The cold and the darkness of the prisoner of war barracks at Stalag 13 was unbearable. Food was scarce and the soup and coffee was always cold. That is unless you were in the barracks with Colonel Hogan. The men of the barracks enjoyed chocolate and food provided by them by the submarine that was in constant contact with them.
Every time the men of Hogan's barracks got something special they would bring the treats to the other men that were stuck in the stalag. Many of the men wondered where the men from Hogan's barracks got their treats but they assumed it was from the Red Cross because of Colonel Hogan.
The wind was blowing on that cold winter day as the men went out to roll call. As they stood there while Schultz did the counting f the men they saw a staff car pull up. Out of the car came General Burkhalter. , Albert Burkhalter always meant trouble and as the men went into the barracks they lifted the lid off of the coffee pot so that they could listen in on the conversation that was going on in Colonel Klink's office.
Long ago the men of the barracks had set up a wire tap through the coffee pot. The sound quality was poor, especially if someone used the coffee pot to make a cup of coffee, but if they listened carefully they could hear everything that was being said without being seen by any of the Germans that kept a watchful eye on them. The coffee pot was just one of the many things that Colonel Hogan and his men had managed to place in and around the Colonel's office to help with spying on him and any officer that arrived at the camp. Behind the bookcase that was located just to the right of the Colonel's desk was the wire going up to the roof that led to the antenna that provided radio service. That two way radio was their contact with the submarine that came by every seven to ten days. That submarine provided the men with tools that they needed and transported prisoners back to England. It was their lifeline with the outside world.
At the door they kept a constant watch for anyone who might come to the barracks. Usually during the day the only one that was apt to show up was Sargent Schultz. Schultz was not interested for the most part in what they were doing, but he was still a German soldier and had to be dealt with very carefully.
As the men gathered around the coffee pot, they heard Colonel Klink and the general greet each other. The general was not a fool and had to be dealt with carefully. Unlike Klink he was dedicated to the war effort and was a career man who was quick to catch on to things. He could not stand Klink. He thought that the best thing the Germans could do was to keep him here at a prisoner of war camp. Several times he had thought about sending him and some of his men to the Russian front, but he thought that they already had enough trouble there.
The General was there to do his inspection of the camp and make sure that everything was in order. Colonel Klink was so non productive that figuring out his books and the happenings at the camp were near to impossible. The conversation centered mostly on the inspection of the barracks and the going over of the books and the men who were held prisoner and the guards who guarded them.
This was going to play havoc with the men of Hogan's barracks. There was a war going on and they had jobs to do. There was a ball bearing plant just outside of the camp that they were planning on burning within the next few days and they had three escaped prisoners downstairs in the tunnel waiting to leave for England via the submarine. The submarine would also be in range of the radio that they had within three days. Because the General was there they also would have to close up the entrance to the tunnel. This entrance was located on one of the bunks and it would have to be temporarily closed. They did not want an inspection where the Germans found that entrance. It was the main entrance to the tunnel and all of the other tunnels that were located in the camp.
But on the other hand the General would keep Klink busy and out of their way. It was with pleasure that they heard the General talking about his sister Gertrude. His sister was brash and bossy and Colonel Klink had no interest in her at all. But the General was always trying to get his sister married off and as a single officer Klink was a likely candidate. Hogan would put some fuel on the fire and perhaps get rid of Klink for a few nights.
Colonel Hogan headed over to Colonel Klink's office and knocked on his door. When Klink called for him to come in he walked in. Acting as though he had no idea that the General was there he acted as though he was surprised to see him. "Good morning sir." Colonel Hogan said to the General as he saluted him. The General did return the salute, but like Hogan his heart was not in it.
Colonel Hogan smiled at the two men as he reached into Klink's stash of cigars and lit one. "Why this is a surprise. Colonel Klink and I were just talking about you and your lovely sister . He was mentioning how he was wondering how she was doing." he said with a smile.
Colonel Klink could have shot the man right there. Just the other day he had mentioned the General's sister. He slammed the cigar box closed after Colonel Hogan had removed three cigars and asked him "How can I help you Colonel Hogan?" He had thought that she would be a great asset to scaring the Russians into remission, not to see her. But his bumbling went unnoticed by the General. "Well my sister just happens to be in town right now. It will be my pleasure to make it so that the two of you can see each other once more." the General offered him.
Colonel Klink cringed inside and stuttered as he said "Well thank you." He turned to glare at Hogan who was smiling to himself.
The job done and the thought that Klink and the General would both find themselves busy with Gertrude Hogan could get back to the job of espionage. Hogan had work to do and he had no time for foolish German matchmaking. He would let the three merry German's handle themselves and just sit back and laugh. Gertrude was the last person that Klink wanted to get involved with, so Klink would be busy for the next few days.
As the men listened to the coffee pot Carter was downstairs working on the bombs that were going to be needed for the bombing of the ball bearing plant. The plant was large but there was a lot of fuel surrounding the building. If the men were able to plant at least one of the bombs in the area of the furnaces, the whole building could go down.
The next job was going to be fir Peter Newkirk. He would be making the badges that the men wore while working at the plant. In order for the men to be given entrance into the plant, they would need identification. He was going to make them identifications that said they were furnace repairmen. With these identifications and the clothing of a German worker it was the hope of Colonel Hogan and his men would gain entrance to the furnaces. They would then plant the bombs and set them to go off shortly once they left.
The group had several German uniforms located in the tunnel, and several different types of identifications. With what they had and a little work, the men were ready for the bombing. They now had to wait for the Colonel and General to set up the Generals sister for a date with Colonel Klink. Life was always a challenge in Stalag 13.
