- U~dll_Q.Y_l[~[_f_f.§_f'_D_f_LOW PHNOM PENH March 16 , 1910 ----------------- Alle,r Jackson Good e v enin g e v erybod y . The go v er 11 men t of Cam !, o di a today granted political asylum - to those two Americans who hijacked the freighter Columbia Eagle. The U . S. State Department was a l s o • informed that Cambodia was taking over the ship itself - complete with its cargo of bombs which w•re originally destined for Thailand . For what itt worth, the two hijackers were earlier described by fellow seamen - as a co11ple of "Pill-popping marijuana blowing" hippies - who were always "talking a b o u t h ow t h e y " ' e re a n t i - Vi e t n a m . " - PHNOM PENH ---------- A related itl!m - from Phnom Penh; where the government of Cambodia opened talks today - with Viet Cong •n d North Vie t n am es e dip l om a ts . Su b j e c t : Th e p res enc e of Communist troops - in this "neutral" nation. The Cambodians reportedly telling the Communists bluntly - tlaey must go. A demand that was underscored by renewed ( / IL • - ),,__;:/'\.-1U_<....(--..,,C. ~, anti-Communist ' ,e:j~li•I"" todayi-,, Phnom Penh - even as tlse me•ttng was taking place. SENA TE I" W a s lz in g Io 11 - a I c x I of /11 c ,. c ,. c II t I,~ s l i m on y be f o re ti, e S c " a I e F o ,. c i g" R <' I a I i u n s C o m m i II e c - h .v Se c r c l a , •. v of S t a t e R o 1< " e ,. s w a s m a cl c /J II b I i c f o r I h c f i ,. s I I i m c I o ,I a )' . 0 " the s11bjccl of Laos - the Secretary said the U.S. has no plans al present for usi,ig ground forces ;,, lhat jungle kingdom - even "if it is 01 err"n" b .v Communist forces. AGNEW FOLLOW SE "ATE ---------------------- At the same lime, the AdmiP1istratio11 made it plai,i toda,, - it has 110 inteP1tlon of stopp , ing U.S. bombi,ig runs against Commiulist trt0ops operating in L~s. Vice President Spiro Agnew assertiftg that such a move - tC10llld be "to prostrate oitrselve . s on tile altar of sacrifice to / satisfy Administration critics; wlros e op,inions" - l • , - , k ' added - "seem to conc•r with the opinions of tlle enemy." .__ -VIETNAM -------- hi Vietnam - a U.S. Na . v y reconnaissa,zce plane c1·asllcd a11d burned today - <it Da . Na,1.g air bas e. Casualties incl11ding twettty-lwo dead , eleven i11jured - in one of worst ,,on-combat air d i sasters of the war. U.S. headquarters also reported the loss tf three American planes - in air operations over Laos. On tlte political front - South Vietnam's National Assembly approved today a sweeping land reform bill. One that's aimed at giving to peasants - the tenant farms which they have always tilled in the past for someone else. - -(SUGGESTED LEAD-IN TO THOMAS TAPE SLUGGED "WEDDING") 1 1 p Next 111> - Low e ll Thomas ; telli,rg to,,ighl of Nepal's "w e d d i n g of th e c c " t II r .v " - tt fJ n e a r th c "r o of of th e w or l d • " Loroell ••. WEDDING - 1L -------- I • Good eveninK, e1crybody. Th e re is '' o /J o i n l i,, a It e m /J l i II g t o ,J e s c r i b e th e w e d ding ceremonies itt tu o minutes, or e ve n days. Ever_vthing was done according to Hindu Vedic traditions that originated tho11sands of years ago. There wer · e three major processions. One when the Ct"own Prince of Nepal rode a tall, painted and richly ./ capariso,.,., elephant. Birendra up there alone i,s a golder, howdah, proceeded by several hundreds of palace attendants carrying trays filled with cakes and other s,oeets and ollu,.,. gifts - the prince preceded and follf, , wed by marching soldie• firing volley after volley with tlleir rifles, bands i,a leopard ' skins, cavalry, clowns, llundreds of government officit.ds, and a stream of white cars for "'embers of parliament, governors, ~ n~yors and so on. There destination was Si11glaa Durbar Palace, witla its Twelve-hundred rooms once occu . pied by a Rana prime m ; ni s t er w h O had s o me Ir i, n d reds of •o i "es . Here th e Crown ~ - WEDDING - 2 P 1· i ,, c c s s tl n ti It c ,. R a n a h a r I~ , , ts ,, ., 11 ere u ailing, wa il i n g for Bi1•c,1dra lo propose. The following day there was a para,Jc from .:,ingha Durba,· Palace lo King Mahe1tdr,1's new royal palace. This Ii m e t h e C .,. ow n P r i 11 c e s s <uul I, er Ii " n . d re d s of a t t e n d an ts brollght presents lo /he Prince, to say "yes,'' she would marry him. Of cottrse, all this had been agreed upon long before. They had been friends and agreed to do this many years before. Still another day, tr,ioth · er parade. This time they spent an entire n iglt t going th rough tlte ancient ,veddi,ag ritual. One-half million watched this parade and that's for a country with only ten million inhabitants. These parades 1oere not quite so colorfu . l and dramatic as the coronation ceremony fourteen years ago. Then the king had brought in three-hundred elephants, all in gor!feous trapping with many of us riding in silver and golden howdalts. I wonder if we are seeing the end of the elet,hant : e,ra, t.d th the gasoline buggy taking over everywhere.? J1 ./~ ~ 1 (SUGGESTED FOLLOW TO THOMAS TAPE SLUGGED "WEDDING") Thank y ou , Lou e ll. Back to lhe ne w s .• . SAADA ----- A se t e " - ye ar c i v il war in Yemen - which was supposedly ended se v en months ago - back in the news today. Diplomatic sources reporting a resurgence of Royalist forces - once thought to be thorouglely defeated. Indeed, t II e R o ya l is ts a re s aid to It ave ju s t rec a fJ tu re~ - t la e Nortleer,a city of Saada. Tlee same city tlrey lost to Ret,ublican. forces last summeY - fn what was tlten co,asidered tlle climtdic battle of the entire war. WHITE HOUSE ------------ Here al home - P · resident Nixo,i conferred today l with Secretary of State William Rogers. The White House ' , later indicating a decision had been made - on whether .:::s- to sell additional U.S. jets to Israel. Rogers himself ext,ectlld to disclose that decision - at o press cor,ferer,ce later this week. But what it will be - we can only wait ar,d see. POPULATION Th C lV I, i I C ff O II S C {I g {I i n - J' )" e S i ,I C '1 I Ni X O n I O d O }' S i g n e d in.to law - a bill establishing a commission lo study the so-called "pop11/ation explosion." The President appointing as its first chairman - John D. Rockefeller the Third, a pioneer in tlae field. - JEMEZ ------ "\, ' . I '\ ~ ) .,, emez, New Mexico - the V. S. Forest Service today 1 I ! 1> J declared war on a number of hippie commllnities - which are currently populating the Santa Fe National Fo , rest. The government establtshing what it called "hip(Jie pat · rols" - i,a an effort to sto · P the hippies from wandering around in the nude - or engaging in, quote, "mystic activities." Botla of wllicll - are said to offend more normal campers. District Ra11ger Fred Swetnam explaining: "We 're not challenging tJae hit>Pies' activities - except wluua tl,ey .J • '~r; ir,fringe on the rigllts of otllers ~ " And at that point - lie added: "W• 're immediately forced to defend tire establishme,.t." - LONDON , _ -------- A ne1 v tr . a11slation of the Bible - billed b}' many as the best y et - ruas Published for tlte first time today in London. The "Nero . English Bible", as it's called - a t,rodu, ; of more than twen,t,y years' work by Anglican and Protesta . nt scholars . . Sched11led l o replace the King James version - in British ch11rches. And it's written - we are told - in an "idiomatic yet elegan . t En , glish - which is much easier for modern readers to understand. " ~~ For example, the Tioenty-Third Psalm now readSj The Lord is my shepherd; I shall want notlling. He makes me lie down in green pas tu res, . And leads me beside the waters of Peace; He renews life within me. And for His Name's Sake guides me in tlae right path. Even th . ough . I walk th.rough a valley dark as death. J fear no evH, for Thou art with m~ LONDON - 2 ------------ Tlt_v staff and Thy crook are m .> ' comfort. That - from the "New E,aglish Bible" ; about which doubtless we'll be hRaring much more - in days to come. - ' "J \ ,.. LTP.1970.03.16i.pdf LTP.1970.03.16ii.pdf