Evening star., 1950-06-06

Secon0 OF SIX oFucIeS on WHot W0f
hove been the greatest single in
stance OF treoehery in the last war.
This is the story Of how one self
seeker is believed to have pro-
Ionged World War " BY nearly q
year and added thousands Of deod
and wounded to the Allied toll.
King Kong from the Gestape
hospital. I got this little thing
about month afterward.
I'VE had just placed our dyna'
mite under a bridge stanchion.
was bent fixing the fuses-bullet!
started to crack among us like
whips. The Nazis had discovered
our plane. somehow" hi
shrugged. II got away, as die
King Kong, our leader-ah. he
was magnificent. A charmed
life" His eyes shone.
What were they shooting
with?" I asked. Machine guns?'
The honest little Belgian patriot
replaced his black beret. Strange
ly, no. It was not machine guns
Colonel. They picked us off with
sniper's rif1eS-eight of us-hit
every man - except King Kong,
that lucky one."
Biggest Target of All.
1.-THE biggest target of ALL"
said softly. He laughed.
"Oui-da. The biggest target of
all-and they could not hit him,
heinz"
He slipped his red wine. Such
a man for the ladies, this King
Kong. I tell you. that big chateau
on the hill beyond Laeken-it's S
pretty heiress, they say, gave all
her jewelry-her family heirlooms
for his resistance group war
funds" ,
He chuckled tolerantly. "They
say he squandered the sparklers
on other girls here in Brussels
All, they say they say.
Always such evil rumors about a
great man."
I turned my khaki-camoufiaged
staff car toward the chateau. ]
wanted to learn more of the Chris
tian Lindemans. tagged king
Kong" because Of his huge size
who had incredibly been captured
by the Gestapo at one time and
then released. The hero" of the
wartime resistance was becoming
increasingly suspect.
The lady of the castle was al
home, repairing her troop tram
pied rose garden. The fighting in
Belgium had barely ended.
"Lindemans, Msieur? A brave
man. But he had his weakness
-" she twitched her pretty
white shoulders bravely. His
affairs-he tries to break all our
hearts. True, yes, gave him my
jewels-for the resistance move
ment, you understand. He en-
bezzled them, I think"
What makes you think that,
Countess?"
1T is not easy to say this,
Colonel-but I saw one of my
emerald pendants upon the neck
Of girl in the town. 1t had been
my mothers. I thought that per-
haps the resistance men had sold
my jewels to raise money, but
when I asked her to sell it to me
without, of course, telling her il
had been mine-she said King
Kong had given 1t to her, and
would strangle her If she sold it,"
Did you discover her nan1e?"
The countess sighed. "Ah-if il
had been only the one, Colonel
No, there were two-Mia Zeist anc
Margaretha Delden. both notori-
Gus tavern girls here" She
broke of, laid her small hand ir
quick concern upon my sleeve.
Both Girls German Agents.
But what is the matter
Colonel? Surely you do not know
these Women?"
I knew them indeed. The lively
Mia zeist and the snowdrop-pale
Margaretha Delden were botr
listed upon my private security
files as paid and highly valuable
agents Of the German Abwehr.
I drove my car back down tn,
dusty road along the banks of tn,
Senne River into Brussels, ane
made hasty telephone call or
the thin yellow field-cable line Il
my headquarters in Antwerp.
Wilhelm, my assistant answered
Yes, he had the addresses of botf
women. I scribbled them, Dor.
rowed a couple of Security Police
from the Dutch Intelligence ir
Brussels, and went to the frs
address.
I was too late. Miss Zeist, thai
lively traitoress. had fed to vi.
emma. took my police around te
the apartments of Margareths
Delden.
Here again. was too late. The
door was heavily bolted. It tool
us two minutes to break it down
When I entered her room. it was
to find her lying crumpled upor
her bed. Her pale. pretty face
was mottled blue. he lips deathly
magenta. In prison hospital she
died that afternoon, without ut.
tering one word.
Lindemans had not been faith.
full to Margaretha Delden. BuI
she had been faithful-in death