Evening star., 1948-09-25
Atom Espionage
|ProberstoNanne
Three
Public Hearings Ended
For Security Reasons;
Report Being Prepared
By Miriom Ottenbero

three persons for espionage will
be recommended by the House
Committee on n-American Ac-
tivities in the forthcoming re-
port on its atomic spy hunt, 1t
was learned today.
In the interest of national secur-
ity." Chairman Thomas announced
last night the committee will tell its
story in report rather than
through public hearings.
MIR. Thomas said portion Of the
report already has been unanimous
ly approved by the committee.
This approved section repeatedly
contains recommendation for legal
action against some of those ques-
toned by the committee in secret
sessions.
U. of Chicago Manhattan Project.
Representative Vail, Republican,
of Illinois, a member of the COM
mittee, said part of the report VIII
deal with espionage connected with
the Manhattan project at the Uni
versity of Chicago.
he emphasized that professors
teaching at the university were not
involved in the espionage efforts,
which, he said, I'VE are inclined to
believe were successful"
Representative Vail said some
atomic material was stolen from the
university laboratory, but that the
committee will not cover that in
its case.
1t was recalled that DR.. Allan
Num- May, British nuclear physi-
cist, confessed to the Canadian
Royal Commission which investi-
gated atomic espionage that he gave
Russia top secret data or the tonic
bomb, accompanied by samples OF
enriched uranium. DR.. May visited
the University of Chicago Labora-
tory on at least three occasions in
1914, when the atom bomb was stiu
in its formative stages.
No Names Revealed.
Although Committee Member Nc
Dowell, Republican, of Pennsylvania
told reporters earlier in the week
that he would urge the committee to
recommend prosecution Of three
persons, the completed report is ex-
pected to add the names of several
others.
MIR. Mcdowell refused to name
those whom he thought sufficiently
guilty of espionage to warrant in
dictments. He identified two OF
them, however, as American scien.
fists who worked on the atomic bomb
project and the third as Com
munist Party official not employed
on the project. All three, he said.
have been questioned by the COM
mittee.
In announcing that the COMMITTEES
would issue a report rather than
hold public hearings, Mr.. Thomas
likened the forthcoming report to
that put out by the Canadian
commission after its investigation
of Soviet-directed espionage. The
Canadian report launched a series
of trials that have resulted in con-
victions or guilty pleas from nearly
dozen Canadian citizens.
Similar legal action for wartime
espionage in this country is report
edly one of the major goals OF the
House committee.
The announcement calling on
public hearings was made at a press
conference after the first full COM
mittee meeting in weeks. Most OF
the questioning of witnesses during
the past three weeks of almost daily
closed sessions has been done by one
and two man subcommittee.
Unanimous for Secrecy.
Mr.. Thomas said the committee
agreed unanimously that in the in
terest of national security public
hearings will not be held, but "all
pertinent facts will be given to the
Congress and to the American
people in the form of a report sup
plemented by release of pertinent
testimony taken in executive ses-
sion"
The chairman laid particular
stress on the fact that the report
will be accompanied by recom-
mendations.
He said the committee and stan
will work over the week end and
from now on until the report Is
completed. He said it will be re-
leased at the earliest possible date"
Asked to explain further why pub
| lie hearings were called of, Mr..
Thomas said:
First of all, we are reluctant to
reveal some of the confidential
sources of our information.
Secondly, we desire to protect
some of the personalities involved.
Vital Information Received.
Thrill and most important, we
have received information which Is
of such importance to our national
security that If we had public hear
ings, and some of these. witnesses
testify to us in public. We would be
revealing some very vital secrets
which, In the interests Of our ma
tional security, should not be made
public right at this time"
Mr.. Thomas said public disclosure
OF the personal lives of some OF those
mentioned in the testimony might
be dangerous to them"
The chairman described the COM
mittee's investigation Of espionage
activities In the atomic field as "the
grayest matter the committee has
ever gone into"
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