Evening star., 1945-04-30

10 bury 4,WJe Jews
Found in Horror Camp
BY LOUIS p. LOCHNER,
Associated Press War Correspondent.
LANDSBERG, April 30.-Nearly
1000 Jews from various parts Of
Europe were killed at concentration
camp No. 4, which Is located
only few miles from the jail cell
where Adolf Hitler wrote "Mein
Kampf."
Yesterday the few that still could
walk were dragged along by the flee
ing Nazi overlords.
Today I saw scores Of charred
bodies, hundreds Of naked virtual
skeletons, lying on the ground with
unforgettable grimaces of extreme
pain. I also saw and smelled the
filthy novels where they were herded
until the fleeing SIS guards set fire
to them, burning several hundred
Jews alive.
About $50 Germans, including
ministers, priests, farmers, business
men and laborers from the sur
rounding country were brought to
the camp today on the orders Of Col.
Edward r. Seller Of Louisville, KY,
head Of the l2th Armored Divisions
military government section.
Germans Dig Graves.
German civilians were digging
mass graves.
Standing amid corpses, Col. Seller
asked the Germans to remove their
hats in tribute to men who, like
yourselves, could see, feel, hear, smell
and taste like other humans, but
who were coldly and inhumanely
murdered
Col. Seller said you may say
that you weren't personally respon-
sible for all this, but remember, you
stood for the government which
perpetrated atrocities like these"
Col. Seller seized stocky, bullet
headed man whose shaven head was
smeared with iodine and stood him
amidst the grueSome corpSeS and
said: Il now produce for you the
man who was commandant Of this
vile camp. Here's the man who was
chiefly responsible for the tortures
you see here with your own eyes
which were inflicted on the unfortu-
mates lying here"
The gravediggers angrily cried
Throw the wretch down here: well
finish and bury him" From among
the $50 German visitors came shouts
Of Swine, beast, criminal" Some
spat.
Compound Viewed.
Col. Seller next conducted the
Germans over the concentration
camp compound. Most of the novels
had been burned down by the re-
treating Gestapo, but enough re-
manned to give a graphic picture OF
the filthy conditions under which
the inmates lived.
1t was evident from an examina-
ton of the bodies that those who
managed to crawl out of the blazing
novels and escape being burned
alive had been killed on emerging
Many Of the corpses were in q
crawling posture with wounds both
from guns and blunt weapons
Beyond the compound along the
edge Of the forest about quarter
Of a mile from the last watch tower
scores Of bodies lay like stacked lum-
Der. Beyond them were half-f1nished
trenches. Evidently the Nazis them
selves had intended to remove these
telltale corpses before the Americans
arrived. The German civilians were
ordered to carry these bodies to the
mass graves.
Concentration camp No. 4 was but
one of II in this immediate area,
near Landsberg prison where Adolf
Hitler wrote "Mein Kampf" in 1928
"a. AL were said to be an overflow
from Dachau. IL miles northeast OF
Munich.
Boys Found in Camp.
At camp No. 2, half mile dis
tant, we saw emaciated IS and l6
year old boys. They said they worked
superhumanly for five years, before
their liberation by the Americans.
Practically all of the survivors OF
this camp of 5000 were menta!
cases. Most of them were Jews. They
cried, grew hysterical. screamed in
coherently when trying to tell us
their stories. All bore the marks OF
malnutrition and torture, gashed
wounds, gangrenous toes, shallow
sunken eyes, bones protruding from
the skin behind which there was
no flesh or fat. missing teeth.
Rabbi Jacob Bernstein of Lodz
Poland, said he had kept careful
records and the inmates died at the
rate OF about 800 weekly.
During our visit SO German pris-
oners of war were removing the
vermin- infested articles of clothing
of the camp inmates for burning
Whenever the American guard was
not looking, some sickly looking in
mate, with burning eyes, woulo
lunge at a German soldier.
The camps captain insisted de-
family when I asked him what he
had to say about the corpses lying
at his feet, Il was the mere over
seer on the outside. didn't know
what was going on in the inside
Whatever happened was the re-
sponsibility of DR.. Planke and his
two assistants" GIs standing
around me gave him the Bronx
cheer when I translated his state.
ment.