January 1, 1975

Diplomats say on Dec 31 that Soviet party leader Brezhnev was forced by ill health to postpone his Jan visit to Iraq (S)

Prices farmers receive for raw agricultural products fell 3 per cent from Nov. 15 to Dec. 15, the first decline in three months, the Agriculture Department reported. Page 23.

Brit Sec of State for N Ireland Merlyn Rees announces on Dec 31 that 20 of nearly 600 pol prisoners held under detention orders in N Ireland will be released and 50 more will be allowed to go home for 3‐day parole; says 100 convicted prisoners whose terms expire between now and end of Mar will be freed immediately; promises, in lr to people of N Ireland, that if halt in violence is made permanent, there will be gradual release of all detainees and steady reduction in army activity; official response from Provisional IRA leadership is expected shortly; sources predict that IRA will order extension for at least 1 mo of 11‐day holiday cease‐fire, which expires Jan 2; negotiations for cease‐fire and Brit reponse have been carried out through leading Irish Prot churchmen, joined at later stage by Cath primate William Cardinal Conway; there are unconfirmed repts that in last few days Brit officials met directly with IRA men in County Armagh, N Ireland (M)

Govt sources rept that CIA Dir William E Colby, in rept to Pres Ford, confirmed that CIA agents maintained thousands of files on Amer natls and participated in wide program of electronic surveillance, break‐ins and surreptitious inspection of mail inside US; say that Colby did not provide specific instances of wrongdoing; say that rept reflects fact that it had been ordered by Ford in response to spying allegations reptd on Dec 22 in NY Times and seems to be limited to areas of wrongdoing outlined in Times dispatch; Los Angeles Times repts on Dec 31 that Colby rept acknowledged that CIA kept files on more than 9,000 Amers and stated that there were at least 3 illegal break‐ins; Times's sources confirm acct, but add that Colby also told Pres of electronic surveillances and opening of mail; rept that in case of mail covers, Colby said that operations were approved in advance by various Attys Gen or Postmasters Gen; describe rept as far less voluminous than was indicated by published repts last wk; say that it includes number of papers and materials not directly pertinent to charges of domestic spying; Vice Pres Rockefeller tells newsmen on Dec 31 that CIA or any other inst that breaks law should be punished, but adds that ‘CIA is in Mr Kissinger's area and 1 don't intend to interfere’; Colby por (L)

Assemblyman Stanley Steingut, whose business dealings with nursing indus have led to his being subpoenaed in special US Sen investigation, has told friends that neither nursing home controversy nor apparent public pressure from Gov‐elect Hugh L Carey for greater disclosure of business interests of politicians, is factor in his decision to break business ties to Grand Brokerage Inc and devote himself full time to Speakership, which he is seeking; Carey, asked whether he might ask Steingut to step aside after becoming Speaker, says it would be premature to come to any conclusions because he has not yet recd special rept on nursing home issue that he ordered from Sec of State‐designate Mario M Cuomo; Steingut and Bklyn Dem leader Meade Esposito run Grand Brokerage and Steingut is also dir of City Title Ins Co; Grand Brokerage writes premiums on nursing homes controlled by Bernard Bergman, principal nursing home operator in NYS whose interests are being investigated by US Sen Subcom on aging; Bergman and his family have made campaign contributions to Steingut's legis fund of at least $4,000; Steingut and his legis counsel Daniel Chill, who has at times served Bergman, both deny that there has been any compromising assn with Bergman; Steingut illus (M)

1971 memo in files of NYS Health Dept reveals that Atty Gen Lefkowitz, Assembly minority leader Stanley Steingut and Assemblyman Albert H Blumenthal intervened on behalf of Bernard Bergman, head of vast nursing home syndicate currently under investigation; memo was written by Dr Andrew C Fleck Jr, 1st deputy health comr and chief legis liaison officer of dept, and was addressed to Dr Donald G Dickson, 1st deputy comr in charge of med care services; concerned Park Crescent Nursing Home, whose opening was being resisted by state and city inspectors on ground that bldg's reconstruction did not conform to plans, that hasty opening would endanger patients and that Bergman was unfit to operate it, based on his past record of violations and alleged fraud; Blumenthal says he had been approached by Stanley Lowell, lawyer for Bergman, and called Steingut only to inquire about Bergman's reputation; state officials maintain Blumenthal accompanied Bergman to Albany and vouched for his good management of Towers Nursing Home, recently closed for violations and alleged fraud; Albany officials later ordered dept's NY office to waive minor structural deficiencies and let Park Crescent open; Welfare Inspector Gen William Meyers, in another development, confirmed that his auditors had found unexplained transfers of $500,000 from Towers to personal bank acct of its certified public accountant Samuel Dachowitz; Fleck denounces leak of files, says document does not represent full picture and releases 3 volumes of his memos and lrs involving nursing homes; text of Fleck memo to Dickson (L)

NY Yankees announce on Dec 31 that pitcher Jim (Catfish) Hunter has signed 5‐yr contract estimated at $3.75‐million, a record for baseball; Yankees pres Gabe Paul refuses to disclose monetary terms but early repts indicate that package includes $1‐million bonus, salary of $200,000 per yr for 5 yrs, $1‐million life ins policy, 10‐yr retirement plan at $50,000 per yr, $25,000 ins policy for each of his 2 children and $200,000 in atty fees; signing concludes bidding war by 23 major league teams that followed Hunter being declared free agent by arbitration panel; panel, with independent arbitrator Peter Seitz casting deciding vote, ruled that Oakland Athletics owner Charles O Finley had breached his '74 contract with Hunter by not paying $50,000 of his $100,000 salary on deferred payment basis; Finley is presently contesting ruling in ct; illus (M)

BLS yr‐end econ rev shows that real spendable earnings of NYC factory workers fell 5.1% in '74, largest drop since such computations began in '50; also shows accelerated job losses for city, slower job growth in suburbs and higher‐than‐natl rates of unemployment in city; puts jobless rate in city at 6.9% in Oct '74, compared with 6% in Oct '73; Dir Herbert Bienstock comments; BLS rept detailed (L)

3M Co acknowledges on Dec 31 that it kept $634,000 pol fund, and that it is facing grand jury investigation for criminal tax evasion; co could be assessed $11‐million in back taxes and penalties; problems, growing from series of illegal campaign contributions from '63‐73, are disclosed in stock registration statement filed with SEC (M)

Anthony Barbaro, 17‐yr‐old hs sr, arraigned on 2d degree murder charges on Dec 31 on day after shooting spree in which he killed 3 and wounded 9 others on grounds of Olean (NY) HS; is remanded without bail; classmates and neighbors describe him as honor student deeply interested in guns; his illus (L)

US Treas Dept's Office of Domestic Gold and Silver Operations head Thomas W Wolfe says impending sale of 2‐million ounces of gold by US Govt on Jan 6 will dampen demand of gold (S)

Jury at Watergate cover‐up trial deliberates for 2d day; White House tape recordings of 4 conversations participated in by H R Haldeman, 1 of 5 defendants, who was White House chief of staff for former Pres Nixon; other defendants are former Atty Gen Mitchell, John D Ehrlichman, Nixon's chief domestic adviser, former Asst Atty Gen Robert C Mardian and Kenneth W Parkinson, atty hired by Nixon's re‐election campaign com to handle litigation growing out of Watergate break‐in; illus of scene outside Washington courthouse as jurors arrived on Dec 31 (L)