Evening star., 1947-11-02

5, and spread to almost every country
the Farben case is, 1t is important
to recognize some of the things it is
not.
| In the first place, Farben is not
being tried because it is big busi-
ness" as such. Once, after three
weeks Of admitted tedium and more
than 400 documents bearing mostly
on Farben's extent and internal Or
ganization, one of the judges asked
impatiently why all this was being
! introduced.
The explanation came from Jo-
siah E. du Bois, jr., the young-look-
ing Camden, N. j. attorney, who was
assistant to Chief Justice Fred M.
/ Vinson when the latter was Secre-
tary of the Treasury, and the man
who is in direct charge of the Far
ben prosecution.
No Crime to Have Power
/ Speaking slowly and earnestly
and over the objections of the corps
of defense attorneys, Mr.. du Bois
argued:
Standing alone, the proof which
shows Farben's bigness and power
obviously proves no crime. We are
not trying these defendants because
they possessed great power. We are
trying them because they used that
power criminally.
I'VE are not trying these defend
ants because they possessed the
power to set in motion a force which
resulted in the death of millions
of people. We are trying them be-
cause they actually set such force in
motion and because they did it un-
der circumstances and for purposes
which are recognized as criminal by
international law
In paraphrase, he was saying it is
no crime, as such, to own gun, but
it is murder to use it to shoot your
neighbors.
In the second place, Farben is not
being tried on any social or economic
grounds because it was monopoly
or a cartel, or because it did or did
not deal with unions. or failed to
pay its income tax, or had any of
the other shortcomings that nor
mally are laid on the thresholds OF
corporations.
1--WE charge these defendants,
Mr.. Du Bois said bluntly, with ma
ior responsibility in preparing Ger
many for an aggressive war; and ir
participating in Waging that war"
The social and economic questions
he said, were not "germane."
Some of the Charges
In the third place. Farben Is not
, being tried because it had overseas
connections, as such, including those
in the United States and Latin
America, bat because the prosecu-
ton believes it can demonstrate
that these were used for spying and
economic warfare far and beyond
any normal business activities.
Nor is this espionage the hub oil
the case against Farben. Only two
of nine points in one of the three
major counts against the Farber
officials are even concerned with
this.
u The prosecution aims to show In.
. stead:
l. That Farben, for its own ends
, helped to bring Hitler to power.
2. That Farben helped to shape
and direct German rearmament fol
the admitted purpose of conquerine
Europe and of increasing it's owr
tremendously profitable business.
3. That Farben acquired, by force
or outright robbery, or destroyed
, when it suited Farben's aims better
the chemical industry of all of occu.
pied Europe.
4. That it had its own slave labol
long before the Nazis ever made il
an official plan.
5. That it ran its own concentra.
tions camps where $4,000 or 30,OOl
people died.
6. That these and countless othel
: acts of Farben are crimes under in
ternational treaties and, more spe
cifically, under Control Council orde
e No. 10 the four-power agreemen
which established the Internationa
: Military Tribunal to try the leadin,
2 NaZis.
! 1--WE must understand that Far
S ben was not an ordinary busines
S enterprise" Mr.. Du Bois told tn,
= court.
On that, at least, no one can argue
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