Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 10

Dr. Teller claims he was the 'dove' of the bomb makers Washington Post Service CHICAGO Called a "Dr. Strangelove" by young "New Left" scientists, Dr. Edward Teller openly agonized yesterday over his role in dropping the A-bomb and said he "unfortunately" let J. Robert Oppenheimer talk him out of leading a petition against it.

The face of the famous physicist devastating witness against Oppenheimer later in the security hearings of the 1950s was tight and grim as he told the story. His audience was astounded at what can only be described as a confession of guilt from a physicist who has always fiercely defended all of his roles in making A-bombs and H-bombs. In effect, they were hearing the man sometimes called "father of the Hbomb" say that the man regarded by many as an 1 a of peace, the late Dr. Oppenheimer, was really the bomb monger in 1945. The occasion was the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

A panel of scientists was talking about science's "generation gap." A group of young dissidents was preparing to picket Teller and give him their annual "Dr. Strangelove Award" in recognition of "his services in the cause of war." Teller, a refugee from Hitler's Europe, served under Oppenheimer at the Manhattan District's Los Alamos laboratory. The dissidents were largely members of Scientists and Engineers for Social and Political Action, whose slogan is 'science for the people." Most are students or faculty members at Chicago area colleges. Teller, frequently such a target, came accompanied by bodyguards. The dissidents called them "thugs" and demanded that they leave.

Anthropologist Margaret Mead, the meeting's chairman, replied, "If he has bodyguards here, it has been made necessary for him to do so." Except for occasional shouts, the protesters quieted down. But two stood at one end of the platform during Teller's appearance and displayed signs. Teller at first refused to talk until the protesters gave him a right to express his views, as, he said, be had let them express theirs. They refused to go away, and he decided to speak anyway. He was still smarting from the attack of another speaker, Dr.

Robert Lewontin, University of Chicago biologist. Lewontin had called him a "flunky of power" for his bomb-making. Teller shook his head and said that just as he once was under attack from the Nazis he was "now under attack from thoughtless individuals who do not know what they talk about and whose acts are about to induce violence and lack of reason." Then he made the confession that many who had known him for years and nex- er heard. The A-bomb was completed in mid-1945. The question was whether to use it on Japan or summon the Jananese to a demonstration of its awful power.

"My friend (the late Dr. Leo Szilard, a fellow Hungarian) wrote me a letter," Teller said. "He said, 'Sign this petition' for a demonstration, not a bombing. I fully and heartily agreed," but "unfortunately did what I thought I was supposed to do" what be called his duty. "I took the piece of docu- ment to the director of the laboratory," the late Dr.

Oppenheimer, "who told 'Szilard is using his influence as a scientist to influence a political decision; This is wrong. Don't you sign it. Don't circulate "I made the great mistake of feeling relieved of my responsibility." But then, Teller maintained, something happened he had not known. "He (Oppenheimer) was on the committee" that advised President Harry S. Truman to use the bomb (one of only two devices in existence then) in war.

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KorlUn, DC Dr. Edward Teller Oppenheimer was not only on the committee, Teller said, but "he had the decisive influence to push aside the suggestion of demonstrating before using the atomic explosive. And the greatest opportunity in history was missed." Other historians have credited Truman and his secretary of war, Henry L. Stimson, with decisive roles in the decision. But Teller's main point yesterday despite what he called his huge "mistake" was to say that he had still done the only job that he could do, bomb-making, in a country where political lead- ers have to make the political decisions.

A scientist, Teller said, can never tell whether hs work will be used for good or ill: He turned to a copanelist, Dr. Albert Szent-Gyorgyi, discoverer of Vitamin who confessed that his peaceful discovery was used by the Germans in World War II to keep U-boat crews at sea longer. But all scientific secrecy, even missile and H-bomb secrecy, said Teller as he has said before should be completely abolished, so the public can know "What it's really all about," to help make the political decisions. The scientist, he concluded, can only speak up as a citizen on political matters, but not here, too, ne disagreed with Dr. Lewontin "refuse" to do certain, jobs or even "sabotage" them.

The young dissidents bought almost none of it. Another copanelist, Dr. Richard Novick, a New York psychiatrist, acted for them at the close of the meeting and presented Teller their annual "Dr. Strangelove Award." Teller would not take it. It is "the first award I have ever refused," he said in good humor, "though many of the others have also been undeserved." REPUBLIC BULLDOG Phoenix, Monday, Dec.

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