Evening star., 1954-09-19

fireworks, quickly put two and two
together: Gen. Gehlen was cunning
for DR.. John, and the latter (who
had worked closely with Seton Del
mer in London in 1944-5) was firing
back from both hips.
In spite of all the (rather silly)
attempts that have been made. both
in Bonn and elsewhere, to cloak or
distort DR.. Johns startling act, in
formed sources in Germany have
never for one moment been unaware
of the real background of his de-
sertion: John, after having elm
mated his weaker rival. Heinz, was
himself being pushed to the wall by
his stronger rival, Gehlen.
One week before DR.. John crashed
through the Iron Curtain extension
that bisects Berlin. Gen. Gehlen had
handed to DR.. Hans Globke. Chan
cellor Adenauer'S state secretary and
chief of personnel, one of those fat,
deadly doSsiers marked lotto John"
1t was placed Immediately on the
Chancellor's desk for his urgent per-
sonal attention.
Exactly what this dossier con-
tanned is not known yet. and per-
haps never will be. 1t is taken for
granted, though, that it dwelt
heavily on certain alleged aspects Of
DR.. Johns private life. which shocked
Adenauer SO much that he told
Globke: II never want to see that
man CDR. john again."
The security chief, alerted by his
own informants in the chancellery.
took Adenauer at his word and de-
parted for good.
Otto John was regarded as Brit
aims man." After his successful
escape from Nazi Germany. in July,
1914, he had gone to London by way
of Spain and Portugal. In the last
months of the war, he had worked
closely with British intelligence off,
GERS and had made anti-Nazi propa-
ganda broadcasts over BBC. His
candidacy for the post as president
of the Federal Security Office was
warmly sponsored by the British
occupation authorities. l9ff
Gen. Gehlen, on the other hand,
was and is Americas man. After
brief spell of captivity after the
German surrender. he was set up in
his old business in 1916, but under
new management Since then, the
Gehlen- -Apparat has mushroomed to
extraordinary proportions. 1t has
staff of more than 1000 persons
not counting informants and agents
in the f1eld-aS compared to the 800
employed by the Federal Security
Office in Cologne.
GehIen Rules UneosiIy
Now Gen. Gehlen is riding on top.
but he Is far from being a happy.
man. His organization has been
falling TO pieces in the past few,
weeks. 1t is not so much a ques-
ton of DR.. John having betrayed
the identity of Gehlen's agents in
the eastern zone The can hardly
have known more than few OF
them). Rather. there has been a
stampede of Gehlen men who think
that DR.. John knew all about them
and that he is telling the Russians
all he knows. .. F,e
Nor is that all. On December II,
1858, Gen. Gehlen, in preparation for
his new role as central intelligence
chief" Of Western Germany. ap-'
peared before the EDO COMMITTEES
Of the Bundestag. It was, Of course,
q small and select group Of we'll
screened members Of Parliament who
were allowed to attend this exclusive
briefing on the organization and
activities Of the Gehlen-App1rGt..
One of those present was member
of Chancellor Adenauer's own party
named Karl Franz Schmidt Witt
mack. This gentleman went over to
the Reds one month after DR.. John
had done so,
There is only one possible conclu-
sion: What the Russians. at this
stage, don't know about the Gehlen.
Apparat, just isn't worth knowing.
The Bonn Republic is not yet five
years old, but it has already had
three intelligence services which
have killed each other of, leaving
both Americans and British high and
dry.