Dr. Herzl's
Last
Testament
HE JEWISH NEWS
A Weekly Review
See Editorial, Page 4
VOLUME 1 5—No. 22
Expose of
Testimony of Pro-German
Stops Senate Legislation
By MILTON FRI EDMAN
it*
WASHINGTON—The Senator who controls the fate
of scores of. thousands of Jewish displaced persons is
thumbing his nose at American Jewry.
Sen. Pat McCarran, a Nevada Democrat, is in a posi-
tion to do more damage than any other man to immigra-
tion legislation and he is doing just that. As chairman of
both the Senate Judiciary Committee and Immigration
Subcommittee he has not only effectively bottled up legis-
lation but has actually argued the case of Germans who
were the cause of Jewish displacement in the first place.
Also, he has been getting in a word for those poor Arabs.
One Otto Durholtz, of Paterson, N. J., was called by
McCarran to tell the senators about immigration. Herr Dur-
holtz testified in behalf of the so-called "Committee for
Christian Action in Central Europe." He described the
"plight" of 12,000,000 Germans expelled from Eeastern Eu-
ropean countries.
Sen. J. Howard McGrath, Rhode Island Democrat,
asked if many of these Germans -were not ardent Nazis
Sent from Germany to other European countries before the
war to infiltrate and prepare for a German invasion. Herr
Durholz assured McGrath that very, very few were Nazi
agents.
The Non-Sectarian Anti-Nazi League is a highly re-
liable organization in New York which keeps a close check
on subversives, especially Nazis who hide behind their
American nationality. The witness called by McCarran to
testify before the Immigration Subcommittee is well
known to the League
Prof. James H. Sheldon, administrative chairman of
the Anti-Nazi League, said, "The League's records show
that Durholtz is one of the key figures in propaganda ef-
forts to restore Germany, including Nazi-infected Ger-
mans, to respectability, to oppose the whole program of
denazification, and to oppose all steps to render justice or
adequate restitution for Jewish victims of the Nazis."
Sheldon said further that McCarran's "expert" on dis-
placed persons, Durholtz, "has cooperated with and spok-
en at a meeting of the most extreme of the neo-Nazi prop-
aganda organizations in the United States, namely the
German - American Voters Alliance. This is the group
which sought to join in the Loyalty Day Parade last April
30 in New York and was excluded from the parade by the
Veterans of Foreign Wars following complaints arising be-
cause of the German Bund background of some of its lead-
ers.
Durholtz addressed the German-American Voters Al-
liance at the Cafe Hindenburg in the Yorkville section last
April 11. He spoke for an hour and a half, and according
to the League's transcript, attacked displaced persons
legislation as "ethnic" discrimination against the poor
Germans. It is also reported that he denounced the ad-
mission of Jewish survivors of Nazism to the United
States.
This was the man McCarran called into the U. S. Sen-
ate for his advice on displaced persons legislation.
,7
in Congress
of Jewish Events
2114 Penobscot Bldg.—Phone WO. 5-1155 Detroit 26, Michigan, August ,12, 1949
McCarran Thumbs Nose at DPs
Anti-Semitism
Story on Page 20
3.00 Per Year; Single Copy, 10c
Li uidate All Refugee
Camps Next Month; Seek
Israel-Vatican Accord
Direct JTA Teletype Wires to The Jewish News
JERUSALEM.—Eliahu Dobkin, director of. the Jewish Agency's Immigration Divi-
sion, announced on Tuesday that all European refugee camps will be liquidated by Sep-
tember of this year when only 50,000 Jews will be left in Germany and Austria. Dobkin
complained that American Jewry had spent only $210,000 for Zionist youth education
and that only 50,000 youths out of 750,000 young Jews in America are organized in
Zionist youth movements. He suggested, in order to increase and improve Zionist edu-
cation in the United States, that specially trained instructors from Israel be sent to the
U. S. to increase Zionist education of American Jewish youth.
On Monday night, Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion was presented with the $1,500
Gedaliah Bublick award given to the "Jew or non-Jew who made the most significant
contribution to Palestine's progress and development in the past two years." He received
the award from the Hebrew University's Rector, Dr. Simcha Assaf, at a special cere-
mony arranged by the university, donor of the award. Ben-Gurion promptly turned
over the check to the president of the university, Prof. Selig Brodetsky, with the pro-
viso that it be awarded to the university student who writes the best essay in Hebrew
on the influence of Plato's philosophy on Jewish literature and thought. The Premier
has recently become an ardent student of Platonic philosophy which he studies in
ancient Greek.
Disclaiming credit for single-handed accomplishment of so great an achievement
in relation to the establishment of. Israel's independence as the awards committee had
credited him with, Ben-Gurion pointed out that the entire nation as well as the last
three generations of Jews throughout the world were responsible for the realization of
the Jewish dream of statehood. In making the award, Rector Assaf appealed to the
Premier for government aid to the university and for the release of the institution's
students who still are serving with the army.
it
Large-Scale Work Program Outlined
TEL AVIV?—Charges that the Israeli government thwarted foreign capital invest-
ments were denied in Knesset by Labor Minister Golda Myerson, in a speech conclud-
ing the parliamentary debate on the employment p4oblem in the country, The Labor
Minister emphasized that the first duty of all governments is to consider the interests
of their country and those of capital investments. "If the government discouraged
certain investment plans it was because the investors sought the highest possible
'profits," Mrs. Myerson said. She told parliament that she intends to submit drafted bills
on social insurance and on labor exchanges. She said that the government's aim is to
concentrate on the distribution of work in the centralized labor exchange system. Re-
garding immediate and future prospects of employment in the country, she told parlia-
ment that she would soon be able to acquaint the Knesset with plans entailing work
for a very large number of workers for extended periods of time.
May Ask Argentine to Mediate with Vatican
BUENOS AIRES.—Yaacov Tzur, Israeli Minister to Argentina, may seek the good
offices of the Argentine government to intercede with the Vatican with regard to the
Jerusalem issue in which Israel and the Vatican do not see eye to eye, it was \reliably
reported here Tuesday. Informal sources stated that it is likely that Argentina would
reply favorably to an Israeli request for its services as mediator between the Vatican and
Israel should such a request be made.
President Truman versus McCarran
At the hearing where Durholtz appeared, McCarran
asserted that allegations that the present DP law discrim-
inates against Jews are "despicable charges, wholly at
variance with the facts." (President Truman has criticized
the law on the ground that it does discriminate (against
Jews.)
In an attempt to confuse the issue, at the same time
thumbing his nose at the Jews, McCarran brought up ar-
guments in behalf of homeless Germans. He said, "Other
groups are in a similar situation . • . there are approximate-
ly 700,000 Arabs who have been displaced from their
homes in the Palestine war."
McCarran then said that he has no plans for action
on the liberalized DP legislation passed by the House this
session. He told his subcommittee that he preferred to
wait until the DP Act of 1948 expires next year.
Not only has McCarran bottlenecked the House-ap-
proved measure and 14 other DP bills, but he has used his
position in an attempt to sabotage the whole DP program.
Three nominations for the DP Commission were sent to
McCarran by President Truman on Feb. 7. The nominees
are Harry Rosenfield, Edward M. O'Connor and Ugo Ca-
rusi—all key men in the DP program. McCarran, head of
the responsible subcommittee, has ignored the nomina-
tions:'
Senate Majority Leader Scott Lucas of Illinois said
that the Senate Democratic Policy Committee "is going to
see if we can't persuade the distinguished chairman of the
Judiciary Committee to report out a bill." Others on Capi-
tol Hill were perturbed—but none nearly as much as the
scores of thousands who continue languishing in the camps
of Europe.
Hello, America!
Start of Kibbutz: Pioneers tackling Israel's
Negev merge their youth and courage with investment dol-
lars to build homes and a sound economy on which the new
State's future can be built. Settlements have an excellent
record of payment of loans advanced for housing, equip-
ment and supplies.
Waving a cheery greet-
ing to America, '7-year-old
Sonia Jacobowicz landed
with her parents recently
after leaving a European
DP camp to begin a new
life here. Like many of the
Jewish displaced persons
being resettled in this
country, Sonia came under
the sponsorship of United
Service for New Americans,
whose work is financed
through the United Jewish
Appeal, whose Detroit in-
come is provided by the
Allied Jewish Campaign. All
Detroit contributors are
asked to pay their pledges
4 order to meet
at once
existing emergencies.