Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Fragment of a whistleblower's record


Stuck between the pages of a book on student life during the German occupation (Studenten onder de bezetting), published in 1946, I found a carbon copy of what seems to be a fragment of a dossier, presumably kept by a whistleblower. The dossier records three specific incidents, dated January 26-31, 1952; Saturday February 2, 1952 and Friday February 15, 1952 respectively. The author of this document describes in detail incidents of misconduct of employees working in the stockroom of an unnamed company in the Dutch Indies. He (or she, but I assume it was male) notes how a certain numbers items (razorblades, key rings) went missing in January, and that a Mr Maigret, responsible for the stock, was unablke to explain for it. The same Mr. Maigret could also not account for hat happened to 12 missing flacons of Aux de Cologne 4711 No 7 on February 4, 1952. And finally, a scene is recorded involving a superintendent who was busy scooping sugar from a jar into a paper bag. Asked what he was doing, the man replied that he was ordered to do so by a certain Mr Claproth. "Why Mr Claproth would have a superintendent do this this and not he himself was beyond me. I have reported the incident to Mr Le Rutte and asked him to investigate it." Thus ends the report. It triggers one's imagination. What would have become of Mr. Maigret, Mr Claproth and the superintendent - and what of the author himself?

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