News stories from Tuesday April 2, 1974
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- President Pompidou of France died tonight at the age of 62. The cause of death was not immediately announced. But for more than a year, there had been ceaseless speculation about his health, causing political uncertainty as he reduced his work schedule and his government temporized on many major issues. [New York Times]
- With the White House moving toward an announcement soon of the appointment of William Simon, the Federal Energy Administrator, to succeed George P. Shultz as Secretary of the Treasury, a fierce backstairs struggle has developed for the broad economic policy role exercised by Mr. Shultz. It appears, Washington sources said, that Roy Ash, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, and Secretary of State Kissinger both will have more influence with Mr. Shultz gone. [New York Times]
- Enactment of the national health insurance program took a giant step forward as two congressional leaders introduced a new proposal similar to the one proposed by President Nixon two months ago. The new bill was prepared and introduced by Senator Edward Kennedy, who scrapped a much more liberal version that he had championed, and Representative Wilbur Mills, who had sponsored the Nixon version. [New York Times]
- An underground newspaper in San Francisco, the biweekly Phoenix, said it had received half of Patricia Hearst's driver's license and a message purporting to be from her kidnappers saying that the exact place and time of her release would be disclosed in 72 hours. [New York Times]
- In a stunning courtroom tableau, Donald Nixon, a brother of the President, took the witness stand at the Mitchell-Stans trial to testify that he was asked to warn the President that a secret $200,000 cash contribution to his re-election campaign might be exposed before election day. He refused to pass on the warning, Mr. Nixon said, because "I have never taken anything to him nor have I used that office for any purpose for myself or any people I work for." [New York Times]
- Gen. David Elazar resigned as Israel's chief of staff shortly after an official commission investigating Israeli setbacks at the start of the October war recommended that he and other senior army officers be removed. Issuing an interim report, the commission cleared Premier Golda Meir and Defense Minister Moshe Dayan of responsibility for what was described as Israel's lack of preparation for war. [New York Times]
- Graham Martin, the United States Ambassador to South Vietnam, suggested in a confidential cablegram last month to the State Department that Senator Edward Kennedy not be given an "honest and detailed answer" to questions he had raised about American policy in Indochina. The cable, addressed to Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, was made public by Senator Kennedy, who expressed "outrage" that an American Ambassador should suggest that members of Congress not be given honest answers to questions of public policy. [New York Times]
- The Queen Elizabeth 2, crippled and adrift off Bermuda, prepared for the transfer of her 1,630 passengers to a Norwegian cruise ship racing to a rendezvous in mid-ocean. The Elizabeth, bound from New York to St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, stalled before dawn Monday with a breakdown of three boilers. [New York Times]
|
Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 846.61 (+3.13, +0.37%)
Arms Index is the ratio of volume per declining issue to volume per advancing issue; a figure below 1.0 is bullish. | |||||||||||||||
| Market Index Trends | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | DJIA | S&P | Volume* |
| April 1, 1974 | 843.48 | 93.25 | 11.47 |
| March 29, 1974 | 846.68 | 93.98 | 12.15 |
| March 28, 1974 | 854.35 | 94.82 | 14.94 |
| March 27, 1974 | 871.17 | 96.59 | 11.69 |
| March 26, 1974 | 883.68 | 97.95 | 11.84 |
| March 25, 1974 | 881.02 | 97.64 | 10.54 |
| March 22, 1974 | 878.13 | 97.27 | 11.93 |
| March 21, 1974 | 875.47 | 97.34 | 12.95 |
| March 20, 1974 | 872.34 | 97.57 | 12.96 |
| March 19, 1974 | 867.57 | 97.23 | 12.80 |