The Pentagon's Oldest Reporter Has a Great Story of His Own

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ^ | GREG JAFFE

[SJackson]

ARLINGTON, Va. -- More than 500 reporters cover the Pentagon. One is Raymond Cromley, sole representative of Cromley News Service.

Mr. Cromley, 91 years old, has a cubicle in the Pentagon press room outfitted with an old Royal typewriter without a ribbon, a 1971 World Almanac and 17 toothbrushes in a plastic cup. At Pentagon press briefings, he scribbles notes on 3-by-5 index cards that fit neatly into his shirt pocket. His picture hangs on the wall with those of all the other Pentagon correspondents.

[SJackson]

"Terrorists Dependent on Supply Lines" is an interesting read.

I've heare the Mao cable story before, along with a similar one starring Ho.

[egarvue]

What the heck, why don't we here at FreeRepublic publish his columns? Might be an interesting read...

[Texas_Jarhead]

Terrfic story. God bless 'em. Sounds like a man worth meeting.

[jigsaw]

What a wonderful story. Thanks for posting this!

[MrConfettiMan]

Thanks for the post this interesting article. Joe (MCM)

[Cicero]

The lost cable was "one of the great ifs and harsh ironies of history," Ms. Tuchman wrote in her October 1972 essay, published in Foreign Affairs, titled "If Mao Had Come to Washington." Had Mao made the trip, Ms. Tuchman suggested, the U.S. might not have blindly backed the Nationalist government in China and aroused anger and mistrust in Mao. The Chinese might not have made common cause with the Soviets and, Ms. Tuchman wrote, "it is conceivable that there might have been no Korean War and no expansionist Chinese Communism." Even the war in Vietnam might never have happened, she wrote.

I think all this is extremely doubtful. Mao was Mao. He was a dedicated Communist--which in those days meant close relations with the U.S.S.R.--and he knew exactly what he wanted, which was a Communist Party takeover of China. The only real "might have been" lies elsewhere--if the Old China Hands and George Marshall had not expedited Mao's ascension to power at a later date.

[Fred Mertz]

What a fascinating story. Thanks for posting it.

When Mr. Cromley retires I want his job.

[patton]

Small world. I spent my childhood in the pentagon basement, in the late sixties.

[SJackson]

It's an interesting story, that's about all. A cable certainly could have been received, I'm sure he would have liked a meeting. If Roosevelt had received it in Jan, 45, Mao could have attended the Yalta Conference. Not sure that would have changed much, at least for the better. We might have given half of Japan to our new ally, Mao.

[SJackson]

When Mr. Cromley retires I want his job.

Be fun to read all those notecards, especially if they're observations.

[Kermit]

"William stood with Mr. Cromley at a civil-rights rally as H. Rap Brown yelled at his dad: "Are you a journalist, a spy or a cop?""

Answer: Two out of three.