Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-12-27
while he was working on some
papers in his downstairs study.
Wife Heard Him at 10:30.


Wife Heard film at 1890.
PVT. Riddlebarger said Mrs. Welles
told him she heard her husband
come upstairs about 1890 pm. and
put the Welles' dog in the bathroom.
She said she didn't know her hus-
band had gone out. About $50
am. yesterday, she told the police
man, she asked the butler If Mr..
Welles had rung for breakfast.
When told that he had not, she
went to his room and found the
bed had not been slept in.
About that time the hospital
called to say Mr.. Welles had been
brought in and Mrs. Welles imme-
diately went to the hospital, where
she remained at her husbands bed
side through the day.
Members of Mr.. Welles house.
hold said he had been very de-
pressed" and not eating or sleeping
we'll since he returned from funeral
services for Laurence Duggan.
Mr.. Duggan, former State Depart
ment political adviser and close
friend of Mr.. Welles, plunged to his
death from his sixteenth floor office
IN New York last Monday.
A few hours later. the House
Committee on American Activi-
ties published secret testimony
given by Isaac Don Levine, editor
OF Plain Talk, an anti-Communist
The witness said he had
heard ex Communist Whitaker
Chambers mention Mr.. Duggan as
one of those who passed along State
Department secrets.
Came to Duggan's Defense
Mr.. Welles Immediately came to
his friends defense, called MIN
loyal public servant and asked the
New York Police Department to
investigate the death on the posi-
bility of foul play. The Justice De-
partment later cleared Mr.. Dusgan
of any suspicion and the committee
dropped the case.
Earlier, Mr.. Welles went before
the committee as witness to testl-
fly to the importance of the stolen
State Department reports found in
pumpkin on Mr. Chambers
Maryland farm. Mr.. Welles, testi-
flying at an open session, examined
several of the documents and adj
vised against their being made
public.
Later, most of the documents were
released but some have been kept
secret on State Department advice.
Realized Early Ambition.
Mr.. Welles, who for years held q
place in popular conception as the
archtype OF the career diplomat,
has been active in recent years as
free lance critic of diplomacy. He
has not held an official post in more
than five years.
He resigned as Undersecretary OF
State in September. 1943, after a
breach with Secretary of State Hull.
A career in the diplomatic service
had been his ambition in college
days, and he began it in 1915, shortly
after graduating from Harvard Uni
versity At 20, he was chief Of the
Division of Latin American Affairs.
In the spring OF 1887, at A, he be-
came the No. 2 man of the depart
ment.
In the critical months before the
outbreak of World War II. State
Department observers began to
notice signs of cracking in the re-
lations between Mr.. Welles and Mr..
Hull.
1t was not until 1913, however,
that the strain became generally
apparent, and Mr.. Welles finally
resigned after conference with
President Roosevelt.
In his memoirs, Mr.. Hull stated
bluntly the rift was caused by what
he said was Mr.. Welles' propensity
for taking into his own hands de-
cisions which Mr. Hull had not
proposed to leave to his subordinate
when he gave him unusual leeway.
MIR. Welles was credited widely
with coming the phrase, Good
Neighbor Policy" to describe Mr.
Roosevelt's program of inter-Ameri-
can cooperation.
The almost invariably calm
diplomat usually has demonstrated
maximum enthusiasm when ex-
pounding his conviction Of the es-
sential need for hemisphere soil
darity.
In 1910 Mr.. Roosevelt sent him te
Europe on a fact finding mission to
evaluate the chances Of preserving
peace. In his book, 1.-THE Time fol-
Decision,n published in 1914, Mr.
Welles said the trip failed OF &C
complishment because it was appar-
ent Hitler and Mussolini would be
stayed only by the realization that
the United States was arraylne
force against them.
Mr.. Welles was born October IA
1892 in New York. He attended
Groton before entering Harvard. 1r
1915 ne married Miss Esther Slater
They had two sons.
The Welles were divorced and he
married Mrs. Mathilde Townsend
iv. f00E