Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-09-15
By, CHARLES BARTLETT
Star Special Writer

l
The Lazarus-like r revival o
civil defense, repeatedly left TO
dead by the public and Con.
gress, Is a rem arkable leg
islative turn. After 10 years o.
uncertainty on its obligation II
the public under the nuclea,
threat, the House appears In
clined to indorse this week {
program Of Nation wide sheltel
against radioactive fallout.
The revival occurred becaus,
IL m m bers of the Hous'
Armed Services Co m mite e
heavily disposed against civi
defense, decided that the!
would take the time to give it
final burial in a long series o
hearings.
But when the hearings wert
over, the subcommittee's view
point had swung dramaticall!
to 90 support of the steps pro
posed by the Defense Depart
ment, q margin believed Suffi.
Gent to produce passage of thu
shelter program on the HousI
floor next week.
No Enthusiasm
Civil defense failed in TIT
past because it pursued a seriei
of blind alleys including TIT
awkward course Of mass eva
cuation, the futile advocacy O
backyard shelters, and extrava'
CANT plans for civilian protec'
ton against blast effects. Pres
ident Eisenhower never found {
program that he could supper
with enthusiasm.
Alarmed in 1861 by the i'm
plications Of Berlin, Presiden
Kennedy sent out 40 million
booklets telling how and VIII!
to take private precautioni
against fallout. The reaction
was sparse and the gesture Il
now conceded to have been {
m is take which deepened the
establishment with civil de.
tense.
At that stage the program
fell into the hands Of d practi-
cal administrator. Steuart Pitt
man, who determined to con-
centrate on q first step Of de-
veloping community shelters
through the use Of existing ia.
cilitieS. His surveyors examined
some five million buildings and
found refuge from radioactivitS
for 10 million people, mostly
above ground in the cores Of
these structures.
Mr.. Pittman must now Sc
cure from Congress a commit.
ment of interest in the use Of
these spaces, the funds to mari
and stock them, and a tender
Of intent regarding shelter fol
the rest of the population.
Unless Congress lends a posi-.
tive momentum to the effort a
this point, the initiative will,
fade, the markings will weal
off, the supplies will be stolen
and the Nation will revert to its
old uncertainty on civil, de.
tense.
Shelter Provisions
The committee has only. &C,
cepted the first $3.50 million o
a $2.1 billion program to extenC
shelter space To the entire pc
pulation. This first step viii
afford IS million Of the esti
mated need of 240 million
spaces, a total that is create.
than the population because O
the movement between home
and offices.
The committee has taken I
position that Congress will de-
eide on the basis of this initia
experience whether 1t wants II
go ahead with the expensiv,
remainder of the program.
The public stake in the issul
is defined by Department o
Defense studies showing that
national shelter system woult
save about one-quarter of tn
population in an attack o
5000 m egatons, a nuclea
package which the Soviets ar
believed capable Of Delivering
in this decade.
With or without these shell
tiers, some 80 million peopl
would be expected to die ant
some As million to survive ii
such an attack. So the appar
ent beneficiaries Of the pro
gram would be approximate.
As million persons who woult
survive under shelter.
Mr.. Pittman had the advan
tage, in converting the commit
tee members, Of united supper
from the military and civilian
elements of the Pentagon, o
scientific backing from DR.. Ed
ward v. Teller, and Of mora
support from church leaders
He demonstrated the techni
ques of survival, showed tn
shelter supplies costing $2.42
person, and endeavored to bri
ghten the members view Of tn,
potentials Of the post-attacl
world.
Eyes Were Opened
The reaction was cumulativ,