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Paget ee eo tie Tines Herald November 9, 1952 Washington, D. Ce [, 3° Ad “ ! | ~— ae ? tm OF NOV TL it ~ WO NOS 195). —- J To: Wey 2 oe ee PUBL'G BACKS. 2 PERSECUTED MISS DE HAAS Donations Are Included In Flood of Letters | BY GLYNN HARVEY | “T never knew so many people could be so kind..." Miriam de Haas,. who lost her_ job with the loyalty review board. because she took its work seriously, shuffled thru a sheaf of letters. Mai] from other Americans who read her credo in fast Sunday's! Times-Herald and had taken the: time and trouble to write a iet- | ter of appreciation. Miss de Haas smiled wistfully. “T shouldn't say that, I guess,” she said. “I suppose I always, knew people are basically kind. But these. somehow. remove that, feeling of being so alone." | Donations Inclosed Some of the letters Inclosed do- nations to help defray the cost of the advertisement in.the Times- Herald which the suspended clerk | paid for out of her own slim sav- ings. For more than 10 years Miriam de Haas served her government, effictently and = enthusiastically, until she felt compelled to relay to Sen, Joseph McCarthy privy information regarding Communist infiltration in government. From that day, Miss De Haas’ hours as a clerk with the Loyalty, Review Board were numbered— and she knew it. But she has no regrets. “T would do it again.” she said firmly, "I have never had any misgivings, from the day I made my decision. I knew that what I: was doing was the right thing, and, as an American, I could take no other course.” Kot an Eccentric Miss de Haas is not an eccentric.‘ Sie is no wild-eyed flagwaver. Sie is a simple woman with a homespun emotionnl response. Her sudden projection into the public press has been painfully evtbarrassing to her. Just as the stream of letters from grateful Americans, some containing litte donations, have filled her with conflicting emotions of humility and gratification. Her personal vendetta against | Reds in government service Bots | back to 1942 when, she seid, she: began to become aware of the | Communist infiltration. “T went to Sen. Hiram John- son (who died in 1945) to see if he could do anything,” Miss de Haas shrugged. “But he said we could do mathing., We were allies | then, of course (witht Russia)” a \ Cogsors £22 Morality Mirlam de Haas’ concern abo. Communist infiltration in gover: ment is matched by an equal co ccm for the warped morality humerous young governmer workers—neither Communist nc fcllow-travelers—who are willin to string along with a situatio that is. to her, intolerable. “Their education seems to hay been completely distorted,” sh erclaimed. “I don't know . . old-fashioned patrictism seems t: be something shameful. They'r rot Communists, mind you ‘Lhey're fine young Ammeéricans but they're so afraid-—so afraid o being called reactionaries.” The woman who braved th same slur shook her head wonder ingly. She was educated befor: tae parlor and classroom intel kectuals began rewriting the dic tionaries and changing the mean 41 g5 of words. In her schooldays she pointed out patriotism wax token seriously. And when she encountered red she could call it by its name. Not Downcast Her “ordeal” (as one sympa: thetic letter writer described her élar-chamber dismissal from gov- ernment service} doesn’t weigb too heavily on Miss de Haas. “I am only one,” she said sim- ply and humbly. “My sacrifice-— if you could call it that—is a é6mall one if it serves my country.” Tt was suggested that a new ad- ministration might open the way to restoring Miss de Haas to her civil service job. She pondered the possibility for a moment. “T don't know,” she said finally. “Certainly, I would like to have ihe record (of my suspension) ex- pinged. It would be a source of deep satisfaction to me to be vin- dicated.” She felt that the reelection of Sen. McCarthy was a measure of, vindication. But she agreed the’ dismissal of the charge against her would be final vindication. Civil Service Charge Miss de Haas is charged, not ‘with providing Sen. McCarthy with information (which is en- tirely permisstble under the civil service Code), but with refusing to answer questions before a efyit! service board of inquiry. These were questions relating; to testimony which Miss de Haas! gave before a grand jury. Testi-; mony which, by its very nature, | is confidential. 4, | re eee