Reichsstatthalter SS Obergruppenfuehrer Greiser, Poznan
1. Dear Comrade Greiser!
I am sorry that I was not able until today to give a definite answer to
your letter of 1 May 1942.
I have no objection to having protectorate people and stateless persons
of Polish origin, who live within the territory of the Warthegau and are
infected with tuberculosis, handed over for special treatment as you
suggest; as long as their disease is incurable according to the
diagnosis of an official physician. I would like to request, however, to
discuss the individual measures in detail with the security police
first, in order to assure inconspicuous accomplishment of the task.
Heil Hitler!
Yours,
[Signed] H. HIMMLER
2. SS Obergruppenfuehrer Koppe
3. Reich Security Main Office
Copies for information.
By order:
[Signature] BR.
SS Obersturmbannfuehrer.
[Initialed] M 25/6.
TRANSLATION OF DOCUMENT NO-250
PROSECUTION EXHIBIT 203
LETTER FROM BLOME TO GREISER, 18 NOVEMBER 1942, CONCERNING THE MASS
EXTERMINATION OF TUBERCULAR POLES
Dr. med. Kurt Blome
Deputy Head
NSDAP Main Office for Public Health
18 November 1942
Berlin, SW 68, Lindenstrasse 42
To the Reichsstatthalter and Gauleiter, Party Member Greiser, Poznan
Reference: Tuberculosis action in the Warthegau.
Dear Party Member Greiser,
Today I return to our various conversations concerning the fight against
tuberculosis in your Gau, and I will give you—as agreed on the 9th of
this month in Munich—a detailed picture of the situation as it appears
to me.
Conditions for quickly getting hold of all consumptives in your Gau
exist. The total population of your Gau amounts to about 4.5 million
people, of which about 835,000 are Germans. According to previous
observations, the number of consumptives in the Warthegau is far greater
than the average number in the old Reich. It was calculated that in 1939
there were among the Poles about 35,000 persons suffering from open
tuberculosis, and besides this number about 120,000 other consumptives
in need of treatment. In this connection it must be mentioned that, in
spite of the evacuation of part of the Poles further to the east, the
number of sick persons is at least as great as in 1939. As, in
consequence of the war, living and food conditions have deteriorated
steadily, one must expect an even higher number.
With the settlement of Germans in all parts of the Gau an enormous
danger has arisen for them. A number of cases of infection of children
and adults occur daily.
What goes for the Warthegau must to a certain degree also hold true for
the other annexed territories, such as Danzig-West Prussia, the
administrative districts of Zichenau and Katowice. There are cases of
Germans settled in the Warthegau who refuse to have their families
follow because of the danger of infection. If such behavior is imitated,
and if our compatriots see that necessary measures for combating
tuberculosis among the Poles are not carried out, it is to be expected
that the necessary further immigration will come to a halt. In such a
way the settlement program for the East might reach an undesired state.
Therefore, something basic must be done soon. One must decide the most
efficient way in which this can be done. There are three ways to be
taken into consideration: