Remarks at a Reception Marking the Reopening of the Blue Room Following Its Redecoration.

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen:

It is with great regret that on this very happy occasion, one that we hoped would be a completely happy one, that we have had an incident this afternoon, only e hours ago, that all of you are aware of.

Governor Wallace's condition, incidentally, has been described as stable. I just talked to Mrs. Wallace on the telephone. She said his spirit was very good. An operation by the very best team of physicians in the Washington area is now taking place, and we are all very hopeful that it will be a successful one and that he will be returned to good health.

I know that all Americans, whatever their political affiliations, will not only have him in their thoughts, but in their prayers on this particular occasion.

On this occasion, too, I do want to express, on behalf of Mrs. Nixon and myself, and all Americans, a million and a half who visit this house every year, our appreciation to those in this room who make the White House what it is.

I think many of you probably wonder what our foreign visitors think of the White House when they come here, and perhaps I can give you an idea by telling you how we look at the White House, we who have traveled now to over 70 countries abroad, as compared with other houses like it abroad.

This is not the largest. I would say most of the residences of chief executives in other countries, including most of the smaller countries, are considerably larger than the White House. This is not the grandest. I know many that, in terms of decoration and in style, and so forth, would be considered to be much more grand than the White House.

But there is something that others say when they come here that I think will please those of you who have helped to make the White House what it is, whether they are emperors or kings or prime ministers, whatever great country or small country they represent, however large the house in which they may live may be. They say, "There is something about the White House that is different. It is that it is a home. It is very personal. It is not like, really, a government house."

That is quite true. I am sure you must get this feeling as you walk through these magnificent rooms, and I am sure that as you take the tour today, not only on this floor, which you helped to make, but also on the second floor, which we have opened up so that all of you can see the very special rooms that only a very few people like this can see on occasion--the Lincoln Room, the Queen's Room, the Treaty Room, and the rest--I am sure that as you walk through this room you will see why our foreign visitors say the White House is different not because of its size, not because of its grandeur, but because it has a feeling of a home, a personal feeling that can only come from, I would say, the touch of a First Lady.

I have not known many First Ladies. I remember the first one I met was Mrs. Herbert Hoover. I knew her when .I was a member of a college board of trustees, a small Quaker college in California, and she was also a member, back in 1939.

I saw Mrs. Roosevelt once. I met Mrs. Truman once in a receiving line when I came here, along with Mrs. Nixon, when we had just come to Washington. But then, of course, during the Eisenhower years and after, we have known the First Ladies and what they have contributed to this house. Mrs. Eisenhower, Mrs. Kennedy, Mrs. Johnson, and, of course, Mrs. Nixon---each has made a contribution; each has left the house with that personal feeling and the personal touch that only a lady can give to a great house like this.

But in order for them to do it, let me say, it would not have been possible without the personal contributions that you have made. It would have been so much easier simply to go down to the Congress and to have a certain amount of money appropriated to buy all the things that we need to buy and then to see what would be the result. The result would be a house that was a government house, like the other government buildings and the other government houses around the world.

Because each of these rooms, and virtually every item in them, through the years, has come from an individual, from a person, it has meant that this house has a character and a personality which all Americans feel, which our visitors from abroad appreciate, which you have made possible.

So, on behalf of America, all of the visitors, particularly all the young people who come here and look with wonder at these rooms, thank you very, very much.

I am sure you will understand that under the circumstances I will want to return to the office to see what the situation is with regard to Governor Wallace's condition, which we all hope will be better.

We do hope, however, that those of you who have come from so far will move through this house as if it were your own, because it is, really. You helped to make it what it is. Mrs. Nixon will be here to receive you in the Blue Room, the last room to be redone, perhaps the most famous room in the house, the one where one President was married, Grover Cleveland, and the one where, incidentally-and this is a bit of historical reference-where President Rutherford Hayes received the first Chinese diplomatic representative to the United States of America.

In this year when we have attempted to open a new dialogue with the leaders of 800 million people who live in the People's Republic of China, it is significant, it seems to me, that the room where the first Chinese representative was received by an American President is the one that will be open tonight for your viewing.

Thank you very much. I hope we meet on another occasion when we will not have the kind of news that I had to report tonight.