Faculty Applauds Decision on Furry

Faculty members applauded almost to a man Tuesday when the Corporation's decision to retain three who balked before Communist inquiries, and general sentiment remained unchanged yesterday.

Virtually every professor contacted yesterday called the decision "courageous" and "wise," and whatever doubts they expressed generally concerned a few aspects of the Corporation's statement.

Most of the criticisms were directed at the detail in which the Corporation discussed the case of Wendel H. Furry, associate professor of Physics, particularly the matter of his lying in 1944 to the effect that an applicant for government employment was not a communist, when he know that the person was.

A few also expressed reservations about the wisdom of the Corporation's deploring the use of the Fifth Amendment in Congressional proceedings. They pointed out that the reasons, both legal and moral, for invoking the Constitutional safeguard were many and complicated, and they did not think it necessary for the Corporation to decide flatly against its use.

But outside the University, the statement was not so gladly received. Samuel P. Sears '17, president of the Massachusetts Bar Association, said the action "gives aid to the plan to sabotage congressional investigations" and went on to state that "if President Conant had remained at Harvard, these people would have been let out of there long age."

Besides Furry, the other two faculty members retained were Helen Deane Markham, assistant professor of Anatomy at the Medical School, and Leon J. Kamin, teaching fellow in Social Relations. All refused to answer questions before Congressional investigations regarding communist affiliations.

Two major Boston newspapers, the Traveler and Post, denounced the decisions. The Traveler said that the decision "looks to us like an elaborate whitewash."

The Post devoted a lengthy front page editorial to the Corporation statement. The Post said: "The Harvard Corporation which runs Harvard University has declared for public notice that Professor Wendell H. Furry is a liar and was guilty of grave misconduct, but that in spite of everything Harvard is going to keep him on its faculty."

The Christian Science Monitor so far is the single Boston paper to uphold the Corporation's stand. The Monitor said that "the University has taken disciplinary action in the cases of three" and added "on the whole, the handling of the matter appears intelligent and sane."