March 4, 1969

NYC Soc Services Dept to subsidize adoptive parents with up to $125 per month in effort to cut child-care costs and provide permanent homes for children in foster care; plan is 1st in US; would immediately involve about 2,000 children released by natural parents or with no families; NYC and NYS to share costs; Child Welfare Bur Dir Beine to conf with 19 adoption agencies; children in 5 city children's shelters excluded by Legis; Comr Goldberg details subsidies

BERLIN, March 3 -- Soviet and East German troops continued minor harassments of the access routes between West Berlin and West Germany today, with the controversial West German presidential election still scheduled to be held here Wednesday.

Justice Dept to permit Atlantic Richfield to go ahead with merger plans subject to certain restrictions; to go ahead with its suit against combination; antitrust officials say action does not represent retreat from Johnson Adm position; under agreement, Atlantic would acquire Sinclair and then immediately sell 9,000 Sinclair retail stations to Brit Petroleum; Atlantic would also retain Sinclair brand name and trademark in some areas in effort to maintain Sinclair as viable econ unit

Vietcong chief negotiator at Paris talks Tran Buu Kiem says offensive it 'stern answer' to Nixon policy, s, French Communist party rally, Paris; links it to intensification of war by Nixon Adm; says offensive will foil Amer ambition to negotiate from position of strength; says if US is ready to seek 'correct solution' to Vietnam problem, it will find NLF negotiators serious and full of goodwill; does not mention presence of N Vietnamese forces in S Vietnam; Xuan Thuy says Vietnamese will continue to fight as long as US 'continues its aggression', s; praises unity of Vietnamese people; allied sources say latest rocket attack on Saigon will probably lead to another US protest; Xuan Thuy denies N Vietnam entered into understanding with US