Evening star., 1959-12-13
Strauss Begins Book
On Men and Decisions
BY CECIL HOLLAND
Star stan Writer

relaxed after a Far Eastern
vacation tour, is settling down
here to write a book.
He has opened a suite Of
offlces in downtown Washing
ton and is assembling there the
memorabilia of his long and
often controversial years in
Government service.
Mrs. Strauss has signed a
contract with Doubleday & Co.
for the publication of a book
tentatively entitled Men and
Decisions"
1T will not be autobiogra-
phical," Mr.. Strauss explained
in an interview. In it I will
undertake to place in the record
those aspects of events with
which I was associated where
the decisions made affected the
future of the country.
Il will try, in the light of the
experiences I have had. to ex-
plain the reasons for the de-
clSionS and how they influence
the course of history and the
lives Of the men involved in
making them"
Separate Book on Senate Fight
One of the major events of
Mr.. Strauss career, under pres
ent plans, will not be included
in the contemplated volume.
That is the bitter Senate fight
this year over his confirmation
as Secretary of Commerce. He
is thinking of reserving that for
a later literary effort.
The food relief efforts during
and after World War I. the de-
cision to make the atomic
bomb. the decision to use it and
the decision to go ahead with
the development of a thermo-
nuclear bomb will be among
the events which Mr.. Strauss
will discuss in his book.
He was intimately connected
with them all. He was private
secretary to Herbert Hoover
during the World War period
when Mr.. Hoover organized and
directed the gigantic task of
feeding the starving Belgians
and French people in areas
oVerrun by the Germans.
One part of this story also
involves the determination of
Mr.. Hoover. over Allied opposi-
tion, to supply food for the
people Of the Central powers
after the Armistice.
Among the American lead
ers who will figure in Mr..
Strauss historical record will
be Mr.. Hoover, Woodrow Will
son, the Presidents of recent
years, the late Secretary of De-
tense James v. Forrestal and
the late Senator Robert Al
Taft of Ohio.
The decisions regarding the
atomic and thermonuclear
bombs promise to be one of the
more fascinating parts of the
volume. Mrs. Strauss was in
tlmately connected with these
decisions in the initial stages
ana later as chairman of the
Atomic Energy Commission.
Little known to the general
public were his efforts of d.
recting a project early in World
War II to bring noted Euro
pean scientists to the United
States to help on the atomic
development.
Records Fill so Cabinets
AS preliminary to the actual
writing, Mr.. Strauss is super
vising the collection Of all his
records. These fill more than
so large filing cabinets. A me-
ticulous check Of all the records
is one Of the major tasks con-
fronting him.
Some Of the records have
never been made public before
hand. AS far as security will
permit, Mr.. Strauss will now
make use of them.
His purpose in writing the
book, he said, is to set in
proper historical perspective
the events with which he has
been connected. In some in
stances, he asserted, the public
record at present is not ac-
curate.
Actually this will be a Second