i I
M'
OR
,abor costs rise
hile productivity
akes another dip
I
WASHINGTON (AP) — Labor
costs continued rising at near
record rates during the past three
months while productivity in the
American economy declined
sharply, the government reported
Wednesday.
The new figures from the Labor
Department were further evidence
of the nation’s twin problems of a
sagging economy amid persistent
inflation.
Unit labor costs, an important in
dicator of inflationary pressure, rose
at an annual rate of 13.9 per cent in
the third quarter of the year, the
second fastest rise in 25 years. The
rate was exceeded only by the year’s
first-quarter increase of 14.6 per
cent.
Productivity — that is, output per
worker hour — fell at an annual rate
of 3 per cent in the July-September
period after a slight rise in the pre
vious quarter and a 7.1 per cent
drop in the first quarter.
Productivity usually declines
when over-all output in the
economy falls, as has happened in
all three quarters this year. The de
cline in output in the third quarter
was 3.3 per cent, 2 per cent in the
second quarter and 7.8 per cent in
the first.
By comparison, the decline in
output of the private economy in the
first quarter of the 1969-70 reces
sion was 2.5 per cent, and the de
cline in output per worker-hour was
eight-tenths of a per cent.
Despite worsening statistics.
President Ford on Tuesday de
fended his economic plan sent to
Congress three weeks ago as still
sound. He followed this up Wed
nesday with some tough talk to his
Cabinet, urging that it promptly
push legislation and take adminis
trative action to carry out his prog
ram.
Ford, according to press secret
ary Ron Nessen, told the Cabinet: “I
will hold every department respon
sible. You have the ball. You must
carry the ball and if you don’t score,
it’s your fault.”
Meanwhile, the new director of
the Council of Wage and Price Sta
bility, Albert Rees, scheduled pub
lic hearings for next month that will
focus on the high profits earned by
food processors and other middle
men.
The Labor Department said in its
report that the rise in wages, com
bined with the decline in output per
man-hour drove unit labor costs up.
That puts upward pressure on
prices as employers seek to keep
profits up.
Weather
Continued overcast today
and tonight with intermit
tent showers and thunder
showers; possibly local
heavy rains. Partial clear
ing Friday afternoon. High
Thursday 79°; low tonite
69°; high Friday 74°.
Che Battalion
Today in the Batt
Economic reply .p. 2
Guest rooms . . . .p. 3
‘Train’ McCrumblyp. 12
Vol. 68 No. 35
College Station, Texas
Thursday, October 31, 1974
ixon reportedly pleased
y Magruder’s early lies
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jeb
IStuart Magruder testified Wednes-
Iday that early in the Watergate
Kover-up he was assured that then-
iPresident Richard M. Nixon was
Ipleased at the way Magruder was
[keeping the true story of the scandal
[from coming out.
In the second day on the stand as
[aprosecution witness at the Water-
cover-up trial, Magruder also
[said he was promised financial help
[if anything went wrong with plans
[for him to lie to federal grand juries
i the summer and fall of 1972.
The former deputy director of
[Nixon s 1972 re-election committee
[also acknowledged telling FBI ag-
[ents that during the cover-up, he
Correction
"The Battalion” was wrong yes-
[terday when it reported that the five
[cadets who confessed to using mari-
[juana had grade point ratios under
[2.0. The information was given by
[Chip Utterbaek, one of the Corps
[staff members who entered the
rooms of the five cadets on Sept. 8
[andsearched for marijuana. At least
three of the cadets who confessed
while under the Aggie Code of
Honor have GPRs over 2.0.
obtained as much money as he could
above his normal salary from the
committee.
Under cross-examination, Mag
ruder said he told FBI agents on
April 19, 1973, that after the original
Watergate break-in he accumulated
$10,000 or $11,000 “for self-
preservation.” Magruder said he
later learned the figure was $6,000,
which he held until the committee
agreed to pay some of his legal fees.
It was left unclear precisely how
Magruder went about obtaining the
extra money.
Shortly after Magruder left the
witness stand for the day, Assistant
Prosecutor James F. Neal disclosed
the next witness would be Robert
Reisner, Magruder’s assistant at the
re-election committee.
Neal also said that a portion of
defendant H. R. Haldeman’s tes
timony before the Senate Water
gate Committee might be played on
a video tape machine and flashed on
a screen for the jury.
Neal said because of complica
tions, namely errors in the printed
public transcript of Haldeman’s tes
timony, it might be inadmissable as
evidence that the former White
House chief of staff committed per
jury before the committee.
During earlier questioning by As
sistant Prosecutor Jill Wine Volner,
Magruder testified that he once
volunteered to take the blame for
the break-in but was turned down
by senior officials at the committee
and the White House.
Magruder now is serving a
minimum 10-month prison term for
his own part in the coverup.
Generally, he recounted a story
told before in testimony to the Se
nate Watergate committee and in
his book, “An American Life; One
Man’s Road to Watergate.”
Magruder, 39, told of preparing
an elaborate cover story for federal
investigators to account for
$250,000 approved for use by
Watergate burglar G. Gordon
Liddy, then an official of the re-
election committee.
Magruder said former White
House counsel John W. Dean III
came to his office shortly before
Magruder was to give his peq'ured
testimony and told Magruder:
“Everyone at the White House
and the committee, particularly the
President, the President was par
ticularly pleased at my efforts at
keeping the truth of Watergate from
coming out.”
Looking vigorous and healthy for
a man coming out of prison, Mag
ruder quoted Dean as saying that if
anything went awry, he would be
given money just like Liddy,
m
i »
|f>f.
Mi
- ;
8!
q
Watergate burglar E. Howard Hunt
and the other five original Water
gate defendants.
Magruder said he was later given
similar assurances from defendant
and former Atty. Gen. John N.
Mitchell.
Besides Mitchell, the other de
fendants in the trial are former
White House aides John D. Ehr-
lichman, H. R. Haldeman, former
assistant Atty. Gen. Robert C. Mar-
dian and Kenneth W. Parkinson, a
lawyer for the re-election commit
tee.
Magruder recounted that the first
time he met Parkinson, Mardian
told him to tell the whole truth
about the break-in. Parkinson had
been hired as an outside lawyer for
the re-election committee.
For one hour and a half, Mag
ruder laid out the story for Parkin
son, and then was summoned later
by Mitchell who asked why he had
not told Parkinson the cover story
prepared for use before the grand
jury.
Magruder told Mitchell that he
believed Mardian meant it when he
said to tell the truth.
“Well,” Magruder quoted
Mitchell as saying, “just don’t tell
the truth any more to any more
people who are not on the team
working on this problem.”
Surgery
close call
for Nixon
LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) —
Former President Richard M.
Nixon almost died after going into
shock following surgery for
phlebitis, his former White House
press secretary revealed Wednes
day.
“There is no doubt that we almost
lost President Nixon yesterday af
ternoon,” Ronald L. Ziegler told an
impromptu news conference at the
hospital where Nixon is being
treated.
Nixon’s doctors have sidestepped
questions as to whether Nixon’s life
was in danger during the crisis on
Tuesday.
Nixon was still on the critical list
Wednesday.
Dr. John C. Lungren, Nixon’s
personal physician, said the former
president had shown improvement.
He said internal bleeding, which
triggered the shock, had apparently
stopped.
Blood for transfusions was set
aside in case bleeding recurred.
Lungren said that although
Nixon’s vital signs were stable, it
was too early to make a prognosis on
his condition.
Ziegler said, “I know that Presi
dent Nixon has not lost the will to
live...he’s a man of great strength
and great courage, and he will pull
out of it. ”
Ziegler said Nixon’s condition
after he went into “vascular
shock”—collapse of blood
circulation—for three hours was so
serious that “I think it’s fortunate
that President Nixon was in the in
tensive care unit.”
And the rains keep falling
Off-and-on rains during the last few
days have kept students guessing
whether or not they will need an um-
Czar feud
brella. This student came prepared for
them. (Photo by Jack Holm)
Style and management
led to Sawhill ouster
WASHINGTON (AP) — An
energy power stuggle fueled by
White House dissatisfaction with
John C. Sawhill’s style and man
agement led to his ouster and the
installation of Interior Secretary
Rogers C. B. Morton as the
administration’s one and only
energy czar.
In removing Sawhill as federal
energy administrator Tuesday,
President Ford demonstrated that
he is backing Morton as energy chief
with the President’s own power to
hire and fire.
High-placed administration
sources say various forces focused
that power on Sawhill:
—He was urging mandatory
energy conservation when Morton
and the President wanted only vol
untary measures.
—He showed a tendency to re
veal policy proposals before the ad
ministration was ready to talk about
Aggies give for Blood Drive
Election guide inside
voter turnout urged
Personnel of the Wadley Institute of
Molecular Medicine in Dallas are tak
ing blood from Aggies who volunteer
this week. As of 5 p.m. Wednesday,
733 units had been collected. A record
collection is expected. The old record is
1000 units. (Photo by Chris Svatek)
Inside today’s Battalion is a four-
page election guide which can be
pulled out and saved for reference
for Tuesday’s general elections.
Included are comments from the
participants in the governor and
lieutenant governor races as well as
perspectives on local district and
county candidates.
The Battalion encourages all stu
dents and area residents to show an
interest in their government and
vote Nov. 5.
them, such as the gasoline tax prop
osal.
“Premature leaks blow your
chances on the Hill (Congress), if
you don’t touch the bases first, ” one
source said, referring to the need to
line up congressional support in ad
vance.
—Some administration officials
thought Sawhill was not managing
the Federal Energy Administration
firmly enough. President Ford said
publicly he was dissatisfied with the
progress on new energy programs.
—Finally, some sources think
Morton resented FEA’s grab of im
portant Interior Department offices
and officials when FEA was formed
last December.
Morton told reporters there was
nothing wrong with Sawhill except a
“style” that somehow did not fit the
“style” of other in the administra
tion.
Morton agreed later under a bar
rage of questions that Sawhill’s ad
vocacy of mandatory conservation
had something to do with his de
mise.
Another source said the question
of energy conservation versus
energy production was “a phony
issue. ” More important, this source
said, was a need for toughness at the
head of FEA.
Just over a year ago, energy pol
icy was a low priority and the title
“energy czar” was jokingly applied
to John A. Love, head of a modest,
powerless Energy Policy Office in
the White House.
Caught unprepared by last
October’s Arab oil embargo. Con
gress and the President hastily es
tablished the Federal Energy Of
fice, later re-established as the
FEA, and placed William E. Simon,
then deputy Treasury secretary, in
command of its oil allocation and
price control programs.
Pot trial
to be set
Two A&M students charged Oct.
23 for possession of marijuana were
arraigned Wednesday morning be
fore County Judge William R.
Vance.
Scott Foster and Steve Hamm,
both 18 and freshmen, were
charged after University Police al
legedly found 16 small marijuana
plants growing in their room in
Moses Hall.
A tip from an informer in the
dormitory led to the arrests, said
Harry Blumfield, head resident ad
viser.
Foster was fined $250 plus court
costs and given a 30-day sentence,
probated for one year. Hamm
pleaded not guilty and was released
on $500 bond.
A trial date for Hamm has not
been set.