population of these territories. And on 8 May 1942, he conferred with Hitler and Rosenberg on the forced resettlement of Dutch personnel in Latvia, the extermination program in Russia, and the economic exploitation of the eastern territories. He was interested in the confiscation of art and other properties in the east. His letter of 11 January 1944 called for the creation of a large-scale organization to withdraw commodities from the occupied territories for the bombedout German populace.

Bormann was extremely active in the persecution of the Jews, not only in Germany but also in the absorbed and conquered countries. He took part in the discussions which led to the removal of 60,000 Jews from Vienna to Poland in cooperation with the SS and the Gestapo. He signed the decree of 31 May 1941, extending the Nurnberg laws to the annexed eastern territories. In an order of 9 October 1942, he declared that the permanent elimination of Jews in Greater German territory could no longer be solved by emigration, but only by applying "ruthless force" in the special camps in the east. On 1 July 1943, he signed an ordinance withdrawing Jews from the protection of the law courts and placing them under the exclusive jurisdiction of Himmler's Gestapo.

Bormann was prominent in the slave labor program. The party leaders supervised slave labor matters in the respective Gaue, including employment, conditions of work, feeding, and housing. By his circular of 5 May 1943, to the Leadership Corps distributed down to the level of Ortsgruppenleiters, he issued directions regulating the treatment of foreign workers, pointing out they were subject to SS control on security problems, and ordered the previous mistreatment to cease. A report of 4 September 1942, relating to the transfer of 500,000 female domestic workers from the east to Germany showed that control was to be exercised by Sauckel, Himmler, and Bormann. Sauckel by decree of 8 September directed the Kreisleiters to supervise the distribution and assignment of these female laborers.

Bormann also issued a series of orders to the party leaders dealing with the treatment of prisoners of war. On 5 November 1941, he prohibited decent burials for Russian prisoners of war. On 25 November 1943 he directed Gauleiters to report cases of lenient treatment of prisoners of war. And on 13 September 1944, he ordered liaison between the Kreisleiters with the camp commandants in determining the use to be made of prisoners of war for forced labor. On 29 January 1943, he transmitted to his leaders OKW instructions allowing the use of firearms, and corporal punishment on recalcitrant prisoners of war, contrary to the rules of land warfare. On 30 September 1944, he signed a decree taking from the OKW jurisdiction over prisoners of war and handing them over to Himmler and the SS.

Bormann is responsible for the lynching of Allied airmen. On 30 May 1944, he prohibited any police action or criminal proceedings against persons who had taken part in the lynching of Allied fliers. This was accompanied by a Goebbels' propaganda campaign inciting the German people to take action of this nature and the conference of 6 June 1944, where regulations for the application of lynching were discussed.

His counsel, who has labored under difficulties, was unable to refute this evidence. In the face of these documents which bear Bormann's signature it is difficult to see how he could do so even were the defendant present. Counsel has argued that Bormann is dead and that the Tribunal should not avail itself of Article 12 of the Charter which gives it the right to take proceedings in absentia. But the evidence of death is not conclusive, and the Tribunal, as previously stated, determined to try him in absentia. If Bormann is not dead and is later apprehended, the Control Council for Germany may, under Article 29 of the Charter, consider any facts in mitigation, and alter or reduce his sentence, if deemed proper.

Conclusion.-The Tribunal finds that Bormann is not guilty on count one, but is guilty on counts three and four.

(a) To acquit the defendants Hjalmar Schacht, Franz von Papen, and Hans Fritzsche.

(b) To sentence the defendant Rudolf Hess to life imprison

ment.

(c) Not to declare criminal the following organizations: the Reich Cabinet, General Staff and OKW.

In this respect I cannot agree with the decision adopted by the Tribunal as it does not correspond to the facts of the case and is based on incorrect conclusions.

1. THE UNFOUNDED ACQUITTAL OF DEFENDANT SCHACHT The evidence, submitted to the Tribunal in the case of Schacht, confirms the following facts:

(a) Schacht established contact with Goering in December 1930, and with Hitler at the beginning of 1931. He subsequently established

contact between the leadership of the Nazi Party and the foremost representatives of the German industrial and financial circles. This, in particular, is confirmed by the testimony of Witness Severing (Transcript, afternoon session, 23 May 1946; also USA-615).

(3) In July 1932, Schacht demanded that von Papen resign his post as Reich Chancellor in favor of Hitler. This fact is confirmed by von Papen's testimony at the preliminary interrogation and by Schacht's own testimony in Court (Transcript, afternoon session, 2 May 1946).

(c) In November 1932, Schacht collected signatures of German industrialists, urging them to come out for Hitler's appointment as Reich Chancellor. On November 12, 1932, Schacht wrote to Hitler:

"I have no doubt that the way we are directing the course of events can only lead to your appointment as Reich Chancellor. We are trying to secure a large number of signatures among the industrial circles to ensure your appointment to this post." (EC456, USA-773; PS-3901, USA-837.)

(d) In February 1933, Schacht organized the financing of the preelection campaign conducted by the Nazi Party, and demanded at the conference of Hitler and Goering with the industrialists, that the latter provide 3,000,000 marks (D-203). Schacht admitted in court that he had pointed out the necessity for providing the Nazi leaders with this sum (Transcript, afternoon session, 3 May 1946), while the Defendant Funk and the former member of the management of "I. G. Farbenindustrie" Schnitzler, who were present at this conference, both confirmed that it was Schacht who was the initiator of the financing of the preelection campaign (Transcript 4 July 1946, and EC-439, USA-618).

(e) Utilizing his prestige, Schacht also repeatedly admitted in his public statements that he asked for the support in the elections of both the Nazi Party and of Hitler (USA-615; USA-616; Transcript, afternoon session, 2 May 1946).

On 29 August 1932, Schacht wrote to Hitler:

"No matter where my activities lead me in the near future, even if some day you see me imprisoned in a fortress, you can always depend on me as your loyal aide." (EC-457, USA-619).

Thus, Schacht consciously and deliberately supported the Nazi Party and actively aided in the seizure of power in Germany by the Fascists. Even prior to his appointment as Plenipotentiary for War Economy, and immediately after the seizure of power by the Nazis, Schacht led in planning and developing the German armaments, as follows:

(a) On 17 March 1933, Schacht was appointed president of the Reichsbank (PS-3021, USA-11), and as he himself stated in a speech before his Reichsbank colleagues on 21 March 1938, the Reichsbank

under his management was "none other than a National Socialist institution" (Transcript, afternoon session, 3 May 1946).

(6) In August 1934, Schacht was appointed Reich Minister of Economy (PS-3021; USA-11). His ministry "was given the task of carrying out the economic preparation for war" (EC-128, USA-623). A special decree granted Schacht in his capacity of Reich Minister of Economy, unlimited authority in the field of economy ("Reichsgesetzblatt" for 1934, part 1, p. 565).

(c) Making use of these powers in 1934, Schacht launched upon the execution of the "new program" developed by him ("Reichsgesetzblatt," 1934, part I, p. 826), and, as Schacht noted in his speech of 29 November 1938, this organization played a tremendous part in the course of Germany's rearmament (EC-611, USA-62).

(d) For the purpose of the most effective execution of this "new program" Schacht used the property and means of those political enemies of the Nazi regime, who either became the victims of terror or were forced to emigrate (Schacht's note to Hitler of 3 May 1939, PS-1168, USA-37).

Schacht used swindler's tactics and coercion "in an effort to acquire raw material and foreign currency for armaments" (affidavit of vice president of the Reichsbank, Puhl, EC-437, USA-624).

(e) During the very first days of his association with Reichsbank, Schacht issued a series of decrees (27 October 1933, 23 March 1934, 19 February 1935), which in the long run helped realize the broad program of the financing of armaments, developed by him, and with the aid of which, as he testified, he "had found the way to finance the rearmament program."

In his speech in Leipzig on 1 March 1935, Schacht, while summing up his preceding economic and financial activities, announced "“ everything that I say and do has the Fuehrer's full agreement and I shall not do or say anything which is not approved by the Fuehrer" (Transcript, afternoon session, 3 May 1946).

Having become the Plenipotentiary General for War Economy, Schacht unified under himself the leadership of the entire German economy and through his efforts the establishment of the Hitlerite war machine was accomplished.

(a) The secret law of 21 May 1935, which appointed Schacht the Plenipotentiary General for War Economy, states as follows: "The task of the Plenipotentiary General for War Economy is to place all the economic resources in the service of warfare. The Plenipotentiary General for War Economy within the framework of his functions to issue legal orders, deviating from the existing "He is the responsible head for financing wars through the Reich Ministry and the Reichsbank" (PS-2261, USA-24).

is given the right

laws."

(b) Schacht financed German armaments through the MEFO system of promissory notes, which was a swindling venture on a national scale that has no precedent, and the success of which was dependent upon the realization of the aggressive plans of the Hitlerites. It was because of this that Schacht set 1942 as the date when the MEFO notes were to mature, and he pointed out in his speech of 29 November 1938, the relation between "the daring credit policy" of the Reichsbank and the aims of the Hitlerite foreign policy (EC-611, USA-622).

(c) Having made full use of his plenary powers, Schacht carefully developed and carried out a broad program of economic mobilization which allowed the Hitlerite leaders to wage war at any time considered most favorable. In particular, from the report of Schacht's deputy, Wohlthat, "the preparation for mobilization carried out by the Plenipotentiary for War Economy" shows that Schacht provided to the last detail for the system of exploitation of the German economy in wartime, all the way from the utilization of industrial enterprises, of raw material resources and manpower down, to the distribution of 80,000,000 ration cards (EC-258, USA-625). It is significant that this report was drawn up a month after Hitler's statement at the conference of 5 November 1937, at which Hitler set forth this concrete plan of aggression (PS-386, USA-25).

Summarizing his past activity, Schacht wrote in January 1937: "I worked out the preparation for war in accordance with the principle that the plan of our war economy must be built in peacetime in such a way that there will be no necessity for any reorganization in case of war." Schacht confirmed his statement in court (Transcript, afternoon session, 2 May 1946).

Schacht consciously and deliberately prepared Germany for war. (d) The former Minister of War, Von Blomberg, testified that: "Schacht was fully cognizant of the plans for development and increase of the German armed forces, since he was constantly informed. of all the financing necessary for the development of the German armed forces" (USA–838)..

On 31 August 1936, Von Blomberg informed Schacht that: "The establishment of all air force units must be completed by April 1, 1937, and therefore large expenditures must be entailed in 1936 .. (PS-1301, USA-123).

In the spring of 1937, Schacht participated in the military exercises in Godesberg (EC-174).

(e) In his memorandum to Hitler on May 3, 1935, entitled the "Financing of Rearmament," Schacht wrote: "A speedy fulfillment of the program for rearmament on a mass scale is the basis of German policy, and, therefore, everything else must be subordinate to this task; the completion of this task, the achievement of this purpose must meet no obstacles (PS-1168, USA-37).