The daily monitor leader. [volume] (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1942-19??, 1944-11-09

betrayal. She was far more than
just her husbands housekeeper,
confidante and chief adviser.
She often did the most danger
Gus jobs, because a cool woman
could smile her way out OF
jams which would often have
been fatal to a man.
Much of my job" Helene
told me, was carrying the most
secret orderS-the coordinateS,
for example, of the location
where arms we're to be parachut-
ed by the Allies.
This was the most dangerous
part of the job, not so much be-
cause it would have meant tor
ture and death if Id been
caught, as because it would
have meant that precious arms
would be parachuted TO the
Germans instead of us. But the
reward was worth the risk. You
can't imagine what a wonder
fully thrilling thing it was to
stand in a field or a wood at
midnight, waiting for the hum
of airplane motors, and watch
ing containers of arms and am
munition float down exactly
where we were waiting. Tons
and tons came down. The Ger
mans got very, very little of it.
The toughest times for Helene
followed the arrests Of her ac-
completes. mo one can hold out
indefinitely against the gestapo
tortures," Helene said. You
might as we'll make up your
mind to that. SO when someone
was caught, we had to move. III
never forget the bravery of one
old woman of IS. She did Won
derful work for us, hiding Allied
airmen in her Paris home until
we could prepare forged ident-
ity and ration cards for them.
One day the Gestapo caught her.
l didn't know it until the next
day when she managed somehow
to get message to me.
The GeStapo had broken her
right arm, her left leg and her
jaw. They had hurled her small
body time and again against the
wall of the torture chamber.
She warned me TO move quick
ly. She knew she could not re-
sist much longer telling what
she knew"
DOZENS OF PROBLEMS
Each move brought dozens of
problems for Helene. Il have
clothes and possessions scattered
in at least a dozen places in
Paris and Lord only knows how
many elsewhere. When we got
word to move, we moved -
quickly" Usually Helene tried
to stay with a friend, avoiding
the necessity Of registering.
You can imagine the prob
lens of running a house under
these conditions, Helene con-
tinued. Somehow we managed
to do it. We got food and clothes
on the black market. Our big
gest clothing problem was for
American filters. They're too big
10 look French. When we had
lot of them at onCe-once we
had 80 on one group and had 10
buy them a boat 10 sail them TO
England--it was awful. Food
was easier. Often we ate in res
taurants frequCntcd by the Gcs-
tapo. The greatest danger was
double agentS-men working
with both the Gcstapo and the
resistance and selling TO the
highest bidder
In the beginning of May 1914
Helene and her husband lcft
Paris to lead the Maquis in the
field. Here in the country the
danger was multiplied, for
strangers-cSpeCially women -
are easy TO spot. Il can assure
you" said Helene quite CONVEX
sationally, that it has been aw.
full not being able 10 sleep for
four years without one ear open
for the Gestapo'S 1 a. m. call
But the job had 10 be done.
When il was done, when the Ma
quis triumphantly fought into
Orleans and TO a junction with
the American Third Army, in