AGAIN THE FURY

To the Editors of the CRIMSON:

To volunteer the fact that five of his former colleagues at M.I.T. were Communists was Professor Furry's only mistake at the McCarthy hearing. Although attempting to protect their identities, he may have given enough information about their whereabouts to enable McCarthy to pillory them.

If a citizen has reason to believe that an associate is guilty of violating Federal law he is under obligation to report his beliefs to the FBI. If he has no reason to suspect a delinquency it is his moral responsibility to avoid betraying his fellow into the hands of an unscrupulous and ambitious politician. To the extent that he observed these tenets, Professor Furry (and Leon Kamin) should receive the support of fair-minded men.

It is surprising to find the CRIMSON basing its case on "purely practical grounds." Aside from several curious non-sequiturs in your editorial on Friday, your "practical" argument seems to ignore the fact that McCarthy is not interested in finding whether persons are guilty of violating the law. His only aim is to profit by the current hysteria through victimizing people who hol unpopular beliefs. To give him more names is merely to provide him with more fuel and to aid him in destroying the lives of men and families. The fact that those named would protest their innocence of criminal activity would not hinder McCarthy; his genius lies in distortion and innuendo. Further-more, to the unreasoning public Communism and treason are one; admission of the former is proof of the latter. Every new name is a headline for McCarthy; every new admission a faggot for hysteria. Franklin V. Walker   Tutor in Economics