Allen Weinstein (1937–2015)

An in-depth look at the case involving accusations (directly) of perjury against State Department official Alger Hiss, and (indirectly) further accusations that he passed material to Soviet intelligence at various points in the 1930s. The author does a very good job of analyzing both Hiss' background, and that of Whitaker Chambers, the Time editor who made the accusations in spectacular fashion in 1948. The author flat out states, at the very end, that he believes Hiss committed perjury, and he did a very good job of laying out the case that Hiss was playing a very shifty game in his testimony. The author doesn't shy away from the fact that Chambers wasn't a perfect witness, either, and had major faults, but the evidence laid out, in my view, is compelling. Definitely recommended, especially as a counter to many apologia for Hiss that emerged in the Watergate era.… (mer)

Although Nasvasky raised some real questions Weinstein accurately reported testimony from certain veteran Communists, overall, I have no doubt
ththat Weinstein's basic conclusion --that Hiss was guilty -- is correct.
This is less from reading this book than from reading In Re Alger
Hiss, compiled by Hiss's supporters from documents obtained from the
FBI, which demonstrate (to me at least) that the FBI knew nothing
about the famous typewriter until Hiss's defense produced it, and in
fact the FBI was deeply suspicious of it when it was produced.
There are other details (some of which I no lonfer recall) which were
very much against Hiss. I told him so once in person and Hiss had no
real reply. My feeling is that Hiss's real defense (which he never
made) was that sharing information with a potential ally (which
ttthe USSR was at the time) is by no means as bad as sharing data
with a potential enemy (as the USSR was by the time Hiss was on trial.(… (mer)