Evening star., 1953-09-15


for such a permit. BY special
arrangement, I had been carry
ing on my work as an Associated
Press correspondent in Czecho-
Slovakia by virtue of successive
extension Of my residence per-
NIT, despite the fact that l had
been deprived of my official ac-
Creditatlon. or working permit,
at the end of September.
went to the Office and was
taken before a strange mana
very strange man. His eyes were
a cool, pale blue behind thick
Steel-rimmed glasses, and under
them the flesh was folded into
pouches. His hair was washed
out blond. His face had the
pallor Of a dead fish. It was
twisted into an exaggerated
grin.
This, I thought with a little
chill inside me, is what a secret
policeman looks like-Something
like an unhealthy lizard, come
from some sunless cave.
He motioned me to a chair.
sat down again himself and
beamed at me through several
awkward seconds. Then a second
man came in, laid aside coat
and briefcaSe and seated himself
beside me as interpreter.
I'VE must apologize for the
pictures" said the first man, in
Czech.
! looked up at the walls and
saw a sunny landscape and a
bright military portrait Of j. v.
Stain. wondered why a Com
munist policeman should be
apologizing for Stain.
Letter Is introduced.
But my weird new acquaint-
ance had already passed on the
subjects of "our party" and "po-
lltlcal defense" He said the
party believed in criticism and
self-criticiSm. Self-criticism, he
continued, was really like con-
feSs1on in the church: If a man
had something on his conscience.
he told it and felt better after
ward. I wondered what he was
leading up to.
Then my interrogation said:
"A citizen of Czechoslovakia is
under arrest and has mentioned
your name"
was surprised. I said could
not imagine who it could be.
He pulled something from a
file on his desk, held it I'D and
said. Have you ever seen this
before?"
1t was a typewriter sheet of
yellow paper that had been torn
to pieces and then pasted to-
gether again.
That" I replied, "looks like
a letter that a man named Jan
Stransky wrote in my Office one
Sunday last August"
DO you know what was in
that letter." said my questioner.
No, I told him, I had not read it.
The man finished his note-tak-
Ing and turned to other subjects.
He told me not to get my i'm
preSsions of CzechosloVakia from
Czechs who spoke English-the
better educated CZechS - but
from the workers.
"Just Call Me the Boss"
He advised me against "un-
official reporting" which meant
taking news from other than Of
f1cial sources.
When I asked, who have I
been talking to?" he flashed that
hideous smile.
Just call me the boss" he
said.
DO you think I'll get my &C
creditation back?" I asked.
Again the smile. Then a pause.
And finally, yes"
On the way out. the inter-
prefer caught up with me in a
chilly corridor. He was going
to lunch, and invited me to go
, along.
I agreed. We went across the
street to the Representation
House, a community hall in the
spacious, ornate style of the turn
of the century.
He said he was not a police
man but worked in the press de-
partment of Prime Minister An
tonin zapotocky's office. He told
me his name was Antonin Kra-
tochvil.
In the three months that fol-
lowed, this man invited me out
about every two weeks, and I
almost always went. He was a
fascinating puzzle to me.
On the one hand, he spoke
familiarly of events in the Prime
Minister'S Office. On the other.
he talked about meeting "our
mutual friend" and reading the
file the police kept on me.
/ was careful of what ! said to
him, and was careful to pick up
my share of the checks.
Once he tipped me off that a
Slovak bishop was to be tried in
Kosice. CThree Slovak bishops
later we're tried in Bratislava.) }
The next time he saw me, ne
asked if I had made a story out
of his tip. I said I had not.
Il gave it to you to help you, -
he told me.
Il didn't think they'd like it."
l replied.
Il don't think they would
have" he said, and laughed.
On another occasion, he told
me how the Greek Catholic
church in Slovakia had been
wiped out in 1850 and how many
priests had been arrested in the
process.
you're All Right Unless"
He suggested that, to evade
official scrutiny. l send the story
abroad through the United
Ctn&nr EranhncrH, Anll L.;..o !