Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-08-01

, confessed wartime collector of
/ Activities.
Communist Party, or in communism,
! by putting person on ice?
Forced to End Contacts.
MISS BENTLEY-They told me
that a result of the fact that Mr.
Golos had been quite widely known
as Communist, and that the whole
set-up of his was full of holes, and
they were afraid of leaks, might
be what they called quite hot, p"
and therefore, should turn my
contacts over to them, and then
stay out of things for six months
or a year, and then they would
set me. up with another group.
SENATOR FERGUSoN-In the
meantime, of course, Golos had died.
MISS BENTLEY-Golos died in
November, 1943, the end of Novem-
Der. I rather suspect they did be-
come suspicious of me, although I
dot know for sure.
SENATOR FERGUSON-A were
you loyal to them up until Novem-
Der of 1914, the latter part of No
Vember?
MISS BENTLEY-If you mean
outwardly going along with them,
yes. I did, yes.
SENATOR FERGUSON-You were
outWardly going along. And did
they at any time offer you money?
MISS BENTLEY-Yes. That is
when I first started getting suspi-
cious of the whole set-up. 1t was
in the spring of "A.
| SENATOR FERGUSON - They
thought you were becoming mer-
cenary?
MISS BENTLEY-Oh, I had gone
into this because I thought it was
an idealistic program for making a
better world. And I didn't expect
anybody to offer me money or pres
ents for doing something that OBJ
viously was my duty. And yet, in
March or April, when I bumped into
the real Russians, so to speak
SENATOR FERGUSON - When
you are talking about the real Rus
sians," you mean those that were
here from Russia? -.
MISS BENTLEY-I think they
had just come over from Russia.
They sounded like that.
SENATOR MCCLELLAN - That
was after Golo's death?
Acted Like Gangsters.
MISS BENTLEY-That was after
his death? They were extremely
cynical about Americans. They be-
haved somewhat like cheap gang
sters, and tried to offer me fur
coat, and an conditioning ma
chine, and they tried to offer me a
salary of $50 month which turned
down, and then finally, they raised
the ante up to 5000, which I turned
down.
That is what tipped me off that
there was something very odd about
what 1 though was an idealistic
movement. They also wanted me
to start giving money to my con-
facts, which / refused.
MIR. ROGERS-Did they make
any suggestion that you might go
to Russia and work?
MISS BENTLEY-Later on, in
1915, in about March, believe it
was, when I think they probably
thought that was perhaps not
slipping too far, but had made 1t
clear that I didn't like this, and
that had been trying to squirm
out, they did suggest that I might
90 to Russia under cover and re-
ceive a course of training over there.
MR.. ROGERS-What did you
think of that suggestion?
MISS BENTLEY didn't think
very much of it.
SENATOR OCONOR-You have
also mentioned that there were some
persons, or there was one person at
any rate, who was attempting to
have people appointed to positions
in Government departments, or at
tempting to procure positions for
them.
SENATOR FERGUSON-Would
you tell the Senator what depart
ment he is in? You do not have to
give his name
MISS BENTLEY-He worked
around the White House.
SENATOR O'CONOR-And had
YOU contacts with him?
MISS BENTLEY-Notp personally,
mo.
Met In-between Contact.
| SENATOR O'CONOR-Did you
see any data that had any bearing
on the matter of whether he was
friendly to the Communist cause
and was giving assistance in the
procuring of positions?
| MISS BENTLEY-Yes, I did.
| SENATOR O'CONOR-What was
the nature Of the data that you
saw?
MISS BENTLEY-It was not writ
ten data. 1t was oral data which
he had given to an in-between con-
tact and which came to me.
SENATOR O'CONOR-And 1t had
to do with the procurement Of Of
fees or the protection Of informa-
ton?
MISS BENTLEY-Yes, it was
definitely information of value.
And he also had helped put people
in strategic jobs. yes.
SENATOR O'CONOR - People
with subversive tendencies?
! MISS BENTLEY-Definitely.
| MR.. ROGERS-Do you remem-
Der any specific information that
YOU obtained from that source?
MISS BENTLEY-You mean the
Soviet code?
! MR.. ROGERS-Yes.
| SENATOR FERGUSON-Can you
| tell us about the code?
| MISS BENTLEY-Yes. He did
pass on the information that the
American Government was Just
about to break the Soviet code.
SENATOR FERGUSON-What
happened then?
MISS BENTLEY relayed that
to the Russians. They wanted to
know which code; which I couldn't,
obviously, tell them. since no one