The fact that that sinister body the Gestapo—the Ger- man
Secret Police—should be active in this country is distinctly unpleasant, but since its emissaries are, in all the cases I have heard of, doing nothing illegal, our own authorities can hardly take any steps in the matter—though no doubt they are keeping their eyes open. The Gestapo seem mainly interested in transferred money. One method said to have been employed till recently was ingenious. If a German citizen still in Germany .was suspected of having an account with a London bank, a Gestapo agent would go to the bank and pay in £5 to Herr So-and-so's account. If the deposit was accepted, that was proof that the account existed. Now, I believe, the banks require an authorisation from the depositor. Ordinary inquiries of refugees are fully safeguarded by a prefatory " You are not compelled to give this information, but it will be much better for you if you do." That, with the terror associated with the name of the Gestapo even here, is often enough to elicit a disclosure that will land some unfortunate still in Germany in a concentration camp.
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