Hi Again.Your comments are very interesting indeed. Now have a look at this and let me know what you think about such bizarre events.

The American.
The most willing prisoner

After finding the dead SS officer spread out on the floor, waiting for some idiot to move him, we now proceeded with even greater care. We moved on to a hay-loft, a door that had very narrow steps leading up to the loft from the outside. On the left hand side of this outhouse was an open part of the building containing farm implements, to the right was the stairs. Now! I can still see those steps, grey in colour and worn from constant use, the treads of the stairs hollowed by years of scuffing farmers boots, a nice door, Just what we wanted!

We had both decided that we would get it off its hinges, when we heard footsteps coming down the loft steps and a pair of German jackboots appeared. Spud pointed his empty Sten gun at him and I drew my trusty Bowie knife that the Yank had given me, prepared to do this fellow some very serious harm, when a voice called out. "I want to give myself up" in a voice with an American accent, in these unusual circumstances and with great caution, we let him come on. Having seen what they were prepared to do with their own officer, we took no chances. None!

I have never seen anyone so keen to give himself up. He told us that he was the son of an American mother and a German father, while they were on holiday in Germany from the USA, the war had broken out, and he was unable to get home, subsequently, he was called up to serve in the German army, sent to Normandy, he told us that his mum had told him to stay behind and give himself up to the Americans. Having listened to him for some time, he seemed so relieved to be able to surrender that I was quite convinced that he was telling the truth.

We gave him a cigarette and had quite a long chat before turning him in, he was not far away from the American sector, they were quite close, but not close enough. For many years I have wondered what happened to this man? One cannot be anything else but curious when faced with such bizarre events. I would give a lot to trace this man, just to find out what happened to him afterwards? Sometimes I lay awake, and wonder about these people. Did the officer who asked me to cut his leg off live? What happened to the German paratroop doctor? Where did the ‘American’ prisoner end up, was he telling the truth? OR for heavens sake was he telling yarns to get good treatment?

If you are out there somewhere? American that served in the German army? I’ll bet you will remember the two Sappers that captured you on the farmhouse hayloft stairs, and the long conversation we had after. If you were a German? and filled us up with utter rubbish! Then good luck to you! And, I would still like to know what happened to you, for I lay awake at night thinking about these mysteries.

What do our readers think about such odd events? Sometimes, I am a bit reluctant to recall these odd happenings, for there is always the danger of being looked at as though I was telling “Porkies”
Comments anybody?
Sapper Brian.