Evening star., 1947-08-12
EisIer Motions
For Acquitta|;;
Mistria| Denied
Defense Offers Court
130 Suggestions for
Charging Of Jury
By kewboId koyes, Jr.

BY Newbold Noyes, Jr.
District Court Justice James w.
Morris this afternoon denied defense
motions for directed verdict of
acquittal and for a mistrial in the
passport fraud case of Gerhart
Eisler, reputed chief agent of inter-
national Communism in the United
States.
The jurist proceeded Immediately
with. consideration of suggestions by
Government and defense lawyers as
to instructions he will give the jury
Of seven men and five women who
will decide on Eisler's guilt or in
nocence.
The study of these suggestions or
prayers" promised to keep the court
busy most of the afternoon, since
Eisler's lawyers came up with 130
separate ideas as to how the jury
should be charged. The Government
limited itself to 10 suggestions.
Meanwhile, the location of a pos
sible last-minute witness threatened
to prolong the conclusion of the
trial.
The man whose testimony could
affect the trial Importantly in its
closing hours is Stewart o. Smith,
whom Government witness,
Strengthening out his previous tes-
timony, yesterday identified as al
Canadian Communist leader who
met secretly with Eisler and Earl
Browaer in Buffalo in 1888.
David Rein, one of Eisler's attor-
ney's, told Justice Morris that the
defense had received a telegram
from Mr.. Smith, denying he had
been at the meeting or had ever
seen Eisler.
No Stipulation as Yet.
Lawyers for both sides debated
which of three courses should be
followed in regard to the new de-
velopment. The possibilities were
that Mr.. Smith would come to
Washington to testify voluntarily
for the defense, that the court would
arrange to have his deposition taken
in Canada, or that the Government
and defense lawyers would agree
in a stipulation as to what testi
mony Mr.. Smith would give if he
appeared as witness.
Only the third alternative-that
of legal stipulation-could prevent
q considerable delay in the wind
ing UP of the trial. No agreement
was reached by the lawyers in
preliminary discussion of the mat
ter this morning.
Former Organizer Testifies.
Eisler, who has been named as
the Kremlin's principal agent in
this country, is accused of having
applied for an alien exit permit to
his native Germany in 1945 and
fraudulently neglecting to inform
the Government he had Communist
Affiliations, had used aliases and
had been In the United States In
1885 and 1896.
MIR. Smiths name was first men
toned in the trial yesterday when
Manning Johnson, colored, former
Communist organizer of the Buffalo
district, took the stand as rebuff
tai witness for the Government to
straighten out his earlier testimony
about the alleged secret Buffalo
meeting.
In his original appearance, Mr..
johnson, a key Government wit
ness, told of being introduced at
the meeting to two Canadian Com
munist leaders called Tim Buck and
Sam Carr.
Identifies Picture.
The defense subsequently came
up with the information that both
Buck and Carr, prominent Cana
dian Communists, spent the entire
year of 1888 in the Kingston (On-
tario) penitentiary.
Assistant United States Attorney |
William Hitz yesterday showed MIR.
johnson pictures of Buck and Carr,
asking him If these were the men
he saw with Eisler and Browder
in Buffalo. Mr., johnson said they |
were not.
MIR. Hitz then showed Mr.. john
son q third picture, which the
witness said was the man who had
been introduced to him as Carr.
This, according to Sergt. Maj. Reg
inald w. Irvine of the Royal Ca
madam Mounted Police, was a pic
ture Of MIR. Smith.
Late yesterday. for the third time
since the trial opened July IA, JUS
tice Morris denied a motion by
Eisler's lawyers that the ndict-
ment be dismissed.
FBI Agent Testifies.
Eisler was the last person to take
the witness stand yesterday. He
got In the last word in running
dispute with his estranged sister,
Ruth Fischer, who had repeated her
earlier testimony that he came to
this country in 1888 as an agent of
the Communist International.
II was never in my life Comm
tern representative" Eisler said.
The last rebuttal witness for the
Government yesterday was Robert
Lamphere, special agent of the FBI,
who has helped Mr.. Hitz prosecute
the case.
Mr.. Lamphere said the FBI had
Eisler under surveillance as a sus-
pected Kremlin agent since his ar
rival in this country In 1941 as an
anti-Nazi refugee in transit to
Mexico.
A principal contention of the de-
Tense throughout the trial has been
that the CSnyernment WAS NOT de.