Class of 1931
Wasn't that a corkin' good issue in March? Should make the MAG. the bestseller of the "slicks" in its class. Naturally then I hope a great many of you have already taken up the generous offer for a subscription covering the last three months this year. One month last year the column signed off with the challenge "Give me 30 days, 75 letter, o germs andthis column would be a pipe." Well—taking inventory—have l day, o germs and 2 letters, but those two letters (for which strong praise and hearty salvos go to RED CHAMBERLIN and ERNIE MOORE) take care of everything right nicely, thank you .... and this despite the fact that most of you didn't get your copy until a couple of days before this next monthly job was on deck.
It hasn't always been this way, as those of you who have been reading the MAGAZINE the past two years know. No sir, many's the time we have leaned heavily on our good friends in the Alumni Records Office for one space-filler, then another and another. By happenstance we has our chance to pay Miss Charlotte Ford, Alumni Recorder, a little something on that huge debt. She writes, "We have been trying,unsuccessfully, to locate JOHN SEYMOUR (formerly John Seymour Mabrey)of your class, whose last address was NorthSutton, N. H. He seems to be very much'lost.' Perhaps a note in your column inthe ALUMNI MAGAZINE might bring someclue as to his whereabouts." .... How about a lead?—last I had was Redding Ridge, Conn., but that was as of 1935.
Now here they are in the aboriginal got the shears out but couldn't find any spot where a "cut" could have been made even though we may run a few inches over our assigned quota. First, RED CHAMBERLIN'S:
"Last night the annual Chicago AlumniAssociation banquet was held for our clan,and President Hopkins gave an unusuallyexcelleiit speech. But what should interestyou is that the Class of '31 had the bestturn-out. Here are the names of those withwhom I conversed, and I may have missedsome—OZZY BLISS, GALE FREEMAN, BILL GEIGER, JOHN J. GOODWILLIE, FRANK HARDINGE, SEE BIRGE, M.D. (back fromNewfoundland), CHUCK HILL, JACK MCCORTNEY, FRED SLAUGHTER, HART WALTER and JACK WEISERT. ED RHETTS engagementwas just announced. It wasn't because ofthat he wasn't there. BILL RUDY is covering the bowling meet for the A.P. He:smarried and living at the Marshal FieldApartments. SHERM PEDERSON is likewisemarried. You probably know about BILL WILSON being a big Philadelphia newspaper man, making clipper flights to Bermuda for publicity.
"My brother Bill is number I man inthe class of 1938, has been having his nameand face in the Boston papers, which isabout my only claim to glory at present.I'm still struggling. If anyone needs alawyer let me know."
* NOTE: With a post mark of February gist from Glencoe, Ill., came one of those appropriately diminutive envelopes with this big piece of news re the HILL family on the card inside: "Charles Beekman Hill111, January 10, 1938 and Emily, January 7, 1935." Thanks Chuck for letting us
know and keeping Emily right in the limelight too along with her new baby brother. From Chicago we go to Boston with Ernie, but as you will see right off, he doesn't leave us in any one spot of this U. S. A. very long. Only mistake he makes is in his assumption that we would be up to the minute on the New York gang. Maybe New York will make up for this by May, but as she stands now New England and the Windy City Area get the coverage. Without more introduction, except to say that he should have had the by-line for this column, I turn the "mike" over to ERNIE MOORE;
"For one as interested in the School and the fellows I knew there as I am, it should not have taken me two years to write this letter, but I am now in an atmosphere more conducive to correspondence (more about this later).
"Risking the chance that most of the information I can give you on a trip I made after our reunion, I shall plunge into the '3l details of it.
"In the summer of 1936 we drove out to the Pacific Coast. Unfortunately we felt that our time was limited and driving through Pittsburgh in the middle of the afternoon we dared not stop; consequently, we missed the pleasure of a visit with you. Spending the night in Springfield, Ohio, we saw JACK CUNNINGHAM'S Mother and Father and brother, Dick, all three of whom are well known to Hanover, Dick being '33 and the family visiting there several times. They informed us that Jack was happily married and living in Detroit.
"Terre Haute gave us a fine visit with CLIFF POWERS' folks. They were all excited about Cliff's anticipated transfer to Indianapolis. Understand this subseuently happened, enabling Cliff to see much more of them.
"In St. Louis spoke with Randy Rodgers via phone, learned he was busily engaged in the brick business and in raising a family in Alton. We missed seeing him by gfteen minutes for we were staying in Webster Groves and he had just been there on a job. Called GRAY MAGEE at the telephone company only to learn that he had departed for his vacation.
"Dallas gave us JOE LINZ' family whom some of us had met in Hanover and we had a grand time with them. Good chat with WALT DOUGLAS in L. A., working hard in his shirt sleeves. (Unfortunately we were moving swiftly the entire trip and did not have an opportunity to see many of the boys en route.)
"Lunch with DAVE BENDER at the Matson Piers. Looked fine but claimed that driving 350 miles every week-end to the resort centers was a financial strain in that neck of the woods. Dropped in at ART HYMAN'S place down on the peninsula. He was angling for a position with an airconditioning outfit at the time. Informed us that DAVE HEWES was still attending school and adding degrees with a professorial job in view.
"Although we met and played with many other Dartmouth fellows along the way, this completes the 1931 contingent. "Imagine that you have abundant news on the New York mob, which sector I just left.
"In October, I transferred my field of endeavor to New England to work for French-Stamats Company of Cedar Rapids, lowa, on cooperative publicity, my im- mediate clients being leading realtors throughout this part of the country. As I shall be traveling constantly, I hope to gather news for you from time to time, and as one finds time here for the niceties of life, like writing, I hope too to communicate to you all of interest that I hear.
"Having seen no mention of the '31ers who attended the annual Boston dinner, I shall make note of same. THAD SMITH, bustling lawyer at 10 Post Office Square, in partnership with another chap; HARRY TOWNSEND, in training here for three months with the Equitable; DAVE KELLY and JACK CRAWFORD with their famous smiles; JOHNNY BENSON, an expert analyst in the Shawmut now, his predictions for their trust accounts last fall hitting right on the nose currently; JACK COLE, up from Providence, it was his firm of Hogan & Hogan that defended O'Hara during the big racetrack rumpus, and full of interesting anecdotes about it; ED O'CONNOR and ED STOKES, very mature looking; DICK CHASE, still adding weight, what a linesman he would make now; NICK ROGERS; NORM ROLFE, Braintree luminary; MEL LEVISON, the Waltham cigar king; ED HANEUR; BILL SUMNER, operating in Brockton; there must be others I cannot remember as I hurry along now; no sign of FISHER or NED KENT, nor have I laid eyes on them since I have been here.
"GEORGE HAWKINS turns out to be a neighbor of mine and a call will be paid there shortly. He is with Fairbanks Morse and has just returned East after doing some graduate schooling in the West for the company.—PAN KENT, investment counselor at 63 Devonshire, happy as a little boy to be back in New England after a short stay in New York. ROD DODGE, buyer of toys in Jordan Marsh, doing well and very much the family man, a fine one too. Enclose note on GEO. PROCTOR whom I saw the other day as we rushed in opposite directions through a revolving door." .... Think you will agree this deserves a separate paragraph here's the clipping in toto:
Mr. and Mrs. GEORGE N. PROCTOR 3d (Rose Gordon Stearns) of West Newton are receiving congratulations on the birth of a son, Roger Converse Proctor, Sunday, March 6, at Phillips House. Grandparent honors are shared by Mrs. Frank Jenkins of Brookline and Mr. and Mrs. George N. Proctor of Beacon Street
Going down the home stretch with Ernie's letter "HAL ANDRES battling the mob to see Snow White and .... HANK JOHNSON looking fit as representative of Paine Webber several months back; have not seen him recently to ascertain if there has been any change. LARRY ALLEN, having laid the law down to Container Corp. is back in Natick in a more important position.
"Word from New York that CHAS. M. (NIC) NICHOLS marries this year. DUTCH HOLLAND happy as the married one. JOE LINZ looking splendid with RCA affiliation.
"CHUCK OWSLEY states BILL GRANT doing a bang-up job as he completes his Harvard Law Work. Word from Detroit that BILL VAN DEUSEN not too well over past year.
"All for now except my very best to you."
And this last line of his letter expresses exactly the way I feel too.
Secretary, 2904 Gulf Bldg., Pittsburgh, Pa.
