Bess was 25 years old and on the verge of spinsterhood when Harry began to court her.
The responsibility of looking after her mother and siblings after her father's death weighed heavily on her. It was as if that was to be her purpose in life.
Harry had loved her it seemed forever. Even when he was in Kansas City, he thought only of Bess.
Here he was 26 years old and had never had a girl friend. But now he was determined to make Bess fall in love with him.
Harry saw Bess nearly every Sunday. They enjoyed concerts, plays and continued to write one another.
Harry finally got the nerve to propose....in a letter.
It took Bess three weeks to reply. She turned him down. Harry thanked her for not ridiculing him.
"I was never fool enough to think a girl like you could ever care for a fellow like me."
But he didn't give up.Harry bought a second-hand touring car to court Bess. Because she liked tennis, he built a grass tennis court for her behind the farm house, and then threw a party in her honor.
She didn't come.....
"I really worked all Sunday getting that court ready for you," he wrote. "We also had a supply of watermelons on hand. But you can make it some Saturday, and Mama said you must come to dinner the next time."
Two years after she turned him down, Bess started to change her mind.
She told Harry if she married anyone, it would be him.
Of course, this made Harry very happy.
But Bess would never marry a farmer. Harry still worked for his father, and the farm was $12,000 in debt.
Then in 1914, Harry's father was severely injured while trying to move a boulder. X-rays revealed a tumor blocking his intestine. Surgery was performed but there wasn't much hope. Harry watched as his father grew weaker. John Truman told his son that he was a failure. He died November 2, 1914.
Years later when asked if his father was a failure he answered, "How could he be a failure if his son became President of the United States?"
