Editing John Peurifoy (section)

==Early Career and Entry into Government==
Peurifoy’s early years were marked by eclectic jobs reflecting his resilience. After leaving West Point, he worked in New York City as a restaurant cashier and Wall Street clerk, immersing himself in the fast-paced urban environment of the late 1920s. By 1934, he moved to Washington, D.C., seeking a State Department position. He secured a patronage job through South Carolina Congressman “Cotton Ed” Smith, operating an elevator in the U.S. Senate Office Building, and briefly worked at the Treasury Department. When he lost that job, he and his wife, Betty Jane Cox, a former Oklahoma schoolteacher whom he married in 1936, both took positions at Woodward & Lothrop department store. In October 1938, Peurifoy passed civil service exams and joined the State Department as a $2,000-a-year clerk in the export license office, marking the start of his diplomatic career. By 1946, he had risen to an $8,000-a-year assistant to the Under Secretary of State, showcasing his rapid ascent through diligence and political acumen.