Evening star., 1942-05-21
Jimmy Never Surprises Mrs. DooIittIe
BY CLARKE BEACH.
Wide World.

| 11Cl 1I1SIlCS Ildu WdIINQ ncT@tQe
girls in the Los Angeles High
School where she had met Jimmy
in 1910. Jimmy was a daredevil
He was impulsive, unpredictable
He would always be getting into hot
water. But Josephine's eyes saw
something in the young fellows
grinning, determined face that the
others didn't see.
She married him in 1917, a war
bride. There followed Is years OF
high adventure with clouds for a
background. 1t was fast-moving
breath taking, and very strenuous
But there was always a world OF
devotion and laughter.
A month ago the blue-eyed wom-
an, now the mother of two sons
her bobbed hair now turned pre-
maturely white, was listening to the
radio. American flyers had bombed
Japan. The Japs reported they
were flying B-25s. She had a hunch
Jimmy had been there, for she
knew that was the kind of plane he
was flying, wherever he was; he had
left under sealed orders.
The Toxic radio said nine planes
were downed But I didn't worry
she said today. Yet, I couldn' t
help wondering who might be in the
planes that were down"
Called by Gen. Arnold.
A few days ago, when she was
visiting her mother in Los Angeles,
1t. Gen. H. H. Arnold, commander
of the Army Air Forces, telephoned
from Washington. Would she take a
plane and get to Washington in
48 hours? He wouldn't say why,
but she could tell from the merry
tone in his voice that he had good
news.
Late Tuesday afternoon she landed
here and was whisked of to the
White House. Only 10 minutes be-
fore she got there she learned that
her husband had led the first air
raid on Japan, that he had been
made a brigadier general, and that
the President was about to award
him the Congressional Medal Of
Honor.
Her large blue eyes looked proud
but not surprised when the Com
mander in Chief pinned the medal
to his tunic. This was so very much
like Jimmy.
He is always doing amazing things
leaving on a moments notice, re-
turning without warning, often with
troops of hungry friends IN tow;
breaking aviation records OF all
kinds. flying faster or higher or In
loops that no one had ever tried
before.
She has stood in the crowd many
a time, watching his stunts. Others
held their breath. But she was calm
and confident. Jimmy thinks he can
do anything he wants to do, and ne
practically always can.
Doesn't Worry About Husband.
While she doesn't worry about her
husbands daredevil feats. she ad-
mits she was glad when he gave up
stunt flying She says she has never
once urged him to give up aviation.
There is just as much danger on the
ground among automobiles, for
some motorists show more daring
than cunning" She sums up her
fatalism with the words, when
your card is tipped up, you go, no
matter where you are"
She has been sitting quietly at
home when Jimmy suddenly would
come in with as many as 25 hungry
men from some flying field. She
happily ransacks the refrigerator
and always manages to put on a
meal. She keeps an emergency
shelf of food.
Her boys are Ike that, too-Jimmy,
jr., 21, mechanical engineer, now a
second lieutenant, an aviator since
October; John, 10, an athlete, now
studying engineering at the Uni
versity of Michigan and hoping to
enter West Point in July. John
telephoned a short time ago, saying
he was coming home with friends:
Dinner for eight tonight, NOM"
I'VE always kept lot Of roll
away cots at home" she says.
t"home" is wherever they happen
to have house; they move so often
and so suddenly The Doolittles
don't entertain" as some people do.
They just keep open house" Mrs.
Doolittle says their home reminds
her of ga small hotel"
Gracious and Youthful.
Mrs. Doolittle, gracious and
youthful-she looks to be about the
age of her husband, who is 45-im-
perturbably replied to questions to-
day while the telephone and the
doorben rang repeatedly in the Doo-
Titles apartment in the Carlyn, $500
@ street NV. Friends from all over
the world were sending congratula-
tions.
She has no servant, "for we
couldn't keep one, considering our
hours" Besides doing the house
work, she keeps notes for her hus-
band and corresponds with 1000
friends-all of her letters carefully
indexed, so that she will know to
whom she owes mail.
When Gen. Doolittle was study
ing at the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology after the war, getting
his master of arts degree and his
Ph.D., she arranged - ped his
notes. Army flyers Shy wat there
are several copies of these, all
highly valued by their owners.
Often the Doolittle notes are re-
ferred to in consultations on aero
nautical engineering.
Mrs. Doolittle dresses simply but
in good taste, and she uses no make
up. She likes theaters and music,
but she resents movies about avia-
tion because they feature crashes
and she feels that this is unfair.
New safety measures should be en-