airport was crowded and by the time the newspaper photographers had come in and spectators in the airport had each had a shot of us with kodaks of their own, Jimmy remarked: "It's a bit like eating in a zoo, isn't it?"
I have grown entirely hard-hearted about refusing autographs in a crowd, but one small boy looked so appealing that though I refused to sign for him, I told him to write to me in Washington. That seemed to strike him as such an extraordinary thing to do, I am afraid he will never get around to it.
We reached New York on time and I found it less tiring to do this trip by day than by night. But James was rather weary. After dinner with a friend, and a quiet evening, we proceeded this morning to Hyde Park.
Sad to say, today is a gray day, which threatens rain at any minute, although I am expecting to have a party out-of-doors this afternoon. Luckily I think we can move indoors, if necessary, at short notice.
The grandchildren have just arrived for lunch with me. They look well and I was as glad to see them as if I'd been gone a month.
I found considerable mail to catch up on, but nothing like what one usually has in Washington after one has been away for three days. Word from my husband says that he is delighted to be at last on the restful part of his trip.
On the way home I read the first article in the American Magazine, written by Postmaster General James A. Farley. I suppose that because I am familiar with the subject it may be more interesting to me than to others. Yet it might for that very reason have seemed dull and repetitious.
Instead, I felt I was hearing Jim talk and I think he has achieved an easy style which is most engaging. He has also written the article with such fairness and objectivity, where the people with whom he came in contact are concerned, that I think everyone will find it interesting reading.
E.R.
(Copyright, 1938, by United Feature Syndicate, Inc.)
Names and Terms Mentioned or Referenced
Persons
- Farley, James A. (James Aloysius), 1888-1976 [ index ]
American politician; US Postmaster General
[ ERPP bio | LC | ISNI | VIAF | Wikidata | SNAC | FAST | US Nat. Archives | ANB ] - Roosevelt, James, 1907-1991 [ index ]
American businessman, activist, and politician; ER's and FDR's son
[ ERPP bio | LC | ISNI | VIAF | Wikidata | SNAC | FAST | US Nat. Archives ] - Smith, C. R. (Cyrus Rowlett), 1899-1990 [ index ]
American businessman and civil servant; CEO of American Airlines from 1934 to 1968 and 1973 to 1974; Secretary of Commerce from 1968 to 1969
[ LC | ISNI | VIAF | Wikidata | SNAC | FAST ]
Geographic
- [ index ] Hyde Park (Dutchess County, N.Y., United States)
Other Terms and Topics
- Roosevelt, Eleanor -- Travel
About this document
My Day by Eleanor Roosevelt, July 20, 1938
Digital edition created by The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project The George Washington University 312 Academic Building 2100 Foxhall Road, NW Washington, DC 20007
Digital edition published 2008, 2017 by
The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project
Available under licence from the Estate of Anna Eleanor Roosevelt.
Published with permission from the Estate of Anna Eleanor Roosevelt.
MEP edition publlished on June 30, 2008.
TEI-P5 edition published on April 28, 2017.
XML master last modified on: May 2, 2022.
HTML version generated and published on: May 3, 2022.
TMs, AERP, FDRL