A I said this morning that these restrictions where a Reich measure, that the Reich government had taken them, and I also said that within tho medical profession the Deputy Chief of the Government Insurance Society of Germany carried out these regulations.
Q Well, now, the Reichsaerztefuehrer's office, as I understand it, executed or carried out these restrictions on the Jewish doctors, didn't they, -- the Reichs Physicians' Chamber? Yes or No.?
A No. It was not the Reich Chamber of Physicians. It was the Kassenärztliche Vereinigung. It was a part of the Reich Chamber of Physicians which was a separate legal entity. It was not situated in Munich with the Reich Chamber of Physicians but in Berlin.
Q Well, who was the Chief of the Reich Chamber of Physicians?
A That was the Reichsaerztefuehere.
Q Conti?
A Conti at that time, yes.
Q Who was Conti(s deputy?
A In the Reich Chamber of Physicians, Dr. Blome. In the Insurance Society, Dr. Grothe.
Q That is sufficient. Now you stated that Dr. Blome was somewhat of an expert in the cancer field, is that right?
A I could not say from my own knowledge that he was an expert. I know that he had an assignment to coordinate cancer research and tumor diseases.
Q And you are aware of the assignment he received from Goering and the Reich Research Council pertaining to the research on biological warfare, aren't you?
A No.
Q You know nothing of Blome's Institute at Posen?
A Near Posen. I heard about it. That was when Blome was living in Munich, and decided to give up his offices in the Reich Chamber of Physicians and the Main Office for Public Health because of his poor relationship with Conti.
He moved from Munich to Posen with his family. He told his friends and co-workers that he wanted to devote himself exclusively to the fight against cancer, that he had an assignment to do so from a very high authority. Whether he said from Hitler or from Goering, I do not remember. In any case he had all the facilities near Posen, at a farm, to carry out his research in this field. I never heard any more about it. That Blome is supposed to have had any part in biological warfare, I and a few co-workers learned that in the internment camp in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the fall of 1946 for the first time, over tho radio, when Generalstabsarzt Dr. Schreiber testified to that effect here in the first bif trial in Nurnberg.
Q Of course Blome would never have had any occasion to discuss the secret projects assigned to him with you, would he?
A I do not believe so, no.
Q Now you state that Blome moved to Munich from Berlin in 1942 or 1943 because of his quarrels with Conti, is that right?
A No, that was earlier. That was 1941-42, and he left Munich at the end of 1942, as I recall.
Q Well, now, Doctor, you are a lawyer, aren't you?
A Yes.
Q And on these medical problems of a secret nature--suppose that they were discussing euthanasia, Blome and Conti--they wouldn't invite you into any conferences, would they?
A No.
Q And it is highly possible that Blome could have been engaged in a great many activities of a medical nature of which you would not have any knowledge, is that right?
A I did not learn of everything, I believe there were many things that I did not know about. Unless he told me in private conversations with other specialists, I was not able to judge.
Q You are aware of the Fuehrer's order of secrecy, aren't you?
A Yes, I know that.
Q Most of these matters that are under discussion here were secret in nature. Blome would never discuss then with you, would he, insofar as taking into consideration the Fuehrer's order of secrecy?
A Yes, I agree with you.
MR. HARDY: I have no further questions, Your Honor.
THE PRESIDENT: Any further examination of this witness by any defense counsel?
RE-DIRECT EXAMINATION BY DR. SAUTER (Counsel for the Defendant Blome):
Q Witness, I have a few brief question to clarify a few points. The prosecutor said that Blome had very good connections with Himmler. At the moment I do not know...have you already said when Blome came to Himmler for the first time---do you know that?
A I said a while ago that I knew only of the poorer relationship between Himmler and Blome, and I know that Blome was with Himmler very seldom; I said this condition existed until 1942. It is possible that the relationship was improved later. Dr. Blome told me, for instance, that he had better relationships with the SS now.
Q But you do not know when he came to Himmler the first time?
A No, I do not know the time and I do not know the occasion.
Q Did you hear anything about Blome's coming to Himmler?
A Personally I did not know it.
Q Do you know anything else about it? Do you know whether it is correct that Blome was repeatedly asked to join the SS and that he refused to do so? Do you know anything about that?
A I consider that quite possible and I know that in the course of the years, I do not know exactly when, that he was asked to join the SS. I know that.
Q From Blome himself?
A Yes, from Blome himself.
Q And what reason did he give for not joining the SS?
A I believe I can bring that in connection with my own person. I also was naturally frequently asked to join the SA or the SS, especially under the era of Conti, who was higher SS Obergruppenfuehrer, who would have liked to have me or Blome join the SS. I personally did not do so because I did not want to sell myself to Dr. Conti, and that also was probably the reason for Blome too.
Q Would you know that Blome was approached and asked to join the SS and he refused?
A For me in any case this was the decisive thing at the time and I assume it was the same for Blome. I did not belong to any formations and certainly not the SS, consequently Dr. Conti was very reserved toward me and very condescending. I might say I could express my opinion to him more openly than others could because I did not belong to the SS. The associates, even they held a high rank in the SS could not do anything against him, they had to stand at attention, or often they had to carry suitcases and perform other services. He just gave orders to these people, and Blome did not want that possibly and I certainly did not.
Q Dr. Koshmel, the prosecution spoke of Conti's great influence and asked why Conti had this position and this influence if he was so hated everywhere?
A I believe there is some confusion there. The prosecution spoke of the great influence in connection with Dr. Wagner, and then afterwards pitied that Dr. Conti was a pitiable person because he was unliked.
Q But, didn't Dr. Conti remain in his office although he was hated everywhere?
A Yes, that is a fact.
Q And to what do you attribute that?
A Dr. Conti had a very difficult position in respect to all party agencies; what Dr. Wagner had built up in five years Dr. Conti tore down again in five years because he was not able to make his ideas prevail. Everyone in the party leadership, who had a large organization, was against him; such as Dr. Ley, or the organizations the SA, the SS and all sorts of organizations such as the Organization Todt, which had their own health organizations and were independant of Conti and even worked against him.
That was not possible under Dr. Wagner, because Dr. Wagner had great authority and that was why Dr. Conti lost more and more influence. If he was able to hold on, even though he was close to collapse, the reasons were internal party reasons such as the personal attitude of the Reichsleiter Bohrmann. Bohrmann had combatted Conti for years, but later, to the surprise of all initiated persons, he supported Conti at the very moment when he was generally considered a dead man. That was at the time when Dr. Brandt received his assignment of coordination.
Q Dr. Kosmehl, do you not believe that there is a certain significance for Dr. Conti in maintaining his position? First, that he was a very old party member, and secondly, that he had a high rank in the SS, that he was an SS Gruppenfuehrer, do you not believe that these two circumstances were decisive in Dr. Conti maintaining his position as Reichsaerztefuehrer and Reichs Health Leader?
A Doubtless these two qualities, being as SS officer and having old party membership, helped him for a long time and supported him, but now, that I am able to see the whole development, I believe that there were a lot of decisive and more important reasons than the ones I have just mentioned.
Q Now, something else, Doctor, the prosecution said that it might have been in the authority and power of Dr. Blome to have a half Jew made a full Aryan and a good citizen. Apparently there is reference to a matter Veicks which must still be dealt with, you apparently do not know about this?
A I have heard the name mentioned by Dr. Blome when I was making a report to him in the new building we occupied at the end of the war after we were bombed out when I was in there reporting to Dr. Blome and Dr. Veicks arrived as a visitor. He asked me to go out because this visitor arrived. He told me only that he had to receive this man because he was carrying out a research assignment or something like that, and I believe he referred to Himmler in some way; and I know that this name was connected with some drug for stopping bleeding.
Q Yes, that is polygal and I don't want to discuss it with you.
A No, I know nothing more about it.
Q In my concluding question, I would be interested in the following do you believe that the point of view of the prosecution is right that the Deputy Reichs Leader of Physicians, no matter in what function, had the right or the power to have a half Jew proclaimed a full Aryan, or who was competent for this?
A I do not believe that that would ever have been possible as much higher personalities tried in vain to accomplish this. I know of only one case where the Reich Marshal managed it, but Hitler himself reserved the decision. I do not know who could have had any influence.
Q Do you know that such matters were dealt with in the Reichssippenamt in Berlin?
A That office had nothing to do with it in my opinion, but I cannot say for sure.
Q The opinion was expressed a little earlier today that the former Reichsaerztefuehrer Dr. Wagner, in his capacity as Reichsaerztefuehrer, had the opportunity to supervise the law about hereditary diseases, or to change it or some such thing; now I should like to know the following: Do you know that the former Reichsaerztefuehrer Dr. Wagner in the press and at Reich Party rallies at Nurnberg repeatedly dealt in detail with such questions; that he became well known for this and that perhaps for that reason that people came to him with their complaints if they had complaints about the execution of the sterilization law?
A Yes, that is quite tre. I can remember that Dr. Wagner spoke publically here in Nurnberg about it and also on other occasions of congresses of doctors. The name of Dr. Wagner was known far beyond medical circles, therefore, I consider it quite possible that people came to Dr. Wagner by virtue of his personality, without thinking of him specifically as Reichsaerztefuehrer, although it would be possible that the population did not know his competency exactly.
Q And now my last question, Dr. Kosmehl. The question has been brought up as to what did Dr. Blome do if he heard that people were inquiring about Euthanasia questions at the Reichs Chamber of Physicians or at the Main Office for Public Health, and you said that you turned over such inquiries to the Party Chancellory; I should like to have you make it quite clear why you went to the Party Chancellory; that is the one which had formerly been under Hess as Deputy to the Fuehrer and after Hess went to England, it was under his successor Bohrmann?
A. Yes.
Q Why did you go to this Party Chancellory? Will you please explain that very clearly?
A I think I answered this question when one of your colleagues asked me about it. He said that it was the Chancellory of the Fuehrer which was competent for such questions; but we in Munich, I said, for ten years, aw long as I was there, had the practice of going to this Munich agency which was closer to us and with which we had better connections, especially because we were more or less known there personally, and we knew that in general things which we turned over to them were actually taken into consideration.
I specifically in the course of years when I worked there in Munich had several school friends there whom I could call up and prepare and know that they would deal with the matter. That was, perhaps, one important reason, but, on the other hand, as I said, Dr. Wagner had success there with the sterilization law, and I had to assume that they would deal with this matter too thoroughly.
Q Did you not know, Doctor, that this so-called Party Chancellory, that is, the Chancellory of Hess and later Bormann, was declared competent for all complaints coming from the population about abuses within the Party or in the State?
A Yes, I believe I said that myself this morning. That was a regulation which motivated us, and that is true. The Party Chancellory claimed for itself to be competent in all fields, whether it was a purely organizational matter or a professional matter or whether it was a State legal matter.
The Party Chancellory assumed the jurisdiction, and the Party Chancellory was organized in such a way that it went up to ideological questions, up to church questions, and had departments for such things.
DR. SAUTER: I have no further questions, Mr. President.
THE PRESIDENT: Are there any other questions by Defense Counsel?
MR. HARDY: I have no further questions of this witness, Your Honor.
THE PRESIDENT: Who will be your next witness, Dr. Sauter?
DR SAUTER: The Defendant, Dr. Blome, himself.
THE PRESIDENT: In view of the lateness of the hour, we will not swear the Doctor tonight.
The Tribunal will now be in recess until nine-thirty tomorrow morning.
MR. HARDY: Pardon me, Your Honor-
DR. KAUFMANN: Just a minute, Mr. President. Mr. President DR. KAUFMANN for Rudlof Brandt.
May I make an application that the Defendant, Rudolf Brandt, be excused tomorrow because he should like to prepare his case. He is the next defendant after Blome who will take the witness stand.
THE PRESIDENT: Under the circumstances, the Defendant, Rudolf Brandt, is excused from attendance in court tomorrow to prepare his case which will follow.
DR. KAUFMANN: I thank you.
MR. HARDY: May it please Your Honor -
THE PRESIDENT: Yes.
MR. HARDY: The Prosecution has considered the Blome case and are now at this time of the opinion that a prima facie case exists against the Defendant Blome as charged in the indictment. Hence, we do not wish to withdraw any of the charges against the Defendant at this time.
THE PRESIDENT: The Tribunal will now be in recess until nine-thirty o'clock tomorrow morning.
(The Tribunal adjuourned until 13 March 1947 at 0930 hours.)
Official transcript of the American Military Tribunal in the matter of the United States of America against Karl Brandt, et al, defendants, sitting at Nuernberg, Germany, on 13 March 1947, 0930, Justice Beals presiding.
THE MARSHAL: Persons in the courtroom will please find their seats. The Honorable, the Judges of Military Tribunal 1. Military Tribunal 1 is now in session. God save the United States of America and this honorable Tribunal. There will be order in the courtroom.
THE PRESIDENT: Mr. Marshal, will you ascertain that the defendants are all present in court.
THE MARSHAL: May it please your Honor, all the defendants are present in court with the exception of the defendant Oberheuser, absent due to illness.
THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary General will note for the record the presence of all the defendants in court save the defendant Oberheuser, who is in the hospital ill and has been excused on account of her illness.
Counsel may proceed.
THE MARSHAL: The defendant Rudolf Brandt is also absent, having been excused by the Tribunal yesterday.
THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary General will note for the record the absence of Rudolf Brandt, who was excused yesterday by the Tribunal in order to prepare for the presentation of his case.
DR. SEIDL (for the defendant Blome, instead of Dr. Sauter): Mr. President, Dr. Sauter has asked me to tell you that at the moment he is sick on account of his nose bleeding and asks the Tribunal to be able to begin in a few minutes. He has only left the court for a few minutes.
THE PRESIDENT: Very well, counsel, the Tribunal will await the presence of counsel.
MR. HARDY: May it please the Tribunal, Dr. Sauter is at the dispensary and he will be delayed about a half hour. Is it convenient for the Tribunal to adjourn for a half hour?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, I think so. The Tribunal will be in recess until counsel is able to proceed with the case.
THE MARSHAL: The Court will come to order.
JUDGE CRAWFORD: Dr. Sauter is still indisposed and the Court will be in recess until 1330 hours this afternoon.
AFTERNOON SESSION (The Tribunal reconvened at 1330 hours, 13 March 1947.)
THE MARSHA: The Tribunal is again in session.
THE PRESIDENT: Counsel may proceed.
DR. SAUTER (For the Defendant Blome): I must apologize, Mr. President, that this court was delayed for such a long time.
THE PRESIDENT: I hope it may not interfere any more.
DR. SAUTER: I would like to ask your Honor to permit me to examine Dr. Blome, to have him take the witness stand.
THE PRESIDENT: The Defendant Blome will take the witness stand. Before swearing the witness the Secretary will note the witness Kosmehl was excused from the stand last evening. The record will show that.
KURT BLOME, a witness, took the stand and testified as follows:
BY JUDGE SEBRING:
Q The witness will please raise his right hand and be sworn, repeating after me:
I swear by God, the Almighty and Omniscient, that I will speak the pure truth and will withhold and add nothing.
(The witness repeated the oath.)
THE PRESIDENT: You may sit down.
DIRECT EXAMINATION BY DR. SAUTER (Counsel for the Defendant Blome):
Q Dr. Blome, how old are you?
A 53.
Q I would like to have details about your past life, are you married?
A Yes.
Q You have three children, from two to seven years?
A Yes.
Q You went through a course of studies?
A Yes.
Q You became a doctor?
A Yes.
Q You studied in institutes and became a professional doctor?
A Yes.
Q And you started your own practice in Rostock?
A Yes.
Q As practicioner there in dermatology?
A Yes.
Q You were in the first world war, you were at the front?
A Yes.
Q In what capacity?
AAs a Lieutenant in the Infantry.
Q You wanted to become an active officer?
A Yes.
Q And how did you decide for medicine finally?
A Before I became a soldier on the 1st of April 1914, I had already studied medicine for four semesters, then I fulfilled my military duty, and on the 2nd of August 1914 the first World War broke out. I went to the front with my regiment.
Q Please be brief, witness, because these details are not of special interest for the trial. Why did you decide to become a doctor, and why did you not remain in the army? I ask you these questions because in connection with your choice of the profession the prosecution has already made a reproach. Will you please give us your details?
A Yes. The prosecution reproached me that I had become a doctor in order to be a master over life and death. In this connection the prosecution refers to my book titled "Artz in Kamp," Doctor in Battle, which I wrote in 1940 and finished in the beginning of '41. If the prosecution makes this assertion against me, that is not true. The quotation which the prosecutor has cited when taken from the context, does not justify that interpretation. The basic thought underlying my choice of a profession was the wish to help the sick. If in my book I frequently mentioned the important position which a doctor holds in the population, this was done intentionally and with justification, for the doctor actually is master of life and death. A good doctor means life and a bad doctor means death.
The aim of my work, as I shall prove in the course of my examination, and as is clearly shown by my book, was to create the best trained doctor with high professional ethics. My aim was to help in this great work. What I wrote in my book, from which this accusation is made against me, I should, like to read briefly.
DR. SAUTER: Mr. President, this quotation from the book of the defendant Dr. Blome, entitled "Arzt in Kampf," Doctor in the Fight, is found in Document Book Blome, page 15, Document No. 5. It is the true quotation from this book. The book itself I have with me here. It is in the possession of the prosecuting authorities.
MR. HARDY: Your Honor, it is suggested that this entire book written by the defendant he introduced under one exhibit number rather than having each extract containing a different exhibit number, in as much as the prosecution may well use sections of this book during the course of cross-examination, and I wouldn't want to be held to giving an exhibit number to various sections of the book.
DR. SAUTER: The whole book, Mr. President", The Doctor in the Fight", is Blome Exhibit No. 1, so that the exhibit number properly includes all further quotations which I shall quote myself and which also will be brought by the prosecution authority, that is Blome Exhibit No. 1
THE PRESIDENT: Do I understand, counsel, you are offering the entire book as Blome's Exhibit No. 1?
DR. SAUTER: Yes.
THE PRESIDENT: Has the book been translated into English?
DR. SAUTER: No. On our part only those parts have been translated which are reproduced in my book. I could not expect that from the translation department, to translate a whole book on account of a few pages, as I only want to have a few pages.
THE PRESIDENT: I understand counsel's position. Has the prosecution any objection to offering the entire book in evidence?
MR. HARDY: The prosecution desires that the entire book be offered as one exhibit number, and during the cross examination if I see fit to use the book, I may have to just refer to the pages and have the defendant read it into the record in as much as we do not have the facilities at this time to translate some three hundred pages. So it would expedite matters to do it in this manner, your Honor.
THE PRESIDENT: There being no objection, the book of which the Defendant Blome is the author will be admitted in evidence as Blome's Exhibit No. 1.
The Tribunal has not received the Blome document books. Are they available here?
DR. SAUTER: They have been submitted some time ago. My document book has been submitted for translation on the 6th of February. That is quite early.
THE PRESIDENT: Counsel may proceed.
BY DR. SAUTER:
Q Dr. Blome, perhaps you will give the exact quotation, with which the prosecution reproached you concerning your choice of profession at that time. As I have told you, it is in the document book Blome, Document Number 5, page 15.
AAfter introductory general reflections about the choice of a profession by us school boys, I say the following in this book.
I quote: "What brought the medical profession nearer to us was more of a personal experience. Naturally we had no idea of the history of medicine and its great men. But at home, in the needs of life, we know the physician as a personality of special character. So I always remember that from my ninth year I always fell ill with appendicitis with severe pains exactly at Christmas time. The fifth time, however, it was especially bad. The same doctor was always called by my parents and I had great confidence in his skill. This time the operation feared so much by my parents could no longer be avoided. Confidence in the doctor kept me from being afraid.
"If until then I had considered kindliness the main characteristic of the doctor, I was now impressed by the clinic and by the doctor as its sovereign ruler. As I saw it, he was the last authority to decide over life and death of every individual. And what at that time impressed me especially, as a boy, was that even emperors and kings needed the doctor, and that their lives also depended on his skill."
Q. This is the quotation from the book of the defendant, which at the time was submitted by the prosecution against Dr. Blome?
A. One cannot make a charge against a lawyer for chosing that profession, and no one will want to accuse a lawyer of having chosen that career so that he could later become the master over the life and death of his fellow citizen
Q. Witness, you already mentioned that you began your practice as a specialist in Rostock, in Mecklenburg; then, you gave up that practice, why and for what purpose?
A. I set up this practice at the end of 1942. It was the largest practice of this type in all of Mecklenburg. I gave it up in 1934 for reasons which I have explained in my book. When, in 1931 I joined the party and SA, I did so at the expense of great sacrifice, because I wanted to help prevent Germany from becoming Communistic. The National Socialist German Labor Party was, at that time, the only party which was a successful opponent of Communism, as things were in Germany at the time. After the first world war, through the Weimar Constitution, we had received a form of Government which calls itself democratic, but which in reality was merely a distorted picture of a democracy.
In the course of the years from 1919 on until the time which I have just mentioned, 1931, this Government had demonstrated itself inefficient, which is clearly shown from the enormous collapse of economy and from its millions of unemployed; which were not reduced but after some fluctuations always returned to the old level.
My friends and I were convinced that there was only one choice, that was the choice between German Socialist and Communism. In these years, we gave long consideration as to whether we should not join the Communists, as a small party of the so-called intellectual circle of Germans had done. The most important reason for our rejecting Communism was its dictatorial form of Government. That National Socialism would ever develop into an absolute power I did not suspect at the time.
Q. Witness, in this way, and from these motives you joined the Party. What attitude did you developed in the ensuing time in the Party and its institutions, and what rank did you hold in the Party as well as in the SA, and otherwise?
A. In the Party I became Gauobmann of the National Socialist League of Doctors at the beginning of 1932, and from 1934 on I became Gauamtsleiter for Public Health in Mecklenburg. I joined the SA on the 1st of July 1931 as a Medical SA Standartenfuehrer, and a few weeks later I became Medical Oberfuehrer. After I had left active SA service in 1936, in 1941 I received the title of Medical Gruppenfuehrer.
Q. Those were your positions and ranks within the Party and in its institutions?
A. Yes.
Q. Witness, yesterday, it was mentioned that you got the golden party insigna. Can you give us information when, and why, and for what reason you received the golden party insigna? Perhaps you could explain first under what conditions, normally, one received the golden party insigna, and why in your case an exception was made?
A. Normally the golden party insigna was given to people who had a membership number below 100,000, and had belonged to the party without interruption; but in addition golden party insigna were also given in individual cases to persons of special merit, even if they did not belong to the party; and every five years, counted since the seizure of power, they were given to party members of special merit; thus in 1938, on the 30th of January, the Reichsaerztefuehrer, Dr. Wagner proposed for me this award because of my service in the national and international medical training, but Hitler took my name off the list.
Dr. Wagner reached an a agreement with the Reichsleiter Bormann that the next time, of award, that is, five years later, on the 30th of January 1943, I was to get the golden party insigna. This promise was kept against the expressed opposition of my chief, Dr. Conti.
Q. Witness, yesterday your differences with Conti were already mentioned. Dr. Conti unlike you was not a member of the SA but of the SS, an SS Gruppenfuehrer?
A. Obergruppenfuehrer finally.
Q. That was the highest rand in the SS, was it not?
A. Yes.
Q. Were you also a member of the SS?
A. No.
Q. In some document I read that you were asked to go from the SA to the SS. Is that correct, and can you explain this point, especially about the motive why you did not join the SS?
A. That is true, that I was on various occasions asked to join the SS. AT the end of 1933, or in the beginning of 1934, I was suddenly called to Berlin, and the Office of Reichs Physician SS was offered to me. I refused this because I did not want to give up my independence and practice for the sake of this position. I refused later requests because, according to my information, Himmler played no unobjectionable role in the nurder of Roehm and other SA leaders. Also later the late Reichsarztefuhrer shortly before his death told me to see to it that the black column, he meant the SD, does not get into our office. Wagner and I were opponents of the spy system set up by the SD. We refused to have others spied upon and we did not want to be spied upon ourselves.
Q. Witness, in the course of the procedure, we will come to the fact that within the following years you were connected in some way with the Reichsfuehrer SS, that is Heinrich Himmler; I would like to ask you now if you did not like the SS, how was it that later on you received assignments from Heinrich Himmler, the Fuehrer of the SS. Have you an explanation for this?
A. Yes. If I got from Reichmarshal Goering the research assignment for counter measures for biological warfare, I could fulfill this task only if I collaborated with those offices which were responsible for counter measures against such warfare. One of the most important men in this connection was the Reichsminister of the Interior who was in charge of combatting epidemics, and the Chief of the German Police, and these posts were held by Heinrich Himmler. That is the reason why I cooperated with Himmler in this field.
Q. Witness, you were a doctor, and your responsibility in this trial requires that you give us information as to what positions you held in the field of health during the years. Please give us information and tell us in each case whether it was a Government office or whether it was a District Office or whether it was a Party Office or whatever it was.
A. At the end of 1934, about in September, I became Adjutant in the Reichsleitung of the German Red Cross in Berlin. At the same time, I was given a position as Manager in the League of German Physicians which later developed into the Reich Chamber of Physicians. In 1935, I became Deputy for Development of Medical Study (Fortbildongswesen in Germany. In 1939, I became Deputy Reich Leader Physician, (Deputy Reichsaerztefuehrer), and at the same time Nominal Deputy Chief at the main office for Public Health at the Party and of the National Socialist League of Physicians. The Reich Chamber of Physicians was a legal entity. I believe that the German Red Cross was also, but I cannot say for certain. The main Office for Public Health and the National Socialist League of Physicians were Party installations and my position there was of an honorary nature.
Q. Witness, did you apply for these positions which you hold during the course of years, how did you get these positions, and why did the choice of these influential posts fall on you?