Evening star., 1951-01-22

editorial 1Driter for the washington
Post, has been member of our Fourth
Regional Loyalty Board since 194SJ
THE THREAT Of Communist aggres-
i sion hangs over the head of every
American today. Faced with attack
from without, we also are con-
cerned with the threat Of Communist
infiltration within the United States
itself. The experiences of other nations
Justify this concern. It is because Of these
experiences, as well as certain expert
ences of our own, that the President has
set up the Government loyalty program.
that congressional committees have
made investigations, that the Federal
Bureau Of Investigation has collected
information about Communist trends in
the United States and that few persons
have been tried and convicted in our
courts.
Alan Barth's thoughtful new book.
"The Loyalty Of Free Men" (Viking Press.
So, was apparently written because he
believes that some of our fundamental
freedoms are being Clipped away by
these procedures. The purpose OF his
book, Mr.. Barth tells us, 'is to show:
/. That we have accepted, without full
awareness of their meaning, piecemeal
encroachments on personal freedom that
threaten to corrupt our richest inheri-
tance; 2. That these encroachments have
been accepted as the result of what are
in large part groundless and neurotic
fears: 3. That, although accepted in the
name of national security, they operate,
in fact, to impair the security they are
intended to protect and, 4. That whether
or not individual liberty is, as the foun-
ders Of the United States believed it to
be, an 'unalienable' or natural right, it
serves practical purposes and is an af-
firmative source of national strength"
In his first chapter Mr.. Barth tells
us that "the cult Of loyalty, and its at
tendant hunt for heresy as a symptom
of disloyalty, has generated an intellec-
tually shackled feeling for which terror
is too strong term but which is marked.
nevertheless. by widespread anxiety. The
feeling is most acute, naturally. in WASH
ington and among Government en-
ployes."
In his chapter on 1.-THE Communist
Problem" Mr.. Barth points out that
the Soviet Union is pursuing expan-
sionist and aggressive policies" and that
the Communist Party of the United
States is an instrument of Russian for
eign policy. He notes the serious danger
presented, for instance. by the case Of
Klaus Fuchs and his American accom-
plices. Mr.. Barth, however. apparently is
of the opinion that in peacetime we
can deal effectively enough with the
Communist Party in the United States
by opposing their evil counsels with
good ones.''
"Self-preservation." Mr.. Barth says,
"is, of course. the first law of So
ciety as of an individual. Therefore,
whatever must be done to ward OF a
threat to it's existence will be done. But
Wanton disregard of It's own values can
destroy a society no less than the attack
Of an enemy"
I disagree with Mr.. Barth as to the
relative immediacy of the two dangers
he has In mind. In my opinion. the
"clear and present danger" to quote
Justice Holmes words. is the Communist
threat to all our liberties.
I agree with MI. Barth that we should
continuously present and discuss our
American democratic system and expose
Gllc IdlldClcS VI COkuA1QIA1oA4As out = SoAA-
not go along with his contention that
we need do no more at this time. The world
is tinder-box today; spark may set 1t
afire. It would be folly to ignore the fact
that there are within our country some
who give their allegiance to another
country. That there apparently are
few Communists here. and that they
have had little success in infiuenc-
ing American thinking. do not seem to
me to be valid reasons for ignoring their
existence and their activities in times
like these.
Mr.. Barth examines loyalty procedures
in our Government, and comes to the
conclusion that they should be abar-
doned. In effect his conclusion Is ex-
pressed by the words which he quotes
from Justice Holmes: For my part I
think it less evil that some criminals
should escape than that the Government
should play an ignoble part"
The fact that those who appear be-
fore loyalty boards do not have all the
rights that would be theirs In court OF
law is deplored by Mr.. Barth. He main
tains that the loyalty program is keeping
people of ability from entering Govern
ment service, and that it is undermining
the morale of those already employed.
In this connection I should like to
quote from an opinion of Judge E. Bar
rett Prettyman Of the United States
Court of Appeals. "We cannot ignore" "
says Judge Prettyman, "the world situ-
alton, in which not merely two ideologies
but two potentially adverse forces pres
emily exist, and certainly we cannot
require that the President and Congress
ignore it, Infltration of Government
service is now recognized technique for
the overthrow of government.
1.-THE risks are for the President to
estimate, and the assumption of risk is
for him to decide. If he thinks that
under present circumstances only those
whose loyalty is beyond suspicion should
be employed by the Government. the
policy is his to make. The responsibility