Ohio History Journal

MARY L. WHITE

Mary White: Autobiography of an

Ohio First Lady

As I hurriedly dressed I could hear the commotion downstairs, while outside the

National Guard was forming with appropriate commands and the neighing of

horses. It was Inauguration Day in Columbus, Ohio, January 12, 1931--my

father would soon be Governor George White. Because of the recent death of

Mother I was, at the age of twenty-four, to be Father's official hostess and First

Lady of Ohio. Full of determination to take the time to look my best, I was

applying my make-up when the voice of my father came up the stairs above the

laughter of the newspaper men, "Mary, where is my button hook?" I rushed into

his room and found it. With only one cheek rouged and no powder on, I ran

down to present it to the new Governor of Ohio. Yes, he was wearing his high

button shoes for the occasion.

I then went into the dining room in quest of a cup of coffee. There sat the

family, my sister Charlotte, my three brothers David, George and Bob, and Aunt

Florence, Uncle Bob and their daughter, Peggy. Relieved, I noted that breakfast

was going smoothly and raised my cup for a first sip. Just then one of the ten

newspaper men in the hall beckoned to me and I went to see what he wanted. It

seemed the troops and horses of the National Guard were feeling and looking very

pert so the Columbus Dispatch and the Columbus Citizen wanted a picture of me

with them. Without slipping on a coat I went out to the porte cochere to be with

the photographers. The Guard made a pretty sight that crisp January morning.

Shivering, I took my stand among them next to the captain whose horse became

overly excited and thrust his front hoof against my shin. Fortunately this happened

after the pictures were taken.

Feeling a little shaken and slightly bruised, I returned to the dining room and

retrived my coffee and a piece of toast. Then I checked with the kitchen, for after

the reception downtown we were entertaining the cabinet, the members of the

Even though Miss Mary White wrote of her experiences as First Lady in 1958, every effort

was made to recall how she felt and acted in 1931-1935 so that the reader may share with

her her experiences as they happened along the way. Miss White's original manuscript is

titled, "Study in White," and is deposited in the Ohioana Library in Columbus. It is a type-

script fifty-three pages in length. Most of the manuscript is printed here, but certain portions

are not included, such as some minor anecdotes and the details of the 1932 governors'

conference in Richmond, Virginia.

Mary White                                                          67

numerous that later I had them moved to the State Office Building where they

remain today.

The butler's pantry was good sized, fortunately, for we had two complete sets

of dishes--the Wedgewood for every day and the Lennox for state occasions. The

kitchen was adequate, and off it was a small dining room for the help.

The broad stairway divided half way up. On the landing was a large window,

over which I placed a beautiful light blue rayon curtain. The two sides of the

stairs curved on up to the second floor. I can still clearly recall the thrill of seeing

and hearing Pop Hoenig's famous boys' choir ranged on that stairway. The upstairs

hall was also spacious. The west wing was occupied by Father and myself. His

room was furnished with mansion furniture, while I brought all my furniture from

our home in Marietta. My room was truly lovely, with mauve taffeta bedspreads

and drapes, my grandmother's handsome pineapple beds and her Dutch inlaid

bureau. There was a very attractive and convenient dressing room with a big mirror

and dressing table and many shelves and drawers. The bedroom at the front of the

house was used by Charlotte. The east wing had the same room arrangement as

the west wing--two bedrooms, a dressing room, and a bath. I used this suite for

our guests. At the back of the house were three maids' rooms and a bath.

The third floor was a finished ball room which we did not use much because of

the depression. It was, of course, suffocatingly hot in the summer. Father one day

announced that he wanted to get more exercise and would like to put a punching

bag up in the ball room. I demurred with horror at first, but eventually yielded,

and up went the punching bag, ridiculous as it did look there. The next day the

newspapers sent photographers to take the governor's picture in a characteristic

"punch the bag" pose. That was the first and last time anybody paid any attention

to it!

In the front basement we had a play room with comfortable furniture and a

pool table on which we also played ping pong. The three-car garage had a small

apartment upstairs where Peter, the yard man, lived.

The lawn and gardens were beautiful and well cared for. I accepted all com-

pliments for my flowers and only now confess that when I wanted to plant a new

flower, I sent the soil to Ohio State University. There they examined it and

fertilized it properly to make the flower flourish. My green thumb was really due

to that great institute of learning! The sunken garden was formal and led to a

small pond. In another section of the yard, in the shade of some large trees, were

some comfortable chairs and a table. The reason I spent so much time there was

the wonderful rope swing which I found to be most relaxing. My contribution to

the yard was a large rose garden. The roses came from Texas and the little paths

through it were of the tan bark that I had admired at French Lick Springs, Indiana.

The Governor's Mansion staff consisted of five persons. My "right hand man"

was Margaret McCullough from Marietta. On the drive up to Columbus I remarked

to her that I would miss the hills of Washington County and I didn't care for the

flat country of Franklin County. "Oh, Miss Mary," she replied, "in flat country

the Indians can't sneak up on you!" Margaret stayed on at the mansion after we

left, and Jane Lausche said that she couldn't have run the house without her.

The butler, Joseph Leatherbury, trained by Mrs. B. G. Dawes' housekeeper,

Miss Sniff, was very efficient and capable. He always invited my guests to "rest

their wraps," and in other ways added considerable dignity to the household. Eva

68                                                         OHIO HSTORY

Evans was my "second story girl," as she called herself. She and Margaret took

care of the second floor and Eva served breakfast. She was of invaluable help to

me on the days I had to change my clothes many times. I became very fond of

Eva since she was so cheerful and sweet. I had a difficult time finding the right

cook. I believe that Mrs. Carrie Barnett was the fourth one and I am glad that I

kept on trying until she came because she was truly a gem. Everybody loved

Carrie, and she stayed on at the mansion with Mrs. Davey, Mrs. Bricker, Mrs.

Herbert, and Jane Lausche.

Ohio had a most novel and, to me, a worthy custom. The Ohio Penitentiary was

located in Columbus and the warden's wife, Mrs. Preston Thomas, trained a num-

ber of the young trusties to serve at the mansion teas. Many of the governors used

convict help in the mansion. The yard man, Peter, was a lifer from the penitentiary.

He was a Swede and talked about the "waives" and the "wines." He was a very

hard worker and he was devoted to the yard and gardens. Several days a week a

guard from the penitentiary brought some prisoners to the mansion, and Peter put

them to work in the gardens. The large gold fish from the garden pond were kept

in the garage in the winter. One day when I returned from my shopping I smelled fish

cooking. The odor came from the garage and I went to investigate. The convicts

were eating my goldfish! I rushed for the encyclopedia because I feared the fish

might be poisonous, and was relieved to read that they were harmless carp. Peter

and the guard had locked the convicts in the garage while they went on an errand.

The fish were there and so was a little stove, and they proceeded to have them-

selves a goldfish fry.

A lifer had to have full pardon from the governor before he could be released

from prison since the parole system did not apply to prisoners with life sentences.

Father gave Peter his pardon the Christmas of 1934, and he was so grateful that

he wept. Peter took care of the furnace, and he raised and lowered the American

flag each day. I had a ten dollar bet with a friend that the flag at the mansion

would never be hung upside down. One morning, some months later, I heard a

commotion outside my window. It was newspaper photographers taking pictures of

our flag, and it was upside down! The pictures later appeared in the paper under

the caption, "Governor's Mansion in Distress." Little did they know that the

distress was of a financial nature--and personal!

After the inauguration my life settled down to a pattern. Each morning after

breakfast I went to the kitchen to consult with Carrie about food matters. I had

to plan two menus, one for the help and one for us. Father was seldom at the

mansion for dinner. Because of the distressed times, his days were occupied by

interviews with the many people who needed jobs. As a result, his cabinet meet-

ings and other important conferences had to be held at night, and he returned

often very late. Sometimes he would join my date and me for scrambled eggs

while we listened to Ann Leaf's organ music on the radio. Of course, we went to

a great many banquets, too. Somebody figured out the enormous amounts of

chicken parts, mashed potatoes, peas, and ice cream which we consumed in four

years of banquets! When Father did come home for dinner, he was never disturbed

by the phone--I thought he deserved an hour of peace and quiet. He was equally

solicitous of my need for change and relaxation and always made sure that none

of my engagements were disturbed by his presence at dinner. Due to the large

volume of mail arriving daily, I was very seldom able to clear my desk. A governor's

Mary White                                                          69

wife or hostess really needs a housekeeper-secretary, but I didn't realize that until

long after leaving the mansion, alas!

The telephone system at the mansion was very complex. Jo answered the phone

and he could push a button and hold the call while he phoned me to see whether

I wanted to talk or not. This was very convenient. On one occasion I made the

mistake of answering the phone myself and a crank showered me with disgusting

invectives. I appreciated the protection our telephone system gave me after that

experience.

I usually went shopping at ten-thirty, and then on to my luncheon engagement.

I was an honorary member of many organizations--why, I was even an honorary

member of the Ohio State University Mothers' Club. I enjoyed the many meetings

and programs to which I was invited, and appreciated the cordiality and warmth

of the Columbus women. After lunch, which usually lasted till two or three o'clock,

I had a little time to myself for tennis or swimming with my friends. The Princeton

and Smith Clubs in Columbus welcomed Father and me, and we became members

of the Broad Street Presbyterian Church. Our circle of friends thus grew steadily

larger. I enjoyed being a member of the Children's Hospital Twig and the

Pleasure Guild. During my third year in Columbus I was invited to join the

Junior League, a worthy organization, with a planned and efficient social service

program. I also enjoyed attending and working in the Columbus Little Theatre.

Two or three afternoons a week I entertained at tea at the mansion. The

Chamber of Commerce let me know what organizations were convening and I

invited the wives of the delegates to tea. Governor and Mrs. Cooper had provided

all the refreshments for these affairs, but I told Father when we first came to the

mansion that because of our deflated depression income, we would not be able to

afford the expense of this type of entertainment. Father demurred at the change

because of the political aspect, but he eventually yielded, and everybody was

most cooperative. I slowly got those teas down to a fine science. We used, for

every hundred ladies, a pound of tea, one-half pound of sugar, one pint of cream,

eight lemons sliced very thin by our expert Jo, and two pounds of mints. Quite

often the teas were more elaborate, with ice cream or ices and cake. Sometimes

the ladies brought their own flowers, and I remember that one organization deco-

rated the whole downstairs for its Christmas tea. We enjoyed the beautiful effect

all through the holidays.

In preparation for the teas, the trusties were brought over from the penitentiary,

they donned their white jackets, and Jo put them to work. In my afternoon dress,

including high heels, I joined the officers of the organization being entertained in

the receiving line, and we were ready for action. Often there was a musical pro-

gram provided by the Music Club. One fine April afternoon we had eleven

hundred ladies! In summer the teas were held in the yard with a large punch

bowl for cool drinks, and our inevitable cookies and mints.

But back to my typical day--it is now five o'clock. Cups and spoons are

being washed in the kitchen, and the young convicts are laughing and enjoying

themselves. I always gave them a good meal before sending them back to the

penitentiary. After the teas I went swimming in the summer and played the

piano in the winter. After dinner I usually had a date. As the Columbus Star

put it, "Mary White has enough men to fill the Holland Tunnel." Of course I

always suspected that quite a number of my swains wanted to brag about taking

Mary White                                                          71

out the First Lady of Ohio. I managed to have a very good time, and an un-

alcoholic one, too, because my father was a strictly "dry" governor. When my

friends went to speak easies, I came home. Although Father enjoyed a drink,

he always said that if he had the power to take a pen and strike out all alcoholic

drinks, he would. Liquor has caused, and will always cause, much discord and

suffering when used in excess.

Father and I had many pleasant times while he was governor. We were

honorary members of all the Columbus country clubs. We also received compli-

mentary tickets to the movies and sport events. Our seats in the football stadium

were on the fifty yard line and so near the field that we watched the team and the

coach close at hand. As a matter of fact, it was suggested that I get a job as a

scout because I had studied and taught lip reading. The football was good and

the two hundred piece band never failed to thrill me. The college bands in the

East, to which I was accustomed, were spirited and tuneful, but they did not

make the shivers go down my spine like the great Ohio State band playing the

"Alma Mater." After the game, and this did spoil us, we were promptly con-

ducted from the stadium by motorcycle police.

There was one aspect of the governorship that was not so pleasant. This

morning (1958) I read in the Ohio State Journal that Senator George Bender

didn't want to be governor of Ohio because he "abhored the idea of having to

decide on the plea for executive clemency by a person condemned to die in

the electric chair." Indeed, I sympathize with Mr. Bender, and I know that

Father would, too, were he alive. This was the part of his power that was the

most upsetting to him. Few people realize the strain on the human heart of a

mother pleading for her son's life, and even asking what right the governor has

to let him die. The nights that Father returned from such a scene, he would

be very shaken and practically in tears. The first execution while he was in office

was that of three boys who had robbed and killed a gas station owner.

The Governor's Mansion was always guarded the night of an execution. On

the night of the triple execution when I left with my date at eight o'clock, I told

the guards that my father and I were not afraid and that they might as well go

home. When we returned to the mansion at about one o'clock, I was frightened

by a bright red flare in the front yard. I sent my date for a radio cruiser and as I

walked into the house a car back fired outside, which, in my distraught state,

sounded exactly like a pistol shot. It was so like a pistol shot that I rushed up-

stairs and hysterically clutched my sleeping parent! We never did discover the

origin of that flare, but I surely was cured of eliminating any safeguards for my

father's life.

I was interested in the convicts who worked at the mansion and remember

one case which particularly affected me. This young man, the assistant game

warden in one of the northern counties, caught a hunter shooting a hen pheasant,

an illegal act any time. When the offender saw the warden, he started running

up the hill and the warden ordered him to stop. Thinking he would nip him in

the leg, the young warden took a shot at him, but unfortunately he did not take

the slope of the hill in account and the shot killed the hunter. It seemed unfair

that he should receive a sentence of ten years because he was performing his

duty, but, of course, the family of the deceased was perfectly justified in demanding

a penalty.

72                                                          OHIO HISTORY

There was one colored convict who came frequently when we needed help

for housecleaning. He was very industrious and he told me about his life and how

much he loved his family in Chillicothe. I interceded with my father to parole

my friend. In due time his parole was granted, and he came to me with tears of

gratitude in his eyes and said that although he had enjoyed his "stay in Colum-

bus," he was very happy to be returning to his loved ones. Two days later, Father

called to give the latest news on my erring friend. He was back in the penitentiary!

He had returned to Chillicothe and almost immediately beat up on his wife. That

was my first and last request for parole. But I always was friendly and sympathetic

with the convicts, and several of them made gifts for me. Two of them stopped

at the mansion on their way home to thank me.

I had another experience with the penitentiary which was most sad and un-

fortunate. As I said, Father's days were filled interviewing people who needed

work. He had little time left for other types of interviews. I suggested that I

could talk to the relatives of the convicts, so a great many of them were turned

over to me. One mother told me that her eighteen year old son was serving three

years for robbery, which she understood, but she was horrified at the sexual

perversion to which he was subjected in the prison. Needless to say, I was so upset

by this information that my penitentiary interviews were stopped. It struck me as

strange then, and still does, that Mexico is so far ahead of us in prison improve-

ments. For good behavior there a convict may spend a night with his wife in

cubicles built especially for that purpose. How wise that is and why do we not

grant the same normal privilege to our convicts?

I also tried my hand at helping the girls in the Women's Reform School at

Marysville. I suggested to Welfare Director John McSweeney that some of the

more orderly girls be placed in approved private homes. This experiment was

in due time carried out and the girls were very happy about it. A year later I

was truly dismayed at the report that eighty-five percent of them were pregnant!

My father was well versed in both government and Democratic politics. Starting

in the Ohio General Assembly in 1905, he was three times sent to Congress by the

Republican Fifteenth District. In 1920 Father was elected chairman of the Demo-

cratic National Committee during the unsuccessful national campaign of James

Cox for President and Franklin D. Roosevelt for Vice President. My father

changed politics during the Wilson administration and we had many good friends

in the Democratic ranks: Governor Al Smith, Senator Alben Barkley, Senator

Pat Harrison, Mr. Cordell Hull, Senator Carter Glass, Vice President John

Garner, Mr. Joseph Tumulty, Mr. Bernard Baruch, and Governor James Byrnes.

Father also had many friends among the newspaper men, including Mr. Arthur

Krock and Mr. Frank Kent.

In an election Ohio voters are famous for scratching their tickets. As a result,

Father was the only Democrat elected on the state ballot in 1930--even the

lieutenant governor was a Republican. The majority of the legislature was also

Republican, but on the whole Father had fine cooperation from it, especially from

one of its members, Senator Robert Taft.

My father's cabinet appointments were excellent ones and a large share of

the accomplishments of his administration was due to them. The Director of

Commerce was Mr. Theodore Tangeman; of Finance, Mr. Howard Bevis; of High-

ways, Mr. O. W. Merrell; of Education, Mr. B. O. Skinner; of Agriculture, Mr.

74                                                         OHIO HISTORY

over on the curve was her son's, and Eddie was killed in that accident. I was

no admirer of speed, but I thought that every precaution possible was taken for

the safety of the drivers, and I was fascinated watching the incredibly fast changing

of tires on the race cars while the driver munched on an orange.

In 1933 the governors' conference was invited to California by Governor and

Mrs. James Rolph. I was very excited about flying all that way. I shall never

forget the beauty of the sunrise on the many colorful western canyons. After we

landed at Los Angeles, we immediately took another plane to San Francisco. That

is a beautiful flight up the Pacific Coast, and I remember passing over Bakersfield

and seeing its myriads of oil derricks. We came down at Fresno, located in the

midst of the large vineyards, and the passengers were given a glass of California's

delicious wine--all except me. For some unaccountable reason I had a glass of

buttermilk! At Oakland we were met by a limousine and were driven that un-

forgettable trip to Sacramento, through one of the most verdant and fertile

valleys in the United States. A reception was held in the Governor's Mansion at

Sacramento, where we were welcomed by Governor and Mrs. Rolph. The next

day we returned to San Francisco and, as the governor had been a most popular

mayor of the city, we were greeted with much acclaim as we drove through the

streets. There were a great many former Ohio residents who cheered Father and

me; then and there I proceeded to fall in love with San Francisco.

Governor Rolph was known as the "flying" governor of the United States, and

his pilot was Roscoe Turner, who was also well known for another important

passenger in his plane--a lion! Although I had never met Roscoe Turner, I had

a score to settle with him. Several months before I had been rudely awakened

at five o'clock in the morning by the motor of a plane which sounded as if it

were flying right through my room. I believe that many in Columbus were also

aroused since the noise was so loud and frightening. Mr. Turner admitted his

guilt and explained that he was making a record speed flight across the United

States. He had stopped in Columbus for fuel and found everybody at the airport

asleep. This infuriated him so much that he took off right over the tree tops.

Another interesting person that I met at the California conference was George

Holmes, the young and brilliant head of the INS News Service. Due to my

predilection to newspaper men, we struck up a fine friendship. I was even allowed

to help him with his syndicated column. I also spent the evening and a good part

of the night in the observation car of the train, which was taking our party to

Yosemite National Park, with the journalists. When I first learned that we were

going to California, I was particularly pleased because I had always wanted to see

Yosemite. Therefore, the next morning when Father came to see if I was ready

for breakfast he was very surprised and not pleased when I told him I was not

even interested in getting up. Anyone who has imbibed with newspaper reporters

will understand the reason!

Father duly breakfasted and returned to my berth to urge me to hurry and get

dressed. Finally I peeped out of the window and saw the governors' busses de-

parting. On the platform, pacing up and down, was the Governor of Ohio. Feeling

very guilty I hastily dressed and shakily appeared. By then Father was talking to

a man. He was the director of the park and he kindly offered to take us with

him, so we rode in the luxury of a roadster convertible. He, of course, was the

best informed person on the wonders of Yosemite. I was not scolded for my

76                                                         OHIO HISTORY

right next to one from Deadwood, South Dakota, and the dock leaving the ship

instead of the ship leaving the dock. We also visited MGM set of the movie,

"Dancing Daughters," which starred Joan Crawford. The scene was a night club

and there were about twelve chorus girls standing around waiting for the director

to call for their dance. They were gorgeous creatures and their decolletage was

most beauteous, but the effect of each one licking an ice cream cone was one of

the funniest I have ever seen.

The largest luncheon ever staged in Hollywood up to that time was the one

given for the visiting governors. Every actor and actress was present, many of

them in costume. We sat on a raised platform, and it was very thrilling to look

down and spot the many favorite movie personalities of the day. Father sat next

to Marie Dressler and came away loving her as did everybody. Before the

luncheon Will Rogers asked me which movie star my father was especially anxious

to meet, and I told him it was Greta Garbo. In his speech, he said, "Governor

White wants to meet Greta Garbo, well, I have been around the lot for over

twenty years and I haven't seen her yet myself!"

Mr. Louis B. Mayer asked a few of us to go to his daughter's home in Santa

Monica. Since Clark Gable came from Cadiz, Ohio, he was invited to swim with

Father and me in the pool. I was, of course, thrilled, and we had a good time with

him. Governor George H. Dern of Utah and Mrs. Dern were with our party there.

The governor told me about the best political slogan that I have ever heard. He

ran against a man named Maybe and his slogan was, "We need a Dern good Gov-

ernor and we don't mean Maybe."

After the conference was over and we were eating breakfast before boarding the

plane back to Columbus, a familiar figure came into the hotel dining room, headed

for our table. It was our friend Will Rogers. He had come into town to urge Father

and me to stay over for a luncheon that he was giving for about ten of the governors at

his ranch. Luckily we were able to change our reservations, and we drove out to

his place. As we approached we heard shouting and we could pick out Mr. Rogers'

voice above the rest. A field came in sight where cowboys were roping calves. We

watched Will Rogers and his son get theirs in the finest style, and then went on up

to the ranch house to meet Mrs. Rogers and their daughter Mary, a pretty blonde

in dark glasses. Would that I could describe that house and the many interesting

things in it that Mr. Rogers had collected.

We did not go to the governors' conference held in Michigan in 1934 because

Father was too busy trying to get the sales tax passed. Our first two years in office

sped by. In 1931 we entertained Governor and Mrs. Franklin Roosevelt of New

York for dinner. Mrs. Roosevelt had befriended me in many ways, principally by

teaching me to help my father. For instance, every Sunday morning she looked

through the New York Sunday newspapers and picked out the articles that would par-

ticularly interest her husband. Henceforth, I did the same with the Columbus

Dispatch and Citizen, the Cincinnati Enquirer, and the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Mrs. Roosevelt was the most interesting and vital woman that I have ever met.

To return to the dinner party, when I learned the Roosevelts had accepted our

invitation, I had the necessary ramps built on all the steps. Governor Roosevelt

couldn't lift his feet at all and he had to be lifted over a very small step between

the living room and the solarium. I do not recall the guest list that night, but I

do recall that Judge Robert Marks of Cincinnati was there. I sat next to Governor

Mary White                                                            79

and spirited horse. The governor looked handsome but uncomfortable, and when

he finally was able to bring his charger to a reviewing position, I saw him lean over

to say something to a nearby officer. Very soon afterwards he shifted from this

horse to a much calmer one. The officer told me later that Father had said to him,

"Who is Commander and Chief of the Army in Ohio?" "You, Sir," replied the

officer, and my father immediately commanded him to change him to a quiet horse.

The governor was also Commander and Chief of the Navy in Ohio, and when

we embarked on Lake Erie to dedicate the Perry Memorial on August 1, 1931, I

expected a prestigious craft. Instead, our boat was a converted rum chaser which

had obviously seen a lot of service, and I kidded Father unmercifully on his exalted

position in the Navy. We had a beautiful day for the ceremony, the band played,

and the airplanes maneuvered in the clear bright sky over the impressive Perry

Monument.

My sister, Charlotte, two years younger than I, and a graduate of Marietta

College, was a post graduate student at the Ohio State School of Journalism when

we first came to Columbus. She dropped the course a few months later and was

of invaluable help to me at the Governor's Mansion. At a meeting of the Crichton

Club, which brought many excellent speakers to Columbus, Charlotte represented

the governor. The speaker that evening was the English playwright and novelist

J. B. Priestly. He was not overly complimentary to our American culture, and as

the speech progressed my sister became more and more disgruntled. She finally

ejaculated to her escort, "I feel like going out and getting a big American hot dog!"

After his speech a reception line was formed so that the guests could meet Mr.

Priestly. Charlotte was introduced as the daughter of the governor and her escort

prankishly told the speaker about the remark she had made. Mr. Priestly drew

himself up and commented dryly that he didn't even like hot dogs. He must have

been intrigued, though, because he cut in on her several times during the dancing

later.

Although I had done a considerable amount of campaigning for Father's elec-

tion, I always dodged speechmaking whenever possible. It was very difficult for

me to memorize a speech, and I was not fast enough on my feet to ad lib. One of

the hardest things to do while speaking is to tell a joke properly. My first one was

a dismal failure, so I asked Senator Elben Barkley, a famous story teller, to teach

me. He was a delightful and able teacher and I remember my first performance.

The story sounds very unfunny now, and I was careful to have people spotted

to start the laughter. This is the story I told: President Hoover has stabilized the

American farmers--they are forced to sell their homes and move to the stables.

A speech that still seems very real to me was one that I made to a large audience

in Sidney, Ohio, during the campaign. Since I was the principal speaker of the

evening I not only took great pains with it, but also memorized it. As I was being

introduced the spot lights were turned on me and I became so frightened that I

couldn't remember one word of my speech. I stood there trembling when sud-

denly a small boy in the balcony said a loud, "Boo!" This amused me so much

that I relaxed and recited my speech properly.

The whole picture of Father's two terms as governor was colored by the dis-

tressing times which accompanied the depression. My father and I tried in every

way to cut down the expenses. He lowered his salary from $10,000 to $8,500. I

must have made a good record, too, for in our second term the Cleveland Plain

80                                                          OHIO HISTORY

Dealer stated in an editorial that Mrs. Roosevelt could learn something about

economy from Ohio's First Lady.

In March 1932 Charlotte and I were driving in our car over the "back way" to

Ohio State University to pay a visit to Mrs. Julius Stone, wife of the chairman of

the board of trustees. I was at the wheel and Charlotte was reading a book. About

four blocks from the Governor's Mansion, at an intersection where the street

which crossed ours came in diagonally, a large sedan appeared so suddenly that we

collided. Our car turned around a number of times, but the other car turned over.

I said, "Oh, Charlotte, we must go over and help those people!" But Charlotte

was no longer beside me. She had gone through the windshield and, to my horror,

was lying on her head against a telephone pole. Fortunately, there was a small

store on the corner and I begged some of the bystanders to call for an ambulance.

When the ambulance came and I sat in it beside my sister, I could only pray

and hope that she would survive, she was so badly cut about the head. Fortunately,

again, I picked Grant Hospital, where one of the best plastic surgeons in Columbus,

Dr. Hugh Baldwin, was on the staff. His surgery was so skillful that there is

hardly any trace of the cuts today. We were also thankful to the resident physician

of the hospital, Dr. Frank Hamilton, who took such good care of both of us,

although I was only slightly bruised. The occupants of the other car, fortunately,

were also only slightly bruised. As time went on we noticed that Dr. Hamilton

was very attentive to "patient" Charlotte. This caused Father to wink at her and

remark, "It looks as if Mary had the accident and you had the man!" A short time

after Charlotte returned from the hospital she told us that she was going to marry

Hammy, as we called Dr. Hamilton. She recuperated very quickly and enjoyed all

the excitement of an engaged girl.

On August 3, 1932, in the garden of the Governor's Mansion, Charlotte was

married to Dr. Hamilton. Dr. Harry Cotton, Pastor of the Broad Street Presby-

terian Church, performed the ceremony. Cousin Peggy McKelvy and I were bride's

maids, and our two brothers, David and Bob, were ushers. The newspaper men

and photographers, barred from the grounds, were posted on the adjoining roof

tops. It was a beautiful day and after the wedding ceremony the two hundred and

fifty guests had supper on the lawn. Charlotte received the shortest cable I ever

saw from our brother, George. He was in Paris with a Princeton orchestra, and

they were stranded there. After they had arrived in France they discovered that

their contract had been invalidated by French legislation which banned all foreign

orchestras. It was therefore dire financial distress which caused the brevity of the

following cablegram:

GOVERNOR OHIO

HAPPINESS CHARLOTTE

GEORGE

After the bride and groom had departed, I was looking at the wedding presents

with some of the guests when I heard an ambulance siren at the side entrance.

Alarmed, I rushed to the door and was vastly relieved to see that the ambulance

was occupied by interns from Grant Hospital. They were disappointed that their

victims had escaped for they had planned to kidnap Charlotte and Hammy and tie

them on separate hospital beds for the night!

Father was Ohio's Favorite Son at the Democratic National Convention, held in

Mary White                                                          81

Chicago in 1932. We both wore our state emblem, a buckeye, which many by-

standers mistook for a chocolate drop! I drove to Chicago with Whitey Merrell,

the highway director. When we came to a detour sign Whitey told the chauffeur

that since he was the highway director we could skip the sign and drive right

through. We bumped along the road for about four miles and then came to an im-

passe-he bridge was out! There was the inevitable squabble of the seating of

delegates, particularly those of Louisiana where the voluble Huey Long was much in

evidence. Then came the nominations of candidates and favorite sons, which

started in the evening and lasted until five o'clock the next morning. Inevitably, the

roll call came to Ohio. This was about two o'clock and everybody was getting

sleepy. A good exhilarating nomination speech, with Father's colorful background,

would have awakened the convention. Unfortunately (or was it?), Senator Atlee

Pomerene was not the speaker to do that. He scarcely touched on Father's life.

I was seething and was quieted only by the fact that my candidate threaded his

way over to console me, and by the fine seconding speech by Mrs. Bernice Pyke.

The next nomination was plenty colorful and noisy--Will Rogers put on a cowboy

whooping demonstration for Alfalfa Bill of Oklahoma [William H. Murray]. Very

soon after that the balloting started, and the bandwagon for Roosevelt swept him into

the nomination. Governor Roosevelt came to Chicago to accept his nomination and

was given a rousing ovation by the convention. It was all over and the Ohio dele-

gation wended its way back to the Buckeye State.

About the only physical prowess exhibited by the governor was the throwing of

the baseball to open the Columbus Red Bird baseball season, but once Father

was called upon to bowl. The National Bowling Championship match was held in

Columbus and they asked him to bowl with them the final night of the contest.

Now, he had not bowled since his college days in the 1890's and he was expected

to perform in front of a large audience made up of the best bowlers in the United

States. He bravely picked up the ball and was about to throw it down the alley

when the national champion told him that he was holding the ball incorrectly.

Father obediently changed his grasp and threw the ball, but not accurately, for it

didn't even stay in the alley. When it rolled parallel to the pins, however, they all

fell down--a phoney strike! This got a big laugh from the audience, a fact which

lends truth to the saying that if you can't be good, you had better be funny.

I represented Father at the first and only women's air race held at Dayton dur-

ing his terms in office. We flew over the race and it was frightening to watch the

aviatrixes dipping their planes down dangerously to round the pylons. One of them

did meet her death in this manner. After the race I went to the locker to con-

gratulate the winner. Most of the contestants were in tears because of their friend's

fatal accident. That day I met Mr. Orville Wright. As we stood chatting, I looked

at those fast modern planes and was reminded of the amazingly short time that had

elapsed since the Wright brothers' first flight in 1903 at Kitty Hawk.

Our second inauguration in January 1933 was a quiet one. Father and I enter-

tained his cabinet, the members of the legislature, and other friends at a reception

at the Governor's Mansion. One of Father's best speeches was the one he made at

the ninetieth General Assembly on January 9, 1933, before the joint session of the

legislature. It was still a time of economic distress, as can be seen from his efforts

to restore confidence. Bank failures in Ohio already numbered 140, representing

$257,309,711 in deposits, and people were consequently uncertain and frightened.

Mary White                                                          83

Franklin D. Roosevelt. Inauguration Day morning was very frigid when we took

Father to the Senate Chamber. One of the aides assigned to us put a pint of

whiskey on his hip as insurance against the cold. The traffic was, of course, congested

and our friend with the bottle stood on the running board to direct the driver. I

thought that was dangerous and watched him anxiously--suddenly I noticed a

pained, followed by a jocular, expression come over his face. The bottle had

broken! Later in the morning Father and I joined the other governors at a place

where we waited an hour for the Inaugural Parade to start. There we visited with

our friends and walked up and down to keep warm. It was very thrilling riding in

that parade, the streets were jammed with people as far as the eye could see, and

very often we could hear, "Yea, Ohio!" from the side lines. We were shown to the

seats assigned to us on the platform, and very soon afterwards President-elect Roose-

velt appeared on the arm of his son, James. He was duly sworn in and the United

States had, after a period of twelve years, a Democratic President.

My dress for the Inaugural Ball had been described and shown in pictures in the

Columbus papers. It was a yellow rough crepe dinner dress with a high front

neckline and a very low decolletage in the back, and the arm holes were trimmed

with sable. Some friends of mine planned a dinner party for me that evening and

we had such a good time that I didn't go to the Ball. Luckily for me, the news-

caster there described "my entrance" with my father!

The last night of our stay in Washington, Father and I had separate engage-

ments. I returned to our suite at about midnight and there was a lot of excitement

everywhere. Governor William A. Comstock of Michigan had closed the banks in

Michigan and Ohio bankers were calling frantically about what they should do.

Father was still out and I talked to many of the bankers without knowing what to

say to them. It was a time of near panic in the country, and I felt sorry for

Franklin D. Roosevelt--what a christening he had in the early days of his

Presidency.

We had hunger marchers in Columbus, and that was one of the many times I

was worried about the safety of my father. When I went down to the Governor's

Office, there was a menacing crowd outside, and I could hear agitators spurring

them on. The newspaper reporters told me that the governor had handled the

situation remarkably well. Four of the marchers were chosen to confer with him,

and I believe they were somewhat mollified by the dignity of the Capitol Building.

Nevertheless, they angrily "demanded" certain conditions. Father looked at them

quietly and said that he was not used to the word, "demand," in his office, but that

he would be glad to hear their requests. I was very relieved by this account and

proud of my father. I cautioned the police to guard him well and was on my way

out to the car when I was called to the telephone. It was Jo, the butler, and he

said excitedly that a lady, who told him that she liked me, had called to tell me

that the women and children of the hunger marchers were on their way to the

mansion to trample down the gardens! I do not know who my friend was but she

was certainly a "friend in need" and I am most grateful to her. The police imme-

diately sent guards out to surround the mansion and the women and children did

march by, but without any destruction.

An interesting trip we took in July of 1933 was to the Chicago World's Fair.

Father and I, of course, went on Ohio Day and were proudly escorted from our

hotel to the fair by the Cleveland Grays. Our tour of the grounds started with

84                                                          OHIO HISTORY

the Ohio Building. We had been interested in the plans to decorate it and Father

had "sat" for a bust which was placed on a pedestal. I was very disappointed that

it was not there at the time of our visit, but we had a good laugh over the explana-

tion of why it was not. It seems that a few days before a woman had come into

the building, had announced that she didn't like Governor White, and had marched

over to the bust and knocked it off the pedestal!

One of the most spectacular sights' at the World's Fair was the arrival of a flight

of twenty-five Savoia-Marchetti S-55X seaplanes under the command of General

Italo Balbo of the Italian Air Force who flew from Italy at the invitation of the

Chicago Fair Committee. We watched them fly in from the top of the Stevens

Hotel, and it was a magnificent sight. Both the Italians and our American escort

were flying in formation as they appeared in a cloudless sky over the city. Mr.

Rufus Dawes was the chairman of the Chicago Fair and he invited us to a luncheon

given in honor of the visiting Italian aviators. General Balbo was indeed a good

looking man and so were the six of his flyers at whose table I sat. They spoke

no English, but we got along quite well in French, though my accent was "Ohioan"

and theirs was decidedly Italian. They were very surprised to note that I had long

hair. It seems that all American girls were supposed to have bobbed hair. Their

watches were set at Rome time and they had brought their own Cognac with them.

As the speakers' table was introduced, Mr. Dawes asked General Balbo to tell us

about their flight. I noticed the wrapt expression on the faces of my aviator friends

when their General spoke. When he sat down, I said, "I think he is swell!" One

of the flyers knew a little English and made like the ocean swells. I proceeded to

try to explain the meaning of the word "swell" by a number of French adjectives.

They nodded and we passed on to other subjects. When I rose to leave, they all

jumped to attention and looking directly at me said, "Swell!"

The summer of 1933 was a busy one for me because President Roosevelt ap-

pointed me chairman of the Women's Division of the NRA in Ohio. In order to

set up the women's organization I chose chairmen in the large cities and then,

with brother Bob as my chauffeur, made speeches throughout the state, explaining

the women's part in the National Recovery Act. To be very truthful, I must admit

that since Father expected to run for the U.S. Senate in 1934 I hoped that my

assignment would help him with Republicans and Democrats alike.

In the fall I always gave my brothers a carton of cigarettes and a serious talk

about speeding before they departed for Princeton, so Bob received the full treat-

ment before he drove off in his flivver one Sunday morning in November. Later

in the day, when I was playing the piano, I suddenly grew fightened for Bob's

welfare, and I immediately wrote a Special Delivery to wish him a happy twenty-

first birthday the next Friday and to warn him to drive very carefully. Later in

November on a Saturday night Father flew to Cleveland to make a speech and

stayed there all night. Sunday morning, November 22, when I awakened Dr.

Andre Crotti, his daughter Elizabeth, and "Weege" Burr were standing at my

bedside. I asked, "Something has happened to Father?" When they denied that, I

say, "It's Bob!" They told me that he had been killed in an automobile accident

at Somerville, New Jersey. My father, on account of bad flying conditions, had

not been able to return to Columbus and had asked our friends to tell me about

the accident. In a state of shock I dressed and went downstairs where some of our

friends and some newspaper reporters were standing around with cups of coffee.

Mary White                                                          85

I bore up quite well for a while in this kindly atmosphere but collapsed in tears

in about an hour. My warning of the weekend before softened the blow somewhat,

but I felt lost without my darling young brother--he had my Special in his pocket

when he died.

Somehow I got through the weeks after Bob's death. When Christmas came I

spent the holiday appropriation for outside Christmas decoration on all blue lights.

At the time the one-color effect was very unusual and I thought quite beautiful.

Anyone who has seen the Governor's Mansion knows how handsome the facade

was and how lovely it looked when decorated. Everybody tried to help us through

that Christmas. Jack Orr and Jack Reese had a chow puppy that looked like a

furry ball and we spent hours watching him play with balloons. Our friend Herb

Mangert of the Cincinnati Enquirer said he wanted to cut a special Christmas tree

for us. He sent it up from Cincinnati, and it was the most magnificent one I have

ever seen, but it was too tall for the solarium. I asked Peter to cut it off to make

it the right height, and he cut off the top! Well, we fastened the top back on with

wires, affixed the angel, and proceeded with the decoration of the tree. It was

really comical because four times that angel took a bow. She was too heavy for

our wired repairs and we would look up and see her slowly bowing down. I believe

we finally substituted a star, which relieved the strain on the fabricated top and

stayed properly aloft.

In the spring of 1934 Father decided to run for the Senate. His opponent for

the Democratic primary was "Honest Vic" Donahey, who had three times been

governor and who had "taken the farmers out of the mud" and given them pass-

able roads. He was very popular in Ohio. I remember hearing how he campaigned

in Cincinnati. He took a suite at one of the hotels and had plenty of spittoons

placed usefully about, and 1200 people came to see him over the weekend. He

was a fine man and an excellent politician, and I knew that he would be hard to

beat. For some reason President Roosevelt didn't want my father to run for the

Senate, and he called him to Washington for the purpose of dissuading him. He

offered him several diplomatic posts: the Minister to Ireland, or to one of the

South American countries, or to Albania. Father turned down the first two and

said he didn't even know where Albania was! Much mortified by this shocking

avowal, I prepared for him a brochure on Albania, complete with map and infor-

mation, such as, that the landscape was rugged, the women beautiful, goat's milk

was plentiful, and it was wise to keep an airplane warmed up in case of sudden

revolution. (King Zog knew what to do in 1939!)

In the late spring of 1934 two friends of John Dillinger, Harry Pierpont and

Charles Makely, were brought to the Ohio Penitentiary and imprisoned in death

row to await sentence. They were dangerous men, and since they had helped

Dillinger escape from an Indiana prison, everybody expected that Dillinger would

reciprocate by helping them to escape. This prediction was strengthened by

anonymous letters to Father from Chicago. All necessary precautions were taken

at the penitentiary and at the mansion, which was guarded day and night and we

were, too. A special police radio was placed in my car so I could hear all of the

reports. They were really something because every sentence was repeated and I

found myself inclined to talk the same way after a long ride. Well, I objected to

all the fuss made, particularly after a guard even accompanied me to the circus.

Father listened to my complaints and then told me that one of the threatening

86                                                          OHIO HISTORY

letters had warned that Dillinger would kidnap me and hold me until Pierpont and

Makely were freed. Furthermore, he said he refused to free those two killers for

any reason and that I therefore had best stay near my guards. Shortly after his talk

with me, the newspapers carried the kidnapping possibility and I even made the

movies on Fox Movie-tone News. I wore pajamas every night to prepare for Mr.

Dillinger's arrival, and one evening a boy friend came for me in an armoured bank

car! There was also a cut-up almost every Saturday night who backfired his car

loudly as he passed the mansion, and this brought the guards out on the run.

As time went on we heard through the penitentiary "grapevine" that John

Dillinger was "no good" because he had run out on his moll when the police

surprised their hideout in Michigan. They therefore doubted that he would be man

enough to repay his friends. The two convicts evidently agreed for they made a

break with a soap pistol, and one of them was killed. The other was executed a

short time later. We were relieved when it was all over--and we concentrated

once again on the senatorial campaign.

It is true that at the Governor's Mansion I received only the most optimistic

reports of Father's chances, so my hopes were high on primary night. I rounded

up some friends for my usual election party, but as we listened to the radio reports

of the votes, I became more and more alarmed. I phoned the Democratic Head-

quarters and talked to Chairman Heiney Brunner who regretfully informed me that

Father was defeated. I was at first stunned and then furious at the whole state of

Ohio for repudiating the man who had worked so hard for their welfare in the

past three years. In fact, I became quite irascible and Jo called Father and told

him that he had better come and calm me down. Yes, it is hard to lose an election.

In the first place, campaigning is the most exhausting work I have ever done, and

Ohio is a sizable state. In the second place, campaigning is a very expensive

project for the candidate, even with generous financial help of the Democratic

State Committee.

Time went by rapidly and soon it was our last holiday season in the mansion.

It was a busy and a happy one for us because so many of our friends entertained

us with farewell parties. On Christmas Eve Father received a telephone call from

a Columbus West Side colored voter who represented a large group who admired

Father and were sending him a pig to have for Christmas dinner. On Christmas

morning a box duly arrived which contained, to our amazement, the snout, the

hoofs, and the tail of a pig! An explanatory note accompanied this weird assort-

ment which stated that somebody had stolen the rest of the gift pig, and the writer

knew who it was because the culprit had boasted about giving a pig dinner the

night before. We were vastly amused by all of this and I even gave the story to

Billy Ireland, the fine cartoonist of the Columbus Dispatch, and a good friend of

ours. The incident was forgotten until an evening about two weeks later. Jack

Orr and Jack Reese came to escort me to a party and they presented me with a

large box and told me to open it. That I did and was appalled to see the rear of

a pig with a carnation planted in the proper spot! The whole story had been a

fabricated hoax, perpetrated, even to the voice of Father's telephone correspondent

on Christmas Eve, by these two gentlemen!

A few days before the inauguration of Governor-elect Martin L. Davey, Father

and I moved to the Deshler-Wallick Hotel. The morning of the inaugural cere-

monies, noting that my father was very restless, I asked him to pay a few bills in

Mary White                                                          87

the vicinity of the hotel. After he left, I sat reflecting on what the qualities were that

made him the fine governor that he was. Father was a good judge of men and he

picked his cabinet with great care. I heard him tell the youngest of them, Whitey

Merrell, that if he cheated, he, George White, would break his neck. Although

he was the youngest, 0. W. Merrell proved to be one of Ohio's outstanding high-

way directors. Since the administration of a governor greatly depends on his

cabinet, Father was fortunate in having able men to help him.

Integrity is, of course, of the utmost importance, but I always teasingly reminded

my father that the only reason why he was honest was that he remembered when

he was in the Klondike during the Gold Rush of the late 1890's that people were

shot for stealing! Although he was no orator, he made a good speech when in-

spired by the warmth of an audience. A very important part of his success was that

Father did not take his problems to bed with him--he slept soundly and awoke

to face them with a fresh mind.

In a few hours, after the inauguration, "the King wouldn't be King anymore,"

but as I sat there my heart was filled with love and pride for my father who had

guided the state to the best of his ability through the past four years of troubled

times. I was glad that I had had a small part in it and it was for my Governor

Father that I had made my best efforts to be a good First Lady of my favorite

state, Ohio.