cemen cam forward and, face to face, were paired off with their victims. (Browning, 61) The shear atrocity of this was too much for many of the policemen, so alcohol was provided to calm the mens nerves. Only a dozen men stepped out and refused to shoot at all. As the day went on, however, many could not continue. They even had a special technique dubbed the neck shot. The men were told to place the end of their carbines on the cervical vertebrae at the base of the neck, but here too the shooting was done initially without fixed bayonets as a guide. The results were horrifying. The shooters were gruesomely besmirched with blood, brains, and bond splinters. It hung on their clothing. (Browning, 65) The task at hand would seem daunting at first, but as time went on the 101st Battalion would refine their methods, and the shooting would come much easier to them. This scarred the men and they tried to justify what they were doing. I made the effort, and it was possible for me, to shoot only children. It so happened that the mothers led the children by the hand. My neighbor then shot the mother and I shot the child that belonged to her, because I reasoned with myself that after all without its mother the child could not live any longer. It was supposed to be, so to speak, soothing my conscience to release children unable to live without their mothers. (Browning, 73) The author goes on to further explain what the soldiers actually meant. The full weight of this statement, and the significance of the word choice of the former policeman, cannot be fully appreciated unless one knows that the German word for release also means to redeem or save when used in a religious sense. The one who releases is the Erlser the Savior or Redeemer! (Browning, 73) After the effects on the men of the outright massacre were seen, two changes took place. First, the 101st Battalion was assigned to clearing the ghettos and loading people on trains destined for the Tr...
