QUISLING’S PAY

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXV, Issue 227, 24 August 1945, Page 6

QUISLING’S PAY

MANY SAVINGS CLAIMED

NEGOTIATIONS WITH NAZIS. (N.Z. Press Association.—Copyright. ) (llee. 1.45 p.m.) LONDON, Aug. 23. When the trial of Vidkun Quisling was resumed today the Judge produced accounts showing that the accused since 1942 had personally used 11,000,000 kroner and had granted his friends and

members of liis party sums totalling 50,000,000.

The Judge asked Quisling what salary lie received. Accused attempted to evade the question, but when pressed he replied that he received about half of what the King received. Quisling claimed that it was not salary but money for expenses. Tie maintained that he had saved Norway hundreds of millions of kroner. For example, by paying the Germans he was able to keep 260,000,000 kroner from getting into their hands. The first witness for the prosecution was a German, who said he had heard that a Nazi political officer negotiated with Quisling to form a new Government on the first day ol the Norwegian invasion. Witness' added that the German Commissar for Norway (Terboven) was so tired of squabbling with Quisling in 1940 that he schemed to be given the post of heading the occupation forces of Britain, the conquest of which was scheduled for later the same year. Terboven hated co-operating with Quisling and told his friends that Norway would he better off without the puppet “Fuehrer.” hut Hitler ordered that Quisling he retained in power because of the difficulty of administering Norway- without help from the Norwegian Government, and because Hitler felt extreme gratitude to Quisling for persuading him to invade Norway, thus forestalling the Allies.

The next witness was a Jewish doctor who gave evidence about the fate of 10CK) Norwegian Jews who were sent to Germany. Of them only 12 returned.

Quisling, who was pale and agitated, told the Court he had never heard about German gas chambers for Jews until the trial began..