51³Ô¹ÏÍø

WS Courtroom, Sumner Welles, Former Under-Secretary of State, being sworn in / CU SOT Welles testifies about a letter to Eleanor Roosevelt and the enclosure with the letter, with VO questioning by Robert Stripling, Chief House Investigator / SOT Welles continues reading from the enclosure: "...with which you sent me the letter of February 3 you have received from Mr. Don Stephens from the National Arts Club in New York with regard to Mr. Hanns Eisler. You will recall that I wrote you on January 24, 1939, with regard to this case. I have had the matter carefully gone into further and I think I should tell you that some of the friends of Mr. Eisler entertain some thoroughly wrong impressions with regard to the attitude of this Dept and our consulate general in Havana in this case. These friends of Mr. Eisler are thoroughly well-meaning people, but they seem to think that this department and the consulate general in Havana have certain prejudices and fixed attitudes with respect to his admission to the this country. Of course this is utterly without foundation. These friends of Mr. Eisler, too, seem to think that there is some special consideration or treatment which can be given him which is not provided for in our law or that perhaps certain liberties could be taken with the law. We in the Dept and our consular offices in the field are just as understanding of and as sympathetic toward the problems of people like Mr. Eisler as these other well-meaning people, but, of course, our attitude in these matters must be in accord with the law. There is nothing that we can do or suggest that Mr. Eisler should do that does not fall within these statutory prescriptions"