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FEATURE PRESS SERVICE AMERICAN.CIVILLIBERTIES_UNION, 170 FIFTH AVENUE, NEWYORK 10, N.Y ROGER N. BALDWIN ERNEST ANGELL ARTHUR GARFIELD HAYS Chmn. NatI Comm. PATRICK MURPHY'MALI Chmn. B'd of Directors MORRIS L.ERNST Executive Director OReggn55990 eekly Bulletin #1585 ACLu has asked Secretary of State John' Foster Dulles to reconsider his recent directive calling for removal of books by "controversial" writers from overseas libraries of the U.S. Information Service. The directive which ACLu protested was America program. In a letter to Dulles, AcLu said that the order not only is "contrary tothe Communist propaganda.. library use abroad should be bascd solely on the nature and the value of the books themselves and not upon those who wrote them", the letter said. It was signed bys Patrick Murphy Malin, ACLu's cxccutive dircctor, and Elmer Rice, chairman of the Union's National Council on Frecdom from Censorship. "Furthermore", the letter continued, "may we urge that you revicw the direc. tive notcd above with a view to its revision, because it forecloscs use of possiblou? helpful material to counter Sovict propaganda. In the propaganda field the U. S. government should be unfcttered as possiblc so that all ncccssary avenues of approach to peoples abroad both in front of and bchind thc iron curtain countries may b3 utilizcd. Anti-Soviet propaganda, which can be delved out of thc works of American Communists or fcllow travelcrs may well be a uscful tactic if proncrly utilizcd ins exposing the lies and dcception of Comunist propaganda.". Senator McCarthy's subcommittee hearings "till now do not justify a. discrimination against use of certain publications mercly bccausc of the political categ or moral character of their authors", the two AcLu officials observed. with, or in opposition to, thc political and moral principlcs on which our country is based," thcir lctter said. "Consistont with this position, wc believe that? litcrature and other forms of art must bc judgcd by their content and quito apart: from thc allcgcd political or other vicws of their authors." In clcaring the tax-free foundations of the taint of subvcrsion, a Congres-J thcir accomplishmcnts. The gist of the' report turncd in by a special Housc conmittce investigat. 'cld in these groups, thcy succceded barcly at all. : Thc cormittce was formed orig. :ally by the late Rep. E. E. Cox of Gcorgia. Jone to the support of the Communist line or to proved Communists or Communist,sym. athizers, but where this occurreed it is our belicf that it occurred inadvertently or through thc' stealth and deccit of Communist 'infiltrees'." Beyond this, however, the committee found that thc foundations.. most significant function has becn displeyed in supplying the risk or venturo expended in advancing the frontiers of knowledge...... "In cntering these ficlds", the committce found, "thcy,knor cism and thercfore assume the calculatod risks as justificd bec? that may evolve for mankind...". 80