Evening star., 1952-04-20
Exclusively
Yours
James Webb Chops
Wood on New Land
On Mountointop
By Betty Beole


What has happened to James
Webb, former Undersecretary Of
State, since he was succeeded
by David K. E. Bruce? The
answer is the same old story.
Now out of Government service
about seven weeks. Jim Webb is
blooming with health. One can't
help wondering how that ex-
preston, soft Government job"
ever came into being. In the
world of today it's the biggest
kind of miSnomer.
What Jim did was to buy a
piece of a mountain top in West
Virginia just over the Virginia
line. His attractive wife Patsy
says she almost sees less of him
now than when he was in the
State Department. He's been
getting up at 6 o'clock in the
morning and driving to his
mountain top and chopping
wood for hours. And it couldn't
be better for him, says his wife.
He's been clearing the ground
for the house he moved up
there, all the way from Wash
ington. It's a simple white
frame construction consisting
of one big room, Is by IS feet.
which was put up by the engi-
neers for their own use during
the building of the new General
Accounting Office. Jim was
present when they laid the cor
nerstone, and when it was COM
pleted a little while ago he de-
cided he had use for the little
house they were about to tear
down, so he bought same. 1t
now commands a superb view
of the Shenandoah Valley and.
when it is fixed up and added
to, will serve as a weekend re-
treat from city life. And for
Jim Webb it will be from several
cities. He is going to be public
director for several companies.
including an aircraft one in st.
Louis, a textile one in New Jer-
sey and so forth.
Patsy Webb has some mis-
givings about the mountain re-
treat. She suspects that 1t is
surrounded by poison ivy and
has at least one rattlesnake
lurking somewhere nearby. A
man who has been living up
there for rs years. however.
says he has only seen two in all
that time. That would be
enough for me.
incidentally. there is one Tru-
man who is permanent Gov
ernment employe. and that is
the Undersecretary Of States
chauffeur. Truman drove the
Webbs' official car, is now driy-
ing the Bruces. which means he
has the next to highest rating
of any State Department chauf-
feur. They are promoted just
as other Government employees
are. VIPS leaving a big recep-
ton get quite. a shock when
Capital doorman Cole raises his
megaphone and calls Truman"
On the local front-Very pop
ular and very attractive Dorothy
Marlatt Reid. a native WASH
ingtonian and ex-wife of Jim
Reid, will be married next
month. The bridegroom-to-be
is Halstead Wander Poel. :.
Good-looking Brig. Gen. Bob
Landry, the Presidents air aide.
has been taken through the
ringer lately by his friends.
Seems that the Congressional
Record referred to him as Gen.
Laundry. ...
Handsome Stuart Rockwell,
foreign service officer who has
been stationed here since 1948,
is about to reduce the bachelor
ranks of Washington-and they
can i'll afford to be reduced.
Having served during the past
year at the Pentagon as special
adviser to the Secretary of the
Air Force, Stuart will now 60
overseas again. He will leave
here in June to become first
secretary at the American EN-
bassy in Madrid.
Jerry and Edie Greene, who
came here three years ago from
our Embassy in Rome, will set
out in a months time for the
other end of the world. They
are going to Singapore. And
another Well-liked couple have
already gone. Mac and Livia
Cooley sailed a week ago for
France. Mac will become first
secretary at our Embassy in
Paris.
Little known Facts About
Well = known People A spe-
clally written tabloid was pre-
sented to the guests at the
Women's National Press Club
dinner the other evening. When
they got around to reading it
they found some interesting
tidbits on the real estate page.
(Cont'd on Page D-11.)