The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1947-12-09
The
OBSERVATIONS
OF "A FOOL
BY BILL LEE
HNRIulIuIllIllIIIMiIIINlllIIllNnnIlNWINII

President Truman last week
went native" shortly after their
arrival in Key West.
Joseph Fox of the Washington
Star simply wore his bath robe
and a pair of slippers down to
the Thursday morning confer
ence held by Charles G.. Ross,
the: Presidents press secretary.
1T. certainly feels good to be
natural for a change, said Fox.
Here, too, agreed Anthony
Laviere Of the New York Times,
who was wearing a jersey shirt
with the words Truman Athle-
tic Club" written on it in bold
type. He also wore. pair of
trousers that had just been res
iued from a rag-bag.
Several of the men appeared
in similar attire. Then in walked
Charley Ross. They all yelled
when they saw him. He was
clothed: in overalls and wore a
blue jumper. He admitted he
borrowed, the outfit from a sail
or, Ns.st tg..
''tIt certainly Is a change, and
for. the better, too, to get away
from, all the clothing and stuff
you're supposed to wear around
Washington, said James F.
King of the Kansas City Star.
The newspaper boys certainly
enjoyed themselves while they
were here. They took time off
tor 60. fishing and several of
them caught some whoppers--to
hear, them tell it. ~
Talk OF the big time they
had upon Sugar Loaf Key. when
they. were the guests of Jack
Frost, s,vice. president of Eastern
Air Lines. was still going the
rounds while the boys were
ready to pull out of here yester-
day morning. .,.t.
There was great deal of kid
ding about the number of COCO
nuts which they had gathered
on Sugar Loaf.
They picked them up to take
home to their wives and fami-
les, said one of them. "They
didn't cost them anything, that's
why. What did you do about
mailing, the post cards you got
for your 'wife?" ~
He pointed his question at a
dour-faced n photographers, who
operates a .16 milimeter camera.
,."T've got them in my suitcase.
he said. II forgot to mail them
until this morning. I'd beat the
mail home, so I'll just take them
up, and give them to my wife"
When the boys" got out to
get in, the cars and buses that
were to take them to Boca Chi
ca Field they were loaded down
with coconuts and presents of all
kinds including necklaces of
pearls. They could barely
squeeze into the machines. -.
II can't figure out whether to
give my present to wife when ]
get back or wait until
Christmas, said one.
"I'H figure that out for you
you'll wait until Christmas,
responded another.
F".But you don't know my
Wife, said the first. She'll ex-
pect something when l get back
and again something on the day
Of Christmas. Oh, well, she'll
probably have it figured out by
the time ! get back to Washing
ton"
Anyway, the visit of the Pre-
sident, short as it was, meant a
whale of lot of publicity for
Key West! Every story that was
sent out of here, and sometimes
two or three a day were sent
by each man, carried a Key
West dateline.
That kind of publicity can not
be bought. Every press associ-
ation, tthe Associated Press, The
United Press and the Interna-
tional News Service, was repre-
sented here. You can figure that
about 1000 newspapers every
day for five days carried the Key
West dateline to every section
OF the globe. q.
Come again, Mr.. President.
r 4 4
We did notice on our way to
and from Boca Chica Air Field
a big old pelican perched atop
the fish bait house at Division
street and Palm avenue. They
tell me the old bird sits on the
roof of the place virtually "a
hours a day.
The place is said to be run by
the Three Veterans, who,7 we
understand, feed the pelican
three meals a day; SO the bird
doesn't have to go floundering
around the sea looking for fish
and other things to eat.
49, X 4 n
Johnny j. Roberts and Art
Bailey. who winter in Clearwa'
ter, were callers at The Citi'
zen office the other day. They