This is John Batcher, conversation continuing with the author Brenda Wineapple, her new book,

Keeping the Faith, God Democracy and the Trial that Rivoted a Nation, The Scopes Monkey Trial of

1925, Tate, Tennessee.

Here Brenda gives us a very quick overview of William Jennings Bryan in 1925 as he stepped

off the Palmetto Special arriving in Dayton on July 7th. The trial will begin

on the 10th of July. And Brian stepped off the train with a photograph that's in Brenda's book wearing a white

bright white pith helmet for the sun he'd been in Florida in any event as she

identifies him correctly as something of a movie star.

William Jennings Bryan, three times candidate for the presidency for the Democratic Party,

Secretary of State for Woodrow Wilson, as famous a person as you could be on planet Earth in 1925.

The Scopes Monkey Trial, much more of this later in the weeks.

He thinks of himself as a leader in the Democratic Party.

He thinks of himself as great commoner as one of his nicknames.

He thinks of himself as a man of the people and he thinks of himself as in a

way a movie star with the pest helmet which by the way is you know presumably blocks the sun

keeps him cool but you know I mean he's there with a pet helmet and he is waving a big

fan in the shape of a palm leaf because it's so hot.

This is July in Tennessee and it happens to be a heat wave and nobody has any air

conditioning and he is around he gets off the train and he is surrounded he gets off the train and he's

surrounded by well-wishers I mean he is one of the most famous political figures of the day I mean as you said he ran for

president three times he was Wilson Secretary of State he's been campaigning

he campaigned for prohibition and now he is here to save the world from atheism.

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