BOOKS Fast’s new novel woven around ravages of McCarthyism in U.S. IOWARD FAST’s latest novel’ Silas Timberman, is a major contribution to the growing ~re- sistance to McCarthyism in the United States. The book’s central character, Silas Timberman, was a profes- sor of American literature in a large university near Indianap- clis. He led a sheltered life in Clemington University and his main ambition was to write a book about Mark Twain and the influence of his writings on Am- erican literature. * Shortly after the outbreak of tte Korean war, the president of the university and the dean of his faculty, both inferior schol- ars, put the pressure on him to enroll for civil defense. The president was a Republican with powerful connections, and he was committed to do his share in com- batting the nation-wide apathy to civil defense. The dean had prom- ised the president that his staff would enroll as a group, but Silas had refused to cooperate. At this stage, Silas was oppos- ed to all forms of totalitarianism, and his definition of totalitarian- ism was confused. It included pressure of this type and what he vaguely understood to be the restriction ‘of academic freedom by the Scviet government. he was honest enough to admit that he knew very little about the Soviet Union, and he did not care to give a glib answer about go- ing to war with that country. When Silas refused to sign up for civil defense, the next turn of the screw was applied. He was confronted with an FBI report, listing 17 faculty members and 55 students who had signed the - Stockholm petition to ban the ‘atomic bomb. This humble professor, who had signed the petition after much ergument with himself, was giv- en'a chance to redeem his posi- tion. If he would declare that he had been the victim of a com- munist plot, and put the finger on those who circulated the ap- peal among the faculty members, all would be forgiven. When Silas refused to accept this ultimatum, the president bluntly asked him if he was a communist. The way this cautious, liberal-minded téacher answered that question, proves that Fast knows the dilemma of the middle class liberal in the US. of te ae ee The next move against Silas was a bitter attack in the uni- _.versity newspaper, which was rm not too soon to be’ thinking of suitable gifts for Christmas. One that we highly recommend ig a combination book-recording about Joe Hill. The book is The Man Who Never Died by Barrie Stavis ($3.41) and the recording - (LP) is Joe Glazer’s The Joe Hill Album ($4.99). The book is the hest account yet written of the frameup of this working class leader. The recording contains Place your But The Book Corner picked up by the daily press across the country. The university paper accused him of being a fuzzy liberal, a ‘lupe for communism. It based its allegations on the fact that he had advanced the works of Mark Twain as the decisive and determining factor in modern American literature. In class, he used Twain’s The Man That Cor- rupted Hadleyburg, as the cen- tral focus of his investigations. The paper claimed that while this satire was harmless when it was first written, it was subver- sive in 1950, because if served the purpose of communism. Men of wealth and ambition were por- trayed as humbugs, while the poor people were treated sympa- thetically. A search in the university lib- rary showed that in 1949, three left-wing publications made 97 references to the works of Mark Twain and carried 17 separate quotations. When a close friend of Silas and his family, Professor Ike Amsterdam, a great astro-physi- cist, was suspended because he was an outspoken opponent of civil defense, Silas addressed a protest meeting on his behalf. That was the cue for the next move by the president. The Senate committee on Internal Ex- penditures issued subpoenas to Silas and six other faculty mem- bers. The other six were close associates of his, and all had sign- ed the peace petition. Senator Brannigan, the domi- nant member of the committee, is obviously Senator McCarthy. Other members of the senatorial circus troupe are easily identi- fied. Silas gave a good accout of himself before the committee, but’ he made a fatal blunder. Against the advice of his lawyer, he de- ‘clared under oath that he was not a member of the Communist party. This made possible the subsequent frame-up when he was arrested, charged with per- jury and sentenced to three years in jail. Under the fifth amendment in the Bill of Rights, he did not have to answer that question. Once he did answer it, even though he told the truth, his fate was seal- ed. = Back in Washington important people looked through his file -and many conferences took place. When he was arrested, a junior member of his own department testified against him. The testi- the songs Joe Hill hn com- posed and used so effectively. * * * An important new contribution to Marxist theory is People’s De- mocracy: A New Form of Politi- cal Organization of Society, by George Sobolev. This pamphlet sells for 16 cents. : g * x * Among recommended new novels are: Silas Timberman by Howard Fast and Youngblood by Joseph Killens. orders now PEOPLE’S COOPERATIVE BOOKSTORE 337 WEST PENDER — VANCOUVER, B.C. Marine 5836” _ cohesion, power and mony was a concoction of distort- ed facts and outright lies, but Silas was convicted. — Thus, an innocent man went to jail for perjury which he never committed, while the perjurer, vho sold himself for thirty pieces of silver, was hailed in the press as a great patriot. The short speech .of the con- victed teacher, before sentence was passed, contains Fast’s credo, the . substance of the book. Through the character he brings to life, Fast proudly declares that the present-day rulers of the U.S. are temporary rulers; that the horror they have let loose -will destroy them, but not the reople, because the people are indestructible. se it xt This is an excellent book, but Fast’s supporting characters are lacking in third dimension, in depth and perspective. Even his portrayal of Silas Timberman is lacking. in this regard. The reader is told that here is a humble man of great character and ‘moral integrity, but the tell- ing of these facts is done rather mechanically. The clash of ideas within his mind and the effects upon him of his relationship with people of more advanced politi- cal: ideas are presented in a schematic fashion. His wife, Myra, is not a woman but rather the hurried sketch of a woman. The portrayal of Pro-: fessor Alex Brady, the only clear- ly defined communist in the novel, leaves much to be desired. While he is courageous and noble, _he is an abstraction, purely an auxiliary and somewhat shadowy character. Mike Leslie, the progressive trade union leader, is a diamond in the rough, but too much of a minor character. His main role was to provide a lawyer and to organize a group to protect the home of Silas against rowdyism. Bob Allen, a pleasant young in- structor at the university, and a frequent visitor to the Timber- man home, suddenly emerged as an informer at the Senate hear- ing. Later, his perjury helped to send Silas to jail. The politi- cal informer is so prominent in the contemporary U.S. scene that he has become an odious institu- tion. Unfortunately, Fast does “not show how “a nice young man” de- ‘ velops into a political police_ agent, a liar and a perjurer. If he had done so, he would have produced a better novel. In the sense that Silas Timber- man is meant to represent the new and growing resistance to McCarthyism \in the U.S., he is a solid character who will long be remembered. But in the broader sense, he cannot epitomize the growing force which must and will play the decisive role in erad- icating McCarthyism—the organ- ized labor movement. With all due respect to the real-life Silas Timbermans in the ’ US., they are too few. When the decisive sections of the labor movement react in a more united and militant fashion against Mc- Carthyism, they will supply the leadership that is sorely needed. Then, there will be more Silas Timbermans, because they will be drawn, as by a.magnet, to the inspiring purpose of an aroused labor movement. Silas Timberman can be obtain-. ed here at the People’s Coopera-. tive Bookstore, 337 Pender Street West, price $3.25. —JACK PHILLIPS Pipe band tours continent A 14-month tour of Canada and the United States will be made by the Dagenham girl pipers’ band (above), one of Britain’s known bands. FALL ISSUE OUT Coldwarandchildren | New Frontiers theme é¢(;HILDREN and the Cold War” is the theme of the autumn issue of New Frontiers, national cultural quarterly. The complex _ of influences which the cold war has brought to bear on our child- ren through the comics, radio, TV and the movies, is examined. ‘the far-from-subtle indoctrina- tion in violence, sadism and crime which constantly goes on through these media is exposed. Here is an issue which should appeal to every thoughtful adult whether parent, teacher, social worker or patriot . Besides these articles examin- ing the alarming content of the comics and other popular “enter- tainment” for children, there is a sensitively written. story, ‘‘Sat- urday Afternoon,” about a group of Toronto children. It is an excerpt from a novel in progress by Ward Marsh. A glimpse of another way of life is given in an article by a Canadian journalist recounting UKRAINIAN FOLK CONCERT A colorful spectacle of song and dances from the cultural riches of the Ukrainian people and their contribution to the culture of Canada! _ Sunday, November 7-8 p.m. HASTINGS ODEON THEATRE Se Bet: PROVINCIAL. A. U.U.G CONVENTION | _ NOVEMBER 6 - 7 in the AUUC HALL : 805 Pender East CONVENTION | - BANQUET- DANCE Saturday, Nov. 6 - 6:30 p.m. AUUC Hall, 805 Pender St. East PACIFIC TRIBUNE — NOVEMBER 5, 1954 — PAGE 8 experiences in bringing up two children in socialist Czechoslo- vakia. A feature of the issue is the large number of poems, includi ce “The White-Throat” by Huntley K. Gordon and works by J- Wallace, Arthur S. Bourinot, Martha Millet and Milton Acor? among others. Margaret Fairley, New Front iers editor, contributes a fasciD- — ating article based on the diary of an early Canadian settler, ful of colorful detail about pioneet — ing days. : A pungent article evaluating the ’54 Stratford Festival is sure ty rouse controversy. This issue of New Frontiers: with its focus on the vital ques tion of our children, is one % the liveliest yet to appear. : Copies may be obtained at 40¢ ° each at the People’s Cooperative ~ Bookstore, 337 West Pender, Van couver, or $1.50 for a one-year subscription from New Frontiers: — 153 Dunn Avenue, Toronto Ont. Everyone Welcome!