Harlow Shapley yesterday defended the forthcoming intellectuals' peace rally in New York against allegations of Communist-front activity with the assertion that it is independent of any political group or other conferences already held or contemplated.

In a statement to the CRIMSON, Shapley claimed that peace was the sole purpose of the conference and that it "is not in any sense anti-American."

Shapley, Paine Professor of Practical Astronomy, is chairman of the committee in charge of the Cultural and Scientific Conference for World Peace, which starts three days of sessions in New York tomorrow.

Rebuts Charges

Most noted of the charges of Communism--at which Shapley scoffed, "Of course not!"--came from Gov. Thomas E. Dewey of New York, who denounced the conference as "an elaborate effort to disguise a Communist propaganda effort."

"We can be sure," Dewey commented, "that when Soviet Russia sends seven delegates to participate in a private meeting in New York City, that meeting is being called or managed by people who have Russia's confidence."

The conference has also been criticized by poet T. S. Eliot '10 as "an attempt to demoralize intellectual and moral integrity everywhere."

Attention has been drawn to the conference recently by the denial of visas to invited guests from West European and South American countries. Shapley's group must also compete with a concurrent meeting called by the Americans for Intellectual Freedom, who have received the support of both Dewey and Eliot.

Shapley's statement was as follows:

"The Cultural and Scientific Conference for World Peace is a meeting of artists, writers, scientists, and professionals who seek to contribute to the establishment of a spirit of peace at a time when there is heavy noise of great armaments and war.

Distinguished Speakers

"It is an American conference to which have been invited a number of distinguished foreign artists, writers, and scientists from more than 20 countries.

"The Conference is not in any sense anti-American. It has been sponsored by more than 500 scientists, college presidents, artists, writers, and professional men and women. Naturally it has been opposed and obstructed by those who profit from war and war preparations, and by those who have succumbed to the hates that have prevailed since the end of the second world war.