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0-19 Personnel Quiz .**- Tolson * the identity of their accusers, I. lone con. Representative Bow of Ohioucceeded a Ladd front and cross-examine them; they cannot .Jyeek agq in. tacking' a most. mischievous. subpena witnesses in their own behalf; Nichols amendment onto-a simplepiece ofIegisiation they are denied the benefit of any doubts;. Belmont designed to. relieve' the FederaI Bureau of; they are denied eyen findings of fact or Clegg Investigation of-certain prelininary inyesti- any written determination by the tribunat. Glavin gative.choresin connection with Goyern- judging them. If unproved charges con. Harbo. cerning them can be made public without had been passed by the Senate in accord- Rosen. giving them any effective chance at refuta- ance with 'an.earnest. and forceful recom Tracy tion, an application for a Federal job will mendation by.FBI Director J. Edgar be tantamount to putting one's head in a. Mohr Hoover Its-effect was merely to transfer to Tele. Rm. noose. the Ciyil Service Commission the responsi- We trust thatthe Senate will stand frm Holloman bility for the initialinquiry into the records } against this dangerous amendment when Gandy of applicants-for. jobsinthose.agencies! the bill goes to conference. Iis effect, if it is where Congress:has stipulated that an in- grafted onto the legislation, will certainiy vestigation should precede .eniployment. be to invite a presidential veto. Thus it The FBI itselfwould undertake a full.field threatens a measure which is urgently investigation into any case concerning needed' to relieve the FBI of' an 'intolerable burden. The bureau needs all the men it has any "derogatory" information. available for Federal law enforcement activi- Mr. Bow's.amendment, which must have ties and for 'the investigation of serious. seemed innocuous to'unwary-members of threats to the nationaI security. It should the. House; proyided that "all findings, be freed for this important work-and with- records, and reparts made-or compiled by . but any further debasement of the Ioyalty- the Civil Service Commission. underthis security program. act shall be made available to the :commit- tees of the Congress upon the request of Such committee." Representative Miller of California expressed opposition to-this pro- posal on the general ground.that.it consti- tuted "an encroachment on the administra- tive branch of the Government'; he might well, we think, have argued that it violates the spirit at least of the constitutionai. separation.of powers. Beyond this philosophicai fiaw, however, lies the more practical objection that it would strip the loyalty-security program in these cases of the secrecy intended to protect innocent persons.from unjust ac. cusation..The raw fles of the Civil Serv- ice Commission investigators, including; all that they might.pick upof malice, gossip, prejudice and other unsifted, unevaluated information from anonymous sources,could be exposed to the public at the whim of any congressional committee. It is. possible, : Times-Herald indeed,that this.amendment might require the CSC to turn.over'to a committee the re. Wash. Post i ports.of.FBI investigators in.cases where derogatory information had required a Wash. News full field investigation,And this would put in jeopardy the FBI'sconfidential-sources P of information. Wash. Star If the Government is going to operate a A personnel clearance system with."reason- N.Y. Mirror. able.doubt as a standard ofjudgment and with:reliance upon anonymous-hearsay, then. N.Y. Compass the leastit must do as a matter of elemen tary fairness.is'to give the individuals it.in vestigates the protection of secrecy, These: MAR 20 1952 applicants for Government jobs have.none' For'mhorordinary protections of-the:lay. Dat EACOSUR?