Prophet, King, Queens

In U. S. communities where the early Catholic influence has survived (New Orleans. Mobile), the community's annual civic celebration takes place just before Lent and is called Mardi Gras. In the central grain-&-pumpkin belt the organized merrymaking is scheduled to occur just after harvest time, when farmers used to have money enough to go to town and buy. Last week the chief cities in two big Western States were the scenes of such affairs.

Veiled Prophet In St. Louis crowds stamped their feet to keep warm waiting for the 53rd appearance of the Veiled Prophet. Thoughtfully he emerged 15 min. ahead of time from the fastness of "Khorassan.'' a dingy car barn on Ranken Avenue. With him came forth 19 floats depicting scenes from the life of Washington, towed by caparisoned horses along the street car tracks for a 6-mi.

tour of the city.

Next night at the Coliseum the Prophet, heavily veiled as always, presided at the annual ball. Crowned Queen was debutante Myrtle McGrew Lambert. She is the daughter of Albert Bond Lambert, onetime president of Lambert Pharmacal Co. ("Listerine"). He gave Charles Augustus Lindbergh his first $1,000 toward financing his transatlantic flight, gave St. Louis the ground for its municipal airport, Lambert-St. Louis Field.

Queen Myrtle, according to Veiled Prophet tradition (shockingly violated recently), may not marry until she has relinquished her crown to her successor next year. But while all might gaze at the Queen, the veil of the Prophet is never lifted, even the Press conspiring to keep his name a dreadful secret.

Ak-Sar-Ben (Nebraska backwards), Omaha's autumnal jamboree, is held in conjunction with a huge livestock show.

Omaha also has a Coliseum and it was here that the 38th King & Queen of Ak-Sar-Ben held their levee in a setting modeled after the Temple of Love at Versailles. Congressman Malcolm Baldrige, as Court Chancellor, addressed the regal train, the State's best and richest young and old folk. King was William Henry Schellberg, 6-ft., silver-haired president of Union Stock Yards Co., done up in the usual Empire court dress complete with cream satin knee-pants. Long a leading figure in Omaha, he is credited with having done much to build up the Ak-Sar-Ben stock show. Queen was Eileen Keliher-Jeffers (debut: 1927), daughter of Executive Vice President William Martin Jeffers of Union Pacific R. R.

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