September 25, 1973

E H Hunt Jr testifies on Sept 24 before Sen Watergate com that ex-White House aide C W Colson was aware early last yr of 'large-scale' intelligence scheme that led to Watergate break-in; says he has no information to suggest that Colson had specific advance knowledge of June 17 '72 break-in; tells of aborted plan to steal pol documents from safe of Las Vegas, Nev, publisher with aid of associates of H Hughes; testifies about fruitless effort, using disguise and false credentials supplied by CIA, to obtain derogatory information about Kennedys from 1-time acquaintance of family in Hyannis Port, Mass; describes his contacts last yr with 2 undercover agents, 1 known as 'Fat Jack,' who had been planted inside hq of Dem Pres candidates by Com for Re-Election of Pres; says it was Colson who had enlisted him to work for White House and to whom he had reptd on most matters; says that in Jan '71, he advised Colson that most of his time would thereafter be taken up at Pres's re-election com, where he was working with convicted Watergate conspirator G G Liddy on large-scale pol intelligence plan; says Colson 'indicated that he was aware of over-all intelligence plan and his only problem with it was that he would much prefer me, (to) see me heading it rather than Mr Liddy'; says that sometime in Feb last yr he introduced Liddy to Colson and that Liddy had subsequently said meeting 'may have done us some good' in getting intelligence plan under way; com makes public text of Aug 9 '72 lr from Hunt to Colson in which Hunt expresses regret 'at your being dragged into case through association with me, superficial and occasional though association was'; introduces transcript of taped telephone conversation between Hunt and Colson sometime in Nov '72; throughout transcript, Colson advises Hunt not to give him details of his involvement in Watergate case, saying that he could be of greater assistance by remaining 'as unknowing as I am'; Hunt denies allegation of several previous Sen witnesses that he had threatened to disclose details of his White House undercover assignments unless more money and promises of Pres clemency were forthcoming; says he described activities to P L O'Brien, atty for Nixon's re-election com, and to his atty D I Shapiro; says after meeting Shapiro in Feb he recd $75,000 in cash in envelope delivered anonymously to home of his ex-atty W O Bittman; says he believes Watergate break-ins on May 27 and June 17 '72 were 'unwise' but 'lawful'; says he proposed to 'junk' operation on June 17 after conspirators discovered that tape they had placed on door locks at Watergate complex had been removed; says Liddy and another convicted conspirator J W McCord Jr decided to go ahead with operation; says that after burglars were caught, he went to White House and deposited in his safe some electronic equipment belonging to McCord and removed from safe $10,000 of 'contingency' funds that he made available for bail bonds for arrested burglars; says Liddy told him to leave town and that he went to Calif after advising Colson's sec that his White House safe was 'loaded'; illus of Sens Baker and Ervin, Colson, Hunt, Hunt's 2 children and atty H Goldman

IBRD pros R S McNamara announces on Sept 24 a $22-billion lending program for poor countries, particularly stressing help for nearly 800-million rural people who have been bypassed by econ growth, speech, IBRD annual meeting, Nairobi; says new 5-yr goal for IBRD represents rise of 40% over outlay in last 5 yrs; says econ growth is not equitably reaching poor and that poor are not significantly contributing to growth; is sharply critical of rich countries for deficiencies in their total aid for less developed countries; criticizes poor countries for permitting growing maldistribution of income since growth has benefited mainly upper 40% of their population and allocation of public services and investment funds has tended to strengthen rather than offset this trend; says few countries have tried to do anything to provide more equitable distribution of benefits of econ growth; describes 'absolute' poverty among rural poor as condition of life so degraded by disease, illiteracy, malnutrition and squalor as to deny its victims basic human necessities; says some 40% of peoples of developing countries face condition of life so limited as to prevent realization of potential of genes with which one is born; notes some citizens of d eveloped countries protest against increasing their assistance to developing countries because of poverty in their own societies; holds they do so either because they are unacquainted with these facts, because they fail to distinguish between relative and absolute poverty or because they are obscuring truth even from themselves

WASHINGTON, Sept. 24— As Vice President Agnew's at torneys prepared to go into court by Wednesday to try to head off an investigation and possible indictment of their cli ent, Mr. Agnew's office an nounced today that he still planned to make a speaking trip to California this week.

NYC Opera and AFM on Sept 24 agree on new contract, ending threat opera might shut down for fall and spring seasons and enabling resumption of performances on Sept 29; mediator H Israelson, who describes 3-yr contract as 'fair,' outlines its provisions; contract calls for wage increases of 13% over 3 yrs and continued guaranteed pay for 11 wks in addition to regular 21-wk opera season; union pres M Arons says he is 'generally pleased' with contract terms

Dr H A Kissinger, in his 1st speech as US State Sec, addresses Assembly Sept 24; gives luncheon for African delegates; later confs with Brit Sec Douglas-Home and with Soviet Min Gromyko; illus with Sec Gen Waldheim and Assembly Pres Benites; illus with US Amb Scali

Presidential panel urges on Sept 24 that lumber indus be allowed to cut down 'substantial portions of natl forests; Pres Nixon immediately endorses recommendation, which advocates 50% to 100% increase in cutting in virgin forests of West; panel avoids making specific recommendations; Sierra Club's Washington office dir B Evans says panel's rept is simply latest in series of actions by Nixon Adm on behalf of timber indus; holds it is 'high time' that Adm start recognizing that natl forests do not exist just for timber indus; US Forest Service plans to allow 11.8-billion bd feet of lumber to be cut from natl forests in fiscal '74; is selling 10% more lumber in fiscal '74 than in fiscal '73; service spokesman says that lumber indus is currently cutting on about 1-million acres of natl forests; notes that scattered cutting is being done on about 40% of land and 60% is being 'clear cut'; panel members are F A Seaton, Dr M Clawson, R D Hodges Jr, Dr S Spurr and Prof D Zinn

Hearings on proposal to raise fares on PATH commuter line from 30c to 50c are abruptly ended on Sept 24 amid growing repts that proposal is dead; ICC examiner scheduled to preside over hearings suspends them indefinitely after NY-NJ Port Auth comrs ask for 1-wk delay to consider NYS Gov Rockefeller's recommendation that rise be held to a nickel; issue revd

USSR party leader L I Brezhnev presents award of Friendship of the Peoples to the Repub of Uzbekistan, ceremony, Sept 25, Tashkent

Pres Nixon on Sept 24 orders Cost of Living Council Dir J T Dunlop to act to increase retail gasoline prices; complex of regulation and controversy that has arisen from Nixon's prior stand against retail price increase detailed; White House says today's action implies no criticism of workings of council; attempt to stem dealer protests of Phase 4 retail pricing policies seen as dealer protest seek as motivation

NYS Assembly Speaker Duryea, Assembly Majority Leader J E Kingston and several of Duryea's top aides are expected to appear on Oct 2 before Manhattan grand jury investigating alleged Repub party scheme to drain votes from state Dem candidates in '72 by promotion of Liberal party candidates; jury will be asked to consider whether H J Relkin, who became Liberal in '70, obtained his job in Speaker's office as result of pol payoff; will also be asked to consider whether Repub money and Repub officials were involved in production and distribution of lr materials distributed under Liberal party name and whether these activities violated election law and Penal Code; will be hearing testimony that Duryea was briefly present at 1 meeting of Repub 'Liberal strategy' com, allegedly formed by key aides J C Threatte, H A Mund, J L Bruno and P J Besceglia; investigation carried out by Atty Gen Lefkowitz revd; Kingston has recently denied any connection with order for Liberal party members' mailing labels; Manhattan Asst Dist Attys A J Scotti and K Conboy on Sept 24 decline to give any details about case

Saigon mil sources say, Sept 24, Communist troops overran a Govt base camp in Pleiku area during the weekend and retreating Govt rangers have been out of contact for nearly 2 days; map

Cambodian police rept, Sept 25, insurgents fired rockets into Phnom Penh's biggest elec power plant, destroying one of its two working generators