The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-09-01
|Rumor 5000 Danes Killed
CcOntinusd from Page D

merging nine hours and Q torpedo boat.
 Eleven Danish warships that escaped to MalEno and Halsingborg when the Germans first took over Denmark last weekend were es- corted by Swedish warShips through the Oresund to the Karlslrona Naval base on the Baltic last night under the very eyes of patrolling German warships.
 News of the shift was received with relief by both Swedes and Danish refugees, who feared that the presence of Danish ships 80 close to the German guns migAt prove too tempting.
 Danish circles in Stockholm speculated that Q Danish exile government may be formed, possibly in London, as result of full German occupation of their homeland.
 Reports were received here that pr. werner Best, Hltler's personal representative to Denmark, had resigned and would leave for Berlin in a few days. Best had attempted to appease the Danes, but Hanrie- ken seized control of the country.
 (The office of War Information quoted an article in the Stockholm Newspaper Aftontidningen as say. ing that P. Knutsen, pro- Axis cnlet of the Danish state-owned railways, might form e new government to replace the resigned capinet or Premier Eric Scavenius.)
 BY HUBERT UXKULL
 Haelsingborg, Sweden, Sept. l. (yJPl-The descent of the Na1 ter- TOT on Copenhagen, with German tanks firing casually on groups or by. islanders, was described today by Q 20-year old Dane who was there and who had best be identifieo only as Holger.
 Speaking with unbelievable calm between sips of beer, Holger de- scribed armed clashes of the Danish garrison with tank-led German troops.
 He said the longest two hours he ever spent were those In rowboat with seven other Danes crossing the Oresund to Haelsingbotg, Monday night. Now he was talking quietly, dispassionately, in my room at the Grand hotel:
 T was standing in the middle of town hall square when Q German tank came down the Vester Gade (Cade Means Street., approaching an intersection. At that moment the traffic light changed to red, causing an involuntary gathering of about 20 persons. The tank turned It's guns upon the crowd and fired. I saw five persons fall. The others ran in all directions"
 HOlger's Story Here is Holger's story in his own words:
 "Sunday morning I got up very early to see what was going to hap. pen after l had heard the proclama- ton of the state of emergency on the radio. Castle Rosenberg and the barracks of the royal guards there are not far from where I live.
 When I walked out the Solv 0ade toward Rosenberg suddenly saw two German tanks coming from the opposite direction, their guns point. ing ct me. I jumped off the street and threw myself flat on the ground in some bushes of the Botanic Gar. den to my right.
 "The tanks began firing at the barracks, which l could see through the trees some 300 meters Co little more than 300 yards) away to my right and in front of me.
 T could see the flashes of the guns and here the cracking of the machine guns. The fire was an- swered from the barracks, but only with machine guns and rifles--no cannon.
 Blast Of Field Guns
 "Soon I could also hear the blast of field guns which the Germans posted right in front of the bar racks on the Norre Void. Though I couldn't see the guns. The shoot ing still was going on when I went home, taking cover behind trees and bushes.
 "When returned to the scene of the fighting the next day, I saw gaping holes in the walls of the barracks, blasted by the German field guns.
 How many men of the royal guards were killed, nobody knew.
 q returned to Copenhagen about g a. m. Sunday after spending the afternoon with friends in the near by countryside. It was something of a problem to get rail ticket. I had to stand in line nearly two hours.
 'When I stepped out of the sta- tion, I heard shooting in almost every part of the city-exactly where, 1t was impossible to tell in the dark. Apart from that I had no chance to look around because of the curfew.
 Sporadic Shooting
 During the night I heard big blasts, probably sabotage, and sporadic shooting. There also was the sound of ambulances rushing through the pitch black streets, their sirens shrieking. They made for the municipal hospital, deliver ing loads and returning quickly to fetch new victims.
 linen 1t was the Germans doing the shooting. The garrisons of Ro- senhorg and Amalienborg surTen- dered early Sunday and there was no other organized resistnce.
 "All the public buildings. includ- ing the town hall and police sta- tons. had been taken over by Ger man troops and the gestapo."
 It was the next morning that Holger stood aneaT the street inter- section and saw the German tank blaze away at the crowd waiting for tho traffic light to turn green.
 M-AM