MARINE SCIENCE 201 
The oceanographic potential of these towers is obvious. An oceanographic 
facility is being incorporated into the basic design. This will include a platform 
and a triple cable hoist for instrument array. Wave measuring and tide gage 
recorders will be on one of the tower legs. Interior space will be provided for 
instrument laboratory and quarters for transient maintenance personnel. Basic 
instrumentaiton is being done in cooperation with the Beach Erosion Board, Coast 
and Geodetic Survey and the Hydrographic Office. 
Future towers will be instrumented based on experience gained from the first. 
Tur SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY, 
Washington, April 14, 1961. 
Hon. WARREN G. MaGnuson, 
Chairman, Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, 
U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. 
My Drar Mr. CHarrMAn: Reference is made to your request for the views of 
this Department on §S. 1189, to amend title 14 of the United States Code in order 
to authorize the Coast Guard to carry on certain oceanographic research. 
The President in his letter to the President of the Senate dated March 29, 
1961, relating to a national oceanographic program, stated that Coast Guard 
enabling legislation at present limits the extent to which the Coast Guard can 
engage in scientific research and he recommended that statutory limitations re- 
stricting participation by the Coast Guard in oceanographic research be removed. 
The President further stated that with oceanographic weather stations, deep 
sea thermometers, and other data collection devices, the Coast Guard can make 
a valuable contribution to the oceanographic program. 
Consequently, the Department is wholeheartedly in favor of the objective of 
the bill to grant Coast Guard general authority to conduct oceanographic re- 
search. However, the primary duties of the Coast Guard are generally set forth 
in section 2 of title 14 of the United States Code. Hence, the Department feels 
that an amendment to that section would be the most appropriate method of 
accomplishing that objective. Therefore, the Department recommends that 8. 
1189 be revised to read as follows: “That section 2 of title 14, United States 
Code, is amended by inserting the words ‘shall engage in oceanographic research 
on the high seas and in waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States;’ 
before the last clause of this section which reads ‘and shall maintain a state of 
readiness to function as a specialized service in the Navy in time of war.’” if 
the proposed authority were provided in this manner, the use of Coast Guard 
facilities and cooperation with other agencies would then be authorized by 
existing sections 92, 93, and 141 of title 14 of the United States Code. 
Subject to the amendment suggested above, the Department strongly urges the 
enactment of S. 1189. 
The Bureau of the Budget has advised that the enactment of legislation as 
suggested above would be consistent with the administration’s objectives. 
Very truly yours, 
A. GILMORE FLUES, 
Acting Secretary of the Treasury. 
THr WHITE HovseE, 
Washington, March 29, 1961. 
Hon. Lynpon B. JOHNSON, 
President of the United States Senate, 
Washington, D.C. 
My Dear Mr. Present: The seas around us, as I pointed out in my message 
to the Congress on February 23, represent one of our most important resources. 
If vigorously developed, this resource can be a source of great benefit to the 
Yation 3 o all mankind. : a 
eae a wilt require concerted action, purposefully directed, with vision and 
ingenuity. It will require the combined efforts of our scientists and institutions, 
both public and private, and the coordinated efforts of many Federal agencies. It 
will involve substantial investments in the early years for the construction and 
operation of ship and shore facilities for research and surveys, the development 
of new instruments for charting the seas and gathering data, and the training 
i ific manpower. 
Pa ee nck at ihe checshtial of our knowledge of the oceans. Already their 
military importance, their potential use for weather predictions, for food and 
