Evening star., 1939-10-23
Peace League Beyond
Political Control
Dies Group Is Told
Dr.. Ward, Choirmon,
Answers Charges Of
Communist Activity
By JAMES f. CHINN.

DR.. Harry F. Ward. chairman of
the American League for Peace and
Democracy, today told the House
Committee on Un-American Ac-
tivities it is 'absolutely impossible"
for any political group to control
the organization.
The league has many times been
described in testimony before the
committee as Communist front
organization"
DR.. Ward admitted that the 1884
convention of the American League
Against War and Fascism, the i'm
mediate predecessor of the American
League for Peace and Democracy,
had a large proportion of left
wing delegates. Since then, how
ever. he said. the organization has
progressively moved away from
that sort of thing"
ut is now absolutely impossible
for any political group to control
the league he declared.
Charges Preferred.
DR.. Ward made the statement
after DR.. J. B. Matthews. chief COM
mittee investigator, had read ex-
cerpts from various messages and
speeches that figured in the Chicago
convention
Mr.. Matthews called attention to
the fact that one of the speeches
dealt almost entirely with the Soviet
Union. The speaker, he declared,
said the Soviet Union sis the great
est hope of the working classes"
Another speaker, it was brought
out, suggested that the organization
must go" into the Army, Navy and
R. O. T. c. and build up" anti
Fascist groups in these military
services.
DR.. Ward objected to the use of
the excerpts by Dr. Matthews, argu-
ing they did not necessarily repre-
sent the views of the league. He
also declared the committee inves-
tlgator had been very careful in
selecting the parts he read.
DR.. Matthews explained his pur-
pose IN reading the excerpts was to
give the committee something of
the tone of the utterances of the
speakers and the messages to the
convention"
The witness made it clear the
1884 convention was the first one
he had attended.
Native of England.
al
earlier that he was born in Eng
land, came to the United States in
1891 and became a naturalized citi-
zen seven years later. He said he
became chairman of the American
League for Peace and Democracy
six months after its formation, in
1888.
DR.. Matthews outlined to the
committee for background pur-
poses,' he said, the genesis of the
league. which he declared was an
"outgroWth" of the Amsterdam
World Congress Against War in
1882.
DR.. Ward, frail and partly bald,
was asked by DR.. Matthews about
the organization of the league.
You know more about that than
do, DR.. Matthew'S the witness
replied. you were there"
DR.. Matthews, who was one of the
first witnesses before the committee
when it began to function more
than year ago, testified he helped
organize the American League
Against War and Fascism, the i'm
mediate predecessor to the League
for Peace and Democracy.
DR.. Matthews also read to DR..
Ward a resolution he said was
adopted by 291 Social Democrats"
following the Amsterdam confer
ence, as we'll as pledge he said
they had taken. This pledge, he
pointed out, committed these Social
Democrats to fight ''imperalistic
capitalism" armaments and war
preparations, and any campaign of
SANDER against the Soviet Union.
DR.. Ward was asked if he had
heard the Amsterdam conference
was called to organize a world
movement in defense of the Soviet
Union. He replied negatively.