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Mr. Vardaman has severely criticized the Board's Guard Force from time to time and a series of incidents has occurred. On Sunday morning, July 28, 19l\6 "when, about IQibfr, Mr. Vardaman called at the Guard Room and asked the guard on duty for his newspapers, (it should be explained that a few days after assuming duties Mr. Vardaman requested our Procurement Section to obtain at the Board's expense Saturday and Sunday issues of several New York and local newspapers to be delivered to the Guard Room at the Bast Gate of the Board's building so that they could be picked up by him sometime over each weekend.) The guard on duty had only recently returned from military service and did not know Governor Vardaman when he called. Unfortunately, when Mr. Vardaman picked up the bundle of papers held for him and counted them, he discovered that one was missing. It so happened that two bundles were delivered by the news service, one for Governor Vardaman and another for the Research Library, and by mistake one of his papers had been placed in the package for the Library. Mr. Vardaman was very much irritated and there was an exchange of words between the guard and the Governor, with feeling running high on both sides. Mr. Vardaman felt that he was not treated with the consideration due his position and the guard, who felt that as a civilian he should not be subjected to the treatment he received at the hands of Mr. Vardaman, at one point remarked, "I'm not in the Army now.11 Another incident occurred at the Oval (entrance to the Board Members' area) about August 26 when a visitor on his way to Mr. Vardaman's office brushed by the guard without giving his name or allowing time for him to be announced in the customary manner. The guard did, however, phone Mr. Vardaman's secretary that a visitor was on the way to the Governor's office and explained that he had not had an opportunity to get his name and announce him before permitting him to proceed except by using force. On December U, 19U6 when a car with an official license drove into the garage and a visitor stepped out without giving his name, stating that he had an appointment with Governor Vardaman. One of the chauffeurs opened the private elevator for him and a second one phoned the Oval to advise the guard on duty there that the caller was coming up in the private elevator. The guard in the Oval, having been warned of Mr. Vardaman's feeling about letting unidentified visitors reach his office without being announcecL, while courteous, was more persistent than he would otherwise have been when the caller stepped off the private elevator. As it turned out, the visitor was Mr. Harl, Chairman of the FDIC. He became angry at the guard's insistence that he be permitted to announce him before proceeding to Mr. Vardaman's office. Mr. Harl therefore stepped back in the. elevator and went back to the garage, saying that if he had to go through all that he, the guard, could phone Mr. Vardaman that he had gone back to his own office. The guard immediately called Governor Vardaman's office and Mr. Massey hurried to the garage, overtook Mr. Harl and escorted him back. Mr. Harl was a luncheon guest of Governor Vardaman's along with a Senator and a Naval Officer. However, the two other callers had not shown any opposition to the usual formalities and, therefore, had reached Governor Vardaman's office in accordance with the customary procedure. Following all three of these occasions, Mr. Vardaman called the head of our Division of Administrative Services to his office and violently denounced him. There were other cases when the Division Head was called to account: one, when Mr. Vardaman happened to come into the building through the Constitution Avenue entrance and did not find a guard on duty; another on September 3# 19U6 when he was - 2 - driven into the garage from the Ttlhite House offices by a Secret Service man who inquired whether he could drive out the West Gate. Mr. Vardaman was upset because the West Gate was closed, which has been the case since before the war, and instructed the chauffeur to have someone see him about that situation. Subsequently, Mr. Vardaman requested that the West Gate be opened at the earliest possible date, and when it was explained that it would require at least two guards and possibly three to establish a new post at that point, he said, "Go ahead and get them.11
@FedFRASER