Mayor Willy Brandt of West Berlin says he will not yield to communist political blackmail in order to reopen the dividing wall to West Berliners. Brandt admits receiving a letter from Willy Stoph, acting East German premier, but is noncommittal on reported demands for direct negotiations between Brandt and a top East German official.
An East Berlin family of five — the parents and three young sons — break through a bricked-up third floor window on the city’s dividing wall and slide down a rope to freedom in West Berlin. The mother suffers a broken leg and others in the group sustain rope burns, but all reach safety before their communist guards realize what is happening. West Berliners do not disclose how they managed to batter out the bricks and mortar without being detected.
The United States is now beating a quiet retreat from Cambodia and, at the same time, is encouraging France to fill the vacuum left behind. Washington has carefully avoided any direct encouragement that would imply using France to further U.S. objectives in Southeast Asia. The administration, nevertheless, has made it clear that any French move into Cambodia at this time would be both welcome and worthwhile. A State Department spokesman said a recent French offer to send tanks, combat aircraft and trucks to the Southeast Asian kingdom of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, “would appear to be helpful to Cambodia to maintain its independence, neutrality and national integrity — objectives which we share with Cambodia. To this extent we welcome the French effort.” In addition to this military aid, France apparently is considering other economic and cultural assistance, and the possibility of a large low-interest loan for railroad construction between Phnom Penh, the capital, and Cambodia’s major port on the Gulf of Siam.
The Cuban government has ordered 400 buses from Britain’s Leyland Motor corporation, it was announced here today. The order is worth 4 million pounds (11.2 million dollars). “It is one of the largest orders we have ever received,” said Donald Stokes, managing director. The order is part of the Cuban government plan to subsidize buses throughout the country. The single deck models, designed for export, will be used in Havana.
In Washington, State Department officials said the administration has told Britain it is unhappy with the sale but has filed no formal protest. They said the administration was aware of negotiations between the British firm and Cuba and had been in touch with the British government on this and other sales to Cuba. “It certainly does not help in our efforts to isolate the Cuban regime and thereby weaken its economy, including the public transportation sector,” Robert McCloskey, state department press officer, told a press conference. Secretary of Commerce Luther H. Hodges said, “I don’t like it a bit.” He told a press conference, however, that he didn’t know what the United States could do about it.
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) disclosed today that the Soviet Union is in bad economic condition. A CIA spokesman said intelligence economists have pieced together a black fiscal picture for Russia after many months of painstaking screening of bits of information. The most startling finding was the low gold reserve of the Soviet Union, which U.S. economic experts have only been able to guess. The CIA study shows Soviet gold holdings at slightly less than $2 billion and declining because gold production is only about $175 million annually against estimated sales of $450 million last year. The CIA report said Siberian gold mines were inaccessible and uneconomic, costing the Kremlin $70 to mine one ounce of gold selling for only $35.
The U.S. Commerce Department today authorized the sale of an additional 42 million dollars’ worth of wheat to the Soviet Union, and 10.5 million dollars’ worth to soviet satellite countries. Secretary Luther H. Hodges announced the new authorizations at a news conference and said he was hopeful that the full amount desired by Russia from this country will be sold. Last week, a United States grain trader closed a deal for 78 million dollars’ worth of durum wheat to Russia.
Russia reportedly wants to purchase more than 250 million dollars’ worth of wheat from the United States. Hodges declined to say whether the wheat involved in the new licenses is to be sold for cash or credit, and he did not identify the grain trader or specify the type of wheat. As to the Russian satellites, one license called for the sale of 9 million dollars’ worth of wheat to Bulgaria.
Demonstrations against unemployment and high living costs were staged in several towns of western Algeria today. The Algerian Press Service said 300 persons were arrested. The agency said the demonstrators carried French flags and shouted the name of Ferhat Abbas, former president of the Algerian National Assembly who resigned in protest against President Ahmed Ben Bella’s policies.
Two American proposals to increase information among the Russians about western affairs ran into Soviet opposition at the outset of talks on extension of the U.S.-Soviet cultural exchange program.
India’s premier Nehru went to bed under care of doctors concerned by his tendency toward high blood pressure. Hope was expressed for quick recovery.
U.N. Secretary General U Thant hailed as “very significant and encouraging” recent announcements by the United States and the Soviet Union of reductions in their military budgets.
Sir Roland Symonette became the first Prime Minister of the Bahamas as the British colony was given self-rule in advance of its eventual independence. Symonette had previously been the Chief Minister for three Bahamian governors and was the wealthiest native of the Bahamas at the time. The only white Bahamian Premier, he would serve until 1967.
The second session of the 88th Congress, spotlighted for action on a tax cut and a civil rights bill, opened today without evidence that the members’ allergy to work had been cured. Both the Senate and House met only briefly to clean up some of their housekeeping chores so they could receive their legislative roadmap for 1964 in President Johnson’s State of the Union message at a joint session tomorrow.
The Senate stayed in session only 25 minutes — the House, 32. Senate leaders asked members to postpone any planned speeches until the Presidential message had been received. The House had been scheduled to debate a bill authorizing 15.5 million dollars in new spending on a big theater in Washington to be called the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. But the traditional postponement of all legislative business for the day followed the announcement of the death of Rep. Howard Baker (R-Tennessee) this morning, and the cultural center bill was set aside.
The statements of the leaders and the members indicated all were smarting from the verbal whippings they had received during the eight-day congressional recess from constituents for allegedly loafing on the job too much during 1963. Senate Democratic Leader Mike Mansfield (Montana), assistant Democratic Leader Hubert Humphrey (Minnesota), and Speaker John McCormack (D-Massachusetts) assured President Johnson at a White House session that “speed” will be the congressional slogan for 1964. Rep. Charles S. Joelson (D-New Jersey) issued a prepared speech in which he sought to blame “the fossilized rules and procedures” of Congress for the long, tedious, and not very fruitful session just completed.
Rep. Howard H. Baker, Republican congressman from Tennessee’s 2nd District, died today of a heart attack.
Democratic congressional leaders, after a preview of President Johnson’s state of the Union message, pronounce it good. The President also discusses the message with AFL-CIO executive council members. George Meany says the President’s outline of the world situation provides no cause for pessimism. The message, going to Congress this morning, is expected to be one of the shortest in history.
Only minutes before Congress reconvenes, President Johnson gives David Rabinovitz of Sheboygan a recess appointment as federal judge for the western district of Wisconsin. This surprise action, after the Senate’s rejection of Rabinovitz, is interpreted as convincing evidence of Walter Reuther’s power in President Johnson’s political organization.
A fighting campaign based on restoring “freedom of the individual” will win the Presidential election for the Republican Party this year, Senator Barry Goldwater (R-Arizona) asserted tonight. The senator addressed an overflow crowd of more than 600 supporters at the end of his first full day of campaigning for G.O.P. delegates. Fourteen will be elected in New Hampshire’s “first-in-nation” primary on March 10. “As Republicans, our first principle must be freedom of the individual,” Goldwater said. “Our party believes in this principle, the other party (believes) in centralized government and taking away the freedom of the individual.”
He said that for 30 years — with the exception of the Eisenhower administration — successive Democratic regimes had been concentrating political and economic power in Washington. “If we continue on this path there is nothing to face but dictatorship,” he continued.
Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller nails down nearly all of New York’s 92 national convention votes for the Republican Presidential nomination in a surprise move that prevents Senator Barry Goldwater’s backers from raiding the delegation. The Republican state committee unanimously endorses Rockefeller’s candidacy and pledges to support his White House bid. However, two of the state’s 62 counties are not represented in the meeting.
Governor William Scranton proposes to the Pennsylvania legislature a record annual general fund budget of 1.168 billion dollars, fatter by 59 million dollars but without any increase in taxes. Scranton, a dark horse in the Republican Presidential race, says he will continue to build up the private sector of the economy and not government regulation in his drive to increase his state’s prosperity.
Governor George Romney of Michigan, answering questions at a press club meeting in Washington, says although he is not actively seeking the Republican Presidential nomination, he would yield to a draft, as it would be effrontery to say no after support for him had been aroused.
Robert G. Baker certified privately last February that he had 2,850 shares in the controversial Serv-U corporation although he denied three months ago being a stockholder, the Washington Evening Star reported today. The shares were valued at one million dollars. The newspaper said the vending machine firm’s stock was among 2.1 million dollars in assets Baker listed in applying for a mortgage loan. These holdings were acquired, it added, while he was the $19,500-a-year secretary of the Senate Democratic majority, a job he quit under fire on October 7.
Baker’s role in the vending machine business will be the subject of public hearings starting Monday, Chairman B. Everett Jordan, (D-North Carolina) of the Senate Rules Committee announced. That group is seeking to learn if there were any conflicts of interest between Baker’s Senate job and his widespread outside activities or any conflicts of interest involving other Senate employees. The inquiry arose out of a suit by Capitol Vending company, which alleged it paid Baker $5,600 to obtain for it a contract with Melpar, Inc., a northern Virginia electronics firm. The suit said Baker subsequently became a Serv-U stockholder, then conspired to have the Melpar contract taken away from Capitol and given to another company.
Democratic party leaders today fought a Republican plan to provide for centralized counting during daylight hours of the special ballots in a state-wide election of all 177 members of the Illinois House of Representatives next November 3. As the rival sides appeared to be drawing closer together on most provisions for an at-large election, the vote fraud issue loomed as the biggest stumbling block. The special session of the General Assembly which started only yesterday was adjourned this afternoon until Monday to give G.O.P. members more time to study the Democrats’ proposals.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation discloses the seizure in Chicago of a cache of stolen historical documents and rare books in 10 cardboard boxes in two bus terminals. A man and his wife are held in Detroit charged with theft of the documents.
O’Hare International airport, for the third consecutive year, leads the world in the number of plane flights and the number of passengers handled. Scheduled air carrier flights in 1963 totaled 426,098, with 16,163,414 passengers using the airport. This is an increase of 12 million passengers and almost 75,000 flights.
After spending more than $230,000,000 to develop the proposed Typhon missile, the U.S. Navy abandoned further work on the project. General Dynamics had contracted with the Navy to design a “shipboard surface-to-air missile” that could “launch missiles simultaneously against a number of aircraft”, but the system was too large for use on most of the ships in the American naval fleet.
Dick Weber rolls the highest bowling game in air (on a Boeing 707).
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 771.73 (+2.22).
Born:
Nicolas Cage [as Nicolas Kim Coppola], American film actor (“Moonstruck”; “Leaving Las Vegas”; “Nathional Treasure”), in Long Beach, California.
Allan Anderson, MLB pitcher (Minnesota Twins; led the American League in ERA, 1988), in Lancaster, Ohio.
Dave Meads, MLB pitcher (Houston Astros), in Montclair, New Jersey.
Corn Redick, NFL wide receiver (Green Bay Packers), in Los Angeles, California.
Francisco Maciel, Mexican tennis star, in Querétaro, Mexico.
Died:
Howard Baker Sr., U.S. Congressman for Tennessee since 1951, died of a heart attack while shaving at his home in Knoxville, Tennessee.
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