January 9, 1963

Dear Sarge

I appreciated your note. I certainly wouldn;t have applauded those people
in Belgium either. I have to feel sorry for them, but I know shou they did
wrong. Just where to draw the line in such a matter is a terrible problem,
and I could sometimes envy the faith that made it clear cut.

A determined discussion of religious principles would probably suit neither
of us as a wayto spend our time; I know we share a lot of common ground on the
importance of scientific knowledge, to know just what we are doing, to recognize
the full responsibility of our acts. But, at the symposium, I had to react to
the presumptive insistence that science itself is a religion, and that any
completely rational person mst be an “evolutionary humanist" of Huxley's own
denanination, about as dogmatic a position as one could find anykkere.

Since you have never formally said "no* (though I should have enough sense
to read your meaning) may I press you again to approve a medical student research
scholarship? The NIH is making it very difficult to support such students fron
research or graduate training funds, Congress having been fairly direct in not
supporting general medical education. Of course we hope this may be bettered;
but meanwhile it can only drive some of the best prospects for doing clinical
research on a good soientific basis out of the medical degree program.

Sincerely,

Joshua Lederherg

Mr. Re Sargent Shriver
Timberlawn

Edson Lane

Rockville, Md.