MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. t.EDFORD. tHK
...UiiiDAV, MARri 16. Uui
orld's Spies Gather in
"Win. I HLTM-l Jnd nr th
fusing facts of the modern
world is that peaceful little
Switzerland should be one of
the busiest focal points of
Communist espionage.
In the past nine months,
Swiss police have announced
the cracking of five separate
spy rings, all directed from
the East.
The government has ex
pelled diplomats from Russia,
Czechoslovakia and Yugoslav
ia for spying. Court authori
ties are preparing trials for
those not covered by diplo
matic immunity. Not known
is the number of spies who
may have escaped or haven't
been caught and are stijl bus
ily plying their trade.
Switzerland always has
been a favored ground for in
ternational spies. It was so
during two World Wars when
it was a. safe island in the
heart of flaming Europe, and
it has been in peacetime. It is
easy for spies to hide in the
big flood of diplomats and
tourists and use the country
as an operating base ideally
located in the heart of West
ern Europe.
Two Factors
But, Swiss officials say,
two factors recently have
turned the attention of spies
to Switzerland itself, and re
sulted in even greater espion
age activity:
-Swiss industry, with a
high-precision tradition that
goes back to its first watch
makers, recently has made
some remarkable and still exact strength and location of
Switzerland I thf
j t
top-secret advances in a field
where it has always been up
front-in perfecting some of
the most highly complicated
instruments used in modern
warfare.
-With the Improvement of
NATO'S defenses and early
warning lines in Western Eu
rope, the Communists have
become increasingly interest
ed in the "neutral belt" of
Switzerland and Austria that
cuts across NATO's lines in
the center of Europe.
From the Czech border in
the east to the borders of Bur
gundy in the west stretch 500
miles of neutral air space.
They seem an inviting chan
nel for an airborne sneak at-tack-if
the attacker knew the
whatever air warning and rie.
fense schemes a potential op
ponent may have set up.
This is why terse and uni in
formative goverment commun
iques on new arrests have re
ferred to "secrets of rocket
and radar systems and air sur
veillance" which, they said,
the spies were after.
One of the top Swiss secrets
is the electronic Fledermaus
guidance and fire direction
system for anti-aircraft gun
and rocket batteries. It has
been developed - and is con
stantly being perfected - by
the Zurich company Con
traves A.G., a subsidiary of
the famed Buehrle Arma
ments Works in Oerlikon
which produced some of the
1
SHIP STRANDED The Liberty ship "Dominator" wallows after running aground in the fog.
on a reef 800 yards from shore off Pales Verdes, Calif.,
(UPI Telephoto)
most efficient anti-aircraft
equipment of World War II
The Fledermaus system has
been supplied in considerable
quantities to NATO powers.
This is why several of the ar
rested spies face charges of
intelligence activities to the
detriment of both Switzerland
and foreign powers," as it was
phrased in a recent govern
ment statement. Peacetime
spying in Switzerland is pun
ishable by heavy jail terms,
whether directed against
Switzerland or a foreign
power.
Another top secret is the
Contraves - Oerlikon HSD-58
anti-aircraft rocket reported
to have hit targets with great
accuracy at 65,000 feet above
the ground.
The rocket has been tested
by NATO on ranges in Sar
dinia and if iUwas supplied in
sizable quantities to Swiss
forces, it could at least partly
plug the hole in NATO's
shield.
Another plug for the hole
will be a first group of 100
French-designed mach-2 Mi
rage fighters which the gov
ernment has proposed be built
in Switzerland. On the ground
Switzerland can muster a mi
litia army of more than 500,
000 men in wartime.
Reform Plan
Officials say that part of in
creased Red espionage activ
ity also is centered on the mo
bilization plans of the army
and a reform plan aimed at
modernizing the whole force
at an expense of more than
$1 billion over the next four
years. Security officials ridicule
reports published in foreign
newspapers that Red agents
have an easy time of it spy
ing on Switzerland's secrets
because this country is so
small and peaceful, its citizen
soldiers talkative and its au
thorities afraid to violate
Swiss neutrality principles by
getting tough with foreign
spies.
"The contrary is true," a
senior official said.
Judging by the pained re
actions of Russia and Czecho
slovakia (Czechoslovakia.
Swiss officials say, is the East
bloc country designated under
the Warsaw Paci to "take care
of Switzerland") to the arrests
of their diplomats, and the
tough tone employed by the
Swiss government in recent
protest notes to Moscow and
Prague, he appears to be
right.
nnoiner impressive argu-
inciii ia nit: icumi ui sip ar
rests made by Swiss police in
may tu, i :iuu ouviev dip
lomats Nicolay Modine and
Boris Frolov arrested as they
turned up in Zurich allegedly
for a rendezvous with an
agent who had promised them
plans of Swiss radar installa
tions, military organization
and rocket bases.
Aug. 20, 19(H) - Yugoslav
diplomat S. Zlatkovic ex
pelled for spying.
Oct. 7, llKil) - Soviet diplo
mat Vladimir Kourkourine ex
pelled for allegedly trying to
gather information on the
Swiss armaments industry
while disguised as a represen
tative of an organization book
ing Russian movies in western
theaters.
Jan'. 20, 1 00 1 - Arrest of
three Czech agents - two of
them carrying diplomat pass
ports which the Swiss govern
ment said were issed to them
merely to cover up their spy
activities - in Zurich in a case
that is still shrouded in mys
tery. Feb. 7, 1961 - Arrest of two
Swiss citizens jiccused of spy
ing on military production
systems and "air surveillance."
Last Minute Check
Proves Embarrassing
Memphis, Tenn. - (Ul'D -Blonde
Eastern Air Lines
stewardess Rowena Powers
peeked into the pilot's cabin
and then made a red-faced
run for the door she had just
closed.
"Oh, I'm so sorry," she
apologized to the pilot.
Miss Powers said she had
greeted her passengers as
they boai'ried the plane for
the Memphis trip from Atlan
ta, and then carefully locked
the entrance door, leaving the
pilot outside,
Back Stairs: Books About Kennedys
By MERRIMAN SMITH
UPI While House Reporter
Washington-IUPD-Backstairs
at the White House:
Three paperback books,
I o m e with pictures, and
another one on the way about
President' Kennedy's wife,
Jacqueline, have come out
since inauguration, according
to "Writers Newsletter."
These are in addition to
three or more speedy books
being done on the Chief Exe
cutive himself.
Jessyca Russell Gaver, edi
tor of the highly authorita
tive newsletter about the
magazine and book publish
ing world, observes about one
forthcoming Kennedy vol
ume, "How can any book be
complete when the poor man
hasn't even been in office
four months and they're try
ing to 'evaluate' him and his
work?"
Mrs. Gaver should chat
with a New York publisher
who wants to remain anony
mous for the present. He says,
"The order against White
House household employees
writing memoirs is so un
necessary. At the rate articles
and books are being pub
lished about the Kennedys,
the market will be glutted
and there'll be precious little
left to tell by ' the time the
President leaves office.
Although it's a long way
off, this doesn't stop specula
tion about what Kennedy
will do when he leaves office.
One fairly close friend pre
dicts that the Chief Executive
will edit or publish a major
magazine.
. s .
A reader in St. Louis, Mo.,
M. O. Klein, writes in with
a rumor from his section of
the country: That the Presi
dent in early March "made a
secret trip to New York for
a conclave of Catholic hier
archy and prelates."
"Is this true or false?" asks
reader Klein..
False, unless the President
found some highly remark
able way of eluding his house
hold staff, the office staff and
the Secret Service. The long
est he has been "missing"
since the inauguration was a
period of three hours recent
ly. And then .it turned out
that he'd gone to the golf
course.
This is at least twice he's
made brief visits to a country
club recently and certainly
no one could or should be
grudge these brief outings in
which he played less than
nine holes of golf. But some
of his staff members, how-
X7
I.
I !
BABY ABANDONED - This 10-day-old baby found aban
doned in Sunnymrad, Calif., last Friday, is held by Nurse
Robbie Armstrong. An intensive search is on for the child s
mother The baby was found by a schoolboy in his own
kUchen on his return home from school. (UPI Telephoto)
ever, wish they had not made
such a point prior to the in
auguration of insisting that
Kennedy would play no golf
whatever unless he was away
on a vacation.
This illustrates a rather
curious, situation. White
House staff members for
years have gotten into
trouble on occasion by using
such words as "never" or
"first." The word "never" is
quite dangerous when applied
to future actions of a Presi
dent because it presumes a
consistency beyond the range
of most human behavior. And
to say that a President has
done something for the
"first" time presumes an en
cyclopediac, finely detailed
knowledge of history.
A case in point. Several
years after World War II, the
then President Truman was
at Key West, Fla., and took
a ride on a German sub
marine. The sub submerged
several hundred feet with
Truman board. Quite human
ly, his staff and the accom
panying reporters searched
their memories and came up
with the conclusion that Tru
man was the "first" Presi
dent to dive in an undersea
craft.
Stories to this effect were
in print around the world
when a history-minded copy
editor on the New York
World-Telegram sent a chill
ing inquiry to Key West:
Hadn't Teddy Roosevelt'
gone for 'a submerged ride on
one of the early submarines
in Oyster Bay, L.I., while he
was President?
A race to the Key West li
brary and messages to the
Navy Department in Wash
ington proved the editor was
right. From that day forth,
the late Charles G. Ross, Tru
man's press secretary, avoid
ed the word "first" as some
thing dangerously explosive.
Positions Open In
Postal Department
Applications are being ac
cepted by the U.S. Civil Serv
ice for positions as carriers or
clerks In the Medford post
office, L. B. Nelson, examiner-in-charge,
announced today.
Starting salary is 52. IB an
hour, with increases available
to $2.63 an hour.
Nelson said no experience i
is required and on-ine-joo
training Is Included in the
position.':. Male citizens, 18
years of age or over, who
reside within the delivery
area of the Medford post of
fice, or arc patrons or em
ploves of the office, may ap
ply. Application forms are avail
able from Nelson at the" post
office and must be returned
by April 1.
Pear Blossom Festival
time is coming again
ENTER YOUR CHOICE for
KING and QUEEN NOW!
Candidate may
be any 5 or
6 year old
boy or girl
fVrf CLIP ANDV '''r . -t'.
VS& SF.ND NOW -ty
Please send separate
entry blank for each
contestant entered.
Be Sure Your
. Club or Organization is
Entered in the Contest
! New Delhi-India produces
j about 37 million goat and
! sheep hides in a normal year.
1
Musr be in by March 18, 1961 "'X Entry Fee: $5.00 Each I
i
Mail to: PEAR BLOSSOM FESTIVAL ASSOCIATION
CHAMBER Of COMMERCE, MEDFORD, ORE.
( ) Yes, we plan to enter a candidate, ( ) candidates.
( ) We plan to select candidates later, will enter names
at Chamber of Commerce by March 1 8.
( ) Please mail additional entry blank to
Club or Organization
President or Official Phone
Address City
I
I
I
I , .1 , - At - I I
. ) tnecK ror 3.UU is enciosea.
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