world lies in the fact that similar laws with similar formulation and contents have been passed in other countries.

Dr. Gerhardt Wagner, who was Dr. Conti's predecessor, discussed these questions at the Party rally in Nuernberg. I did not talk to Gerhardt Wagner at that time and had nothing to do with these things. However, I hear now that in 1935 Gerhardt Wagner had a film made presenting the problem of the insane. Apparently the film was made in asylums with insane persons.

Q. Witness, did not the requests received by Bouhler and the Fuehrer play a certain part?

A. Requests to this effect were certainly constantly received by Bouhler, and the Chancellery of the Fuehrer always received such things. I only know that these requests were afterwards passed on to the Reich Ministry of the Interior. I myself know of one request which was sent to the Fuehrer himself through his adjutant's office in the spring of 1939. The father of a deformed child approached the Fuehrer and asked that this child or this creature should be killed. Hitler turned this matter over to me and told me to go to Leipzig immediately — it was in Leipzig to confirm the fact on the spot. It was a child who was born blind, an idiot — at least it seemed to be an idiot — and it lacked one leg and part of one arm.

Q. Witness, you were speaking about the Leipzig affair, about this deformed child. What did Hitler order you to do?

A. He ordered me to talk to the physicians who were looking after the child to find out whether the statements of the father were true. If they were correct, then I was to inform the physicians in his name that they could carry out euthanasia.

The important thing was that the parents should not feel themselves incriminated at some later date as a result of this euthanasia — that the parents should not have the impression that they themselves were responsible for the death of this child. I was further ordered to state that if these physicians should become involved in some legal proceedings because of this measure, these proceedings would be quashed by order of Hitler. Martin Bormann was ordered at the time to inform Guertner, the Minister of Justice, accordingly about this case.

Q. What did the doctors who were involved say?

A. The doctors were of the opinion that there was no justification for keeping such a child alive. It was pointed out that in maternity wards under certain circumstances it is quite natural for the doctors themselves to perform euthanasia in such a case without anything further being said about it. No precise instructions were given in that respect.

Q. Was this problem of deformities dealt with anywhere else?

A. The problem of deformities was probably discussed before this Leipzig case. However, in the course of the summer it was worked