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| ii INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY This is a confidential survey of the problem of American 'Communism, At the outset it is important to note the restrictions which must neces- sarily govern the use of this Report. The writer faced the choice between a more general study which might be used extensively, and a detailed analy- sis which names names. The latter alternative was chosen as being the more j valuable to the sponsors of the survey. Accordingly, instead of confin- ing the reporting to material which is generally available to the public, the author used accurate but confidential sources. The usefulness of these * sources would cease if their names and positions were revealed. This, is particularly true w^en__the ultimate source is a well-placed member of the Communist Party. " " ~~^———————————————!———————- --"-- ———-——— • ,| Because of the accuracy of the sources, it is often possible to (/ name definitely as Communists individuals who would publicly deny their 11 affiliation. The publication of such names would certainly lead to a challenge to produce proof and possibly to a libel suit. Since this writer has solemnly pledged not to reveal confidential sources——an indispensable condition for obtaining information—-he would not be in a position to aid any individual who is thus challenged or sued. Because of this, it is recommended in Chapter V that a modified version of this Report be pre- pared for limited distribution. This edition would be carefully examined to prevent any possibility of the dangers just noted. The use of confidential sources brings up another problem. How are the readers of this Report to be sure that the investigator was not deceived in his reliance upon certain types of material? Certainly in this field the opportunity to deceive the incautious would be great. Accordingly, as an added check upon the accuracy of this Report, advance copies are to be sent to certain of the group sponsoring the work, where it is known that these sponsors can have it verified by well-informed individuals. Finally, the nature of this work prevents the author from express- ing his thanks in an adequate manner to those who contributed so greatly to the final result. All that can be said is that the devoted few have the deepest gratitude of this investigator for their service to God and country. Great credit must be given to those who prepared so carefully the answers to the questionnaires sent out last December. The answers were factual and accurate, and contributed in a definite way to the contents of this Report. In certain cases, further information was sent regularly in the course of the present year. All this is appreciated, even though thanks are expressed in a general rather than a specific manner. As a final introductory observation, it must be noted that the in- vestigation was confined strictly to the subject assigned. As a result, an unavoidable distortion of perspective occurred. As an example, in many of the foreign-language fields, Communist-controlled organizations were singled out. No mention was made of non-Communist groups in the same community. Again, while the menace of Communism was stressed, it was not the duty of this writer to note other situations which may be equally menacing. Thus, if widespread unemployment were to prevail in'this country within the next ten years, it is possible that some demagogic group other than the CommunistSmight exploit the situation. At this moment, the so- called "hate organizations,*1 many of them anti-Catholic, are not well |