“By way of introduction the General Field Marshal”—meaning Defendant Göring—“explained that the strengthening of the war potential of the Reich must be the chief aim of all measures to be taken in the East.”
I next quote the first two lines of the last paragraph on Page 1 of the English text. The German text appears at Page 2, lines 2 to 4.
“Agriculture: The task consists of obtaining the greatest possible agricultural production from the new eastern Gaue, disregarding questions of ownership.”
I next quote from the second paragraph of Page 2 of the English text. This is at Page 3, lines 22-24, of the German text:
“Special questions concerning the Government General. . . . The Government General will have to receive the Jews who are ordered to emigrate from Germany and the new eastern Gaue.”
Finally, I quote the paragraph numbered 2 under Roman numeral II of Page 2 of the English text. These statements appear in the German text at Page 4, lines 3-19:
“The following reported on the situation in the Eastern territories. . . .
“2. Reichsstatthalter Gauleiter Forster”—who said—“ ‘The population of the Danzig-West Prussia Gau (newly acquired territories) is 1.5 million, of whom 240,000 are Germans, 850,000 well-established Poles, and 300,000 immigrant Poles, Jews, and asocials (1,800 Jews). There have been evacuated 87,000 persons, 40,000 of these from Gdynia. From there also the numerous shirkers, who are now looked after by welfare, will have to be deported to the Government General. Therefore an evacuation of 20,000 additional persons can be counted on for the current year.’ ”
Comparable reports were made by other Gauleiter at the meeting. The figures that were quoted, it may be noted, were only as of February 1940. The forcible deportations, which are reported in the exhibits from which I have just read, did not involve merely ordering the unfortunate victims to leave their homes and to take up new residences elsewhere. These deportations were accomplished according to plan in an utterly brutal and inhuman manner. Document Number 1918-PS, which is Exhibit Number USA-304, affords striking proof of this fact; and I offer it in evidence. This is a speech delivered by Himmler to officers of the SS on a day commemorating the presentation of the Nazi flag. It is contained in a compilation of speeches delivered by Himmler, and was captured by the Counter-Intelligence branch of the United States Army. The exact date of the speech does not appear in the exhibit, but its contents plainly show that it was delivered sometime after Poland had been overrun. I quote from the second to the eighth lines of Page 1 of the English text. In the German text this quotation appears on Page 52, lines 2 to 10. In this speech Himmler said, and I quote: