13 Dec.
45
the neck were everyday occurrences.
Epidemics of typhus and spotted fever were permitted to run rampant as
a means of eliminating prisoners. Life in this camp meant nothing.
Killing became a common thing, so common that a quick death was
welcomed by the unfortunate ones."
Passing to the next to the last sentence of this same paragraph, quoting
directly . . .
THE PRESIDENT: What are those exhibits that are referred to?
MR. DODD: They are in evidence with the affidavit. They are attached to
it.
THE PRESIDENT: They are not, I suppose, mimeographed in our copy?
MR. DODD: No, we have not had an opportunity to mimeograph each one of
them.
THE PRESIDENT: Are they documents or photographs or what?
MR. DODD: They are principally documents. There are some few plans and
photographs, and so on.
THE PRESIDENT: Are they affidavits or what? There seem to be instances
of . . .
MR. DODD: Well, some of them are in the form of affidavits taken at the
time of the liberation of the camp from persons who were there; and
others are pictures of writings that were found there and of the plans
and so on — such sort of thing.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes. Well the Tribunal will take judicial notice of
those exhibits as well.
MR. DODD: Very well, Your Honor. Reading from the last sentence of this
same paragraph on the same page and quoting:
"On Christmas, 1944, a number of
prisoners were hanged at one time. The prisoners were forced to view
this hanging. By the side of the gallows was a decorated Christmas
tree; and as expressed by one prisoner, 'It was a terrible sight, that
combination of prisoners hanging in the air and the glistening
Christmas tree.'"
"In March or April, 13 American or British parachutists were
hanged. They had been delivered to this camp some time before and had
been captured while trying to blow up bridges."
We will not burden the Tribunal with a recital of all of these reports.
We wish, however, to make reference to the Concentration Camp
Mauthausen, one of the most notorious extermination centers; and I refer
particularly to Document Number 2176-PS,