“Soviet Scientists

Press, Volume C, Issue 29602, 26 August 1961, Page 3

“Soviet Scientists

Want Bomb Tests” Sir,—The above headline in heavy type and inverted commas is misleading and no help to world peace. It implies that these are the actual words of somebody—by inference, Khrushchev. Actually, on reading the Press Association message you find (a) Mr K. said his scientists considered the super bomb possible, but not without testing—not the same thing as “Soviet scientists want bomb tes's”; (b) that Mr K. had vetoed the idea and told his scientists. “The Americans are itching to test and probably will. Then you can test.” The headline. “Americans itching to test bomb." would have been more accurate in that

it was a direct quotation.But neither is very helpful to peace. When monkeying with 100 megaton bombs one cannot be too careful —or too accurate.—Yours, etc., R. R. BEAUCHAMP. August 24, 1961.

It is neither possible nor desirable to give the. whole substance of an article in a headline or even a series of headlines. The "inference” that Khrushchev was quoted in this headline' is not as clear to us as it is to our correspondent. On the contrary, we see noreason why a reader seeking to relate the quotation in the heading to a person quoted in the message, should need to go beyond the first sentence: “The chief United States disarmament negotiator. Mr John McCloy. said today . . TTie headline, we would further suggest, fairly and accurately summarises what Mr McCloy said, as reported in the third paragraph of the message.— Ed-, "The Press.’’]