1942
Many of you probably read in the April 2 copy of The New York Times of Bob Hill's appointment to Mexico as Ambassador, a post he will assume upon completion of this session of Congress. This follows previous assignments as Ambassador to Costa Rica and El Salvador in 1953 and 1954 from which he returned to Washington as special assistant to the Under-Secretary of State for Mutual Security in 1955. Last year, Bob was named to the post of Assistant Secretary of State for Congressional Affairs where his liaison work with Congress, especially during the passage of the Eisenhower Doctrine on Middle East policy, evoked particular praise and was considered to have contributed to his appointment to Mexico City, one of the "plums" of the diplomatic service.
In reading the May column, Bob Keeler may have wondered, with good reason, to whom I was referring when I mentioned "Jerry's location". The answer lies in an omitted (lack of space) letter from Jerry Garduno which follows:
"The delay (in writing) has nothing to do with the mythical 'manana' attitude attributed to Mexico, but rather to the detail involved in opening a new business in a foreign country. (Jerry refers to Allied Chemical International Corporation's office in Mexico City where he is Manager and which, as of last May, was the first foreign branch of Allied Chemical and Dye Corp.) Hordes of visiting firemen escaping New York's severe weather have also been on my hands. I can appreciate their desire as Mexico City has a delightful year-round climate. Joanne, my wife, and Mark, now two-and-a-half, are very happy with the change. As for myself, any place where I can escape commuting and taking the subway is paradise. Of all the republics in the Western Hemisphere (excluding the U. S. A.) Mexico is the most dynamic and progressive. The city itself now has over four million inhabitants but a dearth of Dartmouth men. I am happy to hear that Bob Hill will soon be here as Ambassador to Mexico.
"I will be back in New York sometime in the early summer and will look forward to seeing some of the local '42s at the Club."
Not all '42s are going to foreign soil - some are returning, such as "Black Jack" Corwith who spent eight years with Creole Petroleum Corp. in Venezuela. Jack joined Esso in 1946 as personnel assistant at the Bayonne Refinery and two years later took his wife, Millie, to South America where he served as classification analyst at Caracas. Subsequent assignments found him in Amuay, Caripito and Maracaibo in connection with wage and salary supervision. Those exotic Caribbean vacations were also part of the assignment, with Barbados at the top of the list, not that he and Millie didn't enjoy their visits to Jamaica, Trinidad, etc. As a diversion from his regular duties, he ranged far and wide in left field on Creole's Maracaibo softball team. Wait till Dutch Schaefer hears of this. I understand Dutch can use more coaches in the Westfield, N. J., Little League. That is where Jack and Millie, along with six-year-old Alan, have settled as he becomes head of the Communications and Research Division of the Employee Relations Department of the Bayway Refinery. This means Jack assumes supervisory responsibility for the activities of three sections - Communications, Labor Relations Research, and Salary Administration.
In another year, anyone traveling through Henrietta, N, Y., can get a good idea of what is required in a truly modern laboratory and plant for the manufacture of pharmaceuticals. Bob Strasenburgh, Executive Vice President of R. J. Strasenburgh Co., now located in Rochester, tells me that the new building goes so far as to feature a garden with a fountain in the hollow of the "U" facing the street and that the building will be "zone conditioned", which refers to complete control of the humidity, temperature, filtration, light and noise. I suppose Bob's wife, Cora, will have trouble keeping him down on the "farm" once the new building is completed.
In a similar vein, Dr. John Biel, Chief of the Chemistry Division of Lakeside Laboratories in Milwaukee, has been working on new drugs for gastro-intestinal diseases, asthma and other degenerative diseases some of which John says are effective and hopes his medical classmates are using them. Living on the same block in Milwaukee is Dr. Gordon Burgess, pediatrician, which practice probably doesn't call for use of any of John's new drugs, but I suspect Bud had a word of advice for John on the occasion of Mark's birth last year about this time.
At Yale University Medical School, Dr. Stuart Finch has received a special grant of $5,000 from the Smith, Kline and French Foundation to support his program aimed at expanding interest in the field of hematology among medical students and physicians. Stuart is a specialist in hematology conducting research on leukemia and related diseases of the blood and is planning on starting a special new advanced course in hematology. And while we are with the medical profession, Charles Thomson, a general practitioner in Amesbury, Mass., for the past ten years, has been named school physician. At a recent medical forum in Rutherford, N. J., Alvin Robins, assistant professor of neurology at New York University College of Medicine, explored the psychiatric aspects of obesity. It seems that there are several major psychiatric theories of the cause of overeating, so if you are having that trouble, I'm sure Alvin can provide the answer.
J. S. Gibb Clark writes of a recent (February-March) flying trip he and Janet took from their home in Ohio to central Florida, Miami and Havana with the following comments.
"We spent a couple of evenings with my old roomy, Eddie Hodgson, in Miami. Eddie has been a pilot with National Airlines for the last ten years. He and Beryl have four fine children to attest for many years of marital bliss. Anyone on the Miami to Boston run should check to see who their pilot is - could be Ed! We spent a few glorious days with Joe and Nanita Lopez-Silvero in Havana. The rumblings of the revolution never disturbed us. Joe is busy as the proverbial cat as a lawyer and doing exceedingly He even loaned me his car to drive around Havana - and believe me, that is an experience in itself. On the way home, we stopped off for lunch with John Craig, in Knoxville. With time so pressing we were unable to see his wife, Joan, and their four offspring. I'm disappointed to say that none of them were as paunchy as I've become - so for the last two weeks I've had myself on a diet. Maybe the next time we get together I'll be more in line."
Several wives have been good enough to cover homefront activities for their busy husbands which we greatly appreciate and herewith thank them one and all. In the case of Harry Rollins it is also one of necessity, since late last fall he had a one-sided bout with a lumber yard power saw. Result - loss of two fingers on the right hand and still recovering. This had nothing to do with Harry's occupation since he is associated with Upjohn Co. and the trip to the lumber yard was for a "do-it-yourself" project. The family of three girls (13 yrs. to 6) and four-year old Scotty are celebrating the first anniversary of their new house in Norwalk, Conn. While the Rollins haven't been to Hanover since the "fifth" they hope to be able to make it for a visit this summer. Thanks, Joan, for the Rollins story.
From Jackson, Tenn., Gloria Jones tells of four years in a house they built high on a hill where she and Chet (pathologist in Jackson-Madison County General Hospital) intend to grow old together in good ole Dixie, even though in the meantime their three children keep them stepping faster than a rag-time tune. Says Gloria, "We are on the route anywhere you go, North-South Rt. 45, East-West Rt. 70. Stop in and see us, any of you travelers."
In the short scoop department: Dave Biggs elected Regional Executive of the Sports Car Club of St. Louis and a successful racer in his 2.7 Ferrari and 300 SL Mercedes, all the while conducting a farming operation in Clarksville, Mo., and bringing up a family of four, second son (and latest progeny) presented by Louise last year.
Don Kerr has been appointed Manager of the Compensation Division for General Electric in Schenectady where he handles all forms of salary and wage administration for Knolls Atomic Power Lab. Sandy Frank, besides his activity as a partner of a textile converting firm in Baltimore, is a very active president of the United Nations Association of Maryland. Dartmouth College was represented at the inauguration of the new President of Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio, by Charles Close. Stan Wyatt, assistant professor in astronomy at the University of Illinois, is busy on a new beginning-college textbook on general astronomy due out next summer. While acting as assistant professor of Naval Science at Columbia Univ., Lt. Cmdr. Price Lewis has recently moved his family of three children and wife, Dorothy, into a new apartment overlooking the Barnard campus. Fred Nichols, father of five daughters, is now employed by Kaiser Aluminum since the sale of the U. S. Rubber wire division to the former which included the Bristol, R. I. plant.
And that winds up the first year of activity. I hope you have enjoyed the column and ray efforts to keep you interestingly informed of classmates' doings. So long 'til next fall when more news will be coming your way as long as it comes my way. P.S. DON'T FORGET THE ALUMNI FUND!
Robert C. McQueen '43 has been named Director of Group Insurance for Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Co., Newark, N. J. Formerly he was Group Actuary with Union Central Life.
Secretary, 209 Beech St., Cranford, N. J.
Class Agent, 6 Crossgates Rd., Madison, N. j.
