Evening star., 1948-08-03
Editor at House
Hearing Tells of
Living in Hiding
By Miriom Gutenberg

All dVOWCu CA-SOi1AlAA oA1AoV w
day named Alger Hiss, Nathan
Witt and Lee Pressman as lead
ers of an underground organi-
zation" whose primary purpose
was the Communist inflltration
of the American Government.
Mr.. Hiss formerly was with the
State Department and took a lead
ing part in the organization OF the
United Nations at San Francisco.
He is now president Of the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace.
Mr.. Witt formerly served as sec
retary of the National Labor Rela-
tions Board. He left the agency
in 1941.
MIR. Pressman formerly was gen.
eral counsel for the Congress OF
Industrial Organizations. He re-
signed a few months ago and since
has become an American Labor
Party candidate for Congress in
New York.
Magazine Editor Testifies.
Their accuser was Whitaker
Chambers, senior editor of Time
Magazine, who testified before the
House Committee on Un-American
Activities as the committee pursued
it's investigation of Communist &C
tivities in the Government.
Harry Dexter White, former AS
sistant Secretary of the Treasury,
whom Elizabeth T. Bentley, self
styled former spy, had named as
one of her informants, was men
toned in Mr.. Chambers testimony
when he told the committee that
Mr.. White was added to the under
ground group as one of those who,
it was believed, would "go places"
In Government.
Efforts Apparently Failed.
He said he could not say posi-
lively whether or not Mr.. White
was a registered member of the
Communist Party "but he certainly
was a fellow traveller so far within
the fold that his not being party
member would have been mistake
on both Sides
81 tried to break him (White)
away from the party" Mr.. Cham
bers said. HE left me in an ap-
parently very educated frame OF
mind and I thought had succeeded.
Apparently I had not"
CIn New York, Mr.. Hiss said:
81 don't know Mr.. Chambers. AS
far as I know, I never met him.
And there is no basis for the
statement which has been re-
ported to me that he made to the
committee.~
(Mr. Pressmans New York
Office reported that he is in San
F'ranciSco0
Mr.. Chambers explained that he
spoke from experience gained from
the time he joined the party IN
1924 until he repudiated it in 1881
He himself served in the under
ground, chiefly in Washington. he
told the committee.
TT was an underground organ
ization of the United States Com
munist Party, developed, to the best
of my knowledge, by Harold Ware,
one of the sons Of the Communist
leader known as MOIlleI oIoO1,
Mr.. Chambers said
He said he knew at the top levels
of this underground group about
seven men from among whom in
later wears certain members of Miss
Bentley's organization were appar-
emily recruited.
Witt Named as Leader.
Miss Bentley has previously testi-
fed before the committee, and Mr.
Chambers was called in part to
corroborate some of her testimony.
The head of the underground
group at the time that he knew 1t,
MI. Chambers testified. was Mr..
Witt.
Later. he said, John Abt, who is
now employed by Progressive Party
Candidate Henry A. Wallace, be-
came the leader. Mr. Abt has been
named by Miss Bentley as the early
leader of one of the two espionage
groups of Government employees
with whom she made contact.
To the list of four described
earlier as leaders of the Communist
underground in Washington, Mr..
Chambers added these names:
Donald Hiss, younger brother OF
Alger Hiss.
Victor Perlo, described earlier by
Miss Bentley as the leader OF
group formed here later.
Charles Kramer, another named
as a Communist by Miss Bentley.
Henry Collins, described as for
mer Agriculture Department en-
ploye and treasurer of the group OF
eight.
Infiltration Major Aim.
The purpose Of this group at that
time was not primarily espionage
the witness declared. Its original
purpose was the Communist mf1l-