The Hemisphere: Hurricane Time

Hurricane Time Prim & proper Fredericton never fails to loosen its stays a bit for a gay old time during the annual visit of New Brunswick's most illustrious native son, William Maxwell Aitken, Baron Beaverbrook, 72 this week. The Beaver, Britain's No. 1 newspaper lord, likes it that way. He seldom comes home, moreover, without bearing gifts for his pet philanthropy, the University of New Brunswick (total so far: $1,500,000), where he himself was once a brilliant, tippling, debt-ridden, poker-playing law student.

The Beaver's visit last week was no exception. This year's beneficence: a $265,000 library, 12,000 books, the private papers of two other New Brunswickers who made good—Prime Ministers R. B. Bennett of Canada and Bonar Law of Britain —and miscellaneous valuable manuscripts. Among the latter was a love letter from Admiral Lord Nelson to Lady Hamilton, accusing her of flirting. Said the Beaver to a newsman: "Shows how disgracefully women can behave . . . She was just getting him all hotted up."

The library presentation ceremony was held in the $250,000 Beaverbrook Gymnasium (his gift for 1939). Later, Beaverbrook presided with uninhibited gusto over a black-tie dinner, where he heard himself described as "an astounding combination of Puck and Napoleon." The Beaver lingered until 4 a.m., helping the 250 guests put away 95 bottles of champagne, uncounted slugs of whisky, with many a lusty song.

Said U.N.B.'s President Albert W. Trueman with an exhausted sigh: "He's a human hurricane, that man!"