Evening star., 1950-08-27
Rumor About Service
From Far East DELAYS
Final Action on Case


A bit of unverified information
relayed from a Far Eastern port
city has delayed for two months
O final State Department decision
in the loyalty case of John S.
Service, veteran Foreign Service
day.
A source thoroughly familiar
with the case said the informa-
ton being checked concerns what
a drunken" man is reported to
have said regarding the charges
against Mr.. Service.
That report reached State De-
partment officials just as the de-
partment's Loyalty and Security
Board was concluding new and
searching investigation of Mr..
Services record and the charges
of Senator Mccarthy, Republican,
of Wisconsin, that he was known
associate and collaboration of Com
munistS.
Said He Knew Service.
The report from the Far East
was said to be to the effect that
some man had said, while drunk
in port city, that he had known
Mr.. Service in China and knew
that he did deal with Communists.
An investigation was ordered
Immediately, presumably to check
on the unidentified mans reliabil-
ity and whether he was talking
about the official meeting with
Chinese Communist leaders that
were a part of Mr.. Services duties
at the time-or something else.
Pending the detailed investiga-
ton - still not completed - the
State Department board held up
a formal report of its findings.
Voted in Favor OF Service.
At the time. as The Star dis
closed on June 27. the three-man
board already had voted unani-
mously a deeision favorable to
Mr.. Service. On the basis of evi-
dence taken in Is days of secret
hearings, 1t found that Mr.. Service
was loyal American and a good
security risk.
However, the board had not
formalized its findings in an Of
fetal report which must be re-
viewed, as The Star pointed out
at the time, by the Secretary of
State and the Loyalty Review
Board. The State Department in
sisted publicly at the time that
there was no formal and final
decision.
Admits Basis for Delay.
That the boards decision was
held up on the basis of the in
formation received from the Far
East was acknowledged yester-
day by Carlisle Humelsine, now
deputy Undersecretary of State
for Administration, who was at
that time assistant to the deputy.
While refusing to discuss the ma
ture of the information or the
boards original conclusions, Mr..
Humelsine. said: -...
THE reason the Service case
has not been completed Is that
one piece of information still has
to come in from China. I am
sure if I were a member of the
board 7 would not want. to com :
plete its findings until every
shred of evidence was in"
Mr.. Hume1sine said he received
word late in June from Brig. Gen.
Conrad E. Snow, chairman of the
departmental board, that it had
reached sa sconclusion" In the
Service casE@s and almost sinful:
taneously"<ethe report from the
Far East came to his attention.
Notified Board of Report.
He said he notified the Loyalty
and Review Board of the report
and asked, in effect:
What do you want to do about
this?"
The board then held up it's re-
port and the case has not yet
been forwarded to the Secretary's
office for review.
This does not mean that the
beard revoked its. decision clearing
Mr. Service. 1t merely withheld a
formal communication of the de-
cision to Secretary Acheson, leav-
ing the way open to reconsider If
investigation of the new rumor
should turn up anything deroga-
tory to Mr.. Service.
There Is no indication that Off
cials concerned expect the further
investigation to change the favor
able decision. They do want to be
extremely careful to make sure
that when formal report is an
nounced there is no room for "sec-
On guessing" as one source put it..
Mystified by Delay.
Mr.. Service himself has been
mystified by the long delay in
reaching a decision in his case.
y On his way to India for an i'm
portant diplomatic assignment,
he was recalled in March for the
new loyalty investigation and to
give him an opportunity to answer
the Mccarthy charges.
AFTER appearing before the de-
partmental Loyalty Board in late
May and June. he then went be-
fore the Senate Foreign Relations
The Weuthe
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