Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-11-04
Continued From Page 7

Party had only a few minutes Of conversation with
the Senator before it time to leave for dinner
Mr. Kefauver strobe OF down the hall with Mr.
Chang on his arm. still In conference The Senator
was wearing well-shned black shoes with his dress
suit again-after embarrassing appearance IN
brown shoes at Wet Namese President Ngo Dinh
Diem's Saigon dinner in his honor He had lost
one black shoe In Singapore.
Vice President Nixon toured the Far East In
1853 the Presidents personal representative and
he set equally wearing pace. This reporter
encountered the Nixon party in Wet Nam, at that
time still torn by civil war.
We stood waiting at the Saigon terminal
veranda his plane touched down. 1t was a
typically tropical afternoon In the bright sunshine
Squadrons OF colorful French foreign legionnaires
stood in formation along the runway. sweating
quietly under white. blue and green helmets.
The Nixon plane TAXED up to the far end of
the formation. and the pilot cut the engines The
band leader raised his baton the plane door opened
steps were rolled up. the band started to play "The
Stdr-SpaRgled Banner" Mr.. Nixon emerged squint-
ing in the sunlight and stood at attention in his
cleaning white suit, his right hand over his heart.
And then 1t rained. One Of those sudden
tropical squalls dumped buckets all over Saigon
Airport
The band played on Mr. Nixon stood smiling
at attention. The troops remained rigid. The
white suit Mr.. Nixon wore dissolved into twisted,
dark gray mass. His national anthem completed,
Mr.. Nixon strobe down the steps and joined the
troop commander for the inspection Of troops rain
streaming down his face. The party plowed through
puddles as II they weren't there.
As he neared the end Of the inspection the rain
stopped suddenly as 1t had started, and the hot
sun came out once more. Mr. Nixon met Wet
Namese President Tam, who emerged dry and
embarrassed from the terminal reception point to
welcome him.
Mr.. Nixon was guided to waiting microphones,
where he made a smooth and, by that time worn
glad-to-be-here speech. His wife came up. daintiy
lodging the puddles and looking radiant, as usual
against a background of more than-usual drabnesS
The American interpreter translated Mr.. Nixon's
remarks into French.
The Nixons whisked on quickly to a state
luncheon The Vice President set the schedule back
minutes by changing clothes There followed
sightseeing tours. briehngs ofilcial visits with
dignitaries. and the usual round of evening dinners
with their endless Oriental dances.
Mr. Nixon dozed uncontroably while the Cholon
dancers made like Swastikas. But he his
feet and saying the right thing when it was his
turn to acknowledge the lavish entertainment.
few days later Mr.. Nixon was at the front
in Northern Wet Nam, wearing Army fatigueS and
a Marine ungle-camoufaged poncho. talking to
French foreign legonnaires as they came OF the
line. consulting battalion commanders, gathering
dust along the dirt roads through which he rode
in an open ieep
That evening" he came into Hanoi with the
dust lying in layers along his bushy eyebrows 1t
took him little longer that time to get ready for
another state dinner.
Next morning. Mr.. Nixon's big plane took on