1920

As fateful day follows fateful day, in these continuously troubled times, it seems proper to reflect.on the burdens that a single human frame can carry and to hope that classmate Sherman Adams will remain miraculously equal to his singularly heavy load. From the reams of newspaper stories that clutter the secretarial desk, the headlines of these early October days have been making Sherm's position known to all readers of the printed word, everywhere. "Sherman Adams Back At White House Helm" - New York Herald-Tribune: "Adams Key Figure in Temporary Setup" - New York Times; "Adams Holds Vast Powers" - Boston Herald; "Adams Flying Home to Direct Office Staff" - Boston Globe.

The last of the above headlines, which was among the first to recognize the role that Sherm would have to play during the President's illness, topped the story of his interrupted vacation in Europe, from which he returned to inform himself fully in Washington and then to take charge of the temporary White House office in Denver. As the Herald Tribune explained it on October 2:

"Mr. Adams established himself in the office he uses occasionally opposite the President's office on the second floor of the Lowry Air Force base headquarters building, which serves as the summer, White House. There he will remain as long as the President is kept in Denver, performing the same functions that he does in Washington. He will return to the Capital for the National Security Council meetings on Thursdays and Cabinet sessions on Fridays, returning immediately to Denver."

So there you have it, and there you have one reason why our friend Sherm looks in some of his pictures like a rather tired man. The same issue of the Herald-Trib had the most heartening news-photo of Sherm that has appeared as of this writing, showing him turning up at the Summer White House in something less than a ten-gallon hat and looking as if those weeks in Europe might have cultivated a relaxed frame of mind.

The Boston Herald's Washington Bureau had pointed out that "the reserved Yankee exlumberjack is now a top power, however much he stays behind the scenes. ... When the President has to make a decision on legislation, Adams is invariably the last man to talk to him." And New York's Herald-Tribune was saying at the same time:

"Right from the beginning Mr. Adams has run things so that only decisions of policy are brought to the President and then only when questions are ripe for decision.... In the Eisenhower administration staff meetings are held by Mr. Adams and in his own office. He calls one whenever he considers it necessary.... Originally Assistant to the President,' he became 'THE Assistant to the President,' and much of his time was passed in watching over the operation of independent agencies of government and in co-ordinating the work of various departments. At the White House it is Mr. Adams who tells staff members when to report for work and what to do when they get there."

So it was not surprising that the New YorkTimes should sum the thing up in this way: "The announcements served to emphasize that the powers of the Presidency still rested with General Eisenhower and no one else. ... In the exercise of these powers, Mr. Adams, and not the Vice President, was the chief assistant to the President." And, as of October 2, "It was not lost on reporters that though Mr. Adams' title is 'The Assistant to the President,' Mr. Hagerty repeatedly referred to him as the President's 'deputy.' "

Twelve good friends of Sherm's sent him their heartfelt wishes for health and strength, as Boston Twenties assembled at the Sheraton-Plaza on the evening of September 27 for a class dinner which may be the first of many pre-union get-togethers. Rog Pope sparkplugged this affair. He hauled the boys out (on Boston's Primary night) and out-Newtoned Carl Newton by having alcoholic spirits available, all other bars being closed as the voters trooped to the polls. The other eleven in attendance were Ken Spalding, Red Tillson, Dal Dalrymple, George Macomber, Hal Bernkopf, Eb Wallace, Al Cate, Paul Hutchinson, Bun Harvey, Raynor Hutchinson and Dick Pearson. Regrets came from Mel Merritt, who had pressing business to attend to in New York; from Mugs Morrill, who had an even more distant date in Chicago; and from Charlie Sargent, who just plain got caught with an earlier engagement.

A quick run-down on the above characters may shed some light on the current standing of 1920 in the Boston area.

Ken Spalding looks just fine. That presumably means that his pre-fabricated-housing business is in excellent shape; and Ken would doubtless add that this is due in part to the role Rog Pope is playing as treasurer of the organization over which Ken presides. Red Tillson remains, as ever, Mr. Slim-Trim himself. His combination of farming in Bedford, Mass., and banking in Cambridge has achieved remarkable results in keeping him both young and graceful. Dal Dalrymple would like it known that he is a farmer, also (in Melrose, Mass., of all places). Dal painted his barn a while back - and used five gallons of paint doing it, which is supposed to prove something significant to his fellow-farmers. George Macomber (like Rog Pope, a class executive committee member) has gone back into the meat business, in which he did so well over so many years, and grins at the idea of mixing it up with his son, recently home from Korea, who is in the employ of a competitor. HalBernkopf's two retail stores (men's furnishings) have now increased to four: the new ones are in Brookline and Winchester. Meanwhile, good wife Liz, long an active feature writer, has settled for the new title of Fashion Editor of the Boston Globe.

Eb Wallace has something pretty special by way of extracurricular activity. Eb is one of the directors of a fairly mysterious Trout Club all the way up in Stowe, Vt. (perhaps better known for skiing activity). Any avid piscator who may be hesitant about the direct approach to Eb himself can address questions on the subject to his fellow club-member LeeHodgkins down in Richmond, Va. AI Cate's two favorite subjects are still flying and tennis. Bun Harvey, looking as fit as he always has, broke the news that he sold his thriving business to Inland Steel last spring. Now he keeps in trim maintaining his Wellesley acres, the while serving as a happy example for the rest of us on the pleasures and benefits of retirement. Raynor Hutchinson continues to commute to his Boston business from his delightful hilltop outside Exeter, N. H. Paul Hutchinson has a different kind of travel to report: 5000 miles of U-Driv-It last summer between Mexico and British Columbia, with way-station stops that included interesting adventures among the gambling hells of Nevada and the natural wonders of our national parks.

Another Twenty traveler whose wanderings have not been previously reported is RusKeep, who flew with wife Ada from New York last April, making Portugal a first stop and then going on to Egypt, Rome, Switzerland and Paris. While these things were happening the first Keep grandchild arrived - C. Russell the Third, no less, the same being the son of Rus Jr., himself a recent Dartmouth graduate making his way up the Benton & Bowles advertising ladder in New York.

Appropriate to the closing of this column is the good news released September 23 about our foremost foreign traveler, Clint Johnson of Chemical Corn Exchange Bank. For some years head of Chemical's international division, Clint now enjoys the well-merited title of Executive Vice President. In the dark days of the Thirties, foreign operations were not a favorite subject among New York bankers. "But," says a good friend of Clint's (Ernie Earley '18), "he saw a spark of life. He nurtured it. He wrote letters all over the world; then made trips all over; then took the president of the Bank all over, until the Foreign Department of Chemical Corn became a powerful organization the world around."

Secretary, Blind Brook Lodge, Rye 17, N. Y.

Treasurer, South Duxbury, Mass.

Bequest Chairman,