Hearst Representative Investigating Secret Communistic Agitation by Faculty and Undergraduates for American

Suspecting that members of the Faculty and students are engaged in secret communist agitation, the Hearst Syndicate has assigned a reporter to the College to ferret, out any "red" activities which are taking place unbeknownst to the Administration. It is understood, however, that the reporter, James McEnary, a member of the Boston Evening American staff, failed in his attempt to secure an appointment with President Conant.

McEnary's objective was to ascertain the names of any communist professors who might be teaching in the University and to secure statements from them. He wished to obtain from President Conant a statement indicating whether Faculty members are allowed to teach communism and whether if there were such professors, their connections with the University would be severed. An unsuccessful attempt was also made to visit Albert S. Coolidge, Lecturer on Chemistry.

It is expected that any material gathered here by the Hearst papers will be included in their appeal to the McCormack-Dickstein Senate Committee, investigating un-American activities, to oppose communism in all its manifestations.

Has Questionnaire Ready

McEnary carried with him a questionnaire the answers to which he was instructed to obtain from members of the Faculty. The most important questions included therein are as follows: (1) Are you a member of the Communist Party? (2) Do you advocate the violent overthrow of the United States Government? (3) Do you lean toward the left in favor of constitutional change? (4) Do you believe in swearing allegiance to the American flag? (5) Do you believe communism should be studied in the classroom? (6) What do you think of the Russian experiment? (7) Were you ever invited to take a trip to Russia at the expense of the Communist party?

At a loss how to find any openly radical professors in the University, McEnary consulted Charles L. Whipple '35, executive secretary of the Harvard chapter of the National Student League. Whipple denied that he knows of any "radical" professors or of any who support the sims of the NSL in any way.

Following the interview with Whipple, McEnary held a consultation yesterday afternoon with Victor H. Kramer '35, President of the Liberal Club. According to Kramer, the discussion centered on "Mr. Hearst's tactics for ascertaining the extent of secret communist propaganda in Harvard College, and I assured him that Mr. Hearst is entirely misinformed if he feels that there are any members of the Faculty who are plotting the violent overthrow of the American Government. I also assured him that the Liberal Club is in no way communistic or fascistic and that it abhors all forms of violence and bloodshed."

Kramer went on to say that he hoped Mr. Hearst would be informed of the Liberal Club's point of view and that the Hearst organization would not continue to "throw verbal bombs at papier-mache radicals with its customary vigor."

Thus far the efforts of the Boston American to interview Harvard professors for the purpose of asking them to make statements supporting communism have met with little success, since the publicity which has attended the recent Hearst attacks on communism at Syracuse and Columbia has put college professors throughout the country on the alert against falling victim to such newspaper tactics.

So far as the CRIMSON could ascertain, no Faculty members have as yet granted interviews. However, Henry W. L. Dana, former Columbia professor, was reached by the Hearst reporter, who was at that time unaware that he had no connection with the University. Dana denied that he is a member of the Communist Party but admitted that he is in sympathy with some of their doctrines.

Paraliels-Syracuse Methods

The inquiry now being promoted by the Boston American strikes a parallel with methods used last fall by the Syracuse Journal, a Hearst publication, in an attack against Syracuse University, where two conservative professors were they claim, openly maligned in editorialized stories appearing in the Journal.

Two reporters were sent by the Journal to pose as prospective students and interview Professor John N. Washburne and Herman C. Beyle of Syracuse University. The Journal subsequently printed Dr. Beyle's interview and denounced him as a dangerous radical.

In a recent CRIMSON interview, Dr. Beyle declared that he had been grossly misquoted. Asked whether he believed this to be the beginning of a nation-wide Fascist campaign or merely a Hearst publicity stunt, Dr. Beyle declined to answer, saying that he would reserve his comments in case he is called is testify before the McCormack-Dicksters committee investigating un-American activities.

Committee Receives Petition

Following the Hearst attacks on Syracuse and Columbia, the latter committee received a petition from a group of prominent New York educators requesting that they extend their inquiry to include an un-American attack on our educational institutions, which, they charged, was being made by several Hearst publications