Alumnus' Gadget Puts New Zest into Zombies

The Tiger may not melt, but he will certainly mellow tomorrow night--along with the rest of Cambridge--and when local imbibers find that the ice is melting and the spirits weakening, they may well turn to a new invention of Howard H. Hopson '46, which replaces the broken bottle cork with a glorified spigot.

Hopson, who is now in the market for a partner to bring capital into a growing enterprise, has built his gimmick--now retailing for $70--around the age-old standby and social catalyst of a tray of ice cubes.

In this "liquid dispenser," which--with malice toward none--is called "The Wellesley," the cubes are placed in a metal cylinder. The cylinder fits into a healthy one-and-a-half gallon container. And around the container fits an insulated keg.

Follow the Arrow

Now it seems that the ice-cube cylinder keeps the "liquid" cold, without sterilizing it with water, and that the wooden keg keeps the whole business even colder. The thing stands 15 inches high, and looks like a "piece of furniture."

And this is really a piece of furniture to beat all. Surrounding the keg is a mahogany tray. If you should happen to spill any fine old scotch, it would undoubtedly be sopped up by the fine old mahogany. No more dirty new sponges.

No Ring on 'Wellesley' Tub

Whether "The Wellesley" will ever take the place of the well-scoured bath tub or the well-flattened elbow is not yet clear. And there exists in some doubt as to whether Hopson's ingenious gadget will threaten the existence of the bottle-opener or the swizzle-stick.

But one thing remains as clear as an unsullied ice-cube. And that is that a Harvard man has done it again. The Class of 1946 has come up with not only a thing of beauty, but a device that will save humanity several drinking centuries of stirring, shaving ice, and emptying jiggers. To Mr. Hopson a toast--open the spigots and down the hatch.