I was a child during the Great Depression in Phoenix, AZ, which, like every place, was hard hit by the Depression. Even though I was very young I was aware of it because the radio news shows broadcast stories about little else except, later, the brewing war in Europe. My father was the head of a bank and worried about a potential bank failure. He succeeded in selling the bank and retained his job so we were not personally affected.

I remember vividly the unemployed men coming from the road in back of our house, through our gate and asking for work. My mother paid them for yard work if she had it; and in any case, she gave them a sandwich and a dollar bill. What a difference from today. There was no fear of these unemployed strangers and much sympathy everywhere for them. Except for a few hate mongers and their followers, we were a united country worried about the people who were suffering and willing to pay the price to put them to work on Federal projects and alleviate their hardship in any way we could.