Chapter 11 Chapter Eight A Little History

June 9, 1943.There is a suspenders hanging in front of my cell door.That's my suspenders.This is the mark of escort.Tonight they're taking me to the Imperial Court for sentencing... and that's the way it is, on the edge of my life, time is greedily nibbling the last morsels.The four hundred and eleven days spent in Pangcratz Prison were impossibly fast.How many days are left?Where shall I spend these days?How will you spend it? In these days, it will be difficult for me to have the opportunity to write again.This, then, is the final narrative.I am apparently the last living witness to this little piece of history.

... In February 1941, all members of the Central Committee of the Czech Communist Party and the leaders who were to succeed them in case of accidents were arrested.Why the party was hit so severely has not yet been given accurate evidence.About this, the Gestapo chiefs may one day come to trial.Like the orderly of the Peček Palace, I tried to find out the truth of the matter, but in vain. Of course, this matter must have the sabotage of spies, but most of it is due to carelessness.Some achievements have been made in the underground work in the past two years, and some comrades have somewhat relaxed their vigilance.The underground organization has expanded, and new comrades often join the work. Some people should have been temporarily waiting on the sidelines as candidates.The institution has grown and become unmanageably large.The enemy's attack on the Party Central Committee has obviously been planned for a long time, and they attacked us when they were about to attack the Soviet Union.

At first I didn't know how extensive the arrests were.I was still waiting for my usual liaison, but he didn't come.A month later, I realized that something very serious had happened and I was not allowed to wait like this.I had to find relationships alone, and other comrades did the same. I first found Honza Veskocil, the leader of the central Czech region.He is a creative person.He collected some materials and prepared to publish the "Red Rights Newspaper". The Party cannot do without a central organ newspaper.I wrote an editorial, but we both decided to print the whole material (which I have not seen yet) as a May Day leaflet instead of the Red Entitlement, since some other comrades had already published it elsewhere The Red Entitlement, albeit in a rather rudimentary print.

We worked guerrilla-style for several months.The Party has been dealt a heavy blow, but the blow cannot kill it.Hundreds of new comrades were determined to take up the positions of the fallen leaders, to take up the unfinished work they had left, so that the foundations of the organization would not be disintegrated or paralyzed.But there is still no central leadership, and there is great danger in guerrilla work: because at this most critical juncture—when the Germans are preparing to attack the Soviet Union—our steps may not be consistent. I recognized the handwriting of a seasoned statesman in the few issues of the guerrilla-published Red Right that I had received.And some other comrades also saw the existence of reliable people from the May Day leaflets we published, which unfortunately were not very successful.So we started looking for each other.

It's like looking for each other in the dense forest.We followed the sound as soon as we heard it, but there was a call from the other side.The heavy loss made the whole party more cautious and vigilant. If two comrades in the central organ of the party wanted to meet, they had to go through many obstacles of temptation or secret signals set by both of them and other people in charge of contact.This time it was more difficult, because I didn't know who the person on the "other side" was, and he, like me, didn't know who the other person was. Finally we finally found a common contact.It was the excellent young Dr. Milosh Nedvet who became our first liaison.This is also accidental.In mid-June 1941, I fell ill and sent Lita to ask him to come and see me. He immediately came to Baksa's house, and there we settled the matter.It turned out that he was the one who was entrusted to find the "other side", and he never thought that the "other side" was me.On the contrary, he, like everyone else on the other side, thought I was under arrest, and probably dead.

On June 22, 1941, Hitler invaded the Soviet Union.That same night, we put out a leaflet with Honza Vescociel explaining what this attack meant for us.On June 30th, I met the man I had been looking for so long.He came to my agreed point of contact because he already knew who he was going to meet.And I didn't know at that time who I was going to meet.It was a summer night, and the fragrance of Sophora japonica came in from the open window, which was a wonderful moment for a lover's tryst.But we drew down the curtains, turned on the lights, and hugged each other.It turned out that he was Hunza Zika.

It turns out that not all members of the Central Committee were arrested in February 1941. Zika, one of the Central Committee, was spared.I have known him for a long time, and I have loved him for a long time.But only now, when we work together, do I really get to know him.The round face is always smiling, like a kind uncle, but in the work of the party, he is resolute, uncompromising, confident, and determined.He didn't know, and he didn't want to know, that there were more important things than the tasks entrusted to him by the party. In order to complete the party's tasks, he can give up everything.He loved people, and people loved him, but he never won others' love with unprincipled generosity.

It only took a few minutes for us to discuss the matter.A few days later I met a third new member of the leadership, Honza Czerny, who had been in contact with Zika back in May.He was a tall, well-mannered young man who was on good terms with the masses.He fought in Spain. After the war started, he passed through Nazi Germany and returned to the motherland with a punctured lung. He still had a soldier's temperament and rich experience in underground work. He was a talented person. , People with pioneering spirit. Months of intense fighting and pure friendship have united us tightly.The characters and abilities of the three of us complement each other.Zika is a capable organizer, conscientious and meticulous, rigorous in his work, and will not be confused by any tactful words.He delved into every news, got to the bottom of it, analyzed and studied every proposal from many aspects, and supervised the implementation of every resolution with enthusiasm but ruthlessness.Czerny, who led the sabotage and prepared for armed struggle, thought of problems in the way of a soldier, alert and courageous.He is energetic, tireless and always succeeds in finding new working methods and new crowds.As for me, I am a propagandist, a journalist, working according to my sense of smell, a bit of a visionary, and a bit of a critic for balance.

The division of duties is not so much a division of labor as a division of responsibility.Because each of us has to participate in the overall work, we can split up where we need to go. The work is not light.The party has not recovered from the wounds it suffered in February.All connections have been cut off, and organizations in some places have been completely destroyed, and although some have been preserved, they cannot be connected.Some organizations, some factories, and even entire regions have severed ties with the central government for several months.Until the relationship is connected, we have to rely on the organ of the Central Committee, hoping that it will reach their hands to replace the leadership.We have no points of contact, and we cannot use past points of contact for fear that someone is watching them.In the beginning, we were still short of funds for activities, food supplies were also very difficult, and many things had to be done from scratch... All this happened precisely at a time when the party could no longer only do recovery and preparation work.In the days when the German invaders attacked the Soviet Union, the party should directly participate in the battle, organize the rear front against the occupiers, and launch small-scale battles behind the enemy lines. This should not only rely on the strength of the party organization itself, but also mobilize the strength of the whole people .During the preparatory period from 1939 to 1941, the Party was extremely secretive not only from the German police, but also from the people.Now that the party is traumatized, it should be more secretive and improve its work in front of the occupiers, but it should switch from secrecy to openness in front of the people. Those who fight for freedom open the door, form an alliance with them, and lead those who hesitate to fight by direct action.

By the beginning of September 1941, we were initially able to say that although we could not say that we had restored the severely damaged organization—we were still far from that—we had a solidly organized core, and this core Already able, at least partially, to accomplish some significant tasks.Party activity visibly resumed.The number of sabotages and strikes in various factories was increasing—at the end of September they sent Hendrich against us. The first martial law did not destroy the active resistance that was growing, but weakened it, and the party received a new blow.Especially the party and youth organizations in the Prague area were severely damaged, and a number of valuable party cadres: Jan Krejic, Stancl, Milos Krasny and many others died .

After each blow, it was possible to see how indestructible the party was.A soldier falls—two or three take his place if another fails to take his place.At the beginning of 1942, we had established a strong organization. Although it did not yet cover all departments, and it was far from reaching the size of February 1941, it was capable of completing the party's tasks in decisive battles. Mission gone.While we all share in the work, the main credit goes to Honza Zika. As to what we have done in publishing, sufficient evidence will be found in the literature which comrades keep secretly in the basement or attic, and I need not say much here. Our newspapers are widely disseminated and read not only by comrades in the Party but also by people outside the Party.Much of it was produced with copiers in a number of separate and strictly segregated secret "printing offices".Often published as soon as the situation requires.For example, Comrade Stalin's order to the Soviet Army on February 23, 1942, had already reached the first batch of readers on the night of February 24.The printers are doing an excellent job, as are the doctors' groups, especially the "Fuchs-Lorenz" group, who, in addition to publishing newspapers, also publish reports on the world's anti-Hitler situation.In order to save manpower, the rest of the work is undertaken by myself.There is also someone who can work for me in case something happens to me.After I was arrested, he took over my job and has been doing it ever since. We have established extremely simple institutions so that as few people as possible can be used to carry out the tasks.We narrowed down a long list of contact points, because the experience of February 1941 proved that too many contact points, instead of protecting the party apparatus, threatened it.It is increased danger for us personally, but far safer for the party as a whole.A blow like that in February will not be repeated. Therefore, after my arrest, the Central Committee can safely continue its work as long as it has a new member.As for who the candidate is, even my closest comrade-in-arms doesn't know at all. Honza Zika was arrested on the night of May 27, 1942. It was again an unfortunate accident of chance.It was the night of Hendrich's assassination, and the whole machinery of the occupiers was mobilized, and a manhunt was launched all over Prague.They also broke into the house in Stršechowice, where Zika was hiding that night.He had all the papers, so he could obviously escape their attention.But he didn't want to hurt this kind-hearted family, so he tried to escape by jumping from the window on the third floor, but he fell down, suffered a fatal spinal injury, and was sent to the prison hospital. Man knows nothing.Eighteen days later, he was recognized when looking at the photos, and the dying man was sent to the Pechek Palace for trial.When I was sent to confront him, I saw him there for the last time.We shook hands and he said to me with a friendly smile, "I wish you well, Yura." That was the only sentence they heard from him.He never said a word after that.He was hit on the face several times, lost consciousness, and died within hours. I knew about his arrest on May 29th.Our "tentacles" are doing a great job.With their assistance, I agreed with him on the general steps of future work, and later made some supplementary revisions, and Hunza Czerny also agreed to work according to this step.This is the last resolution of our current Central Committee. Honza Czerny was arrested in the summer of 1942.This time it was not by accident, but by a serious breach of discipline by Jan Pokorny, who was in contact with Czerny.Pokorny completely lost his standing as a leading cadre. After being tortured for a few hours (it was enough, but what else could he expect?) he revealed the contact point where he and Cherny met. .This led to Honza being followed.He fell into the hands of the Gestapo a few days later. After they caught him, they asked me to confront him immediately. "do you know him?" "do not know." Our answers are unanimous.Afterwards he refused to speak at all.His old injuries made him unable to withstand prolonged torture.He passed out quickly.Before the second interrogation, he knew the details and acted on our decision. They didn't get anything out of his mouth.They locked him up firmly, waited a long time, tried to force him to speak with new confessions, but to no avail. Prison hadn't changed him.He is still alive, happy and brave, and he continues to point out the prospect of life to the living, but he himself has nothing but death. At the end of April, 1943, they took him suddenly from Pankraatz Prison.I don't know where they sent him.But here, people who are sent away suddenly are usually in danger.Of course, it may be wrong.But I think we will never see each other again. We have enough estimates of death.We all know: Once it falls into the hands of the Gestapo, there is no hope of survival.Here we act on that point. Look, my play is almost over, too.I can't finish writing.I have no way of knowing how it ends.This is no longer a play.This is life. There is no audience in life. The curtain has been lifted. People, I love you.You should be vigilant June 9, 1943 Julius Fucik