“The policemen believed that these people had been shot by the SS. However, this was only a supposition. This fresh group of 50 to 60 internees was murdered at the end of July 1944.”
I omit the following part of the document and will only quote the conclusion of Gerhard Adametz’ record, Page 359, Paragraph 4:
“Afterwards, we were of the opinion that the Nazis were actually afraid that the mass graves would be discovered by the advancing Russians and that these monstrous mass killings would become known to the civilized world. I believe that about 100,000 corpses were exhumed from mass graves by the SD, serving with the Sonderkommandos 1005-A and 1005-B. I believe that similar Kommandos also were engaged on the same work, but I do not know how many. If I had thought or known that I would ever be compelled to carry out this dirty and degrading work I would have emigrated somewhere.”
I omit the last part; the record concludes with the text of the oath and the signature of Gerhard Adametz.
Before submitting to the Tribunal the other evidence of another crime of the Hitlerites, I beg the Tribunal to allow me to make a few introductory remarks. The murder of several million people was carried out by the German fascist out of motives dictated by their mankind-hating, cannibal theories of racism and of the “right of masters” to exterminate peoples. All these murders were planned in cold blood. All these crimes, unprecedented in scale, were carried out at exact dates set for this purpose. Moreover, as I showed many times before, a special technique was invented for the mass killings and for the concealment of the traces of their crimes.
But, besides this, there is another characteristic in the many crimes committed by the German fascists which makes them even more detestable. In many cases, the Germans, having killed their victims, did not stop here, but made the corpses objects of jeers and mockery. Mockery of the dead bodies of victims was common practice in all extermination camps. I remind the Tribunal that the bones which had not been calcinated were sold by the German fascists to the firm Strem. The hair of the murdered women was cut off, packed in sacks, pressed and sent to Germany.
Among the same crimes are those on which I shall now submit evidence. On numerous occasions, I have already pointed out that the principal method used to cover up the traces was to burn the corpses, but the same base, rationalized SS technical minds which created gas chambers and murder vans, began devising such methods of complete annihilation of human bodies, which would not only conceal the traces of their crimes, but also serve in the manufacturing of certain products.
In the Danzig Anatomic Institute semi-industrial experiments in the production of soap from human bodies and the tanning of human skin for industrial purposes were carried out. I submit to the Tribunal, as Exhibit Number USSR-197 (Document Number USSR-197), the testimony of one of the direct participants in the production of soap from human fat. It is the testimony of Sigmund Mazur, who was a laboratory assistant at the Danzig Anatomic Institute.
I omit two pages of the statement and turn to Page 363. I begin the quotation—it is rather long, but I think I shall have the necessary time for the presentation of the evidence, and I beg to draw the attention of Your Honors to this quotation:
“Q: ‘Tell us how the soap was made out of human fat at the Danzig Anatomic Institute.’