Evening star., 1941-10-12
Chief Justice Stone,
69, Not Likely 10
Retire Next Year
Jurist, in Excellent Health
Wuxed Strong in Youth
On Form Work
BY JAMES w. DOUTHAT,
The Snecial News Service.

Harlan Fiske Stone, the 18th per-
son in history to serve as Chief JUS
tice of the United States, reached
his seth birthday anniversary yes
terday.
This means that the occupant of
the Nations highest judicial post
will be eligible to retire at full pay
of S20,500 a year exactly one year
from today when he becomes 10.
There are no indications that he
will do so, however. On the con-
trary, his health is excellent and
his friends say he normally would
expect to remain on the Supreme
Court as long as he is able to per-
form the arduous duties required.
Enormous physical resources built
up in his youth by work on a New
Hampshire farm and by playing
center for the Amherst football
team have enabled him to keep con-
stantly on the job with one eXcep-
ton, since he was appointed as
sociate justice by his college mate,
President Calvin Coolidge, in 1928.
Returned With Renewed Vigor.
The sole break in his long period
of service came on October 13, 1886,
when he was stricken by dysentery.
He was absent for three and one
half months, but when he returned
to the bench he plunged with re-
newed vigor into his judicial work.
To keep in trim, he takes a 40
minute walk every morning after he
arises at 7:3O am. and before he eats
breakfast at $50. With his dis
tinctive surging gait he covers 3
miles in the vicinity of his home.
After his days work, he tries to
find time to duplicate his morning
walk late in the afternoon before
sundoWn. But pressing duties fire.
quently interfere.
Like his predecessor, Charles
Evans Hughes, the Chief Justice
started smoking early in life but
soon quit. He decided he did not
want to become a slave to the
habit" Mr.. Hughes found that
smoking impaired his efficiency.
Reads Mostly Legal Topics.
Chief Justice Stone by necessity
confines his reading largely to legal
TOPICS. Other reading covers prlncl-
pally history and economics. He
subscribes to some of the leading
magazines and reads the articles
that interest him whenever he can
find the time.
Appointed Chief Justice last June
u. he took the oath of office on July
8 in a log cabin high in the Colorado
Rockies, where he was vacatlonlng.
The following day, in a Nation
wide Independence Day radio broad
cast. he led Americans in the pledge
of allegiance to the flag.
Since the Supreme Court was IN
recess during the summer, 1t was not
until last Monday that he began
his active duties as presiding officer
of the high tribunal. The session
was brief, and the court adjourned
nutil next Monday. when action on
a bumper crop of litigation will be-
gin.
Chief Justice Stone is inclined to
DS StOuG dllu dDONC dNNA dSC 4AI4-i4Os
His face is round and an unruly lock
of hair frequently falls over his right
eye. His brow at times becomes cor
rugated as he puzzles over compli-
Gated points of law.
Can Be Stern.
Ordinarily Chief Justice Stone is
very friendly with attorneys arguing
before the tribunal. But he can be-
come stern when he thinks lawyers
are attempting to evade questions or
to wander from the points at issue
Mr.. Stone, New England Repub-
lican, was named Chief Justice by
President Roosevelt after gaining a
national reputation as liberal dur
ing the 16 years he had served as
associate justice.
Only once before had a President
of one political party elevated to the
Chief Justiceship an associate justice
who adhered to another political
party. That was in 1910, when
President Taft, a Republican, ap-
pointed Justice Edward Douglass