Mission Summary and Team
Sunday, 27 April 1941
At the Farm
- Simon (Basil) was at the Le Moal farm. He set about getting the farm tractor working. He then looked about the grounds. He noted that the trees in the orchard had been picked clean, and that the garden was turned because it had been picked clean. There were no signs of anything that could be grown or eaten anywhere on the grounds.
- Gabriel then sought out writing materials and began composing a draft of a resistance newsletter suggesting that the people were being oppressed and that they should consider holding out on the Germans and hiding supplies for themselves.
- They then set about planning a tunnel westward from the basement toward the tree. They dug the tunnel below the floor of the basement such that it could be covered with some barrels to conceal it. The tunnel was to be 5 feet tall and three feet wide, for use as both firing practice and as an escape route.
- Using their expertise, they determined that they could use the sewage space under the barn normally used by the cattle to stow the displaced dirt.
In Betton
- Jakub explored the house while Jacques and Clara rested. He set up a rudimentary alarm on the basement door to clang if the bar was moved, and then occupied the bed in basement.
- Jacques found a loose floorboard to hide his weapons in. Jakub hid his in some boxes in the basement. There he found a fairly new copy of a book.
Around 5am, Jacques was awakened by the sound of a truck coming into the village. He peeked out the window and saw a truck and a squad of Germans in the center of town. There was an officer standing on the steps of the town hall giving orders calmly, and the soldiers set about preparing for something. The team waiting for the activity to die down. A little while later, the truck drove off to the outskirts of town quietly.
28 April 1941
- Around 6:30, a soldier bangs on the door. Jakub answered and was told that all villagers had to assemble in the square in ten minutes. He closed and locked the door and they dressed. Ten minutes later, they emerged from the house.
- The people in town are awakened by banging on the front door. The Germans muster everyone in Betton into the town square for the Leutnant’s speech.
- Leutnant Markus Fischer and 4.z.1a (9 men)
- Feldwebel and 3 are administrative in the town hall
- Other six are on patrol
- All are housed in the garrison building
- The leutnant said that he and his squad were in town to administer the law and keep order. They were not there to cause trouble. As long as everyone obey the law all will be well.
- He said that all buildings would be searched over the next few days for signs of contraband, black market, or resistance activity.
- Clara asked what the law was, and the leutnant replied that the rules were posted on the town hall and would be distributed to every building in town.
- As the crowds dispersed, Clara saw Yves drop something into a bush. She walked up to the bush and covertly retrieved a cigar tube from it and stuck into her medical bag.
- They returned to the house one at a time. Once there, Jacques kept watch on the ground floor. Clara and Jakub went to the basement and she looked in cigar tube. Inside was a series of number that they recognized as a book code. Jakub remembered the book he had found in the boxes, and it proved to be the key book.
- The message said “We have found cover jobs for several of you. Send the vet and the blacksmith to the farrier and the mechanic to the garage at 2:00 this afternoon. One of us will meet you there.”
- In the meantime, Jakub sought out a better hiding place for his equipment. He finds some loose bricks in the basement and reveals an old fireplace or priest hole that was barely noticeable unless specifically looking for it. It was big enough to hide most of the equipment they brought with them.