Nancy Reagan Has Words for Guest: Merry Christmas

WASHINGTON —  First Lady Nancy Reagan denied Tuesday there is any feud between her and Raisa Gorbachev and said she just wants to wish the Soviet First Lady a merry Christmas when they get together for lunch in New York.

“You all keep saying that there’s . . . fussing and feuding, but there really isn’t,” Mrs. Reagan told reporters as she accepted the White House Christmas tree, an 18-foot balsam fir presented by the Irv Daggett family of Montello, Wis.

She said she was looking forward to her visit today with Raisa Gorbachev, with whom her relations have appeared chilly during previous meetings.

Wonderful Time

“I hope she has a good time in New York,” the First Lady said. “She has (picked) a wonderful time to go there. All the Christmas decorations are up, and it’s a great time to go.”

When asked if she had any special message for the wife of the Soviet president, she said, “Merry Christmas.”

As to talk of a feud, she said, “I think there’s been too much attention paid to it. I do. I really do.”

Mrs. Reagan and Mrs. Gorbachev will be among the guests at a luncheon given by Marcela Perez de Cuellar, wife of U. N. Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar, while their husbands meet today on Governors Island in New York.