M., Joseph, November 16, 1973, tape 4, side 2

Joseph M.: I took a bunch of them right on down to the bank, put them on the market. About a week or ten days, Mr. Ralph would send a card to come down. I'd go there. Sometime he'd have a check for me, make 25, $2,600, and I'd give him my book. He'd put it all on that. But the change, you know, like it would be $2,625. I'd then put the 26 on. I'd take the 25. You see what I mean? Gottlieb: Yeah. Joseph M.: Go and get some more. Gottlieb: Uh huh. Joseph M.: [laughs] And so I had-- I had me a good record. At that time I was going all over the country. You see what I mean? Gottlieb: You were taking time off from the mill? Joseph M.: Yeah. No, no, no, no, say, like, we come off like-- Oh, shit, it wouldn't be my vacation. We might have a breakdown in the mill. And sometimes maybe to take 2 or 3 days to-- to repair. But then I would-- I'd be gone and they'd put a notice up to that end that the mill would be down until on, on such and such a date. Well that on that date then you had to report back to work. Well I'd get a train and go somewhere, I'd cut out. And so the time that I went to California, I was on vacation, cost me, $1,135. And so I used to run around a lot. Oh, my goodness. And-- and I was young and I kind of liked the women. Gottlieb: Yeah. Joseph M.: And I just like all the rest of the young fellows, and I played the part of a fool because-- tryin' to tell you. I don't know what I'm talking about, but I think-- I think I whiled away, probably 5 or 10 years of my life.

Peter Gottlieb: But didn't you have a good time when doing it?

Joseph M.: Oh, yeah. Sure, sure. That's the answer. You see, you can't eat your cake and save it. Gottlieb: That's right. Joseph M.: And so I had a good time, you know, and so that was that. Gottlieb: Oh. Joseph M.: Til the good time faded. Gottlieb: Uh huh. Joseph M.: So I had a nice time.

Gottlieb: You always came back to Homestead after those trips? Joseph M.: Huh? Unidentified speaker: You always came back to Homestead. Joseph M.: Oh, yes, yes, yes.

Joseph M.: I like Homestead.

Gottlieb: Did you ever see any other places that you thought you might like to move to when you were traveling?

Joseph M.: Mhm. Mhm. I've seen tons of places that I like. I like Columbus, Ohio.

Joseph M.: Mhm. Well, I used to think of Columbus.

Joseph M.: I used to go out for breakfast, Trinity Hotel. Every time I been there. I was swingin' high.

Gottlieb: Yeah. Yeah.

Joseph M.: See, good center [??] in Columbus sits on Spring Street-- Shifty hotel. Swingin' high. I used to back before. Fact, I got up everybody go. I seen a lot of places that I like.

Gottlieb: Why was it that you always came back to Homestead?

Joseph M.: Oh, yeah. I got to the place during later years where I don't like a big city. No, no, it's too crowded. Gottlieb: Yeah. Joseph M.: Mhm. Just like you do at the football game. I've always been a sports fanatic. And you go to a football game? 70 to 80,000 people. Gottlieb: Yeah. Joseph M.: Oh, my goodness. I go there and I'd have a heart attack. Gottlieb: Mhm. Joseph M.: Now Pittsburgh. I went to see Pittsburgh play from the time, from 1912 until they played the last game, that they played their last game. And I used to go over there. It didn't cost me anything. Gottlieb: Huh. Joseph M.: That's the old days. Didn't cost me nothing. Gottlieb: Why? Joseph M.: I worked with a fella. His name was Tom Boyd and at that time fella by the name of William Boyd McKechnie, he lived in Wilkinsburg. He was the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates. So he'd give Tom a season pass every year. And Tom wouldn't give you $0.05, he wouldn't get up and go to that door to see Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron hit a home run. Tom would-- He didn't like baseball. Gottlieb: Yeah. Joseph M.: So I was searching for a baseball fanatic. He said to me one time, he said, I got something for you. I said to myself, What is this you could have for me? So at that time, the Pirates was training in Hot Springs. Gottlieb: Yeah. Joseph M.: And a couple of fellas from Homestead here went down that, went to training. Johnny Pearson and _____[??] Walsh, they both went, pitcher and a catcher, and Johnny was an all around athlete, Johnny Pearson. So, uh, they went to spring training. So he came out one morning. I was saying before he walked over me, he said, I just remember, I said, what does Tom-- forget this. ____________[??] I said, what is this?

Joseph M.: I opened it. The season pass. [laughs] Well, at that time, we had the little Toonerville Trolley here. Gottlieb: Yeah. Joseph M.: And I can go from here over the falls here for a nickel. Gottlieb: Yeah. Joseph M.: So a lot of times I'd be going, I'd go on because sometimes I see some of the fellas going over. They pick me and drive me. Gottlieb: Huh. Joseph M.: Some of the white fellas had the car, you know, they pick me up and drive me and bring me back. And through-- that was along, they had Mike Pierce, Clyde Barnhart, _________[??] and all of them. They had a bunch of the fellows and didn't cost me anything. I'd go in, you know, and go on down there and get me a seat. Sit down and watch it and see all of the floors. All of them. I mean, all it was in the National League, you see. And so I was-- I like folk, but I played with the Grays-- I didn't play with them. They wanted me to play with them, but I used to play. So here we had a team here and I used to play with them and so that's why they wanted me to play. But them men got too [??]-- my superintendent wanted me to turn poor [??] and fighting and winning, boxing, but Bill, he told me, he said if I was the man you are, he said I'd make my fist make a living for me if I went to hell when I died. He made that statement to me.

Gottlieb: We're out of tape, Mr. Moorfield.

Joseph M.: That's alright--