>> what records do exist of his decision? >> well, we have his memoirs. we've got the truman library has the closest thing to an order to go ahead and drop the bombs. it's a signed note saying, go ahead and release when ready. it doesn't even call the bombs what they were by name. there are those -- i found letters recently in the 1950s -- in the late 1950s, grandpa told television interviewer that he had no problem using the weapons and he would do it again if he had to given the same circumstances. that prompted a formal protest from the hero s hiroshima cityc. he said, i understand how you feel. however, let me remind you of something. he proceeded to set out how the war had been started, why he

felt did he what he had to do. >> clifton truman daniel who visited hiroshima and nagasaki 67 years after the bombs dropped on those cities, a decision made by his grandfather, president harry truman, thank you very much for sharing your trip and your son's video with the c-span american history audience. we appreciate your video and your experience. >> thanks, susan. live events to tell you about on the c-span networks.

we will have the secretary's remarks at 1:00 p.m. on c-span. a signature feature of book tv is our all day coverage of book fairs and festivals from across the country with top non-fiction authors. here is our schedule.

that's a few of the fairs and festivals this fall on c-span2's book tv. each week, american history tv's reel america brings you films that help tell the the story of the 20th century. the atom strikes is a film which documents the physical affects of the bombs dropped on hiroshima and nagasaki in august of 1945 and argues that the bombings were justified and necessary. filmed weeks after the bombs were dropped, it includes an interview with a priest who witnessed events in hiroshima.

♪ >> july 16, 1945. this is the darkness of a desert morning. and here in new mexico, a group of men wait, expectant. behind them, three unbroken years of work, work done in unprecedented secrecy.

three different cameras recorded from six miles away these views of the most concentrated release of explosive energy in the history of mankind.

from the time of that first explosion until hiroshima exploded, work on the bomb went forward in closely guarded plants. in new mexico, oakridge, tennessee and washington. for over 100 years, the city of hiroshima had some of the finest troops. the city had never been subjected to actual bombing but had been warned repeatedly. now its army headquarters and quarter master depots, factories, mills and shipyards were to feel the weight of the atom's destructive power. 21 days after the new mexico experiment, a b-29 was over hiroshima carrying an atomic bomb. at 8:15 on the morning of august 6, japanese time, the first atomic bomb struck an enemy

target. this is zero point on hiroshima, the exact spot above the city at which the bomb burst over enemy territory at the junction of the rivers. it was activated above the target in order to dissipate the material. the devastation you see here was caused by the explosion of the bomb above this zero point. only the strongest buildings are left standing. they are gutted. looking north from zero point, this is what was left. looking east, the camera records a scene of complete devastation in the immediate area. to the south, these are the ruins.

looking west from zero point, the same complete levels is evident. the same inability of structures to withstand atomic power. just a tenth of a mile from zero point, the effect of the bomb blast can be seen on these strip and broken trees and on this russian japanese war memorial. lines were literally blasted into the stone of the memorial. here looking west from the concrete smokestack nearest the blast has discolored. the gas company on the right in this picture has been almost completely demolished by the force of the explosion from above as though struck by a giant sledgehammer. the concrete building was wrecked more completely. these twisted steel beams once supported the roof.

the direction of the bomb blast can be seen clearly in these scenes of the concrete wall, extending above the bank building's roof. two-tenths of a mile from zero point was a shrine. here, too, the blast stripped the trees and collapsed stone work. originally, the base of this statue was polished granite. now the stone is roughened by the force of the blast which completely removed the polish. the lighter surfaces which are being pointed out indicate the angle of the bomb blast as though painted on the surface. a nearby lamp burst shows flash burns. the commercial museum was within two-tenths of a mile of zero

point. the garden wall facing the blast was bent inward by the push of the explosion. the downward force of the blast caused the failure of the concrete beeps whico concrete beams of the room and it settled so much that it acts as a reservoir. an area of devastation is all that can be seen. the railing was blown off this bridge and the steel poles on the bridge show the effects of the atomic bomb blast. which hurled grit with such force as to etch the steel. the front of this school is a quarter of a mile from and faces zero point. the sag in the concrete reinforced floor can be seen here in the entrance. the steel rods which are now hanging once supported a suspended ceiling.

this reinforced concrete building was knocked side wise causing the lower story to collapse. this baren area once contained a military headquarters. the barracks were destroyed. most of the military personnel of approximately 20,000 were wiped out. the distorted steel framework is all that remains of a building which stood four-tenths of a mile from zero point. whereas this reinforced concrete building of the electric company one half mile from zero point withstood the blast much better. six-tenths of a mile out, destruction was almost as

complete as it was at zero point. wooden structures were completely collapsed by the blast. this was hiroshima castle. the framework was demolished by the force of the blast but fires of secondary origin did not occur. because it was at a 45-degree angle to the direction of the blast, the city hall with its reinforced concrete construction shows much less damage. doors and windows were blown in by the force of the explosion. shadows of the posts on the bridge indicate the direction of the explosion. six-tenths of a mile from zero point, the bridge floor is etched except where shielded by the railing. outlined in the surface of the bridge is the shadow of a pedestrian which tells its own

meaningful story. one mile from zero point, the blast damage shows lessening force. but the results of fires ofary severe. the lead paint was almost completely removed by the sand blast affect resulting from the explosion of the atomic bomb. the surface of the other side of the same bridge, however, was not visibly affected. also a mile away from zero point is a red cross hospital which although damaged never ceased functioning. this is the front of the building which faces northeast.

on the northwest side of the building, the steel windows on all floors were blown in. this southwest side of the building, again, shows windows blown in by the external air pressure caused by the explosion. here, however, the windows in the southeast wall were blown out rather than in. a look inside the hospital shows chairs in the same position as at the time of the blast. the backs of the chairs, which faced zero point, were flash burned through the window. the effect on this wall, which faces zero point, was almost identical with the damage done by the explosion to the opposite wall. in addition, interior partitions were knocked down.

looking towards zero point from the roof of the red cross hospital a mile away, a tremendous destruction created by the first atomic bomb can be seen. army vehicles of our occupying forces are moving through the city streets. here looking in the opposite direction toward the south, away from zero point, only a few masonry foundation walls remain and what is let of one reinforced concrete building. looking west, still a mile from zero point, the only sign of a small industrial plant is a lone concrete smokestack. testimo temporary housing materials have been thrown up in the area. no matter what kind of construction the japanese used, whether it consisted of wooden frame and mud plaster walls as here or wooden lav and plaster veneer, they made no attempt to zone their various types of

buildings. barracks, homes, industrial centers of steel and reinforce concrete, factory buildings of br brick construction were crowded toward with no regard for the safety of the civilian population. within an area of a mile to a mile and a half, there was almost complete destruction except for some reinforced concrete buildings. from one and a half to two myles, there was damage by fire and moderate damage by blast. from two to six miles, there was minor damage by blast and fire, varying from damaged roofs to broken windows. these wooden buildings a mile and a half from the center of the blast were all subject to fires of secondary origin. the railroad station in east hiroshima, one and a half miles from zero point, still in use, was extensively damaged.

the marquis crumbled from the force of the blast and has been removed. when the marquis fell, it pulled the brick veneer off part of the building. inside of the station, steel beams supporting the roof were twisted out of shape and the concrete walls, though still standing, show the effects of the tremendous concussion. this high school building, the same distance from zero point as the railroad station, had its north wall smashed in by the blast. the second story of the north wall was especially badly damaged. looking through a bombed out section of the wall to zero point, notice that not all of the buildings in this area were as severely damaged as the schoolhouse.

a portion of the wall of the school was blown in across the desks and petitions were shifted. the high school wall farthest from the zero point now bulges in the direction of the blast and all glass was blown out of the window frames. between zero point and the main building of a jesuit four miles away was a hill which served to lessen the entensity of the blast. despite this protection, all the windows were shattered and part of the wall blown in. the chapel, which is the left wing of the building, is built of timber with plaster walls. the glass in the doors of the main entrance were shattered and the panell eled ceiling was blo loose by the force of the explosion occurring four miles away.

a group of jesuits who were teaching witnessed and survived the explosion. >> would you introduce yourself? >> i am father john zemus. professor at the catholic university of tokyo under the management of the jesuit fathers. >> what were you doing at the time of the explosion? >> my class was evacuated. i was staying with my class. at a house of studies at the outskirts. >> could you describe exactly what happened in the morning of august the 6th? >> i was in my room, which faces that way. suddenly i saw light, flashlight, when filled the whole valley. looking out of my window to find the reason for this peculiar

phenomenon, i saw nothing besides this light. turning from the window to the door of my room, i heard a crash. it may have been ten seconds after seeing the light, the flashlight. and immediately i was covered with splinters of the window frames and glass sticking into the wall and actually my flesh itself. i tried to get out of my room but found that our house had been severely damaged by the blast of this explosion. i had the impression at that time that the bomb had immediately crashed on the house so severe, so strong was the effect of the percussion.

but looking out at the house, i saw no trace of the bomb itself. but about a kilometer away from the houses i saw several houses which were on fire. after a while we saw a procession of people coming from the outskirts up the valley. many of them, most of them were wound wounded, especially the part of the body which were not covered by clothes like hands, feet, ba back. they came up to a house and we did what we could. but there were no possibility to give much of aid. matter of fact, we used all our

grea grease. >> how many people do you think were killed? >> all of us who lived through this experience at the spot estimate the numbers of dead at least at 100,000. this estimate is not based on official figures but on our knowledge of groups under the population. >> was there anybody to take charge of the city after the disaster? >> there were nobody to take charge after the disaster. because important people were killed. the major, the commander of the city, many high-ranking officers, the korean prince stationed at the time in hiroshima and also the regiment of the city were wiped out. >> what is your opinion as to

the story that the ruins of the city was -- >> i think it's rumor. i myself and others of us have worked in the city itself immediately after the explosion and we felt no ill affect at all. >> tell me about the japanese reaction towards the americans and towards the atomic bomb. >> neither myself nor anybody of our fathers heard a single outburst of hate against the americans in those terrible days. during the whole war, we didn't experience much about hatred against the allied. as a matter of fact, at the beginning of the war, after the

japanese victories, japanese were inclined to look down on the enemy. but then after the offensive, according to the schedule, they began to admire the skill of the americans. especially since the majestic b-29 appeared over tokyo, practically every japanese admired the skill of the americans. >> father, what is your and your colleagues' opinion as to the use of the atomic bomb? >> we have discussed among ourselves the use of the bomb. some consider it in the same category as poison gas and were against its use on the civilian population. others were of the view that in total war as carried on in japan, it was no different between civilians and soldiers

and that a bomb itself was an effective force tending to end the blood shed, warning japan to surrender and to avoid total destruction. it seems logical to me that he who supports total war in principle cannot complain of a war against civilians. the truth of the matter is war in its present form is justifiable even when it serves a just purpose. not enough material and spirit and evil and its consequences which far exceed whatever the good that might result. >> the business of living goes on in the devastated areas of hiroshima. in the northeastern section of the city, temporary homes are constructed of whatever materials can be salvaged from the ruins.

near the railroad station, lumber and tin are used in an attempt to build in no matter how flimsy a fashion. immediately following the bombing of hiroshima, the president of the united states delivered an ultimatum to the japanese government, surrender or face complete destruction. the ultimatum was ignored. at 10:58, the second atomic bomb was exploded over nagasaki. almost the entire population of 230,000 people was engaged in the manufacture of arms, munitions and other war products. two great mitsubishi factories were located in the heart of the

city. to the north, one of the world's largest torpedo plant plants. south, the steel works. the bomb was aimed between the two plants in order to cause the greatest possible industrial damage. unlike hero hiroshima, the force was confined to the industrial valley surrounded by hills that shielded many other areas of the city. a great towering mushroom affect could be seen going higher and higher and reaching into the stratosphere, because the bomb was exploded high above the ground, the greatest part of its material was dissipated in the stratosphere. as a result, the area under the explosion was relatively free from radioactivity. persons entering nagasaki after the explosion to do rescue work

sustained no ill affect or injury. in an area of a little more than three square miles, there was very severe damage by blast and fire. most buildings were reduced to rubble. still recognizable from the air are the skeleton remanders of the factories. mitsubishi steel and arm works extended a mile in length. its buildings were modern, having steel frames and roof and

siding of corrugated mettal or asbestos. buildings of reinforced concrete stand amid steel frames. some smokestacks survived. they offered comparatively little resistance to the blast. as in hhiroshima, the directionl force bent steel. where corrugated metal remained, it was pushed in like tissue paper. these buildings show a varying degree of disstruks estruction. this foundry, three-tenths of a mile away, shows considerable damage in spite of good construction. other buildings were stronger. some being constructed to support heavy overhead cranes. damage to equipment inside was nevertheless serious.

this machinery had been used in the manufacture of artillery. in the valley, homes were scattered through factory areas. on machinery and many of these homes, piecework was carried on. in many cases, leaving damaged equipment. photographed from zero point, this area shows almost utter devastation by blast and fire. note how hills in the south interrupted the blast. in the second area of five and a half square miles, there was moderate damage from blast and severe damage from fire. the total area of damage covered almost 42.5 square mile