Furcolo Braves Student's Questions In Spirited Appearance at Harkness

Governor Foster Furcolo, frequently speaking off the record, regaled a capacity crowd at Harkness Commons yesterday afternoon with a virtuoso performance in fielding questions at a one and a half hour meeting of the Law School Democratic Club.

Abandoning the prepared subject of his role in the Democratic National Advisory Committee, Furcolo faced questions from the audience of 200 ranging over such diverse topics as Collins' victory, problems of patronage, his future political plans, relations with the press, inefficiencies in the Dept. of the Public Works, and the role of independent public authorities. The result was an often humorous primer on practical politics.

Discussing the role of the sales tax in the Boston mayoralty campaign, the governor felt that "the major part of this campaign was fought on the sales tax issue. But what effect that had on the election I don't know," since voters reasons are often capricious.

In response to a query about his own plans for the next year, Furcolo admitted, "My ambition is the United States Senate," but declared that he would not decide but whether to stand for the Senate or a third term as governor until he could appraise the possibility of making faster progress with his legislative program. He specifically cited the fields of education and mental health as demanding action.