Evening star. [volume], August 04, 1948, Page A-6, Image 6

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

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Union Official Faces
Subcommittee Today
On Red Infiltration
The Kersten Subcommittee of the
House Labor Committee today was
to continue its investigation into
Communist infiltration of labor
Unions.
The head of a New York union
of drugstore employes was to be
heard by the subcommittee. He
was indentified by a subcommittee
investigator as Leon J. Davis, presi
dent of Local 1199 of the CIO
Retail, Wholesale and Department
Store Employes.
In its hearing yesterday, two wit
nesses refused to answer what
Chairman Hartley of the full com
mittee has referred to as the $64
question—whether they are or were
members of the Communist Party.
Subcommittee Chairman Kersten
said that, through their failure, a
basis was laid for citing the wit
nesses for contempt of Congress.
The witnesses were Mrs. Mar
cella Michelson, first vice president
of Local 1-S of the union, com
posed of employes of Macy’s de
partment store in New York, and
Mrs. Roberta Felsen, administrator
for the union of its contract with
Macy's store at Jamaica, L. I.
Refuses Other Answers.
Mrs. Felsen refused to answer
many questions other than the one
as to whether she was a Communist.
She declined to say whether she
had worked for the Tass (Russian)
new agency. She also refused to
answer questions concerning her
employment between 1942 and the
beginning of 1947.
The question about Tass she
called an ‘ outrageous violation” of
her Constitutional rights.
Mr. Kersten started the questions
along this line by asking where she
had been employed in April, 1947.
She answered:
“I have sat here all day and seen
questions twisted, and I think that
question violates my Constitutional
rights.”
When the questioning got down
to Tass, Mr. Kersten asked if Tass
■was not a Soviet news agency. She
replied she thought that was right.
"Is there something illegal about
that news agency?” he inquired.
Mrs. Felsen conferred with the
union attorney, Samuel P. Shapiro,
sitting beside her. Then again she
stood on her Constitutional rights.
Mrs. Felsen. blond and blue eyed,
was dressed in black with a large
straw hat. She was preceded on
the stand by Mrs. Michelsen.
Questioned About Sister-in-law.
" Mrs. Michelson early in her in
terrogation claimed Constitutional
protection against questions. John
i O Graham, subcommittee investi
‘ gator, questioned her about her em
ployment and then asked about
Nancy Hausman. It developed Mrs.
Hausman is the wife of Burl
j Michelson, who is the brother of
; Mrs. Michelson's husband, William
' MMichelson. business agent of an
other local of the union.
, William Michelson is one of nine
nun ion officials, facing possible con
* tempt action as the result of re
fusing to answer the question about
Communist membereship when the
J subcommittee held hearings in New
York in July.
Mr. Graham asked Mrs. Michel
seen what position Burl Michelson
Spies
(Continued From First Page.1
prepared an answer which he gave
to Mr. Stone. Mr. Stripling said he
^believed Mr. Stone is now connected
with the Voice of America.
1 "Did Mr. Patterson ask if you
Were a member of the Communist
.party?" the witness was asked.
"No.'’
"Did Mr. Currie?"
"No." replied the witness, adding
that all he had done was ask Mr.
Currie if he could get some one
from the War Department to make
'an unbiased investigation of him.
The witness said he had also
asked C. B. Baldwin, whom he re
ferred to as his boss at the Farm
Security Administration, to help
him get cleared. He said he had
known both Mr. Currie and Mr.
Baldwin for a long time.
Position Called Different Now.
In repeated efforts to pin Silver
master down, committee members
asked why. if he said the charges
made by Naval Intelligence were
false, why he should not say now
' that he was not a Communist.
• The witness replied that the cir
cumstances were different.
Representative Nixon, Republican,
of California, referred to Silver
masters statement in which he
called Miss Bentley a “neurotic liar."
Mr. Nixon wanted to know if he
meant that. Miss Bentley's accusa
„ tion that he had a photographic
ftudio in his basement was false.
The witness said he would not
answer the question, on the ground
it might incriminate him.
At one point in his testimony.
Silvermaster said he had answered
all the questions put to him by the
FBI when its agents investigated
him.
Not I'nder Oath Then.
•'But soon after that," he said,
‘something else happened — the
grand jury in New York—and the;
whole thing began to assume the
character of a conspiracy against1
me. a frame-up."
Acting Chairman Mundt pointed
out to him that he had not answered
the FBI questions under oath.
Before Silvermaster left the stand, j
Mr. Mundt made a last effort to get
him to say. one way or another,
whether he had photographic equip
ment in his basement. Mr. Mundt
told him that he must realize that
refusing to answer before the com
mittee. "when the laws of perjury
apply, puts you in a very bad light.”
Mr. Mundt said the letter from
Mr. Patterson, which testimony im
plied was to clear Silvermaster for
future employment, was written in
July. 1942. He refused to discuss
other provisions of the letter “until
it is entered into the record."
Kept on Job After Warning.
While Mr. Russell w>as on the
(stand. Representative Hebert, Dem
ocrat, of Louisiana, asked him:
• Did the Civil Service Commission
write an order telling the Govern
ment not to hire Silvermaster be
cause of information compiled by
its investigators?” Then after the
Civil Service Commission instructed
Government agencies not to hire
him. he went to Currie, who went tc
Patterson, and then the bar war
removed.”
"That's right," Mr. Russell re
plied.
Mr. Mundt said he wanted to
make clear after the “invest*!.,
agents* of the Gcverrm'-t,
cated” Silvermaster probably was a
HISS AT SAN FRANCISCO CONFERENCE—Alger Hiss, former State Department official accused
before the House Un-American Activities Committee yesterday of being a member of the Com
munist underground, is shown here at a session of the Steering Committee of the United Na
tions organization conference in San Francisco on May 8, 1945. Mr. Hiss, secretary general of
that conference, is marking his papers as then Secretary of State Stettinius (left) addresses the
committee and Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov (right) listens. Senator Vandenberg, Repub
lican, of Michigan is standing in the back row behind Mr. Hiss.
holds In the union of employes in
the distributive trades.
Mrs. Michelson refused to answer.
"That is a violation of my rights
under the First and Fifth Amend
ments to the Constitution," she as
serted. The First Amedment guar
antees free speech and the Fifth
provides that no person shall be
a witness against himself.
Mr. Kersten ordered her to
answer the question, saying she was
seeking to prevent any knowledge
of Burl Michelson's. activities in the
distributive trades.' She persisted
in her refusal and also refused to
answer a question whether she had
conferred with Mr. Michelsen in
formulation of union policies.
Mrs. Michelson made it clear she
believed questons about Communst
membership were questions about
political beliefs, and therefore not
proper.
“You don't believe Congress has
a right to inquire whether a Com
munist is among officials of an
atomic energy plant?” Mr. Kersten
asked.
"I do not.” Mrs. Michelson ans
wered.
Earlier Sam Kovenetsky. presi
dent of the Macy local, had
answered the $64 question and said
he was not a Communist member,
but he had what apparently was
an uncomfortable time on the stand
and frequently conferred with Mr.
Shapiro.
Mr. Kovenetsky held the consti
j tutions of the local and parent
S unions provide that membership
I is open to any employe without re
ference to political or religious
belief. So long as a member main
tains his standing by paying his
dues, there is no reason to chal
lenge his membership, he said.
Communist of long standing and an
agent of the NKVD that he con
tinued employment with the Gov
ernment.
This was confirmed by' Mr. Rus
sell, reading from the Civil Service
report.
“Boarding” Recommended.
Based on the investigations, Mr.
Russell testified CSC investigators
recommended that:
1. Silvermaster be declared in
eligible as an economist for the
Board of Economic Warfare.
2. That he be "boarded'’ for three
years or until the end of the emer
gency, which ever was longer.
3. The Secretary of Agriculture be
advised of findings in the report.
As a result, Mr. Russell said, the
Civil Service Commission remomved
Silvermaster's name from all eligi
bility registers.
Quoting further from the report,
Mr Russell read:
"Possibly some testimony (in the
record) is unreliable. But granting
that, the overwhelming amount of
testimony indicates beyond doubt
that Silvermaster is and has been
for years, a member of the Com
munist Party and very probably a
member of the OGPU.” The latter
is the Soviet state police now known
as NKVD.
Questions Propounded by Dozens.
Despite Silvermaster's stated in
tention of refusing to answer any
questions. Mr. Stripling and com
mittee members shot dozens of
questions at the witness. In nearly
every case he replied:
"I refuse to answer this question
on the grounds that any answer I
may make may tend to be. self
incriminating.”
many oi me questions were on
whether Silvermaster knew' many
persons named by Miss Bentley as
members of the spy ring.
At one point. Mr. Stripling asked
Silvermaster to turn around and
identify Miss Bentley, seated at a
table a few yards away. Miss
Bentley arose and stared at the
witness, but he said only that he
would “refuse to answer on grounds
that it might incriminate him.”
Calls Charges False.
As Miss Bentley looked on. Silver
master labeled Miss Bentley’s charges
as “false and fantastic.”
He said he had been under in
vestigation during almost the entire
12 years of his Government service
ahd had been cleared by various
agencies, “including the chief of the
Secret Service and Secretary of War
Patterson among others.”
"Because I have never attempted
to conceal my strong advocacy of
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John Abt, former Agriculture
Adjustment Administration
| counsel, was another named as
a member of the Communist
network by Whittaker Cham
bers, yesterday’s witness be
fore the House committee.
—AP Photos.
the rights of the under-privileged
and all New Deal principles,” he
declared. "I have been constantly
harrassed by groundless accusations
of disloyalty.”
He announced his refusal to
testify further in the final para
graph of his 500-word statement:
“In view of the continuance of
the investigation by the New York
grand jury and the fact that this
committee has indicated that it in
tends to call for still another investi
gation before a so-called blue rib
bon grand jury in the District of
Columbia. I must protect myself
against this diabolical conspiracy.
“Upon advice of my counsel I
shall stand upon the constitutional
right of every American citizen and
shall refuse to testify further on
matters relating to Miss Bentley’s
charges in the exercise of my con
stitutional privilege against self
incrimination under the Fifth
Amendment.”
Accompanied by Attorney.
The witness was accompanied to
the hearing by his attorney, David
Rein, who said he was a member of
the firm of Greenberg, Forer &
Rein, 1105 K street N.W.
Silvermaster, whose close-cropped
brown hair is graying, spoke slowly
with a faint accent.
He wanted to read his statement
immediately and Acting Chairman
Mundt. after looking at the state
ment, agreed it wras pertinent and
could be read. Before starting the
statement, however, Silvermaster
was asked questions about his
background and employment, which
he answered willingly.
He testified that he had been'
born in Odessa, Russia, in 1905, had
come to this country in 1915,
through the port of San. Francisco, j
and was now living in Harvey Ce-i
dars. N. J.
In Resettlement Agency.
He said he came to Washington!
ps a labor economist in the Re-;
settlement Administration in 1935
and three years late* went to the ^
Martime Labor Board.
He said he was director of the
Farm Security Administration’s
labor division from 1939 to 1944,
concerning himself with the prob
lems of migratory farm workers be
fore the war and transportation
difficulties because of farm labor
shortages during the war.
During this period* in 1942, the
witness said, he was detailed for a
few months to the Board of Eco
nomic Warfare. From 1944 to 1946.
he went on, he was in the Office of
Surplus Property while it moved
from the Treasury Department to
the Commerce Department to the!
Reconstrqftion Finance Corp. and
finally to the War Assets Adminis
tration.
He was director of the Market
Research Division of WAA until he
quit in November, 1946, the witness
said. Right now, he said, he is self
employed as a builder in New Jer
sey.
In his prepared statement, he
said that during the war he directed
studies of the enemy's potential and
helped cut the flow of strategic ma
terials to Axis countries.
"I am proud that in all the posi
tions which I have held in the Fed
eral Government, I have fought
consistently for the interests of the
American people as a whole and
particularly of farm and industrial
labor,” the witness declared. “I am
especially proud that during the war
I was able to strike effective blows
in the Government service at our
Fascist enemies.”
He said he quit Government serv
ice because of continual harassment
and since then had been investi
gated by the FBI and the New
York grand jury.
‘‘Neither the FBI nor the New
York grand jury has taken any
action against me although they
heard the same witnesses as this
committee has produced and I am
certain thoroughly investigated the
charges made against me by Eliza
beth Bentley.
“The charges made by Miss Bent
ley are false and fantastic. I can
only conclude that she is a neurotic
liar. I am and have been a loyal
American citizen and was a faith
ful Government employe.”
Asks Indictment or Clearance.
He termed the committee's pro
ceedings a continuation of his ha
rassment, motivated by political
considerations on the eve of a
presidential election.
"If I committed a crime, T“tKe
witness declared in his statement,
“I should be indicted and prose
cuted in the courts. Without such
indictment and prosecution, my
reputation should not be smeared.”
Before the committee heard Sil
vermaster, Mr. Mundt told re
porters ‘there is nothing we
the moment to get at Soviet spying.
The committee, Mr. Mundt said,
plans to let its espionage cases ‘‘be
decided in the court of public
opinion, to let the people determine
whether the committee is right or
Attorney General Tom Clark is
risrht.”
All the committee can do, its act
ing chairman said, is:
1. “Expose, call attention of the
proper authorities to the spying,
write letters, make press statements
and try to needle Tom Clark into
action.”
2. See whether the testimony now
being obtained points toward a
stronger Mundt-Nixon bill to curb
communism when the next Congress
meets in January. The Mundt
Nixon bill passed the House last
spring, but died in the Senate after
Mr. Clark raised questions about its
constitutionality.
Thomas to Write Clark.
Chairman Thomas of the com
mittee, however, wants action now.
His aides said he had notified them
that he plans to write Mr. Clark
personally demanding a grand jury
investigation of espionage in Gov
ernment.
Mr. Mundt said he believed Mr.
Clark “would not fail to act if he
thought he had conclusive proof”
but might be reluctant about “in
dicting high officials of his own ad
ministration.”
Leningrad Rebuilding
MOSCOW (/Pi. — Leningrad will
have completely reconstructed war
damaged and destroyed housing by
the end of this year, says Tass, the
Soviet news agency. P. G. Lazutin,
chairman of the City Soviet, says
that during the war Leningrad as a
result of enemy action lost enough
housing for from 300,000 to 450,000
people according to accepted norms
of housing occupancy in Europe.
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Justice Department
Spent Million in Probe
Of Red Spy Ring
The Justice Department for some
time has had nearly all the informa
tion being told in the congressional
investigations of Communist espio
nage activity but scores of investi
gators and attorneys were unable to
get the real evidence necessary to
support criminal prosecution, it was
learned today.
Attaches of the Department's
Criminal Division spent nearly a
million dollars in a three-year in
vestigation of the stories related by
Elizabeth T. Bentley and others.
When they were through they found
they lacked sufficient evidence to
bring about indictment of some of
those mentioned by Miss Bentley,
self-styled former Communist agent.
The “blue ribbon” grand jury in
New York heard nearly the identical
stories that have been unfolded in
the double-barreled investigation in
Congress, but in the end handed
down indictments against only the
12 top Communists including Party
Chairman William Z. Foster.
Officials pointed out that there is
considerable difference between
“just talk” and the real evidence
needed to support a criminal charge.
By that they did not mean that
Miss Bentley's Stories are untrue,
but that witnesses and evidence
necessary to corroborate the stories
were lacking.
In a congressional investigation,
it was pointed out, “just about any
thing goes” in the nature of hearsay
or other uncorroborated testimony,
whereas in a criminal trial strict
rules govern the admissibility of
evidence.
Justice officials still are searching
for evidence to prove the stories
now being told at the Capitol, and
still have not ruled out the possi
bility of getting indictments if suf
ficient facts can be uncovered. But
whatever chance they had of get
ting the evidence now seems remote
in view of all the publicity attend
ing the congressional probe.
Bridges Urges Probe
Of Studebaker Letter
Chairman Bridges of the Senate
Appropriations Committee yester
day urged a full-scale Senate in
vestigation of charges that the
Office of Education is barred by
censorship from attacking commun
ism. He also said his committee
will make a study of budgeting
practices of the Federal Security
Agency. The Office of Education is
part of the FSA.
Senator Bridges’ move is an out
growth of a letter by Dr. John W.
Studebaker, former Commissioner
of Education, claiming censorship
was imposed on the education office
by Oscar Ewing, Federal Security
Administrator.
Senator Ferguson of Michigan,
chairman of a Senate expenditures
subcommittee, announced his group
would look into Dr. Studebaker’s
censorship charges in executive ses
sion. In a letter to Senator Fergu
son, Senator Bridges said that if
Dr. Studebaker* charges are true
“there has been a breach of trust
tantamount t.o betrayal within the
Federal Security Agency.’’
Senator Bridges said his commit
tee would study the FSA budget
practices to determine if “hidden
transfers of funds within the agency
are weakening the effectiveness of
the Office o’f Education and other
constituent parts, as Dr. Studebak
er's letter alleges.”
Mr. Ewing, a close friend of
President Truman, has denied Dr.
Studebaker’s charge of censorship.
Tuck Aids Telegraphers
In Richmond Office Plea
By the Associated Press
RICHMOND/ Va.. Aug. 4.—Gov.
Tuck yesterday added his support
to the effort of the Telegraph Em
ployes Union of Richmond in its
move to keep a regional office of
the Western Union Telegraph Co.
in Richmond.
Senator Byrd. Democrat, of Vir-!
ginia, previously appealed to the
company not to carry out a pro
jected transfer of the Richmond
office to Charlotte, N.C.
Today's Pupils Unlikely to Share
Miss Bentley's Lack of History
By Herman F. Schaden
Unlike Elizabeth T. Bentley, for
mer Communist spy, the typical
American cannot complete a high
school education without learning
something about our Government
and political beliefs.
This is the opinion of national ed
ucational leaders, based on recent
surveys, showing that the teaching
of American history is compulsoory
in every State but one.
Miss Bentley, whose Russian spy
disclosures have shocked the Nation,
gave the House Committee on Un
American Activities additional cause
for concern by testifying she went
through public school and Vassar
College and obtained a master's de
gree at Columbia University without
one contact with American history
or civics.
questioned by Hebert.
How this could happen to the
average American citizen was es
pecially alarming ~to Representa
tive Hebert, Democrat, of Louisiana,
who questioned Miss Bentley as to
where the fault lies in our educa
tional system.
What Miss Bentley said was this:
“I think it is the fault that runs
straight through it, because there
are numerous people, like myself,
who have not the slightest compre
hension of what America is really
like, nor what it means to live in a
democratic country under a demo
cratic system."
The woman who confessed to re
laying top secrets to the Russian
government during the war ex
plained that her family had moved
about so frequently she "seemed to
avoid American history and civics
courses.”
She said she was graduated from
Vassar in 1930, still unenlightened.
Neither the college's catalogue for
1926 nor the current one makes
prior knowledge of American history
a requisite to entrance, nor is it a
required course on the college cur
riculum.
x\e,A mints to studies.
Miss Bentley's somewhat frighten
ing revelation was met with cool re
assurance by officials of the Na
tional Education Association and
the Office of Education.
They had some figures handy
from the still smouldering outburst
of 1942. W'hen the New York Times
led a campaign to determine just
how much Americanism was being
stuffed into the average student.
The study, contained in the
“American History of Schools and
Denials
<Continued From First Page.'*
International Law and college fra
ternities and athletic clubs.”
He said he had no recollection of
having ever met Mr. Chambers, did
not recognize him from newspaper
photographs and had never been in
sympathy with the principles of the
Communist Party.
Mr. Abt, general counsel for Pres
idential Candidate Henry A. Wal
lace’s Progressive Party, declared
that the “cloak and dagger tales to
which the Thomas Committee is
now giving currency were told to the
FBI as long ago as 1945.” The sto
ries, he added, were investigated by
a New York grand jury for more
than a year, “all without result.”
‘Red Herring’ Seen.
“It is evident, therefore,” Mr. Abt
declared, "that the Thomas Com
mittee has once again disinterred
an old and particularly malodorous
red herring which it is endeavoring
to warm up a^l servp as a substi
tute for price control, public housing
and civil rights legislation, de
manded by the American people,
and which it is the business of the
Congress to provide.”
At San Francisco, Mr. Pressman,
former general counsel for the WPA
and later for the CIO, said he would
have a statement to make at the
proper time. Mr. Pressman quit the
CIO to support Mr. Wallace’s Pro
gressive Party.
In New York. Mr. Witt said he
"had no comment at this time” on
the charges.
Aubrey Williams Protests.
From Montgomery, Ala., Former
National Youth Administrator Au
brey Williams accused the House
committee of trying to "smear every
liberal in the country.”
Mr. Williams’ name came into
TO CALL THE CTAR
DIAL OVERLING 5000
...» *
Colleges,” revealed every State but
Colorado requires American his
tory to be taught either in elemen
tary or high school.
Thirty-five State legislatures have
passed laws making the subject
mandatory in elementary schools
and 26 States have passed such laws
applicable to high school courses.
The other States have introduced
the compulsory training by dictum
of departments of education.
Civics "Widely Taught.”
j Statistics are not so readily avail
I able on civics, but education au
thorities said the subject is "widely
taught” in the ninth grade through
out the Nation, followed by supple
mentary "problems courses" in the
twelfth grade.
Merrill F. Harshorn, executive sec
retary of the NEA's National Coun
cil for the Social Studies, said the
survey completed in 1944 found
sufficient time was being given to
the teaching of American history,
but it recommended stronger
courses.
It was shown the average stu
dent will receive two years of Amer
ican history, one in elementary
school and the other in high school.
Another study showed that, in
1942, only 18 per cent of 690 colleges
and universities contacted required
American history for graduation.
The report said it was significant
that 48 per qent of the teachers’
colleges studied compelled such
courses
In the same 690 colleges and uni
versities, 9.3 per cent of the stud
ents enrolled in history courses.
Strides Since World War I.
At least half of Miss Bentley’s
elementary and high school educa
tion came after World War I, when
the greatest strides in standardizing
and enforcing teaching of American
history were made.
However, even by 1904, as many
as 86 per cent of 160 high schools
sampled by experts offered the
course, and In 1916, It was shown,
95 per cent of 132 schools polled
were making it available. ,
Howard R. Anderson, chief of
secondary schools instructional prob
lems in the office of education,
agreed that the average American
has an excellent chance of learning
w'hat his country is all about.
His chance for that are much
better than for learning something
about Russia, for instance, because
only one student in three gets any
kind of foreign history, he said.
Mr. Chambers’ testimony when
Chief Committee Investigator Rob
ert E. Stripling asked the witness if
he had heard Mr. Williams’ name
mentioned in Communist circles.
Mr. Chambers said he had heard
Communists talk of Mr. Williams
“with the highest esteem as a friend
of the Communist Party.”
Mr. Williams, now publisher of
The Southern Farmer, declared “the
whole thing is a disgraceful per
formance.”
“I don’t know Chambers," he
said. ‘It is a shameful thing to do
to inribcent people who have no op
portunity to answer back. It looks
like they will include every decent
man in America before they are
through. It is obvious they are out
to smear every liberal in the coun
try. This Is obvious because they
asked Chambers if he knew me.*
Mr. Chambers said he took his
story to A. A. Berle, Assistant flee*
rotary of State in 1939, and that
nothing was done about the men he
named.
«u. ae^ic, now a new z ori. attor
ney, said he would confirm that ha
had talked with Mr. Chambers but
he refused to confirm Mr. Cham
bers' statement that nothing was
done about Communist infiltration
into the Government.
Meanwhile, it developed that the
committee is having trouble locat
ing some of its witnesses. Mr.
Stripling said a key witness has
gone into hiding in Washington
and several others are "strictly un
der cover” . to avoid being served
with subpoenas. He said those be
ing sought were aware the commit
tee was looking for them.
Berle May Be Called Later.
Acting Chairman Mundt of the
I committee told reporters the com
mittee may question Mr. Berle
later.
First of those named by Miss
Elizabeth T. Bentley as members of
an espionage ring to take advantage
of the committee’s invitation to
ask for a prompt hearing to make
reply were Dr. and Mrs. Bela Gold
of Pittsburgh, Pa.
Mr. Mundt said the committee
would hear Dr. and Mrs. Gold as
soon as possible.
Miss Bentley had named William
Gold and his wife, Sonia Gold, as
members of the ring. She identifies
William Gold as being with the
Foreign Economic Administration
and his wife as a Treasury employe.
Dr. and Mrs. Gold, in a telegram
to the committee, said Miss Bent
ley's charges apparently Vert di
rected against them and that the
charges were "shockingly and com
pletely untrue.” .
They said they did not know Miss
Bentley. They asked for an open
hearing as soon as possible at which
they could testify under oath to
the*‘utter falsehood” of her charges.
Mr. Witt, one of the group named
by Mr. Chambers, said in New York
he had "no comment at this time”
on the charges.
Jap Communist Urges
Attack on Ashida Cabinet
Sy the Associated Press
TOKYO. Aug. 4. — Communist
Party Secretary Kyuichi Tokuda to
day called for a counteroffensive
against foes of labor and the Ashida
cabinet.
Tokuda addressed a cheering
throng in his first public appear
ance since an attempt was made
on his life in Kyushu, Southern
Japanese island. He was given a
rousing cheer by his youthful fol
lowers when he shouted: "The As
hida cabinet has become the puppet
government of foreign capital.”
Tokuda boosted the Henry Wal
lace third party platform as a peace
movement for the world.
Seated on the platform with To
kuda was Kazuyoshi Dobashi, head
of the government’s Communist
influenced communications workers,
and Kat.sumi Kikunami, former
head of Japan's Communist-in
fluenced Congress of Industrial
Unions.
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