Evening star., 1953-12-04
Witness Puts Condor
AtCIosed West Coast
Red Meeting in 1948
BY the Associated Press


House Un-American Activities
Committee witness testified yes
terday that he saw Representa-
tive Condor, Democrat, of Cali
fornia, at closed Communist
meeting in l948.
Mr.. Condor, in New Orleans,
said he understood the meeting
he sat in on was trade union
affair which he and other
Democrats attended in behalf of
the Democratic Party candi-
dates. He also denied he was a
Communist.
Mr. Condor, who was barred
for security reasons from wit
Messing a Nevada atomic test
last May, asserted his loyalty
and affection for my country"
and condemned the committee
for drumming up these fan
taStic witnesses"
Charles David Blodgett, an
admitted ex-Communist, told
the committee here yesterday
that he saw Mr.. Condor at a
"closed emergency meeting of
Communist Party members" at
Oakland, Calf, in March or
April. 1948. The witness testified
he did not know whether Mr..
Condor was a party member,
but he had never seen a nom
Communist at such a meeting.
Was Candidate at Time.
Mr.. Condor at the time was a
candidate for the Legislature. He
won. and last year was elected to
Congress.
Mr. Condor said on the House
floor last July his exclusion from
the atomic test came about be-
cause the Atomic Energy Com
mission did not fairly evaluate
the information concerning me-"
He charged the ban stemmed
from "rehash of stale political
charges" by his Republican op-
ponents, and "hearsay."
From New Orleans, where he
Is participating in hearings of a
House committee, Mr.. Condor
told a San Francisco Chronicle
reporter on the telephone: II am
not and never have been or ever
will be a member of the Com
munist Party.
Mr.. Condor, invited to appear
before the Un-American Activi-
ties Committee in rebuttal at any
time, asserted, This is a Repub-
Hcan committee touring the
country to smear Democrats"
Thought Meeting Union Affair.
He said he had thought the
Oakland meeting was trade
union affair which he and other
Democrats attended in behalf
OF party candidates. Mr.. Condor
added, II will put my loyalty and
affection for my country and my
people against any of the mem
berS of the staff of this I'm
American Activities Committee
who have drummed up these
fantastic witnesses"
Mr.. Blodgett, an intense, soft
speaking Chicago salesman of
30. testified he saw Mr.. Condor
at a meeting of the Communists
Political Affairs Committees for
Alameda and Contra Costa coun-
ties. He said the meeting was
called to decide whether the
Reds would back primary can
dldate against Representative
P. George Miller. Democrat, of
California, to force Mr.. Miller
to take campaign stand closer
to the left.
Six hundred waterfront work.
ers massed outside the hearing
room in response to stop
work call by Harry Bridges In
ternational Longshoremen's and
Warehousemen's Union, which
is protesting Identification by
committee witnesses of several
OF Bridges aides as Communists.
Applause for Defiant Witness.
The committee cleared out
Notwithstanding many of
the longShoremen - when ap-
plauSe burst from the rear for
a defiant witness. He was Rob-
ert Treuhaft, labeled by Mr..
Blodgett as a Communist and
one time law partner of Mr.
Condor, and an ILWU counsel.
Treuhaft refused to testify, and
harrangued the committee.
The testimony on Condor was
the climax of five hours on the
stand by Mr.. Blodgett, who said
he joined the Red movement as
a student at Carlton College in
Northfield. Mimi, in 1941. con
vinced it was the last, best hope
for the world"
After telling of his disillusion-
ment with communism when he
quit in 1949, Mr.. Blodgett said
1t was as a reporter for the Peo-
pies World, which he called a
semiofficial Communist Party
newspaper for the West Coast,
that he attended the 1948 Oak
land meeting at the home of
Gordon Williams, who he identi-
fled as a Communist.
Il was a little surprised to see
him (Condon), Mr.. Blodgett
testified. This was a closed
emergency meeting of Commu-
mist Party members. 1 thought it
was a little risky, for here was
q candidate himself"
Representative Moulder, Dem
ocrat, of Missouri, asked Mr..
Blodgett:
do you intend to infer or to
indicate by your testimony that
by his presence there at that
meeting for that particular pur-