Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1949-11-24
Chambers drilled on Details
OF His Relations With Hiss
By NewboId Moves, Jr.
Stor Sfoff Correspondent

ut IT'S N6IQIIOI
By NewboId Noyes, Jr.
stor Stoff Correspondent.
NEW YORK, Nov. 24.-Witf
Whitaker Chambers nearing the
end of his long ordeal Of cross
examination, the Alger Hiss per-
jury retrial is in recess for the
long holiday week end.
The Governments star witness
a self confessed eX-Communist spy
and former Time Magazine editor
who says Mr.. Hiss stole secret
documents from the State Depart
ment for him before the war, will
| be back for more questioning
when the trial resumes Monday
It will be his fifth day on the
stand.
Mr.. Hiss, As, served two years as
president of the Carnegie EndoW-
ment for International Peace after
leaving his important State De-
partment post in 1916. He is ac-
cused of falsely denying to a Fed
eral grand jury last December Is
that he gave the secret material to
Mr.. Chambers, for transmission to
Russian agents, in 1887 and 1888.
Mr.. Chambers, a pudgy man OF
48 who abandoned communism II
years ago and embraced ,bhs
Quaker faith in 1912, has re-
NAMED stoical throughout his in
uuisition. He has been drilled by
experts before. In the first Hiss
trial., which ended with a hung
jury last July 9, the great Lloyd
Paul Stryker kept him under
cross-examination for four days
and failed to crack his story.
Mr.. Hiss new lawyer, Claude
b. Cross, a quiet little Bostoriian
who came originally from Missis-
sippi, has employed more subdued
tactics. There have been times
when Mr.. Chambers has appeared
alnapstq. bored. Nevertheless, as
Mr.. Cross slowly proceeded from
question to question yesterday
afternoon, he gave Mr.. Chambers
as uncomfortable an hour as he
has yet had in testifying about
his alleged relationship to Mr..
Hiss. w.
Tells of Collecting Documents.
Under the attorneys probing
Mr.. Chambers was made to recon-
struct, in details of time and
space, the mechanical operation
in which he handled secret ma
terial allegedly received from Mr..
Hiss. This is the schedule that
emerged:
Mr.. Chambers was living in
Baltimore while working for the
National Research Project in
Washington, and his Office hours
were from 8 am. to 1870 pm
After work, about once every IL
days, he would walk from his
Office at Twenty-f1rst street anc
Constitution avenue NV. to the
Hiss home in Georgetown, a dis
lance of about two miles.
There he said he would receive
from Mr.. Hiss the papers collected
since his last visit. Those taken
that day were original State De-
partment documents. The rest
he said, had been copied or sum-
married by Mrs. Hiss on her type
writer the night they were taken
and the originals had been re-
turned to the department by Mr.
Hiss the following morning.
Mr.. Chambers said he took the
accumulated documents = some
originals and the rest copies-to
a Baltimore photographer named
Felix fisherman, whom he some
times met in Baltimoregand some
times in Washington In either
event, fisherman would microfilm
the papers in Baltimore, return
ing then to Mr.. Chambers the
same night. When they met in
Baltimore, it usually was in
Thompson's Restaurant on Balti-
more street. Their Washington
rendezvous was usually on a
street corner or in a park.
Jurors Listen With Interest.
Mr.. Chambers said he would
hurry back to the Hiss home with
the original documents photo
graphed by fisherman. (The
copies he kept and burned.) He
usually reached their house the
second time about midnight
sometimes as late as 2 am. After
delivering the papers, he would
return to Baltimore. He said he
believed" he went by train.
BY 8 am. the next day, he
would be back at work in Wash
ington. In the same period, Mr.
Chambers has said, he was con-
Quoting similar operations with
material received from several
other sources.
The jury of eight women and
four. men listened with apparent
interest as witness and lawyer
wrestled with these facts. piec-
ing together Mr.. Chambers time
table. Before they had chance
to relax, Mr.. Cross moved to an
other subject.
did you ring the doorbell when
you came back to the Kisses
house at 2 a.m.?" he asked,
NO." said Mr.. Chambers. 81
believe I had a key
ITO which house,"
II believe I had keys to all three
houses"
(The Kisses moved twice Ia
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