February 22, 1973

news analysis of peace accord signed by Laotian Govt and Pathet Lao; Communists appear to have won lion's share of bargain; they have come out controlling most of Laos with remaining part to be administered on 50-50 basis by them and Laotian Govt; other gains by elated Pathet Lao discussed; Govt officials lament accord

Justice Dept files antitrust suit on Feb 21 charging conspiracy and challenging legal right of mutual funds indus to sell its shares solely in way that it traditionally has done; suit, brought under Sherman Act in US Dist Ct, Washington, DC, says, in effect, that it should be possible to buy fund shares in same way that other securities are bought; charges NASD, 3 mutual fund orgns, and 9 major brokers with conspiring to make sure fund shares could not be sold in way that other stocks are and with conspiring to block development of regular trading mkt in fund shares; charges that public has been denied benefits that could flow from such 'secondary' mkt in fund shares and charges NASD with having 'distributed misleading information to its members concerning legality' of such secondary mkt; Justice Dept asks ct to stop defendants in case from maintaining any agreement to block development of secondary mkt and, if it wins case, to require each defendant mutual fund to display in its prospectus statement that shares of fund may legally be purchased at less than public offering price; also asks that funds be required to state that shares could be sold for more than normal redemption price; orgns named in suit listed; NASD and several brokerage cos say suit took them by surprise; Wellington Mgt Co pres J C Bogle and Vance Sanders & Co pres J Phillips dispute charges

FDA Comr Edwards on Feb 20 discloses that FDA will approve use of diethylstilbestrol or DES as 'morning after' contraceptive pill for women in emergency situations such as rape, rept before Sen Subcom on Health hearings into human experimentation in med research; FDA advisory com on obstetrics and gynecology repts 'there exists now substantial evidence for effectivity of DES in preventing conception' and that 'there is no evidence for significant risk to patient'; Edwards notes FDA is revising labeling for drugs; contraception has not been approved use of DES, synthetic estrogen that has been used for more than 30 yrs for some gynecological disorders; has been associated within last 2 yrs with cancer of vagina and cervix in daughters of some women who were treated with it during pregnancy; drug has been prescribed as contraceptive by many drs, practice that is difficult to prevent because drug is approved for other uses; was used as growth hormone in cattle feed until last Aug when it was banned by Govt following repts that drug had caused cancer in laboratory animals; DES is known as 'morning after' contraceptive because it is prescribed for use within 72 hrs after intercourse, administered over 5-day period; panel also hears testimony on Depo-Provera, drug that has been used for contraceptive purposes without approval; R J Hutcheson Jr, Asst Comr of Tenn Health Dept, says that his office has permitted distribution of drug through local family planning clinics to women who cannot use alternate means of birth control; Edwards por

Sup Ct decides on Feb 21, 5-3, that its 1-man, 1-vote mandate need not be applied so strictly to state legis dists as to Cong reapportionment; reinstates legis reapportionment plan for Va that was thrown out by Fed Dist Ct for permitting too much variation in population among dists; majority opinion, written by Assoc Justice Rehnquist, says state legis apportionment plan can include certain amount of arithmetical discrepancy if it is deliberately drawn to conform to boundaries of pol subdivisions; Justices Douglas, Marshall and Brennan dissent

Israeli attack by amphibious and airborne forces early on Feb 21 seriously damages commando offices, warehouses and schools at 2 Palestinian refugee camps near Tripoli, Lebanon; demolition charges and automatic-weapons fire cause at least 15 deaths and scores of wounded at Nahar el Bard and El Badawi refugee camps; Israelis destroy bldg of Palestine Liberation Orgn, over-all guerrilla group and hq of Al Fatah, main guerrilla orgn; destruction described; map; illus of Israeli Navy commandos in powered rubber dinghy at rendezvous with Israeli missile boat off Lebanese coast