Aftenposten
- The workers at Tinnfos rejected the factory's offer.
- Master criminal Harry Hagemann escaped from the Aker police yesterday.
- Prime Minister Berge's explanation.
Aftenposten's page of 8 October 1926 carried a telegram from Notodden reporting that striking workers at the Tinnfos mill had rejected the company's offer to rehire half of them on the old terms. Their families' eviction from their houses was now set for Monday. A long police story described how the smuggler Harry Hagemann leapt out of a window and over a barbed-wire fence at Oslo's Justice Building moments before receiving a two-year sentence, and the paper printed his full description. A sharp jab at Gunnar Knudsen's prohibition campaign followed it. A fragment of Abraham Berge's testimony to the impeachment court recalled the banking panic and the May 1923 letter in which Handelsbanken reported that it lacked liquid capital.
Translation
The workers at Tinnfos rejected the factory's offer.
The workers at Tinnfos rejected the factory's offer. The eviction will take place on Monday. Special telegram to Aftenposten. Notodden, 7 October. The Tinnfos workers held a meeting last night to consider the factory's latest offer. Present were Secretary Bratvold of the Paper Industry Workers' Union and the mediation committee appointed by the Notodden municipal executive board. The factory's offer was to take back half of the striking workers on the old terms, provided the strike was called off at once. The families who had been given notice of eviction would then, as previously reported, be allowed to stay in the houses until spring, provided the rent tribunal consented to the houses being vacated at that time. The letter demanded an answer by Saturday, and if the offer was rejected, the evictions would take place the following Monday. After a long exchange of views, the offer was rejected.
Master criminal Harry Hagemann escaped from the Aker police yesterday.
Master criminal Harry Hagemann escaped from the Aker police yesterday. When he was brought before the court in the Justice Building to receive his sentence. A giant leap over the barbed-wire fence. Last night we received word from the Aker police that the master criminal and smuggler Harry Hagemann, nicknamed "the Robber," had escaped from the Justice Building at midday yesterday, just before he was sentenced in the Aker lay-judge court to 2 years' imprisonment for several daring burglaries, among them at the Lysaker and Stabæk pharmacies. Last night we spoke with police attorney Hauger, who gave us further details of the escape. In the courtroom Hagemann was guarded by a policeman, a big, strong fellow. Just before the sentence was pronounced, Hagemann had to step out into the corridor for a moment. The police attorney could not say for certain yesterday why this was. Suddenly Hagemann dashes out through the window outside the courtroom door and into the courtyard at Grensen 5–7. Here he makes a giant leap up onto the 3-metre-high fence, which is topped with 3 rows of barbed wire. He swung himself over the barbed wire and jumped down into the courtyard at Grubbegaten 3. From there he could go straight out onto the street. Pursuit was of course taken up at once, but no one could take the same route as Hagemann. The pursuers had to go out through the main entrance of the Justice Building, since the other exits, as is well known, have been closed since the dynamite attack. Hagemann therefore got a head start of about 3 minutes, and he used it to vanish without a trace. By Norwegian standards Hagemann is a very dangerous and daring criminal. He has previously been in America. In this country, during prohibition, he has operated on a large scale [?] as a smuggler, and it is not unlikely that he will now head for the smuggling grounds. During his criminal career he has mainly stayed in Oslo. He is easy to recognize. We give his description here: Full name Harry Otto Wilhelm Lützow Eugen Hagemann. Born 12 August 1882, 1.64 m tall, slight, has grey hair, blue eyes, full lips, gold fillings in the upper teeth, a dot in the web of the left thumb, a scar on the left thumb, an American Union flag and 2 hands on the left forearm, a Cupid figure, a red heart and a ribbon bearing O. P. and H. H. on the right forearm, small scars under both ears. He is wearing a brown suit. He has not previously used weapons against anyone, but it is quite conceivable that he may come to do so. Hagemann must have had helpers, the police attorney believed. There was a crowd of people out in the corridor by the courtroom, and some of them must have helped him get out of the window. Even late last night there was no trace of Hagemann. He is posted as wanted in Polititidende today. Any information should be sent to the Aker police. Mr. Gunnar Knudsen has spoken for prohibition. It attracted no attention. That is why he is also writing for prohibition. But that, too, does not attract the attention Mr. Knudsen had expected and hoped for. He should get used to the idea that people have at last learned from bitter experience. Mr. Knudsen's opinions have been a costly affair for the country.
Prime Minister Berge's explanation.
…that the collapse of these banks created a terrible anxiety and nervousness. It was the business life of the whole country that was on the way to collapse. Then, on 25 May 1923, I received a letter from the chief managing director of Handelsbanken, bank manager Volckmar. He stated that the bank was in difficulties; it lacked liquid capital. A copy of the letter to me had been sent to Norges Bank. Norges Bank approached the Ministry of Finance, and that same day a meeting was called to discuss the situation. The government found the matter very serious, — and anyone who knew the economic situation in the country had to agree that it was very serious. One of the men from whom I often had visits in the Fi-
Context
The impeachment case in which Berge testified
Berge's testimony belongs to the last impeachment case (riksrett) in Norwegian history. In 1923 the government supported Den Norske Handelsbanken in Trondheim with a loan of 25 million kroner in state bills, and kept it secret on the ground that disclosure could cause panic among the bank's customers. In 1926 the Odelsting voted 62 to 50 to impeach Berge and six members of his government from May 1923. They were charged with granting the support without a decision of the Storting and with breaching the duty to inform the Storting afterwards. The court convened on 3 September 1926, so on 8 October Aftenposten was printing testimony from a trial about a month old. The letter Berge dates to 25 May 1923 arrived five days before he was appointed prime minister on 30 May 1923; he had been finance minister in Otto B. Halvorsen's coalition since March 1923, so he received it as finance minister. His stress on nationwide panic is the defendant's own account, which the paper printed as his explanation. The judgment of 26 March 1927 acquitted the ministers on every count, partly because charges were time-barred, and the judges disagreed about the grounds for acquittal.
The banking crisis behind the Handelsbanken rescue
Berge's fragment opens with the claim that the collapse of 'these banks' threatened the business life of the whole country; the excerpt begins mid-sentence, so the banks he named are not visible here. The wider crisis is well documented. Norges Bank's own history records that nearly 70 banks came under public administration during the downturn of the 1920s, and that Norway, together with Britain, was among the countries hardest hit. Centralbanken for Norge, one of the country's largest commercial banks with assets of 660 million kroner in 1920, was placed under public administration in 1923 and went into liquidation in 1928. Norges Bank chose to support the banks and postponed its par policy, the aim of returning the krone to its prewar gold value, until the worst of the crisis was over. In that setting Berge, as finance minister, feared that a leak would cause panic, and only the government was told of the Handelsbanken support. His account of Norges Bank approaching the Finance Ministry and a meeting being called that same day fits this pattern of emergency handling; what the impeachment court had to judge was whether keeping it from the Storting was lawful.
Tinfos Papirfabrik at Notodden
The Tinnfos of the telegram is Tinfos Papirfabrik, a groundwood pulp mill and paper factory at Notodden in Telemark, founded in 1872 and closed in 1972. When it became a joint-stock company in 1911, Ole Halvorsen Holta held half the shares. The 1920s were hard for the mill: in 1921 pulp prices fell by as much as 80 percent, and the plant had to be modernised and rationalised to be run profitably. A new grinding mill was not built until 1928. The page itself is the evidence for the dispute. It shows the company offering to rehire only half of the strikers on the old terms, tying a halt to the strike to the families' right to stay in their houses until spring, and setting a Saturday deadline backed by Monday evictions. It also shows the Paper Industry Workers' Union and a mediation committee appointed by the Notodden municipal executive board taking part in the talks.
Why prohibition was a partisan target
The barb at Gunnar Knudsen, which in the OCR follows directly on the Hagemann story, links smuggling to a political quarrel. The report says Hagemann smuggled on a large scale during prohibition, and the comment then calls Knudsen's opinions a costly affair for the country. Knudsen was an old antagonist within Norwegian liberalism: in 1908 he and his wing won a majority to dissolve the old Venstre association in the Storting in order to form a new one, and those who did not support the new line, Berge among them, were shut out of the parliamentary group. Prohibition also decided the fate of a cabinet. Berge's government resigned in 1924 after proposing to strengthen state finances by ending the ban on spirits without a referendum, a bill the Storting rejected. Aftenposten's comment speaks from the anti-prohibition side of a dispute that had already brought down one government.
Original
Arbeiderne ved Tinnfos forkastet fabrikkens tilbud.
Arbeiderne ved Tinnfos forkastet fabrikkens tilbud. Utkastelsen vil foregaa mandag. Specialtelegram til «Aftenposten». Notodden, 7de oktober. Tinnfosarbeiderne holdt igaarkveld møte til behandling av fabrikkens siste tilbud. Tilstede var sekretær B r a t v o l d i Papirindustriarbeiderforbundet og den av Notodden formandskap nedsatte mæglingskomité. Fabrikkens tilbud gik ut paa at indta halvparten av de streikende arbeidere paa de gamle betingelser, saafremt streiken straks blev avblaast. De familier, som var bebudet utkastet, skulde som meddelt da faa lov at bli boende i husene til vaaren, mot at husleienævnden gav sit samtykke til at husene da blev ryddiggjort. I skrivelsen forlangtes svar inden lørdag, og i tilfælde tilbudet blev avslaat, vilde utkastelsene finde sted førstkommende mandag. Efter en lang meningsutveksling blev tilbudet forkastet.
Storforbryderen Harry Hagemann rømt fra Akers politi igaar.
Storforbryderen Harry Hagemann rømt fra Akers politi igaar. Da han blev fremstillet i Justisbygningen for at faa sin dom. Et kjæmpesprang over pigtraadgjærdet. Fra Akers politi mottok vi igaar aften meddelelse om, at storforbryderen og smugleren Harry H ag e m a n n med tilnavnet» Røvern «igaar middag var rømt fra Justisbygningen like før han i Akers meddomret blev dømt til 2 aars fængsel for flere dristige indbrudstyverier, deriblandt i Lysaker og Stabæk apoteker. Vi hadde igaar aften en samtale med politifuldmæktig Hauger, som gav os nærmere oplysninger om rømningen. Hagemann blev i retslokalet bevoktet av en politimand, en stor, kraftig kar. Like før dommen blev avsagt maatte Hagemann gaa ut paa gangen en tur. Grunden hertil kunde politifuldmæktigen ikke bestemt opgi igaar. Pludselig farer Hagemann ut av vinduet utenfor lokalets dør og ut paa gaardsplassen i Grænsen 5-7. Her gjør han et kjæmpesprang op paa det 3 meter høie gjærde, som øverst er besat med 3 rader pigtraad. Han svingte sig over pigtraaden, hoppet ned i gaardsplassen i Grubbegaten 3. Herfra kunde han dra like ut paa gaten. Forfølgelse blev naturligvis øieblikkelig optat, men ingen kunde ta samme vei som Hagemann. Forfølgerne maatte ut gjennem Justisbygningens hovedutgang, idet de andre utganger som bekjendt er stængt, efter dynamitattentatet. Derfor fik Hagemann ca. 3 minutters forsprang, og dette benyttet han til at forsvinde sporløst. Hagemann er en efter norske forhold meget farlig og dristig forbryder. Han har tidligere været i Amerika. Her i landet har han under forbudet drevet i stor utstr [?] kning som smugler, og det er ikke usandsynlig, at han nu vil søke ut til smuglerfeltet. Under sin forbrydervirksomhet har han væsentlig opholdt sig i Oslo. Han er let kjendelig. Her gjengir vi hans signalement: Fuldt navn Harry Otto Wilhelm Lützow Eugen Hagemann. Født 12te august 1882, 1. 64 m. høi, spæd, har graat haar, blaa øine, brede læberande, guldplomberte tænder i overmunden, en prik i venstre tommelgrep, et ar paa venstre tommelfinger, amerikansk unionsflag og 2 hænder paa venstre underarm, en amorskikkelse, rødt hjerte og baand, hvorpaa O. P. og H. H. paa høire underarm, smaa-arret under begge ører. Han er iført brun dres. Tidligere har han ikke benyttet vaaben mot nogen, men det er let tænkelig, at han kan komme til at gjøre det. Hagemann maa ha hat hjælpere, mente politifuldmægtigen. Der var en flok mennesker ute paa gangen ved retslokalet, og nogen av disse maa ha hjulpet ham med at komme ut av vinduet. Endnu sent igaar aften hadde man intet spor efter Hagemann. Han efterlyses i» Polititidende «idag. Mulige oplysninger bedes sendt Akers politi. Hr. Gunnar K n u d s e n har talt for forbud. Det vakte ingen opmerksomhet. Derfor skriver han ogsaa for forbud. Men heller ikke det vækker den opmerksomhet, som hr. Knudsen hadde ventet og haabet. Han bør gjøre sig fortrolig med den tanke, at folk omsider er blit klok av skade. Hr. Knudsens meninger har været landet en kostbar affære.
Statsminister Berges forklaring.
at disse bankers sammenbrud skapte en forfærdelig ængstelse og nervøsitet. Det var det hele lands næringsliv, som var paa vei til at bryte sammen. Saa fik jeg den 25de mai 1923 et brev fra Handelsbankens chefdirektør, bankchef Volckmar. Han oplyste, at banken var i vanskeligheter, den manglet likvid kapital. En avskrift av brevet til mig var sendt Norges Bank. Norges Bank gjorde henvendelse til Finansdepartementet, og der blev samme dag sammenkaldt et møte til drøftelse av situationen. Regjeringen fandt saken meget alvorlig, - og saa mange som hadde kjendskap til den økonomiske situation i landet maatte være enig i, at den var meget alvorlig. En av de mænd, som jeg ofte hadde besøk av i Fi -