Satisfactory Answers

It was the first big show of the 81st Congress and Texas' florid old Tom Connally promptly fumbled his lines. He had moved his Foreign Relations Committee into the marble-pillared Senate caucus room. The hearing, Tom Connally announced, was "on the question of the nomination of Dean Acheson as Under Secretary of State." A murmur of correction ("Secretary!") rose from the press tables. Connally, beaming under the klieg lights, brushed off the advice: "He's still Under Secretary until he's confirmed." Then, after recalling that Acheson was still a citizen without public office, he added: "I don't mean technically."

Whatever Connally meant, his committee had a few questions they wanted to talk over with the man Harry Truman had picked for his Secretary of State. That a Senate committee should, for the first time in history, hold an open hearing on a new Secretary of State was an expression of some doubt about Dean Acheson--but it was a doubt that was never clearly defined, nor forcefully defended. Obviously, in an open hearing, Acheson could not talk about top-level policy. But the Senate committee did want to hear about the international affairs of Acheson's affluent Washington (D.C.) law firm, did want him to say again that he had no love for Stalin, and above all, wanted to discuss Alger Hiss. Was it true that Hiss was Assistant Secretary Acheson's right-hand man after the period when, according to Congressional spy probers, Hiss was busy in Communist espionage?

My Friend Alger. Tall, urbane Dean Acheson was well prepared. Settling back in the witness chair, impeccably correct in a double-breasted grey suit, he began: "I have waited a long time to answer this, and I want to answer in detail. As a preliminary I would like to state that my friendship is not easily given and is not easily withdrawn."

It was quite true, said Acheson, that Alger Hiss "became, and he remains, my friend. I do not detract from that when I state that Alger Hiss was not my assistant." It was Donald Hiss, not Alger, who had been his assistant. Said Acheson: "This whole matter of confusion of two men has arisen out of the testimony of my former colleague, Mr. Adolf Berle [TIME, Jan. 17] ... Mr. Berle's memory has gone badly astray."

Actually, said Acheson, Berle came to him with a report that one of the Hiss brothers had "associations which would make his presence in my office embarrassing to me." But Berle couldn't say which Hiss brother, nor what the "associations" were. Acheson did, however, speak to Donald Hiss about it, and getting his reassurances, "I had complete confidence in him and the matter was closed."

$50,175 Fee. The Senators seemed to be satisfied; they changed the subject. With ceremonious politeness, Acheson coolly and confidently answered everything that was thrown at him. As Acting Secretary of

State he had indeed approved a $90 million credit to Poland, at a time when his law firm was serving as counsel to a Polish supply mission, for a fee of $50,175.

But Acheson also pointed out that as Acting Secretary of State he was later responsible for suspending the loan, when Poland refused to abide by its conditions, including a guarantee of free elections. At no time during his Government service had Acheson kept either a professional or financial connection with his law partners, he added. Even when he returned to private practice between Government jobs, he had been careful to handle only those cases which were before the courts.

As to his own political philosophy, Acheson, though he hesitated "very much to bore the committee," dug into a selection of the 100-odd speeches and statements he had delivered between 1939 and 1948. They were speeches of an experienced diplomat who had first been hopeful of friendly relations with a wartime ally, but had watched the deterioration of U.S.-Soviet relations with growing concern, and had been among the first officials to sound the alarm. Said Acheson: "The things I read about my being an appeaser are so incredible that I cannot believe that even disinterested malevolence could think them up."

His position could be succinctly defined: "The President has said in the most categorical language that he is not contemplating any change whatever in the foreign policy of the United States . . . The policies which President Truman has followed were evolved with the help of two Secretaries [Byrnes and Marshall]. I served under them both."

Maryland's waspish Millard Tydings had one more question: What if Acheson could not accept any foreign policy course that the President should suggest? "I anticipate nothing so unhappy," Acheson said. "But should it arise, I would resign."

Fatal to Free Peoples. Next day the committee listened to Acheson behind closed doors. After the session, to settle any doubts as to his position on Russia, Chairman Connally released an excerpt from the Acheson testimony: "It is my view that Communism as a doctrine is economically fatal to free society and to human rights and fundamental freedoms. Communism as an aggressive factor in world conquest is fatal to independent governments and to free peoples."

Then the committee voted unanimously to confirm Dean Acheson's nomination. Some time this week the full Senate would pass on Acheson's appointment. Few thought that it would take long.

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