Honored by Scholarship Fund

A scholarship fund to honor Lester K.Little '14 of Cornish, N. H., has been established by his son, John W. Little II '40, of Water Mill, N. Y., in a rare departure from the traditional memorial.

The amount of the initial gift, John Little's contribution under the Third Century Fund, is $102,645, with further additions anticipated from trust funds expected to bring the total above $200,000.

Income from "The Lester K. Little 1914 Scholarship Fund Established by John W. Little 1940," as it has been officially designated, is to be used annually to help defray the costs of a Dartmouth education for qualified students, with preference to be given applicants from Mainland China and Formosa. If no suitable candidates apply from those areas, the funds may be used for other qualified students.

The gift, unusual in so honoring a man during his lifetime, also recognizes "Lay" Little's long-time contributions to ChineseAmerican relations. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate who later took a master's degree at Brown University, he spent 36 years with the Chinese Customs Service, the last seven as Inspector General. Little is the only American in history to be appointed to head the service, which is recognized the world over as a model of governmental efficiency and integrity. The Chinese Customs Service is responsible for the handling of foreign financial obligations, direction of the Post Office, and the safety of coastal navigation, as well as its primary obligation of collecting revenues and tariffs.

Little went to China in 1914, shortly after graduation, and was Commissioner of Customs in Shanghai, Amoy, Tientsin, and Canton in the years before World War II. In 1942 he was placed under house arrest by the Japanese and was later repatriated to the United States. He returned to China in 1943 as Inspector General of Customs, serving on the Mainland until 1949, when he went to Formosa. He was adviser to the Chinese Nationalist Ministry of Finance from 1950 to 1954.

When he retired from the Customs Service in 1950, the College conferred an honorary Doctorate of Laws on Lester Little, in recognition of his "achievement in advancing the welfare of China and thereby the work of good government everywhere."

From 1955 through 1960, Little was chief of personnel services for the United States Information Agency.

The elder Little has also established a scholarship fund in memory of his parents, John W. and Lillias Little.

Lester K. Little '14