WesWorld

Wien, Friday, 1 October 1943

The latest number of the comic-magazin “Von der Heydt”, Das Schiff Des Nearchos (The Ship of Nearchos), sees the hero discover a ancient ship lost in the midst of the Gedrosian desert. Once the flagship of Nearchos, admiral of Alexander the Great, Von der Heydt finds it laden with treasures and, more importantly, scrolls that might contain clues to the fate of Alexander’s lost fleet.

Now equipped with a great war horse and armed with a mighty sword, the hero Sigurd sets out upon his quest to slay the serpent Regin. In the current number of the ‘Sigurd’ comic-magazin, the hero begins his search for the creature’s lair, during which he encounters the maiden Brynhild at the court of her father, King Heimar.


Die Rheinpfalz, Saturday, 2 October 1943

Four more corvettes of the Leopard class were laid down yesterday in the naval shipyards at Bremerhaven and Cuxhaven. These vessels, advanced under the mid-year naval novella, are expected to complete in the early summer of 1944, and will be followed by four more vessels expected to be laid down this winter. These specialist antisubmarine vessels will assure that German commerce can traverse the seas despite the threat posed by underwater attack.


Kronen Zeitung, Sunday, 3 October 1943

Abenteuer Archäologie, Monday, 4 October 1943

At the recent quarterly meeting of the German Oriental Society in Berlin reports were delivered on the finds stemming from the first season of excavations at Harran in eastern Anatolia, the latest translations from the Hittite archives at Hattusa and an update on the archaeological survey of sites in Anatolia being conducted by Doctor René Belloq. A proposal was brought forward to seek permission of the Turkish Government for an exploration of the ancient city of Miletus in Caria; this matter was referred to committee to permit consultation with the appropriate authorities before action was taken.


Bochum, Tuesday, 5 October 1943

George Gottlob was a man on a mission, and he was running late. Haste all too often leads to an oversight, and Gottlob stepped off the curb he did not see the car turn the corner. The driver of the Wanderer could not stop in time and struck Gottlob, killing him instantly.

The local police were on the scene in moments. While the driver was interrogated, and other witnesses sought, an ambulance was summoned in the vain hope that the victim might be saved. The deceased possessions were carefully removed and inventoried, and the body was sent to the city morgue pending notification of next of kin.

Two policemen were sent to the victim’s flat in the hope of finding Gottlob’s wife, children or other family; apparently there was none. Neighbors told them that he lived alone, and traveled often. They sealed the apartment to assure that nothing was taken while the case remained open; detectives would follow-up in the hopes of finding someone to claim the body.

It was, to the Bochum police, all routine.


Sächsische Zeitung, Wednesday, 6 October 1943

Berliner Abendpost, Thursday, 7 October 1943

The new session of the Reichstag opened today, with the seating of newly elected members. The outgoing Reichspräsident, Hugo Eckener, called upon Konrad Adenauer to form a Government, a pro forma action, which is expected to be formalised tomorrow with the reappointment of the current cabinet. The first order of business for the new session will be the election of a new Reichspräsident, as provided for by the newly-amended procedure.


Bochum, Friday, 8 October 1943

With two days passed and no one coming forth to claim the body of George Gottlob the matter was turned over to Leutnant Hermann Giskes of the Bochum police detective squad. They had already discovered that the deceased had worked as a salesman for a firm of industrial jobbers; according to them Gottlob did not have a family, lived alone, and kept to himself. He was a mediocre salesman, but serviced his existing accounts sufficiently well for the firm to keep him on. His sales territory was within the Ruhr industrial district, and with the booming economy, is was a sellers market for industrial raw materials.

Giskes decided to check the deceased personal effects himself, rather than turn it over to one of his detectives. He brought the small box that contained them to his desk and began to go through the contents, making note of what he found for purposes of inventory.

“Wallet,” he jotted down, “Identity registration card in the name of George Gottlob, currency notes in the amount of twenty-eight Reichsmarks.”

“Notecase,” was the next entry; “Assorted business cards – four of his own, five apparently of contacts.” Giskes wrote down the names and addresses of the firms on the deceased’s contacts – maybe they could tell him something. “Ticket stubs from trains to Essen, Dortmund and Bonn.” Giskes reasoned that these might have been for the deceased’s next expense report. “Restaurant receipt, ‘Die Wappen von Frauenlob’, Essen.” Again – this would could have been documentation for an indent.

“Keys.” Giskes noted that there were several – one looked like the standard latchkey for a flat, while several looked like keys for patent locks; and there was a second latchkey. “Now that is interesting,” he said aloud.

“Parcel” Giskes wrote. It was a rough cylinder, about twenty-centimetres long and about four centimeters in diameter. The paper wrapping bore no address. “Perhaps he was going to the post office to mail it?” Giskes mused; then he realised that the time of the accident was all wrong for posting a parcel.

Giskes’ curiosity was piqued, and he began to unwrap the parcel. He was quite surprised to discover that whatever it was had been wrapped in a rubber prophylactic and tied off. “Gott in Himmel?” he exclaimed.

He set the parcel down and thought. This was quite unusual and unsettling. Before proceeding further, he wanted to consult with a colleague. He picked up the telephone and dialed a number; when the operator answered, he said, “Major Andreas Protze please.”


Trierische Landeszeitung, Saturday, 9 October 1943

Bochum, Sunday, 10 October 1943

It had taken some time for Major Protze to travel from Berlin; the Abwehr officer first had to deal with the things on his desk before responding to an informal inquiry from an old friend. Yet what Giskes had told him intrigued him – and, if Giskes’ suspicions were correct, then the discovery of the oddly-wrapped parcel would be of vital importance.

Giskes greeted him as he arrived at the station house. “Good morning Herr Major,” he said formally, yet with a smile.

“Good morning Hermann,” Protze responded. “Good to see you. Should I have had the Admiral recall you to active duty before we look at this ‘thing’ of yours?” Giskes was an officer of the reserve, assigned to Abwehr counter-intelligence.

Giskes raised an eyebrow. “I am beginning to think you should have.” He then led the way to his office, where he invited Protze to sit while he retrieved the parcel from his safe.

“This is how you found it?” Protze asked.

“No,” Giskes replied. “It was wrapped in paper, like a normal parcel.” He took an evidence bag from the table behind him. “Here is the wrapper.”

Protze examined it in a cursory manner. “No marks, of course.”

“Of course,” Giskes replied. “That would be too simple.”

“Let us examine this thing more closely,” Protze continued, and hefted the cylindrical parcel. “Odd that it is wrapped in a prophylactic,” he mused.

“Not if it were to go in a wet dead-drop,” Giskes countered. “You taught that in such circumstances it was essential to protect the material from the effects of water.”

“Ach, so I did,” Protze acknowledged. “Of course, I never thought to use a thing like this. Very creative, and effective I suspect. Shall we see what we have?”

He pulled out a pen-knife and carefully cut the tied end of the rubber sheath, and peeled it back like the skin of a sausage, exposing a lightweight aluminium tube.

“Oh, ho, ho.” Protze said with a smile. “You have something here my friend.”

He ran his fingers across the surface of the tube and felt the presence of a seam, suggesting that it could be pulled apart. Holding an end in each hand he began to twist the tube in alternate directions, and it began to slide apart – quite slowly but steadily. And then with a soft “pop” it was open.

“What have we here?” Giskes asked.

Protze upended the two halves of the tubes and shook out their contents; then with his fingers he fished out papers and strips of photo negatives. His blood ran cold, “I think we have a security leak of the first order.”

There were two small rolls of photographic film, a small cube of a metal neither of them could recognize off hand, negatives showing drawing, calculations and texts; the papers – typed on thin onionskin – spoke of observations of troop movements, procurements by departments of the Heer and the Luftwaffe, political gossip. The two passed them back and forth attempting to analyze what they had found.

“This is quite serious Hermann,” Protze said. “I will need to notify Berlin immediately. Has anyone claimed the body yet?”

“No,” the detective replied. “I was hoping to find a lead to a next of kin among his possessions and found this.”

“Have you gone to his lodgings yet?” Protze inquired.

“They were visited by two of our men as a matter of routine right after the accident, looking for a wife or family,” Giskes explained. “There being none, they sealed the apartment until the matter could be resolved. I was there yesterday and the seals were still intact. If my suspicions were correct, I wanted you to see the place undisturbed.”

“Good,” Protze countered. “It is clear to me that this man Gottlob was part of an espionage conspiracy. I will notify the Admiral and request additional manpower to investigate this. Catalog what we have found thus far.” He paused. “Oh, and consider yourself on active duty Herr Kapitän.”

Giskes smiled. “Zu befehl!”


Transradio Press Service, Berlin, Monday, 11 October 1943

The German Reichstag today elected Theodor Heuss as Reichspräsident, the ceremonial head-of-state. The vote was carried by an overwhelming majority of delegates, with very little opposition. It is the general opinion here that the new Reichstag will continue to follow the policies set forth by Chancellor Adenauer which have lead to a period of prosperity for Germany and ever-widening peace in Europe.


Kieler Nachrichten, Tuesday, 12 October 1943

The ships of the Fourth and Fifth Destroyer Flotillas, recently returned from exercises in the North Atlantic, have begun a programme of refitting in shipyards here and elsewhere. Our correspondents report that no fewer than four of the Z250-class vessels cycled through refits earlier this week, and are undergoing their trials in the Baltic and North Sea. It is reported that others will commence their upgrades later this month. It is surprising that such modern vessels are already undergoing refit but such is the pace of change in naval technology these days that even modern vessels much spend time in the dockyards.

Bochum, Wednesday, 13 October 1943

Giskes, Protze, several counter-intelligence officers of the Abwehr and a squad of trusted Bochum policemen had descended upon the flat once occupied by George Gottlob and systematically searched it for clues as to how the deceased had come to possess secret materials and what he was doing with them. They had found a number of documents and notebooks which seemed to suggest that Gottlob – if that was his real name – had been engaged in surveillance of troop movements and other military affairs for at least several years; observations he had made casually during the course of his business journeys. They had also found detailed records of orders booked by the firm he represented, and other in the metallurgical trade, that were linked to defence procurements. That this information appeared to be going to a foreign power was bad enough; but examination of the photographic negatives found in the cylinder showed chemical formulae, details of construction of machinery and other more classified data; the metal cylinder proved to be a sample of tellurium. They had also found materials of the proscribed National Socialist German Workers Party, of which Gottlob was apparently a member; virulent anti-Semitic tracts were found in a closet, and other papers linking him to that group of mad-men.

“We have not found everything,” Protze said.

“What to you mean?” Giskes asked. “We have turned everything upside down.”

“The photographic negatives in the cylinder – where were they produced?” continued Protze. “There are no cameras here, no films and no means to process the films. He did this somewhere.”

Giskes nodded. “That is true.“ A thought struck him. “He had a second latch-key on his key-ring, and keys for several patent locks that he did not need for anything here. Perhaps he had a second flat?”

“A place where he could do his work undisturbed,” Protze concluded. “Please have your men begin a canvass of the neighbors to discover what they knew of Gottlob. Discretely of course. We are still looking for the next of kin.”


Frankfurter Zeitung, Thursday, 15 October 1943




Berliner Abendpost, Friday, 14 October 1943

The Marineflieger has stood down the last unit equipped with the BFW Bf109T carrier-based fighter aircraft and has announced that it will retire the type immediately. The Bf109T has led a troubled existence as a naval aircraft, suffering from a poor reputation for lack of robustness and difficulties in making landings on the Kriegsmarine’s aircraft carriers.

Bochum, Saturday, 16 October 1943

As in police work, sometimes the most casual thing will break open a counterintelligence case. It was still early in the morning when a young boy, accompanied by his father, walked into one of Bochum’s police posts.

“My boy tells me you’ve been canvassing the neighborhood for information about a dead man,” the father explained by way of introduction.

“That is true sir,” replied the desk sergeant. “Do you know something about this man?”

“No, not me,” the father replied. “But my boy says that he’s seen the man at a flat near our home.”

The desk sergeant looked skeptical, but his instructions were to refer anyone claiming to have information to Leutnant Giskes without exception. “If it nothing,” the sergeant thought, “I will have at least followed orders.” So he told one of the officers on duty to take the pair to the detective’s office.

Giskes was going over the evidence recovered from Gottlob’s apartment when the pair were shown into his office. He listened again to the father’s explanation, and noticed the wide-eyed expression on the young boy’s face.

“So, my lad,” he asked in as friendly a voice as he could muster, “You have seen this man?” He held out a photograph for confirmation.

“Yes… yes sir,” the boy replied haltingly. “I’ve seen him on Saturdays – he comes to a flat on Domstrasse, across from the park. My friends and I see him when we are playing football.”

“Are you certain it is him?” Giskes countered.

“Yes… he once yelled at us – called us names and took our football with him when it rolled across his path. He said we should be drilling, not playing…”

The actions fit his mental picture of Gottlob. He turned his attention to the father. “Have you seen him?”

“No, never,” the father explained. “But I do shift work at the steelworks – on Saturday mornings I am usually asleep; I’m on a different shift this week.”

“Thank you for bringing us this information,” Giskes said. “Just let me get your names and addresses in case we need to get back to you for further information. This poor man died in a traffic accident and we are tying to reach his next of kin; this could prove most useful.” Giskes sounded quite sincere; in fact, he had told the truth.

----

Two hours later Giskes, Protze and several other officers stood before the door of a basement flat at Domstrasse 214.

“Shall we see if the key fits?” Protze asked. He inserted the second latchkey they had found on Gottlob’s body and turned it; the door creaked open and they went in.

They found what they were looking for – a large table set up with a frame to hold a camera – the Leica was still in place, though the table was empty. There was a mimeograph machine which Gottlob had used to print the tracts found in his flat; they found more of it here, together with correspondence from the local NSDAP leadership. That would go to other investigators.

“Locked room sir,” said one of the officers standing before an interior door.

Protze examined the lock. “Patent lock,” he remarked, “how nice. Now which one fits?” He tried the keys in succession and was successful on the third try.

Inside they found the darkroom Gottlob had used to develop the photographs taken to ‘process the goods’. The contents of every cupboard, every drawer and every box were catalogued and packaged for removal for further examination. In one locked box they found several hundred Reichsmarks in currency notes and Belgian passport in the name of “Henri de Klerk”.

“Was he a Belgian?” Giskes said in confusion.

“I doubt it,” Protze replied, examining the identity document. “This looks fiddled. It might have been obtained in case he needed to get out of the country quickly.”

“Well, we’ve found his workshop,” Giskes concluded. “Now we need to find his source.”

“Von Schlabrendorff in Berlin already has the first batch of material for examination,” Protze confided. “I am expecting his report very soon. It will guide us to the point of origin of the most dangerous leak.”


Frankfurter Zeitung, Sunday, 17 October 1943

The Carl Urban Stanzwerk und Metallwarenfabrik AG of Velbert has acquired the assets and good will of the Metallwarenfabrik Gebruder Schmidt of Idar-Oberstein. Both firms are suppliers of small metal parts to industrial, automotive and aviation firms, and the amalgamation strengthens the Urban firm’s position in an expanding and competitive market.


Dithmarscher Landeszeitung, Monday, 18 October 1943

The small amphibious landing ships Delphin, Tümmler, Eidechse and Krokodil completed their formal working up today and have been assigned to the First Amphibious Transport and Landing Group at Flensburg.

Bochum, Tuesday, 19 October 1943

Giskes and Protze had continued their investigation into the case of George Gottlob, deceased spy. Their canvass of the district in which the deceased had lived had turned up few leads, and those led to the local NSDAP cell. At the suggestion of Protze several plain-clothes officers of the Bochum police had been detailed to keep an eye on its activities, but at the moment it did not seem to be a promising line of investigation.

Aided by a team of specialists sent from Berlin the two counter-intelligence officers had sifted all the intelligence-bearing documents and it was found that they fell into three broad categories. One comprised trivial, almost anecdotal, information that any curious citizen might have seen had they poked their nose into matters – railway cars laden with tanks on their way to some ordnance depot or garrison; troops passing through a town on their way to maneuvers; sightings of so many airplanes at an airport. The second was more serious – the identification of firms that produced, or could produce, materials and components for defence material – including rough estimates of production capacity and linkages to sources up and down the supply chain. Seemingly minor, this sort of information was invaluable to the saboteur or to the intelligence officers making up targeting lists for bombers. Most grave was the detailed technical information which all came from a single source, the Krupp firm in Essen.

“I have a theory,” Protze pronounced. “Gottlob would not have had direct access to the department – or departments – at Krupp’s from which these materials come. He obtained them from someone who does.”

“That involves dealing with Herr Krupp,” Giskes replied. “Not someone to be trifled with.”

“No,” Protze replied, “and neither of us will make the first overture on that point.” He nodded knowingly, and continued. “The second type of information seems to be linked to Gottlob’s business. It is the sort of information that a commercial salesman would encounter during his work, or might cull from the trade press. The third is almost casual observation thrown into the mix for sake of completeness.”

“Yes,” Giskes concurred, “but to whom was it being passed? We have checked the records of the man’s finances and with the exception of the cash we found at his second flat, nothing appears amiss. His employment record is good, almost too good. Other than his connection with the National Socialists, nothing is out of the ordinary; and they would be the last to betray secrets to a foreign power.”

“All true,” Protze noted. “Of course, the proper spy does nothing out of the ordinary. This man seems to have worked unnoticed for several months, if not years. Were it not for a traffic accident, we would still be unaware of him.”


Berliner Abendpost, Wednesday, 20 October 1943



Minister of Transport Gottfried Treviranus provided the Reichstag with his latest progress report on the completion of the National Motorways system. During the past six months much progress has been made: the sections between Regensburg and Augsburg; Baden-Baden and Freiburg; Rostock and Wittstock; Breslau and Gorlitz; and Dresden and Plauen have been complete. Progress has been made in many other areas, and work is continuing. It is expected that the Reichstag will vote credits to carry on the work projected for eastern and southern Germany, where deputies have clamored for additional roads.


Essen, Thursday, 21 October 1943

The distinguished-looking gentleman was quietly ushered into the private office of Gustav Krupp von Bohlen-und-Halbach without ceremony; though dressed in a civilian suit his bearing proclaimed him to be an officer in mufti. A senior assistant opened the door to Krupp’s office and simply said, “Herr Canaris,”

Gustav Krupp stood. “Welcome to Essen,” he replied. The distinguished-looking gentleman nodded. “That will be all,” Krupp told his assistant, and waited for the underling to close the door behind him as he left.

“Thank you for seeing me Herr Krupp,” Canaris remarked in a quiet tone.

“It is nothing Herr Admiral,” Krupp conceded. “Though I am mystified as to why the Chief of the Abwehr would seek my counsel.”

“A serious problem has been uncovered; one impacting the security of the state; and it can be traced to your metallurgical laboratories here.” Canaris was nothing if not blunt. “I require your assistance in finding the source of information that has been flowing to an as-yet-unknown foreign power.”

The blood drained from Krupp’s face as he took in Canaris’ news – an espionage leak within the Krupp concern? It was unthinkable, and yet if Canaris was here there was no question that it must be true. “What do you wish to be done?”

Canaris went on to explain that his people would need unhindered access to Krupp’s files to locate who might have been able to steal the secrets found in the papers of the deceased Gottlob. They would need to keep anyone associated with such information in the dark regarding the investigation; moreover, they would need absolute secrecy.

Faced with the prospect of loosing his largest customer Krupp acceded to the Abwehr chief’s requests immediately.

Kieler Nachrichten, Friday, 22 October 1943

Ceremonies today in the naval shipyards marked completion of the amphibious landing ships Karpfen and Muräne. Together with their sisters Barbe and Brasse they represent the second group of such vessels for the Kriegsmarine, providing the fleet with the ability to deploy heavy equipment and vehicles along side troops of the Marinelandungsverband. After trials these vessels will work up alongside other units of the Expeditionary Force at Flensburg.


Bremer Nachrichten, Saturday, 23 October 1943

The Turkish cruiser Hizar Reis was completed today in the Deschimag yards at Bremerhaven and turned over to her nucleus crew. Following trials, she will soon depart on her delivery voyage to her homeport in Turkey.


Elbinger Volksstimme, Sunday, 24 October 1943

The fleet oilers Memelland and Munsterland emerged from the shipyards where they have undergone conversion and have begun their post-conversion trials. These great vessels are a further mark of the growing strength of the Kriegsmarine and its ability to respond to a challenge anywhere on the globe.

Hamburger Abendblatt, Monday, 25 October 1943

The minesweepers Mondsee and Attersee were launched at the Deschimag works today, the first of a new class of minesweeper-escorts for the Kriegsmarine. Far larger than the previous Avensee series, the new vessels are far more capable and are intended to support the Kriegsmarine’s world-wide commitments. A total of eight such vessels is projected, with construction continuing into the next year.


Oberösterreichische Rundschau, Tuesday, 26 October 1943




Essen, Wednesday, 27 October 1943

Major Andreas Protze had arrived in Essen several days before, and had set up his investigative headquarters in a rented loft not far from the Krupp main administration building. He had left Giskes in Bochum to pursue further leads on Gottlob and had with him but one assistant, Leutnant Walter Schellenburg.

“Wouldn’t it be easier to conduct our investigations from within the works itself,” the latter asked.

“Easier, perhaps,” the more experienced Protze replied, “but far more noticeable. We do not know how high the source of the information uncovered thus far might be. The lower our profile, the likelier we are to avoid giving ourselves away to him.”

Schellenburg nodded; this was the first major investigation he had the opportunity to be a part of. “So where do we begin?”

“The information in the intercepted report points to the metallurgical department of Krupp’s laboratories; these,” Protze said, laying a hand on a thick stack of papers, “are the employment dossiers of everyone who works in that office. We go through each of them, looking for those who had regular access to the level of information contained in the Gottlob documents.” He smiled, “and then we move on to bank records, looking for any irregularities.”

The younger officer had not realised how much ‘back-room’ work went into an espionage investigation. “I suppose that once we have worked through that, we can begin questioning suspects?”

“If any stand out,” Protze concluded. “None may; we might need to wait a while. Whoever is generating the product for transmission to Gottlob may not know that he is dead, but we do not know how they are transmitting it. We need to discover that.”

Oh hey, Mr, Schellenburg! I first met you in The Eagle Has Landed, and I liked your character. Drop that SS schtick, but keep up with the cool spy-catching. Ta!

OTL he'd be an SS-Oberfuehrer by now. Now, he's just a lowly lieutenant...

Quoted

Originally posted by Rooijen10
OTL he'd be an SS-Oberfuehrer by now. Now, he's just a lowly lieutenant...

Just goes to show you the difference between merit and Brown-shirting (I mean Brown-nosing)

Well, everything I've heard of Schellenburg implies that he has merit in spades: he just hasn't had the historical opportunities to show it, as Heydrich died, the SD and SS never formed, and Schellenburg never got the opportunities they offered him.

You can't shine unless the sun's out (or unless you glow in the dark).

Quoted

Originally posted by Brockpaine
Well, everything I've heard of Schellenburg implies that he has merit in spades: he just hasn't had the historical opportunities to show it, as Heydrich died, the SD and SS never formed, and Schellenburg never got the opportunities they offered him.

You can't shine unless the sun's out (or unless you glow in the dark).

I've read mixed assessments of Schellenburg's abilities, and he was certainly a poor successor to Canaris when he took charge of the remnants of the Abwehr.

In any event, he's still learning his trade and might advance. Who knows - this could be his big break!

Bremer Nachrichten, Thursday, 28 October 1943

The first four Leopard class corvettes were completed today, the Leopard and Luchs at Bremerhaven, the Fuchs and Wolf at Cuxhaven. The employees of the Deschimag company can be rightly proud of their work in finishing these ships on schedule. The four have embarked on their trials and will soon take their place in the fleet.


Dithmarscher Landeszeitung, Friday, 29 October 1943

The dockyard at Wilhelmshaven has seen much activity this week, with the completion yesterday of the fleet salvage tugs Hummel and Natter, and the launch today of their sister-ships Mücke and Wespe. These powerful tugs are design to sail to the rescue of warships damaged in battle and tow them to ports to where they can be repaired; in times of peace, they can do the same for damaged merchantmen. They are necessary auxiliaries for a modern navy, and their arrival signals a further step forward in the ability of the Kriegsmarine to fulfill the tasks allotted to it.


Essen, Saturday, 30 October 1943

Protze and Schellenburg had spent the last three days reviewing the personnel files obtained from Krupps, hoping to find some indication of who might be passing the information found in possession of the spy Gottlob.

“So, who best fits what we know of our spy?” asked Protze casually. He had his own opinions, but he wanted to see if Schellenburg had made progress in his training.

“There are four possibilities as I see it sir,” he replied. “There is Rudolf Bamler – he’s been employed by Krupps since 1919, senior man in the metallurgical laboratory. He has access to all the information, lives alone now – his wife died of consumption several years ago, no overt irregularities in his bank accounts.”

Protze raised an eyebrow. “Why him?”

“As the senior engineer, he knows everything, who is doing what, and who is working when. It gives him access to the information and the ability to assure that he can be alone in the laboratory when he wants to.” Schellenburg continued. “While he fits the profile, I don’t actually consider him a prime suspect.”

“Why?” Protze asked. He had agreed with Schellenburg’s analysis but wondered if his assistant had merely made a guess.

Schellenburg replied, “I checked the timecard records for the last three months; while he could rearrange schedules, he hasn’t, and he clocks out every day at closing time.”

“Good!” Protze commented. “Does anyone work late, or extra hours?”

“Actually, yes” said Schellenburg. “One of the junior engineers, Hermann Reuper. He often works overtime.”

“Reuper…” said Protze, rifling through the stack of files. “Ah, here.” He read through the file and refreshed his memory. “Good worker, very devoted, volunteers to work extra time…likes to work alone…” Protze paused in his reverie, and turned a page. “No family, no friends…”

“It’s rather circumstantial sir,” Schellenburg added. “But he would certainly be my first choice. The other two, Wilhelm Debowski and Fritz Kolpe, have a few red flags but nothing like Reuper.”

“Then we put all four under surveillance for a few days, and see what happens,” Protze announced. “Have you ever wanted to be a Kruppanier Schellenburg?”

”No sir,” the leutnant replied.

“Well, you are going to become one,” the senior officer said, a wry smile on his face.


Nachrichten für Außenhandel, Sunday, 31 October 1943

Deschimag certainly has potential orders for those. Compania Argentino de Navegacion Dodero would probably foresee a need for about six of these vessels.

Quoted

Originally posted by Hood
Deschimag certainly has potential orders for those. Compania Argentino de Navegacion Dodero would probably foresee a need for about six of these vessels.

Deschimag would happily enter into negotiations with Dodero regarding such an order, whether to be constructed in German yards, Argentine yards or split between both. Please advise at your leisure.

Wien, Monday, 1 November 1943

Verschüttete Hoffnungen (Buried Hopes), the latest number of the comic-magazin “Von der Heydt”, finds him following the clues found in ancient scrolls and happening upon the mounds containing the wreckage of the lost fleet of Alexander the Great. He finds that he must defend himself from desert tribesmen intent on assuring that the lost fleet remains lost.

Having met and fallen in love with the maiden Brynhild at the court of her father, King Heimar, Sigurd accepts the challenge of ridding the land of the Dragon of Hidarfjall, who terrorises the poor peasants by burning their crops and their homes.


Berliner Morgenpost, Tuesday, 2 November 1943

The Defence Ministry has announced that the quantity of two hundred G11 rifles will be procured from the Mauser Works for trials by the Kriegsmarine and Marinelandungsverband. The G11 has been developed by Mauser as a private venture in the wake of the disputed G3 rifle procurement and subsequent decision by the Defence Ministry to standardise upon the 8mm Mauser cartridge. If the trials are successful, it is possible that Mauser might receive a contract for a relatively small number of such weapons; it appears unlikely that the G11 will displace the semi-automatic G5 rifle now entering service.


Kieler Nachrichten, Wednesday, 3 November 1943

The amphibious transports Montecucolli and Trautsmannsdorf completed their conversion and embarked upon their trials and working up in the Baltic. It is expected that they will join the Expeditionsverbande at Flensburg by the close of the year.