20 Dec. 45
Allgemeine SS, who were subject to compulsory military
service in the Wehrmacht. So that, if I had to estimate, I would say
that probably some 750,000 persons would be the top figure of personnel
who had been involved in the SS from the beginning, but that is an
estimate.
THE TRIBUNAL (Mr. Biddle): Then you have no breakdown to show how many
of those were civilians, clerks, stenographers, soldiers, and so on?
MAJOR FARR: No. When we are talking about SS members, we are not
talking about stenographers who worked in the office, who were not
members of the SS. By SS members, we mean personnel who took the oath
and appeared on the membership list, either as a member of the
Allgemeine SS, the Death's-Head Units, or the Waffen-SS. 1 would think
that my figure of 750,000 was a figure including members of the SS,
Allgemeine SS, the Totenkopf Verbände, and the Waffen-SS.
I was pointing out the shift of control of concentration camps to WVHA
in 1942, which was coincident with the shift in the basic purpose of the
camps, which heretofore has been concerned with custody of individuals
for political and security reasons. Now the basic purpose of the camps
was to furnish manpower, and I now want to point out to the Court the
agencies of the SS which were involved in that manpower drive.
The Tribunal has already received evidence of an order which was issued
in 1942, shortly after the transfer to WVHA of concentration camp
control, directing Security Police to furnish at once 35,000 prisoners
qualified for work in the camps. That order is our Document 1063-PS, and
was received in evidence as Exhibit Number USA-219.
Thirty-five thousand prisoners were, of course, merely the beginning.
The SS dragnet was capable of catching many more slaves. I offer in
evidence a carbon, typewritten copy of a directive to all the
departments of the SS Supreme Command, issued from Himmler's field
headquarters on August 5, 1943. It is our Document Number 744-PS. I
offer it as Exhibit Number USA-455. That directive appears on Page 2 of
the translation. It implements an order signed by the Defendant Keitel
directing the use of all males captured in guerilla fighting in the East
for forced labor. The Keitel directive appears on Page 1 of the
translation. I shall read only the Himmler directive appearing on Page 2
of the translation.
The Tribunal will note that it is addressed to every main office of the
SS Supreme Command. I read that list of addressees of the directive:
"(1) Chief of the personnel staff of
Reichsführer SS; (2) SS Main Office; (3) Reich Security Main
Office; (4) Race and