The Storms and Strugles Resume

For Richard Nixon, the lull in the Watergate tempest is over. This week Senator Sam Ervin's committee reopens its public hearings, and by next week the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington will rule on whether the President must surrender his secret Watergate tapes to a federal grand jury. In addition, more indictments are expected shortly in connection with both the Watergate break-in and the burglary at the office of the psychiatrist of Pentagon Papers Defendant Daniel Ellsberg. Said one presidential adviser: "It's like sitting here waiting for 24,000 volts. You know it's coming, but you don't know when."

The most immediate source of difficulty for Nixon is the courts. Two weeks ago, the appeals court recommended that the White House and Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox seek a settlement in their fight over nine tape recordings of presidential conversations about Watergate. Despite three meetings totaling eight hours last week, the lawyers could not reach an agreement. TIME has learned that Nixon was willing to give Cox fairly detailed transcripts of the tapes, apparently because the President expects that a court decision might go against him, but continued to refuse to let the special prosecutor listen to the tapes themselves.

At first Presidential Counsel J. Fred Buzhardt offered Cox only written summaries of the tapes. They would contain brief snatches of direct quotes, but for the most part be limited to compilations by White House staffers of the substance of the conversations. Cox refused and, in turn, offered to excise profanity and other irrelevant material from any tape he listened to and decided should be sent to the grand jury.

Next Buzhardt offered Cox transcripts with portions not relevant to the Watergate investigation deleted by the White House. Again Cox refused, insisting that he or, at the very least, someone not employed by the Chief Executive be permitted to double-check the transcripts against the tapes. Finally both sides told the court that no out-of-court settlement was possible.

That set the stage for a court ruling either this week or next. It is expected to be in Cox's favor, and to be appealed to the Supreme Court after it reconvenes Oct. 1. Since that court will not reach a decision before hearing oral arguments, Cox is considering taking the unusual step of asking Congress for a special act to extend the 18-month life of his grand jury. It is scheduled to expire Dec. 4, but he wants to keep it in session until after the tapes battle has ended and all Watergate indictments have been voted on.

No Immunity. In reopening its public hearings, the Senate Watergate committee will first take testimony from convicted Conspirator E. Howard Hunt Jr., followed during the week by Presidential Aide Patrick Buchanan, former White House Investigator John Caulfield and John J. Ragan, a bugging expert from Massapequa, N.Y. Caulfield testified for two days in May on his role in the offering of Executive clemency to Conspirator James McCord Jr. This week the committee planned to question both him and Ragan about the bugging, on orders from the White House, of Columnist Joseph Kraft's telephone in 1969. It intended to query Buchanan about his 1972 memos recommending infiltration of the presidential campaigns of Democratic Senator Edmund Muskie and others.

Originally the committee had planned to question former White House Special Counsel Charles Colson, who was implicated in Watergate by previous witnesses. But Colson may soon be indicted on charges of helping to plan the Ellsberg psychiatrist's breakin, and last week he declined to cooperate with the Ervin committee. During a two-hour private session with committee members and staffers, Colson's attorney, David Shapiro, explained that his client could testify only if granted immunity from prosecution.

After much discussion, the committee refused to grant him immunity --largely at the urging of its chief counsel, Sam Dash, who said that the 65-page opening statement Colson planned to deliver contained little new evidence.

Then Dash began a series of questions to test Colson's determination not to answer. Did he know Hunt? Had he introduced Hunt to former Presidential Domestic Adviser John Ehrlichman? To every pertinent question, Colson cited the Fifth Amendment, refusing to answer on the ground that he might incriminate himself.

In the past, Colson has denied any prior knowledge of the Watergate breakin, let alone involvement in it. TIME has learned, however, that Hunt told the committee in a private interview that Colson "was aware" by December 1971 or January 1972 of the "large-scale intelligence plan." Moreover, Hunt told the committee that he had received the impression from Conspirator G. Gordon Liddy that--in the words of a committee digest of the interview--"Colson had discussed Gemstone [the wiretapping operation] with Liddy."

Since the committee wants to complete its hearings by Nov. 1, only four weeks are left to explore the other subjects of its investigation: campaign "dirty tricks" and improper financing of the 1972 presidential campaign. Several staff members resent the early deadline, saying that it does not leave enough time to explore fully the non-Watergate phases of the investigation. Some hope that the hearings may yet be extended beyond Nov. 1. Said one staffer who is involved in investigating dirty tricks: "It depends on what we turn up, and I think we are going to turn up some pretty important stuff."

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