Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-08-15
By JAN VALTM

the leuSe ana lay sun.
"Come back" the man
shouted.
Popovics did not move.
"Cone back--or 1 shoot"
So Popovics became a pris-
oner of the Gestapo. One of
many thousands.
For many weeks I did not
see Firelei again. We we're
torn apart, as many lovers IN
the movement had been torn
asunder before our turn came.
The party sent her TO Berlin.
She was forbidden TO tell me
where she lived or what her
assignment was. There was
not even a farewell
A day or two later. the
steamer Biera entered Ham
burg harbor. She was a
Danish freighter trading regu-
larly from Copenhagen. A
member of the strong Com
munist unit in the crew OF
this ship was a courier be-
tween the Western Secretariat
and the central committee Of
the German Party.
He brought me the order to
transport the confidential
shipping files of the Seamens
International 49, ISL - safely
from Hamburg to Copen-
hagen. The files had been in
the possession of Albert Wal
ter, the imprisoned chief Of
the Comintern's maritime sec
ton.
CAN HAVE FILES
Through a girl courier I
contacted the old sailor :
mother. She was frail old
woman, but her militant spirit
was intact. OF course, she
declared, | could have the
files, which contained informa-
ton accumulated in years of
persistent work by the harbor
brigadeS of many ports.
The files were in a camphor
chest. The chest was hidden
in the basement of a trawler-
mans home in Altoona. Be-
yond that old Frau Walter
talked Of nothing but her son.
Albert, who had been her only
child.
/ found the camphor chest,
and l guarded IL as if it were
the apple of my eye. With
the assistance OF a ship
handlers runner. / Struggled
il aboard the Beira. i en-
deavored 10 inform Ernst
Wollweber that / was escort
ing the consignment TO Copen-
hagen.
Wollweber could not be
found on such short notice,
each week he shifted his head
quarters, and contact with il
could only be established
through a complicated system
Of relay stations.
The passage TO Copenhagen
was quiet. The sudden relief
from the nightmare of Ger
many left in doubt. at times.
whether / was awake or
dreaming. The enormous bulk
of Richard Jensen awaiting
me on the quay in Copen-
hagen jolted me: l was really
awake.
Richard Jensen rolled his
celebrated corpulence into the
drivers seat of his new
Renault. He chuckled with
satisfaction.
JOY OF SPRINGTIME
"NOw that the lights have
gone out in Berlin" he said.
Copenhagen will he the first
capital after Moscow.
Copenhagen dubbed with
light and the, JOY of Spring
time. The crowds who drank
and danced and ate with
gusto in the many pleasure
palaces around Tivoli Park
had no inkling of the dark
forces that invaded their
cheerful little kingdom since
the flames had burst through
the dome OF the German
Reichstag.
They were. like the citizens
of their brother countries in
the north. and of the great
democracieS OF the west,
quantity unprepared TO cope
with the onslaught of forces
which spoke Of the emancipa-
ton of mankind, but meant
seizure of power.
The broad undertow running
from Moscow had been di-
verified from its main course
Germany-and for the first
time struck with full force
the countries north OF the
Baltic and west of the Rhine.