Archives/Special Collections, University of Illinois at Springfield

.A: Oh, in his ofice, many a time. I used to talk to hirr~ a lot. I was quite an admirer of
his. He's a very intellectual sort of a fellow. Hell, Po\vell didn't like hirn. I knew
that. And he give me my job because I hall a reputation that I u-ouldn't take,
see. Somehod>- give him that idea. And I rerr~ernt~er I \vent to several of his - when he
made a speech, I think it \\,as in Chicago one time. I had a hox seat up there someplace.
And he could talk way above n lot of people's heads, the trouhle \\-ith Stert~nson.
Me and this young Stevenson though, I just never did associate with him. I went to a fen.
campaigns with him some. His wife, I liked her vvry well. But I could never get close to
him. I don't think anybody else can either.
Q: Is he the samv type as his father then. is it
1: KO. I don't think he's gifted as well as his father. His father had some qualities there
that he - he could think pretty fast and he could come out - he was very articulate in
his speech. And this here young man doesn't have that image like his old man does. But
that's to my thinking. I hope he gets elected governor. I don't know whether he can or
not. I hope he does. I think he'd be honest hecause in the house nohody could persuade
him. He studied, he worked hard, he was there at his desk all the time, hut he just didn't
mingle with nobody and to get anything done in the house you've got to . . .
4: . . . mingle around a little hit or you don't get nothing done. That's to my
thinkiny. Now mayhe somebody else might have an entirely different version of what you
should do. Rut I always thought that if you're elected for your area you're supposed to get
something, that's what you were elected for, to get something for your area. (laughs)
Q: Oh I see
A: If you can't dl) that, why, you wasn't worth a damn
Q: Ycs. lchuckleli~ Well. Who was your closest associate the tirst >ear up there?
.A: Oh, I never tiid associate with any of them to really go out because I wasn't the type
to go out and I never got drunk, see, or go out and drink hecause I could never drink :I
lot. I never did care for it to begin with. And I was too tight to begin with too, I guess. 1'11
never spen~l a lot of money around. I didn't go out every night to somepiare. I used take
my bookwork, a lot of my work if I didn't have at home here to (lo. do a lot of my n\vn
bookwork there, I'd take it along up thcre to do from here, or . . .
(taping stoj~pu~l
greet customers, then resumed)
Q: You say you'd take )-our home\vorL from here up to there?
;I: Yes I use11 to take a lot 11f it up and do it in my ruoni and things like that. I never
I>un~mt.,I arountl much when I was tirst up there. I think ihat was a assot in a \v;~y. It's
iike that was the reason I didn't n-ant my nephew to get up there because he was pretty
young yet. .And it can make :I burn out of you pretty easilh. I've seen so many fellnn~
go had up there where you're not old enough. I was >oung enough but I n-as too t)us> I
guess lo get involved in too many things. Because it's tr~npting as hell to. you hnow, sit
around and drink.
Q: I understand that happened to Alan Dison when he tirst went up there, that he got to
running around a little hit.
A: Got tu playing around a little bit yes, yes. I used to hum around with Alan though. But
he wasn't as had as a lot of them were. He might have heen. But I neb-er hear11 too much
Carl Wittmond Memoir -- Archives/Special Collections, University of Illinois at Springfield