The invitation came as a complete surprise, but the members of the family said yes, they could arrange to make it all right. On the appointed day, the widowed mother, her two sons, her daughter and her son-in-law were shown into the office of their host. For the next quarter-hour, President Ford did what he could to apologize to the family of Frank Olson, the Army's civilian biochemist who committed suicide 22 years ago after the CIA had spiked his drink with LSD.
The President called the incident "inexcusable and unforgivable" and "a horrible episode in American history." He also directed the CIA to give all relevant documents and information to the family, which has said it plans to sue the Government for Olson's "wrongful death." Eric Olson, 30, a graduate student in clinical psychology at Harvard, quoted the President as saying that "he knew nothing could be done to totally make up for what had happened, but to whatever extent we could be repaid for our suffering, he felt we should be."
Continuing probes of the agency's activities turned up more tantalizing —although still inconclusive —bits of evidence on the central question of how responsible any President may have been for dirty tricks abroad, notably the assassination plots.
CUBA. A new source on what happened during John F. Kennedy's Administration emerged into public view: Lawrence Houston, who had been general counsel for the CIA from its founding in 1947 until his retirement in 1973. One of the "old boys" of the agency and the confidant of one director after another, Houston related to newsmen how he had told Robert F. Kennedy about plans for Mafia hoodlums to assassinate Cuba's Fidel Castro (TIME, June 30). Houston said Bobby Kennedy "didn't seem very perturbed" about the plotting against Castro, criticizing only the CIA's use of the Mafia. Nonetheless, the former CIA lawyer did not link assassination plots to either of the Kennedy brothers.
CHILE. Just what the CIA did in Chile to oppose the Marxist government of President Salvador Allende after his election in 1970 is now one of the prime subjects before Senator Frank Church's special investigations committee. The Senators have information that former President Richard Nixon made it perfectly clear to the CIA that he wanted Allende out of power. Nixon is said to have authorized an initial expenditure of $10 million for the task and to have told the agency to "come up with some ideas."