The accused Doctor Schilling elected to testify and made the following
unsworn statement: He was 74 years old, married, had one son, and was a
physician. He had specialized in tropical diseases, particularly
malaria, since 1898 (_R 1490, 1500_). Dr. Schilling studied under
Professor Koch of Berlin, and graduated from Munich as a physician in
1894 (_R 1894_). He did research work in Africa on malaria, sleeping
sickness, and tsetse fly diseases (_R 1497, 1498_). Dr. Schilling worked
for the Rockefeller Foundation in Berlin, receiving a grant in 1911 for
the study of various diseases and for a trip to Rome (_R 1499, 1500,
Def. Ex. 19_).[36] In December 1941 in Italy Dr. Schilling met Dr.
Conti, the Reich physician leader, who invited him to see Himmler (_R
1500, 1501, 1508_). Schilling went to Himmler who gave him the order to
continue his studies at Dachau (_R 1502_). Schilling had selected Dachau
because it was near his birthplace (_R 1568-1569_). The question of
using prisoners for experiments was not discussed (_R 1502_). In January
1942, Schilling went to Dachau (_R 1502_). Schilling only accepted this
commission at Dachau because the League of Nations, of which he was a
member, told him of the importance of curing the seventeen million known
cases of malaria. He believed it was his duty to humanity (_R 1540_). He
never became a member of the SS or the Nazi Party (_R 1503_). He was a
“free, independent, research man.” (_R 1568._)
Dr. Schilling infected thousands of prisoners with malaria “Benign
Tertian” which is not fatal (_R 1503_). The purpose for this was to find
a vaccination against malaria and today there is no vaccination against
malaria except the one discovered by Schilling (_R 1503_). Dr. Schilling
used mosquitoes and blood transfusions to infect the patients and
received patients already infected (_R 1503, 1504_). The patients were
divided into groups and were constantly watched, one group for the
purpose of keeping up the strain and another for immunization purposes
(_R 1505-1506_). The latter were injected repeatedly to step up their
immunity (_R 1506_). Schilling re-infected about 400 to 500 patients and
used quinine, atabrine, and neosalvarsan, and a dye No. 2516 which made
the patients immune; to prove this he had to test by infecting them
again (_R 1507_).
Dr. Schilling could not work with animals because they are not receptive
to malaria and men are used throughout the world (_R 1507_). He assumed
that Admiral Stipp and Mark Boyd, two malaria authorities, used humans
in their experiments (_R 1508_). Infected malaria has been used to cure
paralysis (_R 1508_).
Only about four or five of the patients refused to be immunized, but
they consented after Schilling explained the importance of the work (_R
1509_). The selections of the patients were made as follows: Berlin
allowed him thirty patients a month and he would requisition them
through the camp physician from the commandant who contacted the labor
leader (_R 1510_). The latter selected healthy prisoners and Schilling’s
assistants chose the final names and sent them to Berlin, where the
selection was approved (_R 1509, 1510_). These patients were carefully
inspected and could not be refused by Schilling by order of Himmler (_R
1511_).
The doses of neosalvarsan were 1.54 grams and at no time failed (_R
1512_). He used pyramidon to lower the body temperature although the
drug has a bad effect on the blood corpuscles (_R 1513, 1514_). He used
this drug only in 15 cases and found that two grams were not harmful.
This was important so the body could react without fever (_R 1515_).
Nobody died from pyramidon (_R 1515_). Malaria has been used to cure
syphilis and neosalvarsan can destroy parasites in a fever (_R 1515_).
Dr. Schilling never dealt with Dr. Blaha on any autopsies involving
neosalvarsan poisoning. Discharged patients were told to report back if
they felt sick (_R 1516_). Periodic checks were made of them and any
patient was received back if there was sign of relapse (_R 1517_). If
Schilling was asked to resume his work, he would do so only on
volunteers (_R 1518_).
Dr. Schilling was withdrawn as a witness, at this point, but resumed the
stand later and testified as follows: In death through neosalvarsan all
organs are affected (_R 1536_). Blood cells may die, but nothing like
this happened in his cases (_R 1536, 1537_). It is impossible to
determine death by malaria by a mere autopsy without a microscope,
especially where there may be other complications (_R 1537_). Pyramidon
is rarely the cause of death (_R 1537_).
Out of the 100 people infected by Dr. Schilling with malaria, not a
single one of them died of uncomplicated malaria (_R 1538_).
Weight of the patients during experiments increased. Additional food was
given and people suffering from contagious disease would be isolated (_R
1539_). Dr. Schilling never stated the wrong cause of death (_R 1539_).
Dr. Schilling stated he couldn’t experiment on himself because he had
had malaria in 1933 and men like him cannot be reinfected in most cases
although malaria is a recurring disease (_R 1541_). If there is chronic
malaria, the heart muscles will suffer as in all chronic diseases (_R
1543_). Malaria will increase the watery substance in the blood and the
brain will suffer under chronic malaria (_R 1544_). Chronic malaria will
weaken the body to make it susceptible to other diseases and one may die
of another disease while having malaria (_R 1546_). Schilling had SS
doctors helping him and examined all patients personally and supervised
the records (_R 1546_). Schilling recognized Prosecution Exhibit 131
which stated that 19 cases were treated with pyramidon, three of whom
died (_R 1547_). He declared these patients were suffering from typhus
and were removed from the ward (_R 1547, 1548_).
Although there was a typhus epidemic in November 1944 and he knew that
people were dying, he continued his experiments (_R 1550_). Everyone who
was inoculated remained at the station (_R 1550_). One patient was
injected three times and later died of typhus (_R 1551_). He was given
neosalvarsan, atabrine, and quinine. Pyramidon doses of three grams per
day for five successive days were given. Dr. Blaha did not inform
Schilling of the deaths due to pyramidon poisoning. If Schilling had
been notified he would have stopped the experiment. An Italian named
Calveroni was infected with blood and might have gotten typhus (_R
1556_).
If a man is suffering from malnutrition, a big dose of neosalvarsan is
not advisable (_R 1557_). If it would save his life, Schilling would
give it to him (_R 1557_). It depended on the physical condition of the
man and of what he was suffering; yet, Schilling gave the drug to Father
Wicki who only weighed 50 kilos (_R 1558_), but Schilling says that
Wicki was not a severe case (_R 1559_). Schilling gave 3 grams of
neosalvarsan in 5 days, which was the largest dose he ever gave over
that period of time. He does not remember giving drugs to sufferers of
dysentery (_R 1562_).
Schilling did not remember specific cases where he did not use caution
(_R 1566, 1567_). He recalled the priest Stachowski who died, but
doesn’t remember he died from neosalvarsan (_R 1567, 1568_).
Dr. Schilling was not under the control of the SS (_R 1568_). He heard
rumors about beatings, but did not concern himself with “things that
were not my business” (_R 1569_). All his records had been burned (_R
1570_). Schilling denied all accusations against him other than what he
admitted as part of his duty (_R 1572, 1573_). He declared that his work
was unfinished and that the court should do what it could to help him
finish his experiments for the benefit of science and to rehabilitate
himself (_R 1574_).
Mrs. Hubner, who knew Professor Schilling for 30 years, stated that she
often saw him in Italy and in Germany and has known him to be of good
reputation and of good veracity (_R 1519, 1520, 1521_). He told her his
only aim was to help cure malaria (_R 1522_). She believed his
intentions at Dachau were good (_R 1523_).
Frau Durck, the wife of a university professor of anatomical pathology
who was interested in malaria research, knew Professor Schilling since
1924 (_R 1525, 1526_). Schilling was always regarded in his field as a
serious scientist (_R 1527_). She knew what he was doing at Dachau but
her husband would not have done it (_R 1527_).
Dr. Eisenberger, a lawyer for 52 years, knew Dr. Schilling for 30 years
(_R 1527_). He considered Schilling highly respectable and reliable, and
said Schilling was seeking to benefit science and would never do
anything wrong (_R 1528_).
Heinrich Stoehr, a male nurse at Dachau, testified it was known that
Schilling worked on orders from Himmler (_R 1608, 1609_). The camp
physician’s and Schilling’s assistants examined the patients prior to
experimentation (_R 1609_). Dr. Brachtel, an SS doctor and assistant to
Schilling, also performed atabrine experiments (_R 1610_). If a patient
had a relapse from malaria, he was treated by Dr. Schilling (_R 1611,
1612_). Others were given quinine by some of the hospital staff (_R
1611, 1612_).
Max Kronenfelder worked in the malaria station under Schilling from
February 1941 to June 1943 (_R 1614_). He knew about a Dr. Brachtel, who
also made private experiments on malaria without the knowledge of Dr.
Schilling (_R 1615_). Kronenfelder took blood smears and performed minor
details such as cleaning up (_R 1616_). Brachtel experimented with
patients who had tuberculosis, helped by a man named Adam (_R 1617_).
Adam was often in the morgue with Dr. Blaha (_R 1618_).
Father Rupieper had been subjected to the malaria experiment in August
1942 (_R 921_). Other priests who were also subjected were Peter Bower,
Gustav Spitzick, Amon Burckhardt, Fritz Keller, and Kasinemer Gasimer
Rikofsky (_R 921_).
* * * * *
VI. Prosecution Rebuttal Evidence.
_Common Design._
* * * * *
15. _Dr. Claus Karl Schilling._ When one of Dr. Schilling’s patients
died there were orders to report that fact to the malaria station even
though the man had died in another section of the hospital (_R 1712_).
Toward the end of 1942 Professor Schilling was personally present at the
autopsy of a man who died of neosalvarsan and he requested the brain,
liver, kidneys, spleen, and a piece of stomach (_R 1712, 1731_). In that
case Dr. Schilling dictated part of the findings with respect to the
cause of death (_R 1712_). When the first three patients died from
pyramidon in February 1945, a member from the malaria station and Dr.
Hintermayer were present (_R 1713, 1723, 1731_). Dr. Blaha stated that
in his experience as a physician the average patient could receive 3.3
pyramidon a day, and that the largest dose would be 2 grams per day, but
that of course assumed that the individual was healthy and strong (_R
1713_). In Dr. Blaha’s judgment, the prison inmates could not be given
more than 1½ to 2 grams for a few days (_R 1714_). If these people were
to receive 3 grams per day for three successive days, signs of poisoning
would be revealed (_R 1714_).
Dr. Blaha stated that an autopsy revealed that death from pyramidon was
the result of sudden suffocation which was not true in the case of
typhus (_R 1725_). Death from typhus could be determined by certain
indicia without a microscope (_R 1725_).
Dr. Blaha explained that the ordinary mydol tablet contained 3 pyramidon
and that it is sold over the open counter (_R 1722_). If taken in
moderate doses it will not have any ill effects (_R 1722_).
A leaflet of I. G. Farben, Indiana, which held the neosalvarsan
contained the following instructions: “In between the individual
infections, spaces of time should be permitted to elapse, from 3 to 7
days.” (_Pros. Ex. 134_) These were instructions for syphilis (_R
1564_). In paragraph five in the leaflet it read in part, “such caution
in the use of neosalvarsan is recommended for undernourished and severe
anaemic patients, tuberculosis, diseases of the lungs, heart, kidneys,
liver, and intestines.” (_R 1564, 1565._)
* * * * *