We were very close friends. His congressional district joins the district that I represent. Although we were of different political faiths, always between us there was a great bond of understanding and affection.

Not too long ago he told me that he had decided he could not run again. He knew the condition of his health and he felt he should retire. But when the people of his great district asked him to forgo his own personal desires and to stand for reelection, finally he consented. In that, as in everything else in a distinguished and honorable life of usefulness to his fellow man, he placed duty, as he saw it, above personal comfort.

Here was an unusual man, a man who in his younger years was a vibrant part of the great educational system in the Philippines when American teachers were preparing the youth of the islands for the responsibilities of self-government. What Dr. MCVEY contributed to the great task of popular education in the Philippines cannot be exaggerated. In later years he made an outstanding contribution to popular education in the metropolitan Chicago area. With this rich background of experience, he came to Congress and at once took high place in the esteem and affection of his colleagues.

In two Congresses I served with him on the Committee on Banking and Currency. He was the one Republican member of that committee from Chicago and I was the one Democratic member of that committee from Chicago. Always we worked together in the causes in which Chicago was interested, and when there were other matters on which we differed I respected the sincerity of his views as he respected the sincerity of mine, and our friendship grew in warmth. He was an able and dedicated member of that committee, an able and dedicated Member of the House, one of the towering scholars of the Congress, and, above all, as sweet and gentle a personality as ever I have known.

To his fine wife and his children I express my deepest sympathy.

Mr. COLLIER. Mr. Speaker, it was a great shock to me— as it was to all of his friends to learn today of the sudden death of our good friend and colleague, the Honorable WILLIAM E. MCVEY, of Illinois. I am sure our distress is more than shared by the people of the Fourth Congressional District of Illinois where BILL MCVEY was for years a well-known civic leader and beloved friend to all. Generations of school children grew to know and feel great confidence and trust in the man who guided the destiny of the school system in Harvey, Ill. His ability was recognized in this field as witness his selection as a lecturer on educational administration at a number of universities, including the Universities of Pennsylvania and Ohio. He was also elected president of the North-Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, a position of both honor and responsibility. He wore the honors well; he discharged the responsibilities with a firm, sure hand.

When, in 1950, a new figure, a new vitality, was needed in the fourth district, the people turned naturally to BILL MCVEY as their Representative in Congress. He has not failed to measure up to their expectations. There could have been no finer Member of the House, no harder worker, no more local colleague.

Through a long and purposeful life, BILL MCVEY devoted his time, talent and energies to serving the people around him. He served in the Philippine Islands, and has since served in various educational positions in Illinois and elsewhere. He was for many, many years superintendent of the Thornton High School and the junior college at Harvey. He has been president of the Harvey YMCA and a member of the board of the Harvey hospital.

To all of these positions he devoted great energy and a considerable amount of time. As his life waned, he tried a number of times to give up these honors and responsibilities, and even contemplated a number of times retiring from Congress. But every time he made the suggestion that he wished to retire, he was prevailed upon by his people and by his colleagues to continue in harness. He continued. And to everything he did, he devoted too much energy, too much of the strength left to him.

The result came last night, when WILLIAM E. MCVEY'S body could no longer keep up with his strong and determined spirit.

Mr. Speaker, the House has lost one of its finest Members; we, as individuals, have lost one of our most beloved colleagues; the people of Harvey have lost a most devoted friend and servant. But all of our loss is minor by comparison with that of Katharine McVey who has lost her husband. I would like to take this opportunity to express to her my own deep sympathy and I am sure that in doing this I speak for everyone of my colleagues who knew, admired, and liked BILL MCVEY.

Mr. HALLECK. Mr. Speaker, I join with my colleagues from Illinois and others in expressing my dismay at the unexpected death of our admired and respected friend, WILLIAM E. MCVEY.

We knew him as a man of scholarly attainments who had made his mark in the field of education before coming here to the Congress.

Born and reared on a farm in Ohio-in the great Midwest-"Doc" MCVEY typified the American story, the story of a boy with no advantages of wealth or position who made the most of opportunities offered by this wonderful land of ours.

His wide background of learning was reflected in the quality of his contributions as a member of the Committee

on Banking and Currency, on which he served with recognized ability.

As a Representative of the Fourth District of Illinois Dr. MCVEY was my neighbor, his home town of Harvey being located just across the State line from Indiana. In his passing, the people of that district have lost a hard-working, conscientious Representative who served his constituency with devotion during nearly four terms of Congress.

I shall always remember "Doc" McVEY as a man whose humility and gentle nature spoke eloquently of his true wisdom.

To his bereaved family I extend my deepest sympathy, and I share with them the sorrow of their loss.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I knew that my good friend, Dr. WILLIAM MCVEY, had not been in good health, but yet the news of his sudden passing came as an extreme shock to me.

BILL MCVEY, as we loved to call him, was born and reared, not only in my own district, but also in my home county of Clinton out in Ohio, just a few miles away from where I live. The MCVEY family has long been one of the outstanding families of southern Ohio. Throughout the years it has contributed many exceptional men and women to the betterment of our local, State, and National life.

Congressman MCVEY's original university training was taken at Ohio University, at Athens, Ohio, where he graduated at the head of his class, winning the Phi Beta Kappa award for scholarship, after making one of the highest grade averages ever made in the history of that aged educational institution.

Mr. MCVEY was a kindly man; he was an able man; he was a brilliantly educated man; he was one of our Nation's leading educators; and one of our soundest legislators. Yet

he wore his many laurels lightly and without any ostentation. He possessed the highest character and reputation. He stood and fought quietly but courageously for those things in which he believed. His place in the Congress of the United States will be difficult to fill. Those of us from Ohio, from whence he came, join with those of the Illinois delegation in extending our heartfelt sympathy to his family in expressing our regret over having lost a truly great American from our national life.

Mr. BETTS. Mr. Speaker, I was shocked and grieved to hear of Mr. MCVEY's death. He was one of my close personal friends. We came to Congress at the same time and served together on the Banking and Currency Committee.

No Member of Congress ever served his district and his country more ably and conscientiously than BILL MCVEY. In his quiet way he contributed much to his committee and to legislation in general. But more than that, he was always a gentleman. His personality was the kind that won him friends from every walk of life. In his family and official life he represented everything that Americans expect and admire in their public servants.

It was a high privilege for me to have known him and worked with him. His passing is a sad occasion and a distinct loss, not only to me but to everyone who knew him. I join with his colleagues in expressing my sympathy to his family.

Mr. TALLE. Mr. Speaker, the sad news of Congressman MCVEY'S sudden death that came over the radio this morning shocked and grieved me. As my colleagues are aware, we learned to know one another very well when we served together on committees. Dr. MCVEY and I served together on the Committee on Banking and Currency for many years.