FOREIGN RELATIONS: Good Experience

Nominated by the President to be U.S. Ambassador to the brand-new Republic of Guinea, John Howard Morrow, 49, has never before held a Government job or set foot upon the continent of Africa. But last week he won unanimous Senate confirmation after speedy hearings before the same Foreign Relations Committee that has lately assumed noncareer diplomats to be unsuitable for their posts until proved otherwise (TIME, June 1).

Handsome, tall (6 ft. 3 in.) John Morrow, a Negro,* proved himself a relaxed, suave diplomat in knowledgeable answers to the committee’s polite questions, impressed members with a pin-striped academic pedigree. He holds a B.A. from Rutgers University (Phi Beta Kappa,’31), M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, Certificat Avancé from France’s Sorbonne, has a scholar’s command of Latin, French and Spanish and a reading knowledge of German and Portuguese. Now head of the modern language department in North Carolina College at Durham, he is a slave’s grandson, one of five accomplished children of a Methodist minister. His brother E. Frederic is a White House administrative officer (Special Projects), brother William is a Regular U.S. Army sergeant in Germany, brother Eugene works for the Hackensack (N.J.) Board of Education.

Said Ohio’s burly Frank Lausche, with a nod to Arkansan Bill Fulbright, committee chairman, and sworn enemy of noncareer diplomats: “I’m sure you are the type of man that lies dear and close to the heart of what Senator Fulbright feels should be a good ambassador.” Added Fulbright genially: “I think it will be a good experience for you.”

Also last week the Senate confirmed:

¶William M. Rountree, 42, veteran (17 years) Foreign Service officer and three-year Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs, to be Ambassador to Pakistan.

¶Dempster Mclntosh, 63, onetime president of Philco International Corp. (1943-53), ambassador to Latin American countries (Uruguay, Venezuela), first manager of the Administration’s Development Loan Fund (1957-59), to be Ambassador to Colombia.

* Fourth Negro to hold U.S. ambassadorial rank: the other three (all ambassadors to Liberia): Edward R. Dudley (1949-53), Jesse Dwight Locker (1953-55), Richard Lee Jones (since 1955)-