Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-08-07


woods section Of Georgia near the
town Of Preston. His birthday was
January 30. 1878.
He was the older Of the two chill
dren Of Robert Theodore and
Sarah Stapleton George. They
were Of Welsh and English descent.
Senator George has never tried.
but If he should. he likely could
trace q direct relationship to the
Welshman David Lloyd George,
distinguished Prime Minister of
Great Britain during and after
World War I.
There was not much public edu-
cation in his boyhood and he was
sent to Houston Institute, near
Cordele, Ca, a day school con-
Quoted by q teacher who set UP
shop to serve the children Of near
by farmers. There were not too
many books at the George home,
but Robert George was interested
In government and regularly re-
ceived the Congressional Record.
Substitute Orator
The young George, who had en-
tertained youthful ambitions to be-
come q dentist, soon became en-
amored Of reading the orations
published in the Record He be-
gan to read them aloud, and final,
ly. to memorize those he liked best.
He thus early became an orator
Of local repute. By the time he
was 10 he charmed q great crowd
which had come to hear an orator
Of Statewide fame make the main
address to q Confederate Memorial
Day audience at Cordele. The or
ator did not show UP and the COM
mittee. In some desperation, seized
on the 16-year-old Walter George.
He was ready. One Of the ora
tons he had memorized-and i'm
proved upon out Of his own emo
tions-had to do with Robert e.
Lee. It was. Of course. Q natural.
At Mercer he won the oratoricaf
medal for four straight years.
A born Democrat" Senator
George has remained one, though
not without independence. He
supported Al Smith in 1928 when
temperance minded Georgia was
greatly aroused and when much of
the rural support was going to
Herbert Hoover because AL Smith
was wet" and Roman Catholic.
During the New Deal, Senator
George was about 80 per cent for
1t. He supported the farm meas
ureS, the Agricultural Adjustment
Administration. not because he be-
lieved them all good, but because
he knew the farmers were desper-
ate and had to have help. Triple
A was all that was offered. He
supported. too, the Rural Electrifi-
cation Administration, Tennessee
Valley Authority, the Securities and
Exchange Commission and Social
Security. He strongly opposed the
President by coming out against
the bill to enlarge the Supreme
Court and he earned the ire Of
the White House by also opposing
the Wages and Hours Act and the
1898 Executive Reorganization Act.
It was this independence which
caused hot-headed advisers around
the President to believe the presi-
Dental prestige was such that 1t
could determine the outcome of
local elections. A number Of pro-
minent Democrats were marked for
purging. All but one such effort
failed. When New York State
Congressman John O'Connor was
defeated. President Roosevelt.
Harvard man. wryy remarked:
We'll. at any rate we won the
Yale game"
Mr.. O'Connor was the one Roose-
welt most wanted to defeat.
Years later the President told
friends he had been badly advised
on the purge.
Bipartisan Policy Mon
Senator George never wavered
in his support Of the Presidents
bipartisan foreign policy-as he
has not under President Essen
hover when the President has had
to depend on Democrats to save
his program. But. as usual, Sen
ator George ID independent Of what
ever man Is President.
It's o further tribute to the Sen
ator that his long and happy per-
sonal life has been kept private.
He has never Stunned q social life,
but neither has he sought 1t. He
Is not part Of the merry -go-round
cocktail party schedule Of the
Capital. He and his wife, whom he
calls Miss Lucy" spend most eve
nings In their home. the Senator
reading or studying.
A favorite family joke Is that
whenever Mrs. George, firing Of 90
much reading and sitting, asks
what he would like to do in the
evening, the Senator replies: REST,
Lucy. I recommend 1t for you.
Rest"
Miss Lucy was Lucy Heard when
she met George. They were mar
ried in 1908 when the young gradu-
ate Of MERGERS law school was
making his name as the new
lawyer who was winning all the
cases."
The Senator allows, in his mo-
ments Of quiet jest, that he might
have been . great social success but
for an impetuous act by Miss Lucy.
Years ago the Senator was pre-
vailed. upon to purchase a swallow
tail coat and striped pants. Some
how an occasion never arose to
wear them. But there came a day
early in the war when Hollands
Queen Wilhelmina was going to be
received at the White House and
the chairmen of Senate and House
committees were to be in the re-
ceiving line. The Senator couldn't
find his coat. After q frustrating
u u