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Show MJ orew Pearson WORLD LEADERS PICTURE By the thread of one man's life hung personal relationships which affected nations. Prime ministers and potentates, once close to Franklin Frank-lin Roosevelt, now must learn how to get along with an unknown gentleman gentle-man in the White House. Certain army-navy officials, who always knew how Roosevelt would react on this and that, now must do business with a man they once criticized. To illustrate how the pendulum ! of fate has swung, here are some I of those who will miss Franklin Roosevelt most: WINSTON CHURCHILL was able to call the late President on the telephone at any time night or day. Their relationship was more Intimate than with most members of their own cabinets. When Church-Ill Church-Ill couldn't get Roosevelt, he talked to Harry Hopkins. Their friendship j (vas equally close. Hopkins and j Churchill used to stay up late at night sipping brandy long after FDR had gone to bed, and it was, those late-hour talks that sometimes worried U. S army-navy men. For vital policy sometimes was moulded after midnight. Churchill had planned to hold national na-tional elections, probably in June, and Roosevelt's friendship would have been one of his great campaign cam-paign assets. That asset is now out the window. Instead he must do business with a man he doesn't know and who chairmanned a committee whose members were quite critical 3f certain British lend-lease and international in-ternational air policies abroad. Some political observers believe that makes Churchill's political fu-hire fu-hire very uncertain. ADMIRAL ERNEST KING The Commander of the Fleet and Chief of Naval Operations really ran the navy under Roosevelt, and he ran tt with a high hand. He ignored the late Secretary Frank Knox whenever when-ever he felt like it, knowing he would get a sympathetic ear at the White House. He even overruled Knox on such a trivial matter as a gray-blue summer uniform for the navy, though Knox had decided it would :ut too heavily into the consumption Df textiles. Knox's successor, Secretary of the Navy Forrest al, has played in with King. He had to. If King didn't agree with him, the admiral came out bluntly in press conference and said so. But now there is a new man in the White House who wrote a caustic caus-tic report bitterly critical of the way the admirals slowed up the war by failure to build adequate landing i boats. The new President also did , not hesitate to throw his hooks into the navy ' whenever the 'brass hats got inefficient, especially on their inexcusable in-excusable procrastination in building build-ing destroyer-escort vessels. So fellow-admirals are watching to see just where King now sits. GENERAL B. B. SOMERVELL No army officer clashed with the Truman committee more frequently and more head-on than the tough-talking tough-talking chief supply officer of the army. Somervell differed with Truman Tru-man on all sorts of things, and the Truman committee reports are studded stud-ded with criticism of the army's supply sup-ply job. Truman is not a man to nurse personal grudges and won't demote or transfer Somervell. General Marshall always maintained that despite de-spite mistakes he was the best man they had. But Somervell will never become chief of staff, or rise any higher in the army. HARRY HOPKINS Of all those around Roosevelt, Harry Hopkins will miss him most. Their's was a very close personal relationship. Although Harry has been criticized vitriolically, sometimes even by other oth-er presidential intimates, FDR never nev-er wavered in his devotion. In a way, Harry took the place of Roosevelt's Roose-velt's eldest son, Jimmie, whom he once hoped would be his1 secretary. So Harry will miss his old friend terribly. The critics will say that Hopkins will miss him because of the glamour, glam-our, the power and the prestige. But actually there was a love and devotion devo-tion between the two men which few realized and even fewer understood. Note Several years ago, Roosevelt Roose-velt gave Hopkins permission to take notes on their discussions and write his memoirs. "You have no money Harry," he said, "and you're foolish if you don't take notes on our conversations. con-versations. You have my full per mission to use them later." But Hopkins, always too busy, always engrossed with winning the Chief's next objective, never had time to take notes. He knows more about Roosevelt than any other living man but most of the secrets will go with Hopkins to the grave. BERNARD BARUCH The man who talks with Presidents, no longoi has the key to the White House During the bitter battles between thf War Production board civilian grout and General Somervell's m ilita r clique, Raruch always backed uj Somervell. In fact, he was one ni Somervell's most vigorous suppnrl ers. Truman, on the other hand, fougln In the WI'B civil hi n enrner, Alsi Bornie was for Byrnes, not Trti num. at the Chicago convention S he may not be such a close frleiv to Presidents any more |
