(Please read the instructions on the other side carefully before
filling out this blank.)
Organization sponsoring-----------------------------------------
Name------------------------------------------------------------
Address-------------------- City--------------- State-----------
Age----------- School attending------------------ Grade---------
Occupation, if any------------------------------ Wages----------
Where employed--------------------------------------------------
Member of what organizations------------------------------------
Did you ever attend a Pioneer camp before?----------------------
If so, when and where-------------------------------------------
Did you ever attend a summer camp for Boy Scouts, Girl Reserves,
Girl Scouts, etc.?------------ If so, when----------------------
Mother’s name---------------------------------------------------
Occupation---------------------- Working?---------- Wages-------
Are you willing that your child go to a working-class children’s
camp for the purposes of recreation, physical development, and
working-class training?-----------------------------------------
(Yes)
-----------------------------------
Mother’s Signature
Father’s name---------------------------------------------------
Occupation---------------------- Working?---------- Wages-------
Are you willing that your child go to a working-class children’s
camp for the purposes of recreation, physical development,
and working-class training?-------------------------------------
(Yes)
-----------------------------
Father’s Signature
Fee of $5 for two weeks being paid by organization
sponsoring------------------------------------------------------
Fee of $5 for two weeks being paid by parents-------------------
This is to certify that I have examined-------------------------
and have found him, her, with no physical disabilities and
free of communicable disease. Signed
---------------------------
Examining physician
The------------------------------ Feels that--------------------
Name of sponsoring organization child’s name
--------------------------------answers all the requirements for
admission to the Pioneer Summer Camp and is sponsoring him, her.
------------------------------------
_Secretary of sponsoring organization._
------------------------------------
_Chairman of sponsoring organization._
Mr. TAVENNER. I would like to read into the record one or two
sentences from this advertisement:
Every child coming to the camp must be O. K.’d by some such
organization, so that we are sure that the children at the camp
are worthwhile elements to work with.
What was meant by that?
Mr. DENNETT. Well, I cannot recall exactly at this time except
to say that it was our purpose then to find young people who would have
at least enough knowledge and understanding to be possible leadership
material. It was our hope and purpose to develop more leaders. We
needed them very much.
Mr. TAVENNER. To develop them for leadership in the Communist
Party?
Mr. DENNETT. True.
Mr. TAVENNER. Did you conduct any courses at the camp yourself?
Mr. DENNETT. Yes; I did.
Mr. TAVENNER. We find among the documents that you turned
over to us what apparently is a questionnaire submitted to a number
of members of the class, with their names appearing on them and with
questions relating to their plans for the future, what they consider
about class struggle, surplus value, materialist conception of history,
and so forth.
I do not want you to mention in the testimony the names of any of
these individuals at this moment, but I would like you to examine the
questionnaire.
Mr. DENNETT. I have my own copy.
Mr. TAVENNER. Will you examine the group and state whether any
child attending these classes was as young as 15 years of age?
Mr. DENNETT. I have one 19, I have one 16. Yes; here is one 15.
Mr. TAVENNER. In fact, there are several as young as 15 years
of age, are there not?
Mr. DENNETT. 21, 20, 15, 17, 17. Yes; 18, 17, 17.
Mr. TAVENNER. Am I correct in stating that this is in the form
of a questionnaire to determine the success of the training at this
camp?
Mr. DENNETT. Well it must be remembered that I was just fresh
from teaching, and one of the things that a teacher has to learn is
whether or not their teaching is successful. The way you determine that
is to devise a test. So I devised a test to determine whether or not my
efforts had been successful. So this is in the form of a test.
Mr. TAVENNER. Will you tell the committee, please, what
reaction you get from reading the test papers of some of the younger of
the group? Say, 15, 16, and 17 years of age.
Mr. DENNETT. I have picked out those 2 that were 15 years of
age.
I had something here in which I asked this kind of question: What
organizations they belonged to. I asked them to list them. And this one
said: “YPA,” which was the Young Pioneers of America. And a workers’
youth club.
And I asked also what kind of work they did in the organization, and
one of them says that he was the secretary of the club. And I asked
what his occupation was, and he said a student in school. And I asked
if he had any special abilities, and he says “Sing, act, sports,
football and track.” Hobby: “music, sports, reading.” Main shortcoming:
“To learn more about organization.” Received most benefit from camp:
“Art and music.” Most benefit from class: “What Marxism is based on.”
Mr. MOULDER. Are you reading the answers to the questions?
Mr. DENNETT. These are the answers to the questions.
I asked what they knew about the materialist conception of history, and
this student answered:
“It is based on scientific facts.”
I asked if the student understood surplus value, and this student
answered:
“The difference between the amount paid to the worker and the amount of
goods he produces.”
I asked this student if he understood the meaning of the class
struggle, and his answer in his own handwriting is:
“It is the history of the workers fighting against their rulers.”