THE PRESIDENCY: Having Wonderful Time

Half-dressed in undershorts and a shirt, the President of the United States stood in front of his double locker in Denver's plush Cherry Hills Country Club one day last week. After 18 holes of golf and a bracing shower, President Eisenhower looked pink, gleaming and relaxed. When he had finished dressing, the President strolled through the carpeted locker room and headed for the lunch that awaited him. The weather was magnificent, and Ike was savoring every minute of his vacation. His face, neck and bald head were ruddy with sun, and, according to his aides, Ike seemed healthier than he had been at any time since assuming the presidency, and was "storing strength" against the months ahead.

Putting Problem. The presidential routine was simple and unvaried. Early every morning, he dressed in casual sports clothes and drove to his office at Lowry Air Force Base, arriving between 7:25 and 7:30 a.m. After 90 minutes or so at his desk, he was off again to Cherry Hills for his daily 18 holes of golf. His game was good (last week's scores ranged from 81 to 86), with a fine fairway performance, but plenty of room for improvement on his chip shots and putting. Ike hoped to hone down his score, and perhaps better his Cherry Hills record (77) before he returned to Washington.

After lunch in the locker room the President returned to his mother-in-law's home, and by 3 p.m. each day he was tucked in for a long nap. Evenings were quiet and short; most nights, Ike relaxed with his paints and palette in a makeshift studio in the basement. By 11 p.m. he was usually in bed and asleep.

Briefing Sessions. The President was kept in intimate touch with matters of major importance. One day he talked by telephone with Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., learned at first hand the developments in the U.N. disarmament talks. Secretary Dulles briefed him on the indications that Russia was arming Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and kept him informed on events in Argentina (see THE HEMISPHERE). He was advised by the Labor Department that the Chrysler strike had been settled (see BUSINESS).

Last week the President also : ¶ Named Harold C. McClellan, 58, to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce for International Affairs. McClellan invested $10,000 in a Los Angeles paint company in 1927, ran it into a business with a $3,000,000 gross last year. A globe-trotter and a Republican, he has given his services and travel time to the Government since 1953 in various foreign assignments with the Foreign Operations Administration. He will be primarily concerned in his new job with foreign trade and economic development abroad.

¶ Used his authority under the Railway Labor Act to avert a threatened strike against the Pennsylvania Railroad by 35,000 nonoperating employees of Mike Quill's Transport Workers Union. The President created a three-man fact-finding board, which will investigate the railroad's labor situation for a month, forestall a strike for at least 60 days.