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Show 762 The National Geographic Magazine 'orps. Official Was This German Civilian Astounded! He Got a Fair Trial from the American Army At Aachen he was found not guilty of harboring Nazi soldiers. Elsewhere two civilians who sheltered German troops were acquitted on the plea that they had only carried out General Eisenhower's instructions to aid deserters. Accused Germans have more rights under the Allies than under the Gestapo (page 761). violation of curfew, unauthorized travel, or displaying improper credentials. The rare instances in which civilians have been detected sniping, passing information to the enemy, or harboring a German soldier indicate that there is no organized Underground in the areas we occupy-or possibly that the "resistance" is so well organized that it is able to restrain guerrilla activity until a later time. How Military Government Works In its early stages military government is a rough-and-tumble affair. Courts sit in barns or garages, or wherever they can find shelter. With regular city officials gone, government is conducted through the civilians who seem most suitable at the moment. Thus airraid wardens, postmen, large employers, and schoolteachers-anyone who is known to and who knows the public-are pressed into service, after a hurried investigation of their past associations, as a preliminary in the long program to avoid using Nazis in positions of responsibility. As an almost universal rule, these selected civilians are first ordered to clear streets of debris, bury civilian dead, set up emergency feeding provisions, and ensure that banks comply with our foreign-exchange requirements, that factories discontinue armament production, and that utilities provide the light and power we require. In short, we use the officials we name to set the life of the community to the pattern of our occupation. It follows that they also assume leadership in matters which are of no direct military concern, such as the distribution of food among the population. Informed that we do not propose to import relief supplies for the benefit of Germans if we can help it, these German officials first distribute the stocks left behind by those who evacuated. Resources of remaining civilians are often pooled against the day when food will run short. |