September 5, 1973

US Appeals Ct for Dist of Columbia Circuit, acting before any appeal was filed with it, orders on Sept 4 that all ct proceedings at intermediate Fed level be completed by end of wk, clearing way for decision by appellate ct before end of Sept and for appeal to Sup Ct immediately after Justices reconvene Oct 1; special Watergate prosecutor A Cox has said he will not call for any action by grand jury on indictments until he knows whether tapes will be available to jurors as evidence; Cox discloses that he intends to appeal Judge Sirica's ruling; spokesman for Cox says Cox plans to submit to Appeals Ct 'suggestions for the clarification or modification of the standards and procedures to be followed in determining what parts of evidence will be submitted to grand jury'; term of present Watergate grand jury expires in early Dec

Amers are about to face most extreme test yet of how much convenience they are willing to give up in exchange for cutting traffic deaths; '74 cars will not start unless driver has buckled his seat belt and shoulder harness; safety experts predict that new seat belt-ignition lock will eventually save thousands of lives; some auto indus execs expect device to be most controversial new car feature in yrs; many execs predict that Amers by thousands will attempt to disconnect it; major research studies have shown that serious injuries and deaths could be reduced by 20% or more if motorists would use seat belts; have shown that use of shoulder harnesses reduces traffic casualties still more; lap belts have been mandatory on new cars since '64, and shoulder belts since '68; surveys have shown that most motorists ignore them; recent Gallup poll shows that only 28% of persons int said they used seat belt on their last auto trip; percentage was up slightly from most previous surveys, which have shown that only about 25% of motorists used seat belts; modest increase appears to reflect impact of seat-belt reminder system installed on '73 cars under Govt orders; safety experts believe that many owners of '73 cars have circumvented system, usually by disconnecting apparatus or buckling belt and sitting on it; Fed law makes it a crime for new car dealers to disconnect belt-buzzer system; passenger in front seat as well as driver must be buckled up for car to start; engine will not shut off if driver or front-seat passenger decides to unfasten belt while car is moving; warning buzzer will sound and light will flash on dashboard, providing what Fed safety officials hope will be effective reminder to replace belt harness; one thing that haunts auto execs is prospect of flood of complaints from people who duly strap themselves in and still cannot start car; system of sensors, belts and ignition lock is complex and relatively untested; mechanical bugs are considered inevitable; most if not all mfrs are installing switch under hood so motorists can disconnect system temporarily in case of emergency

Nomination of Dr H A Kissinger to be US State Sec has raised hopes in Eur that US embassies will regain an effective policy role; problems from policy making in White House, with Kissinger as Pres Nixon's natl security adviser, rather than in State Dept discussed; included separate and contradictory instructions in regard to Eur security conf and conf on reducing forces in Central Eur; also involved statement by Kissinger in his Apr speech proposing a 'new Atlantic charter' on US-W Eur relations

Port Washington, NY, school teachers on Sept 4 agree to 5-yr contract, reptdly longest teacher pact in US, 6 hrs before classes are scheduled to begin; contract calls for salary increases of 5.2% and 5.4% in 1st 2 yrs and 1% plus cost-of-living increase or 6%, whichever is higher, in 3d yr; teachers would receive 5% or cost-of-living increase, whichever is higher, in 4th and 5th yrs of contract; teachers and admrs agree that contract will stabilize financial picture for longer time and enable both sides to concentrate on educ rather than wasting time on rancorous biennial contract talks; admr notes possibility that 'if it isn't a good contract, you've got problems' for 5 yrs; teachers' union official says members are taking chance because teachers were getting higher raises than 5% and 6% until recently, and are locked into these figures even if cost-of-living increases are lowered

Soviet mathematician I R Shafarevich pleads on Sept 4 in 'emotional' open lr that reaches Western newsmen for halt in officially inspired campaign of denunciation against dissident physicist A D Sakharov, whom Shafarevich calls credit, not disgrace, to Russian people; charges that Soviet newspapers, which have not permitted any material in defense of Sakharov, are printing daily attacks against him without ever having published statements that gave rise to present campaign; indicates that campaign, which shows signs of becoming more intense, might be prelude to formal charges under Article 70 of criminal code, which makes 'anti-Soviet propaganda' punishable by maximum of 7 yrs' confinement followed by 5 yrs' enforced exile; recalls Stalin era's denunciations of Soviet citizens, results of which he says 'remain engraved on our memory'; becomes 1st member of Acad of Sciences to speak up on behalf of Sakharov although there are unconfirmed repts that scientist P L Kapitsa, himself a victim of Stalin era, resisted strenuous efforts by acad pres M V Keldysh to sign lr of 40 acad members that opened anti-Sakharov campaign; Soviet press agency Tass meanwhile continues to carry increasing volume of signed testimonials expressing indignation at Sakharov's 'anti-Soviet' statements and 'unworthy behavior' and voicing support for Soviet foreign policy; latest group of such lrs is signed by prominent Soviet educators, film people, Georgia Repub scientists, philosophers and some faculty at Moscow's Bauman Tech Univ, nation's top engineering school; Tass also carries denunciation from musicians D Oistrakh, L Kogan, L N Oborin, Y V Flier and A V Sveshnikov; illus of Shafarevich and Sakharov