Evening star., 1951-07-31
Loyalty Board Opens
|CIubb Hearing Today
After Clearing Davies
By Gornett D. Homer

The State Departments Loyalty
Security Board begins a hearing
today on undisclosed charges
against Oliver Edmund Clubb
after completely clearing John
Patton Davies, jr.
Mr.. Club, director of the de-
partment'S Office of Chinese
Affairs, and Mr.. Davies, a mem
ber of the Policy Planning Staff,
were suspended June q pending
hearings.
The department announced last
night that Mr.. Davies has been
cleared and returned to active
duty without prejudice and with
the full confidence of the depart
ment."
Both Served in China.
Specific accusations against the
men. both career foreign service
officers, have not been made pub
lie. Both have served in China
extensively and their names were
mentioned during the recent Sen
ate investigation of Gen. MacAr-
thurs custer as Far East COM
mander.
Mr.. Davies hearing before the
Loyalty Security Board began a
week ago yesterday. The depart
mental boards clearance is SUBJ
ject to review by the Civil Service
Commission Loyalty Review Board
Michael j. McDermott, State
Department press officer, said
there was no hesitancy in return
ing Mr.. Davies to duty pending
the review because the evidence
is overwhelmingly in his favor.
Evidence Called UnequivQcal.
Carlisle H. Humelsine, Deputy
Undersecretary of State respon-
sible for security matters, said he
had reviewed the boards finding
and found the Davies clearance
fully and unequivocally supported
by the evidence"
The announcement of Mr..
Davies clearance described him as
"one OF the departments outstand-
ing foreign affairs officers"
Under a law limiting domestic
assignments of Foreign Service
officers to four years, Mr.. Davies is
due for assignment abroad next
month. He will be assigned to the
office of John J. McCloy, United
States High Commissioner in Ger
many. This transfer was sched-
uled last spring, the department
said.
Son-in-Law Of Grady.
Mr.. Davies. 43, is a son-in- law
of Henry F. Grady. American
Ambassador to Iran. Born in
China, where his parents were
serving as Baptist missionaries, he
entered the Foreign Service in
1882. He served in China during
much Of the war, then in the
Embassy in Moscow, and
was assigned to the Policy Plan
ming Staff here in 1947.
There was no immediate COM
ment on the Davies clearance by
Senator Mccarthy, Republican, of
Wisconsin who had hailed the an
nouncement of the hearings for
Mr.. Davies and Mr.. Club as lone
OF the first healthy indications
that the State Department is
gong to start cleaning house"
On another issue, Senator Nc
Carthy released a new blast at
Secretary of State Acheson. He
accused the State Department Of
defense by lies" against his
charges that % employees under
loyalty investigation have access
to secrets.
In reply to the Senator's orig
inal demands, the department said
some of the 29 are not even in the
State Department, some already
have been cleared and that some
cases are being processed. It said
are barred from access to
secret papers when they are con-
sidered security risks.
In a letter to Mr.. Acheson yes
terday the Wisconsin Senator said
the department sought to deceive
the people by claiming that in four
years the Loyalty Review Board
has never reversed a State Depart
ment clearance. He contended
that the review board has no pow
er to reverse such cases, but only
to send them back for rehearing.