Pearl Harbor: The Seeds and Fruits of Infamy - Ludwig von Mises ...

Administration Directed Supplementary Investigations 599
of the Winds execute message, both in the Army and in the
Navy, had been destroyed and ordered to be destroyed. . . . I am
quite sure that it was not of his own knowledge. He was passing
on second-hand information. 98
Friedman: Col. Sadtler didn’t impose any secrecy upon what
he was telling me. Oh naturally he trusted to my discretion. . . .
I certainly wouldn’t have said anything to Capt. Saff ord about
it if he imposed some sort of secrecy upon what he was telling
me, and of course you understand that, not giving any credence
to it myself, I didn’t feel that Saff ord would believe any of it.
But to my astonishment, Saff ord seemed to think there might
be something to it, at least he thought there was a Winds execute
message and now it can’t be found. 99
Colonel E.W. Gibson, aide to Clarke Inquiry: Mr. William F.
Friedman has testifi ed before Adm. Hewitt of the Department
of the Navy recently as follows: “Th en if I remember correctly
I asked Col. Sadtler whether he had a copy, had ever gotten or
seen a copy of this message [the Winds Code execute], and
his answer was, if I remember correctly that he hadn’t himself
seen a copy but that he had been told by somebody that the
copies had been ordered or directed to be destroyed by Gen.
Marshall.”
Col. Sadtler: I will make an absolute fl at denial of that statement
made by Mr. Friedman because as far as I know, that
message was never in the War Department and I never made
any statement that Gen. Marshall ordered it destroyed or that
anyone told me that Gen. Marshall ordered it destroyed. . . .
Gibson: At some time did somebody tell you that messages
pertaining to the Pearl Harbor aff air were being destroyed?
98 Ibid., pp. 79–81.
99 Ibid., p. 82.