Bess Truman: Waiting for Harry

The Old Soldier

Harry Truman was 33, well past the age for a man to be a volunteer soldier, unless, of course, the country is in severe danger. In 1917, when the US entered the Great War, as it was called then, the country was not in severe danger, and most people believed it was a “European” War best left to the Europeans. After all, that was the sage advice of George Washington.

Nevertheless, once the US was committed, Harry Truman, mostly farmer, and part-time off-season employee decided to enlist. Not only was he somewhat over age, medium in size, with little education past high school, his eyesight had been poor from earliest childhood. 

But he memorized the standard eye chart, signed the papers, and was now a soldier. Perhaps the higher-ups detected some hidden leadership. They made him a…