Memoirs
reception, visiting officials, et cetera. Incidentally, we had moved to Fort
in January
1976 while I was still deputy on the assumption that we would be there until 30 June 1977.
The engineer wives affairs turned out quite nicely. Even now Gerry meets women who
remember very well their visit to the Chief's house. Then, of course, there were the holiday
events and visitors to Washington.
So I shouldn't pass through this period of my career without emphasizing the importance that
Gerry played, not only in supporting me as I went along, but the requirements of my various
assignments, especially the Chief of Engineers. No doubt the other occupants of her position
have had a similar experience.
Q ..
In talking about becoming the Chief of Engineers, you mentioned the MacArthur Castles.
You said at some point later you'd talk about Mrs. [Jean] MacArthur's reaction to the
castles?
Colonel Joe Markel, retired, was a remarkable and highly regarded New Yorker. He was a
A
lawyer who had served as a legal officer in the Corps of Engineers during World War II. He
had a great love for the Corps of Engineers and was very active in the Society of American
Military Engineers and in other defense matters.
One evening, he hosted an event in New York to honor Melvin Laird, the Secretary of
Defense. A small receiving line included Mrs. A b r a m s -General Abrams had died by this
time-Mrs. MacArthur, Secretary Laird, and me-plus Joe Markel, the host.
During the evening, Mrs. Abrams and I visited quite a bit about their trip to Fort Peck, which
I covered earlier. She reiterated to me then that that was most pleasant and the last time that
her husband and the family had vacationed together before he died.
Mrs. MacArthur, whom I had not met before, was a most charming and interesting lady.
During our discussion, waiting for the event to begin, I removed one of the castles and
handed it to her without explanation. She looked at it. "Oh, this belonged to the general," she
said. I remember her saying "the general," because she never mentioned any other name.
I then explained to her how I happened to have them, and there followed a very pleasant
discussion. Later, I got a note from her mentioning that she enjoyed being at the event and
particularly enjoyed hearing about the castles, and she was happy to know they were being
put to good use.
Q ..
But she recognized them right off.
A
Oh yes, immediately.
Q ..
We've discussed this a little before, but I wonder if it would be appropriate here to talk more
about Blumenfeld as assistant secretary and those who followed. Is there any additional
material you'd like to add about your relationship with these men, Secretaries Alexander and
Blumenfeld? You did mention that Secretary Alexander had some things that he was
particularly interested in. Affirmative action, I think, was one of those.
A
Well, we've covered my activities with the president pretty well. As for affirmative action,
the secretary was very aggressive as described elsewhere. There were two other elements of
the Executive Branch that demanded a lot of time, not just from the Chief of Engineers, but
from the director of Civil Works as well. One was the OMB, and the other was the Secretary
of the Army's office. I will mention OMB before I get to your question.
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