Milford chronicle., 1954-04-30
THOSE DEADLY H-BOMBs

= were new ana InIlnlCely less destructive than
those of today, the fear was often expressed
that 1t might be possible to actually explode
that part of the universe in which we live
The weight of scientific opinion was, and is
against that incredible concept. But prog
reSs-n that is the proper word for tin
nuclear development for war seems to have
reached point that few if any of us antici-
pated even relatively short time back The
top physicists themselves have been sur
prised.
The March / test in the Pacific astonished
the world. Secretary of Defense Wilson de-
scribed it as unbelievable" and said that
the full details, which have not been made
public, would "scare anybody" Chairman
Strauss of the Atomic Energy Commission
speaking with Presidential authorization at
a White House press conference, said that
the blast was about double the expected size
but that it was never out of control and that
the error made in prior calculations was
mot Incompatible with totally new weap-
on"
How big was the blast? According to
Time, "The test =. makes all its predecess-
Ors, including the 1852 shot, look like string
of One-inch salutes. The force of the explo-
sion probably exceeded ten megaiOns $500
HirOshimas). 1t sent radioactive cloud bill
lowing to height that may have exceeded
20 miles" Admiral Strauss also helped ans
wer that question. He said the H-bOmb can
be made "as large as you wish large
enough to destroy any city" Asked speci-
hcally II this means that one of the bombs
could destroy New York City, he said, "The
metropolitan area, yes" He denied, how
ever, the rumOrs that an island or a group
OF islands had been destroyed in either the
March or March 26 tests, adding "It would
be more accurate to say large sandspit or
reef"
The most immediate repercussions came
from Japan Radioactive dust fell there and.
a number OF Japanese fishermen, whose traw-
Ter was not seen in the search made before
the explosion, were injured. Some Japan
ese spokesmen demanded that the tests be
stopped. But there seems to be small chance
OF that happenlng-they will go on, regard
less or any criticism so long as the world is
IN Its present unhappy state of cold and hot
conflict. Sir Winston Churchill came to our
defense IN this regard when he spoke in Com
mons against a Labor Party proposal that
the tests be placed under international con-
trolS of some sort. He said, eve have no
power to stop this / am sure it would not
be right or wise of us to ask that it should
be stopped. When similar experiments are
conducted by the Russians | cannot remem-
Der that anyone suggested such representa-
tlons should be made to the Soviet Govern
ment."
What will be the end of all this ? There are
many gUesSes. The most obvious, of course,
is an eventual war of unimaginable destruc-
tlOn But some think that if two opposed
powers have the H-bOmb-and Admiral
Strauss said Russia has 1.-THE ghastlv pOss-
lbllltles make the chance of war more re-
mote. A German scientist who was instru-
mental In the development of the rockets
with which Hitler bombarded England, said
that he thought that within year war NAV
become a virtual impOSsibility. MalenkOv
himself has spoken of the horrors that can
come from the atom, and in shocked terms.
Perhaps, for the first time in history, force
exits which is SO terrible that none would
dare to unleash it.
E>SONG
PUT YOURSELF IN THIS POSITION
Suppose wages or other costs you must
meet IN operating your business rose so
sharply that the prices you charged for your
products were no longer adequate And then
suppose that, under the law, you weren't al
lowed to increase those prices for manv
months You'll admit that it would he noigbty
rough going, and that you were being treat
ed with gross unfairnesS.
That, in 81! essentials, is the position rail
roads, trucking interests and other common
carriers are in now, and long have been. I'm
DER the present system, they must petition
the Interstate Commerce Commission for
permission to increase rates when rising
costs make that necessary. The ICC must
then make an intensive investigation. and
hear all sides-which takes close to a year
in many instances. And during all that time
the carriers must operate at their old rates
while paying the new and higher costs.
The cure lies in Bill now in Congress.
known as the Time-Lag Bill, it would in
struct the ICC to authorize, within go davs.
interim increases in rates sufficient in it's
opinion, to meet increased costs and assure
adequate service. Then the Commission
would complete its Investigation. If the final
increases allowed should be less than the
interim increases, the carriers would be re-
gulred, on demand, to refund the difference.
Thus, both shippers and carriers would be
protected-the one against excessive in
ccreases, and the other against the heavy
losses which now occur.
The country wants and needs ever-cx-
panding, ever-improving common carriers.
This Bill would contribute materially to that