Evening star., 1939-06-25
Zoe Kennedy Grows Homesick,
Friends Soy; May Quit London
Frets at Restrcint
Imposed on Him
As Diplomat
BY JAMES b. REsTON,

BY JAMES b. kESTON,
Associated Press Foreign Correspondent
Z LONDON.-United States Ambas-
sador Joe" Kennedy is showing
signs of inconsistencies.
!. Some of his friends think he may
give up his London post even be-
fore the end of the summer. and
Myron G. Taylor. former chair
man of the United States Steel
Corp, is mentioned here as his pos
sible successor.
3 Mr.. Kennedy is generally rated
here as a good Ambassador. Brit
ish officials say. he has got every
thing from the British that he ever
asked for. Prime Minister Cham
berlain likes him personally and re-
spects his Judgment, and the British
people think he's wonderful But
still. Ambassador Joe" thinks he
Hdoesnt fit the job"
= He doesn't fit" his intimates say
because no United States Ambassa-
dor can move until Washington
pulls the strings. If he wants to
make speech (and he has to
make more than he wants to) Wash
ington has to okay the text. If he
has an idea for solving any i'm
portant problem. it must first be
submitted to the State Department
= Gorified Messenger.
s In other words. the United States
Ambassador in London is just one
man in the vast organization of the
United States State Department.
Or, as one diplomat recently de-
dned it:
= can Ambassador is just glori-
lied post Office messenger who makes
middle Of the-road speeches and
passes other peoples messages back
and forth"
: Before coming to London, Mr.
Kennedy proved in Hollywood and
IN Washington that his genius was
In giving rather than taking orders
He has proved here that he can
also take orders, but he doesn't
Especially like it.
= There's another thing he doesn't
like about his job. Some Washing
ton politicians and commentators
ehave recently been taking verbal
pot shots at him and while he has
no objection to that, he is too good
an Irishman not to want to fight
back.
= Gen. Hugh Johnson recently ques-
tioned whether Ambassador Ken
snedy hadn't gone pro-British. De-
scribing a previous United States
envoy as "a British Ambassador to
Washington" Gen. johnson COM
mented: 1T would be a good idea
to inquire whether we haven't got
another of those things at the Court
of st. James right now"
e Mr.. Kennedy. who admires a good
quip, smiled at the remark, but
was reported furious that in his
position it was impossible for him
to hit back.
Hasn't "GOne British"
His American friends in London
and foreign Office officials laugh at
: suggestions that Mr.. Kennedy has
'"gone British" Two anecdotes are
= clted.
Shortly after he arrived here. one
Of the highest peers in the country
: came up to him at reception and
said:
Don't you feel, Mr.. Ambassador
that the people of Great Britain
and the United States are drawing
nearer together all the tine?"
mo, sir, I dont!" replied Mr.. Ken
nedy.
The peer had the good judgment
to change the subject.
Last Grand National Day, Mr..
Kennedy went to the Fleet Street
Press Club and told a gathering of
influential editors that it was his
custom to walk alone late at night
. in Hyde Park.
Somebody suggested that perhaps
1t wasn't safe for the American
Ambassador to walk alone at night.
"At this time" remarked Mr..
Kennedy, II think the American