Conclusion -81- 



'company announced that for the present and until further 

 notice it does not intend to enforce any of its patents re- 

 lating to weather modification by the artificial production 

 of snow and rain. 



"A contractor of the Government for research in this 

 field, where the general public is the intended beneficiary, 

 should not be subjected to the uncertainties of legal liability 

 hazards which are inherent in experimental weather modifi- 

 cation. The provisions of S.222 would greatly minimize the 

 legal hazards which now exist. Some such solution of this 

 problem must be found if private agencies are to engage in 

 research in this field, and by that I mean under contract 

 with the Government." 



Other aspects of the need for legislation were voiced at that time 

 by Schaefer. The following quotes from his statement illustrate these 

 other aspects: 



"It is very important, in my opinion, that weather 

 studies involving experimental meteorology be conducted 

 in such a manner that all of the modifications attempted 

 by man-conducted seeding operations be known and con- 

 trolled. If this is not done, the effort of attempting to ' 

 understand the reactions which occur is a hopeless one... 



"It is obvious that some type of national legislation 

 is of the utmost importance at this time to protect the 

 public in the future from unscrupulous individuals who 

 would play on the gullibility, hope, or desperation of in- 

 dividuals or groups in need of water or other relief from 

 an undesirable climatic situation." 



Vonnegut, also, in his statement read at those hearings, urged 

 the adoption of suitable legislation. In addition to the reasons voiced 

 by Suits and Schaefer, he added others, which are found in the follow- 

 ing extract: 



"The problems of weather control are so large and 

 of such Nationwide importance that only Federal legisla- 

 tion can insure that this powerful new tool will result in 

 the greatest good for the largest number of people. In the 

 absence of this legislation, I believe that the development 

 of the benefits to be derived from cloud seeding may be 



