The Duel over Gun Control

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A bill proposed by Senator Edward Kennedy last year to ban the sale, import and manufacture of small handguns is considered dead. Indications are that Congress may even loosen the already weak restrictions on guns. The 1.8 million-member N.R.A., with an annual budget of $30 million, forms the nation's most powerful single-interest group. One pro-N.R.A. bill, sponsored by Senator James Mc-Clure of Idaho and originally called the gun-decontrol bill, already has 61 sponsors in the Senate. It would loosen interstate trade in firearms and allow their possession by some categories of felons. In addition, Reagan plans to cut back or abolish the agency that now enforces federal gun laws, the Treasury Department's bureau of alcohol, tobacco and firearms. Although 62% of those surveyed in the most recent Gallup poll say they favor tighter gun laws, opponents of gun control clearly have the upper hand. As long as that is the case, America will have to live with one of the world's worst murder records. The facts are grim. In the U.S., there are 9.7 murders a year for every 100,000 people. Some others: Japan, 1.6; Britain, 1.3; West Germany, 1.3. One reason is that in these countries tough restrictions keep handguns out of circulation.

-By Walter Isaacson. Reported by Joseph J. Kane/Los Angeles and Marc Levinson/ Atlanta, with other U.S. bureaus