On the Avenue

The group had the look of a decontamination unit mopping up after an atomic explosion. Stumbling down the street, interfering with traffic, all jabbering at once, arms flailing in all directions, was a tangle of men loaded down with electronic equipment. But the only explosive item in sight was Harry Truman, out for a morning stroll while visiting Manhattan. The city's TV newsmen were on hand, milking him for every jaunty, testy word as they pursued him for 20 minutes from his hotel at Madison and 76th, over to Fifth Avenue, up a few blocks and then back again.

As always when they follow Harry on one of his walks, the TV types got all the words they wanted. The ex-President was in town to receive an award from Freedom House, an organization that promotes international cooperation, and he was in a talkative mood. The brisk stride is gone now, and he moves slowly and stiffly, but Truman at 80 still manages to stage one of the more remarkable of modern press conferences.

Above the din and bustle of cameramen, soundmen and reporters, somebody managed to shout: "What about the violence in Selma?" Answered Harry: "Busybodies brought most of it about. If they'd stayed home and tended to their own business, they'd be much better off."

The man from Independence has said the same sort of thing many times before. But either the reporters had not read their newspapers or they wanted to goad him on.

What about the march to Montgomery? one asked. Didn't that seem impressive?

Not so far as Harry thought. He had meant what he said. "It was silly," he snapped. "What good did it do?"

What about civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King and James Farmer?

"They're troublemakers."

Is Martin Luther King a troublemaker? a reporter persisted.

"One of the first-class troublemakers."

Has King made any contribution?

"He's caused more trouble than he's made a contribution."

He won a Nobel Prize, didn't he?

"I didn't give it to him."

Even at the Freedom House dinner in his honor, Truman was no less salty than he had been on his sidewalk constitutional. After receiving his award, he said: "It's wonderful to be able to hear the preaching at your own funeral and still be able to walk around."

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