Newspaper Articles

Yesterday morning at nine o'clock the offices and plant of the newspaper, the St. Albans Advertiser, were visited by Edward Kennedy, 28-year-old brother of famed Presidential candidate, Senator John F. Kennedy.

Before a crowd of local people who had gathered in The Advertiser had gathered in The Advertiser offices, Mayor Averil L. Ramsey shook hands with the younger Mr. Kennedy (who greatly resembled his older brother) and warmly and cordially welcomed him to the City of Saint Albans.

Mr. Kennedy thanked Mr. Ramsey for his cordial welcome, and he also expressed his appreciation and gratitude to The St. Albans Advertiser, and especially to Riley C. Dawson, the editor, for the opportunity to meet so many local people and to visit with them at the newspaper's offices.

Many of the Advertiser's guests were prominent local Democrats, and some of them are themselves candidates in the West Virginia primary.

There was among the crowd expressions of high approval of the fact that a Republicans newspaper would nevertheless so decently and cordially welcome a man who was out overtly campaigning for a Democrat Presidential candidate.

It was, as one individual remarked, an excellent example of American freedom of speech, and of a liberal-minded attitude on the part of a West Virginian newspaper.

(That and the fact that there was no large Democrat newspaper in the immediate vicinity).

There was much discussion between the Presidential candidate's brother and the Advertiser's guests, and all seemed vitally interested in the issues and debates of the biggest and hottest Presidential primary in the history of the State of West Virginia.

The campaign has brought national attention to West Virginia, and the political efforts of Ted Kennedy have made him almost as well known as his Senator brother, Jack Kennedy.

While the cameras of Editor Riley Dawson clicked, Mayor Ramsey, himself a prominent Democrat in West Virginia political circles, made a ___ welcoming speech to Mr. Kennedy and the associates who were with him. Mayor Ramsey expressed again his great faith in America, and in the two party system, and in both the inherent freedom of all qualified Americans to run for political office and the equal freedom of all qualified voters to express their choice by secret ballot at the polls.

At no time yesterday was the so-called religious issue brought up in any discussions of local people with Ted Kennedy.

After he delivered his formal expressions of welcome, Mayor Ramsey gave Mr. Kennedy an opportunity to express some beliefs and opinions, and some of the positions in the campaign taken by Senator Kennedy, by asking him a dozen vital and profound questions concerning national and international affairs.

Ted Kennedy's replies were prompt, sensible, and quickly to the point.

Mr. Kennedy was introduced to all the employees of The Advertiser, and he seemed to have made an excellent impression upon all those whom he met.

After departing the offices of the Advertiser, Mr. Kennedy was a guest of Radio Station WKLC, and at ten o'clock he was interviewed on the air by Mr. Ray Kandel. The questions and answer program ran for ten minutes, and it too was quite interesting, as of course was everything ___ intelligent young American had to say.

Mr. Kennedy announced that his brother, Senator Jack Kennedy would appear at the Saint Albans Junior High School on Saturday evening at eight-thirty.

The people who came with Ted Kennedy are as follows: C. Sam Sevilla and Bob Reed.

The local people, guests of The Advertiser, were Agnes Gessell, Guy Escue, Eddie Byrnside, Ray Kandel, Sgt. Thomas Lilly, Mrs. Harry Curtis, Jim Yates, Ava VandeLinde, Marjory Bird, Patsy Hunter, Margaret Bassitt, John Miller, and Deane Morrison.