The Odessa File

‘Did you get your dagger?’

‘Yes, sir. From the hands of the commandant.’

‘What are the words on it?’

‘“Blood and honour”, sir.’

‘What kind of training did you get at Dachau?’

‘Complete military training, sir, and political-ideological training to supplement that of the Hitler Youth.’

‘Did you learn the songs?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘What was the book of marching songs from which the Horst Wessel Song was drawn?’

‘The album Time of Struggle for the Nation, sir.’

‘Where was Dachau training camp?’

‘Ten miles north of Munich, sir. Three miles from the concentration camp of the same name.’

‘What was your uniform?’

‘Grey-green tunic and breeches, jackboots, black collar lapels, rank on the left one, black leather belt and gunmetal buckle.’

‘The motto on the buckle?’

‘A swastika in the centre, ringed with the words “My honour is loyalty”, sir.’

The lawyer rose and stretched. He lit up a cigar and strolled to the window.

‘Now you’ll tell me about Flossenburg camp, Staff Sergeant Kolb. Where was it?’

‘On the border of Bavaria and Thuringia, sir.’

‘When was it opened?’

‘In 1934, sir. One of the first for the pigs who opposed the Fuehrer.’

‘How large was it?’

‘When I was there, sir, 300 metres by 300. It was ringed by nineteen watch-towers with heavy and light machine guns mounted. It had a roll-call square 120 metres by 140. God, we had some fun there with them Yids …’

‘Stick to the point,’ snapped the lawyer. ‘What was the accommodation?’

‘Twenty-four barracks, a kitchen for the inmates, a wash-house, a sanatorium and various workshops.’

‘And for the SS guards?’

‘Two barracks, a shop and a bordello.’

‘How were the bodies of those who died disposed of?’

‘There was a small crematorium outside the

wire. It was reached from inside the camp by an underground passage.’