December 22, 1972

Assn for a Better NY announces drive against midtown NYC crime that will involve thousands of workers and residents as auxiliary police army, news conf, Dec 21; police-trained volunteers will patrol midtown and Times Square area with walkie-talkies and rept any indications of crime to police; assn is made up of and financed by business executives, union leaders and owners of 2,000 bldgs in midtown area; Mayor Lindsay strongly backs program; illus

Brezhnev, in major address on Dec 21 marking 50th anniv of USSR, appears well, suggesting he has recovered from earlier illness

NYC School Chancellor H B Scribner announces on Dec 21 that he will leave Educ Bd position when his 3-yr term expires on June 30, '73; cites 'confidence gap' between him and Educ Bd; says he received no response to lr he sent to bd on Oct 31, asking for decision on whether it intended to extend his contract; charges that, by not acting, bd made him 'lame duck' admr; Educ Bd pres J Monserrat says bd deeply regrets manner and form chosen by Scribner to inform it of his decision to leave post, referring to fact that Educ Bd recd Scribner's lr of resignation at same time Scribner was speaking to newsmen in his office; says bd had intended to make decision on contract early in Jan, giving Scribner 6 mos notice of decision; controversies in Scribner's term as Chancellor revd; illus

Communist delegates walk out of formal Paris peace talks session, Dec 21, to protest intensive US bombing of N Vietnam; call for another regular meeting on Dec 28; Nguyen Minh Vy says US charges that Hanoi prepares a large offensive is 'a brazen slander'; compares it to Tonkin Gulf incident which he says US used as a 'pretext' to bomb the North; Communists leave open whether they will attend a private technical session scheduled for Dec 23; US repr H Isham says Communists are responsible for a cease-fire as the yr ends; says that in last phase of secret talks, Hanoi became 'more intransigent'; Communists demand 'unconditional' end of the bombing; silent on whether they would refuse further secret talks while the bombing continues; Nguyen Thanh Le says Amer side threatened escalation of the air war and rupture of the private talks at every one of the 15 Kissinger-Le Duc Tho talks held in Dec; says US bombing is to bolster its negotiating position and has nothing to do with Hanoi's mil plans; Saigon repr Nguyen Xuan Phong puts all blame for lack of accord on Hanoi and reiterates Saigon's maximum demands; reiterates Pres Thieu's proposal for an indefinite truce beginning at Christmas, to be followed by release of POWs and talks among Vietnamese, without US participation

Defense Dept spokesman, Dec 21, calls too high figure of 13 B-52s lost so far, which Cong sources rept as figure given them by Defense Dept officials