The Kammersee Affair

by John Holt

  “Okay. We have some diving equipment, suitable for twenty metres or so. Not much more. Tomorrow Karl, you and I will see if we can see anything under there,” Fritz said pointing to the lake. Then he slapped his friend on the back. “It’s about time you had a bit of exercise.”

  Karl looked at his friend. He then looked across at Mueller. “Sounds good to me,” he said. “I hope the water is warm.”

  “What about me?” Mueller asked.

  Fritz did not want the responsibility of Mueller’s safety. “You’re not diving if that’s what you think. You’re not experienced enough, and it’s far too dangerous.” He looked at Mueller, who was obviously disappointed. “Besides, you will be more useful here on the shore.”

  Mueller knew that Fritz was right and reluctantly agreed. “You’re absolutely right,” he said. “I could be more of a hindrance than a help down there.” He pointed to the lake, and shrugged. After a few moments he continued. “Going along with your thoughts, Fritz, the only other thing that we could do, is to search this clearing with a metal detector,” he said. “I can certainly help there, I hope.”

  “Good idea,” said Fritz. “We could start that almost straight away, couldn’t we?”

  Impatient as always, that’s just like Fritz, anxious to get moving; no time for delay. “Let’s get some coffee, and a bite to eat first, shall we,” said Karl. It wasn’t a question, it was a suggestion.

  “As always, Karl, you are perfectly right,” said Fritz. “You are always there to keep me restrained. Just for that you can make the coffee.”

  Karl commenced to make the coffee, and Mueller got on with preparing some food. Fritz walked back to where the equipment lay on the ground, and began checking the detecting equipment.

  * * *

  “Coffee’s ready,” yelled Karl.

  “So is the food,” said Mueller. “Come and get it.”

  Fritz stopped what he was doing, and joined the others who were already seated at the side of the lake. For some time they sat there silently, just looking at the water. “I wonder what secrets lie hidden around here,” said Karl. No one answered, but all wondered the same thing.

  “I wonder if your father sat at this spot, Hans,” Karl once again.

  “Who knows,” Mueller replied, as he stood up and walked over to the shore line. He stared at the water for a few moments, rubbing his face. Then he turned and started to walk back. “So how is this metal detector search to be carried out?” he asked.

  “Firstly we’ll divide the area into strips, approximately twelve hundred millimetres wide,” Fritz started to explain. “That width suits the sweep of the detector, as you move forward.”

  “You have to move fairly slowly, though,” Karl remarked. “And not disturb the ground as you walk along.”

  “That’s absolutely correct,” Fritz continued. “The slower you move, the better. This allows the detector a better chance of finding anything. You see, depending on the type of soil, and the depth the object may be, the signal may need a longer time to penetrate.”

  “I see,” said Mueller. “Have you had much success so far, here I mean?”

  “A fair amount, I suppose, over at Toplitzsee,” replied Fritz.

  “We found a lot of coins, and hundreds of cartridges,” said Karl. “That is if you call that success.”

  “Don’t exaggerate, Karl,” said Fritz. “We found about a hundred cartridges. It just seems like more. Several of them had been fired. The majority though had not been used. They were so corroded they will never be used now.”

  “Right, so when should we start?” asked Mueller.

  “Now is as good a time as any,” said Fritz. “We might not get finished today, though.”

  * * *

  The clearing was approximately twenty metres long, and approximately six metres wide, narrowing in some areas. Karl had formed strips, running parallel to the lake. They were marked out with tree branches. Then he had prepared a plan of the area, with the strips marked on. It had been decided that Fritz would carry out three sweeps to each strip, each sweep being fully completed, before proceeding with the next. For the first sweep, Fritz would stand at the right hand side of the strip; the second sweep he would stand in the centre; and for the third sweep he would stand at the left side. In that way each area would be covered at least twice and possibly as much as five times.

  The detector had been checked with some coins that Karl had scattered. It worked perfectly. Whilst Fritz scanned the clearing, the others were to carry out a visual search of the adjacent area. They were ready. If there was anything there, Fritz was confident that they would find it.

  * * *

  “Shall we get started then?” said Fritz. He walked over to his designated starting position in the first strip, which was furthest from the lake. He switched on the detector, checked the dials, and set them at nought. After a few more adjustments, he was satisfied that all was in order.

  He commenced sweeping from side to side, the detector face skimming the surface of the ground, but not causing any disturbance. All the while he was moving forward very slowly. He reached the end of the first strip and stopped. There was nothing, not a hint of anything.

  “Karl, can we check this detector, once more,” he asked. “Just come over here, and bury a few coins.”

  Karl moved over to him, and buried a number of coins, approximately four inches below the surface.

  Immediately, Fritz carried out a sweep of the area. “Nothing, it’s not detecting a thing.” Fritz was angry, annoyed. What was wrong with the machine? It was all right a few minutes ago, when I checked it. Now, it’s not registering anything.

  “It’s probably something quite simple,” said Karl, in a voice, which was saying calm down. “It’s probably just a loose connection; a broken wire or something. Possibly, the battery could be faulty.”

  “Yes, you’re probably right,” said a frustrated Fritz. But he knew that what Karl had said made sense.

  “Bring it over here, and we’ll take a look,” said Karl. “But I think the search is over for today.” Fritz looked at the sky, and then he checked his watch. Karl was right again, as usual.

  Karl took hold of the detector, and sat down. He took a screwdriver out of his pack, and placed it on the ground in front of him. He opened up the battery compartment, and took out the battery. “Battery looks all right,” he said. “But that’s not a proper test. Anyway, obviously something is wrong. Of course, it could be the buzzer that no longer works.”

  “One thing, Karl,” interjected Fritz. “The dials didn’t register either. What do you say to that?”

  Karl didn’t know what to say to that. “Leave it with me, for a while. I’ll strip it down. We can then have a closer look.” With that, he started work. With nothing else to do the others decided to carry on searching in the undergrowth.

  The sun was now setting, and casting long shadows through the trees. It was beginning to get dark, and there was nothing to be gained by further searching. Mueller and Fritz returned to the campfire. “I’ll make us some fresh coffee, before turning in,” said Mueller.

  Fritz walked over to where Karl was sitting. “How’s it going?” he asked. “Have you solved the problem?”

  “A burnt out cable, which I can easily replace, and a broken connection, which is more difficult,” he said with a hint of disappointment in his voice. “I’ll need to go all the way back into town to try to find a part, unless I can fix it.”

  Fritz was disappointed. This was going to delay the whole operation, maybe for days. Possibly it could be weeks, or even longer. Still, there was nothing they could do about it. There was no point being too annoyed. “You can only do your best, Karl,” he said. “If I can help, let me know.”

  “I wonder if I have anything in here, that could be useful,” Karl mumbled, as he opened up his tool kit.

  Fritz came closer, and gently closed the toolbox. “Tomorrow, Karl, leave it until the morning.” He touched his friend’s elbow.
He got up and walked over to the tent. Karl followed reluctantly.

  * * *

  The following morning Mueller woke early. He had slept badly, dreaming of his father. He had been dragging heavy boxes behind him, close to the lake. He was actually chained to the box. Suddenly, the box slid down the muddy bank, and fell into the lake, dragging him with it.

  Mueller woke in a sweat. He kept telling himself that it was only a dream, a bad dream, but a dream nonetheless. He went out of the tent. It was raining quite hard. He welcomed it. It refreshed him, woke him up, and washed the residue of the dream away. He went down to the lake to fetch some water. He returned to the camp, and started to make the coffee. He could see the others stirring. “Good morning,” he said. “Breakfast won’t be long.”

  Karl was the first to respond. He sat up, and stretched. “Good morning, Hans, that sounds good.” He looked over at Fritz. “Hi Fritz, you’ll be pleased to hear that I have thought of something that I can use for the repair. So we should be able to get moving today.”

  “I’m not so sure of that,” said Mueller. “It is raining quite hard, at present. It might be in for the rest of the day.”

  Fritz leapt up, and went to the tent flap. He looked out. Mueller was right. “Great, just what we need.”

  Here we go again, Karl thought. Once more I have to calm him down. “It’s okay, Fritz. I need to repair the detector anyway,” he said. “I bet that the rain will have stopped by the time I’ve finished.”

  Two hours later, the rain had stopped. The sky was brightening, and the sun was trying to shine. “Finished,” shouted Karl, as he looked across at Fritz. “I told you so.”

  Fritz looked back at him. “So why haven’t you tested it yet?”

  They took the detector outside, over to where the sample coins had been buried. Fritz switched the machine on, and started to sweep. Instantly the buzzer started to sound, and the gauge registered a reading, indicating something about four inches deep. It had successfully discovered the coins. They were now ready, at last.

  Mueller joined them, and all three went over to the start of the search area. Once again Fritz stood on the right hand side of the strip. He switched the detector on, and started sweeping. Slowly he began moving forward. His eyes looking straight ahead; and then back to the gauges, then forward once more. He reached the end of the first strip. He turned ready for the return trip, only this time he was positioned in the centre. He started slowly forward. He reached the end of the strip. Nothing had registered. He turned once more, ready for the third scan. He positioned himself on the left hand side, and moved forward. He had moved about five metres when he noticed the gauges moving. Then the buzzer sounded. He stopped.

  Karl came over, and carefully sifted through the soil. “There it is,” he said as he lifted something from the soil. “As I expected it’s more ammunition. Strangely enough though, these have all been fired.”

  Fritz said nothing, and merely continued his way along the first strip. As he reached the end, he put up one finger. “That’s number one finished, Karl,” he said. He placed the detector on the ground. “Before we go any further, I think we need to keep a record of anything we find.”

  Mueller came forward. “I can help Karl with that,” he said. “What needs to be done?”

  “Firstly we need to mark the location of the find on to the plan I prepared yesterday,” said Karl. “Then we need a written record of what we found, and at what depth. We can also record any other details that we think appropriate. Finally, we need to take some photographs.”

  “Okay, you do the writing, I’ll take the photographs.” Hans went to fetch his camera, and then returned to the search area. “What we need, is a close up photograph, showing any objects we find,” explained Karl. “But then we also need a photograph showing the precise location in relation to an identifiable point.”

  “I suggest you firstly take a series of photographs of the whole site. Make sure that they overlap,” Karl explained. “We can then put them together when we leave here.”

  Mueller knew exactly what was required, and commenced taking the photographs. Once he had finished, Fritz positioned himself at the start of the second strip. The detector was switched on, and he set off once more. As he came close to the area where the ammunition had been discovered, the buzzer sounded once more. The area was carefully cleared to reveal more spent cartridges. “Quite a bit of shooting went on here, by the look of things,” Fritz said. “Okay Karl, make a note.” Fritz stepped out of the way.

  Karl wrote down the details. He then looked over to his friend. “Okay, Fritz, you can carry on now.”

  Fritz went back to his previous position, and continued toward the end of the strip. He carried out two more scans of the area, finding even more ammunition. He then went to the start position of the third strip. Thirty minutes later he had completed three scans, and discovered nothing further. “On to the fourth strip,” he said.

  This was the one nearest the lake. He started to slowly walk along, scanning from side to side. Approximately half way along, the buzzer sounded once again. Was it more bullets? He stopped, and moved to one side.

  Karl started to clear the soil away. It was damp, and muddy. As he cleared the soil, the pocket filled with water. Then he saw it. There, covered in mud, and slime, were two pieces of metal attached together by a chain. One piece of metal was substantially damaged. He picked the object up, and rinsed it in the water of the lake. Once the mud had been removed, he could see what it was. “Identification tags, by the look of it,” he said.

  Mueller came over. “Let me see.” He took hold of the object. “You’re right Karl, they are identification tags. To be precise they are US Army identification discs, dog tags as they were called. The US Army was obviously here at some time.” The others were stunned at this find.

  “How can that be,” asked Karl. “I can’t imagine the Americans coming here. What would be the point?”

  “That’s a very good question, Karl,” replied Mueller. “But these tags prove conclusively that at least one US soldier was here. The tags also show that sadly he remained here.”

  “We’ll look closer at those discs, later,” said Fritz. “In the meantime I’d like to finish this search.”

  The others agreed that he should proceed. Another hour passed. The search was completed and nothing further had been discovered.

  * * *

  “Let’s see those dog tags,” Fritz said. Karl handed the chain to his friend. Fritz looked at the tags for a few moments, and then turned toward Mueller. “How did you know that they were American?” he asked.

  “Simple,” said Mueller. “On the back it says US Army. Not too difficult.”

  Fritz looked back at the discs. One was so badly smashed, that nothing could be seen. “I wonder how it got so damaged?” he asked. “Just falling on to the ground wouldn’t have done that.”

  He looked at the second tag. There, on the back were the words US Army, just has Mueller had said. At the front was merely a number. “This must have been a service number of some kind,” he said.

  “Yes that’s correct,” said Mueller. “If you understand these things, and I don’t, that number should identify the name, and rank of the person, together with his regiment, or unit.”

  “So what should we do with them, do you think,” asked Karl. Then as an afterthought, “I wonder what happened to the soldier they belonged to.”

  “I think that the tags, together with full details of where they were found, should be sent to the US Embassy, in Vienna,” suggested Mueller. “It is possible that the soldier is still listed as missing. This find might help the authorities.”

  “Fine, that’s what we will do then,” said Fritz. “As soon as we can.”

  Karl shook his head. “Of course, you realise that as soon as this is reported, the authorities will be all over this area, and our search will be over,” said Karl.

  “He’s absolutely right,” said Mueller.

  �
�Okay let’s think for a moment,” said Fritz after a few minutes. “Those tags have been here for what, more than ten years? Another day or two isn’t going to make a great deal of difference, is it?”

  Mueller looked first toward Karl, and then looked back to Fritz. “All right, I agree,” he said. “What’s your plan?”

  “I propose that we leave the tags to one side, for the time being. After all no one else knows that we have found them,” Fritz said. “Who’s to say we didn’t find them until, tomorrow, or even the day after?”

  “Go on,” said Karl. “I’m listening.”

  “We continue with our exploration of the area,” Fritz replied. “I don’t think the metal detector will show anything more. So, I suggest that Karl and I carry out a series of shallow dives, in this area, to see if that reveals anything of interest.”

  “All right, I go along with that,” said Mueller. “And then maybe afterwards we could try to find Storeroom C.”

  “Agreed,” said Fritz. “Once we are satisfied that our investigations are complete, and only then, that’s when we’ll report the tags.”

  They now had an agreed plan of action, and could make the necessary preparations for the underwater search. Fritz walked down to the lakeside, and knelt down. He scanned the shoreline to his left. The adjacent land sloped steeply, the limestone face running directly into the water. The lake was probably quite deep at this point. The rock face is just going to go on and on straight to the bottom. He moved on to the adjacent area. Here the land was much flatter. Large quantities of reeds were growing where the sandy outcrops met the lake. “Karl,” Fritz called out to his friend. “Just a second, if you please.”

  Karl knew exactly what it was that Fritz wanted. He walked over and knelt beside him. Pointing toward the reeds, he said “Just to the right of those reeds looks a good spot to start.”

  “Just what I was thinking,” said Fritz.

  They both stood up and walked back to Mueller. Karl picked up two oxygen cylinders, and placed them on the ground next to Fritz. He then dropped down on to one knee, and checked the valves. They were working correctly, and both tanks were full. He looked at Fritz. “All okay, here.”