January 6, 1969 '.EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS 247 REPORT OF TELLERS of the United States, as delivered to the 2228, New Senate Office Building, before Mr. CURTIS. Mr. President, on behalf President of the Senate, is as follows: the Committee on the Judiciary, on John of the tellers on the part of the Senate, The whole number of electors ap­ N. Mitchell, of New York, Attorney Gen­ I wish to report on the counting of the pointed to vote for Vice President of the eral-designate. vote for President and Vice President. United States is 538, of which a majority At the indicated time and place per­ The state of the vote for President of is 270. sons interested in the hearing may make the United States, as delivered to the SPIRO T. AGNEW, of the State of Mary­ such representations as may be pertinent. President of the Senate, is as follows: land, has received for Vice President of The whole number of electors ap­ the United States 301 votes. EDMUND s. MUSKIE, of the State of ADJOURNMENT UNTIL THURSDAY, pointed to vote for President of the JANUARY 9, 1969 United States is 538, of which a majority Maine, has received 191 votes. Curtis E. LeMay, of the State of Cali­ Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, if there is 270. fornia, has received 46 votes. is no further business to come before the Richard M. Nixon, of the State of New Senate, I move, in accordance with the York, has received for President of the previous order, that the Senate stand in United States 301 votes. NOTICE OF HEARING adjournment until 12 o'clock noon on HUBERT H. HUMPHREY, of the State of Mr. EASTLAND. Mr. President, on be­ Thursday next. Minnesota, has received 191 votes. half of the Committee on the Judiciary, The motion was agreed to; and <at George C. Wallace, of the State of I desire to give notice that a public hear­ 5 o'clock and 18 minutes p.m.) the Sen­ Alabama, has received 46 votes. ing has been scheduled for Tuesday, ate adjourned until Thursday, January The state of the vote for Vice President January 14, 1969, at 10:30 a.m., in room 9, 1969, at 12 o'clock meridian. EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS FIFTEEN YEARS OF PROGRESS: A to what may have been desalting does not destructive power of the atom has been har­ REVIEW OF THE U.S. DESALTING report what type of tree that was. I can as­ nessed to peaceful productivity-to provide sure you that many scientists and engineers the enormous quantities of energy needed to PROGRAM wish they knew. Some experts have specu­ wrest a limitless supply of fresh water from lated that it may have been history's first the world's salty oceans and seas. ion exchanger, but they have not been will­ Soon after World War II a water crisis HON. HAROLD T. JOHNSON ing to provide us with a cost estimate. struck. In the United States and elsewhere OF CALIFORNIA The earliest authenticated opinion that the water problems had been growing. After the IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ultimate structure of matter is discrete, war we recognized these problems to be suffi­ rather than continuous, is ascribed to De­ ciently serious to require U.S. Government Monday, January 6, 1969 mocritus, who lived about 450 B.C. According action to stimulate the economic production to Democritus, "The only existing things are of potable water from saline waters. A few Mr. JOHNSON of California. Mr. the atoms and empty space; all else is mere small land-based plants were in operation in Speaker, as chairman of the Subcommit­ opinion.'' the U.S. at that time, but in remote arid loca­ tee on Irrigation and Reclamation of the These two ancient reports set the stage tions and only as last resort for water supply. House Committee on Interior and Insular for man's struggle in the ensuing decades: Up to that point in our history, desalting Affairs, I have taken a very active interest to repeat Moses' miracle and turn bitter was primarily Within the province of naval in the efforts of this Nation to develop waters sweet ... to change Democritus' opin­ vessels and the maritime industry, who new sources of water through desalting ion of matter to fact. This generation of wanted a reliable supply of water and equip­ man-in the past three decades-has ment of a manageable size. The cost of the programs. Currently responsible for the achieved marked success in his desalting ef­ water, while important, was of secondary major effort of this is the Honorable Max forts. consideration. N. Edwards, Assis~ant Secretary for Wa­ Most early interest in desalting stemmed In 1952 cost became a critical factor. For­ ter Quality and Research, U.S. Depart­ from the seafarers' fear of an agonizing ward-looking legislation passed by the U.S. ment of the Interior. Mr. Edwards should death-perishing of thirst. Congress that year called for the development be commended for his contribution to the U.S. interest in desalting can be traced of practicable means to produce fresh water progress which we have made here in this back to 1791, when Thomas Jefferson, then from sea water or from other saline Secretary of State, presented one of the first waters ... at low cost. That water was to be Nation. technical reports on the subject. It described of a quality suitable for agriculture, industry, Not long ago, Mr. Edwards addressed a simple distillation experiment he had con­ municipal supply and other desirable uses. an international symposium on nuclear ducted. This data, he instructed, was to be The ultimate goal of the program was to find desalination conducted in Madrid, Spain. printed on the reverse of all ships• papers, out if it was feasible to desalt water and dis­ He reviewed the 15 years of progress so that our merchant marines could produce tribute it on a large scale basis. which this Nation has made in our de­ an emergency source of fresh water if their Congress had issued a considerable chal­ salination program and looked to the water casks became foul or empty at sea. lenge. The few small land-based desalting The first practical conversion units were plants in existence in the world at that time future of where we can go from here. developed to meet the requirements of steam produced a trickle of fresh water at costs Since there is no greater problem fac­ ships for fresh boiler water. The conversion ranging upward from $4 per 1000 gallons. ing the scientific and engineering com­ device made the steamship an economic re­ But enormous volumes of water were needed munities of the world today than to pro­ ality. Without it, most of the available cargo for agriculture and at very low costs. The vide cheap and inexhaustible sources of space would have been required to store challenge for scientists and engineers was pure fresh water for all mankind, I want boiler-feed water. this-increase plant size at least one to share with you Secretary Edwards' By World War II, all major naval vessels hundred-fold and cut costs 95 %. comments and evaluation at this point. and passenger liners carried their own bat­ The Office of Saline Water was established tery of evaporators. Hundreds of small mobile by the Secretary of the Interior to come to Accordingly, Mr. Speaker, I insert his re­ desalting units were also constructed to sup­ grips With this challenge. The Saline Water marks in the RECORD, as follows: ply fresh water for U.S. military forces in the Act of 1952 authorized $2 million for a five­ FIFTEEN YEARS OF PROGRESS: A REVIEW OF South Pacific and North Africa. While these year program. However, it quickly beca.tne THE UNITED STATES DESALTING PROGRAM field units helped to solve a difficult military evident that this was insufficient time and The Bible records what is perhaps the old­ logistics problem, they were difficult and ex­ inadequate funding for a giant task. So, the est desalting feat: "So Moses brought Israel pensive to operate. original law was amended a number of times from the Red Sea, and they went out into On December 2, 1942, the first sustained, to extend the life of the program and to in­ the wilderness, and found no water. And controlled production of atomic energy was crease its funds. More than $160 m1llion has when they came to Marah, they could not accomplished. No one realized then that this been devoted to desalting development and drink of the waters of Marah for they were secret effort to develop the most powerful the quest for new or improved processes bitter; therefore, the name of it was called weapon ever devised by man might also bring continues. Marah. And the people murmured against vast new quantities of water to a parched We have made marked progress toward our Moses, saying, 'What shall we drink?' And he world. desalting goal. This has been a result of cried unto the Lord; and the Lord shewed It is an exciting experience to have 11 ved OSW programs, private industry's research him a. tree, which when he had cast into the during a time when desalting technology has and engineering, and the growing attention waters, the waters were made sweet." advanced from relative obscurity to the being given to desalting by the governments Desalting? Perhaps. Unfortunately, the prominence of practical application. It is a and industries in other countries. Book of Exodus with this earliest reference great ·achievement of man that the awesome We in the United States operate our na- EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS January 6, 1969 tional program by means of contracts and Since our own plans to construct a dual­ plant is incidental-the real product of the grants to individuals, universities, private purpose nuclear power and water desalting operation is engineering data.