diff --git a/lib/meinkampf b/lib/meinkampf deleted file mode 100644 index d11c77a00..000000000 --- a/lib/meinkampf +++ /dev/null @@ -1,26861 +0,0 @@ -Title: Mein Kampf -Author: Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) - Translated into English by James Murphy (died 1946). - - - - - -INTRODUCTION - -VOLUME I: A RETROSPECT - -CHAPTER I IN THE HOME OF MY PARENTS -CHAPTER II YEARS OF STUDY AND SUFFERING IN VIENNA -CHAPTER III POLITICAL REFLECTIONS ARISING OUT OF MY SOJOURN IN VIENNA -CHAPTER IV MUNICH -CHAPTER V THE WORLD WAR -CHAPTER VI WAR PROPAGANDA -CHAPTER VII THE REVOLUTION -CHAPTER VIII THE BEGINNING OF MY POLITICAL ACTIVITIES -CHAPTER IX THE GERMAN LABOUR PARTY -CHAPTER X WHY THE SECOND REICH COLLAPSED -CHAPTER XI RACE AND PEOPLE -CHAPTER XII THE FIRST STAGE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE GERMAN NATIONAL - SOCIALIST LABOUR PARTY - -VOLUME II: THE NATIONAL SOCIALIST MOVEMENT - -CHAPTER I WELTANSCHAUUNG AND PARTY -CHAPTER II THE STATE -CHAPTER III CITIZENS AND SUBJECTS OF THE STATE -CHAPTER IV PERSONALITY AND THE IDEAL OF THE PEOPLE'S STATE -CHAPTER V WELTANSCHAUUNG AND ORGANIZATION -CHAPTER VI THE FIRST PERIOD OF OUR STRUGGLE -CHAPTER VII THE CONFLICT WITH THE RED FORCES -CHAPTER VIII THE STRONG IS STRONGEST WHEN ALONE -CHAPTER IX FUNDAMENTAL IDEAS REGARDING THE NATURE AND ORGANIZATION OF - THE STORM TROOPS -CHAPTER X THE MASK OF FEDERALISM -CHAPTER XI PROPAGANDA AND ORGANIZATION -CHAPTER XII THE PROBLEM OF THE TRADE UNIONS -CHAPTER XIII THE GERMAN POST-WAR POLICY OF ALLIANCES -CHAPTER XIV GERMANY'S POLICY IN EASTERN EUROPE -CHAPTER XV THE RIGHT TO SELF-DEFENCE -EPILOGUE - - - - - -INTRODUCTION - - - -AUTHOR'S PREFACE - -On April 1st, 1924, I began to serve my sentence of detention in the -Fortress of Landsberg am Lech, following the verdict of the Munich -People's Court of that time. - -After years of uninterrupted labour it was now possible for the first -time to begin a work which many had asked for and which I myself felt -would be profitable for the Movement. So I decided to devote two volumes -to a description not only of the aims of our Movement but also of its -development. There is more to be learned from this than from any purely -doctrinaire treatise. - -This has also given me the opportunity of describing my own development -in so far as such a description is necessary to the understanding of the -first as well as the second volume and to destroy the legendary -fabrications which the Jewish Press have circulated about me. - -In this work I turn not to strangers but to those followers of the -Movement whose hearts belong to it and who wish to study it more -profoundly. I know that fewer people are won over by the written word -than by the spoken word and that every great movement on this earth owes -its growth to great speakers and not to great writers. - -Nevertheless, in order to produce more equality and uniformity in the -defence of any doctrine, its fundamental principles must be committed to -writing. May these two volumes therefore serve as the building stones -which I contribute to the joint work. - -The Fortress, Landsberg am Lech. - - - -At half-past twelve in the afternoon of November 9th, 1923, those whose -names are given below fell in front of the FELDHERRNHALLE and in the -forecourt of the former War Ministry in Munich for their loyal faith in -the resurrection of their people: - -Alfarth, Felix, Merchant, born July 5th, 1901 -Bauriedl, Andreas, Hatmaker, born May 4th, 1879 -Casella, Theodor, Bank Official, born August 8th, 1900 -Ehrlich, Wilhelm, Bank Official, born August 19th, 1894 -Faust, Martin, Bank Official, born January 27th, 1901 -Hechenberger, Anton, Locksmith, born September 28th, 1902 -Koerner, Oskar, Merchant, born January 4th, 1875 -Kuhn, Karl, Head Waiter, born July 25th, 1897 -Laforce, Karl, Student of Engineering, born October 28th, 1904 -Neubauer, Kurt, Waiter, born March 27th, 1899 -Pape, Claus von, Merchant, born August 16th, 1904 -Pfordten, Theodor von der, Councillor to the Superior Provincial Court, -born May 14th, 1873 -Rickmers, Johann, retired Cavalry Captain, born May 7th, 1881 -Scheubner-Richter, Max Erwin von, Dr. of Engineering, born January 9th, -1884 -Stransky, Lorenz Ritter von, Engineer, born March 14th, 1899 -Wolf, Wilhelm, Merchant, born October 19th, 1898 - -So-called national officials refused to allow the dead heroes a common -burial. So I dedicate the first volume of this work to them as a common -memorial, that the memory of those martyrs may be a permanent source of -light for the followers of our Movement. - -The Fortress, Landsberg a/L., - -October 16th, 1924 - - - -TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION - -In placing before the reader this unabridged translation of Adolf -Hitler's book, MEIN KAMPF, I feel it my duty to call attention to -certain historical facts which must be borne in mind if the reader would -form a fair judgment of what is written in this extraordinary work. - -The first volume of MEIN KAMPF was written while the author was -imprisoned in a Bavarian fortress. How did he get there and why? The -answer to that question is important, because the book deals with the -events which brought the author into this plight and because he wrote -under the emotional stress caused by the historical happenings of the -time. It was the hour of Germany's deepest humiliation, somewhat -parallel to that of a little over a century before, when Napoleon had -dismembered the old German Empire and French soldiers occupied almost -the whole of Germany. - -In the beginning of 1923 the French invaded Germany, occupied the Ruhr -district and seized several German towns in the Rhineland. This was a -flagrant breach of international law and was protested against by every -section of British political opinion at that time. The Germans could not -effectively defend themselves, as they had been already disarmed under -the provisions of the Versailles Treaty. To make the situation more -fraught with disaster for Germany, and therefore more appalling in its -prospect, the French carried on an intensive propaganda for the -separation of the Rhineland from the German Republic and the -establishment of an independent Rhenania. Money was poured out lavishly -to bribe agitators to carry on this work, and some of the most insidious -elements of the German population became active in the pay of the -invader. At the same time a vigorous movement was being carried on in -Bavaria for the secession of that country and the establishment of an -independent Catholic monarchy there, under vassalage to France, as -Napoleon had done when he made Maximilian the first King of Bavaria in -1805. - -The separatist movement in the Rhineland went so far that some leading -German politicians came out in favour of it, suggesting that if the -Rhineland were thus ceded it might be possible for the German Republic -to strike a bargain with the French in regard to Reparations. But in -Bavaria the movement went even farther. And it was more far-reaching in -its implications; for, if an independent Catholic monarchy could be set -up in Bavaria, the next move would have been a union with Catholic -German-Austria. possibly under a Habsburg King. Thus a Catholic BLOC -would have been created which would extend from the Rhineland through -Bavaria and Austria into the Danube Valley and would have been at least -under the moral and military, if not the full political, hegemony of -France. The dream seems fantastic now, but it was considered quite a -practical thing in those fantastic times. The effect of putting such a -plan into action would have meant the complete dismemberment of Germany; -and that is what French diplomacy aimed at. Of course such an aim no -longer exists. And I should not recall what must now seem "old, unhappy, -far-off things" to the modern generation, were it not that they were -very near and actual at the time MEIN KAMPF was written and were more -unhappy then than we can even imagine now. - -By the autumn of 1923 the separatist movement in Bavaria was on the -point of becoming an accomplished fact. General von Lossow, the Bavarian -chief of the REICHSWEHR no longer took orders from Berlin. The flag of -the German Republic was rarely to be seen, Finally, the Bavarian Prime -Minister decided to proclaim an independent Bavaria and its secession -from the German Republic. This was to have taken place on the eve of the -Fifth Anniversary of the establishment of the German Republic (November -9th, 1918.) - -Hitler staged a counter-stroke. For several days he had been mobilizing -his storm battalions in the neighbourhood of Munich, intending to make a -national demonstration and hoping that the REICHSWEHR would stand by him -to prevent secession. Ludendorff was with him. And he thought that the -prestige of the great German Commander in the World War would be -sufficient to win the allegiance of the professional army. - -A meeting had been announced to take place in the B�rgerbr�u Keller on -the night of November 8th. The Bavarian patriotic societies were -gathered there, and the Prime Minister, Dr. von Kahr, started to read -his official PRONUNCIAMENTO, which practically amounted to a -proclamation of Bavarian independence and secession from the Republic. -While von Kahr was speaking Hitler entered the hall, followed by -Ludendorff. And the meeting was broken up. - -Next day the Nazi battalions took the street for the purpose of making a -mass demonstration in favour of national union. They marched in massed -formation, led by Hitler and Ludendorff. As they reached one of the -central squares of the city the army opened fire on them. Sixteen of the -marchers were instantly killed, and two died of their wounds in the -local barracks of the REICHSWEHR. Several others were wounded also. -Hitler fell on the pavement and broke a collar-bone. Ludendorff marched -straight up to the soldiers who were firing from the barricade, but not -a man dared draw a trigger on his old Commander. - -Hitler was arrested with several of his comrades and imprisoned in the -fortress of Landsberg on the River Lech. On February 26th, 1924, he was -brought to trial before the VOLKSGERICHT, or People's Court in Munich. -He was sentenced to detention in a fortress for five years. With several -companions, who had been also sentenced to various periods of -imprisonment, he returned to Landsberg am Lech and remained there until -the 20th of the following December, when he was released. In all he -spent about thirteen months in prison. It was during this period that he -wrote the first volume of MEIN KAMPF. - -If we bear all this in mind we can account for the emotional stress -under which MEIN KAMPF was written. Hitler was naturally incensed -against the Bavarian government authorities, against the footling -patriotic societies who were pawns in the French game, though often -unconsciously so, and of course against the French. That he should write -harshly of the French was only natural in the circumstances. At that -time there was no exaggeration whatsoever in calling France the -implacable and mortal enemy of Germany. Such language was being used by -even the pacifists themselves, not only in Germany but abroad. And even -though the second volume of MEIN KAMPF was written after Hitler's -release from prison and was published after the French had left the -Ruhr, the tramp of the invading armies still echoed in German ears, and -the terrible ravages that had been wrought in the industrial and -financial life of Germany, as a consequence of the French invasion, had -plunged the country into a state of social and economic chaos. In France -itself the franc fell to fifty per cent of its previous value. Indeed, -the whole of Europe had been brought to the brink of ruin, following the -French invasion of the Ruhr and Rhineland. - -But, as those things belong to the limbo of a dead past that nobody -wishes to have remembered now, it is often asked: Why doesn't Hitler -revise MEIN KAMPF? The answer, as I think, which would immediately come -into the mind of an impartial critic is that MEIN KAMPF is an historical -document which bears the imprint of its own time. To revise it would -involve taking it out of its historical context. Moreover Hitler has -declared that his acts and public statements constitute a partial -revision of his book and are to be taken as such. This refers especially -to the statements in MEIN KAMPF regarding France and those German -kinsfolk that have not yet been incorporated in the REICH. On behalf of -Germany he has definitely acknowledged the German portion of South Tyrol -as permanently belonging to Italy and, in regard to France, he has again -and again declared that no grounds now exist for a conflict of political -interests between Germany and France and that Germany has no territorial -claims against France. Finally, I may note here that Hitler has also -declared that, as he was only a political leader and not yet a statesman -in a position of official responsibility, when he wrote this book, what -he stated in MEIN KAMPF does not implicate him as Chancellor of the -REICH. - -I now come to some references in the text which are frequently recurring -and which may not always be clear to every reader. For instance, Hitler -speaks indiscriminately of the German REICH. Sometimes he means to refer -to the first REICH, or Empire, and sometimes to the German Empire as -founded under William I in 1871. Incidentally the regime which he -inaugurated in 1933 is generally known as the THIRD REICH, though this -expression is not used in MEIN KAMPF. Hitler also speaks of the Austrian -REICH and the East Mark, without always explicitly distinguishing -between the Habsburg Empire and Austria proper. If the reader will bear -the following historical outline in mind, he will understand the -references as they occur. - -The word REICH, which is a German form of the Latin word REGNUM, does -not mean Kingdom or Empire or Republic. It is a sort of basic word that -may apply to any form of Constitution. Perhaps our word, Realm, would be -the best translation, though the word Empire can be used when the REICH -was actually an Empire. The forerunner of the first German Empire was -the Holy Roman Empire which Charlemagne founded in A.D. 800. Charlemagne -was King of the Franks, a group of Germanic tribes that subsequently -became Romanized. In the tenth century Charlemagne's Empire passed into -German hands when Otto I (936-973) became Emperor. As the Holy Roman -Empire of the German Nation, its formal appellation, it continued to -exist under German Emperors until Napoleon overran and dismembered -Germany during the first decade of the last century. On August 6th, -1806, the last Emperor, Francis II, formally resigned the German crown. -In the following October Napoleon entered Berlin in triumph, after the -Battle of Jena. - -After the fall of Napoleon a movement set in for the reunion of the -German states in one Empire. But the first decisive step towards that -end was the foundation of the Second German Empire in 1871, after the -Franco-Prussian War. This Empire, however, did not include the German -lands which remained under the Habsburg Crown. These were known as -German Austria. It was Bismarck's dream to unite German Austria with the -German Empire; but it remained only a dream until Hitler turned it into -a reality in 1938'. It is well to bear that point in mind, because this -dream of reuniting all the German states in one REICH has been a -dominant feature of German patriotism and statesmanship for over a -century and has been one of Hitler's ideals since his childhood. - -In MEIN KAMPF Hitler often speaks of the East Mark. This East Mark--i.e. -eastern frontier land--was founded by Charlemagne as the eastern bulwark -of the Empire. It was inhabited principally by Germano-Celtic tribes -called Bajuvari and stood for centuries as the firm bulwark of Western -Christendom against invasion from the East, especially against the -Turks. Geographically it was almost identical with German Austria. - -There are a few points more that I wish to mention in this introductory -note. For instance, I have let the word WELTANSCHAUUNG stand in its -original form very often. We have no one English word to convey the same -meaning as the German word, and it would have burdened the text too much -if I were to use a circumlocution each time the word occurs. -WELTANSCHAUUNG literally means "Outlook-on-the World". But as generally -used in German this outlook on the world means a whole system of ideas -associated together in an organic unity--ideas of human life, human -values, cultural and religious ideas, politics, economics, etc., in fact -a totalitarian view of human existence. Thus Christianity could be -called a WELTANSCHAUUNG, and Mohammedanism could be called a -WELTANSCHAUUNG, and Socialism could be called a WELTANSCHAUUNG, -especially as preached in Russia. National Socialism claims definitely -to be a WELTANSCHAUUNG. - -Another word I have often left standing in the original is V�LKISCH. The -basic word here is VOLK, which is sometimes translated as PEOPLE; but -the German word, VOLK, means the whole body of the PEOPLE without any -distinction of class or caste. It is a primary word also that suggests -what might be called the basic national stock. Now, after the defeat in -1918, the downfall of the Monarchy and the destruction of the -aristocracy and the upper classes, the concept of DAS VOLK came into -prominence as the unifying co-efficient which would embrace the whole -German people. Hence the large number of V�LKISCH societies that arose -after the war and hence also the National Socialist concept of -unification which is expressed by the word VOLKSGEMEINSCHAFT, or folk -community. This is used in contradistinction to the Socialist concept of -the nation as being divided into classes. Hitler's ideal is the -V�LKISCHER STAAT, which I have translated as the People's State. - -Finally, I would point out that the term Social Democracy may be -misleading in English, as it has not a democratic connotation in our -sense. It was the name given to the Socialist Party in Germany. And that -Party was purely Marxist; but it adopted the name Social Democrat in -order to appeal to the democratic sections of the German people. - -JAMES MURPHY. - -Abbots Langley, February, 1939 - - - - - -VOLUME I: A RETROSPECT - - - - -CHAPTER I - - - -IN THE HOME OF MY PARENTS - - -It has turned out fortunate for me to-day that destiny appointed -Braunau-on-the-Inn to be my birthplace. For that little town is situated -just on the frontier between those two States the reunion of which -seems, at least to us of the younger generation, a task to which we -should devote our lives and in the pursuit of which every possible means -should be employed. - -German-Austria must be restored to the great German Motherland. And not -indeed on any grounds of economic calculation whatsoever. No, no. Even -if the union were a matter of economic indifference, and even if it were -to be disadvantageous from the economic standpoint, still it ought to -take place. People of the same blood should be in the same REICH. The -German people will have no right to engage in a colonial policy until -they shall have brought all their children together in the one State. -When the territory of the REICH embraces all the Germans and finds -itself unable to assure them a livelihood, only then can the moral right -arise, from the need of the people to acquire foreign territory. The -plough is then the sword; and the tears of war will produce the daily -bread for the generations to come. - -And so this little frontier town appeared to me as the symbol of a great -task. But in another regard also it points to a lesson that is -applicable to our day. Over a hundred years ago this sequestered spot -was the scene of a tragic calamity which affected the whole German -nation and will be remembered for ever, at least in the annals of German -history. At the time of our Fatherland's deepest humiliation a -bookseller, Johannes Palm, uncompromising nationalist and enemy of the -French, was put to death here because he had the misfortune to have -loved Germany well. He obstinately refused to disclose the names of his -associates, or rather the principals who were chiefly responsible for -the affair. Just as it happened with Leo Schlageter. The former, like -the latter, was denounced to the French by a Government agent. It was a -director of police from Augsburg who won an ignoble renown on that -occasion and set the example which was to be copied at a later date by -the neo-German officials of the REICH under Herr Severing's -regime (Note 1). - -[Note 1. In order to understand the reference here, and similar -references in later portions of MEIN KAMPF, the following must be borne -in mind: - -From 1792 to 1814 the French Revolutionary Armies overran Germany. In -1800 Bavaria shared in the Austrian defeat at Hohenlinden and the French -occupied Munich. In 1805 the Bavarian Elector was made King of Bavaria by -Napoleon and stipulated to back up Napoleon in all his wars with a force -of 30,000 men. Thus Bavaria became the absolute vassal of the French. -This was 'TheTime of Germany's Deepest Humiliation', Which is referred -to again and again by Hitler. - -In 1806 a pamphlet entitled 'Germany's Deepest Humiliation' was -published in South Germany. Amnng those who helped to circulate the -pamphlet was the N�rnberg bookseller, Johannes Philipp Palm. He was -denounced to the French by a Bavarian police agent. At his trial he -refused to disclose thename of the author. By Napoleon's orders, he was -shot at Braunau-on-the-Innon August 26th, 1806. A monument erected to -him on the site of the executionwas one of the first public objects that -made an impression on Hitler asa little boy. - -Leo Schlageter's case was in many respects parallel to that of Johannes -Palm. Schlageter was a German theological student who volunteered for -service in 1914. He became an artillery officer and won the Iron Cross of -both classes. When the French occupied the Ruhr in 1923 Schlageter helped -to organize the passive resistance on the German side. He and his -companions blew up a railway bridge for the purpose of making the -transport of coal to France more difficult. - -Those who took part in the affair were denounced to the French by a -German informer. Schlageter took the whole responsibility on his own -shoulders and was condemned to death, his companions being sentenced to -various terms of imprisonment and penal servitude by the French Court. -Schlageter refused to disclose the identity of those who issued the order -to blow up the railway bridge and he would not plead for mercy before a -French Court. He was shot by a French firing-squad on May 26th, 1923. -Severing was at that time German Minister of the Interior. It is said -that representations were made, to himon Schlageter's behalf and that he -refused to interfere. - -Schlageter has become the chief martyr of the German resistancc to the -French occupation of the Ruhr and also one of the great heroes of the -National Socialist Movement. He had joined the Movement at a very early -stage, his card of membership bearing the number 61.] - -In this little town on the Inn, haloed by the memory of a German martyr, -a town that was Bavarian by blood but under the rule of the Austrian -State, my parents were domiciled towards the end of the last century. My -father was a civil servant who fulfilled his duties very -conscientiously. My mother looked after the household and lovingly -devoted herself to the care of her children. From that period I have not -retained very much in my memory; because after a few years my father had -to leave that frontier town which I had come to love so much and take up -a new post farther down the Inn valley, at Passau, therefore actually in -Germany itself. - -In those days it was the usual lot of an Austrian civil servant to be -transferred periodically from one post to another. Not long after coming -to Passau my father was transferred to Linz, and while there he retired -finally to live on his pension. But this did not mean that the old -gentleman would now rest from his labours. - -He was the son of a poor cottager, and while still a boy he grew -restless and left home. When he was barely thirteen years old he buckled -on his satchel and set forth from his native woodland parish. Despite -the dissuasion of villagers who could speak from 'experience,' he went -to Vienna to learn a trade there. This was in the fiftieth year of the -last century. It was a sore trial, that of deciding to leave home and -face the unknown, with three gulden in his pocket. By when the boy of -thirteen was a lad of seventeen and had passed his apprenticeship -examination as a craftsman he was not content. Quite the contrary. The -persistent economic depression of that period and the constant want and -misery strengthened his resolution to give up working at a trade and -strive for 'something higher.' As a boy it had seemed to him that the -position of the parish priest in his native village was the highest in -the scale of human attainment; but now that the big city had enlarged -his outlook the young man looked up to the dignity of a State official -as the highest of all. With the tenacity of one whom misery and trouble -had already made old when only half-way through his youth the young man -of seventeen obstinately set out on his new project and stuck to it -until he won through. He became a civil servant. He was about -twenty-three years old, I think, when he succeeded in making himself -what he had resolved to become. Thus he was able to fulfil the promise -he had made as a poor boy not to return to his native village until he -was 'somebody.' - -He had gained his end. But in the village there was nobody who had -remembered him as a little boy, and the village itself had become -strange to him. - -Now at last, when he was fifty-six years old, he gave up his active -career; but he could not bear to be idle for a single day. On the -outskirts of the small market town of Lambach in Upper Austria he bought -a farm and tilled it himself. Thus, at the end of a long and -hard-working career, he came back to the life which his father had led. - -It was at this period that I first began to have ideals of my own. I -spent a good deal of time scampering about in the open, on the long road -from school, and mixing up with some of the roughest of the boys, which -caused my mother many anxious moments. All this tended to make me -something quite the reverse of a stay-at-home. I gave scarcely any -serious thought to the question of choosing a vocation in life; but I -was certainly quite out of sympathy with the kind of career which my -father had followed. I think that an inborn talent for speaking now -began to develop and take shape during the more or less strenuous -arguments which I used to have with my comrades. I had become a juvenile -ringleader who learned well and easily at school but was rather -difficult to manage. In my freetime I practised singing in the choir of -the monastery church at Lambach, and thus it happened that I was placed -in a very favourable position to be emotionally impressed again and -again by the magnificent splendour of ecclesiastical ceremonial. What -could be more natural for me than to look upon the Abbot as representing -the highest human ideal worth striving for, just as the position of the -humble village priest had appeared to my father in his own boyhood days? -At least, that was my idea for a while. But the juvenile disputes I had -with my father did not lead him to appreciate his son's oratorical gifts -in such a way as to see in them a favourable promise for such a career, -and so he naturally could not understand the boyish ideas I had in my -head at that time. This contradiction in my character made him feel -somewhat anxious. - -As a matter of fact, that transitory yearning after such a vocation soon -gave way to hopes that were better suited to my temperament. Browsing -through my father's books, I chanced to come across some publications -that dealt with military subjects. One of these publications was a -popular history of the Franco-German War of 1870-71. It consisted of two -volumes of an illustrated periodical dating from those years. These -became my favourite reading. In a little while that great and heroic -conflict began to take first place in my mind. And from that time -onwards I became more and more enthusiastic about everything that was in -any way connected with war or military affairs. - -But this story of the Franco-German War had a special significance for -me on other grounds also. For the first time, and as yet only in quite a -vague way, the question began to present itself: Is there a -difference--and if there be, what is it--between the Germans who fought -that war and the other Germans? Why did not Austria also take part in -it? Why did not my father and all the others fight in that struggle? Are -we not the same as the other Germans? Do we not all belong together? - -That was the first time that this problem began to agitate my small -brain. And from the replies that were given to the questions which I -asked very tentatively, I was forced to accept the fact, though with a -secret envy, that not all Germans had the good luck to belong to -Bismarck's Empire. This was something that I could not understand. - -It was decided that I should study. Considering my character as a whole, -and especially my temperament, my father decided that the classical -subjects studied at the Lyceum were not suited to my natural talents. He -thought that the REALSCHULE (Note 2) would suit me better. My obvious -talent for drawing confirmed him in that view; for in his opinion drawing -was a subject too much neglected in the Austrian GYMNASIUM. Probably also -the memory of the hard road which he himself had travelled contributed to -make him look upon classical studies as unpractical and accordingly to -set little value on them. At the back of his mind he had the idea that -his son also should become an official of the Government. Indeed he had -decided on that career for me. The difficulties through which he had to -struggle in making his own career led him to overestimate what he had -achieved, because this was exclusively the result of his own -indefatigable industry and energy. The characteristic pride of the -self-made man urged him towards the idea that his son should follow the -same calling and if possible rise to a higher position in it. Moreover, -this idea was strengthened by the consideration that the results of his -own life's industry had placed him in a position to facilitate his son's -advancement in the same career. - -[Note 2. Non-classical secondary school. The Lyceum and GYMNASIUM were -classical or semi-classical secondary schools.] - -He was simply incapable of imagining that I might reject what had meant -everything in life to him. My father's decision was simple, definite, -clear and, in his eyes, it was something to be taken for granted. A man -of such a nature who had become an autocrat by reason of his own hard -struggle for existence, could not think of allowing 'inexperienced' and -irresponsible young fellows to choose their own careers. To act in such -a way, where the future of his own son was concerned, would have been a -grave and reprehensible weakness in the exercise of parental authority -and responsibility, something utterly incompatible with his -characteristic sense of duty. - -And yet it had to be otherwise. - -For the first time in my life--I was then eleven years old--I felt -myself forced into open opposition. No matter how hard and determined my -father might be about putting his own plans and opinions into action, -his son was no less obstinate in refusing to accept ideas on which he -set little or no value. - -I would not become a civil servant. - -No amount of persuasion and no amount of 'grave' warnings could break -down that opposition. I would not become a State official, not on any -account. All the attempts which my father made to arouse in me a love or -liking for that profession, by picturing his own career for me, had only -the opposite effect. It nauseated me to think that one day I might be -fettered to an office stool, that I could not dispose of my own time but -would be forced to spend the whole of my life filling out forms. - -One can imagine what kind of thoughts such a prospect awakened in the -mind of a young fellow who was by no means what is called a 'good boy' -in the current sense of that term. The ridiculously easy school tasks -which we were given made it possible for me to spend far more time in -the open air than at home. To-day, when my political opponents pry into -my life with diligent scrutiny, as far back as the days of my boyhood, -so as finally to be able to prove what disreputable tricks this Hitler -was accustomed to in his young days, I thank heaven that I can look back -to those happy days and find the memory of them helpful. The fields and -the woods were then the terrain on which all disputes were fought out. - -Even attendance at the REALSCHULE could not alter my way of spending my -time. But I had now another battle to fight. - -So long as the paternal plan to make a State functionary contradicted my -own inclinations only in the abstract, the conflict was easy to bear. I -could be discreet about expressing my personal views and thus avoid -constantly recurrent disputes. My own resolution not to become a -Government official was sufficient for the time being to put my mind -completely at rest. I held on to that resolution inexorably. But the -situation became more difficult once I had a positive plan of my own -which I might present to my father as a counter-suggestion. This -happened when I was twelve years old. How it came about I cannot exactly -say now; but one day it became clear to me that I would be a painter--I -mean an artist. That I had an aptitude for drawing was an admitted fact. -It was even one of the reasons why my father had sent me to the -REALSCHULE; but he had never thought of having that talent developed in -such a way that I could take up painting as a professional career. Quite -the contrary. When, as a result of my renewed refusal to adopt his -favourite plan, my father asked me for the first time what I myself -really wished to be, the resolution that I had already formed expressed -itself almost automatically. For a while my father was speechless. "A -painter? An artist-painter?" he exclaimed. - -He wondered whether I was in a sound state of mind. He thought that he -might not have caught my words rightly, or that he had misunderstood -what I meant. But when I had explained my ideas to him and he saw how -seriously I took them, he opposed them with that full determination -which was characteristic of him. His decision was exceedingly simple and -could not be deflected from its course by any consideration of what my -own natural qualifications really were. - -"Artist! Not as long as I live, never." As the son had inherited some of -the father's obstinacy, besides having other qualities of his own, my -reply was equally energetic. But it stated something quite the contrary. - -At that our struggle became stalemate. The father would not abandon his -'Never', and I became all the more consolidated in my 'Nevertheless'. - -Naturally the resulting situation was not pleasant. The old gentleman -was bitterly annoyed; and indeed so was I, although I really loved him. -My father forbade me to entertain any hopes of taking up the art of -painting as a profession. I went a step further and declared that I -would not study anything else. With such declarations the situation -became still more strained, so that the old gentleman irrevocably -decided to assert his parental authority at all costs. That led me to -adopt an attitude of circumspect silence, but I put my threat into -execution. I thought that, once it became clear to my father that I was -making no progress at the REALSCHULE, for weal or for woe, he would be -forced to allow me to follow the happy career I had dreamed of. - -I do not know whether I calculated rightly or not. Certainly my failure -to make progress became quite visible in the school. I studied just the -subjects that appealed to me, especially those which I thought might be -of advantage to me later on as a painter. What did not appear to have -any importance from this point of view, or what did not otherwise appeal -to me favourably, I completely sabotaged. My school reports of that time -were always in the extremes of good or bad, according to the subject and -the interest it had for me. In one column my qualification read 'very -good' or 'excellent'. In another it read 'average' or even 'below -average'. By far my best subjects were geography and, even more so, -general history. These were my two favourite subjects, and I led the -class in them. - -When I look back over so many years and try to judge the results of that -experience I find two very significant facts standing out clearly before -my mind. - -First, I became a nationalist. - -Second, I learned to understand and grasp the true meaning of history. - -The old Austria was a multi-national State. In those days at least the -citizens of the German Empire, taken through and through, could not -understand what that fact meant in the everyday life of the individuals -within such a State. After the magnificent triumphant march of the -victorious armies in the Franco-German War the Germans in the REICH -became steadily more and more estranged from the Germans beyond their -frontiers, partly because they did not deign to appreciate those other -Germans at their true value or simply because they were incapable of -doing so. - -The Germans of the REICH did not realize that if the Germans in Austria -had not been of the best racial stock they could never have given the -stamp of their own character to an Empire of 52 millions, so definitely -that in Germany itself the idea arose--though quite an erroneous -one--that Austria was a German State. That was an error which led to -dire consequences; but all the same it was a magnificent testimony to -the character of the ten million Germans in that East Mark. (Note 3) -Only very few of the Germans in the REICH itself had an idea of the bitter -struggle which those Eastern Germans had to carry on daily for the -preservation of their German language, their German schools and their -German character. Only to-day, when a tragic fate has torn several -millions of our kinsfolk away from the REICH and has forced them to live -under the rule of the stranger, dreaming of that common fatherland -towards which all their yearnings are directed and struggling to uphold -at least the sacred right of using their mother tongue--only now have -the wider circles of the German population come to realize what it means -to have to fight for the traditions of one's race. And so at last -perhaps there are people here and there who can assess the greatness of -that German spirit which animated the old East Mark and enabled those -people, left entirely dependent on their own resources, to defend the -Empire against the Orient for several centuries and subsequently to hold -fast the frontiers of the German language through a guerilla warfare of -attrition, at a time when the German Empire was sedulously cultivating -an interest for colonies but not for its own flesh and blood before the -threshold of its own door. - -[Note 3. See Translator's Introduction.] - -What has happened always and everywhere, in every kind of struggle, -happened also in the language fight which was carried on in the old -Austria. There were three groups--the fighters, the hedgers and the -traitors. Even in the schools this sifting already began to take place. -And it is worth noting that the struggle for the language was waged -perhaps in its bitterest form around the school; because this was the -nursery where the seeds had to be watered which were to spring up and -form the future generation. The tactical objective of the fight was the -winning over of the child, and it was to the child that the first -rallying cry was addressed: - -"German youth, do not forget that you are a German," and "Remember, -little girl, that one day you must be a German mother." - -Those who know something of the juvenile spirit can understand how youth -will always lend a glad ear to such a rallying cry. Under many forms the -young people led the struggle, fighting in their own way and with their -own weapons. They refused to sing non-German songs. The greater the -efforts made to win them away from their German allegiance, the more -they exalted the glory of their German heroes. They stinted themselves -in buying things to eat, so that they might spare their pennies to help -the war chest of their elders. They were incredibly alert in the -significance of what the non-German teachers said and they contradicted -in unison. They wore the forbidden emblems of their own kinsfolk and -were happy when penalised for doing so, or even physically punished. In -miniature they were mirrors of loyalty from which the older people might -learn a lesson. - -And thus it was that at a comparatively early age I took part in the -struggle which the nationalities were waging against one another in the -old Austria. When meetings were held for the South Mark German League -and the School League we wore cornflowers and black-red-gold colours to -express our loyalty. We greeted one another with HEIL! and instead of -the Austrian anthem we sang our own DEUTSCHLAND �BER ALLES, despite -warnings and penalties. Thus the youth were educated politically at a -time when the citizens of a so-called national State for the most part -knew little of their own nationality except the language. Of course, I -did not belong to the hedgers. Within a little while I had become an -ardent 'German National', which has a different meaning from the party -significance attached to that phrase to-day. - -I developed very rapidly in the nationalist direction, and by the time I -was 15 years old I had come to understand the distinction between -dynastic patriotism and nationalism based on the concept of folk, or -people, my inclination being entirely in favour of the latter. - -Such a preference may not perhaps be clearly intelligible to those who -have never taken the trouble to study the internal conditions that -prevailed under the Habsburg Monarchy. - -Among historical studies universal history was the subject almost -exclusively taught in the Austrian schools, for of specific Austrian -history there was only very little. The fate of this State was closely -bound up with the existence and development of Germany as a whole; so a -division of history into German history and Austrian history would be -practically inconceivable. And indeed it was only when the German people -came to be divided between two States that this division of German -history began to take place. - -The insignia (Note 4) of a former imperial sovereignty which were still -preserved in Vienna appeared to act as magical relics rather than as the -visible guarantee of an everlasting bond of union. - -[Note 4. When Francis II had laid down his title as Emperor of the Holy -Roman Empireof the German Nation, which he did at the command of Napoleon, -the Crownand Mace, as the Imperial Insignia, were kept in Vienna. After -the German Empire was refounded, in 1871, under William I, there were many -demands tohave the Insignia transferred to Berlin. But these went -unheeded. Hitler had them brought to Germany after the Austrian Anschluss -and displayed at Nuremberg during the Party Congress in September 1938.] - -When the Habsburg State crumbled to pieces in 1918 the Austrian Germans -instinctively raised an outcry for union with their German fatherland. -That was the voice of a unanimous yearning in the hearts of the whole -people for a return to the unforgotten home of their fathers. But such a -general yearning could not be explained except by attributing the cause -of it to the historical training through which the individual Austrian -Germans had passed. Therein lay a spring that never dried up. Especially -in times of distraction and forgetfulness its quiet voice was a reminder -of the past, bidding the people to look out beyond the mere welfare of -the moment to a new future. - -The teaching of universal history in what are called the middle schools -is still very unsatisfactory. Few teachers realize that the purpose of -teaching history is not the memorizing of some dates and facts, that the -student is not interested in knowing the exact date of a battle or the -birthday of some marshal or other, and not at all--or at least only very -insignificantly--interested in knowing when the crown of his fathers was -placed on the brow of some monarch. These are certainly not looked upon -as important matters. - -To study history means to search for and discover the forces that are -the causes of those results which appear before our eyes as historical -events. The art of reading and studying consists in remembering the -essentials and forgetting what is not essential. - -Probably my whole future life was determined by the fact that I had a -professor of history who understood, as few others understand, how to -make this viewpoint prevail in teaching and in examining. This teacher -was Dr. Leopold Poetsch, of the REALSCHULE at Linz. He was the ideal -personification of the qualities necessary to a teacher of history in -the sense I have mentioned above. An elderly gentleman with a decisive -manner but a kindly heart, he was a very attractive speaker and was able -to inspire us with his own enthusiasm. Even to-day I cannot recall -without emotion that venerable personality whose enthusiastic exposition -of history so often made us entirely forget the present and allow -ourselves to be transported as if by magic into the past. He penetrated -through the dim mist of thousands of years and transformed the -historical memory of the dead past into a living reality. When we -listened to him we became afire with enthusiasm and we were sometimes -moved even to tears. - -It was still more fortunate that this professor was able not only to -illustrate the past by examples from the present but from the past he -was also able to draw a lesson for the present. He understood better -than any other the everyday problems that were then agitating our minds. -The national fervour which we felt in our own small way was utilized by -him as an instrument of our education, inasmuch as he often appealed to -our national sense of honour; for in that way he maintained order and -held our attention much more easily than he could have done by any other -means. It was because I had such a professor that history became my -favourite subject. As a natural consequence, but without the conscious -connivance of my professor, I then and there became a young rebel. But -who could have studied German history under such a teacher and not -become an enemy of that State whose rulers exercised such a disastrous -influence on the destinies of the German nation? Finally, how could one -remain the faithful subject of the House of Habsburg, whose past history -and present conduct proved it to be ready ever and always to betray the -interests of the German people for the sake of paltry personal -interests? Did not we as youngsters fully realize that the House of -Habsburg did not, and could not, have any love for us Germans? - -What history taught us about the policy followed by the House of -Habsburg was corroborated by our own everyday experiences. In the north -and in the south the poison of foreign races was eating into the body of -our people, and even Vienna was steadily becoming more and more a -non-German city. The 'Imperial House' favoured the Czechs on every -possible occasion. Indeed it was the hand of the goddess of eternal -justice and inexorable retribution that caused the most deadly enemy of -Germanism in Austria, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, to fall by the very -bullets which he himself had helped to cast. Working from above -downwards, he was the chief patron of the movement to make Austria a -Slav State. - -The burdens laid on the shoulders of the German people were enormous and -the sacrifices of money and blood which they had to make were incredibly -heavy. - -Yet anybody who was not quite blind must have seen that it was all in -vain. What affected us most bitterly was the consciousness of the fact -that this whole system was morally shielded by the alliance with -Germany, whereby the slow extirpation of Germanism in the old Austrian -Monarchy seemed in some way to be more or less sanctioned by Germany -herself. Habsburg hypocrisy, which endeavoured outwardly to make the -people believe that Austria still remained a German State, increased the -feeling of hatred against the Imperial House and at the same time -aroused a spirit of rebellion and contempt. - -But in the German Empire itself those who were then its rulers saw -nothing of what all this meant. As if struck blind, they stood beside a -corpse and in the very symptoms of decomposition they believed that they -recognized the signs of a renewed vitality. In that unhappy alliance -between the young German Empire and the illusory Austrian State lay the -germ of the World War and also of the final collapse. - -In the subsequent pages of this book I shall go to the root of the -problem. Suffice it to say here that in the very early years of my youth -I came to certain conclusions which I have never abandoned. Indeed I -became more profoundly convinced of them as the years passed. They were: -That the dissolution of the Austrian Empire is a preliminary condition -for the defence of Germany; further, that national feeling is by no -means identical with dynastic patriotism; finally, and above all, that -the House of Habsburg was destined to bring misfortune to the German -nation. - -As a logical consequence of these convictions, there arose in me a -feeling of intense love for my German-Austrian home and a profound -hatred for the Austrian State. - -That kind of historical thinking which was developed in me through my -study of history at school never left me afterwards. World history -became more and more an inexhaustible source for the understanding of -contemporary historical events, which means politics. Therefore I will -not "learn" politics but let politics teach me. - -A precocious revolutionary in politics I was no less a precocious -revolutionary in art. At that time the provincial capital of Upper -Austria had a theatre which, relatively speaking, was not bad. Almost -everything was played there. When I was twelve years old I saw William -Tell performed. That was my first experience of the theatre. Some months -later I attended a performance of LOHENGRIN, the first opera I had ever -heard. I was fascinated at once. My youthful enthusiasm for the Bayreuth -Master knew no limits. Again and again I was drawn to hear his operas; -and to-day I consider it a great piece of luck that these modest -productions in the little provincial city prepared the way and made it -possible for me to appreciate the better productions later on. - -But all this helped to intensify my profound aversion for the career -that my father had chosen for me; and this dislike became especially -strong as the rough corners of youthful boorishness became worn off, a -process which in my case caused a good deal of pain. I became more and -more convinced that I should never be happy as a State official. And now -that the REALSCHULE had recognized and acknowledged my aptitude for -drawing, my own resolution became all the stronger. Imprecations and -threats had no longer any chance of changing it. I wanted to become a -painter and no power in the world could force me to become a civil -servant. The only peculiar feature of the situation now was that as I -grew bigger I became more and more interested in architecture. I -considered this fact as a natural development of my flair for painting -and I rejoiced inwardly that the sphere of my artistic interests was -thus enlarged. I had no notion that one day it would have to be -otherwise. - -The question of my career was decided much sooner than I could have -expected. - -When I was in my thirteenth year my father was suddenly taken from us. -He was still in robust health when a stroke of apoplexy painlessly ended -his earthly wanderings and left us all deeply bereaved. His most ardent -longing was to be able to help his son to advance in a career and thus -save me from the harsh ordeal that he himself had to go through. But it -appeared to him then as if that longing were all in vain. And yet, -though he himself was not conscious of it, he had sown the seeds of a -future which neither of us foresaw at that time. - -At first nothing changed outwardly. - -My mother felt it her duty to continue my education in accordance with -my father's wishes, which meant that she would have me study for the -civil service. For my own part I was even more firmly determined than -ever before that under no circumstances would I become an official of -the State. The curriculum and teaching methods followed in the middle -school were so far removed from my ideals that I became profoundly -indifferent. Illness suddenly came to my assistance. Within a few weeks -it decided my future and put an end to the long-standing family -conflict. My lungs became so seriously affected that the doctor advised -my mother very strongly not under any circumstances to allow me to take -up a career which would necessitate working in an office. He ordered -that I should give up attendance at the REALSCHULE for a year at least. -What I had secretly desired for such a long time, and had persistently -fought for, now became a reality almost at one stroke. - -Influenced by my illness, my mother agreed that I should leave the -REALSCHULE and attend the Academy. - -Those were happy days, which appeared to me almost as a dream; but they -were bound to remain only a dream. Two years later my mother's death put -a brutal end to all my fine projects. She succumbed to a long and -painful illness which from the very beginning permitted little hope of -recovery. Though expected, her death came as a terrible blow to me. I -respected my father, but I loved my mother. - -Poverty and stern reality forced me to decide promptly. - -The meagre resources of the family had been almost entirely used up -through my mother's severe illness. The allowance which came to me as an -orphan was not enough for the bare necessities of life. Somehow or other -I would have to earn my own bread. - -With my clothes and linen packed in a valise and with an indomitable -resolution in my heart, I left for Vienna. I hoped to forestall fate, as -my father had done fifty years before. I was determined to become -'something'--but certainly not a civil servant. - - - - -CHAPTER II - - - -YEARS OF STUDY AND SUFFERING IN VIENNA - - -When my mother died my fate had already been decided in one respect. -During the last months of her illness I went to Vienna to take the -entrance examination for the Academy of Fine Arts. Armed with a bulky -packet of sketches, I felt convinced that I should pass the examination -quite easily. At the REALSCHULE I was by far the best student in the -drawing class, and since that time I had made more than ordinary -progress in the practice of drawing. Therefore I was pleased with myself -and was proud and happy at the prospect of what I considered an assured -success. - -But there was one misgiving: It seemed to me that I was better qualified -for drawing than for painting, especially in the various branches of -architectural drawing. At the same time my interest in architecture was -constantly increasing. And I advanced in this direction at a still more -rapid pace after my first visit to Vienna, which lasted two weeks. I was -not yet sixteen years old. I went to the Hof Museum to study the -paintings in the art gallery there; but the building itself captured -almost all my interest, from early morning until late at night I spent -all my time visiting the various public buildings. And it was the -buildings themselves that were always the principal attraction for me. -For hours and hours I could stand in wonderment before the Opera and the -Parliament. The whole Ring Strasse had a magic effect upon me, as if it -were a scene from the Thousand-and-one-Nights. - -And now I was here for the second time in this beautiful city, -impatiently waiting to hear the result of the entrance examination but -proudly confident that I had got through. I was so convinced of my -success that when the news that I had failed to pass was brought to me -it struck me like a bolt from the skies. Yet the fact was that I had -failed. I went to see the Rector and asked him to explain the reasons -why they refused to accept me as a student in the general School of -Painting, which was part of the Academy. He said that the sketches which -I had brought with me unquestionably showed that painting was not what I -was suited for but that the same sketches gave clear indications of my -aptitude for architectural designing. Therefore the School of Painting -did not come into question for me but rather the School of Architecture, -which also formed part of the Academy. At first it was impossible to -understand how this could be so, seeing that I had never been to a -school for architecture and had never received any instruction in -architectural designing. - -When I left the Hansen Palace, on the SCHILLER PLATZ, I was quite -crestfallen. I felt out of sorts with myself for the first time in my -young life. For what I had heard about my capabilities now appeared to -me as a lightning flash which clearly revealed a dualism under which I -had been suffering for a long time, but hitherto I could give no clear -account whatsoever of the why and wherefore. - -Within a few days I myself also knew that I ought to become an -architect. But of course the way was very difficult. I was now forced -bitterly to rue my former conduct in neglecting and despising certain -subjects at the REALSCHULE. Before taking up the courses at the School -of Architecture in the Academy it was necessary to attend the Technical -Building School; but a necessary qualification for entrance into this -school was a Leaving Certificate from the Middle School. And this I -simply did not have. According to the human measure of things my dream -of following an artistic calling seemed beyond the limits of -possibility. - -After the death of my mother I came to Vienna for the third time. This -visit was destined to last several years. Since I had been there before -I had recovered my old calm and resoluteness. The former self-assurance -had come back, and I had my eyes steadily fixed on the goal. I would be -an architect. Obstacles are placed across our path in life, not to be -boggled at but to be surmounted. And I was fully determined to surmount -these obstacles, having the picture of my father constantly before my -mind, who had raised himself by his own efforts to the position of a -civil servant though he was the poor son of a village shoemaker. I had a -better start, and the possibilities of struggling through were better. -At that time my lot in life seemed to me a harsh one; but to-day I see -in it the wise workings of Providence. The Goddess of Fate clutched me -in her hands and often threatened to smash me; but the will grew -stronger as the obstacles increased, and finally the will triumphed. - -I am thankful for that period of my life, because it hardened me and -enabled me to be as tough as I now am. And I am even more thankful -because I appreciate the fact that I was thus saved from the emptiness -of a life of ease and that a mother's darling was taken from tender arms -and handed over to Adversity as to a new mother. Though I then rebelled -against it as too hard a fate, I am grateful that I was thrown into a -world of misery and poverty and thus came to know the people for whom I -was afterwards to fight. - -It was during this period that my eyes were opened to two perils, the -names of which I scarcely knew hitherto and had no notion whatsoever of -their terrible significance for the existence of the German people. -These two perils were Marxism and Judaism. - -For many people the name of Vienna signifies innocent jollity, a festive -place for happy mortals. For me, alas, it is a living memory of the -saddest period in my life. Even to-day the mention of that city arouses -only gloomy thoughts in my mind. Five years of poverty in that Phaecian -(Note 5) town. Five years in which, first as a casual labourer and then as -a painter of little trifles, I had to earn my daily bread. And a meagre -morsel indeed it was, not even sufficient to still the hunger which I -constantly felt. That hunger was the faithful guardian which never left -me but took part in everything I did. Every book that I bought meant -renewed hunger, and every visit I paid to the opera meant the intrusion -of that inalienabl companion during the following days. I was always -struggling with my unsympathic friend. And yet during that time I -learned more than I had ever learned before. Outside my architectural -studies and rare visits to the opera, for which I had to deny myself -food, I had no other pleasure in life except my books. - -[Note 5. The Phaecians were a legendary people, mentioned in Homer's -Odyssey. They were supposed to live on some unknown island in the Eastern -Mediterranean, sometimes suggested to be Corcyra, the modern Corfu. They -loved good living more than work, and so the name Phaecian has come to be -a synonym for parasite.] - -I read a great deal then, and I pondered deeply over what I read. All -the free time after work was devoted exclusively to study. Thus within a -few years I was able to acquire a stock of knowledge which I find useful -even to-day. - -But more than that. During those years a view of life and a definite -outlook on the world took shape in my mind. These became the granite -basis of my conduct at that time. Since then I have extended that -foundation only very little, and I have changed nothing in it. - -On the contrary: I am firmly convinced to-day that, generally speaking, -it is in youth that men lay the essential groundwork of their creative -thought, wherever that creative thought exists. I make a distinction -between the wisdom of age--which can only arise from the greater -profundity and foresight that are based on the experiences of a long -life--and the creative genius of youth, which blossoms out in thought -and ideas with inexhaustible fertility, without being able to put these -into practice immediately, because of their very superabundance. These -furnish the building materials and plans for the future; and it is from -them that age takes the stones and builds the edifice, unless the -so-called wisdom of the years may have smothered the creative genius of -youth. - -The life which I had hitherto led at home with my parents differed in -little or nothing from that of all the others. I looked forward without -apprehension to the morrow, and there was no such thing as a social -problem to be faced. Those among whom I passed my young days belonged to -the small bourgeois class. Therefore it was a world that had very little -contact with the world of genuine manual labourers. For, though at first -this may appear astonishing, the ditch which separates that class, which -is by no means economically well-off; from the manual labouring class is -often deeper than people think. The reason for this division, which we -may almost call enmity, lies in the fear that dominates a social group -which has only just risen above the level of the manual labourer--a fear -lest it may fall back into its old condition or at least be classed with -the labourers. Moreover, there is something repulsive in remembering the -cultural indigence of that lower class and their rough manners with one -another; so that people who are only on the first rung of the social -ladder find it unbearable to be forced to have any contact with the -cultural level and standard of living out of which they have passed. - -And so it happens that very often those who belong to what can really be -called the upper classes find it much easier than do the upstarts to -descend to and intermingle with their fellow beings on the lowest social -level. For by the word upstart I mean everyone who has raised himself -through his own efforts to a social level higher than that to which he -formerly belonged. In the case of such a person the hard struggle -through which he passes often destroys his normal human sympathy. His -own fight for existence kills his sensibility for the misery of those -who have been left behind. - -From this point of view fate had been kind to me. Circumstances forced -me to return to that world of poverty and economic insecurity above -which my father had raised himself in his early days; and thus the -blinkers of a narrow PETIT BOURGEOIS education were torn from my eyes. -Now for the first time I learned to know men and I learned to -distinguish between empty appearances or brutal manners and the real -inner nature of the people who outwardly appeared thus. - -At the beginning of the century Vienna had already taken rank among -those cities where social conditions are iniquitous. Dazzling riches and -loathsome destitution were intermingled in violent contrast. In the -centre and in the Inner City one felt the pulse-beat of an Empire which -had a population of fifty-two millions, with all the perilous charm of a -State made up of multiple nationalities. The dazzling splendour of the -Court acted like a magnet on the wealth and intelligence of the whole -Empire. And this attraction was further strengthened by the dynastic -policy of the Habsburg Monarchy in centralizing everything in itself and -for itself. - -This centralizing policy was necessary in order to hold together that -hotchpotch of heterogeneous nationalities. But the result of it was an -extraordinary concentration of higher officials in the city, which was -at one and the same time the metropolis and imperial residence. - -But Vienna was not merely the political and intellectual centre of the -Danubian Monarchy; it was also the commercial centre. Besides the horde -of military officers of high rank, State officials, artists and -scientists, there was the still vaster horde of workers. Abject poverty -confronted the wealth of the aristocracy and the merchant class face to -face. Thousands of unemployed loitered in front of the palaces on the -Ring Strasse; and below that VIA TRIUMPHALIS of the old Austria the -homeless huddled together in the murk and filth of the canals. - -There was hardly any other German city in which the social problem could -be studied better than in Vienna. But here I must utter a warning -against the illusion that this problem can be 'studied' from above -downwards. The man who has never been in the clutches of that crushing -viper can never know what its poison is. An attempt to study it in any -other way will result only in superficial talk and sentimental -delusions. Both are harmful. The first because it can never go to the -root of the question, the second because it evades the question -entirely. I do not know which is the more nefarious: to ignore social -distress, as do the majority of those who have been favoured by fortune -and those who have risen in the social scale through their own routine -labour, or the equally supercilious and often tactless but always -genteel condescension displayed by people who make a fad of being -charitable and who plume themselves on 'sympathising with the people.' -Of course such persons sin more than they can imagine from lack of -instinctive understanding. And thus they are astonished to find that the -'social conscience' on which they pride themselves never produces any -results, but often causes their good intentions to be resented; and then -they talk of the ingratitude of the people. - -Such persons are slow to learn that here there is no place for merely -social activities and that there can be no expectation of gratitude; for -in this connection there is no question at all of distributing favours -but essentially a matter of retributive justice. I was protected against -the temptation to study the social question in the way just mentioned, -for the simple reason that I was forced to live in the midst of -poverty-stricken people. Therefore it was not a question of studying the -problem objectively, but rather one of testing its effects on myself. -Though the rabbit came through the ordeal of the experiment, this must -not be taken as evidence of its harmlessness. - -When I try to-day to recall the succession of impressions received -during that time I find that I can do so only with approximate -completeness. Here I shall describe only the more essential impressions -and those which personally affected me and often staggered me. And I -shall mention the few lessons I then learned from this experience. - -At that time it was for the most part not very difficult to find work, -because I had to seek work not as a skilled tradesman but as a so-called -extra-hand ready to take any job that turned up by chance, just for the -sake of earning my daily bread. - -Thus I found myself in the same situation as all those emigrants who -shake the dust of Europe from their feet, with the cast-iron -determination to lay the foundations of a new existence in the New World -and acquire for themselves a new home. Liberated from all the paralysing -prejudices of class and calling, environment and tradition, they enter -any service that opens its doors to them, accepting any work that comes -their way, filled more and more with the idea that honest work never -disgraced anybody, no matter what kind it may be. And so I was resolved -to set both feet in what was for me a new world and push forward on my -own road. - -I soon found out that there was some kind of work always to be got, but -I also learned that it could just as quickly and easily be lost. The -uncertainty of being able to earn a regular daily livelihood soon -appeared to me as the gloomiest feature in this new life that I had -entered. - -Although the skilled worker was not so frequently thrown idle on the -streets as the unskilled worker, yet the former was by no means -protected against the same fate; because though he may not have to face -hunger as a result of unemployment due to the lack of demand in the -labour market, the lock-out and the strike deprived the skilled worker -of the chance to earn his bread. Here the element of uncertainty in -steadily earning one's daily bread was the bitterest feature of the -whole social-economic system itself. - -The country lad who migrates to the big city feels attracted by what has -been described as easy work--which it may be in reality--and few working -hours. He is especially entranced by the magic glimmer spread over the -big cities. Accustomed in the country to earn a steady wage, he has been -taught not to quit his former post until a new one is at least in sight. -As there is a great scarcity of agricultural labour, the probability of -long unemployment in the country has been very small. It is a mistake to -presume that the lad who leaves the countryside for the town is not made -of such sound material as those who remain at home to work on the land. -On the contrary, experience shows that it is the more healthy and more -vigorous that emigrate, and not the reverse. Among these emigrants I -include not merely those who emigrate to America, but also the servant -boy in the country who decides to leave his native village and migrate -to the big city where he will be a stranger. He is ready to take the -risk of an uncertain fate. In most cases he comes to town with a little -money in his pocket and for the first few days he is not discouraged if -he should not have the good fortune to find work. But if he finds a job -and then loses it in a little while, the case is much worse. To find -work anew, especially in winter, is often difficult and indeed sometimes -impossible. For the first few weeks life is still bearable He receives -his out-of-work money from his trade union and is thus enabled to carry -on. But when the last of his own money is gone and his trade union -ceases to pay out because of the prolonged unemployment, then comes the -real distress. He now loiters about and is hungry. Often he pawns or -sells the last of his belongings. His clothes begin to get shabby and -with the increasing poverty of his outward appearance he descends to a -lower social level and mixes up with a class of human beings through -whom his mind is now poisoned, in addition to his physical misery. Then -he has nowhere to sleep and if that happens in winter, which is very -often the case, he is in dire distress. Finally he gets work. But the -old story repeats itself. A second time the same thing happens. Then a -third time; and now it is probably much worse. Little by little he -becomes indifferent to this everlasting insecurity. Finally he grows -used to the repetition. Thus even a man who is normally of industrious -habits grows careless in his whole attitude towards life and gradually -becomes an instrument in the hands of unscrupulous people who exploit -him for the sake of their own ignoble aims. He has been so often thrown -out of employment through no fault of his own that he is now more or -less indifferent whether the strike in which he takes part be for the -purpose of securing his economic rights or be aimed at the destruction -of the State, the whole social order and even civilization itself. -Though the idea of going on strike may not be to his natural liking, yet -he joins in it out of sheer indifference. - -I saw this process exemplified before my eyes in thousands of cases. And -the longer I observed it the greater became my dislike for that mammoth -city which greedily attracts men to its bosom, in order to break them -mercilessly in the end. When they came they still felt themselves in -communion with their own people at home; if they remained that tie was -broken. - -I was thrown about so much in the life of the metropolis that I -experienced the workings of this fate in my own person and felt the -effects of it in my own soul. One thing stood out clearly before my -eyes: It was the sudden changes from work to idleness and vice versa; so -that the constant fluctuations thus caused by earnings and expenditure -finally destroyed the 'sense of thrift for many people and also the -habit of regulating expenditure in an intelligent way. The body appeared -to grow accustomed to the vicissitudes of food and hunger, eating -heartily in good times and going hungry in bad. Indeed hunger shatters -all plans for rationing expenditure on a regular scale in better times -when employment is again found. The reason for this is that the -deprivations which the unemployed worker has to endure must be -compensated for psychologically by a persistent mental mirage in which -he imagines himself eating heartily once again. And this dream develops -into such a longing that it turns into a morbid impulse to cast off all -self-restraint when work and wages turn up again. Therefore the moment -work is found anew he forgets to regulate the expenditure of his -earnings but spends them to the full without thinking of to-morrow. This -leads to confusion in the little weekly housekeeping budget, because the -expenditure is not rationally planned. When the phenomenon which I have -mentioned first happens, the earnings will last perhaps for five days -instead of seven; on subsequent occasions they will last only for three -days; as the habit recurs, the earnings will last scarcely for a day; -and finally they will disappear in one night of feasting. - -Often there are wife and children at home. And in many cases it happens -that these become infected by such a way of living, especially if the -husband is good to them and wants to do the best he can for them and -loves them in his own way and according to his own lights. Then the -week's earnings are spent in common at home within two or three days. -The family eat and drink together as long as the money lasts and at the -end of the week they hunger together. Then the wife wanders about -furtively in the neighbourhood, borrows a little, and runs up small -debts with the shopkeepers in an effort to pull through the lean days -towards the end of the week. They sit down together to the midday meal -with only meagre fare on the table, and often even nothing to eat. They -wait for the coming payday, talking of it and making plans; and while -they are thus hungry they dream of the plenty that is to come. And so -the little children become acquainted with misery in their early years. - -But the evil culminates when the husband goes his own way from the -beginning of the week and the wife protests, simply out of love for the -children. Then there are quarrels and bad feeling and the husband takes -to drink according as he becomes estranged from his wife. He now becomes -drunk every Saturday. Fighting for her own existence and that of the -children, the wife has to hound him along the road from the factory to -the tavern in order to get a few shillings from him on payday. Then when -he finally comes home, maybe on the Sunday or the Monday, having parted -with his last shillings and pence, pitiable scenes follow, scenes that -cry out for God's mercy. - -I have had actual experience of all this in hundreds of cases. At first -I was disgusted and indignant; but later on I came to recognize the -whole tragedy of their misfortune and to understand the profound causes -of it. They were the unhappy victims of evil circumstances. - -Housing conditions were very bad at that time. The Vienna manual -labourers lived in surroundings of appalling misery. I shudder even -to-day when I think of the woeful dens in which people dwelt, the night -shelters and the slums, and all the tenebrous spectacles of ordure, -loathsome filth and wickedness. - -What will happen one day when hordes of emancipated slaves come forth -from these dens of misery to swoop down on their unsuspecting fellow -men? For this other world does not think about such a possibility. They -have allowed these things to go on without caring and even without -suspecting--in their total lack of instinctive understanding--that -sooner or later destiny will take its vengeance unless it will have been -appeased in time. - -To-day I fervidly thank Providence for having sent me to such a school. -There I could not refuse to take an interest in matters that did not -please me. This school soon taught me a profound lesson. - -In order not to despair completely of the people among whom I then lived -I had to set on one side the outward appearances of their lives and on -the other the reasons why they had developed in that way. Then I could -hear everything without discouragement; for those who emerged from all -this misfortune and misery, from this filth and outward degradation, -were not human beings as such but rather lamentable results of -lamentable laws. In my own life similar hardships prevented me from -giving way to a pitying sentimentality at the sight of these degraded -products which had finally resulted from the pressure of circumstances. -No, the sentimental attitude would be the wrong one to adopt. - -Even in those days I already saw that there was a two-fold method by -which alone it would be possible to bring about an amelioration of these -conditions. This method is: first, to create better fundamental -conditions of social development by establishing a profound feeling for -social responsibilities among the public; second, to combine this -feeling for social responsibilities with a ruthless determination to -prune away all excrescences which are incapable of being improved. - -Just as Nature concentrates its greatest attention, not to the -maintenance of what already exists but on the selective breeding of -offspring in order to carry on the species, so in human life also it is -less a matter of artificially improving the existing generation--which, -owing to human characteristics, is impossible in ninety-nine cases out -of a hundred--and more a matter of securing from the very start a better -road for future development. - -During my struggle for existence in Vienna I perceived very clearly that -the aim of all social activity must never be merely charitable relief, -which is ridiculous and useless, but it must rather be a means to find a -way of eliminating the fundamental deficiencies in our economic and -cultural life--deficiencies which necessarily bring about the -degradation of the individual or at least lead him towards such -degradation. The difficulty of employing every means, even the most -drastic, to eradicate the hostility prevailing among the working classes -towards the State is largely due to an attitude of uncertainty in -deciding upon the inner motives and causes of this contemporary -phenomenon. The grounds of this uncertainty are to be found exclusively -in the sense of guilt which each individual feels for having permitted -this tragedy of degradation. For that feeling paralyses every effort at -making a serious and firm decision to act. And thus because the people -whom it concerns are vacillating they are timid and half-hearted in -putting into effect even the measures which are indispensable for -self-preservation. When the individual is no longer burdened with his -own consciousness of blame in this regard, then and only then will he -have that inner tranquillity and outer force to cut off drastically and -ruthlessly all the parasite growth and root out the weeds. - -But because the Austrian State had almost no sense of social rights or -social legislation its inability to abolish those evil excrescences was -manifest. - -I do not know what it was that appalled me most at that time: the -economic misery of those who were then my companions, their crude -customs and morals, or the low level of their intellectual culture. - -How often our bourgeoisie rises up in moral indignation on hearing from -the mouth of some pitiable tramp that it is all the same to him whether -he be a German or not and that he will find himself at home wherever he -can get enough to keep body and soul together. They protest sternly -against such a lack of 'national pride' and strongly express their -horror at such sentiments. - -But how many people really ask themselves why it is that their own -sentiments are better? How many of them understand that their natural -pride in being members of so favoured a nation arises from the -innumerable succession of instances they have encountered which remind -them of the greatness of the Fatherland and the Nation in all spheres of -artistic and cultural life? How many of them realize that pride in the -Fatherland is largely dependent on knowledge of its greatness in all -those spheres? Do our bourgeois circles ever think what a ridiculously -meagre share the people have in that knowledge which is a necessary -prerequisite for the feeling of pride in one's fatherland? - -It cannot be objected here that in other countries similar conditions -exist and that nevertheless the working classes in those countries have -remained patriotic. Even if that were so, it would be no excuse for our -negligent attitude. But it is not so. What we call chauvinistic -education--in the case of the French people, for example--is only the -excessive exaltation of the greatness of France in all spheres of -culture or, as the French say, civilization. The French boy is not -educated on purely objective principles. Wherever the importance of the -political and cultural greatness of his country is concerned he is -taught in the most subjective way that one can imagine. - -This education will always have to be confined to general ideas in a -large perspective and these ought to be deeply engraven, by constant -repetition if necessary, on the memories and feelings of the people. - -In our case, however, we are not merely guilty of negative sins of -omission but also of positively perverting the little which some -individuals had the luck to learn at school. The rats that poison our -body-politic gnaw from the hearts and memories of the broad masses even -that little which distress and misery have left. - -Let the reader try to picture the following: - -There is a lodging in a cellar and this lodging consists of two damp -rooms. In these rooms a workman and his family live--seven people in -all. Let us assume that one of the children is a boy of three years. -That is the age at which children first become conscious of the -impressions which they receive. In the case of highly gifted people -traces of the impressions received in those early years last in the -memory up to an advanced age. Now the narrowness and congestion of those -living quarters do not conduce to pleasant inter-relations. Thus -quarrels and fits of mutual anger arise. These people can hardly be said -to live with one another, but rather down on top of one another. The -small misunderstandings which disappear of themselves in a home where -there is enough space for people to go apart from one another for a -while, here become the source of chronic disputes. As far as the -children are concerned the situation is tolerable from this point of -view. In such conditions they are constantly quarrelling with one -another, but the quarrels are quickly and entirely forgotten. But when -the parents fall out with one another these daily bickerings often -descend to rudeness such as cannot be adequately imagined. The results -of such experiences must become apparent later on in the children. One -must have practical experience of such a MILIEU so as to be able to -picture the state of affairs that arises from these mutual -recriminations when the father physically assaults the mother and -maltreats her in a fit of drunken rage. At the age of six the child can -no longer ignore those sordid details which even an adult would find -revolting. Infected with moral poison, bodily undernourished, and the -poor little head filled with vermin, the young 'citizen' goes to the -primary school. With difficulty he barely learns to read and write. -There is no possibility of learning any lessons at home. Quite the -contrary. The father and mother themselves talk before the children in -the most disparaging way about the teacher and the school and they are -much more inclined to insult the teachers than to put their offspring -across the knee and knock sound reason into him. What the little fellow -hears at home does not tend to increase respect for his human -surroundings. Here nothing good is said of human nature as a whole and -every institution, from the school to the government, is reviled. -Whether religion and morals are concerned or the State and the social -order, it is all the same; they are all scoffed at. When the young lad -leaves school, at the age of fourteen, it would be difficult to say what -are the most striking features of his character, incredible ignorance in -so far as real knowledge is concerned or cynical impudence combined with -an attitude towards morality which is really startling at so young an -age. - -What station in life can such a person fill, to whom nothing is sacred, -who has never experienced anything noble but, on the contrary, has been -intimately acquainted with the lowest kind of human existence? This -child of three has got into the habit of reviling all authority by the -time he is fifteen. He has been acquainted only with moral filth and -vileness, everything being excluded that might stimulate his thought -towards higher things. And now this young specimen of humanity enters -the school of life. - -He leads the same kind of life which was exemplified for him by his -father during his childhood. He loiters about and comes home at all -hours. He now even black-guards that broken-hearted being who gave him -birth. He curses God and the world and finally ends up in a House of -Correction for young people. There he gets the final polish. - -And his bourgeois contemporaries are astonished at the lack of -'patriotic enthusiasm' which this young 'citizen' manifests. - -Day after day the bourgeois world are witnesses to the phenomenon of -spreading poison among the people through the instrumentality of the -theatre and the cinema, gutter journalism and obscene books; and yet -they are astonished at the deplorable 'moral standards' and 'national -indifference' of the masses. As if the cinema bilge and the gutter press -and suchlike could inculcate knowledge of the greatness of one's -country, apart entirely from the earlier education of the individual. - -I then came to understand, quickly and thoroughly, what I had never been -aware of before. It was the following: - -The question of 'nationalizing' a people is first and foremost one of -establishing healthy social conditions which will furnish the grounds -that are necessary for the education of the individual. For only when -family upbringing and school education have inculcated in the individual -a knowledge of the cultural and economic and, above all, the political -greatness of his own country--then, and then only, will it be possible -for him to feel proud of being a citizen of such a country. I can fight -only for something that I love. I can love only what I respect. And in -order to respect a thing I must at least have some knowledge of it. - -As soon as my interest in social questions was once awakened I began to -study them in a fundamental way. A new and hitherto unknown world was -thus revealed to me. - -In the years 1909-10 I had so far improved my, position that I no longer -had to earn my daily bread as a manual labourer. I was now working -independently as draughtsman, and painter in water colours. This M�TIER -was a poor one indeed as far as earnings were concerned; for these were -only sufficient to meet the bare exigencies of life. Yet it had an -interest for me in view of the profession to which I aspired. Moreover, -when I came home in the evenings I was now no longer dead-tired as -formerly, when I used to be unable to look into a book without falling -asleep almost immediately. My present occupation therefore was in line -with the profession I aimed at for the future. Moreover, I was master of -my own time and could distribute my working-hours now better than -formerly. I painted in order to earn my bread, and I studied because I -liked it. - -Thus I was able to acquire that theoretical knowledge of the social -problem which was a necessary complement to what I was learning through -actual experience. I studied all the books which I could find that dealt -with this question and I thought deeply on what I read. I think that the -MILIEU in which I then lived considered me an eccentric person. - -Besides my interest in the social question I naturally devoted myself -with enthusiasm to the study of architecture. Side by side with music, I -considered it queen of the arts. To study it was for me not work but -pleasure. I could read or draw until the small hours of the morning -without ever getting tired. And I became more and more confident that my -dream of a brilliant future would become true, even though I should have -to wait long years for its fulfilment. I was firmly convinced that one -day I should make a name for myself as an architect. - -The fact that, side by side with my professional studies, I took the -greatest interest in everything that had to do with politics did not -seem to me to signify anything of great importance. On the contrary: I -looked upon this practical interest in politics merely as part of an -elementary obligation that devolves on every thinking man. Those who -have no understanding of the political world around them have no right -to criticize or complain. On political questions therefore I still -continued to read and study a great deal. But reading had probably a -different significance for me from that which it has for the average run -of our so-called 'intellectuals'. - -I know people who read interminably, book after book, from page to page, -and yet I should not call them 'well-read people'. Of course they 'know' -an immense amount; but their brain seems incapable of assorting and -classifying the material which they have gathered from books. They have -not the faculty of distinguishing between what is useful and useless in -a book; so that they may retain the former in their minds and if -possible skip over the latter while reading it, if that be not possible, -then--when once read--throw it overboard as useless ballast. Reading is -not an end in itself, but a means to an end. Its chief purpose is to -help towards filling in the framework which is made up of the talents -and capabilities that each individual possesses. Thus each one procures -for himself the implements and materials necessary for the fulfilment of -his calling in life, no matter whether this be the elementary task of -earning one's daily bread or a calling that responds to higher human -aspirations. Such is the first purpose of reading. And the second -purpose is to give a general knowledge of the world in which we live. In -both cases, however, the material which one has acquired through reading -must not be stored up in the memory on a plan that corresponds to the -successive chapters of the book; but each little piece of knowledge thus -gained must be treated as if it were a little stone to be inserted into -a mosaic, so that it finds its proper place among all the other pieces -and particles that help to form a general world-picture in the brain of -the reader. Otherwise only a confused jumble of chaotic notions will -result from all this reading. That jumble is not merely useless, but it -also tends to make the unfortunate possessor of it conceited. For he -seriously considers himself a well-educated person and thinks that he -understands something of life. He believes that he has acquired -knowledge, whereas the truth is that every increase in such 'knowledge' -draws him more and more away from real life, until he finally ends up in -some sanatorium or takes to politics and becomes a parliamentary deputy. - -Such a person never succeeds in turning his knowledge to practical -account when the opportune moment arrives; for his mental equipment is -not ordered with a view to meeting the demands of everyday life. His -knowledge is stored in his brain as a literal transcript of the books he -has read and the order of succession in which he has read them. And if -Fate should one day call upon him to use some of his book-knowledge for -certain practical ends in life that very call will have to name the book -and give the number of the page; for the poor noodle himself would never -be able to find the spot where he gathered the information now called -for. But if the page is not mentioned at the critical moment the -widely-read intellectual will find himself in a state of hopeless -embarrassment. In a high state of agitation he searches for analogous -cases and it is almost a dead certainty that he will finally deliver the -wrong prescription. - -If that is not a correct description, then how can we explain the -political achievements of our Parliamentary heroes who hold the highest -positions in the government of the country? Otherwise we should have to -attribute the doings of such political leaders, not to pathological -conditions but simply to malice and chicanery. - -On the other hand, one who has cultivated the art of reading will -instantly discern, in a book or journal or pamphlet, what ought to be -remembered because it meets one's personal needs or is of value as -general knowledge. What he thus learns is incorporated in his mental -analogue of this or that problem or thing, further correcting the mental -picture or enlarging it so that it becomes more exact and precise. -Should some practical problem suddenly demand examination or solution, -memory will immediately select the opportune information from the mass -that has been acquired through years of reading and will place this -information at the service of one's powers of judgment so as to get a -new and clearer view of the problem in question or produce a definitive -solution. - -Only thus can reading have any meaning or be worth while. - -The speaker, for example, who has not the sources of information ready -to hand which are necessary to a proper treatment of his subject is -unable to defend his opinions against an opponent, even though those -opinions be perfectly sound and true. In every discussion his memory -will leave him shamefully in the lurch. He cannot summon up arguments to -support his statements or to refute his opponent. So long as the speaker -has only to defend himself on his own personal account, the situation is -not serious; but the evil comes when Chance places at the head of public -affairs such a soi-disant know-it-all, who in reality knows nothing. - -From early youth I endeavoured to read books in the right way and I was -fortunate in having a good memory and intelligence to assist me. From -that point of view my sojourn in Vienna was particularly useful and -profitable. My experiences of everyday life there were a constant -stimulus to study the most diverse problems from new angles. Inasmuch as -I was in a position to put theory to the test of reality and reality to -the test of theory, I was safe from the danger of pedantic theorizing on -the one hand and, on the other, from being too impressed by the -superficial aspects of reality. - -The experience of everyday life at that time determined me to make a -fundamental theoretical study of two most important questions outside of -the social question. - -It is impossible to say when I might have started to make a thorough -study of the doctrine and characteristics of Marxism were it not for the -fact that I then literally ran head foremost into the problem. - -What I knew of Social Democracy in my youth was precious little and that -little was for the most part wrong. The fact that it led the struggle -for universal suffrage and the secret ballot gave me an inner -satisfaction; for my reason then told me that this would weaken the -Habsburg regime, which I so thoroughly detested. I was convinced that -even if it should sacrifice the German element the Danubian State could -not continue to exist. Even at the price of a long and slow Slaviz-ation -of the Austrian Germans the State would secure no guarantee of a really -durable Empire; because it was very questionable if and how far the -Slavs possessed the necessary capacity for constructive politics. -Therefore I welcomed every movement that might lead towards the final -disruption of that impossible State which had decreed that it would -stamp out the German character in ten millions of people. The more this -babel of tongues wrought discord and disruption, even in the Parliament, -the nearer the hour approached for the dissolution of this Babylonian -Empire. That would mean the liberation of my German Austrian people, and -only then would it become possible for them to be re-united to the -Motherland. - -Accordingly I had no feelings of antipathy towards the actual policy of -the Social Democrats. That its avowed purpose was to raise the level of -the working classes--which in my ignorance I then foolishly -believed--was a further reason why I should speak in favour of Social -Democracy rather than against it. But the features that contributed most -to estrange me from the Social Democratic movement was its hostile -attitude towards the struggle for the conservation of Germanism in -Austria, its lamentable cocotting with the Slav 'comrades', who received -these approaches favourably as long as any practical advantages were -forthcoming but otherwise maintained a haughty reserve, thus giving the -importunate mendicants the sort of answer their behaviour deserved. - -And so at the age of seventeen the word 'Marxism' was very little known -to me, while I looked on 'Social Democracy' and 'Socialism' as -synonymous expressions. It was only as the result of a sudden blow from -the rough hand of Fate that my eyes were opened to the nature of this -unparalleled system for duping the public. - -Hitherto my acquaintance with the Social Democratic Party was only that -of a mere spectator at some of their mass meetings. I had not the -slightest idea of the social-democratic teaching or the mentality of its -partisans. All of a sudden I was brought face to face with the products -of their teaching and what they called their WELTANSCHAUUNG. In this -way a few months sufficed for me to learn something which under other -circumstances might have necessitated decades of study--namely, that -under the cloak of social virtue and love of one's neighbour a veritable -pestilence was spreading abroad and that if this pestilence be not -stamped out of the world without delay it may eventually succeed in -exterminating the human race. - -I first came into contact with the Social Democrats while working in the -building trade. - -From the very time that I started work the situation was not very -pleasant for me. My clothes were still rather decent. I was careful of -my speech and I was reserved in manner. I was so occupied with thinking -of my own present lot and future possibilities that I did not take much -of an interest in my immediate surroundings. I had sought work so that I -shouldn't starve and at the same time so as to be able to make further -headway with my studies, though this headway might be slow. Possibly I -should not have bothered to be interested in my companions were it not -that on the third or fourth day an event occurred which forced me to -take a definite stand. I was ordered to join the trade union. - -At that time I knew nothing about the trades unions. I had had no -opportunity of forming an opinion on their utility or inutility, as the -case might be. But when I was told that I must join the union I refused. -The grounds which I gave for my refusal were simply that I knew nothing -about the matter and that anyhow I would not allow myself to be forced -into anything. Probably the former reason saved me from being thrown out -right away. They probably thought that within a few days I might be -converted' and become more docile. But if they thought that they were -profoundly mistaken. After two weeks I found it utterly impossible for -me to take such a step, even if I had been willing to take it at first. -During those fourteen days I came to know my fellow workmen better, and -no power in the world could have moved me to join an organization whose -representatives had meanwhile shown themselves in a light which I found -so unfavourable. - -During the first days my resentment was aroused. - -At midday some of my fellow workers used to adjourn to the nearest -tavern, while the others remained on the building premises and there ate -their midday meal, which in most cases was a very scanty one. These were -married men. Their wives brought them the midday soup in dilapidated -vessels. Towards the end of the week there was a gradual increase in the -number of those who remained to eat their midday meal on the building -premises. I understood the reason for this afterwards. They now talked -politics. - -I drank my bottle of milk and ate my morsel of bread somewhere on the -outskirts, while I circumspectly studied my environment or else fell to -meditating on my own harsh lot. Yet I heard more than enough. And I -often thought that some of what they said was meant for my ears, in the -hope of bringing me to a decision. But all that I heard had the effect -of arousing the strongest antagonism in me. Everything was -disparaged--the nation, because it was held to be an invention of the -'capitalist' class (how often I had to listen to that phrase!); the -Fatherland, because it was held to be an instrument in the hands of the -bourgeoisie for the exploitation of' the working masses; the authority -of the law, because that was a means of holding down the proletariat; -religion, as a means of doping the people, so as to exploit them -afterwards; morality, as a badge of stupid and sheepish docility. There -was nothing that they did not drag in the mud. - -At first I remained silent; but that could not last very long. Then I -began to take part in the discussion and to reply to their statements. I -had to recognize, however, that this was bound to be entirely fruitless, -as long as I did not have at least a certain amount of definite -information about the questions that were discussed. So I decided to -consult the source from which my interlocutors claimed to have drawn -their so-called wisdom. I devoured book after book, pamphlet after -pamphlet. - -Meanwhile, we argued with one another on the building premises. From day -to day I was becoming better informed than my companions in the subjects -on which they claimed to be experts. Then a day came when the more -redoubtable of my adversaries resorted to the most effective weapon they -had to replace the force of reason. This was intimidation and physical -force. Some of the leaders among my adversaries ordered me to leave the -building or else get flung down from the scaffolding. As I was quite -alone I could not put up any physical resistance; so I chose the first -alternative and departed, richer however by an experience. - -I went away full of disgust; but at the same time so deeply moved that -it was quite impossible for me to turn my back on the whole situation -and think no more about it. When my anger began to calm down the spirit -of obstinacy got the upper hand and I decided that at all costs I would -get back to work again in the building trade. This decision became all -the stronger a few weeks later, when my little savings had entirely run -out and hunger clutched me once again in its merciless arms. No -alternative was left to me. I got work again and had to leave it for the -same reasons as before. - -Then I asked myself: Are these men worthy of belonging to a great -people? The question was profoundly disturbing; for if the answer were -'Yes', then the struggle to defend one's nationality is no longer worth -all the trouble and sacrifice we demand of our best elements if it be in -the interests of such a rabble. On the other hand, if the answer had to -be 'No--these men are not worthy of the nation', then our nation is poor -indeed in men. During those days of mental anguish and deep meditation I -saw before my mind the ever-increasing and menacing army of people who -could no longer be reckoned as belonging to their own nation. - -It was with quite a different feeling, some days later, that I gazed on -the interminable ranks, four abreast, of Viennese workmen parading at a -mass demonstration. I stood dumbfounded for almost two hours, watching -that enormous human dragon which slowly uncoiled itself there before me. -When I finally left the square and wandered in the direction of my -lodgings I felt dismayed and depressed. On my way I noticed the -ARBEITERZEITUNG (The Workman's Journal) in a tobacco shop. This was the -chief press-organ of the old Austrian Social Democracy. In a cheap caf�, -where the common people used to foregather and where I often went to -read the papers, the ARBEITERZEITUNG was also displayed. But hitherto I -could not bring myself to do more than glance at the wretched thing for -a couple of minutes: for its whole tone was a sort of mental vitriol to -me. Under the depressing influence of the demonstration I had witnessed, -some interior voice urged me to buy the paper in that tobacco shop and -read it through. So I brought it home with me and spent the whole -evening reading it, despite the steadily mounting rage provoked by this -ceaseless outpouring of falsehoods. - -I now found that in the social democratic daily papers I could study the -inner character of this politico-philosophic system much better than in -all their theoretical literature. - -For there was a striking discrepancy between the two. In the literary -effusions which dealt with the theory of Social Democracy there was a -display of high-sounding phraseology about liberty and human dignity and -beauty, all promulgated with an air of profound wisdom and serene -prophetic assurance; a meticulously-woven glitter of words to dazzle and -mislead the reader. On the other hand, the daily Press inculcated this -new doctrine of human redemption in the most brutal fashion. No means -were too base, provided they could be exploited in the campaign of -slander. These journalists were real virtuosos in the art of twisting -facts and presenting them in a deceptive form. The theoretical -literature was intended for the simpletons of the soi-disant -intellectuals belonging to the middle and, naturally, the upper classes. -The newspaper propaganda was intended for the masses. - -This probing into books and newspapers and studying the teachings of -Social Democracy reawakened my love for my own people. And thus what at -first seemed an impassable chasm became the occasion of a closer -affection. - -Having once understood the working of the colossal system for poisoning -the popular mind, only a fool could blame the victims of it. During the -years that followed I became more independent and, as I did so, I became -better able to understand the inner cause of the success achieved by -this Social Democratic gospel. I now realized the meaning and purpose of -those brutal orders which prohibited the reading of all books and -newspapers that were not 'red' and at the same time demanded that only -the 'red' meetings should be attended. In the clear light of brutal -reality I was able to see what must have been the inevitable -consequences of that intolerant teaching. - -The PSYCHE of the broad masses is accessible only to what is strong and -uncompromising. Like a woman whose inner sensibilities are not so much -under the sway of abstract reasoning but are always subject to the -influence of a vague emotional longing for the strength that completes -her being, and who would rather bow to the strong man than dominate the -weakling--in like manner the masses of the people prefer the ruler to -the suppliant and are filled with a stronger sense of mental security by -a teaching that brooks no rival than by a teaching which offers them a -liberal choice. They have very little idea of how to make such a choice -and thus they are prone to feel that they have been abandoned. They feel -very little shame at being terrorized intellectually and they are -scarcely conscious of the fact that their freedom as human beings is -impudently abused; and thus they have not the slightest suspicion of the -intrinsic fallacy of the whole doctrine. They see only the ruthless -force and brutality of its determined utterances, to which they always -submit. - -IF SOCIAL DEMOCRACY SHOULD BE OPPOSED BY A MORE TRUTHFUL TEACHING, THEN -EVEN, THOUGH THE STRUGGLE BE OF THE BITTEREST KIND, THIS TRUTHFUL -TEACHING WILL FINALLY PREVAIL PROVIDED IT BE ENFORCED WITH EQUAL -RUTHLESSNESS. - -Within less than two years I had gained a clear understanding of Social -Democracy, in its teaching and the technique of its operations. - -I recognized the infamy of that technique whereby the movement carried -on a campaign of mental terrorism against the bourgeoisie, who are -neither morally nor spiritually equipped to withstand such attacks. The -tactics of Social Democracy consisted in opening, at a given signal, a -veritable drum-fire of lies and calumnies against the man whom they -believed to be the most redoubtable of their adversaries, until the -nerves of the latter gave way and they sacrificed the man who was -attacked, simply in the hope of being allowed to live in peace. But the -hope proved always to be a foolish one, for they were never left in -peace. - -The same tactics are repeated again and again, until fear of these mad -dogs exercises, through suggestion, a paralysing effect on their -Victims. - -Through its own experience Social Democracy learned the value of -strength, and for that reason it attacks mostly those in whom it scents -stuff of the more stalwart kind, which is indeed a very rare possession. -On the other hand it praises every weakling among its adversaries, more -or less cautiously, according to the measure of his mental qualities -known or presumed. They have less fear of a man of genius who lacks -will-power than of a vigorous character with mediocre intelligence and -at the same time they highly commend those who are devoid of -intelligence and will-power. - -The Social Democrats know how to create the impression that they alone -are the protectors of peace. In this way, acting very circumspectly but -never losing sight of their ultimate goal, they conquer one position -after another, at one time by methods of quiet intimidation and at -another time by sheer daylight robbery, employing these latter tactics -at those moments when public attention is turned towards other matters -from which it does not wish to be diverted, or when the public considers -an incident too trivial to create a scandal about it and thus provoke -the anger of a malignant opponent. - -These tactics are based on an accurate estimation of human frailties and -must lead to success, with almost mathematical certainty, unless the -other side also learns how to fight poison gas with poison gas. The -weaker natures must be told that here it is a case of to be or not to -be. - -I also came to understand that physical intimidation has its -significance for the mass as well as for the individual. Here again the -Socialists had calculated accurately on the psychological effect. - -Intimidation in workshops and in factories, in assembly halls and at -mass demonstrations, will always meet with success as long as it does -not have to encounter the same kind of terror in a stronger form. - -Then of course the Party will raise a horrified outcry, yelling blue -murder and appealing to the authority of the State, which they have just -repudiated. In doing this their aim generally is to add to the general -confusion, so that they may have a better opportunity of reaching their -own goal unobserved. Their idea is to find among the higher government -officials some bovine creature who, in the stupid hope that he may win -the good graces of these awe-inspiring opponents so that they may -remember him in case of future eventualities, will help them now to -break all those who may oppose this world pest. - -The impression which such successful tactics make on the minds of the -broad masses, whether they be adherents or opponents, can be estimated -only by one who knows the popular mind, not from books but from -practical life. For the successes which are thus obtained are taken by -the adherents of Social Democracy as a triumphant symbol of the -righteousness of their own cause; on the other hand the beaten opponent -very often loses faith in the effectiveness of any further resistance. - -The more I understood the methods of physical intimidation that were -employed, the more sympathy I had for the multitude that had succumbed -to it. - -I am thankful now for the ordeal which I had to go through at that time; -for it was the means of bringing me to think kindly again of my own -people, inasmuch as the experience enabled me to distinguish between the -false leaders and the victims who have been led astray. - -We must look upon the latter simply as victims. I have just now tried to -depict a few traits which express the mentality of those on the lowest -rung of the social ladder; but my picture would be disproportionate if I -do not add that amid the social depths I still found light; for I -experienced a rare spirit of self-sacrifice and loyal comradeship among -those men, who demanded little from life and were content amid their -modest surroundings. This was true especially of the older generation of -workmen. And although these qualities were disappearing more and more in -the younger generation, owing to the all-pervading influence of the big -city, yet among the younger generation also there were many who were -sound at the core and who were able to maintain themselves -uncontaminated amid the sordid surroundings of their everyday existence. -If these men, who in many cases meant well and were upright in -themselves, gave the support to the political activities carried on by -the common enemies of our people, that was because those decent -workpeople did not and could not grasp the downright infamy of the -doctrine taught by the socialist agitators. Furthermore, it was because -no other section of the community bothered itself about the lot of the -working classes. Finally, the social conditions became such that men who -otherwise would have acted differently were forced to submit to them, -even though unwillingly at first. A day came when poverty gained the -upper hand and drove those workmen into the Social Democratic ranks. - -On innumerable occasions the bourgeoisie took a definite stand against -even the most legitimate human demands of the working classes. That -conduct was ill-judged and indeed immoral and could bring no gain -whatsoever to the bourgeois class. The result was that the honest -workman abandoned the original concept of the trades union organization -and was dragged into politics. - -There were millions and millions of workmen who began by being hostile -to the Social Democratic Party; but their defences were repeatedly -stormed and finally they had to surrender. Yet this defeat was due to -the stupidity of the bourgeois parties, who had opposed every social -demand put forward by the working class. The short-sighted refusal to -make an effort towards improving labour conditions, the refusal to adopt -measures which would insure the workman in case of accidents in the -factories, the refusal to forbid child labour, the refusal to consider -protective measures for female workers, especially expectant -mothers--all this was of assistance to the Social Democratic leaders, -who were thankful for every opportunity which they could exploit for -forcing the masses into their net. Our bourgeois parties can never -repair the damage that resulted from the mistake they then made. For -they sowed the seeds of hatred when they opposed all efforts at social -reform. And thus they gave, at least, apparent grounds to justify the -claim put forward by the Social Democrats--namely, that they alone stand -up for the interests of the working class. - -And this became the principal ground for the moral justification of the -actual existence of the Trades Unions, so that the labour organization -became from that time onwards the chief political recruiting ground to -swell the ranks of the Social Democratic Party. - -While thus studying the social conditions around me I was forced, -whether I liked it or not, to decide on the attitude I should take -towards the Trades Unions. Because I looked upon them as inseparable -from the Social Democratic Party, my decision was hasty--and mistaken. I -repudiated them as a matter of course. But on this essential question -also Fate intervened and gave me a lesson, with the result that I -changed the opinion which I had first formed. - -When I was twenty years old I had learned to distinguish between the -Trades Union as a means of defending the social rights of the employees -and fighting for better living conditions for them and, on the other -hand, the Trades Union as a political instrument used by the Party in -the class struggle. - -The Social Democrats understood the enormous importance of the Trades -Union movement. They appropriated it as an instrument and used it with -success, while the bourgeois parties failed to understand it and thus -lost their political prestige. They thought that their own arrogant VETO -would arrest the logical development of the movement and force it into -an illogical position. But it is absurd and also untrue to say that the -Trades Union movement is in itself hostile to the nation. The opposite -is the more correct view. If the activities of the Trades Union are -directed towards improving the condition of a class, and succeed in -doing so, such activities are not against the Fatherland or the State -but are, in the truest sense of the word, national. In that way the -trades union organization helps to create the social conditions which -are indispensable in a general system of national education. It deserves -high recognition when it destroys the psychological and physical germs -of social disease and thus fosters the general welfare of the nation. - -It is superfluous to ask whether the Trades Union is indispensable. - -So long as there are employers who attack social understanding and have -wrong ideas of justice and fair play it is not only the right but also -the duty of their employees--who are, after all, an integral part of our -people--to protect the general interests against the greed and unreason -of the individual. For to safeguard the loyalty and confidence of the -people is as much in the interests of the nation as to safeguard public -health. - -Both are seriously menaced by dishonourable employers who are not -conscious of their duty as members of the national community. Their -personal avidity or irresponsibility sows the seeds of future trouble. -To eliminate the causes of such a development is an action that surely -deserves well of the country. - -It must not be answered here that the individual workman is free at any -time to escape from the consequences of an injustice which he has -actually suffered at the hands of an employer, or which he thinks he has -suffered--in other words, he can leave. No. That argument is only a ruse -to detract attention from the question at issue. Is it, or is it not, in -the interests of the nation to remove the causes of social unrest? If it -is, then the fight must be carried on with the only weapons that promise -success. But the individual workman is never in a position to stand up -against the might of the big employer; for the question here is not one -that concerns the triumph of right. If in such a relation right had been -recognized as the guiding principle, then the conflict could not have -arisen at all. But here it is a question of who is the stronger. If the -case were otherwise, the sentiment of justice alone would solve the -dispute in an honourable way; or, to put the case more correctly, -matters would not have come to such a dispute at all. - -No. If unsocial and dishonourable treatment of men provokes resistance, -then the stronger party can impose its decision in the conflict until -the constitutional legislative authorities do away with the evil through -legislation. Therefore it is evident that if the individual workman is -to have any chance at all of winning through in the struggle he must be -grouped with his fellow workmen and present a united front before the -individual employer, who incorporates in his own person the massed -strength of the vested interests in the industrial or commercial -undertaking which he conducts. - -Thus the trades unions can hope to inculcate and strengthen a sense of -social responsibility in workaday life and open the road to practical -results. In doing this they tend to remove those causes of friction -which are a continual source of discontent and complaint. - -Blame for the fact that the trades unions do not fulfil this -much-desired function must be laid at the doors of those who barred the -road to legislative social reform, or rendered such a reform ineffective -by sabotaging it through their political influence. - -The political bourgeoisie failed to understand--or, rather, they did not -wish to understand--the importance of the trades union movement. The -Social Democrats accordingly seized the advantage offered them by this -mistaken policy and took the labour movement under their exclusive -protection, without any protest from the other side. In this way they -established for themselves a solid bulwark behind which they could -safely retire whenever the struggle assumed a critical aspect. Thus the -genuine purpose of the movement gradually fell into oblivion, and was -replaced by new objectives. For the Social Democrats never troubled -themselves to respect and uphold the original purpose for which the -trade unionist movement was founded. They simply took over the Movement, -lock, stock and barrel, to serve their own political ends. - -Within a few decades the Trades Union Movement was transformed, by the -expert hand of Social Democracy, from an instrument which had been -originally fashioned for the defence of human rights into an instrument -for the destruction of the national economic structure. The interests of -the working class were not allowed for a moment to cross the path of -this purpose; for in politics the application of economic pressure is -always possible if the one side be sufficiently unscrupulous and the -other sufficiently inert and docile. In this case both conditions were -fulfilled. - -By the beginning of the present century the Trades Unionist Movement had -already ceased to recognize the purpose for which it had been founded. -From year to year it fell more and more under the political control of -the Social Democrats, until it finally came to be used as a -battering-ram in the class struggle. The plan was to shatter, by means -of constantly repeated blows, the economic edifice in the building of -which so much time and care had been expended. Once this objective had -been reached, the destruction of the State would become a matter of -course, because the State would already have been deprived of its -economic foundations. Attention to the real interests of the -working-classes, on the part of the Social Democrats, steadily decreased -until the cunning leaders saw that it would be in their immediate -political interests if the social and cultural demands of the broad -masses remained unheeded; for there was a danger that if these masses -once felt content they could no longer be employed as mere passive -material in the political struggle. - -The gloomy prospect which presented itself to the eyes of the -CONDOTTIERI of the class warfare, if the discontent of the masses were -no longer available as a war weapon, created so much anxiety among them -that they suppressed and opposed even the most elementary measures of -social reform. And conditions were such that those leaders did not have -to trouble about attempting to justify such an illogical policy. - -As the masses were taught to increase and heighten their demands the -possibility of satisfying them dwindled and whatever ameliorative -measures were taken became less and less significant; so that it was at -that time possible to persuade the masses that this ridiculous measure -in which the most sacred claims of the working-classes were being -granted represented a diabolical plan to weaken their fighting power in -this easy way and, if possible, to paralyse it. One will not be -astonished at the success of these allegations if one remembers what a -small measure of thinking power the broad masses possess. - -In the bourgeois camp there was high indignation over the bad faith of -the Social Democratic tactics; but nothing was done to draw a practical -conclusion and organize a counter attack from the bourgeois side. The -fear of the Social Democrats, to improve the miserable conditions of the -working-classes ought to have induced the bourgeois parties to make the -most energetic efforts in this direction and thus snatch from the hands -of the class-warfare leaders their most important weapon; but nothing of -this kind happened. - -Instead of attacking the position of their adversaries the bourgeoisie -allowed itself to be pressed and harried. Finally it adopted means that -were so tardy and so insignificant that they were ineffective and were -repudiated. So the whole situation remained just as it had been before -the bourgeois intervention; but the discontent had thereby become more -serious. - -Like a threatening storm, the 'Free Trades Union' hovered above the -political horizon and above the life of each individual. It was one of -the most frightful instruments of terror that threatened the security -and independence of the national economic structure, the foundations of -the State and the liberty of the individual. Above all, it was the 'Free -Trades Union' that turned democracy into a ridiculous and scorned -phrase, insulted the ideal of liberty and stigmatized that of fraternity -with the slogan 'If you will not become our comrade we shall crack your -skull'. - -It was thus that I then came to know this friend of humanity. During the -years that followed my knowledge of it became wider and deeper; but I -have never changed anything in that regard. - -The more I became acquainted with the external forms of Social -Democracy, the greater became my desire to understand the inner nature -of its doctrines. - -For this purpose the official literature of the Party could not help -very much. In discussing economic questions its statements were false -and its proofs unsound. In treating of political aims its attitude was -insincere. Furthermore, its modern methods of chicanery in the -presentation of its arguments were profoundly repugnant to me. Its -flamboyant sentences, its obscure and incomprehensible phrases, -pretended to contain great thoughts, but they were devoid of thought, -and meaningless. One would have to be a decadent Bohemian in one of our -modern cities in order to feel at home in that labyrinth of mental -aberration, so that he might discover 'intimate experiences' amid the -stinking fumes of this literary Dadism. These writers were obviously -counting on the proverbial humility of a certain section of our people, -who believe that a person who is incomprehensible must be profoundly -wise. - -In confronting the theoretical falsity and absurdity of that doctrine -with the reality of its external manifestations, I gradually came to -have a clear idea of the ends at which it aimed. - -During such moments I had dark presentiments and feared something evil. -I had before me a teaching inspired by egoism and hatred, mathematically -calculated to win its victory, but the triumph of which would be a -mortal blow to humanity. - -Meanwhile I had discovered the relations existing between this -destructive teaching and the specific character of a people, who up to -that time had been to me almost unknown. - -Knowledge of the Jews is the only key whereby one may understand the -inner nature and therefore the real aims of Social Democracy. - -The man who has come to know this race has succeeded in removing from -his eyes the veil through which he had seen the aims and meaning of his -Party in a false light; and then, out of the murk and fog of social -phrases rises the grimacing figure of Marxism. - -To-day it is hard and almost impossible for me to say when the word -'Jew' first began to raise any particular thought in my mind. I do not -remember even having heard the word at home during my father's lifetime. -If this name were mentioned in a derogatory sense I think the old -gentleman would just have considered those who used it in this way as -being uneducated reactionaries. In the course of his career he had come -to be more or less a cosmopolitan, with strong views on nationalism, -which had its effect on me as well. In school, too, I found no reason to -alter the picture of things I had formed at home. - -At the REALSCHULE I knew one Jewish boy. We were all on our guard in our -relations with him, but only because his reticence and certain actions -of his warned us to be discreet. Beyond that my companions and myself -formed no particular opinions in regard to him. - -It was not until I was fourteen or fifteen years old that I frequently -ran up against the word 'Jew', partly in connection with political -controversies. These references aroused a slight aversion in me, and I -could not avoid an uncomfortable feeling which always came over me when -I had to listen to religious disputes. But at that time I had no other -feelings about the Jewish question. - -There were very few Jews in Linz. In the course of centuries the Jews -who lived there had become Europeanized in external appearance and were -so much like other human beings that I even looked upon them as Germans. -The reason why I did not then perceive the absurdity of such an illusion -was that the only external mark which I recognized as distinguishing -them from us was the practice of their strange religion. As I thought -that they were persecuted on account of their Faith my aversion to -hearing remarks against them grew almost into a feeling of abhorrence. I -did not in the least suspect that there could be such a thing as a -systematic anti-Semitism. - -Then I came to Vienna. - -Confused by the mass of impressions I received from the architectural -surroundings and depressed by my own troubles, I did not at first -distinguish between the different social strata of which the population -of that mammoth city was composed. Although Vienna then had about two -hundred thousand Jews among its population of two millions, I did not -notice them. During the first weeks of my sojourn my eyes and my mind -were unable to cope with the onrush of new ideas and values. Not until I -gradually settled down to my surroundings, and the confused picture -began to grow clearer, did I acquire a more discriminating view of my -new world. And with that I came up against the Jewish problem. - -I will not say that the manner in which I first became acquainted with -it was particularly unpleasant for me. In the Jew I still saw only a man -who was of a different religion, and therefore, on grounds of human -tolerance, I was against the idea that he should be attacked because he -had a different faith. And so I considered that the tone adopted by the -anti-Semitic Press in Vienna was unworthy of the cultural traditions of -a great people. The memory of certain events which happened in the -middle ages came into my mind, and I felt that I should not like to see -them repeated. Generally speaking, these anti-Semitic newspapers did not -belong to the first rank--but I did not then understand the reason of -this--and so I regarded them more as the products of jealousy and envy -rather than the expression of a sincere, though wrong-headed, feeling. - -My own opinions were confirmed by what I considered to be the infinitely -more dignified manner in which the really great Press replied to those -attacks or simply ignored them, which latter seemed to me the most -respectable way. - -I diligently read what was generally called the World Press--NEUE FREIE -PRESSE, WIENER TAGEBLATT, etc.--and I was astonished by the abundance of -information they gave their readers and the impartial way in which they -presented particular problems. I appreciated their dignified tone; but -sometimes the flamboyancy of the style was unconvincing, and I did not -like it. But I attributed all this to the overpowering influence of the -world metropolis. - -Since I considered Vienna at that time as such a world metropolis, I -thought this constituted sufficient grounds to excuse these shortcomings -of the Press. But I was frequently disgusted by the grovelling way in -which the Vienna Press played lackey to the Court. Scarcely a move took -place at the Hofburg which was not presented in glorified colours to the -readers. It was a foolish practice, which, especially when it had to do -with 'The Wisest Monarch of all Times', reminded one almost of the dance -which the mountain cock performs at pairing time to woo his mate. It was -all empty nonsense. And I thought that such a policy was a stain on the -ideal of liberal democracy. I thought that this way of currying favour -at the Court was unworthy of the people. And that was the first blot -that fell on my appreciation of the great Vienna Press. - -While in Vienna I continued to follow with a vivid interest all the -events that were taking place in Germany, whether connected with -political or cultural question. I had a feeling of pride and admiration -when I compared the rise of the young German Empire with the decline of -the Austrian State. But, although the foreign policy of that Empire was -a source of real pleasure on the whole, the internal political -happenings were not always so satisfactory. I did not approve of the -campaign which at that time was being carried on against William II. I -looked upon him not only as the German Emperor but, above all, as the -creator of the German Navy. The fact that the Emperor was prohibited -from speaking in the Reichstag made me very angry, because the -prohibition came from a side which in my eyes had no authority to make -it. For at a single sitting those same parliamentary ganders did more -cackling together than the whole dynasty of Emperors, comprising even -the weakest, had done in the course of centuries. - -It annoyed me to have to acknowledge that in a nation where any -half-witted fellow could claim for himself the right to criticize and -might even be let loose on the people as a 'Legislator' in the -Reichstag, the bearer of the Imperial Crown could be the subject of a -'reprimand' on the part of the most miserable assembly of drivellers -that had ever existed. - -I was even more disgusted at the way in which this same Vienna Press -salaamed obsequiously before the meanest steed belonging to the Habsburg -royal equipage and went off into wild ecstacies of delight if the nag -wagged its tail in response. And at the same time these newspapers took -up an attitude of anxiety in matters that concerned the German Emperor, -trying to cloak their enmity by the serious air they gave themselves. -But in my eyes that enmity appeared to be only poorly cloaked. Naturally -they protested that they had no intention of mixing in Germany's -internal affairs--God forbid! They pretended that by touching a delicate -spot in such a friendly way they were fulfilling a duty that devolved -upon them by reason of the mutual alliance between the two countries and -at the same time discharging their obligations of journalistic -truthfulness. Having thus excused themselves about tenderly touching a -sore spot, they bored with the finger ruthlessly into the wound. - -That sort of thing made my blood boil. And now I began to be more and -more on my guard when reading the great Vienna Press. - -I had to acknowledge, however, that on such subjects one of the -anti-Semitic papers--the DEUTSCHE VOLKSBLATT--acted more decently. - -What got still more on my nerves was the repugnant manner in which the -big newspapers cultivated admiration for France. One really had to feel -ashamed of being a German when confronted by those mellifluous hymns of -praise for 'the great culture-nation'. This wretched Gallomania more -often than once made me throw away one of those 'world newspapers'. I -now often turned to the VOLKSBLATT, which was much smaller in size but -which treated such subjects more decently. I was not in accord with its -sharp anti-Semitic tone; but again and again I found that its arguments -gave me grounds for serious thought. - -Anyhow, it was as a result of such reading that I came to know the man -and the movement which then determined the fate of Vienna. These were -Dr. Karl Lueger and the Christian Socialist Movement. At the time I came -to Vienna I felt opposed to both. I looked on the man and the movement -as 'reactionary'. - -But even an elementary sense of justice enforced me to change my opinion -when I had the opportunity of knowing the man and his work, and slowly -that opinion grew into outspoken admiration when I had better grounds -for forming a judgment. To-day, as well as then, I hold Dr. Karl Lueger -as the most eminent type of German Burgermeister. How many prejudices -were thrown over through such a change in my attitude towards the -Christian-Socialist Movement! - -My ideas about anti-Semitism changed also in the course of time, but -that was the change which I found most difficult. It cost me a greater -internal conflict with myself, and it was only after a struggle between -reason and sentiment that victory began to be decided in favour of the -former. Two years later sentiment rallied to the side of reasons and -became a faithful guardian and counsellor. - -At the time of this bitter struggle, between calm reason and the -sentiments in which I had been brought up, the lessons that I learned on -the streets of Vienna rendered me invaluable assistance. A time came -when I no longer passed blindly along the street of the mighty city, as -I had done in the early days, but now with my eyes open not only to -study the buildings but also the human beings. - -Once, when passing through the inner City, I suddenly encountered a -phenomenon in a long caftan and wearing black side-locks. My first -thought was: Is this a Jew? They certainly did not have this appearance -in Linz. I watched the man stealthily and cautiously; but the longer I -gazed at the strange countenance and examined it feature by feature, the -more the question shaped itself in my brain: Is this a German? - -As was always my habit with such experiences, I turned to books for help -in removing my doubts. For the first time in my life I bought myself -some anti-Semitic pamphlets for a few pence. But unfortunately they all -began with the assumption that in principle the reader had at least a -certain degree of information on the Jewish question or was even -familiar with it. Moreover, the tone of most of these pamphlets was such -that I became doubtful again, because the statements made were partly -superficial and the proofs extraordinarily unscientific. For weeks, and -indeed for months, I returned to my old way of thinking. The subject -appeared so enormous and the accusations were so far-reaching that I was -afraid of dealing with it unjustly and so I became again anxious and -uncertain. - -Naturally I could no longer doubt that here there was not a question of -Germans who happened to be of a different religion but rather that there -was question of an entirely different people. For as soon as I began to -investigate the matter and observe the Jews, then Vienna appeared to me -in a different light. Wherever I now went I saw Jews, and the more I saw -of them the more strikingly and clearly they stood out as a different -people from the other citizens. Especially the Inner City and the -district northwards from the Danube Canal swarmed with a people who, -even in outer appearance, bore no similarity to the Germans. - -But any indecision which I may still have felt about that point was -finally removed by the activities of a certain section of the Jews -themselves. A great movement, called Zionism, arose among them. Its aim -was to assert the national character of Judaism, and the movement was -strongly represented in Vienna. - -To outward appearances it seemed as if only one group of Jews championed -this movement, while the great majority disapproved of it, or even -repudiated it. But an investigation of the situation showed that those -outward appearances were purposely misleading. These outward appearances -emerged from a mist of theories which had been produced for reasons of -expediency, if not for purposes of downright deception. For that part of -Jewry which was styled Liberal did not disown the Zionists as if they -were not members of their race but rather as brother Jews who publicly -professed their faith in an unpractical way, so as to create a danger -for Jewry itself. - -Thus there was no real rift in their internal solidarity. - -This fictitious conflict between the Zionists and the Liberal Jews soon -disgusted me; for it was false through and through and in direct -contradiction to the moral dignity and immaculate character on which -that race had always prided itself. - -Cleanliness, whether moral or of another kind, had its own peculiar -meaning for these people. That they were water-shy was obvious on -looking at them and, unfortunately, very often also when not looking at -them at all. The odour of those people in caftans often used to make me -feel ill. Beyond that there were the unkempt clothes and the ignoble -exterior. - -All these details were certainly not attractive; but the revolting -feature was that beneath their unclean exterior one suddenly perceived -the moral mildew of the chosen race. - -What soon gave me cause for very serious consideration were the -activities of the Jews in certain branches of life, into the mystery of -which I penetrated little by little. Was there any shady undertaking, -any form of foulness, especially in cultural life, in which at least one -Jew did not participate? On putting the probing knife carefully to that -kind of abscess one immediately discovered, like a maggot in a -putrescent body, a little Jew who was often blinded by the sudden light. - -In my eyes the charge against Judaism became a grave one the moment I -discovered the Jewish activities in the Press, in art, in literature and -the theatre. All unctuous protests were now more or less futile. One -needed only to look at the posters announcing the hideous productions of -the cinema and theatre, and study the names of the authors who were -highly lauded there in order to become permanently adamant on Jewish -questions. Here was a pestilence, a moral pestilence, with which the -public was being infected. It was worse than the Black Plague of long -ago. And in what mighty doses this poison was manufactured and -distributed. Naturally, the lower the moral and intellectual level of -such an author of artistic products the more inexhaustible his -fecundity. Sometimes it went so far that one of these fellows, acting -like a sewage pump, would shoot his filth directly in the face of other -members of the human race. In this connection we must remember there is -no limit to the number of such people. One ought to realize that for -one, Goethe, Nature may bring into existence ten thousand such -despoilers who act as the worst kind of germ-carriers in poisoning human -souls. It was a terrible thought, and yet it could not be avoided, that -the greater number of the Jews seemed specially destined by Nature to -play this shameful part. - -And is it for this reason that they can be called the chosen people? - -I began then to investigate carefully the names of all the fabricators -of these unclean products in public cultural life. The result of that -inquiry was still more disfavourable to the attitude which I had -hitherto held in regard to the Jews. Though my feelings might rebel a -thousand time, reason now had to draw its own conclusions. - -The fact that nine-tenths of all the smutty literature, artistic tripe -and theatrical banalities, had to be charged to the account of people -who formed scarcely one per cent. of the nation--that fact could not be -gainsaid. It was there, and had to be admitted. Then I began to examine -my favourite 'World Press', with that fact before my mind. - -The deeper my soundings went the lesser grew my respect for that Press -which I formerly admired. Its style became still more repellent and I -was forced to reject its ideas as entirely shallow and superficial. To -claim that in the presentation of facts and views its attitude was -impartial seemed to me to contain more falsehood than truth. The writers -were--Jews. - -Thousands of details that I had scarcely noticed before seemed to me now -to deserve attention. I began to grasp and understand things which I had -formerly looked at in a different light. - -I saw the Liberal policy of that Press in another light. Its dignified -tone in replying to the attacks of its adversaries and its dead silence -in other cases now became clear to me as part of a cunning and -despicable way of deceiving the readers. Its brilliant theatrical -criticisms always praised the Jewish authors and its adverse, criticism -was reserved exclusively for the Germans. - -The light pin-pricks against William II showed the persistency of its -policy, just as did its systematic commendation of French culture and -civilization. The subject matter of the feuilletons was trivial and -often pornographic. The language of this Press as a whole had the accent -of a foreign people. The general tone was openly derogatory to the -Germans and this must have been definitely intentional. - -What were the interests that urged the Vienna Press to adopt such a -policy? Or did they do so merely by chance? In attempting to find an -answer to those questions I gradually became more and more dubious. - -Then something happened which helped me to come to an early decision. I -began to see through the meaning of a whole series of events that were -taking place in other branches of Viennese life. All these were inspired -by a general concept of manners and morals which was openly put into -practice by a large section of the Jews and could be established as -attributable to them. Here, again, the life which I observed on the -streets taught me what evil really is. - -The part which the Jews played in the social phenomenon of prostitution, -and more especially in the white slave traffic, could be studied here -better than in any other West-European city, with the possible exception -of certain ports in Southern France. Walking by night along the streets -of the Leopoldstadt, almost at every turn whether one wished it or not, -one witnessed certain happenings of whose existence the Germans knew -nothing until the War made it possible and indeed inevitable for the -soldiers to see such things on the Eastern front. - -A cold shiver ran down my spine when I first ascertained that it was the -same kind of cold-blooded, thick-skinned and shameless Jew who showed -his consummate skill in conducting that revolting exploitation of the -dregs of the big city. Then I became fired with wrath. - -I had now no more hesitation about bringing the Jewish problem to light -in all its details. No. Henceforth I was determined to do so. But as I -learned to track down the Jew in all the different spheres of cultural -and artistic life, and in the various manifestations of this life -everywhere, I suddenly came upon him in a position where I had least -expected to find him. I now realized that the Jews were the leaders of -Social Democracy. In face of that revelation the scales fell from my -eyes. My long inner struggle was at an end. - -In my relations with my fellow workmen I was often astonished to find -how easily and often they changed their opinions on the same questions, -sometimes within a few days and sometimes even within the course of a -few hours. I found it difficult to understand how men who always had -reasonable ideas when they spoke as individuals with one another -suddenly lost this reasonableness the moment they acted in the mass. -That phenomenon often tempted one almost to despair. I used to dispute -with them for hours and when I succeeded in bringing them to what I -considered a reasonable way of thinking I rejoiced at my success. But -next day I would find that it had been all in vain. It was saddening to -think I had to begin it all over again. Like a pendulum in its eternal -sway, they would fall back into their absurd opinions. - -I was able to understand their position fully. They were dissatisfied -with their lot and cursed the fate which had hit them so hard. They -hated their employers, whom they looked upon as the heartless -administrators of their cruel destiny. Often they used abusive language -against the public officials, whom they accused of having no sympathy -with the situation of the working people. They made public protests -against the cost of living and paraded through the streets in defence of -their claims. At least all this could be explained on reasonable -grounds. But what was impossible to understand was the boundless hatred -they expressed against their own fellow citizens, how they disparaged -their own nation, mocked at its greatness, reviled its history and -dragged the names of its most illustrious men in the gutter. - -This hostility towards their own kith and kin, their own native land and -home was as irrational as it was incomprehensible. It was against -Nature. - -One could cure that malady temporarily, but only for some days or at -least some weeks. But on meeting those whom one believed to have been -converted one found that they had become as they were before. That -malady against Nature held them once again in its clutches. - -I gradually discovered that the Social Democratic Press was -predominantly controlled by Jews. But I did not attach special -importance to this circumstance, for the same state of affairs existed -also in other newspapers. But there was one striking fact in this -connection. It was that there was not a single newspaper with which Jews -were connected that could be spoken of as National, in the meaning that -my education and convictions attached to that word. - -Making an effort to overcome my natural reluctance, I tried to read -articles of this nature published in the Marxist Press; but in doing so -my aversion increased all the more. And then I set about learning -something of the people who wrote and published this mischievous stuff. -From the publisher downwards, all of them were Jews. I recalled to mind -the names of the public leaders of Marxism, and then I realized that -most of them belonged to the Chosen Race--the Social Democratic -representatives in the Imperial Cabinet as well as the secretaries of -the Trades Unions and the street agitators. Everywhere the same sinister -picture presented itself. I shall never forget the row of -names--Austerlitz, David, Adler, Ellenbogen, and others. One fact became -quite evident to me. It was that this alien race held in its hands the -leadership of that Social Democratic Party with whose minor -representatives I had been disputing for months past. I was happy at -last to know for certain that the Jew is not a German. - -Thus I finally discovered who were the evil spirits leading our people -astray. The sojourn in Vienna for one year had proved long enough to -convince me that no worker is so rooted in his preconceived notions that -he will not surrender them in face of better and clearer arguments and -explanations. Gradually I became an expert in the doctrine of the -Marxists and used this knowledge as an instrument to drive home my own -firm convictions. I was successful in nearly every case. The great -masses can be rescued, but a lot of time and a large share of human -patience must be devoted to such work. - -But a Jew can never be rescued from his fixed notions. - -It was then simple enough to attempt to show them the absurdity of their -teaching. Within my small circle I talked to them until my throat ached -and my voice grew hoarse. I believed that I could finally convince them -of the danger inherent in the Marxist follies. But I only achieved the -contrary result. It seemed to me that immediately the disastrous effects -of the Marxist Theory and its application in practice became evident, -the stronger became their obstinacy. - -The more I debated with them the more familiar I became with their -argumentative tactics. At the outset they counted upon the stupidity of -their opponents, but when they got so entangled that they could not find -a way out they played the trick of acting as innocent simpletons. Should -they fail, in spite of their tricks of logic, they acted as if they -could not understand the counter arguments and bolted away to another -field of discussion. They would lay down truisms and platitudes; and, if -you accepted these, then they were applied to other problems and matters -of an essentially different nature from the original theme. If you faced -them with this point they would escape again, and you could not bring -them to make any precise statement. Whenever one tried to get a firm -grip on any of these apostles one's hand grasped only jelly and slime -which slipped through the fingers and combined again into a solid mass a -moment afterwards. If your adversary felt forced to give in to your -argument, on account of the observers present, and if you then thought -that at last you had gained ground, a surprise was in store for you on -the following day. The Jew would be utterly oblivious to what had -happened the day before, and he would start once again by repeating his -former absurdities, as if nothing had happened. Should you become -indignant and remind him of yesterday's defeat, he pretended -astonishment and could not remember anything, except that on the -previous day he had proved that his statements were correct. Sometimes I -was dumbfounded. I do not know what amazed me the more--the abundance of -their verbiage or the artful way in which they dressed up their -falsehoods. I gradually came to hate them. - -Yet all this had its good side; because the more I came to know the -individual leaders, or at least the propagandists, of Social Democracy, -my love for my own people increased correspondingly. Considering the -Satanic skill which these evil counsellors displayed, how could their -unfortunate victims be blamed? Indeed, I found it extremely difficult -myself to be a match for the dialectical perfidy of that race. How -futile it was to try to win over such people with argument, seeing that -their very mouths distorted the truth, disowning the very words they had -just used and adopting them again a few moments afterwards to serve -their own ends in the argument! No. The more I came to know the Jew, the -easier it was to excuse the workers. - -In my opinion the most culpable were not to be found among the workers -but rather among those who did not think it worth while to take the -trouble to sympathize with their own kinsfolk and give to the -hard-working son of the national family what was his by the iron logic -of justice, while at the same time placing his seducer and corrupter -against the wall. - -Urged by my own daily experiences, I now began to investigate more -thoroughly the sources of the Marxist teaching itself. Its effects were -well known to me in detail. As a result of careful observation, its -daily progress had become obvious to me. And one needed only a little -imagination in order to be able to forecast the consequences which must -result from it. The only question now was: Did the founders foresee the -effects of their work in the form which those effects have shown -themselves to-day, or were the founders themselves the victims of an -error? To my mind both alternatives were possible. - -If the second question must be answered in the affirmative, then it was -the duty of every thinking person to oppose this sinister movement with -a view to preventing it from producing its worst results. But if the -first question must be answered in the affirmative, then it must be -admitted that the original authors of this evil which has infected the -nations were devils incarnate. For only in the brain of a monster, and -not that of a man, could the plan of this organization take shape whose -workings must finally bring about the collapse of human civilization and -turn this world into a desert waste. - -Such being the case the only alternative left was to fight, and in that -fight to employ all the weapons which the human spirit and intellect and -will could furnish leaving it to Fate to decide in whose favour the -balance should fall. - -And so I began to gather information about the authors of this teaching, -with a view to studying the principles of the movement. The fact that I -attained my object sooner than I could have anticipated was due to the -deeper insight into the Jewish question which I then gained, my -knowledge of this question being hitherto rather superficial. This newly -acquired knowledge alone enabled me to make a practical comparison -between the real content and the theoretical pretentiousness of the -teaching laid down by the apostolic founders of Social Democracy; -because I now understood the language of the Jew. I realized that the -Jew uses language for the purpose of dissimulating his thought or at -least veiling it, so that his real aim cannot be discovered by what he -says but rather by reading between the lines. This knowledge was the -occasion of the greatest inner revolution that I had yet experienced. -From being a soft-hearted cosmopolitan I became an out-and-out -anti-Semite. - -Only on one further occasion, and that for the last time, did I give way -to oppressing thoughts which caused me some moments of profound anxiety. - -As I critically reviewed the activities of the Jewish people throughout -long periods of history I became anxious and asked myself whether for -some inscrutable reasons beyond the comprehension of poor mortals such -as ourselves, Destiny may not have irrevocably decreed that the final -victory must go to this small nation? May it not be that this people -which has lived only for the earth has been promised the earth as a -recompense? is our right to struggle for our own self-preservation based -on reality, or is it a merely subjective thing? Fate answered the -question for me inasmuch as it led me to make a detached and exhaustive -inquiry into the Marxist teaching and the activities of the Jewish -people in connection with it. - -The Jewish doctrine of Marxism repudiates the aristocratic principle of -Nature and substitutes for it the eternal privilege of force and energy, -numerical mass and its dead weight. Thus it denies the individual worth -of the human personality, impugns the teaching that nationhood and race -have a primary significance, and by doing this it takes away the very -foundations of human existence and human civilization. If the Marxist -teaching were to be accepted as the foundation of the life of the -universe, it would lead to the disappearance of all order that is -conceivable to the human mind. And thus the adoption of such a law would -provoke chaos in the structure of the greatest organism that we know, -with the result that the inhabitants of this earthly planet would -finally disappear. - -Should the Jew, with the aid of his Marxist creed, triumph over the -people of this world, his Crown will be the funeral wreath of mankind, -and this planet will once again follow its orbit through ether, without -any human life on its surface, as it did millions of years ago. - -And so I believe to-day that my conduct is in accordance with the will -of the Almighty Creator. In standing guard against the Jew I am -defending the handiwork of the Lord. - - - - -CHAPTER III - - - -POLITICAL REFLECTIONS ARISING OUT OF MY SOJOURN IN VIENNA - - -Generally speaking a man should not publicly take part in politics -before he has reached the age of thirty, though, of course, exceptions -must be made in the case of those who are naturally gifted with -extraordinary political abilities. That at least is my opinion to-day. -And the reason for it is that until he reaches his thirtieth year or -thereabouts a man's mental development will mostly consist in acquiring -and sifting such knowledge as is necessary for the groundwork of a -general platform from which he can examine the different political -problems that arise from day to day and be able to adopt a definite -attitude towards each. A man must first acquire a fund of general ideas -and fit them together so as to form an organic structure of personal -thought or outlook on life--a WELTANSCHAUUNG. Then he will have that -mental equipment without which he cannot form his own judgments on -particular questions of the day, and he will have acquired those -qualities that are necessary for consistency and steadfastness in the -formation of political opinions. Such a man is now qualified, at least -subjectively, to take his part in the political conduct of public -affairs. - -If these pre-requisite conditions are not fulfilled, and if a man should -enter political life without this equipment, he will run a twofold risk. -In the first place, he may find during the course of events that the -stand which he originally took in regard to some essential question was -wrong. He will now have to abandon his former position or else stick to -it against his better knowledge and riper wisdom and after his reason -and convictions have already proved it untenable. If he adopt the former -line of action he will find himself in a difficult personal situation; -because in giving up a position hitherto maintained he will appear -inconsistent and will have no right to expect his followers to remain as -loyal to his leadership as they were before. And, as regards the -followers themselves, they may easily look upon their leader's change of -policy as showing a lack of judgment inherent in his character. -Moreover, the change must cause in them a certain feeling of -discomfiture VIS-�-VIS those whom the leader formerly opposed. - -If he adopts the second alternative--which so very frequently happens -to-day--then public pronouncements of the leader have no longer his -personal persuasion to support them. And the more that is the case the -defence of his cause will be all the more hollow and superficial. He now -descends to the adoption of vulgar means in his defence. While he -himself no longer dreams seriously of standing by his political -protestations to the last--for no man will die in defence of something -in which he does not believe--he makes increasing demands on his -followers. Indeed, the greater be the measure of his own insincerity, -the more unfortunate and inconsiderate become his claims on his party -adherents. Finally, he throws aside the last vestiges of true leadership -and begins to play politics. This means that he becomes one of those -whose only consistency is their inconsistency, associated with -overbearing insolence and oftentimes an artful mendacity developed to a -shamelessly high degree. - -Should such a person, to the misfortune of all decent people, succeed in -becoming a parliamentary deputy it will be clear from the outset that -for him the essence of political activity consists in a heroic struggle -to keep permanent hold on this milk-bottle as a source of livelihood for -himself and his family. The more his wife and children are dependent on -him, the more stubbornly will he fight to maintain for himself the -representation of his parliamentary constituency. For that reason any -other person who gives evidence of political capacity is his personal -enemy. In every new movement he will apprehend the possible beginning of -his own downfall. And everyone who is a better man than himself will -appear to him in the light of a menace. - -I shall subsequently deal more fully with the problem to which this kind -of parliamentary vermin give rise. - -When a man has reached his thirtieth year he has still a great deal to -learn. That is obvious. But henceforward what he learns will principally -be an amplification of his basic ideas; it will be fitted in with them -organically so as to fill up the framework of the fundamental -WELTANSCHAUUNG which he already possesses. What he learns anew will not -imply the abandonment of principles already held, but rather a deeper -knowledge of those principles. And thus his colleagues will never have -the discomforting feeling that they have been hitherto falsely led by -him. On the contrary, their confidence is increased when they perceive -that their leader's qualities are steadily developing along the lines of -an organic growth which results from the constant assimilation of new -ideas; so that the followers look upon this process as signifying an -enrichment of the doctrines in which they themselves believe, in their -eyes every such development is a new witness to the correctness of that -whole body of opinion which has hitherto been held. - -A leader who has to abandon the platform founded on his general -principles, because he recognizes the foundation as false, can act with -honour only when he declares his readiness to accept the final -consequences of his erroneous views. In such a case he ought to refrain -from taking public part in any further political activity. Having once -gone astray on essential things he may possibly go astray a second time. -But, anyhow, he has no right whatsoever to expect or demand that his -fellow citizens should continue to give him their support. - -How little such a line of conduct commends itself to our public leaders -nowadays is proved by the general corruption prevalent among the cabal -which at the present moment feels itself called to political leadership. -In the whole cabal there is scarcely one who is properly equipped for -this task. - -Although in those days I used to give more time than most others to the -consideration of political question, yet I carefully refrained from -taking an open part in politics. Only to a small circle did I speak of -those things which agitated my mind or were the cause of constant -preoccupation for me. The habit of discussing matters within such a -restricted group had many advantages in itself. Rather than talk at -them, I learned to feel my way into the modes of thought and views of -those men around me. Oftentimes such ways of thinking and such views -were quite primitive. Thus I took every possible occasion to increase my -knowledge of men. - -Nowhere among the German people was the opportunity for making such a -study so favourable as in Vienna. - -In the old Danubian Monarchy political thought was wider in its range -and had a richer variety of interests than in the Germany of that -epoch--excepting certain parts of Prussia, Hamburg and the districts -bordering on the North Sea. When I speak of Austria here I mean that -part of the great Habsburg Empire which, by reason of its German -population, furnished not only the historic basis for the formation of -this State but whose population was for several centuries also the -exclusive source of cultural life in that political system whose -structure was so artificial. As time went on the stability of the -Austrian State and the guarantee of its continued existence depended -more and more on the maintenance of this germ-cell of that Habsburg -Empire. - -The hereditary imperial provinces constituted the heart of the Empire. -And it was this heart that constantly sent the blood of life pulsating -through the whole political and cultural system. Corresponding to the -heart of the Empire, Vienna signified the brain and the will. At that -time Vienna presented an appearance which made one think of her as an -enthroned queen whose authoritative sway united the conglomeration of -heterogenous nationalities that lived under the Habsburg sceptre. The -radiant beauty of the capital city made one forget the sad symptoms of -senile decay which the State manifested as a whole. - -Though the Empire was internally rickety because of the terrific -conflict going on between the various nationalities, the outside -world--and Germany in particular--saw only that lovely picture of the -city. The illusion was all the greater because at that time Vienna -seemed to have risen to its highest pitch of splendour. Under a Mayor, -who had the true stamp of administrative genius, the venerable -residential City of the Emperors of the old Empire seemed to have the -glory of its youth renewed. The last great German who sprang from the -ranks of the people that had colonized the East Mark was not a -'statesman', in the official sense. This Dr. Luegar, however, in his -r�le as Mayor of 'the Imperial Capital and Residential City', had -achieved so much in almost all spheres of municipal activity, whether -economic or cultural, that the heart of the whole Empire throbbed with -renewed vigour. He thus proved himself a much greater statesman than the -so-called 'diplomats' of that period. - -The fact that this political system of heterogeneous races called -AUSTRIA, finally broke down is no evidence whatsoever of political -incapacity on the part of the German element in the old East Mark. The -collapse was the inevitable result of an impossible situation. Ten -million people cannot permanently hold together a State of fifty -millions, composed of different and convicting nationalities, unless -certain definite pre-requisite conditions are at hand while there is -still time to avail of them. - -The German-Austrian had very big ways of thinking. Accustomed to live in -a great Empire, he had a keen sense of the obligations incumbent on him -in such a situation. He was the only member of the Austrian State who -looked beyond the borders of the narrow lands belonging to the Crown and -took in all the frontiers of the Empire in the sweep of his mind. Indeed -when destiny severed him from the common Fatherland he tried to master -the tremendous task which was set before him as a consequence. This task -was to maintain for the German-Austrians that patrimony which, through -innumerable struggles, their ancestors had originally wrested from the -East. It must be remembered that the German-Austrians could not put -their undivided strength into this effort, because the hearts and minds -of the best among them were constantly turning back towards their -kinsfolk in the Motherland, so that only a fraction of their energy -remained to be employed at home. - -The mental horizon of the German-Austrian was comparatively broad. His -commercial interests comprised almost every section of the heterogeneous -Empire. The conduct of almost all important undertakings was in his -hands. He provided the State, for the most part, with its leading -technical experts and civil servants. He was responsible for carrying on -the foreign trade of the country, as far as that sphere of activity was -not under Jewish control, The German-Austrian exclusively represented -the political cement that held the State together. His military duties -carried him far beyond the narrow frontiers of his homeland. Though the -recruit might join a regiment made up of the German element, the -regiment itself might be stationed in Herzegovina as well as in Vienna -or Galicia. The officers in the Habsburg armies were still Germans and -so was the predominating element in the higher branches of the civil -service. Art and science were in German hands. Apart from the new -artistic trash, which might easily have been produced by a negro tribe, -all genuine artistic inspiration came from the German section of the -population. In music, architecture, sculpture and painting, Vienna -abundantly supplied the entire Dual Monarchy. And the source never -seemed to show signs of a possible exhaustion. Finally, it was the -German element that determined the conduct of foreign policy, though a -small number of Hungarians were also active in that field. - -All efforts, however, to save the unity of the State were doomed to end -in failure, because the essential pre-requisites were missing. - -There was only one possible way to control and hold in check the -centrifugal forces of the different and differing nationalities. This -way was: to govern the Austrian State and organize it internally on the -principle of centralization. In no other way imaginable could the -existence of that State be assured. - -Now and again there were lucid intervals in the higher ruling quarters -when this truth was recognized. But it was soon forgotten again, or else -deliberately ignored, because of the difficulties to be overcome in -putting it into practice. Every project which aimed at giving the Empire -a more federal shape was bound to be ineffective because there was no -strong central authority which could exercise sufficient power within -the State to hold the federal elements together. It must be remembered -in this connection that conditions in Austria were quite different from -those which characterized the German State as founded by Bismarck. -Germany was faced with only one difficulty, which was that of -transforming the purely political traditions, because throughout the -whole of Bismarck's Germany there was a common cultural basis. The -German Empire contained only members of one and the same racial or -national stock, with the exception of a few minor foreign fragments. - -Demographic conditions in Austria were quite the reverse. With the -exception of Hungary there was no political tradition, coming down from -a great past, in any of the various affiliated countries. If there had -been, time had either wiped out all traces of it, or at least, rendered -them obscure. Moreover, this was the epoch when the principle of -nationality began to be in ascendant; and that phenomenon awakened the -national instincts in the various countries affiliated under the -Habsburg sceptre. It was difficult to control the action of these newly -awakened national forces; because, adjacent to the frontiers of the Dual -Monarchy, new national States were springing up whose people were of the -same or kindred racial stock as the respective nationalities that -constituted the Habsburg Empire. These new States were able to exercise -a greater influence than the German element. - -Even Vienna could not hold out for a lengthy period in this conflict. -When Budapest had developed into a metropolis a rival had grown up whose -mission was, not to help in holding together the various divergent parts -of the Empire, but rather to strengthen one part. Within a short time -Prague followed the example of Budapest; and later on came Lemberg, -Laibach and others. By raising these places which had formerly been -provincial towns to the rank of national cities, rallying centres were -provided for an independent cultural life. Through this the local -national instincts acquired a spiritual foundation and therewith gained -a more profound hold on the people. The time was bound to come when the -particularist interests of those various countries would become stronger -than their common imperial interests. Once that stage had been reached, -Austria's doom was sealed. - -The course of this development was clearly perceptible since the death -of Joseph II. Its rapidity depended on a number of factors, some of -which had their source in the Monarchy itself; while others resulted -from the position which the Empire had taken in foreign politics. - -It was impossible to make anything like a successful effort for the -permanent consolidation of the Austrian State unless a firm and -persistent policy of centralization were put into force. Before -everything else the principle should have been adopted that only one -common language could be used as the official language of the State. -Thus it would be possible to emphasize the formal unity of that imperial -commonwealth. And thus the administration would have in its hands a -technical instrument without which the State could not endure as a -political unity. In the same way the school and other forms of education -should have been used to inculcate a feeling of common citizenship. Such -an objective could not be reached within ten or twenty years. The effort -would have to be envisaged in terms of centuries; just as in all -problems of colonization, steady perseverance is a far more important -element than the output of energetic effort at the moment. - -It goes without saying that in such circumstances the country must be -governed and administered by strictly adhering to the principle of -uniformity. - -For me it was quite instructive to discover why this did not take place, -or rather why it was not done. Those who were guilty of the omission -must be held responsible for the break-up of the Habsburg Empire. - -More than any other State, the existence of the old Austria depended on -a strong and capable Government. The Habsburg Empire lacked ethnical -uniformity, which constitutes the fundamental basis of a national State -and will preserve the existence of such a State even though the ruling -power should be grossly inefficient. When a State is composed of a -homogeneous population, the natural inertia of such a population will -hold the Stage together and maintain its existence through astonishingly -long periods of misgovernment and maladministration. It may often seem -as if the principle of life had died out in such a body-politic; but a -time comes when the apparent corpse rises up and displays before the -world an astonishing manifestation of its indestructible vitality. - -But the situation is utterly different in a country where the population -is not homogeneous, where there is no bond of common blood but only that -of one ruling hand. Should the ruling hand show signs of weakness in -such a State the result will not be to cause a kind of hibernation of -the State but rather to awaken the individualist instincts which are -slumbering in the ethnological groups. These instincts do not make -themselves felt as long as these groups are dominated by a strong -central will-to-govern. The danger which exists in these slumbering -separatist instincts can be rendered more or less innocuous only through -centuries of common education, common traditions and common interests. -The younger such States are, the more their existence will depend on the -ability and strength of the central government. If their foundation was -due only to the work of a strong personality or a leader who is a man of -genius, in many cases they will break up as soon as the founder -disappears; because, though great, he stood alone. But even after -centuries of a common education and experiences these separatist -instincts I have spoken of are not always completely overcome. They may -be only dormant and may suddenly awaken when the central government -shows weakness and the force of a common education as well as the -prestige of a common tradition prove unable to withstand the vital -energies of separatist nationalities forging ahead towards the shaping -of their own individual existence. - -The failure to see the truth of all this constituted what may be called -the tragic crime of the Habsburg rulers. - -Only before the eyes of one Habsburg ruler, and that for the last time, -did the hand of Destiny hold aloft the torch that threw light on the -future of his country. But the torch was then extinguished for ever. - -Joseph II, Roman Emperor of the German nation, was filled with a growing -anxiety when he realized the fact that his House was removed to an -outlying frontier of his Empire and that the time would soon be at hand -when it would be overturned and engulfed in the whirlpool caused by that -Babylon of nationalities, unless something was done at the eleventh hour -to overcome the dire consequences resulting from the negligence of his -ancestors. With superhuman energy this 'Friend of Mankind' made every -possible effort to counteract the effects of the carelessness and -thoughtlessness of his predecessors. Within one decade he strove to -repair the damage that had been done through centuries. If Destiny had -only granted him forty years for his labours, and if only two -generations had carried on the work which he had started, the miracle -might have been performed. But when he died, broken in body and spirit -after ten years of rulership, his work sank with him into the grave and -rests with him there in the Capucin Crypt, sleeping its eternal sleep, -having never again showed signs of awakening. - -His successors had neither the ability nor the will-power necessary for -the task they had to face. - -When the first signs of a new revolutionary epoch appeared in Europe -they gradually scattered the fire throughout Austria. And when the fire -began to glow steadily it was fed and fanned not by the social or -political conditions but by forces that had their origin in the -nationalist yearnings of the various ethnic groups. - -The European revolutionary movement of 1848 primarily took the form of a -class conflict in almost every other country, but in Austria it took the -form of a new racial struggle. In so far as the German-Austrians there -forgot the origins of the movement, or perhaps had failed to recognize -them at the start and consequently took part in the revolutionary -uprising, they sealed their own fate. For they thus helped to awaken the -spirit of Western Democracy which, within a short while, shattered the -foundations of their own existence. - -The setting up of a representative parliamentary body, without insisting -on the preliminary that only one language should be used in all public -intercourse under the State, was the first great blow to the -predominance of the German element in the Dual Monarchy. From that -moment the State was also doomed to collapse sooner or later. All that -followed was nothing but the historical liquidation of an Empire. - -To watch that process of progressive disintegration was a tragic and at -the same time an instructive experience. The execution of history's -decree was carried out in thousands of details. The fact that great -numbers of people went about blindfolded amid the manifest signs of -dissolution only proves that the gods had decreed the destruction of -Austria. - -I do not wish to dwell on details because that would lie outside the -scope of this book. I want to treat in detail only those events which -are typical among the causes that lead to the decline of nations and -States and which are therefore of importance to our present age. -Moreover, the study of these events helped to furnish the basis of my -own political outlook. - -Among the institutions which most clearly manifested unmistakable signs -of decay, even to the weak-sighted Philistine, was that which, of all -the institutions of State, ought to have been the most firmly founded--I -mean the Parliament, or the Reichsrat (Imperial Council) as it was -called in Austria. - -The pattern for this corporate body was obviously that which existed in -England, the land of classic democracy. The whole of that excellent -organization was bodily transferred to Austria with as little alteration -as possible. - -As the Austrian counterpart to the British two-chamber system a Chamber -of Deputies and a House of Lords (HERRENHAUS) were established in -Vienna. The Houses themselves, considered as buildings were somewhat -different. When Barry built his palaces, or, as we say the Houses of -Parliament, on the shore of the Thames, he could look to the history of -the British Empire for the inspiration of his work. In that history he -found sufficient material to fill and decorate the 1,200 niches, -brackets, and pillars of his magnificent edifice. His statues and -paintings made the House of Lords and the House of Commons temples -dedicated to the glory of the nation. - -There it was that Vienna encountered the first difficulty. When Hansen, -the Danish architect, had completed the last gable of the marble palace -in which the new body of popular representatives was to be housed he had -to turn to the ancient classical world for subjects to fill out his -decorative plan. This theatrical shrine of 'Western Democracy' was -adorned with the statues and portraits of Greek and Roman statesmen and -philosophers. As if it were meant for a symbol of irony, the horses of -the quadriga that surmounts the two Houses are pulling apart from one -another towards all four quarters of the globe. There could be no better -symbol for the kind of activity going on within the walls of that same -building. - -The 'nationalities' were opposed to any kind of glorification of -Austrian history in the decoration of this building, insisting that such -would constitute an offence to them and a provocation. Much the same -happened in Germany, where the Reich-stag, built by Wallot, was not -dedicated to the German people until the cannons were thundering in the -World War. And then it was dedicated by an inscription. - -I was not yet twenty years of age when I first entered the Palace on the -Franzens-ring to watch and listen in the Chamber of Deputies. That first -experience aroused in me a profound feeling of repugnance. - -I had always hated the Parliament, but not as an institution in itself. -Quite the contrary. As one who cherished ideals of political freedom I -could not even imagine any other form of government. In the light of my -attitude towards the House of Habsburg I should then have considered it -a crime against liberty and reason to think of any kind of dictatorship -as a possible form of government. - -A certain admiration which I had for the British Parliament contributed -towards the formation of this opinion. I became imbued with that feeling -of admiration almost without my being conscious of the effect of it -through so much reading of newspapers while I was yet quite young. I -could not discard that admiration all in a moment. The dignified way in -which the British House of Commons fulfilled its function impressed me -greatly, thanks largely to the glowing terms in which the Austrian Press -reported these events. I used to ask myself whether there could be any -nobler form of government than self-government by the people. - -But these considerations furnished the very motives of my hostility to -the Austrian Parliament. The form in which parliamentary government was -here represented seemed unworthy of its great prototype. The following -considerations also influenced my attitude: - -The fate of the German element in the Austrian State depended on its -position in Parliament. Up to the time that universal suffrage by secret -ballot was introduced the German representatives had a majority in the -Parliament, though that majority was not a very substantial one. This -situation gave cause for anxiety because the Social-Democratic fraction -of the German element could not be relied upon when national questions -were at stake. In matters that were of critical concern for the German -element, the Social-Democrats always took up an anti-German stand -because they were afraid of losing their followers among the other -national groups. Already at that time--before the introduction of -universal suffrage--the Social-Democratic Party could no longer be -considered as a German Party. The introduction of universal suffrage put -an end even to the purely numerical predominance of the German element. -The way was now clear for the further 'de-Germanization' of the Austrian -State. - -The national instinct of self-preservation made it impossible for me to -welcome a representative system in which the German element was not -really represented as such, but always betrayed by the Social-Democratic -fraction. Yet all these, and many others, were defects which could not -be attributed to the parliamentary system as such, but rather to the -Austrian State in particular. I still believed that if the German -majority could be restored in the representative body there would be no -occasion to oppose such a system as long as the old Austrian State -continued to exist. - -Such was my general attitude at the time when I first entered those -sacred and contentious halls. For me they were sacred only because of -the radiant beauty of that majestic edifice. A Greek wonder on German -soil. - -But I soon became enraged by the hideous spectacle that met my eyes. -Several hundred representatives were there to discuss a problem of great -economical importance and each representative had the right to have his -say. - -That experience of a day was enough to supply me with food for thought -during several weeks afterwards. - -The intellectual level of the debate was quite low. Some times the -debaters did not make themselves intelligible at all. Several of those -present did not speak German but only their Slav vernaculars or -dialects. Thus I had the opportunity of hearing with my own ears what I -had been hitherto acquainted with only through reading the newspapers. A -turbulent mass of people, all gesticulating and bawling against one -another, with a pathetic old man shaking his bell and making frantic -efforts to call the House to a sense of its dignity by friendly appeals, -exhortations, and grave warnings. - -I could not refrain from laughing. - -Several weeks later I paid a second visit. This time the House presented -an entirely different picture, so much so that one could hardly -recognize it as the same place. The hall was practically empty. They -were sleeping in the other rooms below. Only a few deputies were in -their places, yawning in each other's faces. One was speechifying. A -deputy speaker was in the chair. When he looked round it was quite plain -that he felt bored. - -Then I began to reflect seriously on the whole thing. I went to the -Parliament whenever I had any time to spare and watched the spectacle -silently but attentively. I listened to the debates, as far as they -could be understood, and I studied the more or less intelligent features -of those 'elect' representatives of the various nationalities which -composed that motley State. Gradually I formed my own ideas about what I -saw. - -A year of such quiet observation was sufficient to transform or -completely destroy my former convictions as to the character of this -parliamentary institution. I no longer opposed merely the perverted form -which the principle of parliamentary representation had assumed in -Austria. No. It had become impossible for me to accept the system in -itself. Up to that time I had believed that the disastrous deficiencies -of the Austrian Parliament were due to the lack of a German majority, -but now I recognized that the institution itself was wrong in its very -essence and form. - -A number of problems presented themselves before my mind. I studied more -closely the democratic principle of 'decision by the majority vote', and -I scrutinized no less carefully the intellectual and moral worth of the -gentlemen who, as the chosen representatives of the nation, were -entrusted with the task of making this institution function. - -Thus it happened that at one and the same time I came to know the -institution itself and those of whom it was composed. And it was thus -that, within the course of a few years, I came to form a clear and vivid -picture of the average type of that most lightly worshipped phenomenon -of our time--the parliamentary deputy. The picture of him which I then -formed became deeply engraved on my mind and I have never altered it -since, at least as far as essentials go. - -Once again these object-lessons taken from real life saved me from -getting firmly entangled by a theory which at first sight seems so -alluring to many people, though that theory itself is a symptom of human -decadence. - -Democracy, as practised in Western Europe to-day, is the fore-runner of -Marxism. In fact, the latter would not be conceivable without the -former. Democracy is the breeding-ground in which the bacilli of the -Marxist world pest can grow and spread. By the introduction of -parliamentarianism, democracy produced an abortion of filth and fire -(Note 6), the creative fire of which, however, seems to have died out. - -[Note 6. SPOTTGEBURT VON DRECK UND FEUER. This is the epithet that Faust -hurls at Mephistopheles as the latter intrudes on the conversation -between Faust and Martha in the garden: - -Mephistopheles: Thou, full of sensual, super-sensual desire, - A girl by the nose is leading thee. -Faust: Abortion, thou of filth and fire.] - -I am more than grateful to Fate that this problem came to my notice when -I was still in Vienna; for if I had been in Germany at that time I might -easily have found only a superficial solution. If I had been in Berlin -when I first discovered what an illogical thing this institution is -which we call Parliament, I might easily have gone to the other extreme -and believed--as many people believed, and apparently not without good -reason--that the salvation of the people and the Empire could be secured -only by restrengthening the principle of imperial authority. Those who -had this belief did not discern the tendencies of their time and were -blind to the aspirations of the people. - -In Austria one could not be so easily misled. There it was impossible to -fall from one error into another. If the Parliament were worthless, the -Habsburgs were worse; or at least not in the slightest degree better. -The problem was not solved by rejecting the parliamentary system. -Immediately the question arose: What then? To repudiate and abolish the -Vienna Parliament would have resulted in leaving all power in the hands -of the Habsburgs. For me, especially, that idea was impossible. - -Since this problem was specially difficult in regard to Austria, I was -forced while still quite young to go into the essentials of the whole -question more thoroughly than I otherwise should have done. - -The aspect of the situation that first made the most striking impression -on me and gave me grounds for serious reflection was the manifest lack -of any individual responsibility in the representative body. - -The parliament passes some acts or decree which may have the most -devastating consequences, yet nobody bears the responsibility for it. -Nobody can be called to account. For surely one cannot say that a -Cabinet discharges its responsibility when it retires after having -brought about a catastrophe. Or can we say that the responsibility is -fully discharged when a new coalition is formed or parliament dissolved? -Can the principle of responsibility mean anything else than the -responsibility of a definite person? - -Is it at all possible actually to call to account the leaders of a -parliamentary government for any kind of action which originated in the -wishes of the whole multitude of deputies and was carried out under -their orders or sanction? Instead of developing constructive ideas and -plans, does the business of a statesman consist in the art of making a -whole pack of blockheads understand his projects? Is it his business to -entreat and coach them so that they will grant him their generous -consent? - -Is it an indispensable quality in a statesman that he should possess a -gift of persuasion commensurate with the statesman's ability to conceive -great political measures and carry them through into practice? - -Does it really prove that a statesman is incompetent if he should fail -to win over a majority of votes to support his policy in an assembly -which has been called together as the chance result of an electoral -system that is not always honestly administered. - -Has there ever been a case where such an assembly has worthily appraised -a great political concept before that concept was put into practice and -its greatness openly demonstrated through its success? - -In this world is not the creative act of the genius always a protest -against the inertia of the mass? - -What shall the statesman do if he does not succeed in coaxing the -parliamentary multitude to give its consent to his policy? Shall he -purchase that consent for some sort of consideration? - -Or, when confronted with the obstinate stupidity of his fellow citizens, -should he then refrain from pushing forward the measures which he deems -to be of vital necessity to the life of the nation? Should he retire or -remain in power? - -In such circumstances does not a man of character find himself face to -face with an insoluble contradiction between his own political insight -on the one hand and, on the other, his moral integrity, or, better -still, his sense of honesty? - -Where can we draw the line between public duty and personal honour? - -Must not every genuine leader renounce the idea of degrading himself to -the level of a political jobber? - -And, on the other hand, does not every jobber feel the itch to 'play -politics', seeing that the final responsibility will never rest with him -personally but with an anonymous mass which can never be called to -account for their deeds? - -Must not our parliamentary principle of government by numerical majority -necessarily lead to the destruction of the principle of leadership? - -Does anybody honestly believe that human progress originates in the -composite brain of the majority and not in the brain of the individual -personality? - -Or may it be presumed that for the future human civilization will be -able to dispense with this as a condition of its existence? - -But may it not be that, to-day, more than ever before, the creative -brain of the individual is indispensable? - -The parliamentary principle of vesting legislative power in the decision -of the majority rejects the authority of the individual and puts a -numerical quota of anonymous heads in its place. In doing so it -contradicts the aristrocratic principle, which is a fundamental law of -nature; but, of course, we must remember that in this decadent era of -ours the aristrocratic principle need not be thought of as incorporated -in the upper ten thousand. - -The devastating influence of this parliamentary institution might not -easily be recognized by those who read the Jewish Press, unless the -reader has learned how to think independently and examine the facts for -himself. This institution is primarily responsible for the crowded -inrush of mediocre people into the field of politics. Confronted with -such a phenomenon, a man who is endowed with real qualities of -leadership will be tempted to refrain from taking part in political -life; because under these circumstances the situation does not call for -a man who has a capacity for constructive statesmanship but rather for a -man who is capable of bargaining for the favour of the majority. Thus -the situation will appeal to small minds and will attract them -accordingly. - -The narrower the mental outlook and the more meagre the amount of -knowledge in a political jobber, the more accurate is his estimate of -his own political stock, and thus he will be all the more inclined to -appreciate a system which does not demand creative genius or even -high-class talent; but rather that crafty kind of sagacity which makes -an efficient town clerk. Indeed, he values this kind of small craftiness -more than the political genius of a Pericles. Such a mediocrity does not -even have to worry about responsibility for what he does. From the -beginning he knows that whatever be the results of his 'statesmanship' -his end is already prescribed by the stars; he will one day have to -clear out and make room for another who is of similar mental calibre. -For it is another sign of our decadent times that the number of eminent -statesmen grows according as the calibre of individual personality -dwindles. That calibre will become smaller and smaller the more the -individual politician has to depend upon parliamentary majorities. A man -of real political ability will refuse to be the beadle for a bevy of -footling cacklers; and they in their turn, being the representatives of -the majority--which means the dunder-headed multitude--hate nothing so -much as a superior brain. - -For footling deputies it is always quite a consolation to be led by a -person whose intellectual stature is on a level with their own. Thus -each one may have the opportunity to shine in debate among such compeers -and, above all, each one feels that he may one day rise to the top. If -Peter be boss to-day, then why not Paul tomorrow? - -This new invention of democracy is very closely connected with a -peculiar phenomenon which has recently spread to a pernicious extent, -namely the cowardice of a large section of our so-called political -leaders. Whenever important decisions have to be made they always find -themselves fortunate in being able to hide behind the backs of what they -call the majority. - -In observing one of these political manipulators one notices how he -wheedles the majority in order to get their sanction for whatever action -he takes. He has to have accomplices in order to be able to shift -responsibility to other shoulders whenever it is opportune to do so. -That is the main reason why this kind of political activity is abhorrent -to men of character and courage, while at the same time it attracts -inferior types; for a person who is not willing to accept responsibility -for his own actions, but is always seeking to be covered by something, -must be classed among the knaves and the rascals. If a national leader -should come from that lower class of politicians the evil consequences -will soon manifest themselves. Nobody will then have the courage to take -a decisive step. They will submit to abuse and defamation rather than -pluck up courage to take a definite stand. And thus nobody is left who -is willing to risk his position and his career, if needs be, in support -of a determined line of policy. - -One truth which must always be borne in mind is that the majority can -never replace the man. The majority represents not only ignorance but -also cowardice. And just as a hundred blockheads do not equal one man of -wisdom, so a hundred poltroons are incapable of any political line of -action that requires moral strength and fortitude. - -The lighter the burden of responsibility on each individual leader, the -greater will be the number of those who, in spite of their sorry -mediocrity, will feel the call to place their immortal energies at the -disposal of the nation. They are so much on the tip-toe of expectation -that they find it hard to wait their turn. They stand in a long queue, -painfully and sadly counting the number of those ahead of them and -calculating the hours until they may eventually come forward. They watch -every change that takes place in the personnel of the office towards -which their hopes are directed, and they are grateful for every scandal -which removes one of the aspirants waiting ahead of them in the queue. -If somebody sticks too long to his office stool they consider this as -almost a breach of a sacred understanding based on their mutual -solidarity. They grow furious and give no peace until that inconsiderate -person is finally driven out and forced to hand over his cosy berth for -public disposal. After that he will have little chance of getting -another opportunity. Usually those placemen who have been forced to give -up their posts push themselves again into the waiting queue unless they -are hounded away by the protestations of the other aspirants. - -The result of all this is that, in such a State, the succession of -sudden changes in public positions and public offices has a very -disquieting effect in general, which may easily lead to disaster when an -adverse crisis arises. It is not only the ignorant and the incompetent -person who may fall victim to those parliamentary conditions, for the -genuine leader may be affected just as much as the others, if not more -so, whenever Fate has chanced to place a capable man in the position of -leader. Let the superior quality of such a leader be once recognized and -the result will be that a joint front will be organized against him, -particularly if that leader, though not coming from their ranks, should -fall into the habit of intermingling with these illustrious nincompoops -on their own level. They want to have only their own company and will -quickly take a hostile attitude towards any man who might show himself -obviously above and beyond them when he mingles in their ranks. Their -instinct, which is so blind in other directions, is very sharp in this -particular. - -The inevitable result is that the intellectual level of the ruling class -sinks steadily. One can easily forecast how much the nation and State -are bound to suffer from such a condition of affairs, provided one does -not belong to that same class of 'leaders'. - -The parliamentary r�gime in the old Austria was the very archetype of -the institution as I have described it. - -Though the Austrian Prime Minister was appointed by the King-Emperor, -this act of appointment merely gave practical effect to the will of the -parliament. The huckstering and bargaining that went on in regard to -every ministerial position showed all the typical marks of Western -Democracy. The results that followed were in keeping with the principles -applied. The intervals between the replacement of one person by another -gradually became shorter, finally ending up in a wild relay chase. With -each change the quality of the 'statesman' in question deteriorated, -until finally only the petty type of political huckster remained. In -such people the qualities of statesmanship were measured and valued -according to the adroitness with which they pieced together one -coalition after another; in other words, their craftiness in -manipulating the pettiest political transactions, which is the only kind -of practical activity suited to the aptitudes of these representatives. - -In this sphere Vienna was the school which offered the most impressive -examples. - -Another feature that engaged my attention quite as much as the features -I have already spoken of was the contrast between the talents and -knowledge of these representatives of the people on the one hand and, on -the other, the nature of the tasks they had to face. Willingly or -unwillingly, one could not help thinking seriously of the narrow -intellectual outlook of these chosen representatives of the various -constituent nationalities, and one could not avoid pondering on the -methods through which these noble figures in our public life were first -discovered. - -It was worth while to make a thorough study and examination of the way -in which the real talents of these gentlemen were devoted to the service -of their country; in other words, to analyse thoroughly the technical -procedure of their activities. - -The whole spectacle of parliamentary life became more and more desolate -the more one penetrated into its intimate structure and studied the -persons and principles of the system in a spirit of ruthless -objectivity. Indeed, it is very necessary to be strictly objective in -the study of the institution whose sponsors talk of 'objectivity' in -every other sentence as the only fair basis of examination and judgment. -If one studied these gentlemen and the laws of their strenuous existence -the results were surprising. - -There is no other principle which turns out to be quite so ill-conceived -as the parliamentary principle, if we examine it objectively. - -In our examination of it we may pass over the methods according to which -the election of the representatives takes place, as well as the ways -which bring them into office and bestow new titles on them. It is quite -evident that only to a tiny degree are public wishes or public -necessities satisfied by the manner in which an election takes place; -for everybody who properly estimates the political intelligence of the -masses can easily see that this is not sufficiently developed to enable -them to form general political judgments on their own account, or to -select the men who might be competent to carry out their ideas in -practice. - -Whatever definition we may give of the term 'public opinion', only a -very small part of it originates from personal experience or individual -insight. The greater portion of it results from the manner in which -public matters have been presented to the people through an -overwhelmingly impressive and persistent system of 'information'. - -In the religious sphere the profession of a denominational belief is -largely the result of education, while the religious yearning itself -slumbers in the soul; so too the political opinions of the masses are -the final result of influences systematically operating on human -sentiment and intelligence in virtue of a method which is applied -sometimes with almost-incredible thoroughness and perseverance. - -By far the most effective branch of political education, which in this -connection is best expressed by the word 'propaganda', is carried on by -the Press. The Press is the chief means employed in the process of -political 'enlightenment'. It represents a kind of school for adults. -This educational activity, however, is not in the hands of the State but -in the clutches of powers which are partly of a very inferior character. -While still a young man in Vienna I had excellent opportunities for -coming to know the men who owned this machine for mass instruction, as -well as those who supplied it with the ideas it distributed. At first I -was quite surprised when I realized how little time was necessary for -this dangerous Great Power within the State to produce a certain belief -among the public; and in doing so the genuine will and convictions of -the public were often completely misconstrued. It took the Press only a -few days to transform some ridiculously trivial matter into an issue of -national importance, while vital problems were completely ignored or -filched and hidden away from public attention. - -The Press succeeded in the magical art of producing names from nowhere -within the course of a few weeks. They made it appear that the great -hopes of the masses were bound up with those names. And so they made -those names more popular than any man of real ability could ever hope to -be in a long lifetime. All this was done, despite the fact that such -names were utterly unknown and indeed had never been heard of even up to -a month before the Press publicly emblazoned them. At the same time old -and tried figures in the political and other spheres of life quickly -faded from the public memory and were forgotten as if they were dead, -though still healthy and in the enjoyment of their full viguour. Or -sometimes such men were so vilely abused that it looked as if their -names would soon stand as permanent symbols of the worst kind of -baseness. In order to estimate properly the really pernicious influence -which the Press can exercise one had to study this infamous Jewish -method whereby honourable and decent people were besmirched with mud and -filth, in the form of low abuse and slander, from hundreds and hundreds -of quarters simultaneously, as if commanded by some magic formula. - -These highway robbers would grab at anything which might serve their -evil ends. - -They would poke their noses into the most intimate family affairs and -would not rest until they had sniffed out some petty item which could be -used to destroy the reputation of their victim. But if the result of all -this sniffing should be that nothing derogatory was discovered in the -private or public life of the victim, they continued to hurl abuse at -him, in the belief that some of their animadversions would stick even -though refuted a thousand times. In most cases it finally turned out -impossible for the victim to continue his defence, because the accuser -worked together with so many accomplices that his slanders were -re-echoed interminably. But these slanderers would never own that they -were acting from motives which influence the common run of humanity or -are understood by them. Oh, no. The scoundrel who defamed his -contemporaries in this villainous way would crown himself with a halo of -heroic probity fashioned of unctuous phraseology and twaddle about his -'duties as a journalist' and other mouldy nonsense of that kind. When -these cuttle-fishes gathered together in large shoals at meetings and -congresses they would give out a lot of slimy talk about a special kind -of honour which they called the professional honour of the journalist. -Then the assembled species would bow their respects to one another. - -These are the kind of beings that fabricate more than two-thirds of what -is called public opinion, from the foam of which the parliamentary -Aphrodite eventually arises. - -Several volumes would be needed if one were to give an adequate account -of the whole procedure and fully describe all its hollow fallacies. But -if we pass over the details and look at the product itself while it is -in operation I think this alone will be sufficient to open the eyes of -even the most innocent and credulous person, so that he may recognize -the absurdity of this institution by looking at it objectively. - -In order to realize how this human aberration is as harmful as it is -absurd, the test and easiest method is to compare democratic -parliamentarianism with a genuine German democracy. - -The remarkable characteristic of the parliamentary form of democracy is -the fact that a number of persons, let us say five hundred--including, -in recent time, women also--are elected to parliament and invested with -authority to give final judgment on anything and everything. In practice -they alone are the governing body; for although they may appoint a -Cabinet, which seems outwardly to direct the affairs of state, this -Cabinet has not a real existence of its own. In reality the so-called -Government cannot do anything against the will of the assembly. It can -never be called to account for anything, since the right of decision is -not vested in the Cabinet but in the parliamentary majority. The Cabinet -always functions only as the executor of the will of the majority. Its -political ability can be judged only according to how far it succeeds in -adjusting itself to the will of the majority or in persuading the -majority to agree to its proposals. But this means that it must descend -from the level of a real governing power to that of a mendicant who has -to beg the approval of a majority that may be got together for the time -being. Indeed, the chief preoccupation of the Cabinet must be to secure -for itself, in the case of' each individual measure, the favour of the -majority then in power or, failing that, to form a new majority that -will be more favourably disposed. If it should succeed in either of -these efforts it may go on 'governing' for a little while. If it should -fail to win or form a majority it must retire. The question whether its -policy as such has been right or wrong does not matter at all. - -Thereby all responsibility is abolished in practice. To what -consequences such a state of affairs can lead may easily be understood -from the following simple considerations: - -Those five hundred deputies who have been elected by the people come -from various dissimilar callings in life and show very varying degrees -of political capacity, with the result that the whole combination is -disjointed and sometimes presents quite a sorry picture. Surely nobody -believes that these chosen representatives of the nation are the choice -spirits or first-class intellects. Nobody, I hope, is foolish enough to -pretend that hundreds of statesmen can emerge from papers placed in the -ballot box by electors who are anything else but averagely intelligent. -The absurd notion that men of genius are born out of universal suffrage -cannot be too strongly repudiated. In the first place, those times may -be really called blessed when one genuine statesman makes his appearance -among a people. Such statesmen do not appear all at once in hundreds or -more. Secondly, among the broad masses there is instinctively a definite -antipathy towards every outstanding genius. There is a better chance of -seeing a camel pass through the eye of a needle than of seeing a really -great man 'discovered' through an election. - -Whatever has happened in history above the level of the average of the -broad public has mostly been due to the driving force of an individual -personality. - -But here five hundred persons of less than modest intellectual qualities -pass judgment on the most important problems affecting the nation. They -form governments which in turn learn to win the approval of the -illustrious assembly for every legislative step that may be taken, which -means that the policy to be carried out is actually the policy of the -five hundred. - -And indeed, generally speaking, the policy bears the stamp of its -origin. - -But let us pass over the intellectual qualities of these representatives -and ask what is the nature of the task set before them. If we consider -the fact that the problems which have to be discussed and solved belong -to the most varied and diverse fields we can very well realize how -inefficient a governing system must be which entrusts the right of -decision to a mass assembly in which only very few possess the knowledge -and experience such as would qualify them to deal with the matters that -have to be settled. The most important economic measures are submitted -to a tribunal in which not more than one-tenth of the members have -studied the elements of economics. This means that final authority is -vested in men who are utterly devoid of any preparatory training which -might make them competent to decide on the questions at issue. - -The same holds true of every other problem. It is always a majority of -ignorant and incompetent people who decide on each measure; for the -composition of the institution does not vary, while the problems to be -dealt with come from the most varied spheres of public life. An -intelligent judgment would be possible only if different deputies had -the authority to deal with different issues. It is out of the question -to think that the same people are fitted to decide on transport -questions as well as, let us say, on questions of foreign policy, unless -each of them be a universal genius. But scarcely more than one genius -appears in a century. Here we are scarcely ever dealing with real -brains, but only with dilettanti who are as narrow-minded as they are -conceited and arrogant, intellectual DEMI-MONDES of the worst kind. This -is why these honourable gentlemen show such astonishing levity in -discussing and deciding on matters that would demand the most -painstaking consideration even from great minds. Measures of momentous -importance for the future existence of the State are framed and -discussed in an atmosphere more suited to the card-table. Indeed the -latter suggests a much more fitting occupation for these gentlemen than -that of deciding the destinies of a people. - -Of course it would be unfair to assume that each member in such a -parliament was endowed by nature with such a small sense of -responsibility. That is out of the question. - -But this system, by forcing the individual to pass judgment on questions -for which he is not competent gradually debases his moral character. -Nobody will have the courage to say: "Gentlemen, I am afraid we know -nothing about what we are talking about. I for one have no competency in -the matter at all." Anyhow if such a declaration were made it would not -change matters very much; for such outspoken honesty would not be -understood. The person who made the declaration would be deemed an -honourable ass who ought not to be allowed to spoil the game. Those who -have a knowledge of human nature know that nobody likes to be considered -a fool among his associates; and in certain circles honesty is taken as -an index of stupidity. - -Thus it happens that a naturally upright man, once he finds himself -elected to parliament, may eventually be induced by the force of -circumstances to acquiesce in a general line of conduct which is base in -itself and amounts to a betrayal of the public trust. That feeling that -if the individual refrained from taking part in a certain decision his -attitude would not alter the situation in the least, destroys every real -sense of honour which might occasionally arouse the conscience of one -person or another. Finally, the otherwise upright deputy will succeed in -persuading himself that he is by no means the worst of the lot and that -by taking part in a certain line of action he may prevent something -worse from happening. - -A counter argument may be put forward here. It may be said that of -course the individual member may not have the knowledge which is -requisite for the treatment of this or that question, yet his attitude -towards it is taken on the advice of his Party as the guiding authority -in each political matter; and it may further be said that the Party sets -up special committees of experts who have even more than the requisite -knowledge for dealing with the questions placed before them. - -At first sight, that argument seems sound. But then another question -arises--namely, why are five hundred persons elected if only a few have -the wisdom which is required to deal with the more important problems? - -It is not the aim of our modern democratic parliamentary system to bring -together an assembly of intelligent and well-informed deputies. Not at -all. The aim rather is to bring together a group of nonentities who are -dependent on others for their views and who can be all the more easily -led, the narrower the mental outlook of each individual is. That is the -only way in which a party policy, according to the evil meaning it has -to-day, can be put into effect. And by this method alone it is possible -for the wirepuller, who exercises the real control, to remain in the -dark, so that personally he can never be brought to account for his -actions. For under such circumstances none of the decisions taken, no -matter how disastrous they may turn out for the nation as a whole, can -be laid at the door of the individual whom everybody knows to be the -evil genius responsible for the whole affair. All responsibility is -shifted to the shoulders of the Party as a whole. - -In practice no actual responsibility remains. For responsibility arises -only from personal duty and not from the obligations that rest with a -parliamentary assembly of empty talkers. - -The parliamentary institution attracts people of the badger type, who do -not like the open light. No upright man, who is ready to accept personal -responsibility for his acts, will be attracted to such an institution. - -That is the reason why this brand of democracy has become a tool in the -hand of that race which, because of the inner purposes it wishes to -attain, must shun the open light, as it has always done and always will -do. Only a Jew can praise an institution which is as corrupt and false -as himself. - -As a contrast to this kind of democracy we have the German democracy, -which is a true democracy; for here the leader is freely chosen and is -obliged to accept full responsibility for all his actions and omissions. -The problems to be dealt with are not put to the vote of the majority; -but they are decided upon by the individual, and as a guarantee of -responsibility for those decisions he pledges all he has in the world -and even his life. - -The objection may be raised here that under such conditions it would be -very difficult to find a man who would be ready to devote himself to so -fateful a task. The answer to that objection is as follows: - -We thank God that the inner spirit of our German democracy will of -itself prevent the chance careerist, who may be intellectually worthless -and a moral twister, from coming by devious ways to a position in which -he may govern his fellow-citizens. The fear of undertaking such -far-reaching responsibilities, under German democracy, will scare off -the ignorant and the feckless. - -But should it happen that such a person might creep in surreptitiously -it will be easy enough to identify him and apostrophize him ruthlessly. -somewhat thus: "Be off, you scoundrel. Don't soil these steps with your -feet; because these are the steps that lead to the portals of the -Pantheon of History, and they are not meant for place-hunters but for -men of noble character." - -Such were the views I formed after two years of attendance at the -sessions of the Viennese Parliament. Then I went there no more. - -The parliamentary regime became one of the causes why the strength of -the Habsburg State steadily declined during the last years of its -existence. The more the predominance of the German element was whittled -away through parliamentary procedure, the more prominent became the -system of playing off one of the various constituent nationalities -against the other. In the Imperial Parliament it was always the German -element that suffered through the system, which meant that the results -were detrimental to the Empire as a whole; for at the close of the -century even the most simple-minded people could recognize that the -cohesive forces within the Dual Monarchy no longer sufficed to -counterbalance the separatist tendencies of the provincial -nationalities. On the contrary! - -The measures which the State adopted for its own maintenance became more -and more mean spirited and in a like degree the general disrespect for -the State increased. Not only Hungary but also the various Slav -provinces gradually ceased to identify themselves with the monarchy -which embraced them all, and accordingly they did not feel its weakness -as in any way detrimental to themselves. They rather welcomed those -manifestations of senile decay. They looked forward to the final -dissolution of the State, and not to its recovery. - -The complete collapse was still forestalled in Parliament by the -humiliating concessions that were made to every kind of importunate -demands, at the cost of the German element. Throughout the country the -defence of the State rested on playing off the various nationalities -against one another. But the general trend of this development was -directed against the Germans. Especially since the right of succession -to the throne conferred certain influence on the Archduke Franz -Ferdinand, the policy of increasing the power of the Czechs was carried -out systematically from the upper grades of the administration down to -the lower. With all the means at his command the heir to the Dual -Monarchy personally furthered the policy that aimed at eliminating the -influence of the German element, or at least he acted as protector of -that policy. By the use of State officials as tools, purely German -districts were gradually but decisively brought within the danger zone -of the mixed languages. Even in Lower Austria this process began to make -headway with a constantly increasing tempo and Vienna was looked upon by -the Czechs as their biggest city. - -In the family circle of this new Habsburger the Czech language was -favoured. The wife of the Archduke had formerly been a Czech Countess -and was wedded to the Prince by a morganatic marriage. She came from an -environment where hostility to the Germans had been traditional. The -leading idea in the mind of the Archduke was to establish a Slav State -in Central Europe, which was to be constructed on a purely Catholic -basis, so as to serve as a bulwark against Orthodox Russia. - -As had happened often in Habsburg history, religion was thus exploited -to serve a purely political policy, and in this case a fatal policy, at -least as far as German interests were concerned. The result was -lamentable in many respects. - -Neither the House of Habsburg nor the Catholic Church received the -reward which they expected. Habsburg lost the throne and the Church lost -a great State. By employing religious motives in the service of -politics, a spirit was aroused which the instigators of that policy had -never thought possible. - -From the attempt to exterminate Germanism in the old monarchy by every -available means arose the Pan-German Movement in Austria, as a response. - -In the 'eighties of the last century Manchester Liberalism, which was -Jewish in its fundamental ideas, had reached the zenith of its influence -in the Dual Monarchy, or had already passed that point. The reaction -which set in did not arise from social but from nationalistic -tendencies, as was always the case in the old Austria. The instinct of -self-preservation drove the German element to defend itself -energetically. Economic considerations only slowly began to gain an -important influence; but they were of secondary concern. But of the -general political chaos two party organizations emerged. The one was -more of a national, and the other more of a social, character; but both -were highly interesting and instructive for the future. - -After the war of 1866, which had resulted in the humiliation of Austria, -the House of Habsburg contemplated a REVANCHE on the battlefield. Only -the tragic end of the Emperor Maximilian of Mexico prevented a still -closer collaboration with France. The chief blame for Maximilian's -disastrous expedition was attributed to Napoleon III and the fact that -the Frenchman left him in the lurch aroused a general feeling of -indignation. Yet the Habsburgs were still lying in wait for their -opportunity. If the war of 1870-71 had not been such a singular triumph, -the Viennese Court might have chanced the game of blood in order to get -its revenge for Sadowa. But when the first reports arrived from the -Franco-German battlefield, which, though true, seemed miraculous and -almost incredible, the 'most wise' of all monarchs recognized that the -moment was inopportune and tried to accept the unfavourable situation -with as good a grace as possible. - -The heroic conflict of those two years (1870-71) produced a still -greater miracle; for with the Habsburgs the change of attitude never -came from an inner heartfelt urge but only from the pressure of -circumstances. The German people of the East Mark, however, were -entranced by the triumphant glory of the newly established German Empire -and were profoundly moved when they saw the dream of their fathers -resurgent in a magnificent reality. - -For--let us make no mistake about it--the true German-Austrian realized -from this time onward, that K�niggr�tz was the tragic, though necessary, -pre-condition for the re-establishment of an Empire which should no -longer be burdened with the palsy of the old alliance and which indeed -had no share in that morbid decay. Above all, the German-Austrian had -come to feel in the very depths of his own being that the historical -mission of the House of Habsburg had come to an end and that the new -Empire could choose only an Emperor who was of heroic mould and was -therefore worthy to wear the 'Crown of the Rhine'. It was right and just -that Destiny should be praised for having chosen a scion of that House -of which Frederick the Great had in past times given the nation an -elevated and resplendent symbol for all time to come. - -After the great war of 1870-71 the House of Habsburg set to work with -all its determination to exterminate the dangerous German element--about -whose inner feelings and attitude there could be no doubt--slowly but -deliberately. I use the word exterminate, because that alone expresses -what must have been the final result of the Slavophile policy. Then it -was that the fire of rebellion blazed up among the people whose -extermination had been decreed. That fire was such as had never been -witnessed in modern German history. - -For the first time nationalists and patriots were transformed into -rebels. - -Not rebels against the nation or the State as such but rebels against -that form of government which they were convinced, would inevitably -bring about the ruin of their own people. For the first time in modern -history the traditional dynastic patriotism and national love of -fatherland and people were in open conflict. - -It was to the merit of the Pan-German movement in Austria during the -closing decade of the last century that it pointed out clearly and -unequivocally that a State is entitled to demand respect and protection -for its authority only when such authority is administered in accordance -with the interests of the nation, or at least not in a manner -detrimental to those interests. - -The authority of the State can never be an end in itself; for, if that -were so, any kind of tyranny would be inviolable and sacred. - -If a government uses the instruments of power in its hands for the -purpose of leading a people to ruin, then rebellion is not only the -right but also the duty of every individual citizen. - -The question of whether and when such a situation exists cannot be -answered by theoretical dissertations but only by the exercise of force, -and it is success that decides the issue. - -Every government, even though it may be the worst possible and even -though it may have betrayed the nation's trust in thousands of ways, -will claim that its duty is to uphold the authority of the State. Its -adversaries, who are fighting for national self-preservation, must use -the same weapons which the government uses if they are to prevail -against such a rule and secure their own freedom and independence. -Therefore the conflict will be fought out with 'legal' means as long as -the power which is to be overthrown uses them; but the insurgents will -not hesitate to apply illegal means if the oppressor himself employs -them. - -Generally speaking, we must not forget that the highest aim of human -existence is not the maintenance of a State of Government but rather the -conservation of the race. - -If the race is in danger of being oppressed or even exterminated the -question of legality is only of secondary importance. The established -power may in such a case employ only those means which are recognized as -'legal'. yet the instinct of self-preservation on the part of the -oppressed will always justify, to the highest degree, the employment of -all possible resources. - -Only on the recognition of this principle was it possible for those -struggles to be carried through, of which history furnishes magnificent -examples in abundance, against foreign bondage or oppression at home. - -Human rights are above the rights of the State. But if a people be -defeated in the struggle for its human rights this means that its weight -has proved too light in the scale of Destiny to have the luck of being -able to endure in this terrestrial world. - -The world is not there to be possessed by the faint-hearted races. - - - -Austria affords a very clear and striking example of how easy it is for -tyranny to hide its head under the cloak of what is called 'legality'. - -The legal exercise of power in the Habsburg State was then based on the -anti-German attitude of the parliament, with its non-German majorities, -and on the dynastic House, which was also hostile to the German element. -The whole authority of the State was incorporated in these two factors. -To attempt to alter the lot of the German element through these two -factors would have been senseless. Those who advised the 'legal' way as -the only possible way, and also obedience to the State authority, could -offer no resistance; because a policy of resistance could not have been -put into effect through legal measures. To follow the advice of the -legalist counsellors would have meant the inevitable ruin of the German -element within the Monarchy, and this disaster would not have taken long -to come. The German element has actually been saved only because the -State as such collapsed. - -The spectacled theorist would have given his life for his doctrine -rather than for his people. - -Because man has made laws he subsequently comes to think that he exists -for the sake of the laws. - -A great service rendered by the pan-German movement then was that it -abolished all such nonsense, though the doctrinaire theorists and other -fetish worshippers were shocked. - -When the Habsburgs attempted to come to close quarters with the German -element, by the employment of all the means of attack which they had at -their command, the Pan-German Party hit out ruthlessly against the -'illustrious' dynasty. This Party was the first to probe into and expose -the corrupt condition of the State; and in doing so they opened the eyes -of hundreds of thousands. To have liberated the high ideal of love for -one's country from the embrace of this deplorable dynasty was one of the -great services rendered by the Pan-German movement. - -When that Party first made its appearance it secured a large -following--indeed, the movement threatened to become almost an -avalanche. But the first successes were not maintained. At the time I -came to Vienna the pan-German Party had been eclipsed by the -Christian-Socialist Party, which had come into power in the meantime. -Indeed, the Pan-German Party had sunk to a level of almost complete -insignificance. - -The rise and decline of the Pan-German movement on the one hand and the -marvellous progress of the Christian-Socialist Party on the other, -became a classic object of study for me, and as such they played an -important part in the development of my own views. - -When I came to Vienna all my sympathies were exclusively with the -Pan-German Movement. - -I was just as much impressed by the fact that they had the courage to -shout HEIL HOHENZOLLERN as I rejoiced at their determination to consider -themselves an integral part of the German Empire, from which they were -separated only provisionally. They never missed an opportunity to -explain their attitude in public, which raised my enthusiasm and -confidence. To avow one's principles publicly on every problem that -concerned Germanism, and never to make any compromises, seemed to me the -only way of saving our people. What I could not understand was how this -movement broke down so soon after such a magnificent start; and it was -no less incomprehensible that the Christian-Socialists should gain such -tremendous power within such a short time. They had just reached the -pinnacle of their popularity. - -When I began to compare those two movements Fate placed before me the -best means of understanding the causes of this puzzling problem. The -action of Fate in this case was hastened by my own straitened -circumstances. - -I shall begin my analysis with an account of the two men who must be -regarded as the founders and leaders of the two movements. These were -George von Sch�nerer and Dr. Karl Lueger. - -As far as personality goes, both were far above the level and stature of -the so-called parliamentary figures. They lived lives of immaculate and -irreproachable probity amidst the miasma of all-round political -corruption. Personally I first liked the Pan-German representative, -Sch�nerer, and it was only afterwards and gradually that I felt an equal -liking for the Christian-Socialist leader. - -When I compared their respective abilities Sch�nerer seemed to me a -better and more profound thinker on fundamental problems. He foresaw the -inevitable downfall of the Austrian State more clearly and accurately -than anyone else. If this warning in regard to the Habsburg Empire had -been heeded in Germany the disastrous world war, which involved Germany -against the whole of Europe, would never have taken place. - -But though Sch�nerer succeeded in penetrating to the essentials of a -problem he was very often much mistaken in his judgment of men. - -And herein lay Dr. Lueger's special talent. He had a rare gift of -insight into human nature and he was very careful not to take men as -something better than they were in reality. He based his plans on the -practical possibilities which human life offered him, whereas Sch�nerer -had only little discrimination in that respect. All ideas that this -Pan-German had were right in the abstract, but he did not have the -forcefulness or understanding necessary to put his ideas across to the -broad masses. He was not able to formulate them so that they could be -easily grasped by the masses, whose powers of comprehension are limited -and will always remain so. Therefore all Sch�nerer's knowledge was only -the wisdom of a prophet and he never could succeed in having it put into -practice. - -This lack of insight into human nature led him to form a wrong estimate -of the forces behind certain movements and the inherent strength of old -institutions. - -Sch�nerer indeed realized that the problems he had to deal with were in -the nature of a WELTANSCHAUUNG; but he did not understand that only the -broad masses of a nation can make such convictions prevail, which are -almost of a religious nature. - -Unfortunately he understood only very imperfectly how feeble is the -fighting spirit of the so-called bourgeoisie. That weakness is due to -their business interests, which individuals are too much afraid of -risking and which therefore deter them from taking action. And, -generally speaking, a WELTANSCHAUUNG can have no prospect of success -unless the broad masses declare themselves ready to act as its -standard-bearers and to fight on its behalf wherever and to whatever -extent that may be necessary. - -This failure to understand the importance of the lower strata of the -population resulted in a very inadequate concept of the social problem. - -In all this Dr. Lueger was the opposite of Sch�nerer. His profound -knowledge of human nature enabled him to form a correct estimate of the -various social forces and it saved him from under-rating the power of -existing institutions. And it was perhaps this very quality which -enabled him to utilize those institutions as a means to serve the -purposes of his policy. - -He saw only too clearly that, in our epoch, the political fighting power -of the upper classes is quite insignificant and not at all capable of -fighting for a great new movement until the triumph of that movement be -secured. Thus he devoted the greatest part of his political activity to -the task of winning over those sections of the population whose -existence was in danger and fostering the militant spirit in them rather -than attempting to paralyse it. He was also quick to adopt all available -means for winning the support of long-established institutions, so as to -be able to derive the greatest possible advantage for his movement from -those old sources of power. - -Thus it was that, first of all, he chose as the social basis of his new -Party that middle class which was threatened with extinction. In this -way he secured a solid following which was willing to make great -sacrifices and had good fighting stamina. His extremely wise attitude -towards the Catholic Church rapidly won over the younger clergy in such -large numbers that the old Clerical Party was forced to retire from the -field of action or else, which was the wiser course, join the new Party, -in the hope of gradually winning back one position after another. - -But it would be a serious injustice to the man if we were to regard this -as his essential characteristic. For he possessed the qualities of an -able tactician, and had the true genius of a great reformer; but all -these were limited by his exact perception of the possibilities at hand -and also of his own capabilities. - -The aims which this really eminent man decided to pursue were intensely -practical. He wished to conquer Vienna, the heart of the Monarchy. It -was from Vienna that the last pulses of life beat through the diseased -and worn-out body of the decrepit Empire. If the heart could be made -healthier the others parts of the body were bound to revive. That idea -was correct in principle; but the time within which it could be applied -in practice was strictly limited. And that was the man's weak point. - -His achievements as Burgomaster of the City of Vienna are immortal, in -the best sense of the word. But all that could not save the Monarchy. It -came too late. - -His rival, Sch�nerer, saw this more clearly. What Dr. Lueger undertook -to put into practice turned out marvellously successful. But the results -which he expected to follow these achievements did not come. Sch�nerer -did not attain the ends he had proposed to himself; but his fears were -realized, alas, in a terrible fashion. Thus both these men failed to -attain their further objectives. Lueger could not save Austria and -Sch�nerer could not prevent the downfall of the German people in -Austria. - -To study the causes of failure in the case of these two parties is to -learn a lesson that is highly instructive for our own epoch. This is -specially useful for my friends, because in many points the -circumstances of our own day are similar to those of that time. -Therefore such a lesson may help us to guard against the mistakes which -brought one of those movements to an end and rendered the other barren -of results. - -In my opinion, the wreck of the Pan-German Movement in Austria must be -attributed to three causes. - -The first of these consisted in the fact that the leaders did not have a -clear concept of the importance of the social problem, particularly for -a new movement which had an essentially revolutionary character. -Sch�nerer and his followers directed their attention principally to the -bourgeois classes. For that reason their movement was bound to turn out -mediocre and tame. The German bourgeoisie, especially in its upper -circles, is pacifist even to the point of complete -self-abnegation--though the individual may not be aware of -this--wherever the internal affairs of the nation or State are -concerned. In good times, which in this case means times of good -government, such a psychological attitude makes this social layer -extraordinarily valuable to the State. But when there is a bad -government, such a quality has a destructive effect. In order to assure -the possibility of carrying through a really strenuous struggle, the -Pan-German Movement should have devoted its efforts to winning over the -masses. The failure to do this left the movement from the very beginning -without the elementary impulse which such a wave needs if it is not to -ebb within a short while. - -In failing to see the truth of this principle clearly at the very outset -of the movement and in neglecting to put it into practice the new Party -made an initial mistake which could not possibly be rectified -afterwards. For the numerous moderate bourgeois elements admitted into -the movements increasingly determined its internal orientation and thus -forestalled all further prospects of gaining any appreciable support -among the masses of the people. Under such conditions such a movement -could not get beyond mere discussion and criticism. Quasi-religious -faith and the spirit of sacrifice were not to be found in the movement -any more. Their place was taken by the effort towards 'positive' -collaboration, which in this case meant the acknowledgment of the -existing state of affairs, gradually whittling away the rough corners of -the questions in dispute, and ending up with the making of a -dishonourable peace. - -Such was the fate of the Pan-German Movement, because at the start the -leaders did not realize that the most important condition of success was -that they should recruit their following from the broad masses of the -people. The Movement thus became bourgeois and respectable and radical -only in moderation. - -From this failure resulted the second cause of its rapid decline. - -The position of the Germans in Austria was already desperate when -Pan-Germanism arose. Year after year Parliament was being used more and -more as an instrument for the gradual extinction of the German-Austrian -population. The only hope for any eleventh-hour effort to save it lay in -the overthrow of the parliamentary system; but there was very little -prospect of this happening. - -Therewith the Pan-German Movement was confronted with a question of -primary importance. - -To overthrow the Parliament, should the Pan-Germanists have entered it -'to undermine it from within', as the current phrase was? Or should they -have assailed the institution as such from the outside? - -They entered the Parliament and came out defeated. But they had found -themselves obliged to enter. - -For in order to wage an effective war against such a power from the -outside, indomitable courage and a ready spirit of sacrifice were -necessary weapons. In such cases the bull must be seized by the horns. -Furious drives may bring the assailant to the ground again and again; -but if he has a stout heart he will stand up, even though some bones may -be broken, and only after a long and tough struggle will he achieve his -triumph. New champions are attracted to a cause by the appeal of great -sacrifices made for its sake, until that indomitable spirit is finally -crowned with success. - -For such a result, however, the children of the people from the great -masses are necessary. They alone have the requisite determination and -tenacity to fight a sanguinary issue through to the end. But the -Pan-German Movement did not have these broad masses as its champions, -and so no other means of solution could be tried out except that of -entering Parliamcnt. - -It would be a mistake to think that this decision resulted from a long -series of internal hesitations of a moral kind, or that it was the -outcome of careful calculation. No. They did not even think of another -solution. Those who participated in this blunder were actuated by -general considerations and vague notions as to what would be the -significance and effect of taking part in such a special way in that -institution which they had condemned on principle. In general they hoped -that they would thus have the means of expounding their cause to the -great masses of the people, because they would be able to speak before -'the forum of the whole nation'. Also, it seemed reasonable to believe -that by attacking the evil in the root they would be more effective than -if the attack came from outside. They believed that, if protected by the -immunity of Parliament, the position of the individual protagonists -would be strengthened and that thus the force of their attacks would be -enhanced. - -In reality everything turned out quite otherwise. - -The Forum before which the Pan-German representatives spoke had not -grown greater, but had actually become smaller; for each spoke only to -the circle that was ready to listen to him or could read the report of -his speech in the newspapers. - -But the greater forum of immediate listeners is not the parliamentary -auditorium: it is the large public meeting. For here alone will there be -thousands of men who have come simply to hear what a speaker has to say, -whereas in the parliamentary sittings only a few hundred are present; -and for the most part these are there only to earn their daily allowance -for attendance and not to be enlightened by the wisdom of one or other -of the 'representatives of the people'. - -The most important consideration is that the same public is always -present and that this public does not wish to learn anything new; -because, setting aside the question of its intelligence, it lacks even -that modest quantum of will-power which is necessary for the effort of -learning. - -Not one of the representatives of the people will pay homage to a -superior truth and devote himself to its service. No. Not one of these -gentry will act thus, except he has grounds for hoping that by such a -conversion he may be able to retain the representation of his -constituency in the coming legislature. Therefore, only when it becomes -quite clear that the old party is likely to have a bad time of it at the -forthcoming elections--only then will those models of manly virtue set -out in search of a new party or a new policy which may have better -electoral prospects; but of course this change of position will be -accompanied by a veritable deluge of high moral motives to justify it. -And thus it always happens that when an existing Party has incurred such -general disfavour among the public that it is threatened with the -probability of a crushing defeat, then a great migration commences. The -parliamentary rats leave the Party ship. - -All this happens not because the individuals in the case have become -better informed on the questions at issue and have resolved to act -accordingly. These changes of front are evidence only of that gift of -clairvoyance which warns the parliamentary flea at the right moment and -enables him to hop into another warm Party bed. - -To speak before such a forum signifies casting pearls before certain -animals. - -Verily it does not repay the pains taken; for the result must always be -negative. - -And that is actually what happened. The Pan-German representatives might -have talked themselves hoarse, but to no effect whatsoever. - -The Press either ignored them totally or so mutilated their speeches -that the logical consistency was destroyed or the meaning twisted round -in such a way that the public got only a very wrong impression regarding -the aims of the new movement. What the individual members said was not -of importance. The important matter was what people read as coming from -them. This consisted of mere extracts which had been torn out of the -context of the speeches and gave an impression of incoherent nonsense, -which indeed was purposely meant. Thus the only public before which they -really spoke consisted merely of five hundred parliamentarians; and that -says enough. - -The worst was the following: - -The Pan-German Movement could hope for success only if the leaders -realized from the very first moment that here there was no question so -much of a new Party as of a new WELTANSCHAUUNG. This alone could arouse -the inner moral forces that were necessary for such a gigantic struggle. -And for this struggle the leaders must be men of first-class brains and -indomitable courage. If the struggle on behalf of a WELTANSCHAUUNG is -not conducted by men of heroic spirit who are ready to sacrifice, -everything, within a short while it will become impossible to find real -fighting followers who are ready to lay down their lives for the cause. -A man who fights only for his own existence has not much left over for -the service of the community. - -In order to secure the conditions that are necessary for success, -everybody concerned must be made to understand that the new movement -looks to posterity for its honour and glory but that it has no -recompense to offer to the present-day members. If a movement should -offer a large number of positions and offices that are easily accessible -the number of unworthy candidates admitted to membership will be -constantly on the increase and eventually a day will come when there -will be such a preponderance of political profiteers among the -membership of a successful Party that the combatants who bore the brunt -of the battle in the earlier stages of the movement can now scarcely -recognize their own Party and may be ejected by the later arrivals as -unwanted ballast. Therewith the movement will no longer have a mission -to fulfil. - -Once the Pan-Germanists decided to collaborate with Parliament they were -no longer leaders and combatants in a popular movement, but merely -parliamentarians. Thus the Movement sank to the common political party -level of the day and no longer had the strength to face a hostile fate -and defy the risk of martyrdom. Instead of fighting, the Pan-German -leaders fell into the habit of talking and negotiating. The new -parliamentarians soon found that it was a more satisfactory, because -less risky, way of fulfilling their task if they would defend the new -WELTANSCHAUUNG with the spiritual weapon of parliamentary rhetoric -rather than take up a fight in which they placed their lives in danger, -the outcome of which also was uncertain and even at the best could offer -no prospect of personal gain for themselves. - -When they had taken their seats in Parliament their adherents outside -hoped and waited for miracles to happen. Naturally no such miracles -happened or could happen. Whereupon the adherents of the movement soon -grew impatient, because reports they read about their own deputies did -not in the least come up to what had been expected when they voted for -these deputies at the elections. The reason for this was not far to -seek. It was due to the fact that an unfriendly Press refrained from -giving a true account of what the Pan-German representatives of the -people were actually doing. - -According as the new deputies got to like this mild form of -'revolutionary' struggle in Parliament and in the provincial diets they -gradually became reluctant to resume the more hazardous work of -expounding the principles of the movement before the broad masses of the -people. - -Mass meetings in public became more and more rare, though these are the -only means of exercising a really effective influence on the people; -because here the influence comes from direct personal contact and in -this way the support of large sections of the people can be obtained. - -When the tables on which the speakers used to stand in the great -beer-halls, addressing an assembly of thousands, were deserted for the -parliamentary tribune and the speeches were no longer addressed to the -people directly but to the so-called 'chosen' representatives, the -Pan-German Movement lost its popular character and in a little while -degenerated to the level of a more or less serious club where problems -of the day are discussed academically. - -The wrong impression created by the Press was no longer corrected by -personal contact with the people through public meetings, whereby the -individual representatives might have given a true account of their -activities. The final result of this neglect was that the word -'Pan-German' came to have an unpleasant sound in the ears of the masses. - -The knights of the pen and the literary snobs of to-day should be made -to realize that the great transformations which have taken place in this -world were never conducted by a goosequill. No. The task of the pen must -always be that of presenting the theoretical concepts which motivate -such changes. The force which has ever and always set in motion great -historical avalanches of religious and political movements is the magic -power of the spoken word. - -The broad masses of a population are more amenable to the appeal of -rhetoric than to any other force. All great movements are popular -movements. They are the volcanic eruptions of human passions and -emotions, stirred into activity by the ruthless Goddess of Distress or -by the torch of the spoken word cast into the midst of the people. In no -case have great movements been set afoot by the syrupy effusions of -aesthetic litt�rateurs and drawing-room heroes. - -The doom of a nation can be averted only by a storm of glowing passion; -but only those who are passionate themselves can arouse passion in -others. It is only through the capacity for passionate feeling that -chosen leaders can wield the power of the word which, like hammer blows, -will open the door to the hearts of the people. - -He who is not capable of passionate feeling and speech was never chosen -by Providence to be the herald of its will. Therefore a writer should -stick to his ink-bottle and busy himself with theoretical questions if -he has the requisite ability and knowledge. He has not been born or -chosen to be a leader. - -A movement which has great ends to achieve must carefully guard against -the danger of losing contact with the masses of the people. Every -problem encountered must be examined from this viewpoint first of all -and the decision to be made must always be in harmony with this -principle. - -The movement must avoid everything which might lessen or weaken its -power of influencing the masses; not from demagogical motives but -because of the simple fact that no great idea, no matter how sublime and -exalted it may appear, can be realized in practice without the effective -power which resides in the popular masses. Stern reality alone must mark -the way to the goal. To be unwilling to walk the road of hardship means, -only too often in this world, the total renunciation of our aims and -purposes, whether that renunciation be consciously willed or not. - -The moment the Pan-German leaders, in virtue of their acceptance of the -parliamentary principle, moved the centre of their activities away from -the people and into Parliament, in that moment they sacrificed the -future for the sake of a cheap momentary success. They chose the easier -way in the struggle and in doing so rendered themselves unworthy of the -final victory. - -While in Vienna I used to ponder seriously over these two questions, and -I saw that the main reason for the collapse of the Pan-German Movement -lay in the fact that these very questions were not rightly appreciated. -To my mind at that time the Movement seemed chosen to take in its hands -the leadership of the German element in Austria. - -These first two blunders which led to the downfall of the Pan-German -Movement were very closely connected with one another. Faulty -recognition of the inner driving forces that urge great movements -forward led to an inadequate appreciation of the part which the broad -masses play in bringing about such changes. The result was that too -little attention was given to the social problem and that the attempts -made by the movement to capture the minds of the lower classes were too -few and too weak. Another result was the acceptance of the parliamentary -policy, which had a similar effect in regard to the importance of the -masses. - -If there had been a proper appreciation of the tremendous powers of -endurance always shown by the masses in revolutionary movements a -different attitude towards the social problem would have been taken, and -also a different policy in the matter of propaganda. Then the centre of -gravity of the movement would not have been transferred to the -Parliament but would have remained in the workshops and in the streets. - -There was a third mistake, which also had its roots in the failure to -understand the worth of the masses. The masses are first set in motion, -along a definite direction, by men of superior talents; but then these -masses once in motion are like a flywheel inasmuch as they sustain the -momentum and steady balance of the offensive. - -The policy of the Pan-German leaders in deciding to carry through a -difficult fight against the Catholic Church can be explained only by -attributing it to an inadequate understanding of the spiritual character -of the people. - -The reasons why the new Party engaged in a violent campaign against Rome -were as follows: - -As soon as the House of Habsburg had definitely decided to transform -Austria into a Slav State all sorts of means were adopted which seemed -in any way serviceable for that purpose. The Habsburg rulers had no -scruples of conscience about exploiting even religious institutions in -the service of this new 'State Idea'. One of the many methods thus -employed was the use of Czech parishes and their clergy as instruments -for spreading Slav hegemony throughout Austria. This proceeding was -carried out as follows: - -Parish priests of Czech nationality were appointed in purely German -districts. Gradually but steadily pushing forward the interests of the -Czech people before those of the Church, the parishes and their priests -became generative cells in the process of de-Germanization. - -Unfortunately the German-Austrian clergy completely failed to counter -this procedure. Not only were they incapable of taking a similar -initiative on the German side, but they showed themselves unable to meet -the Czech offensive with adequate resistance. The German element was -accordingly pushed backwards, slowly but steadily, through the -perversion of religious belief for political ends on the one side, and -the Jack of proper resistance on the other side. Such were the tactics -used in dealing with the smaller problems; but those used in dealing -with the larger problems were not very different. - -The anti-German aims pursued by the Habsburgs, especially through the -instrumentality of the higher clergy, did not meet with any vigorous -resistance, while the clerical representatives of the German interests -withdrew completely to the rear. The general impression created could -not be other than that the Catholic clergy as such were grossly -neglecting the rights of the German population. - -Therefore it looked as if the Catholic Church was not in sympathy with -the German people but that it unjustly supported their adversaries. The -root of the whole evil, especially according to Sch�nerer's opinion, lay -in the fact that the leadership of the Catholic Church was not in -Germany, and that this fact alone was sufficient reason for the hostile -attitude of the Church towards the demands of our people. - -The so-called cultural problem receded almost completely into the -background, as was generally the case everywhere throughout Austria at -that time. In assuming a hostile attitude towards the Catholic Church, -the Pan-German leaders were influenced not so much by the Church's -position in questions of science but principally by the fact that the -Church did not defend German rights, as it should have done, but always -supported those who encroached on these rights, especially then Slavs. - -George Sch�nerer was not a man who did things by halves. He went into -battle against the Church because he was convinced that this was the -only way in which the German people could be saved. The LOS-VON-ROM -(Away from Rome) Movement seemed the most formidable, but at the same -time most difficult, method of attacking and destroying the adversary's -citadel. Sch�nerer believed that if this movement could be carried -through successfully the unfortunate division between the two great -religious denominations in Germany would be wiped out and that the inner -forces of the German Empire and Nation would be enormously enhanced by -such a victory. - -But the premises as well as the conclusions in this case were both -erroneous. - -It was undoubtedly true that the national powers of resistance, in -everything concerning Germanism as such, were much weaker among the -German Catholic clergy than among their non-German confr�res, especially -the Czechs. And only an ignorant person could be unaware of the fact -that it scarcely ever entered the mind of the German clergy to take the -offensive on behalf of German interests. - -But at the same time everybody who is not blind to facts must admit that -all this should be attributed to a characteristic under which we Germans -have all been doomed to suffer. This characteristic shows itself in our -objective way of regarding our own nationality, as if it were something -that lay outside of us. - -While the Czech priest adopted a subjective attitude towards his own -people and only an objective attitude towards the Church, the German -parish priest showed a subjective devotion to his Church and remained -objective in regard to his nation. It is a phenomenon which, -unfortunately for us, can be observed occurring in exactly the same way -in thousands of other cases. - -It is by no means a peculiar inheritance from Catholicism; but it is -something in us which does not take long to gnaw the vitals of almost -every institution, especially institutions of State and those which have -ideal aims. Take, for example, the attitude of our State officials in -regard to the efforts made for bringing about a national resurgence and -compare that attitude with the stand which the public officials of any -other nation would have taken in such a case. Or is it to be believed -that the military officers of any other country in the world would -refuse to come forward on behalf of the national aspirations, but would -rather hide behind the phrase 'Authority of the State', as has been the -case in our country during the last five years and has even been deemed -a meritorious attitude? Or let us take another example. In regard to the -Jewish problem, do not the two Christian denominations take up a -standpoint to-day which does not respond to the national exigencies or -even the interests of religion? Consider the attitude of a Jewish Rabbi -towards any question, even one of quite insignificant importance, -concerning the Jews as a race, and compare his attitude with that of the -majority of our clergy, whether Catholic or Protestant. - -We observe the same phenomenon wherever it is a matter of standing up -for some abstract idea. - -'Authority of the State', 'Democracy', 'Pacifism', 'International -Solidarity', etc., all such notions become rigid, dogmatic concepts with -us; and the more vital the general necessities of the nation, the more -will they be judged exclusively in the light of those concepts. - -This unfortunate habit of looking at all national demands from the -viewpoint of a pre-conceived notion makes it impossible for us to see -the subjective side of a thing which objectively contradicts one's own -doctrine. It finally leads to a complete reversion in the relation of -means to an end. Any attempt at a national revival will be opposed if -the preliminary condition of such a revival be that a bad and pernicious -regime must first of all be overthrown; because such an action will be -considered as a violation of the 'Authority of the State'. In the eyes -of those who take that standpoint, the 'Authority of the State' is not a -means which is there to serve an end but rather, to the mind of the -dogmatic believer in objectivity, it is an end in itself; and he looks -upon that as sufficient apology for his own miserable existence. Such -people would raise an outcry, if, for instance, anyone should attempt to -set up a dictatorship, even though the man responsible for it were -Frederick the Great and even though the politicians for the time being, -who constituted the parliamentary majority, were small and incompetent -men or maybe even on a lower grade of inferiority; because to such -sticklers for abstract principles the law of democracy is more sacred -than the welfare of the nation. In accordance with his principles, one -of these gentry will defend the worst kind of tyranny, though it may be -leading a people to ruin, because it is the fleeting embodiment of the -'Authority of the State', and another will reject even a highly -beneficent government if it should happen not to be in accord with his -notion of 'democracy'. - -In the same way our German pacifist will remain silent while the nation -is groaning under an oppression which is being exercised by a sanguinary -military power, when this state of affairs gives rise to active -resistance; because such resistance means the employment of physical -force, which is against the spirit of the pacifist associations. The -German International Socialist may be rooked and plundered by his -comrades in all the other countries of the world in the name of -'solidarity', but he responds with fraternal kindness and never thinks -of trying to get his own back, or even of defending himself. And why? -Because he is a--German. - -It may be unpleasant to dwell on such truths, but if something is to be -changed we must start by diagnosing the disease. - -The phenomenon which I have just described also accounts for the feeble -manner in which German interests are promoted and defended by a section -of the clergy. - -Such conduct is not the manifestation of a malicious intent, nor is it -the outcome of orders given from 'above', as we say; but such a lack of -national grit and determination is due to defects in our educational -system. For, instead of inculcating in the youth a lively sense of their -German nationality, the aim of the educational system is to make the -youth prostrate themselves in homage to the idea, as if the idea were an -idol. - -The education which makes them the devotees of such abstract notions as -'Democracy', 'International Socialism', 'Pacifism', etc., is so -hard-and-fast and exclusive and, operating as it does from within -outwards, is so purely subjective that in forming their general picture -of outside life as a whole they are fundamentally influenced by these -A PRIORI notions. But, on the other hand, the attitude towards their own -German nationality has been very objective from youth upwards. The -Pacifist--in so far as he is a German--who surrenders himself -subjectively, body and soul, to the dictates of his dogmatic principles, -will always first consider the objective right or wrong of a situation -when danger threatens his own people, even though that danger be grave -and unjustly wrought from outside. But he will never take his stand in -the ranks of his own people and fight for and with them from the sheer -instinct of self-preservation. - -Another example may further illustrate how far this applies to the -different religious denominations. In so far as its origin and tradition -are based on German ideals, Protestantism of itself defends those ideals -better. But it fails the moment it is called upon to defend national -interests which do not belong to the sphere of its ideals and -traditional development, or which, for some reason or other, may be -rejected by that sphere. - -Therefore Protestantism will always take its part in promoting German -ideals as far as concerns moral integrity or national education, when -the German spiritual being or language or spiritual freedom are to be -defended: because these represent the principles on which Protestantism -itself is grounded. But this same Protestantism violently opposes every -attempt to rescue the nation from the clutches of its mortal enemy; -because the Protestant attitude towards the Jews is more or less rigidly -and dogmatically fixed. And yet this is the first problem which has to -be solved, unless all attempts to bring about a German resurgence or to -raise the level of the nation's standing are doomed to turn out -nonsensical and impossible. - -During my sojourn in Vienna I had ample leisure and opportunity to study -this problem without allowing any prejudices to intervene; and in my -daily intercourse with people I was able to establish the correctness of -the opinion I formed by the test of thousands of instances. - -In this focus where the greatest varieties of nationality had converged -it was quite clear and open to everybody to see that the German pacifist -was always and exclusively the one who tried to consider the interests -of his own nation objectively; but you could never find a Jew who took a -similar attitude towards his own race. Furthermore, I found that only -the German Socialist is 'international' in the sense that he feels -himself obliged not to demand justice for his own people in any other -manner than by whining and wailing to his international comrades. Nobody -could ever reproach Czechs or Poles or other nations with such conduct. -In short, even at that time, already I recognized that this evil is only -partly a result of the doctrines taught by Socialism, Pacifism, etc., -but mainly the result of our totally inadequate system of education, the -defects of which are responsible for the lack of devotion to our own -national ideals. - -Therefore the first theoretical argument advanced by the Pan-German -leaders as the basis of their offensive against Catholicism was quite -entenable. - -The only way to remedy the evil I have been speaking of is to train the -Germans from youth upwards to an absolute recognition of the rights of -their own people, instead of poisoning their minds, while they are still -only children, with the virus of this curbed 'objectivity', even in -matters concerning the very maintenance of our own existence. The result -of this would be that the Catholic in Germany, just as in Ireland, -Poland or France, will be a German first and foremost. But all this -presupposes a radical change in the national government. - -The strongest proof in support of my contention is furnished by what -took place at that historical juncture when our people were called for -the last time before the tribunal of History to defend their own -existence, in a life-or-death struggle. - -As long as there was no lack of leadership in the higher circles, the -people fulfilled their duty and obligations to an overwhelming extent. -Whether Protestant pastor or Catholic priest, each did his very utmost -in helping our powers of resistance to hold out, not only in the -trenches but also, and even more so, at home. During those years, and -especially during the first outburst of enthusiasm, in both religious -camps there was one undivided and sacred German Empire for whose -preservation and future existence they all prayed to Heaven. - -The Pan-German Movement in Austria ought to have asked itself this one -question: Is the maintenance of the German element in Austria possible -or not, as long as that element remains within the fold of the Catholic -Faith? If that question should have been answered in the affirmative, -then the political Party should not have meddled in religious and -denominational questions. But if the question had to be answered in the -negative, then a religious reformation should have been started and not -a political party movement. - -Anyone who believes that a religious reformation can be achieved through -the agency of a political organization shows that he has no idea of the -development of religious conceptions and doctrines of faith and how -these are given practical effect by the Church. - -No man can serve two masters. And I hold that the foundation or -overthrow of a religion has far greater consequences than the foundation -or overthrow of a State, to say nothing of a Party. - -It is no argument to the contrary to say that the attacks were only -defensive measures against attacks from the other side. - -Undoubtedly there have always been unscrupulous rogues who did not -hesitate to degrade religion to the base uses of politics. Nearly always -such a people had nothing else in their minds except to make a business -of religions and politics. But on the other hand it would be wrong to -hold religion itself, or a religious denomination, responsible for a -number of rascals who exploit the Church for their own base interests -just as they would exploit anything else in which they had a part. - -Nothing could be more to the taste of one of these parliamentary -loungers and tricksters than to be able to find a scapegoat for his -political sharp-practice--after the event, of course. The moment -religion or a religious denomination is attacked and made responsible -for his personal misdeeds this shrewd fellow will raise a row at once -and call the world to witness how justified he was in acting as he did, -proclaiming that he and his eloquence alone have saved religion and the -Church. The public, which is mostly stupid and has a very short memory, -is not capable of recognizing the real instigator of the quarrel in the -midst of the turmoil that has been raised. Frequently it does not -remember the beginning of the fight and so the rogue gets by with his -stunt. - -A cunning fellow of that sort is quite well aware that his misdeeds have -nothing to do with religion. And so he will laugh up his sleeve all the -more heartily when his honest but artless adversary loses the game and, -one day losing all faith in humanity, retires from the activities of -public life. - -But from another viewpoint also it would be wrong to make religion, or -the Church as such, responsible for the misdeeds of individuals. If one -compares the magnitude of the organization, as it stands visible to -every eye, with the average weakness of human nature we shall have to -admit that the proportion of good to bad is more favourable here than -anywhere else. Among the priests there may, of course, be some who use -their sacred calling to further their political ambitions. There are -clergy who unfortunately forget that in the political m�l�e they ought -to be the paladins of the more sublime truths and not the abettors of -falsehood and slander. But for each one of these unworthy specimens we -can find a thousand or more who fulfil their mission nobly as the -trustworthy guardians of souls and who tower above the level of our -corrupt epoch, as little islands above the seaswamp. - -I cannot condemn the Church as such, and I should feel quite as little -justified in doing so if some depraved person in the robe of a priest -commits some offence against the moral law. Nor should I for a moment -think of blaming the Church if one of its innumerable members betrays -and besmirches his compatriots, especially not in epochs when such -conduct is quite common. We must not forget, particularly in our day, -that for one such Ephialtes (Note 7) there are a thousand whose hearts -bleed in sympathy with their people during these years of misfortune and -who, together with the best of our nation, yearn for the hour when fortune -will smile on us again. - -[Note 7. Herodotus (Book VII, 213-218) tells the story of how a Greek -traitor, Ephialtes, helped the Persian invaders at the Battle of -Thermopylae (480 B.C.) When the Persian King, Xerxes, had begun to -despair of being able tobreak through the Greek defence, Ephialtes came -to him and, on being promiseda definite payment, told the King of a -pathway over the shoulder of the mountainto the Greek end of the Pass. -The bargain being clinched, Ephialtes led adetachment of the Persian -troops under General Hydarnes over the mountainpathway. Thus taken in -the rear, the Greek defenders, under Leonidas, King of Sparta, had to -fight in two opposite directions within the narrow pass. Terrible -slaughter ensued and Leonidas fell in the thick of the fighting. - -The bravery of Leonidas and the treason of Ephialtes impressed Hitler, -asit does almost every schoolboy. The incident is referred to again in -MEIN KAMPF (Chap. VIII, Vol. I), where Hitler compares the German troops -thatfell in France and Flanders to the Greeks at Thermopylae, the -treachery of Ephialtes being suggested as the prototype of the defeatist -policy of the German politicians towards the end of the Great War.] - -If it be objected that here we are concerned not with the petty problems -of everyday life but principally with fundamental truths and questions -of dogma, the only way of answering that objection is to ask a question: - -Do you feel that Providence has called you to proclaim the Truth to the -world? If so, then go and do it. But you ought to have the courage to do -it directly and not use some political party as your mouthpiece; for in -this way you shirk your vocation. In the place of something that now -exists and is bad put something else that is better and will last into -the future. - -If you lack the requisite courage or if you yourself do not know clearly -what your better substitute ought to be, leave the whole thing alone. -But, whatever happens, do not try to reach the goal by the roundabout -way of a political party if you are not brave enough to fight with your -visor lifted. - -Political parties have no right to meddle in religious questions except -when these relate to something that is alien to the national well-being -and thus calculated to undermine racial customs and morals. - -If some ecclesiastical dignitaries should misuse religious ceremonies or -religious teaching to injure their own nation their opponents ought -never to take the same road and fight them with the same weapons. - -To a political leader the religious teachings and practices of his -people should be sacred and inviolable. Otherwise he should not be a -statesman but a reformer, if he has the necessary qualities for such a -mission. - -Any other line of conduct will lead to disaster, especially in Germany. - -In studying the Pan-German Movement and its conflict with Rome I was -then firmly persuaded, and especially in the course of later years, that -by their failure to understand the importance of the social problem the -Pan-Germanists lost the support of the broad masses, who are the -indispensable combatants in such a movement. By entering Parliament the -Pan-German leaders deprived themselves of the great driving force which -resides in the masses and at the same time they laid on their own -shoulders all the defects of the parliamentary institution. Their -struggle against the Church made their position impossible in numerous -circles of the lower and middle class, while at the same time it robbed -them of innumerable high-class elements--some of the best indeed that -the nation possessed. The practical outcome of the Austrian Kulturkampf -was negative. - -Although they succeeded in winning 100,000 members away from the Church, -that did not do much harm to the latter. The Church did not really need -to shed any tears over these lost sheep, for it lost only those who had -for a long time ceased to belong to it in their inner hearts. The -difference between this new reformation and the great Reformation was -that in the historic epoch of the great Reformation some of the best -members left the Church because of religious convictions, whereas in -this new reformation only those left who had been indifferent before and -who were now influenced by political considerations. From the political -point of view alone the result was as ridiculous as it was deplorable. - -Once again a political movement which had promised so much for the -German nation collapsed, because it was not conducted in a spirit of -unflinching adherence to naked reality, but lost itself in fields where -it was bound to get broken up. - -The Pan-German Movement would never have made this mistake if it had -properly understood the PSYCHE of the broad masses. If the leaders had -known that, for psychological reasons alone, it is not expedient to -place two or more sets of adversaries before the masses--since that -leads to a complete splitting up of their fighting strength--they would -have concentrated the full and undivided force of their attack against a -single adversary. Nothing in the policy of a political party is so -fraught with danger as to allow its decisions to be directed by people -who want to have their fingers in every pie though they do not know how -to cook the simplest dish. - -But even though there is much that can really be said against the -various religious denominations, political leaders must not forget that -the experience of history teaches us that no purely political party in -similar circumstances ever succeeded in bringing about a religious -reformation. One does not study history for the purpose of forgetting or -mistrusting its lessons afterwards, when the time comes to apply these -lessons in practice. It would be a mistake to believe that in this -particular case things were different, so that the eternal truths of -history were no longer applicable. One learns history in order to be -able to apply its lessons to the present time and whoever fails to do -this cannot pretend to be a political leader. In reality he is quite a -superficial person or, as is mostly the case, a conceited simpleton -whose good intentions cannot make up for his incompetence in practical -affairs. - -The art of leadership, as displayed by really great popular leaders in -all ages, consists in consolidating the attention of the people against -a single adversary and taking care that nothing will split up that -attention into sections. The more the militant energies of the people -are directed towards one objective the more will new recruits join the -movement, attracted by the magnetism of its unified action, and thus the -striking power will be all the more enhanced. The leader of genius must -have the ability to make different opponents appear as if they belonged -to the one category; for weak and wavering natures among a leader's -following may easily begin to be dubious about the justice of their own -cause if they have to face different enemies. - -As soon as the vacillating masses find themselves facing an opposition -that is made up of different groups of enemies their sense of -objectivity will be aroused and they will ask how is it that all the -others can be in the wrong and they themselves, and their movement, -alone in the right. - -Such a feeling would be the first step towards a paralysis of their -fighting vigour. Where there are various enemies who are split up into -divergent groups it will be necessary to block them all together as -forming one solid front, so that the mass of followers in a popular -movement may see only one common enemy against whom they have to fight. -Such uniformity intensifies their belief in the justice of their own -cause and strengthens their feeling of hostility towards the opponent. - -The Pan-German Movement was unsuccessful because the leaders did not -grasp the significance of that truth. They saw the goal clearly and -their intentions were right; but they took the wrong road. Their action -may be compared to that of an Alpine climber who never loses sight of -the peak he wants to reach, who has set out with the greatest -determination and energy, but pays no attention to the road beneath his -feet. With his eye always fixed firmly on the goal he does not think -over or notice the nature of the ascent and finally he fails. - -The manner in which the great rival of the Pan-German Party set out to -attain its goal was quite different. The way it took was well and -shrewdly chosen; but it did not have a clear vision of the goal. In -almost all the questions where the Pan-German Movement failed, the -policy of the Christian-Socialist Party was correct and systematic. - -They assessed the importance of the masses correctly, and thus they -gained the support of large numbers of the popular masses by emphasizing -the social character of the Movement from the very start. By directing -their appeal especially to the lower middle class and the artisans, they -gained adherents who were faithful, persevering and self-sacrificing. -The Christian-Socialist leaders took care to avoid all controversy with -the institutions of religion and thus they secured the support of that -mighty organization, the Catholic Church. Those leaders recognized the -value of propaganda on a large scale and they were veritable virtuosos -in working up the spiritual instincts of the broad masses of their -adherents. - -The failure of this Party to carry into effect the dream of saving -Austria from dissolution must be attributed to two main defects in the -means they employed and also the lack of a clear perception of the ends -they wished to reach. - -The anti-Semitism of the Christian-Socialists was based on religious -instead of racial principles. The reason for this mistake gave rise to -the second error also. - -The founders of the Christian-Socialist Party were of the opinion that -they could not base their position on the racial principle if they -wished to save Austria, because they felt that a general disintegration -of the State might quickly result from the adoption of such a policy. In -the opinion of the Party chiefs the situation in Vienna demanded that -all factors which tended to estrange the nationalities from one another -should be carefully avoided and that all factors making for unity should -be encouraged. - -At that time Vienna was so honeycombed with foreign elements, especially -the Czechs, that the greatest amount of tolerance was necessary if these -elements were to be enlisted in the ranks of any party that was not -anti-German on principle. If Austria was to be saved those elements were -indispensable. And so attempts were made to win the support of the small -traders, a great number of whom were Czechs, by combating the liberalism -of the Manchester School; and they believed that by adopting this -attitude they had found a slogan against Jewry which, because of its -religious implications, would unite all the different nationalities -which made up the population of the old Austria. - -It was obvious, however, that this kind of anti-Semitism did not upset -the Jews very much, simply because it had a purely religious foundation. -If the worst came to the worst a few drops of baptismal water would -settle the matter, hereupon the Jew could still carry on his business -safely and at the same time retain his Jewish nationality. - -On such superficial grounds it was impossible to deal with the whole -problem in an earnest and rational way. The consequence was that many -people could not understand this kind of anti-Semitism and therefore -refused to take part in it. - -The attractive force of the idea was thus restricted exclusively to -narrow-minded circles, because the leaders failed to go beyond the mere -emotional appeal and did not ground their position on a truly rational -basis. The intellectuals were opposed to such a policy on principle. It -looked more and more as if the whole movement was a new attempt to -proselytize the Jews, or, on the other hand, as if it were merely -organized from the wish to compete with other contemporary movements. -Thus the struggle lost all traces of having been organized for a -spiritual and sublime mission. Indeed, it seemed to some people--and -these were by no means worthless elements--to be immoral and -reprehensible. The movement failed to awaken a belief that here there -was a problem of vital importance for the whole of humanity and on the -solution of which the destiny of the whole Gentile world depended. - -Through this shilly-shally way of dealing with the problem the -anti-Semitism of the Christian-Socialists turned out to be quite -ineffective. - -It was anti-Semitic only in outward appearance. And this was worse than -if it had made no pretences at all to anti-Semitism; for the pretence -gave rise to a false sense of security among people who believed that -the enemy had been taken by the ears; but, as a matter of fact, the -people themselves were being led by the nose. - -The Jew readily adjusted himself to this form of anti-Semitism and found -its continuance more profitable to him than its abolition would be. - -This whole movement led to great sacrifices being made for the sake of -that State which was composed of many heterogeneous nationalities; but -much greater sacrifices had to be made by the trustees of the German -element. - -One did not dare to be 'nationalist', even in Vienna, lest the ground -should fall away from under one's feet. It was hoped that the Habsburg -State might be saved by a silent evasion of the nationalist question; -but this policy led that State to ruin. The same policy also led to the -collapse of Christian Socialism, for thus the Movement was deprived of -the only source of energy from which a political party can draw the -necessary driving force. - -During those years I carefully followed the two movements and observed -how they developed, one because my heart was with it and the other -because of my admiration for that remarkable man who then appeared to me -as a bitter symbol of the whole German population in Austria. - -When the imposing funeral CORT�GE of the dead Burgomaster wound its way -from the City Hall towards the Ring Strasse I stood among the hundreds -of thousands who watched the solemn procession pass by. As I stood there -I felt deeply moved, and my instinct clearly told me that the work of -this man was all in vain, because a sinister Fate was inexorably leading -this State to its downfall. If Dr. Karl Lueger had lived in Germany he -would have been ranked among the great leaders of our people. It was a -misfortune for his work and for himseif that he had to live in this -impossible State. - -When he died the fire had already been enkindled in the Balkans and was -spreading month by month. Fate had been merciful in sparing him the -sight of what, even to the last, he had hoped to prevent. - -I endeavoured to analyse the cause which rendered one of those movements -futile and wrecked the progress of the other. The result of this -investigation was the profound conviction that, apart from the inherent -impossibility of consolidating the position of the State in the old -Austria, the two parties made the following fatal mistake: - -The Pan-German Party was perfectly right in its fundamental ideas -regarding the aim of the Movement, which was to bring about a German -restoration, but it was unfortunate in its choice of means. It was -nationalist, but unfortunately it paid too little heed to the social -problem, and thus it failed to gain the support of the masses. Its -anti-Jewish policy, however, was grounded on a correct perception of the -significance of the racial problem and not on religious principles. But -it was mistaken in its assessment of facts and adopted the wrong tactics -when it made war against one of the religious denominations. - -The Christian-Socialist Movement had only a vague concept of a German -revival as part of its object, but it was intelligent and fortunate in -the choice of means to carry out its policy as a Party. The -Christian-Socialists grasped the significance of the social question; -but they adopted the wrong principles in their struggle against Jewry, -and they utterly failed to appreciate the value of the national idea as -a source of political energy. - -If the Christian-Socialist Party, together with its shrewd judgment in -regard to the worth of the popular masses, had only judged rightly also -on the importance of the racial problem--which was properly grasped by -the Pan-German Movement--and if this party had been really nationalist; -or if the Pan-German leaders, on the other hand, in addition to their -correct judgment of the Jewish problem and of the national idea, had -adopted the practical wisdom of the Christian-Socialist Party, and -particularly their attitude towards Socialism--then a movement would -have developed which, in my opinion, might at that time have -successfully altered the course of German destiny. - -If things did not turn out thus, the fault lay for the most part in the -inherent nature of the Austrian State. - -I did not find my own convictions upheld by any party then in existence, -and so I could not bring myself to enlist as a member in any of the -existing organizations or even lend a hand in their struggle. Even at -that time all those organizations seemed to me to be already jaded in -their energies and were therefore incapable of bringing about a national -revival of the German people in a really profound way, not merely -outwardly. - -My inner aversion to the Habsburg State was increasing daily. - -The more I paid special attention to questions of foreign policy, the -more the conviction grew upon me that this phantom State would surely -bring misfortune on the Germans. I realized more and more that the -destiny of the German nation could not be decisively influenced from -here but only in the German Empire itself. And this was true not only in -regard to general political questions but also--and in no less a -degree--in regard to the whole sphere of cultural life. - -Here, also, in all matters affecting the national culture and art, the -Austrian State showed all the signs of senile decrepitude, or at least -it was ceasing to be of any consequence to the German nation, as far as -these matters were concerned. This was especially true of its -architecture. Modern architecture could not produce any great results in -Austria because, since the building of the Ring Strasse--at least in -Vienna--architectural activities had become insignificant when compared -with the progressive plans which were being thought out in Germany. - -And so I came more and more to lead what may be called a twofold -existence. Reason and reality forced me to continue my harsh -apprenticeship in Austria, though I must now say that this -apprenticeship turned out fortunate in the end. But my heart was -elsewhere. - -A feeling of discontent grew upon me and made me depressed the more I -came to realize the inside hollowness of this State and the -impossibility of saving it from collapse. At the same time I felt -perfectly certain that it would bring all kinds of misfortune to the -German people. - -I was convinced that the Habsburg State would balk and hinder every -German who might show signs of real greatness, while at the same time it -would aid and abet every non-German activity. - -This conglomerate spectacle of heterogeneous races which the capital of -the Dual Monarchy presented, this motley of Czechs, Poles, Hungarians, -Ruthenians, Serbs and Croats, etc., and always that bacillus which is -the solvent of human society, the Jew, here and there and -everywhere--the whole spectacle was repugnant to me. The gigantic city -seemed to be the incarnation of mongrel depravity. - -The German language, which I had spoken from the time of my boyhood, was -the vernacular idiom of Lower Bavaria. I never forgot that particular -style of speech, and I could never learn the Viennese dialect. The -longer I lived in that city the stronger became my hatred for the -promiscuous swarm of foreign peoples which had begun to batten on that -old nursery ground of German culture. The idea that this State could -maintain its further existence for any considerable time was quite -absurd. - -Austria was then like a piece of ancient mosaic in which the cohesive -cement had dried up and become old and friable. As long as such a work -of art remains untouched it may hold together and continue to exist; but -the moment some blow is struck on it then it breaks up into thousands of -fragments. Therefore it was now only a question of when the blow would -come. - -Because my heart was always with the German Empire and not with the -Austrian Monarchy, the hour of Austria's dissolution as a State appeared -to me only as the first step towards the emancipation of the German -nation. - -All these considerations intensified my yearning to depart for that -country for which my heart had been secretly longing since the days of -my youth. - -I hoped that one day I might be able to make my mark as an architect and -that I could devote my talents to the service of my country on a large -or small scale, according to the will of Fate. - -A final reason was that I longed to be among those who lived and worked -in that land from which the movement should be launched, the object of -which would be the fulfilment of what my heart had always longed for, -namely, the union of the country in which I was born with our common -fatherland, the German Empire. - -There are many who may not understand how such a yearning can be so -strong; but I appeal especially to two groups of people. The first -includes all those who are still denied the happiness I have spoken of, -and the second embraces those who once enjoyed that happiness but had it -torn from them by a harsh fate. I turn to all those who have been torn -from their motherland and who have to struggle for the preservation of -their most sacred patrimony, their native language, persecuted and -harried because of their loyalty and love for the homeland, yearning -sadly for the hour when they will be allowed to return to the bosom of -their father's household. To these I address my words, and I know that -they will understand. - -Only he who has experienced in his own inner life what it means to be -German and yet to be denied the right of belonging to his fatherland can -appreciate the profound nostalgia which that enforced exile causes. It -is a perpetual heartache, and there is no place for joy and contentment -until the doors of paternal home are thrown open and all those through -whose veins kindred blood is flowing will find peace and rest in their -common REICH. - -Vienna was a hard school for me; but it taught me the most profound -lessons of my life. I was scarcely more than a boy when I came to live -there, and when I left it I had grown to be a man of a grave and pensive -nature. In Vienna I acquired the foundations of a WELTANSCHAUUNG in -general and developed a faculty for analysing political questions in -particular. That WELTANSCHAUUNG and the political ideas then formed -have never been abandoned, though they were expanded later on in some -directions. It is only now that I can fully appreciate how valuable -those years of apprenticeship were for me. - -That is why I have given a detailed account of this period. There, in -Vienna, stark reality taught me the truths that now form the fundamental -principles of the Party which within the course of five years has grown -from modest beginnings to a great mass movement. I do not know what my -attitude towards Jewry, Social-Democracy, or rather Marxism in general, -to the social problem, etc., would be to-day if I had not acquired a -stock of personal beliefs at such an early age, by dint of hard study -and under the duress of Fate. - -For, although the misfortunes of the Fatherland may have stimulated -thousands and thousands to ponder over the inner causes of the collapse, -that could not lead to such a thorough knowledge and deep insight as a -man may develop who has fought a hard struggle for many years so that he -might be master of his own fate. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - - - -MUNICH - - -At last I came to Munich, in the spring of 1912. - -The city itself was as familiar to me as if I had lived for years within -its walls. - -This was because my studies in architecture had been constantly turning -my attention to the metropolis of German art. One must know Munich if -one would know Germany, and it is impossible to acquire a knowledge of -German art without seeing Munich. - -All things considered, this pre-war sojourn was by far the happiest and -most contented time of my life. My earnings were very slender; but after -all I did not live for the sake of painting. I painted in order to get -the bare necessities of existence while I continued my studies. I was -firmly convinced that I should finally succeed in reaching the goal I -had marked out for myself. And this conviction alone was strong enough -to enable me to bear the petty hardships of everyday life without -worrying very much about them. - -Moreover, almost from the very first moment of my sojourn there I came -to love that city more than any other place known to me. A German city! -I said to myself. How different to Vienna. It was with a feeling of -disgust that my imagination reverted to that Babylon of races. Another -pleasant feature here was the way the people spoke German, which was -much nearer my own way of speaking than the Viennese idiom. The Munich -idiom recalled the days of my youth, especially when I spoke with those -who had come to Munich from Lower Bavaria. There were a thousand or more -things which I inwardly loved or which I came to love during the course -of my stay. But what attracted me most was the marvellous wedlock of -native folk-energy with the fine artistic spirit of the city, that -unique harmony from the Hofbr�uhaus to the Odeon, from the October -Festival to the PINAKOTHEK, etc. The reason why my heart's strings are -entwined around this city as around no other spot in this world is -probably because Munich is and will remain inseparably connected with -the development of my own career; and the fact that from the beginning -of my visit I felt inwardly happy and contented is to be attributed to -the charm of the marvellous Wittelsbach Capital, which has attracted -probably everybody who is blessed with a feeling for beauty instead of -commercial instincts. - -Apart from my professional work, I was most interested in the study of -current political events, particularly those which were connected with -foreign relations. I approached these by way of the German policy of -alliances which, ever since my Austrian days, I had considered to be an -utterly mistaken one. But in Vienna I had not yet seen quite clearly how -far the German Empire had gone in the process of' self-delusion. In -Vienna I was inclined to assume, or probably I persuaded myself to do so -in order to excuse the German mistake, that possibly the authorities in -Berlin knew how weak and unreliable their ally would prove to be when -brought face to face with realities, but that, for more or less -mysterious reasons, they refrained from allowing their opinions on this -point to be known in public. Their idea was that they should support the -policy of alliances which Bismarck had initiated and the sudden -discontinuance of which might be undesirable, if for no other reason -than that it might arouse those foreign countries which were lying in -wait for their chance or might alarm the Philistines at home. - -But my contact with the people soon taught me, to my horror, that my -assumptions were wrong. I was amazed to find everywhere, even in circles -otherwise well informed, that nobody had the slightest intimation of the -real character of the Habsburg Monarchy. Among the common people in -particular there was a prevalent illusion that the Austrian ally was a -Power which would have to be seriously reckoned with and would rally its -man-power in the hour of need. The mass of the people continued to look -upon the Dual Monarchy as a 'German State' and believed that it could be -relied upon. They assumed that its strength could be measured by the -millions of its subjects, as was the case in Germany. First of all, they -did not realize that Austria had ceased to be a German State and, -secondly, that the conditions prevailing within the Austrian Empire were -steadily pushing it headlong to the brink of disaster. - -At that time I knew the condition of affairs in the Austrian State -better than the professional diplomats. Blindfolded, as nearly always, -these diplomats stumbled along on their way to disaster. The opinions -prevailing among the bulk of the people reflected only what had been -drummed into them from official quarters above. And these higher -authorities grovelled before the 'Ally', as the people of old bowed down -before the Golden Calf. They probably thought that by being polite and -amiable they might balance the lack of honesty on the other side. Thus -they took every declaration at its full face value. - -Even while in Vienna I used to be annoyed again and again by the -discrepancy between the speeches of the official statesmen and the -contents of the Viennese Press. And yet Vienna was still a German city, -at least as far as appearances went. But one encountered an utterly -different state of things on leaving Vienna, or rather German-Austria, -and coming into the Slav provinces. It needed only a glance at the -Prague newspapers in order to see how the whole exalted hocus-pocus of -the Triple Alliance was judged from there. In Prague there was nothing -but gibes and sneers for that masterpiece of statesmanship. Even in the -piping times of peace, when the two emperors kissed each other on the -brow in token of friendship, those papers did not cloak their belief -that the alliance would be liquidated the moment a first attempt was -made to bring it down from the shimmering glory of a Nibelungen ideal to -the plane of practical affairs. - -Great indignation was aroused a few years later, when the alliances were -put to the first practical test. Italy not only withdrew from the Triple -Alliance, leaving the other two members to march by themselves. but she -even joined their enemies. That anybody should believe even for a moment -in the possibility of such a miracle as that of Italy fighting on the -same side as Austria would be simply incredible to anyone who did not -suffer from the blindness of official diplomacy. And that was just how -people felt in Austria also. - -In Austria only the Habsburgs and the German-Austrians supported the -alliance. The Habsburgs did so from shrewd calculation of their own -interests and from necessity. The Germans did it out of good faith and -political ignorance. They acted in good faith inasmuch as they believed -that by establishing the Triple Alliance they were doing a great service -to the German Empire and were thus helping to strengthen it and -consolidate its defence. They showed their political ignorance, however, -in holding such ideas, because, instead of helping the German Empire -they really chained it to a moribund State which might bring its -associate into the grave with itself; and, above all, by championing -this alliance they fell more and more a prey to the Habsburg policy of -de-Germanization. For the alliance gave the Habsburgs good grounds for -believing that the German Empire would not interfere in their domestic -affairs and thus they were in a position to carry into effect, with more -ease and less risk, their domestic policy of gradually eliminating the -German element. Not only could the 'objectiveness' of the German -Government be counted upon, and thus there need be no fear of protest -from that quarter, but one could always remind the German-Austrians of -the alliance and thus silence them in case they should ever object to -the reprehensible means that were being employed to establish a Slav -hegemony in the Dual Monarchy. - -What could the German-Austrians do, when the people of the German Empire -itself had openly proclaimed their trust and confidence in the Habsburg -r�gime? - -Should they resist, and thus be branded openly before their kinsfolk in -the REICH as traitors to their own national interests? They, who for so -many decades had sacrificed so much for the sake of their German -tradition! - -Once the influence of the Germans in Austria had been wiped out, what -then would be the value of the alliance? If the Triple Alliance were to -be advantageous to Germany, was it not a necessary condition that the -predominance of the German element in Austria should be maintained? Or -did anyone really believe that Germany could continue to be the ally of -a Habsburg Empire under the hegemony of the Slavs? - -The official attitude of German diplomacy, as well as that of the -general public towards internal problems affecting the Austrian -nationalities was not merely stupid, it was insane. On the alliance, as -on a solid foundation, they grounded the security and future existence -of a nation of seventy millions, while at the same time they allowed -their partner to continue his policy of undermining the sole foundation -of that alliance methodically and resolutely, from year to year. A day -must come when nothing but a formal contract with Viennese diplomats -would be left. The alliance itself, as an effective support, would be -lost to Germany. - -As far as concerned Italy, such had been the case from the outset. - -If people in Germany had studied history and the psychology of nations a -little more carefully not one of them could have believed for a single -hour that the Quirinal and the Viennese Hofburg could ever stand -shoulder to shoulder on a common battle front. Italy would have exploded -like a volcano if any Italian government had dared to send a single -Italian soldier to fight for the Habsburg State. So fanatically hated -was this State that the Italians could stand in no other relation to it -on a battle front except as enemies. More than once in Vienna I have -witnessed explosions of the contempt and profound hatred which 'allied' -the Italian to the Austrian State. The crimes which the House of -Habsburg committed against Italian freedom and independence during -several centuries were too grave to be forgiven, even with the best of -goodwill. But this goodwill did not exist, either among the rank and -file of the population or in the government. Therefore for Italy there -were only two ways of co-existing with Austria--alliance or war. By -choosing the first it was possible to prepare leisurely for the second. - -Especially since relations between Russia and Austria tended more and -more towards the arbitrament of war, the German policy of alliances was -as senseless as it was dangerous. Here was a classical instance which -demonstrated the lack of any broad or logical lines of thought. - -But what was the reason for forming the alliance at all? It could not -have been other than the wish to secure the future of the REICH better -than if it were to depend exclusively on its own resources. But the -future of the REICH could not have meant anything else than the problem -of securing the means of existence for the German people. - -The only questions therefore were the following: What form shall the -life of the nation assume in the near future--that is to say within such -a period as we can forecast? And by what means can the necessary -foundation and security be guaranteed for this development within the -framework of the general distribution of power among the European -nations? A clear analysis of the principles on which the foreign policy -of German statecraft were to be based should have led to the following -conclusions: - -The annual increase of population in Germany amounts to almost 900,000 -souls. The difficulties of providing for this army of new citizens must -grow from year to year and must finally lead to a catastrophe, unless -ways and means are found which will forestall the danger of misery and -hunger. There were four ways of providing against this terrible -calamity: - -(1) It was possible to adopt the French example and artificially -restrict the number of births, thus avoiding an excess of population. - -Under certain circumstances, in periods of distress or under bad -climatic condition, or if the soil yields too poor a return, Nature -herself tends to check the increase of population in some countries and -among some races, but by a method which is quite as ruthless as it is -wise. It does not impede the procreative faculty as such; but it does -impede the further existence of the offspring by submitting it to such -tests and privations that everything which is less strong or less -healthy is forced to retreat into the bosom of tile unknown. Whatever -survives these hardships of existence has been tested and tried a -thousandfold, hardened and renders fit to continue the process of -procreation; so that the same thorough selection will begin all over -again. By thus dealing brutally with the individual and recalling him -the very moment he shows that he is not fitted for the trials of life, -Nature preserves the strength of the race and the species and raises it -to the highest degree of efficiency. - -The decrease in numbers therefore implies an increase of strength, as -far as the individual is concerned, and this finally means the -invigoration of the species. - -But the case is different when man himself starts the process of -numerical restriction. Man is not carved from Nature's wood. He is made -of 'human' material. He knows more than the ruthless Queen of Wisdom. He -does not impede the preservation of the individual but prevents -procreation itself. To the individual, who always sees only himself and -not the race, this line of action seems more humane and just than the -opposite way. But, unfortunately, the consequences are also the -opposite. - -By leaving the process of procreation unchecked and by submitting the -individual to the hardest preparatory tests in life, Nature selects the -best from an abundance of single elements and stamps them as fit to live -and carry on the conservation of the species. But man restricts the -procreative faculty and strives obstinately to keep alive at any cost -whatever has once been born. This correction of the Divine Will seems to -him to be wise and humane, and he rejoices at having trumped Nature's -card in one game at least and thus proved that she is not entirely -reliable. The dear little ape of an all-mighty father is delighted to -see and hear that he has succeeded in effecting a numerical restriction; -but he would be very displeased if told that this, his system, brings -about a degeneration in personal quality. - -For as soon as the procreative faculty is thwarted and the number of -births diminished, the natural struggle for existence which allows only -healthy and strong individuals to survive is replaced by a sheer craze -to 'save' feeble and even diseased creatures at any cost. And thus the -seeds are sown for a human progeny which will become more and more -miserable from one generation to another, as long as Nature's will is -scorned. - -But if that policy be carried out the final results must be that such a -nation will eventually terminate its own existence on this earth; for -though man may defy the eternal laws of procreation during a certain -period, vengeance will follow sooner or later. A stronger race will oust -that which has grown weak; for the vital urge, in its ultimate form, -will burst asunder all the absurd chains of this so-called humane -consideration for the individual and will replace it with the humanity -of Nature, which wipes out what is weak in order to give place to the -strong. - -Any policy which aims at securing the existence of a nation by -restricting the birth-rate robs that nation of its future. - -(2) A second solution is that of internal colonization. This is a -proposal which is frequently made in our own time and one hears it -lauded a good deal. It is a suggestion that is well-meant but it is -misunderstood by most people, so that it is the source of more mischief -than can be imagined. - -It is certainly true that the productivity of the soil can be increased -within certain limits; but only within defined limits and not -indefinitely. By increasing the productive powers of the soil it will be -possible to balance the effect of a surplus birth-rate in Germany for a -certain period of time, without running any danger of hunger. But we -have to face the fact that the general standard of living is rising more -quickly than even the birth rate. The requirements of food and clothing -are becoming greater from year to year and are out of proportion to -those of our ancestors of, let us say, a hundred years ago. It would, -therefore, be a mistaken view that every increase in the productive -powers of the soil will supply the requisite conditions for an increase -in the population. No. That is true up to a certain point only, for at -least a portion of the increased produce of the soil will be consumed by -the margin of increased demands caused by the steady rise in the -standard of living. But even if these demands were to be curtailed to -the narrowest limits possible and if at the same time we were to use all -our available energies in the intenser cultivation, we should here reach -a definite limit which is conditioned by the inherent nature of the soil -itself. No matter how industriously we may labour we cannot increase -agricultural production beyond this limit. Therefore, though we may -postpone the evil hour of distress for a certain time, it will arrive at -last. The first phenomenon will be the recurrence of famine periods from -time to time, after bad harvests, etc. The intervals between these -famines will become shorter and shorter the more the population -increases; and, finally, the famine times will disappear only in those -rare years of plenty when the granaries are full. And a time will -ultimately come when even in those years of plenty there will not be -enough to go round; so that hunger will dog the footsteps of the nation. -Nature must now step in once more and select those who are to survive, -or else man will help himself by artificially preventing his own -increase, with all the fatal consequences for the race and the species -which have been already mentioned. - -It may be objected here that, in one form or another, this future is in -store for all mankind and that the individual nation or race cannot -escape the general fate. - -At first glance, that objection seems logical enough; but we have to -take the following into account: - -The day will certainly come when the whole of mankind will be forced to -check the augmentation of the human species, because there will be no -further possibility of adjusting the productivity of the soil to the -perpetual increase in the population. Nature must then be allowed to use -her own methods or man may possibly take the task of regulation into his -own hands and establish the necessary equilibrium by the application of -better means than we have at our disposal to-day. But then it will be a -problem for mankind as a whole, whereas now only those races have to -suffer from want which no longer have the strength and daring to acquire -sufficient soil to fulfil their needs. For, as things stand to-day, vast -spaces still lie uncultivated all over the surface of the globe. Those -spaces are only waiting for the ploughshare. And it is quite certain -that Nature did not set those territories apart as the exclusive -pastures of any one nation or race to be held unutilized in reserve for -the future. Such land awaits the people who have the strength to acquire -it and the diligence to cultivate it. - -Nature knows no political frontiers. She begins by establishing life on -this globe and then watches the free play of forces. Those who show the -greatest courage and industry are the children nearest to her heart and -they will be granted the sovereign right of existence. - -If a nation confines itself to 'internal colonization' while other races -are perpetually increasing their territorial annexations all over the -globe, that nation will be forced to restrict the numerical growth of -its population at a time when the other nations are increasing theirs. -This situation must eventually arrive. It will arrive soon if the -territory which the nation has at its disposal be small. Now it is -unfortunately true that only too often the best nations--or, to speak -more exactly, the only really cultured nations, who at the same time are -the chief bearers of human progress--have decided, in their blind -pacifism, to refrain from the acquisition of new territory and to be -content with 'internal colonization.' But at the same time nations of -inferior quality succeed in getting hold of large spaces for -colonization all over the globe. The state of affairs which must result -from this contrast is the following: - -Races which are culturally superior but less ruthless would be forced to -restrict their increase, because of insufficient territory to support -the population, while less civilized races could increase indefinitely, -owing to the vast territories at their disposal. In other words: should -that state of affairs continue, then the world will one day be possessed -by that portion of mankind which is culturally inferior but more active -and energetic. - -A time will come, even though in the distant future, when there can be -only two alternatives: Either the world will be ruled according to our -modern concept of democracy, and then every decision will be in favour -of the numerically stronger races; or the world will be governed by the -law of natural distribution of power, and then those nations will be -victorious who are of more brutal will and are not the nations who have -practised self-denial. - -Nobody can doubt that this world will one day be the scene of dreadful -struggles for existence on the part of mankind. In the end the instinct -of self-preservation alone will triumph. Before its consuming fire this -so-called humanitarianism, which connotes only a mixture of fatuous -timidity and self-conceit, will melt away as under the March sunshine. -Man has become great through perpetual struggle. In perpetual peace his -greatness must decline. - -For us Germans, the slogan of 'internal colonization' is fatal, because -it encourages the belief that we have discovered a means which is in -accordance with our innate pacifism and which will enable us to work for -our livelihood in a half slumbering existence. Such a teaching, once it -were taken seriously by our people, would mean the end of all effort to -acquire for ourselves that place in the world which we deserve. If. the -average German were once convinced that by this measure he has the -chance of ensuring his livelihood and guaranteeing his future, any -attempt to take an active and profitable part in sustaining the vital -demands of his country would be out of the question. Should the nation -agree to such an attitude then any really useful foreign policy might be -looked upon as dead and buried, together with all hope for the future of -the German people. - -Once we know what the consequences of this 'internal colonization' -theory would be we can no longer consider as a mere accident the fact -that among those who inculcate this quite pernicious mentality among our -people the Jew is always in the first line. He knows his softies only -too well not to know that they are ready to be the grateful victims of -every swindle which promises them a gold-block in the shape of a -discovery that will enable them to outwit Nature and thus render -superfluous the hard and inexorable struggle for existence; so that -finally they may become lords of the planet partly by sheer DOLCE FAR -NIENTE and partly by working when a pleasing opportunity arises. - -It cannot be too strongly emphasised that any German 'internal -colonization' must first of all be considered as suited only for the -relief of social grievances. To carry out a system of internal -colonization, the most important preliminary measure would be to free -the soil from the grip of the speculator and assure that freedom. But -such a system could never suffice to assure the future of the nation -without the acquisition of new territory. - -If we adopt a different plan we shall soon reach a point beyond which -the resources of our soil can no longer be exploited, and at the same -time we shall reach a point beyond which our man-power cannot develop. - -In conclusion, the following must be said: - -The fact that only up to a limited extent can internal colonization be -practised in a national territory which is of definitely small area and -the restriction of the procreative faculty which follows as a result of -such conditions--these two factors have a very unfavourable effect on -the military and political standing of a nation. - -The extent of the national territory is a determining factor in the -external security of the nation. The larger the territory which a people -has at its disposal the stronger are the national defences of that -people. Military decisions are more quickly, more easily, more -completely and more effectively gained against a people occupying a -national territory which is restricted in area, than against States -which have extensive territories. Moreover, the magnitude of a national -territory is in itself a certain assurance that an outside Power will -not hastily risk the adventure of an invasion; for in that case the -struggle would have to be long and exhausting before victory could be -hoped for. The risk being so great. there would have to be extraordinary -reasons for such an aggressive adventure. Hence it is that the -territorial magnitude of a State furnishes a basis whereon national -liberty and independence can be maintained with relative ease; while, on -the contrary, a State whose territory is small offers a natural -temptation to the invader. - -As a matter of fact, so-called national circles in the German REICH -rejected those first two possibilities of establishing a balance between -the constant numerical increase in the population and a national -territory which could not expand proportionately. But the reasons given -for that rejection were different from those which I have just -expounded. It was mainly on the basis of certain moral sentiments that -restriction of the birth-rate was objected to. Proposals for internal -colonization were rejected indignantly because it was suspected that -such a policy might mean an attack on the big landowners, and that this -attack might be the forerunner of a general assault against the -principle of private property as a whole. The form in which the latter -solution--internal colonization--was recommended justified the -misgivings of the big landowners. - -But the form in which the colonization proposal was rejected was not -very clever, as regards the impression which such rejection might be -calculated to make on the mass of the people, and anyhow it did not go -to the root of the problem at all. - -Only two further ways were left open in which work and bread could be -secured for the increasing population. - -(3) It was possible to think of acquiring new territory on which a -certain portion of' the increasing population could be settled each -year; or else - -(4) Our industry and commerce had to be organized in such a manner as to -secure an increase in the exports and thus be able to support our people -by the increased purchasing power accruing from the profits made on -foreign markets. - -Therefore the problem was: A policy of territorial expansion or a -colonial and commercial policy. Both policies were taken into -consideration, examined, recommended and rejected, from various -standpoints, with the result that the second alternative was finally -adopted. The sounder alternative, however, was undoubtedly the first. - -The principle of acquiring new territory, on which the surplus -population could be settled, has many advantages to recommend it, -especially if we take the future as well as the present into account. - -In the first place, too much importance cannot be placed on the -necessity for adopting a policy which will make it possible to maintain -a healthy peasant class as the basis of the national community. Many of -our present evils have their origin exclusively in the disproportion -between the urban and rural portions of the population. A solid stock of -small and medium farmers has at all times been the best protection which -a nation could have against the social diseases that are prevalent -to-day. Moreover, that is the only solution which guarantees the daily -bread of a nation within the framework of its domestic national economy. -With this condition once guaranteed, industry and commerce would retire -from the unhealthy position of foremost importance which they hold -to-day and would take their due place within the general scheme of -national economy, adjusting the balance between demand and supply. Thus -industry and commerce would no longer constitute the basis of the -national subsistence, but would be auxiliary institutions. By fulfilling -their proper function, which is to adjust the balance between national -production and national consumption, they render the national -subsistence more or less independent of foreign countries and thus -assure the freedom and independence of the nation, especially at -critical junctures in its history. - -Such a territorial policy, however, cannot find its fulfilment in the -Cameroons but almost exclusively here in Europe. One must calmly and -squarely face the truth that it certainly cannot be part of the -dispensation of Divine Providence to give a fifty times larger share of -the soil of this world to one nation than to another. In considering -this state of affairs to-day, one must not allow existing political -frontiers to distract attention from what ought to exist on principles -of strict justice. If this earth has sufficient room for all, then we -ought to have that share of the soil which is absolutely necessary for -our existence. - -Of course people will not voluntarily make that accommodation. At this -point the right of self-preservation comes into effect. And when -attempts to settle the difficulty in an amicable way are rejected the -clenched hand must take by force that which was refused to the open hand -of friendship. If in the past our ancestors had based their political -decisions on similar pacifist nonsense as our present generation does, -we should not possess more than one-third of the national territory that -we possess to-day and probably there would be no German nation to worry -about its future in Europe. No. We owe the two Eastern Marks (Note 8) of -the Empire to the natural determination of our forefathers in their -struggle for existence, and thus it is to the same determined policy that -we owe the inner strength which is based on the extent of our political -and racial territories and which alone has made it possible for us to -exist up to now. - -[Note 8. German Austria was the East Mark on the South and East Prussia -was the East Mark on the North.] - -And there is still another reason why that solution would have been the -correct one: - -Many contemporary European States are like pyramids standing on their -apexes. The European territory which these States possess is -ridiculously small when compared with the enormous overhead weight of -their colonies, foreign trade, etc. It may be said that they have the -apex in Europe and the base of the pyramid all over the world; quite -different from the United States of America, which has its base on the -American Continent and is in contact with the rest of the world only -through its apex. Out of that situation arises the incomparable inner -strength of the U.S.A. and the contrary situation is responsible for the -weakness of most of the colonial European Powers. - -England cannot be suggested as an argument against this assertion, -though in glancing casually over the map of the British Empire one is -inclined easily to overlook the existence of a whole Anglo-Saxon world. -England's position cannot be compared with that of any other State in -Europe, since it forms a vast community of language and culture together -with the U.S.A. - -Therefore the only possibility which Germany had of carrying a sound -territorial policy into effect was that of acquiring new territory in -Europe itself. Colonies cannot serve this purpose as long as they are -not suited for settlement by Europeans on a large scale. In the -nineteenth century it was no longer possible to acquire such colonies by -peaceful means. Therefore any attempt at such a colonial expansion would -have meant an enormous military struggle. Consequently it would have -been more practical to undertake that military struggle for new -territory in Europe rather than to wage war for the acquisition of -possessions abroad. - -Such a decision naturally demanded that the nation's undivided energies -should be devoted to it. A policy of that kind which requires for its -fulfilment every ounce of available energy on the part of everybody -concerned, cannot be carried into effect by half-measures or in a -hesitating manner. The political leadership of the German Empire should -then have been directed exclusively to this goal. No political step -should have been taken in response to other considerations than this -task and the means of accomplishing it. Germany should have been alive -to the fact that such a goal could have been reached only by war, and -the prospect of war should have been faced with calm and collected -determination. - -The whole system of alliances should have been envisaged and valued from -that standpoint. If new territory were to be acquired in Europe it must -have been mainly at Russia's cost, and once again the new German Empire -should have set out on its march along the same road as was formerly -trodden by the Teutonic Knights, this time to acquire soil for the -German plough by means of the German sword and thus provide the nation -with its daily bread. - -For such a policy, however, there was only one possible ally in Europe. -That was England. - -Only by alliance with England was it possible to safeguard the rear of -the new German crusade. The justification for undertaking such an -expedition was stronger than the justification which our forefathers had -for setting out on theirs. Not one of our pacifists refuses to eat the -bread made from the grain grown in the East; and yet the first plough -here was that called the 'Sword'. - -No sacrifice should have been considered too great if it was a necessary -means of gaining England's friendship. Colonial and naval ambitions -should have been abandoned and attempts should not have been made to -compete against British industries. - -Only a clear and definite policy could lead to such an achievement. Such -a policy would have demanded a renunciation of the endeavour to conquer -the world's markets, also a renunciation of colonial intentions and -naval power. All the means of power at the disposal of the State should -have been concentrated in the military forces on land. This policy would -have involved a period of temporary self-denial, for the sake of a great -and powerful future. - -There was a time when England might have entered into negotiations with -us, on the grounds of that proposal. For England would have well -understood that the problems arising from the steady increase in -population were forcing Germany to look for a solution either in Europe -with the help of England or, without England, in some other part of the -world. - -This outlook was probably the chief reason why London tried to draw -nearer to Germany about the turn of the century. For the first time in -Germany an attitude was then manifested which afterwards displayed -itself in a most tragic way. People then gave expression to an -unpleasant feeling that we might thus find ourselves obliged to pull -England's chestnuts out of the fire. As if an alliance could be based on -anything else than mutual give-and-take! And England would have become a -party to such a mutual bargain. British diplomats were still wise enough -to know that an equivalent must be forthcoming as a consideration for -any services rendered. - -Let us suppose that in 1904 our German foreign policy was managed -astutely enough to enable us to take the part which Japan played. It is -not easy to measure the greatness of the results that might have accrued -to Germany from such a policy. - -There would have been no world war. The blood which would have been shed -in 1904 would not have been a tenth of that shed from 1914 to 1918. And -what a position Germany would hold in the world to-day? - -In any case the alliance with Austria was then an absurdity. - -For this mummy of a State did not attach itself to Germany for the -purpose of carrying through a war, but rather to maintain a perpetual -state of peace which was meant to be exploited for the purpose of slowly -but persistently exterminating the German element in the Dual Monarchy. - -Another reason for the impossible character of this alliance was that -nobody could expect such a State to take an active part in defending -German national interests, seeing that it did not have sufficient -strength and determination to put an end to the policy of -de-Germanization within its own frontiers. If Germany herself was not -moved by a sufficiently powerful national sentiment and was not -sufficiently ruthless to take away from that absurd Habsburg State the -right to decide the destinies of ten million inhabitants who were of the -same nationality as the Germans themselves, surely it was out of the -question to expect the Habsburg State to be a collaborating party in any -great and courageous German undertaking. The attitude of the old REICH -towards the Austrian question might have been taken as a test of its -stamina for the struggle where the destinies of the whole nation were at -stake. - -In any case, the policy of oppression against the German population in -Austria should not have been allowed to be carried on and to grow -stronger from year to year; for the value of Austria as an ally could be -assured only by upholding the German element there. But that course was -not followed. - -Nothing was dreaded so much as the possibility of an armed conflict; but -finally, and at a most unfavourable moment, the conflict had to be faced -and accepted. They thought to cut loose from the cords of destiny, but -destiny held them fast. - -They dreamt of maintaining a world peace and woke up to find themselves -in a world war. - -And that dream of peace was a most significant reason why the -above-mentioned third alternative for the future development of Germany -was not even taken into consideration. The fact was recognized that new -territory could be gained only in the East; but this meant that there -would be fighting ahead, whereas they wanted peace at any cost. The -slogan of German foreign policy at one time used to be: The use of all -possible means for the maintenance of the German nation. Now it was -changed to: Maintenance of world peace by all possible means. We know -what the result was. I shall resume the discussion of this point in -detail later on. - -There remained still another alternative, which we may call the fourth. -This was: Industry and world trade, naval power and colonies. - -Such a development might certainly have been attained more easily and -more rapidly. To colonize a territory is a slow process, often extending -over centuries. Yet this fact is the source of its inner strength, for -it is not through a sudden burst of enthusiasm that it can be put into -effect, but rather through a gradual and enduring process of growth -quite different from industrial progress, which can be urged on by -advertisement within a few years. The result thus achieved, however, is -not of lasting quality but something frail, like a soap-bubble. It is -much easier to build quickly than to carry through the tough task of -settling a territory with farmers and establishing farmsteads. But the -former is more quickly destroyed than the latter. - -In adopting such a course Germany must have known that to follow it out -would necessarily mean war sooner or later. Only children could believe -that sweet and unctuous expressions of goodness and persistent avowals -of peaceful intentions could get them their bananas through this -'friendly competition between the nations', with the prospect of never -having to fight for them. - -No. Once we had taken this road, England was bound to be our enemy at -some time or other to come. Of course it fitted in nicely with our -innocent assumptions, but still it was absurd to grow indignant at the -fact that a day came when the English took the liberty of opposing our -peaceful penetration with the brutality of violent egoists. - -Naturally, we on our side would never have done such a thing. - -If a European territorial policy against Russia could have been put into -practice only in case we had England as our ally, on the other hand a -colonial and world-trade policy could have been carried into effect only -against English interests and with the support of Russia. But then this -policy should have been adopted in full consciousness of all the -consequences it involved and, above all things, Austria should have been -discarded as quickly as possible. - -At the turn of the century the alliance with Austria had become a -veritable absurdity from all points of view. - -But nobody thought of forming an alliance with Russia against England, -just as nobody thought of making England an ally against Russia; for in -either case the final result would inevitably have meant war. And to -avoid war was the very reason why a commercial and industrial policy was -decided upon. It was believed that the peaceful conquest of the world by -commercial means provided a method which would permanently supplant the -policy of force. Occasionally, however, there were doubts about the -efficiency of this principle, especially when some quite -incomprehensible warnings came from England now and again. That was the -reason why the fleet was built. It was not for the purpose of attacking -or annihilating England but merely to defend the concept of world-peace, -mentioned above, and also to protect the principle of conquering the -world by 'peaceful' means. Therefore this fleet was kept within modest -limits, not only as regards the number and tonnage of the vessels but -also in regard to their armament, the idea being to furnish new proofs -of peaceful intentions. - -The chatter about the peaceful conquest of the world by commercial means -was probably the most completely nonsensical stuff ever raised to the -dignity of a guiding principle in the policy of a State, This nonsense -became even more foolish when England was pointed out as a typical -example to prove how the thing could be put into practice. Our doctrinal -way of regarding history and our professorial ideas in that domain have -done irreparable harm and offer a striking 'proof' of how people 'learn' -history without understanding anything of it. As a matter of fact, -England ought to have been looked upon as a convincing argument against -the theory of the pacific conquest of the world by commercial means. No -nation prepared the way for its commercial conquests more brutally than -England did by means of the sword, and no other nation has defended such -conquests more ruthlessly. Is it not a characteristic quality of British -statecraft that it knows how to use political power in order to gain -economic advantages and, inversely, to turn economic conquests into -political power? What an astounding error it was to believe that England -would not have the courage to give its own blood for the purposes of its -own economic expansion! The fact that England did not possess a national -army proved nothing; for it is not the actual military structure of the -moment that matters but rather the will and determination to use -whatever military strength is available. England has always had the -armament which she needed. She always fought with those weapons which -were necessary for success. She sent mercenary troops, to fight as long -as mercenaries sufficed; but she never hesitated to draw heavily and -deeply from the best blood of the whole nation when victory could be -obtained only by such a sacrifice. And in every case the fighting -spirit, dogged determination, and use of brutal means in conducting -military operations have always remained the same. - -But in Germany, through the medium of the schools, the Press and the -comic papers, an idea of the Englishman was gradually formed which was -bound eventually to lead to the worst kind of self-deception. This -absurdity slowly but persistently spread into every quarter of German -life. The result was an undervaluation for which we have had to pay a -heavy penalty. The delusion was so profound that the Englishman was -looked upon as a shrewd business man, but personally a coward even to an -incredible degree. Unfortunately our lofty teachers of professorial -history did not bring home to the minds of their pupils the truth that -it is not possible to build up such a mighty organization as the British -Empire by mere swindle and fraud. The few who called attention to that -truth were either ignored or silenced. I can vividly recall to mind the -astonished looks of my comrades when they found themselves personally -face to face for the first time with the Tommies in Flanders. After a -few days of fighting the consciousness slowly dawned on our soldiers -that those Scotsmen were not like the ones we had seen described and -caricatured in the comic papers and mentioned in the communiqu�s. - -It was then that I formed my first ideas of the efficiency of various -forms of propaganda. - -Such a falsification, however, served the purpose of those who had -fabricated it. This caricature of the Englishman, though false, could be -used to prove the possibility of conquering the world peacefully by -commercial means. Where the Englishman succeeded we should also succeed. -Our far greater honesty and our freedom from that specifically English -'perfidy' would be assets on our side. Thereby it was hoped that the -sympathy of the smaller nations and the confidence of the greater -nations could be gained more easily. - -We did not realize that our honesty was an object of profound aversion -for other people because we ourselves believed in it. The rest of the -world looked on our behaviour as the manifestation of a shrewd -deceitfulness; but when the revolution came, then they were amazed at -the deeper insight it gave them into our mentality, sincere even beyond -the limits of stupidity. - -Once we understand the part played by that absurd notion of conquering -the world by peaceful commercial means we can clearly understand how -that other absurdity, the Triple Alliance, came to exist. With what -State then could an alliance have been made? In alliance with Austria we -could not acquire new territory by military means, even in Europe. And -this very fact was the real reason for the inner weakness of the Triple -Alliance. A Bismarck could permit himself such a makeshift for the -necessities of the moment, but certainly not any of his bungling -successors, and least of all when the foundations no longer existed on -which Bismarck had formed the Triple Alliance. In Bismarck's time -Austria could still be looked upon as a German State; but the gradual -introduction of universal suffrage turned the country into a -parliamentary Babel, in which the German voice was scarcely audible. - -From the viewpoint of racial policy, this alliance with Austria was -simply disastrous. A new Slavic Great Power was allowed to grow up close -to the frontiers of the German Empire. Later on this Power was bound to -adopt towards Germany an attitude different from that of Russia, for -example. The Alliance was thus bound to become more empty and more -feeble, because the only supporters of it were losing their influence -and were being systematically pushed out of the more important public -offices. - -About the year 1900 the Alliance with Austria had already entered the -same phase as the Alliance between Austria and Italy. - -Here also only one alternative was possible: Either to take the side of -the Habsburg Monarchy or to raise a protest against the oppression of -the German element in Austria. But, generally speaking, when one takes -such a course it is bound eventually to lead to open conflict. - -From the psychological point of view also, the Triple decreases -according as such an alliance limits its object to the defence of the -STATUS QUO. But, on the other hand, an alliance will increase its -cohesive strength the more the parties concerned in it may hope to use -it as a means of reaching some practical goal of expansion. Here, as -everywhere else, strength does not lie in defence but in attack. - -This truth was recognized in various quarters but, unfortunately, not by -the so-called elected representatives of the people. As early as 1912 -Ludendorff, who was then Colonel and an Officer of the General Staff, -pointed out these weak features of the Alliance in a memorandum which he -then drew up. But of course the 'statesmen' did not attach any -importance or value to that document. In general it would seem as if -reason were a faculty that is active only in the case of ordinary -mortals but that it is entirely absent when we come to deal with that -branch of the species known as 'diplomats'. - -It was lucky for Germany that the war of 1914 broke out with Austria as -its direct cause, for thus the Habsburgs were compelled to participate. -Had the origin of the War been otherwise, Germany would have been left -to her own resources. The Habsburg State would never have been ready or -willing to take part in a war for the origin of which Germany was -responsible. What was the object of so much obloquy later in the case of -Italy's decision would have taken place, only earlier, in the case of -Austria. In other words, if Germany had been forced to go to war for -some reason of its own, Austria would have remained 'neutral' in order -to safeguard the State against a revolution which might begin -immediately after the war had started. The Slav element would have -preferred to smash up the Dual Monarchy in 1914 rather than permit it to -come to the assistance of Germany. But at that time there were only a -few who understood all the dangers and aggravations which resulted from -the alliance with the Danubian Monarchy. - -In the first place, Austria had too many enemies who were eagerly -looking forward to obtain the heritage of that decrepit State, so that -these people gradually developed a certain animosity against Germany, -because Germany was an obstacle to their desires inasmuch as it kept the -Dual Monarchy from falling to pieces, a consummation that was hoped for -and yearned for on all sides. The conviction developed that Vienna could -be reached only by passing through Berlin. - -In the second place, by adopting this policy Germany lost its best and -most promising chances of other alliances. In place of these -possibilities one now observed a growing tension in the relations with -Russia and even with Italy. And this in spite of the fact that the -general attitude in Rome was just as favourable to Germany as it was -hostile to Austria, a hostility which lay dormant in the individual -Italian and broke out violently on occasion. - -Since a commercial and industrial policy had been adopted, no motive was -left for waging war against Russia. Only the enemies of the two -countries, Germany and Russia, could have an active interest in such a -war under these circumstances. As a matter of fact, it was only the Jews -and the Marxists who tried to stir up bad blood between the two States. - -In the third place, the Alliance constituted a permanent danger to -German security; for any great Power that was hostile to Bismarck's -Empire could mobilize a whole lot of other States in a war against -Germany by promising them tempting spoils at the expense of the Austrian -ally. - -It was possible to arouse the whole of Eastern Europe against Austria, -especially Russia, and Italy also. The world coalition which had -developed under the leadership of King Edward could never have become a -reality if Germany's ally, Austria, had not offered such an alluring -prospect of booty. It was this fact alone which made it possible to -combine so many heterogeneous States with divergent interests into one -common phalanx of attack. Every member could hope to enrich himself at -the expense of Austria if he joined in the general attack against -Germany. The fact that Turkey was also a tacit party to the unfortunate -alliance with Austria augmented Germany's peril to an extraordinary -degree. - -Jewish international finance needed this bait of the Austrian heritage -in order to carry out its plans of ruining Germany; for Germany had not -yet surrendered to the general control which the international captains -of finance and trade exercised over the other States. Thus it was -possible to consolidate that coalition and make it strong enough and -brave enough, through the sheer weight of numbers, to join in bodily -conflict with the 'horned' Siegfried. (Note 9) - -[Note 9. Carlyle explains the epithet thus: "First then, let no one from -the title GEHOERNTE (Horned, Behorned), fancy that our brave Siegfried, -who was the loveliest as well as the bravest of men, was actually -cornuted, and had hornson his brow, though like Michael Angelo's Moses; or -even that his skin, to which the epithet BEHORNED refers, was hard like a -crocodile's, and not softer than the softest shamey, for the truth is, -his Hornedness means only an Invulnerability, like that of Achilles..."] - -The alliance with the Habsburg Monarchy, which I loathed while still in -Austria, was the subject of grave concern on my part and caused me to -meditate on it so persistently that finally I came to the conclusions -which I have mentioned above. - -In the small circles which I frequented at that time I did not conceal -my conviction that this sinister agreement with a State doomed to -collapse would also bring catastrophe to Germany if she did not free -herself from it in time. I never for a moment wavered in that firm -conviction, even when the tempest of the World War seemed to have made -shipwreck of the reasoning faculty itself and had put blind enthusiasm -in its place, even among those circles where the coolest and hardest -objective thinking ought to have held sway. In the trenches I voiced and -upheld my own opinion whenever these problems came under discussion. I -held that to abandon the Habsburg Monarchy would involve no sacrifice if -Germany could thereby reduce the number of her own enemies; for the -millions of Germans who had donned the steel helmet had done so not to -fight for the maintenance of a corrupt dynasty but rather for the -salvation of the German people. - -Before the War there were occasions on which it seemed that at least one -section of the German public had some slight misgivings about the -political wisdom of the alliance with Austria. From time to time German -conservative circles issued warnings against being over-confident about -the worth of that alliance; but, like every other reasonable suggestion -made at that time, it was thrown to the winds. The general conviction -was that the right measures had been adopted to 'conquer' the world, -that the success of these measures would be enormous and the sacrifices -negligible. - -Once again the 'uninitiated' layman could do nothing but observe how the -'elect' were marching straight ahead towards disaster and enticing their -beloved people to follow them, as the rats followed the Pied Piper of -Hamelin. - -If we would look for the deeper grounds which made it possible to foist -on the people this absurd notion of peacefully conquering the world -through commercial penetration, and how it was possible to put forward -the maintenance of world-peace as a national aim, we shall find that -these grounds lay in a general morbid condition that had pervaded the -whole body of German political thought. - -The triumphant progress of technical science in Germany and the -marvellous development of German industries and commerce led us to -forget that a powerful State had been the necessary pre-requisite of -that success. On the contrary, certain circles went even so far as to -give vent to the theory that the State owed its very existence to these -phenomena; that it was, above all, an economic institution and should be -constituted in accordance with economic interests. Therefore, it was -held, the State was dependent on the economic structure. This condition -of things was looked upon and glorified as the soundest and most normal -arrangement. - -Now, the truth is that the State in itself has nothing whatsoever to do -with any definite economic concept or a definite economic development. -It does not arise from a compact made between contracting parties, -within a certain delimited territory, for the purpose of serving -economic ends. The State is a community of living beings who have -kindred physical and spiritual natures, organized for the purpose of -assuring the conservation of their own kind and to help towards -fulfilling those ends which Providence has assigned to that particular -race or racial branch. Therein, and therein alone, lie the purpose and -meaning of a State. Economic activity is one of the many auxiliary means -which are necessary for the attainment of those aims. But economic -activity is never the origin or purpose of a State, except where a State -has been originally founded on a false and unnatural basis. And this -alone explains why a State as such does not necessarily need a certain -delimited territory as a condition of its establishment. This condition -becomes a necessary pre-requisite only among those people who would -provide and assure subsistence for their kinsfolk through their own -industry, which means that they are ready to carry on the struggle for -existence by means of their own work. People who can sneak their way, -like parasites, into the human body politic and make others work for -them under various pretences can form a State without possessing any -definite delimited territory. This is chiefly applicable to that -parasitic nation which, particularly at the present time preys upon the -honest portion of mankind; I mean the Jews. - -The Jewish State has never been delimited in space. It has been spread -all over the world, without any frontiers whatsoever, and has always -been constituted from the membership of one race exclusively. That is -why the Jews have always formed a State within the State. One of the -most ingenious tricks ever devised has been that of sailing the Jewish -ship-of-state under the flag of Religion and thus securing that -tolerance which Aryans are always ready to grant to different religious -faiths. But the Mosaic Law is really nothing else than the doctrine of -the preservation of the Jewish race. Therefore this Law takes in all -spheres of sociological, political and economic science which have a -bearing on the main end in view. - -The instinct for the preservation of one's own species is the primary -cause that leads to the formation of human communities. Hence the State -is a racial organism, and not an economic organization. The difference -between the two is so great as to be incomprehensible to our -contemporary so-called 'statesmen'. That is why they like to believe -that the State may be constituted as an economic structure, whereas the -truth is that it has always resulted from the exercise of those -qualities which are part of the will to preserve the species and the -race. But these qualities always exist and operate through the heroic -virtues and have nothing to do with commercial egoism; for the -conservation of the species always presupposes that the individual is -ready to sacrifice himself. Such is the meaning of the poet's lines: - -UND SETZET IHR NICHT DAS LEBEN EIN, -NIE WIRD EUCH DAS LEBEN GEWONNEN SEIN. - -(AND IF YOU DO NOT STAKE YOUR LIFE, -YOU WILL NEVER WIN LIFE FOR YOURSELF.) - -[Note 10. Lines quoted from the Song of the Curassiers in Schiller's -WALLENSTEIN.] - -The sacrifice of the individual existence is necessary in order to -assure the conservation of the race. Hence it is that the most essential -condition for the establishment and maintenance of a State is a certain -feeling of solidarity, wounded in an identity of character and race and -in a resolute readiness to defend these at all costs. With people who -live on their own territory this will result in a development of the -heroic virtues; with a parasitic people it will develop the arts of -subterfuge and gross perfidy unless we admit that these characteristics -are innate and that the varying political forms through which the -parasitic race expresses itself are only the outward manifestations of -innate characteristics. At least in the beginning, the formation of a -State can result only from a manifestation of the heroic qualities I -have spoken of. And the people who fail in the struggle for existence, -that is to say those, who become vassals and are thereby condemned to -disappear entirely sooner or later, are those who do not display the -heroic virtues in the struggle, or those who fall victims to the perfidy -of the parasites. And even in this latter case the failure is not so -much due to lack of intellectual powers, but rather to a lack of courage -and determination. An attempt is made to conceal the real nature of this -failing by saying that it is the humane feeling. - -The qualities which are employed for the foundation and preservation of -a State have accordingly little or nothing to do with the economic -situation. And this is conspicuously demonstrated by the fact that the -inner strength of a State only very rarely coincides with what is called -its economic expansion. On the contrary, there are numerous examples to -show that a period of economic prosperity indicates the approaching -decline of a State. If it were correct to attribute the foundation of -human communities to economic forces, then the power of the State as -such would be at its highest pitch during periods of economic -prosperity, and not vice versa. - -It is specially difficult to understand how the belief that the State is -brought into being and preserved by economic forces could gain currency -in a country which has given proof of the opposite in every phase of its -history. The history of Prussia shows in a manner particularly clear and -distinct, that it is out of the moral virtues of the people and not from -their economic circumstances that a State is formed. It is only under -the protection of those virtues that economic activities can be -developed and the latter will continue to flourish until a time comes -when the creative political capacity declines. Therewith the economic -structure will also break down, a phenomenon which is now happening in -an alarming manner before our eyes. The material interest of mankind can -prosper only in the shade of the heroic virtues. The moment they become -the primary considerations of life they wreck the basis of their own -existence. - -Whenever the political power of Germany was specially strong the -economic situation also improved. But whenever economic interests alone -occupied the foremost place in the life of the people, and thrust -transcendent ideals into the back.-ground, the State collapsed and -economic ruin followed readily. - -If we consider the question of what those forces actually are which are -necessary to the creation and preservation of a State, we shall find -that they are: The capacity and readiness to sacrifice the individual to -the common welfare. That these qualities have nothing at all to do with -economics can be proved by referring to the simple fact that man does -not sacrifice himself for material interests. In other words, he will -die for an ideal but not for a business. The marvellous gift for public -psychology which the English have was never shown better than the way in -which they presented their case in the World War. We were fighting for -our bread; but the English declared that they were fighting for -'freedom', and not at all for their own freedom. Oh, no, but for the -freedom of the small nations. German people laughed at that effrontery -and were angered by it; but in doing so they showed how political -thought had declined among our so-called diplomats in Germany even -before the War. These diplomatists did not have the slightest notion of -what that force was which brought men to face death of their own free -will and determination. - -As long as the German people, in the War of 1914, continued to believe -that they were fighting for ideals they stood firm. As soon as they were -told that they were fighting only for their daily bread they began to -give up the struggle. - -Our clever 'statesmen' were greatly amazed at this change of feeling. -They never understood that as soon as man is called upon to struggle for -purely material causes he will avoid death as best he can; for death and -the enjoyment of the material fruits of a victory are quite incompatible -concepts. The frailest woman will become a heroine when the life of her -own child is at stake. And only the will to save the race and native -land or the State, which offers protection to the race, has in all ages -been the urge which has forced men to face the weapons of their enemies. - -The following may be proclaimed as a truth that always holds good: - -A State has never arisen from commercial causes for the purpose of -peacefully serving commercial ends; but States have always arisen from -the instinct to maintain the racial group, whether this instinct -manifest itself in the heroic sphere or in the sphere of cunning and -chicanery. In the first case we have the Aryan States, based on the -principles of work and cultural development. In the second case we have -the Jewish parasitic colonies. But as soon as economic interests begin -to predominate over the racial and cultural instincts in a people or a -State, these economic interests unloose the causes that lead to -subjugation and oppression. - -The belief, which prevailed in Germany before the War, that the world -could be opened up and even conquered for Germany through a system of -peaceful commercial penetration and a colonial policy was a typical -symptom which indicated the decline of those real qualities whereby -States are created and preserved, and indicated also the decline of that -insight, will-power and practical determination which belong to those -qualities. The World War with its consequences, was the natural -liquidation of that decline. - -To anyone who had not thought over the matter deeply, this attitude of -the German people--which was quite general--must have seemed an -insoluble enigma. After all, Germany herself was a magnificent example -of an empire that had been built up purely by a policy of power. -Prussia, which was the generative cell of the German Empire, had been -created by brilliant heroic deeds and not by a financial or commercial -compact. And the Empire itself was but the magnificent recompense for a -leadership that had been conducted on a policy of power and military -valour. - -How then did it happen that the political instincts of this very same -German people became so degenerate? For it was not merely one isolated -phenomenon which pointed to this decadence, but morbid symptoms which -appeared in alarming numbers, now all over the body politic, or eating -into the body of the nation like a gangrenous ulcer. It seemed as if -some all-pervading poisonous fluid had been injected by some mysterious -hand into the bloodstream of this once heroic body, bringing about a -creeping paralysis that affected the reason and the elementary instinct -of self-preservation. - -During the years 1912-1914 I used to ponder perpetually on those -problems which related to the policy of the Triple Alliance and the -economic policy then being pursued by the German Empire. Once again I -came to the conclusion that the only explanation of this enigma lay in -the operation of that force which I had already become acquainted with -in Vienna, though from a different angle of vision. The force to which I -refer was the Marxist teaching and WELTANSCHAUUNG and its organized -action throughout the nation. - -For the second time in my life I plunged deep into the study of that -destructive teaching. This time, however, I was not urged by the study -of the question by the impressions and influences of my daily -environment, but directed rather by the observation of general phenomena -in the political life of Germany. In delving again into the theoretical -literature of this new world and endeavouring to get a clear view of the -possible consequences of its teaching, I compared the theoretical -principles of Marxism with the phenomena and happenings brought about by -its activities in the political, cultural, and economic spheres. - -For the first time in my life I now turned my attention to the efforts -that were being made to subdue this universal pest. - -I studied Bismarck's exceptional legislation in its original concept, -its operation and its results. Gradually I formed a basis for my own -opinions, which has proved as solid as a rock, so that never since have -I had to change my attitude towards the general problem. I also made a -further and more thorough analysis of the relations between Marxism and -Jewry. - -During my sojourn in Vienna I used to look upon Germany as an -imperturbable colossus; but even then serious doubts and misgivings -would often disturb me. In my own mind and in my conversation with my -small circle of acquaintances I used to criticize Germany's foreign -policy and the incredibly superficial way, according to my thinking, in -which Marxism was dealt with, though it was then the most important -problem in Germany. I could not understand how they could stumble -blindfolded into the midst of this peril, the effects of which would be -momentous if the openly declared aims of Marxism could be put into -practice. Even as early as that time I warned people around me, just as -I am warning a wider audience now, against that soothing slogan of all -indolent and feckless nature: NOTHING CAN HAPPEN TO US. A similar mental -contagion had already destroyed a mighty empire. Can Germany escape the -operation of those laws to which all other human communities are -subject? - -In the years 1913 and 1914 I expressed my opinion for the first time in -various circles, some of which are now members of the National Socialist -Movement, that the problem of how the future of the German nation can be -secured is the problem of how Marxism can be exterminated. - -I considered the disastrous policy of the Triple Alliance as one of the -consequences resulting from the disintegrating effects of the Marxist -teaching; for the alarming feature was that this teaching was invisibly -corrupting the foundations of a healthy political and economic outlook. -Those who had been themselves contaminated frequently did not realise -that their aims and actions sprang from this WELTANSCHAUUNG, which they -otherwise openly repudiated. - -Long before then the spiritual and moral decline of the German people -had set in, though those who were affected by the morbid decadence were -frequently unaware--as often happens--of the forces which were breaking -up their very existence. Sometimes they tried to cure the disease by -doctoring the symptoms, which were taken as the cause. But since nobody -recognized, or wanted to recognize, the real cause of the disease this -way of combating Marxism was no more effective than the application of -some quack's ointment. - - - - -CHAPTER V - - - -THE WORLD WAR - - -During the boisterous years of my youth nothing used to damp my wild -spirits so much as to think that I was born at a time when the world had -manifestly decided not to erect any more temples of fame except in -honour of business people and State officials. The tempest of historical -achievements seemed to have permanently subsided, so much so that the -future appeared to be irrevocably delivered over to what was called -peaceful competition between the nations. This simply meant a system of -mutual exploitation by fraudulent means, the principle of resorting to -the use of force in self-defence being formally excluded. Individual -countries increasingly assumed the appearance of commercial -undertakings, grabbing territory and clients and concessions from each -other under any and every kind of pretext. And it was all staged to an -accompaniment of loud but innocuous shouting. This trend of affairs -seemed destined to develop steadily and permanently. Having the support -of public approbation, it seemed bound eventually to transform the world -into a mammoth department store. In the vestibule of this emporium there -would be rows of monumental busts which would confer immortality on -those profiteers who had proved themselves the shrewdest at their trade -and those administrative officials who had shown themselves the most -innocuous. The salesmen could be represented by the English and the -administrative functionaries by the Germans; whereas the Jews would be -sacrificed to the unprofitable calling of proprietorship, for they are -constantly avowing that they make no profits and are always being called -upon to 'pay out'. Moreover they have the advantage of being versed in -the foreign languages. - -Why could I not have been born a hundred years ago? I used to ask -myself. Somewhere about the time of the Wars of Liberation, when a man -was still of some value even though he had no 'business'. - -Thus I used to think it an ill-deserved stroke of bad luck that I had -arrived too late on this terrestrial globe, and I felt chagrined at the -idea that my life would have to run its course along peaceful and -orderly lines. As a boy I was anything but a pacifist and all attempts -to make me so turned out futile. - -Then the Boer War came, like a glow of lightning on the far horizon. Day -after day I used to gaze intently at the newspapers and I almost -'devoured' the telegrams and COMMUNIQUES, overjoyed to think that I -could witness that heroic struggle, even though from so great a -distance. - -When the Russo-Japanese War came I was older and better able to judge -for myself. For national reasons I then took the side of the Japanese in -our discussions. I looked upon the defeat of the Russians as a blow to -Austrian Slavism. - -Many years had passed between that time and my arrival in Munich. I now -realized that what I formerly believed to be a morbid decadence was only -the lull before the storm. During my Vienna days the Balkans were -already in the grip of that sultry pause which presages the violent -storm. Here and there a flash of lightning could be occasionally seen; -but it rapidly disappeared in sinister gloom. Then the Balkan War broke -out; and therewith the first gusts of the forthcoming tornado swept -across a highly-strung Europe. In the supervening calm men felt the -atmosphere oppressive and foreboding, so much so that the sense of an -impending catastrophe became transformed into a feeling of impatient -expectance. They wished that Heaven would give free rein to the fate -which could now no longer be curbed. Then the first great bolt of -lightning struck the earth. The storm broke and the thunder of the -heavens intermingled with the roar of the cannons in the World War. - -When the news came to Munich that the Archduke Franz Ferdinand had been -murdered, I had been at home all day and did not get the particulars of -how it happened. At first I feared that the shots may have been fired by -some German-Austrian students who had been aroused to a state of furious -indignation by the persistent pro-Slav activities of the Heir to the -Habsburg Throne and therefore wished to liberate the German population -from this internal enemy. It was quite easy to imagine what the result -of such a mistake would have been. It would have brought on a new wave -of persecution, the motives of which would have been 'justified' before -the whole world. But soon afterwards I heard the names of the presumed -assassins and also that they were known to be Serbs. I felt somewhat -dumbfounded in face of the inexorable vengeance which Destiny had -wrought. The greatest friend of the Slavs had fallen a victim to the -bullets of Slav patriots. - -It is unjust to the Vienna government of that time to blame it now for -the form and tenor of the ultimatum which was then presented. In a -similar position and under similar circumstances, no other Power in the -world would have acted otherwise. On her southern frontiers Austria had -a relentless mortal foe who indulged in acts of provocation against the -Dual Monarchy at intervals which were becoming more and more frequent. -This persistent line of conduct would not have been relaxed until the -arrival of the opportune moment for the destruction of the Empire. In -Austria there was good reason to fear that, at the latest, this moment -would come with the death of the old Emperor. Once that had taken place, -it was quite possible that the Monarchy would not be able to offer any -serious resistance. For some years past the State had been so completely -identified with the personality of Francis Joseph that, in the eyes of -the great mass of the people, the death of this venerable -personification of the Empire would be tantamount to the death of the -Empire itself. Indeed it was one of the clever artifices of Slav policy -to foster the impression that the Austrian State owed its very existence -exclusively to the prodigies and rare talents of that monarch. This kind -of flattery was particularly welcomed at the Hofburg, all the more -because it had no relation whatsoever to the services actually rendered -by the Emperor. No effort whatsoever was made to locate the carefully -prepared sting which lay hidden in this glorifying praise. One fact -which was entirely overlooked, perhaps intentionally, was that the more -the Empire remained dependent on the so-called administrative talents of -'the wisest Monarch of all times', the more catastrophic would be the -situation when Fate came to knock at the door and demand its tribute. - -Was it possible even to imagine the Austrian Empire without its -venerable ruler? Would not the tragedy which befell Maria Theresa be -repeated at once? - -It is really unjust to the Vienna governmental circles to reproach them -with having instigated a war which might have been prevented. The war -was bound to come. Perhaps it might have been postponed for a year or -two at the most. But it had always been the misfortune of German, as -well as Austrian, diplomats that they endeavoured to put off the -inevitable day of reckoning, with the result that they were finally -compelled to deliver their blow at a most inopportune moment. - -No. Those who did not wish this war ought to have had the courage to -take the consequences of the refusal upon themselves. Those consequences -must necessarily have meant the sacrifice of Austria. And even then war -would have come, not as a war in which all the nations would have been -banded against us but in the form of a dismemberment of the Habsburg -Monarchy. In that case we should have had to decide whether we should -come to the assistance of the Habsburg or stand aside as spectators, -with our arms folded, and thus allow Fate to run its course. - -Just those who are loudest in their imprecations to-day and make a great -parade of wisdom in judging the causes of the war are the very same -people whose collaboration was the most fatal factor in steering towards -the war. - -For several decades previously the German Social-Democrats had been -agitating in an underhand and knavish way for war against Russia; -whereas the German Centre Party, with religious ends in view, had worked -to make the Austrian State the chief centre and turning-point of German -policy. The consequences of this folly had now to be borne. What came -was bound to come and under no circumstances could it have been avoided. -The fault of the German Government lay in the fact that, merely for the -sake of preserving peace at all costs, it continued to miss the -occasions that were favourable for action, got entangled in an alliance -for the purpose of preserving the peace of the world, and thus finally -became the victim of a world coalition which opposed the German effort -for the maintenance of peace and was determined to bring about the world -war. - -Had the Vienna Government of that time formulated its ultimatum in less -drastic terms, that would not have altered the situation at all: but -such a course might have aroused public indignation. For, in the eyes of -the great masses, the ultimatum was too moderate and certainly not -excessive or brutal. Those who would deny this to-day are either -simpletons with feeble memories or else deliberate falsehood-mongers. - -The War of 1914 was certainly not forced on the masses; it was even -desired by the whole people. - -There was a desire to bring the general feeling of uncertainty to an end -once and for all. And it is only in the light of this fact that we can -understand how more than two million German men and youths voluntarily -joined the colours, ready to shed the last drop of their blood for the -cause. - -For me these hours came as a deliverance from the distress that had -weighed upon me during the days of my youth. I am not ashamed to -acknowledge to-day that I was carried away by the enthusiasm of the -moment and that I sank down upon my knees and thanked Heaven out of the -fullness of my heart for the favour of having been permitted to live in -such a time. - -The fight for freedom had broken out on an unparalleled scale in the -history of the world. From the moment that Fate took the helm in hand -the conviction grew among the mass of the people that now it was not a -question of deciding the destinies of Austria or Serbia but that the -very existence of the German nation itself was at stake. - -At last, after many years of blindness, the people saw clearly into the -future. Therefore, almost immediately after the gigantic struggle had -begun, an excessive enthusiasm was replaced by a more earnest and more -fitting undertone, because the exaltation of the popular spirit was not -a mere passing frenzy. It was only too necessary that the gravity of the -situation should be recognized. At that time there was, generally -speaking, not the slightest presentiment or conception of how long the -war might last. People dreamed of the soldiers being home by Christmas -and that then they would resume their daily work in peace. - -Whatever mankind desires, that it will hope for and believe in. The -overwhelming majority of the people had long since grown weary of the -perpetual insecurity in the general condition of public affairs. Hence -it was only natural that no one believed that the Austro-Serbian -conflict could be shelved. Therefore they looked forward to a radical -settlement of accounts. I also belonged to the millions that desired -this. - -The moment the news of the Sarajevo outrage reached Munich two ideas -came into my mind: First, that war was absolutely inevitable and, -second, that the Habsburg State would now be forced to honour its -signature to the alliance. For what I had feared most was that one day -Germany herself, perhaps as a result of the Alliance, would become -involved in a conflict the first direct cause of which did not affect -Austria. In such a contingency, I feared that the Austrian State, for -domestic political reasons, would find itself unable to decide in favour -of its ally. But now this danger was removed. The old State was -compelled to fight, whether it wished to do so or not. - -My own attitude towards the conflict was equally simple and clear. I -believed that it was not a case of Austria fighting to get satisfaction -from Serbia but rather a case of Germany fighting for her own -existence--the German nation for its own to-be-or-not-to-be, for its -freedom and for its future. The work of Bismarck must now be carried on. -Young Germany must show itself worthy of the blood shed by our fathers -on so many heroic fields of battle, from Weissenburg to Sedan and Paris. -And if this struggle should bring us victory our people will again rank -foremost among the great nations. Only then could the German Empire -assert itself as the mighty champion of peace, without the necessity of -restricting the daily bread of its children for the sake of maintaining -the peace. - -As a boy and as a young man, I often longed for the occasion to prove -that my national enthusiasm was not mere vapouring. Hurrahing sometimes -seemed to me to be a kind of sinful indulgence, though I could not give -any justification for that feeling; for, after all, who has the right to -shout that triumphant word if he has not won the right to it there where -there is no play-acting and where the hand of the Goddess of Destiny -puts the truth and sincerity of nations and men through her inexorable -test? Just as millions of others, I felt a proud joy in being permitted -to go through this test. I had so often sung DEUTSCHLAND �BER ALLES and -so often roared 'HEIL' that I now thought it was as a kind of -retro-active grace that I was granted the right of appearing before the -Court of Eternal Justice to testify to the truth of those sentiments. - -One thing was clear to me from the very beginning, namely, that in the -event of war, which now seemed inevitable, my books would have to be -thrown aside forthwith. I also realized that my place would have to be -there where the inner voice of conscience called me. - -I had left Austria principally for political reasons. What therefore -could be more rational than that I should put into practice the logical -consequences of my political opinions, now that the war had begun. I had -no desire to fight for the Habsburg cause, but I was prepared to die at -any time for my own kinsfolk and the Empire to which they really -belonged. - -On August 3rd, 1914, I presented an urgent petition to His Majesty, King -Ludwig III, requesting to be allowed to serve in a Bavarian regiment. In -those days the Chancellery had its hands quite full and therefore I was -all the more pleased when I received the answer a day later, that my -request had been granted. I opened the document with trembling hands; -and no words of mine could now describe the satisfaction I felt on -reading that I was instructed to report to a Bavarian regiment. Within a -few days I was wearing that uniform which I was not to put oft again for -nearly six years. - -For me, as for every German, the most memorable period of my life now -began. Face to face with that mighty struggle, all the past fell away -into oblivion. With a wistful pride I look back on those days, -especially because we are now approaching the tenth anniversary of that -memorable happening. I recall those early weeks of war when kind fortune -permitted me to take my place in that heroic struggle among the nations. - -As the scene unfolds itself before my mind, it seems only like -yesterday. I see myself among my young comrades on our first parade -drill, and so on until at last the day came on which we were to leave -for the front. - -In common with the others, I had one worry during those days. This was a -fear that we might arrive too late for the fighting at the front. Time -and again that thought disturbed me and every announcement of a -victorious engagement left a bitter taste, which increased as the news -of further victories arrived. - -At long last the day came when we left Munich on war service. For the -first time in my life I saw the Rhine, as we journeyed westwards to -stand guard before that historic German river against its traditional -and grasping enemy. As the first soft rays of the morning sun broke -through the light mist and disclosed to us the Niederwald Statue, with -one accord the whole troop train broke into the strains of DIE WACHT AM -RHEIN. I then felt as if my heart could not contain its spirit. - -And then followed a damp, cold night in Flanders. We marched in silence -throughout the night and as the morning sun came through the mist an -iron greeting suddenly burst above our heads. Shrapnel exploded in our -midst and spluttered in the damp ground. But before the smoke of the -explosion disappeared a wild 'Hurrah' was shouted from two hundred -throats, in response to this first greeting of Death. Then began the -whistling of bullets and the booming of cannons, the shouting and -singing of the combatants. With eyes straining feverishly, we pressed -forward, quicker and quicker, until we finally came to close-quarter -fighting, there beyond the beet-fields and the meadows. Soon the strains -of a song reached us from afar. Nearer and nearer, from company to -company, it came. And while Death began to make havoc in our ranks we -passed the song on to those beside us: DEUTSCHLAND, DEUTSCHLAND �BER -ALLES, �BER ALLES IN DER WELT. - -After four days in the trenches we came back. Even our step was no -longer what it had been. Boys of seventeen looked now like grown men. -The rank and file of the List Regiment (Note 11) had not been properly -trained in the art of warfare, but they knew how to die like old soldiers. - -[Note 11. The Second Infantry Bavarian Regiment, in which Hitler served -as a volunteer.] - -That was the beginning. And thus we carried on from year to year. A -feeling of horror replaced the romantic fighting spirit. Enthusiasm -cooled down gradually and exuberant spirits were quelled by the fear of -the ever-present Death. A time came when there arose within each one of -us a conflict between the urge to self-preservation and the call of -duty. And I had to go through that conflict too. As Death sought its -prey everywhere and unrelentingly a nameless Something rebelled within -the weak body and tried to introduce itself under the name of Common -Sense; but in reality it was Fear, which had taken on this cloak in -order to impose itself on the individual. But the more the voice which -advised prudence increased its efforts and the more clear and persuasive -became its appeal, resistance became all the stronger; until finally the -internal strife was over and the call of duty was triumphant. Already in -the winter of 1915-16 I had come through that inner struggle. The will -had asserted its incontestable mastery. Whereas in the early days I went -into the fight with a cheer and a laugh, I was now habitually calm and -resolute. And that frame of mind endured. Fate might now put me through -the final test without my nerves or reason giving way. The young -volunteer had become an old soldier. - -This same transformation took place throughout the whole army. Constant -fighting had aged and toughened it and hardened it, so that it stood -firm and dauntless against every assault. - -Only now was it possible to judge that army. After two and three years -of continuous fighting, having been thrown into one battle after -another, standing up stoutly against superior numbers and superior -armament, suffering hunger and privation, the time had come when one -could assess the value of that singular fighting force. - -For a thousand years to come nobody will dare to speak of heroism -without recalling the German Army of the World War. And then from the -dim past will emerge the immortal vision of those solid ranks of steel -helmets that never flinched and never faltered. And as long as Germans -live they will be proud to remember that these men were the sons of -their forefathers. - -I was then a soldier and did not wish to meddle in politics, all the -more so because the time was inopportune. I still believe that the most -modest stable-boy of those days served his country better than the best -of, let us say, the 'parliamentary deputies'. My hatred for those -footlers was never greater than in those days when all decent men who -had anything to say said it point-blank in the enemy's face; or, failing -this, kept their mouths shut and did their duty elsewhere. I despised -those political fellows and if I had had my way I would have formed them -into a Labour Battalion and given them the opportunity of babbling -amongst themselves to their hearts' content, without offence or harm to -decent people. - -In those days I cared nothing for politics; but I could not help forming -an opinion on certain manifestations which affected not only the whole -nation but also us soldiers in particular. There were two things which -caused me the greatest anxiety at that time and which I had come to -regard as detrimental to our interests. - -Shortly after our first series of victories a certain section of the -Press already began to throw cold water, drip by drip, on the enthusiasm -of the public. At first this was not obvious to many people. It was done -under the mask of good intentions and a spirit of anxious care. The -public was told that big celebrations of victories were somewhat out of -place and were not worthy expressions of the spirit of a great nation. -The fortitude and valour of German soldiers were accepted facts which -did not necessarily call for outbursts of celebration. Furthermore, it -was asked, what would foreign opinion have to say about these -manifestations? Would not foreign opinion react more favourably to a -quiet and sober form of celebration rather than to all this wild -jubilation? Surely the time had come--so the Press declared--for us -Germans to remember that this war was not our work and that hence there -need be no feeling of shame in declaring our willingness to do our share -towards effecting an understanding among the nations. For this reason it -would not be wise to sully the radiant deeds of our army with unbecoming -jubilation; for the rest of the world would never understand this. -Furthermore, nothing is more appreciated than the modesty with which a -true hero quietly and unassumingly carries on and forgets. Such was the -gist of their warning. - -Instead of catching these fellows by their long ears and dragging them -to some ditch and looping a cord around their necks, so that the -victorious enthusiasm of the nation should no longer offend the -aesthetic sensibilities of these knights of the pen, a general Press -campaign was now allowed to go on against what was called 'unbecoming' -and 'undignified' forms of victorious celebration. - -No one seemed to have the faintest idea that when public enthusiasm is -once damped, nothing can enkindle it again, when the necessity arises. -This enthusiasm is an intoxication and must be kept up in that form. -Without the support of this enthusiastic spirit how would it be possible -to endure in a struggle which, according to human standards, made such -immense demands on the spiritual stamina of the nation? - -I was only too well acquainted with the psychology of the broad masses -not to know that in such cases a magnaminous 'aestheticism' cannot fan -the fire which is needed to keep the iron hot. In my eyes it was even a -mistake not to have tried to raise the pitch of public enthusiasm still -higher. Therefore I could not at all understand why the contrary policy -was adopted, that is to say, the policy of damping the public spirit. - -Another thing which irritated me was the manner in which Marxism was -regarded and accepted. I thought that all this proved how little they -knew about the Marxist plague. It was believed in all seriousness that -the abolition of party distinctions during the War had made Marxism a -mild and moderate thing. - -But here there was no question of party. There was question of a -doctrine which was being expounded for the express purpose of leading -humanity to its destruction. The purport of this doctrine was not -understood because nothing was said about that side of the question in -our Jew-ridden universities and because our supercilious bureaucratic -officials did not think it worth while to read up a subject which had -not been prescribed in their university course. This mighty -revolutionary trend was going on beside them; but those 'intellectuals' -would not deign to give it their attention. That is why State enterprise -nearly always lags behind private enterprise. Of these gentry once can -truly say that their maxim is: What we don't know won't bother us. In -the August of 1914 the German worker was looked upon as an adherent of -Marxist socialism. That was a gross error. When those fateful hours -dawned the German worker shook off the poisonous clutches of that -plague; otherwise he would not have been so willing and ready to fight. -And people were stupid enough to imagine that Marxism had now become -'national', another apt illustration of the fact that those in authority -had never taken the trouble to study the real tenor of the Marxist -teaching. If they had done so, such foolish errors would not have been -committed. - -Marxism, whose final objective was and is and will continue to be the -destruction of all non-Jewish national States, had to witness in those -days of July 1914 how the German working classes, which it had been -inveigling, were aroused by the national spirit and rapidly ranged -themselves on the side of the Fatherland. Within a few days the -deceptive smoke-screen of that infamous national betrayal had vanished -into thin air and the Jewish bosses suddenly found themselves alone and -deserted. It was as if not a vestige had been left of that folly and -madness with which the masses of the German people had been inoculated -for sixty years. That was indeed an evil day for the betrayers of German -Labour. The moment, however, that the leaders realized the danger which -threatened them they pulled the magic cap of deceit over their ears and, -without being identified, played the part of mimes in the national -reawakening. - -The time seemed to have arrived for proceeding against the whole Jewish -gang of public pests. Then it was that action should have been taken -regardless of any consequent whining or protestation. At one stroke, in -the August of 1914, all the empty nonsense about international -solidarity was knocked out of the heads of the German working classes. A -few weeks later, instead of this stupid talk sounding in their ears, -they heard the noise of American-manufactured shrapnel bursting above -the heads of the marching columns, as a symbol of international -comradeship. Now that the German worker had rediscovered the road to -nationhood, it ought to have been the duty of any Government which had -the care of the people in its keeping, to take this opportunity of -mercilessly rooting out everything that was opposed to the national -spirit. - -While the flower of the nation's manhood was dying at the front, there -was time enough at home at least to exterminate this vermin. But, -instead of doing so, His Majesty the Kaiser held out his hand to these -hoary criminals, thus assuring them his protection and allowing them to -regain their mental composure. - -And so the viper could begin his work again. This time, however, more -carefully than before, but still more destructively. While honest people -dreamt of reconciliation these perjured criminals were making -preparations for a revolution. - -Naturally I was distressed at the half-measures which were adopted at -that time; but I never thought it possible that the final consequences -could have been so disastrous? - -But what should have been done then? Throw the ringleaders into gaol, -prosecute them and rid the nation of them? Uncompromising military -measures should have been adopted to root out the evil. Parties should -have been abolished and the Reichstag brought to its senses at the point -of the bayonet, if necessary. It would have been still better if the -Reichstag had been dissolved immediately. Just as the Republic to-day -dissolves the parties when it wants to, so in those days there was even -more justification for applying that measure, seeing that the very -existence of the nation was at stake. Of course this suggestion would -give rise to the question: Is it possible to eradicate ideas by force of -arms? Could a WELTANSCHAUUNG be attacked by means of physical force? - -At that time I turned these questions over and over again in my mind. By -studying analogous cases, exemplified in history, particularly those -which had arisen from religious circumstances, I came to the following -fundamental conclusion: - -Ideas and philosophical systems as well as movements grounded on a -definite spiritual foundation, whether true or not, can never be broken -by the use of force after a certain stage, except on one condition: -namely, that this use of force is in the service of a new idea or -WELTANSCHAUUNG which burns with a new flame. - -The application of force alone, without moral support based on a -spiritual concept, can never bring about the destruction of an idea or -arrest the propagation of it, unless one is ready and able ruthlessly to -exterminate the last upholders of that idea even to a man, and also wipe -out any tradition which it may tend to leave behind. Now in the majority -of cases the result of such a course has been to exclude such a State, -either temporarily or for ever, from the comity of States that are of -political significance; but experience has also shown that such a -sanguinary method of extirpation arouses the better section of the -population under the persecuting power. As a matter of fact, every -persecution which has no spiritual motives to support it is morally -unjust and raises opposition among the best elements of the population; -so much so that these are driven more and more to champion the ideas -that are unjustly persecuted. With many individuals this arises from the -sheer spirit of opposition to every attempt at suppressing spiritual -things by brute force. - -In this way the number of convinced adherents of the persecuted doctrine -increases as the persecution progresses. Hence the total destruction of -a new doctrine can be accomplished only by a vast plan of extermination; -but this, in the final analysis, means the loss of some of the best -blood in a nation or State. And that blood is then avenged, because such -an internal and total clean-up brings about the collapse of the nation's -strength. And such a procedure is always condemned to futility from the -very start if the attacked doctrine should happen to have spread beyond -a small circle. - -That is why in this case, as with all other growths, the doctrine can be -exterminated in its earliest stages. As time goes on its powers of -resistance increase, until at the approach of age it gives way to -younger elements, but under another form and from other motives. - -The fact remains that nearly all attempts to exterminate a doctrine, -without having some spiritual basis of attack against it, and also to -wipe out all the organizations it has created, have led in many cases to -the very opposite being achieved; and that for the following reasons: - -When sheer force is used to combat the spread of a doctrine, then that -force must be employed systematically and persistently. This means that -the chances of success in the suppression of a doctrine lie only in the -persistent and uniform application of the methods chosen. The moment -hesitation is shown, and periods of tolerance alternate with the -application of force, the doctrine against which these measures are -directed will not only recover strength but every successive persecution -will bring to its support new adherents who have been shocked by the -oppressive methods employed. The old adherents will become more -embittered and their allegiance will thereby be strengthened. Therefore -when force is employed success is dependent on the consistent manner in -which it is used. This persistence, however, is nothing less than the -product of definite spiritual convictions. Every form of force that is -not supported by a spiritual backing will be always indecisive and -uncertain. Such a force lacks the stability that can be found only in a -WELTANSCHAUUNG which has devoted champions. Such a force is the -expression of the individual energies; therefore it is from time to time -dependent on the change of persons in whose hands it is employed and -also on their characters and capacities. - -But there is something else to be said: Every WELTANSCHAUUNG, whether -religious or political--and it is sometimes difficult to say where the -one ends and the other begins--fights not so much for the negative -destruction of the opposing world of ideas as for the positive -realization of its own ideas. Thus its struggle lies in attack rather -than in defence. It has the advantage of knowing where its objective -lies, as this objective represents the realization of its own ideas. -Inversely, it is difficult to say when the negative aim for the -destruction of a hostile doctrine is reached and secured. For this -reason alone a WELTANSCHAUUNG which is of an aggressive character is -more definite in plan and more powerful and decisive in action than a -WELTANSCHAUUNG which takes up a merely defensive attitude. If force be -used to combat a spiritual power, that force remains a defensive measure -only so long as the wielders of it are not the standard-bearers and -apostles of a new spiritual doctrine. - -To sum up, the following must be borne in mind: That every attempt to -combat a WELTANSCHAUUNG by means of force will turn out futile in the -end if the struggle fails to take the form of an offensive for the -establishment of an entirely new spiritual order of' things. It is only -in the struggle between two Weltan-schauungen that physical force, -consistently and ruthlessly applied, will eventually turn the scales in -its own favour. It was here that the fight against Marxism had hitherto -failed. - -This was also the reason why Bismarck's anti-socialist legislation -failed and was bound to fail in the long run, despite everything. It -lacked the basis of a new WELTANSCHAUUNG for whose development and -extension the struggle might have been taken up. To say that the serving -up of drivel about a so-called 'State-Authority' or 'Law-and-Order' was -an adequate foundation for the spiritual driving force in a -life-or-death struggle is only what one would expect to hear from the -wiseacres in high official positions. - -It was because there were no adequate spiritual motives back of this -offensive that Bismarck was compelled to hand over the administration of -his socialist legislative measures to the judgment and approval of those -circles which were themselves the product of the Marxist teaching. Thus -a very ludicrous state of affairs prevailed when the Iron Chancellor -surrendered the fate of his struggle against Marxism to the goodwill of -the bourgeois democracy. He left the goat to take care of the garden. -But this was only the necessary result of the failure to find a -fundamentally new WELTANSCHAUUNG which would attract devoted champions -to its cause and could be established on the ground from which Marxism -had been driven out. And thus the result of the Bismarckian campaign was -deplorable. - -During the World War, or at the beginning of it, were the conditions any -different? Unfortunately, they were not. - -The more I then pondered over the necessity for a change in the attitude -of the executive government towards Social-Democracy, as the -incorporation of contemporary Marxism, the more I realized the want of a -practical substitute for this doctrine. Supposing Social-Democracy were -overthrown, what had one to offer the masses in its stead? Not a single -movement existed which promised any success in attracting vast numbers -of workers who would be now more or less without leaders, and holding -these workers in its train. It is nonsensical to imagine that the -international fanatic who has just severed his connection with a class -party would forthwith join a bourgeois party, or, in other words, -another class organization. For however unsatisfactory these various -organizations may appear to be, it cannot be denied that bourgeois -politicians look on the distinction between classes as a very important -factor in social life, provided it does not turn out politically -disadvantageous to them. If they deny this fact they show themselves not -only impudent but also mendacious. - -Generally speaking, one should guard against considering the broad -masses more stupid than they really are. In political matters it -frequently happens that feeling judges more correctly than intellect. -But the opinion that this feeling on the part of the masses is -sufficient proof of their stupid international attitude can be -immediately and definitely refuted by the simple fact that pacifist -democracy is no less fatuous, though it draws its supporters almost -exclusively from bourgeois circles. As long as millions of citizens -daily gulp down what the social-democratic Press tells them, it ill -becomes the 'Masters' to joke at the expense of the 'Comrades'; for in -the long run they all swallow the same hash, even though it be dished up -with different spices. In both cases the cook is one and the same--the -Jew. - -One should be careful about contradicting established facts. It is an -undeniable fact that the class question has nothing to do with questions -concerning ideals, though that dope is administered at election time. -Class arrogance among a large section of our people, as well as a -prevailing tendency to look down on the manual labourer, are obvious -facts and not the fancies of some day-dreamer. Nevertheless it only -illustrates the mentality of our so-called intellectual circles, that -they have not yet grasped the fact that circumstances which are -incapable of preventing the growth of such a plague as Marxism are -certainly not capable of restoring what has been lost. - -The bourgeois' parties--a name coined by themselves--will never again be -able to win over and hold the proletarian masses in their train. That is -because two worlds stand opposed to one another here, in part naturally -and in part artificially divided. These two camps have one leading -thought, and that is that they must fight one another. But in such a -fight the younger will come off victorious; and that is Marxism. - -In 1914 a fight against Social-Democracy was indeed quite conceivable. -But the lack of any practical substitute made it doubtful how long the -fight could be kept up. In this respect there was a gaping void. - -Long before the War I was of the same opinion and that was the reason -why I could not decide to join any of the parties then existing. During -the course of the World War my conviction was still further confirmed by -the manifest impossibility of fighting Social-Democracy in anything like -a thorough way: because for that purpose there should have been a -movement that was something more than a mere 'parliamentary' party, and -there was none such. - -I frequently discussed that want with my intimate comrades. And it was -then that I first conceived the idea of taking up political work later -on. As I have often assured my friends, it was just this that induced me -to become active on the public hustings after the War, in addition to my -professional work. And I am sure that this decision was arrived at after -much earnest thought. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - - - -WAR PROPAGANDA - - -In watching the course of political events I was always struck by the -active part which propaganda played in them. I saw that it was an -instrument, which the Marxist Socialists knew how to handle in a -masterly way and how to put it to practical uses. Thus I soon came to -realize that the right use of propaganda was an art in itself and that -this art was practically unknown to our bourgeois parties. The -Christian-Socialist Party alone, especially in Lueger's time, showed a -certain efficiency in the employment of this instrument and owed much of -their success to it. - -It was during the War, however, that we had the best chance of -estimating the tremendous results which could be obtained by a -propagandist system properly carried out. Here again, unfortunately, -everything was left to the other side, the work done on our side being -worse than insignificant. It was the total failure of the whole German -system of information--a failure which was perfectly obvious to every -soldier--that urged me to consider the problem of propaganda in a -comprehensive way. I had ample opportunity to learn a practical lesson -in this matter; for unfortunately it was only too well taught us by the -enemy. The lack on our side was exploited by the enemy in such an -efficient manner that one could say it showed itself as a real work of -genius. In that propaganda carried on by the enemy I found admirable -sources of instruction. The lesson to be learned from this had -unfortunately no attraction for the geniuses on our own side. They were -simply above all such things, too clever to accept any teaching. Anyhow -they did not honestly wish to learn anything. - -Had we any propaganda at all? Alas, I can reply only in the negative. -All that was undertaken in this direction was so utterly inadequate and -misconceived from the very beginning that not only did it prove useless -but at times harmful. In substance it was insufficient. Psychologically -it was all wrong. Anybody who had carefully investigated the German -propaganda must have formed that judgment of it. Our people did not seem -to be clear even about the primary question itself: Whether propaganda -is a means or an end? - -Propaganda is a means and must, therefore, be judged in relation to the -end it is intended to serve. It must be organized in such a way as to be -capable of attaining its objective. And, as it is quite clear that the -importance of the objective may vary from the standpoint of general -necessity, the essential internal character of the propaganda must vary -accordingly. The cause for which we fought during the War was the -noblest and highest that man could strive for. We were fighting for the -freedom and independence of our country, for the security of our future -welfare and the honour of the nation. Despite all views to the contrary, -this honour does actually exist, or rather it will have to exist; for a -nation without honour will sooner or later lose its freedom and -independence. This is in accordance with the ruling of a higher justice, -for a generation of poltroons is not entitled to freedom. He who would -be a slave cannot have honour; for such honour would soon become an -object of general scorn. - -Germany was waging war for its very existence. The purpose of its war -propaganda should have been to strengthen the fighting spirit in that -struggle and help it to victory. - -But when nations are fighting for their existence on this earth, when -the question of 'to be or not to be' has to be answered, then all humane -and aesthetic considerations must be set aside; for these ideals do not -exist of themselves somewhere in the air but are the product of man's -creative imagination and disappear when he disappears. Nature knows -nothing of them. Moreover, they are characteristic of only a small -number of nations, or rather of races, and their value depends on the -measure in which they spring from the racial feeling of the latter. -Humane and aesthetic ideals will disappear from the inhabited earth when -those races disappear which are the creators and standard-bearers of -them. - -All such ideals are only of secondary importance when a nation is -struggling for its existence. They must be prevented from entering into -the struggle the moment they threaten to weaken the stamina of the -nation that is waging war. That is always the only visible effect -whereby their place in the struggle is to be judged. - -In regard to the part played by humane feeling, Moltke stated that in -time of war the essential thing is to get a decision as quickly as -possible and that the most ruthless methods of fighting are at the same -time the most humane. When people attempt to answer this reasoning by -highfalutin talk about aesthetics, etc., only one answer can be given. It -is that the vital questions involved in the struggle of a nation for its -existence must not be subordinated to any aesthetic considerations. The -yoke of slavery is and always will remain the most unpleasant experience -that mankind can endure. Do the Schwabing (Note 12) decadents look upon -Germany's lot to-day as 'aesthetic'? Of course, one doesn't discuss such -a question with the Jews, because they are the modern inventors of this -cultural perfume. Their very existence is an incarnate denial of the -beauty of God's image in His creation. - -[Note 12. Schwabing is the artistic quarter in Munich where artists have -their studios and litterateurs, especially of the Bohemian class, -foregather.] - -Since these ideas of what is beautiful and humane have no place in -warfare, they are not to be used as standards of war propaganda. - -During the War, propaganda was a means to an end. And this end was the -struggle for existence of the German nation. Propaganda, therefore, -should have been regarded from the standpoint of its utility for that -purpose. The most cruel weapons were then the most humane, provided they -helped towards a speedier decision; and only those methods were good and -beautiful which helped towards securing the dignity and freedom of the -nation. Such was the only possible attitude to adopt towards war -propaganda in the life-or-death struggle. - -If those in what are called positions of authority had realized this -there would have been no uncertainty about the form and employment of -war propaganda as a weapon; for it is nothing but a weapon, and indeed a -most terrifying weapon in the hands of those who know how to use it. - -The second question of decisive importance is this: To whom should -propaganda be made to appeal? To the educated intellectual classes? Or -to the less intellectual? - -Propaganda must always address itself to the broad masses of the people. -For the intellectual classes, or what are called the intellectual -classes to-day, propaganda is not suited, but only scientific -exposition. Propaganda has as little to do with science as an -advertisement poster has to do with art, as far as concerns the form in -which it presents its message. The art of the advertisement poster -consists in the ability of the designer to attract the attention of the -crowd through the form and colours he chooses. The advertisement poster -announcing an exhibition of art has no other aim than to convince the -public of the importance of the exhibition. The better it does that, the -better is the art of the poster as such. Being meant accordingly to -impress upon the public the meaning of the exposition, the poster can -never take the place of the artistic objects displayed in the exposition -hall. They are something entirely different. Therefore. those who wish -to study the artistic display must study something that is quite -different from the poster; indeed for that purpose a mere wandering -through the exhibition galleries is of no use. The student of art must -carefully and thoroughly study each exhibit in order slowly to form a -judicious opinion about it. - -The situation is the same in regard to what we understand by the word, -propaganda. The purpose of propaganda is not the personal instruction of -the individual, but rather to attract public attention to certain -things, the importance of which can be brought home to the masses only -by this means. - -Here the art of propaganda consists in putting a matter so clearly and -forcibly before the minds of the people as to create a general -conviction regarding the reality of a certain fact, the necessity of -certain things and the just character of something that is essential. -But as this art is not an end in itself and because its purpose must be -exactly that of the advertisement poster, to attract the attention of -the masses and not by any means to dispense individual instructions to -those who already have an educated opinion on things or who wish to form -such an opinion on grounds of objective study--because that is not the -purpose of propaganda, it must appeal to the feelings of the public -rather than to their reasoning powers. - -All propaganda must be presented in a popular form and must fix its -intellectual level so as not to be above the heads of the least -intellectual of those to whom it is directed. Thus its purely -intellectual level will have to be that of the lowest mental common -denominator among the public it is desired to reach. When there is -question of bringing a whole nation within the circle of its influence, -as happens in the case of war propaganda, then too much attention cannot -be paid to the necessity of avoiding a high level, which presupposes a -relatively high degree of intelligence among the public. - -The more modest the scientific tenor of this propaganda and the more it -is addressed exclusively to public sentiment, the more decisive will be -its success. This is the best test of the value of a propaganda, and not -the approbation of a small group of intellectuals or artistic people. - -The art of propaganda consists precisely in being able to awaken the -imagination of the public through an appeal to their feelings, in -finding the appropriate psychological form that will arrest the -attention and appeal to the hearts of the national masses. That this is -not understood by those among us whose wits are supposed to have been -sharpened to the highest pitch is only another proof of their vanity or -mental inertia. - -Once we have understood how necessary it is to concentrate the -persuasive forces of propaganda on the broad masses of the people, the -following lessons result therefrom: - -That it is a mistake to organize the direct propaganda as if it were a -manifold system of scientific instruction. - -The receptive powers of the masses are very restricted, and their -understanding is feeble. On the other hand, they quickly forget. Such -being the case, all effective propaganda must be confined to a few bare -essentials and those must be expressed as far as possible in stereotyped -formulas. These slogans should be persistently repeated until the very -last individual has come to grasp the idea that has been put forward. If -this principle be forgotten and if an attempt be made to be abstract and -general, the propaganda will turn out ineffective; for the public will -not be able to digest or retain what is offered to them in this way. -Therefore, the greater the scope of the message that has to be -presented, the more necessary it is for the propaganda to discover that -plan of action which is psychologically the most efficient. - -It was, for example, a fundamental mistake to ridicule the worth of the -enemy as the Austrian and German comic papers made a chief point of -doing in their propaganda. The very principle here is a mistaken one; -for, when they came face to face with the enemy, our soldiers had quite -a different impression. Therefore, the mistake had disastrous results. -Once the German soldier realised what a tough enemy he had to fight he -felt that he had been deceived by the manufacturers of the information -which had been given him. Therefore, instead of strengthening and -stimulating his fighting spirit, this information had quite the contrary -effect. Finally he lost heart. - -On the other hand, British and American war propaganda was -psychologically efficient. By picturing the Germans to their own people -as Barbarians and Huns, they were preparing their soldiers for the -horrors of war and safeguarding them against illusions. The most -terrific weapons which those soldiers encountered in the field merely -confirmed the information that they had already received and their -belief in the truth of the assertions made by their respective -governments was accordingly reinforced. Thus their rage and hatred -against the infamous foe was increased. The terrible havoc caused by the -German weapons of war was only another illustration of the Hunnish -brutality of those barbarians; whereas on the side of the Entente no -time was left the soldiers to meditate on the similar havoc which their -own weapons were capable of. Thus the British soldier was never allowed -to feel that the information which he received at home was untrue. -Unfortunately the opposite was the case with the Germans, who finally -wound up by rejecting everything from home as pure swindle and humbug. -This result was made possible because at home they thought that the work -of propaganda could be entrusted to the first ass that came along, -braying of his own special talents, and they had no conception of the -fact that propaganda demands the most skilled brains that can be found. - -Thus the German war propaganda afforded us an incomparable example of -how the work of 'enlightenment' should not be done and how such an -example was the result of an entire failure to take any psychological -considerations whatsoever into account. - -From the enemy, however, a fund of valuable knowledge could be gained by -those who kept their eyes open, whose powers of perception had not yet -become sclerotic, and who during four-and-a-half years had to experience -the perpetual flood of enemy propaganda. - -The worst of all was that our people did not understand the very first -condition which has to be fulfilled in every kind of propaganda; namely, -a systematically one-sided attitude towards every problem that has to be -dealt with. In this regard so many errors were committed, even from the -very beginning of the war, that it was justifiable to doubt whether so -much folly could be attributed solely to the stupidity of people in -higher quarters. - -What, for example, should we say of a poster which purported to -advertise some new brand of soap by insisting on the excellent qualities -of the competitive brands? We should naturally shake our heads. And it -ought to be just the same in a similar kind of political advertisement. -The aim of propaganda is not to try to pass judgment on conflicting -rights, giving each its due, but exclusively to emphasize the right -which we are asserting. Propaganda must not investigate the truth -objectively and, in so far as it is favourable to the other side, -present it according to the theoretical rules of justice; yet it must -present only that aspect of the truth which is favourable to its own -side. - -It was a fundamental mistake to discuss the question of who was -responsible for the outbreak of the war and declare that the sole -responsibility could not be attributed to Germany. The sole -responsibility should have been laid on the shoulders of the enemy, -without any discussion whatsoever. - -And what was the consequence of these half-measures? The broad masses of -the people are not made up of diplomats or professors of public -jurisprudence nor simply of persons who are able to form reasoned -judgment in given cases, but a vacillating crowd of human children who -are constantly wavering between one idea and another. As soon as our own -propaganda made the slightest suggestion that the enemy had a certain -amount of justice on his side, then we laid down the basis on which the -justice of our own cause could be questioned. The masses are not in a -position to discern where the enemy's fault ends and where our own -begins. In such a case they become hesitant and distrustful, especially -when the enemy does not make the same mistake but heaps all the blame on -his adversary. Could there be any clearer proof of this than the fact -that finally our own people believed what was said by the enemy's -propaganda, which was uniform and consistent in its assertions, rather -than what our own propaganda said? And that, of course, was increased by -the mania for objectivity which addicts our people. Everybody began to -be careful about doing an injustice to the enemy, even at the cost of -seriously injuring, and even ruining his own people and State. - -Naturally the masses were not conscious of the fact that those in -authority had failed to study the subject from this angle. - -The great majority of a nation is so feminine in its character and -outlook that its thought and conduct are ruled by sentiment rather than -by sober reasoning. This sentiment, however, is not complex, but simple -and consistent. It is not highly differentiated, but has only the -negative and positive notions of love and hatred, right and wrong, truth -and falsehood. Its notions are never partly this and partly that. -English propaganda especially understood this in a marvellous way and -put what they understood into practice. They allowed no half-measures -which might have given rise to some doubt. - -Proof of how brilliantly they understood that the feeling of the masses -is something primitive was shown in their policy of publishing tales of -horror and outrages which fitted in with the real horrors of the time, -thereby cleverly and ruthlessly preparing the ground for moral -solidarity at the front, even in times of great defeats. Further, the -way in which they pilloried the German enemy as solely responsible for -the war--which was a brutal and absolute falsehood--and the way in which -they proclaimed his guilt was excellently calculated to reach the -masses, realizing that these are always extremist in their feelings. And -thus it was that this atrocious lie was positively believed. - -The effectiveness of this kind of propaganda is well illustrated by the -fact that after four-and-a-half years, not only was the enemy still -carrying on his propagandist work, but it was already undermining the -stamina of our people at home. - -That our propaganda did not achieve similar results is not to be -wondered at, because it had the germs of inefficiency lodged in its very -being by reason of its ambiguity. And because of the very nature of its -content one could not expect it to make the necessary impression on the -masses. Only our feckless 'statesmen' could have imagined that on -pacifists slops of such a kind the enthusiasm could be nourished which -is necessary to enkindle that spirit which leads men to die for their -country. - -And so this product of ours was not only worthless but detrimental. - -No matter what an amount of talent employed in the organization of -propaganda, it will have no result if due account is not taken of these -fundamental principles. Propaganda must be limited to a few simple -themes and these must be represented again and again. Here, as in -innumerable other cases, perseverance is the first and most important -condition of success. - -Particularly in the field of propaganda, placid aesthetes and blase -intellectuals should never be allowed to take the lead. The former would -readily transform the impressive character of real propaganda into -something suitable only for literary tea parties. As to the second class -of people, one must always beware of this pest; for, in consequence of -their insensibility to normal impressions, they are constantly seeking -new excitements. - -Such people grow sick and tired of everything. They always long for -change and will always be incapable of putting themselves in the -position of picturing the wants of their less callous fellow-creatures -in their immediate neighbourhood, let alone trying to understand them. -The blase intellectuals are always the first to criticize propaganda, or -rather its message, because this appears to them to be outmoded and -trivial. They are always looking for something new, always yearning for -change; and thus they become the mortal enemies of every effort that may -be made to influence the masses in an effective way. The moment the -organization and message of a propagandist movement begins to be -orientated according to their tastes it becomes incoherent and -scattered. - -It is not the purpose of propaganda to create a series of alterations in -sentiment with a view to pleasing these blase gentry. Its chief function -is to convince the masses, whose slowness of understanding needs to be -given time in order that they may absorb information; and only constant -repetition will finally succeed in imprinting an idea on the memory of -the crowd. - -Every change that is made in the subject of a propagandist message must -always emphasize the same conclusion. The leading slogan must of course -be illustrated in many ways and from several angles, but in the end one -must always return to the assertion of the same formula. In this way -alone can propaganda be consistent and dynamic in its effects. - -Only by following these general lines and sticking to them steadfastly, -with uniform and concise emphasis, can final success be reached. Then -one will be rewarded by the surprising and almost incredible results -that such a persistent policy secures. - -The success of any advertisement, whether of a business or political -nature, depends on the consistency and perseverance with which it is -employed. - -In this respect also the propaganda organized by our enemies set us an -excellent example. It confined itself to a few themes, which were meant -exclusively for mass consumption, and it repeated these themes with -untiring perseverance. Once these fundamental themes and the manner of -placing them before the world were recognized as effective, they adhered -to them without the slightest alteration for the whole duration of the -War. At first all of it appeared to be idiotic in its impudent -assertiveness. Later on it was looked upon as disturbing, but finally it -was believed. - -But in England they came to understand something further: namely, that -the possibility of success in the use of this spiritual weapon consists -in the mass employment of it, and that when employed in this way it -brings full returns for the large expenses incurred. - -In England propaganda was regarded as a weapon of the first order, -whereas with us it represented the last hope of a livelihood for our -unemployed politicians and a snug job for shirkers of the modest hero -type. - -Taken all in all, its results were negative. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - - - -THE REVOLUTION - - -In 1915 the enemy started his propaganda among our soldiers. From 1916 -onwards it steadily became more intensive, and at the beginning of 1918 -it had swollen into a storm flood. One could now judge the effects of -this proselytizing movement step by step. Gradually our soldiers began -to think just in the way the enemy wished them to think. On the German -side there was no counter-propaganda. - -At that time the army authorities, under our able and resolute -Commander, were willing and ready to take up the fight in the propaganda -domain also, but unfortunately they did not have the necessary means to -carry that intention into effect. Moreover, the army authorities would -have made a psychological mistake had they undertaken this task of -mental training. To be efficacious it had come from the home front. For -only thus could it be successful among men who for nearly four years now -had been performing immortal deeds of heroism and undergoing all sorts -of privations for the sake of that home. But what were the people at -home doing? Was their failure to act merely due to unintelligence or bad -faith? - -In the midsummer of 1918, after the evacuation of the southern bank of -the hearne, the German Press adopted a policy which was so woefully -inopportune, and even criminally stupid, that I used to ask myself a -question which made me more and more furious day after day: Is it really -true that we have nobody who will dare to put an end to this process of -spiritual sabotage which is being carried on among our heroic troops? - -What happened in France during those days of 1914, when our armies -invaded that country and were marching in triumph from one victory to -another? What happened in Italy when their armies collapsed on the -Isonzo front? What happened in France again during the spring of 1918, -when German divisions took the main French positions by storm and heavy -long-distance artillery bombarded Paris? - -How they whipped up the flagging courage of those troops who were -retreating and fanned the fires of national enthusiasm among them! How -their propaganda and their marvellous aptitude in the exercise of -mass-influence reawakened the fighting spirit in that broken front and -hammered into the heads of the soldiers a, firm belief in final victory! - -Meanwhile, what were our people doing in this sphere? Nothing, or even -worse than nothing. Again and again I used to become enraged and -indignant as I read the latest papers and realized the nature of the -mass-murder they were committing: through their influence on the minds -of the people and the soldiers. More than once I was tormented by the -thought that if Providence had put the conduct of German propaganda into -my hands, instead of into the hands of those incompetent and even -criminal ignoramuses and weaklings, the outcome of the struggle might -have been different. - -During those months I felt for the first time that Fate was dealing -adversely with me in keeping me on the fighting front and in a position -where any chance bullet from some nigger or other might finish me, -whereas I could have done the Fatherland a real service in another -sphere. For I was then presumptuous enough to believe that I would have -been successful in managing the propaganda business. - -But I was a being without a name, one among eight millions. Hence it was -better for me to keep my mouth shut and do my duty as well as I could in -the position to which I had been assigned. - -In the summer of 1915 the first enemy leaflets were dropped on our -trenches. They all told more or less the same story, with some -variations in the form of it. The story was that distress was steadily -on the increase in Germany; that the War would last indefinitely; that -the prospect of victory for us was becoming fainter day after day; that -the people at home were yearning for peace, but that 'Militarism' and -the 'Kaiser' would not permit it; that the world--which knew this very -well--was not waging war against the German people but only against the -man who was exclusively responsible, the Kaiser; that until this enemy -of world-peace was removed there could be no end to the conflict; but -that when the War was over the liberal and democratic nations would -receive the Germans as colleagues in the League for World Peace. This -would be done the moment 'Prussian Militarism' had been finally -destroyed. - -To illustrate and substantiate all these statements, the leaflets very -often contained 'Letters from Home', the contents of which appeared to -confirm the enemy's propagandist message. - -Generally speaking, we only laughed at all these efforts. The leaflets -were read, sent to base headquarters, then forgotten until a favourable -wind once again blew a fresh contingent into the trenches. These were -mostly dropped from aeroplanes which were used specially for that -purpose. - -One feature of this propaganda was very striking. It was that in -sections where Bavarian troops were stationed every effort was made by -the enemy propagandists to stir up feeling against the Prussians, -assuring the soldiers that Prussia and Prussia alone was the guilty -party who was responsible for bringing on and continuing the War, and -that there was no hostility whatsoever towards the Bavarians; but that -there could be no possibility of coming to their assistance so long as -they continued to serve Prussian interests and helped to pull the -Prussian chestnuts out of the fire. - -This persistent propaganda began to have a real influence on our -soldiers in 1915. The feeling against Prussia grew quite noticeable -among the Bavarian troops, but those in authority did nothing to -counteract it. This was something more than a mere crime of omission; -for sooner or later not only the Prussians were bound to have to atone -severely for it but the whole German nation and consequently the -Bavarians themselves also. - -In this direction the enemy propaganda began to achieve undoubted -success from 1916 onwards. - -In a similar way letters coming directly from home had long since been -exercising their effect. There was now no further necessity for the -enemy to broadcast such letters in leaflet form. And also against this -influence from home nothing was done except a few supremely stupid -'warnings' uttered by the executive government. The whole front was -drenched in this poison which thoughtless women at home sent out, -without suspecting for a moment that the enemy's chances of final -victory were thus strengthened or that the sufferings of their own men -at the front were thus being prolonged and rendered more severe. These -stupid letters written by German women eventually cost the lives of -hundreds of thousands of our men. - -Thus in 1916 several distressing phenomena were already manifest. The -whole front was complaining and grousing, discontented over many things -and often justifiably so. While they were hungry and yet patient, and -their relatives at home were in distress, in other quarters there was -feasting and revelry. Yes; even on the front itself everything was not -as it ought to have been in this regard. - -Even in the early stages of the war the soldiers were sometimes prone to -complain; but such criticism was confined to 'internal affairs'. The man -who at one moment groused and grumbled ceased his murmur after a few -moments and went about his duty silently, as if everything were in -order. The company which had given signs of discontent a moment earlier -hung on now to its bit of trench, defending it tooth and nail, as if -Germany's fate depended on these few hundred yards of mud and -shell-holes. The glorious old army was still at its post. A sudden -change in my own fortunes soon placed me in a position where I had -first-hand experience of the contrast between this old army and the home -front. At the end of September 1916 my division was sent into the Battle -of the Somme. For us this was the first of a series of heavy -engagements, and the impression created was that of a veritable inferno, -rather than war. Through weeks of incessant artillery bombardment we -stood firm, at times ceding a little ground but then taking it back -again, and never giving way. On October 7th, 1916, I was wounded but had -the luck of being able to get back to our lines and was then ordered to -be sent by ambulance train to Germany. - -Two years had passed since I had left home, an almost endless period in -such circumstances. I could hardly imagine what Germans looked like -without uniforms. In the clearing hospital at Hermies I was startled -when I suddenly heard the voice of a German woman who was acting as -nursing sister and talking with one of the wounded men lying near me. -Two years! And then this voice for the first time! - -The nearer our ambulance train approached the German frontier the more -restless each one of us became. En route we recognised all these places -through which we passed two years before as young volunteers--Brussels, -Louvain, Li�ge--and finally we thought we recognized the first German -homestead, with its familiar high gables and picturesque -window-shutters. Home! - -What a change! From the mud of the Somme battlefields to the spotless -white beds in this wonderful building. One hesitated at first before -entering them. It was only by slow stages that one could grow accustomed -to this new world again. But unfortunately there were certain other -aspects also in which this new world was different. - -The spirit of the army at the front appeared to be out of place here. -For the first time I encountered something which up to then was unknown -at the front: namely, boasting of one's own cowardice. For, though we -certainly heard complaining and grousing at the front, this was never in -the spirit of any agitation to insubordination and certainly not an -attempt to glorify one's fear. No; there at the front a coward was a -coward and nothing else, And the contempt which his weakness aroused in -the others was quite general, just as the real hero was admired all -round. But here in hospital the spirit was quite different in some -respects. Loudmouthed agitators were busy here in heaping ridicule on -the good soldier and painting the weak-kneed poltroon in glorious -colours. A couple of miserable human specimens were the ringleaders in -this process of defamation. One of them boasted of having intentionally -injured his hand in barbed-wire entanglements in order to get sent to -hospital. Although his wound was only a slight one, it appeared that he -had been here for a very long time and would be here interminably. Some -arrangement for him seemed to be worked by some sort of swindle, just as -he got sent here in the ambulance train through a swindle. This -pestilential specimen actually had the audacity to parade his knavery as -the manifestation of a courage which was superior to that of the brave -soldier who dies a hero's death. There were many who heard this talk in -silence; but there were others who expressed their assent to what the -fellow said. - -Personally I was disgusted at the thought that a seditious agitator of -this kind should be allowed to remain in such an institution. What could -be done? The hospital authorities here must have known who and what he -was; and actually they did know. But still they did nothing about it. - -As soon as I was able to walk once again I obtained leave to visit -Berlin. - -Bitter want was in evidence everywhere. The metropolis, with its teeming -millions, was suffering from hunger. The talk that was current in the -various places of refreshment and hospices visited by the soldiers was -much the same as that in our hospital. The impression given was that -these agitators purposely singled out such places in order to spread -their views. - -But in Munich conditions were far worse. After my discharge from -hospital, I was sent to a reserve battalion there. I felt as in some -strange town. Anger, discontent, complaints met one's ears wherever one -went. To a certain extent this was due to the infinitely maladroit -manner in which the soldiers who had returned from the front were -treated by the non-commissioned officers who had never seen a day's -active service and who on that account were partly incapable of adopting -the proper attitude towards the old soldiers. Naturally those old -soldiers displayed certain characteristics which had been developed from -the experiences in the trenches. The officers of the reserve units could -not understand these peculiarities, whereas the officer home from active -service was at least in a position to understand them for himself. As a -result he received more respect from the men than officers at the home -headquarters. But, apart from all this, the general spirit was -deplorable. The art of shirking was looked upon as almost a proof of -higher intelligence, and devotion to duty was considered a sign of -weakness or bigotry. Government offices were staffed by Jews. Almost -every clerk was a Jew and every Jew was a clerk. I was amazed at this -multitude of combatants who belonged to the chosen people and could not -help comparing it with their slender numbers in the fighting lines. - -In the business world the situation was even worse. Here the Jews had -actually become 'indispensable'. Like leeches, they were slowly sucking -the blood from the pores of the national body. By means of newly floated -War Companies an instrument had been discovered whereby all national -trade was throttled so that no business could be carried on freely - -Special emphasis was laid on the necessity for unhampered -centralization. Hence as early as 1916-17 practically all production was -under the control of Jewish finance. - -But against whom was the anger of the people directed? It was then that -I already saw the fateful day approaching which must finally bring the -DEBACLE, unless timely preventive measures were taken. - -While Jewry was busy despoiling the nation and tightening the screws of -its despotism, the work of inciting the people against the Prussians -increased. And just as nothing was done at the front to put a stop to -the venomous propaganda, so here at home no official steps were taken -against it. Nobody seemed capable of understanding that the collapse of -Prussia could never bring about the rise of Bavaria. On the contrary, -the collapse of the one must necessarily drag the other down with it. - -This kind of behaviour affected me very deeply. In it I could see only a -clever Jewish trick for diverting public attention from themselves to -others. While Prussians and Bavarians were squabbling, the Jews were -taking away the sustenance of both from under their very noses. While -Prussians were being abused in Bavaria the Jews organized the revolution -and with one stroke smashed both Prussia and Bavaria. - -I could not tolerate this execrable squabbling among people of the same -German stock and preferred to be at the front once again. Therefore, -just after my arrival in Munich I reported myself for service again. At -the beginning of March 1917 I rejoined my old regiment at the front. - -Towards the end of 1917 it seemed as if we had got over the worst phases -of moral depression at the front. After the Russian collapse the whole -army recovered its courage and hope, and all were gradually becoming -more and more convinced that the struggle would end in our favour. We -could sing once again. The ravens were ceasing to croak. Faith in the -future of the Fatherland was once more in the ascendant. - -The Italian collapse in the autumn of 1917 had a wonderful effect; for -this victory proved that it was possible to break through another front -besides the Russian. This inspiring thought now became dominant in the -minds of millions at the front and encouraged them to look forward with -confidence to the spring of 1918. It was quite obvious that the enemy -was in a state of depression. During this winter the front was somewhat -quieter than usual. But that was the calm before the storm. - -Just when preparations were being made to launch a final offensive which -would bring this seemingly eternal struggle to an end, while endless -columns of transports were bringing men and munitions to the front, and -while the men were being trained for that final onslaught, then it was -that the greatest act of treachery during the whole War was accomplished -in Germany. - -Germany must not win the War. At that moment when victory seemed ready -to alight on the German standards, a conspiracy was arranged for the -purpose of striking at the heart of the German spring offensive with one -blow from the rear and thus making victory impossible. A general strike -in the munition factories was organized. - -If this conspiracy could achieve its purpose the German front would have -collapsed and the wishes of the VORW�RTS (the organ of the -Social-Democratic Party) that this time victory should not take the side -of the German banners, would have been fulfilled. For want of munitions -the front would be broken through within a few weeks, the offensive -would be effectively stopped and the Entente saved. Then International -Finance would assume control over Germany and the internal objective of -the Marxist national betrayal would be achieved. That objective was the -destruction of the national economic system and the establishment of -international capitalistic domination in its stead. And this goal has -really been reached, thanks to the stupid credulity of the one side and -the unspeakable treachery of the other. - -The munition strike, however, did not bring the final success that had -been hoped for: namely, to starve the front of ammunition. It lasted too -short a time for the lack of ammunitions as such to bring disaster to -the army, as was originally planned. But the moral damage was much more -terrible. - -In the first place. what was the army fighting for if the people at home -did not wish it to be victorious? For whom then were these enormous -sacrifices and privations being made and endured? Must the soldiers -fight for victory while the home front goes on strike against it? - -In the second place, what effect did this move have on the enemy? - -In the winter of 1917-18 dark clouds hovered in the firmament of the -Entente. For nearly four years onslaught after onslaught has been made -against the German giant, but they failed to bring him to the ground. He -had to keep them at bay with one arm that held the defensive shield -because his other arm had to be free to wield the sword against his -enemies, now in the East and now in the South. But at last these enemies -were overcome and his rear was now free for the conflict in the West. -Rivers of blood had been shed for the accomplishment of that task; but -now the sword was free to combine in battle with the shield on the -Western Front. And since the enemy had hitherto failed to break the -German defence here, the Germans themselves had now to launch the -attack. The enemy feared and trembled before the prospect of this German -victory. - -At Paris and London conferences followed one another in unending series. -Even the enemy propaganda encountered difficulties. It was no longer so -easy to demonstrate that the prospect of a German victory was hopeless. -A prudent silence reigned at the front, even among the troops of the -Entente. The insolence of their masters had suddenly subsided. A -disturbing truth began to dawn on them. Their opinion of the German -soldier had changed. Hitherto they were able to picture him as a kind of -fool whose end would be destruction; but now they found themselves face -to face with the soldier who had overcome their Russian ally. The policy -of restricting the offensive to the East, which had been imposed on the -German military authorities by the necessities of the situation, now -seemed to the Entente as a tactical stroke of genius. For three years -these Germans had been battering away at the Russian front without any -apparent success at first. Those fruitless efforts were almost sneered -at; for it was thought that in the long run the Russian giant would -triumph through sheer force of numbers. Germany would be worn out -through shedding so much blood. And facts appeared to confirm this hope. - -Since the September days of 1914, when for the first time interminable -columns of Russian war prisoners poured into Germany after the Battle of -Tannenberg, it seemed as if the stream would never end but that as soon -as one army was defeated and routed another would take its place. The -supply of soldiers which the gigantic Empire placed at the disposal of -the Czar seemed inexhaustible; new victims were always at hand for the -holocaust of war. How long could Germany hold out in this competition? -Would not the day finally have to come when, after the last victory -which the Germans would achieve, there would still remain reserve armies -in Russia to be mustered for the final battle? And what then? According -to human standards a Russian victory over Germany might be delayed but -it would have to come in the long run. - -All the hopes that had been based on Russia were now lost. The Ally who -had sacrificed the most blood on the altar of their mutual interests had -come to the end of his resources and lay prostrate before his -unrelenting foe. A feeling of terror and dismay came over the Entente -soldiers who had hitherto been buoyed up by blind faith. They feared the -coming spring. For, seeing that hitherto they had failed to break the -Germans when the latter could concentrate only part of the fighting -strength on the Western Front, how could they count on victory now that -the undivided forces of that amazing land of heroes appeared to be -gathered for a massed attack in the West? - -The shadow of the events which had taken place in South Tyrol, the -spectre of General Cadorna's defeated armies, were reflected in the -gloomy faces of the Entente troops in Flanders. Faith in victory gave -way to fear of defeat to come. - -Then, on those cold nights, when one almost heard the tread of the -German armies advancing to the great assault, and the decision was being -awaited in fear and trembling, suddenly a lurid light was set aglow in -Germany and sent its rays into the last shell-hole on the enemy's front. -At the very moment when the German divisions were receiving their final -orders for the great offensive a general strike broke out in Germany. - -At first the world was dumbfounded. Then the enemy propaganda began -activities once again and pounced on this theme at the eleventh hour. -All of a sudden a means had come which could be utilized to revive the -sinking confidence of the Entente soldiers. The probabilities of victory -could now be presented as certain, and the anxious foreboding in regard -to coming events could now be transformed into a feeling of resolute -assurance. The regiments that had to bear the brunt of the Greatest -German onslaught in history could now be inspired with the conviction -that the final decision in this war would not be won by the audacity of -the German assault but rather by the powers of endurance on the side of -the defence. Let the Germans now have whatever victories they liked, the -revolution and not the victorious army was welcomed in the Fatherland. - -British, French and American newspapers began to spread this belief -among their readers while a very ably managed propaganda encouraged the -morale of their troops at the front. - -'Germany Facing Revolution! An Allied Victory Inevitable!' That was the -best medicine to set the staggering Poilu and Tommy on their feet once -again. Our rifles and machine-guns could now open fire once again; but -instead of effecting a panic-stricken retreat they were now met with a -determined resistance that was full of confidence. - -That was the result of the strike in the munitions factories. Throughout -the enemy countries faith in victory was thus revived and strengthened, -and that paralysing feeling of despair which had hitherto made itself -felt on the Entente front was banished. Consequently the strike cost the -lives of thousands of German soldiers. But the despicable instigators of -that dastardly strike were candidates for the highest public positions -in the Germany of the Revolution. - -At first it was apparently possible to overcome the repercussion of -these events on the German soldiers, but on the enemy's side they had a -lasting effect. Here the resistance had lost all the character of an -army fighting for a lost cause. In its place there was now a grim -determination to struggle through to victory. For, according to all -human rules of judgment, victory would now be assured if the Western -front could hold out against the German offensive even for only a few -months. The Allied parliaments recognized the possibilities of a better -future and voted huge sums of money for the continuation of the -propaganda which was employed for the purpose of breaking up the -internal cohesion of Germany. - -It was my luck that I was able to take part in the first two offensives -and in the final offensive. These have left on me the most stupendous -impressions of my life--stupendous, because now for the last time the -struggle lost its defensive character and assumed the character of an -offensive, just as it was in 1914. A sigh of relief went up from the -German trenches and dug-outs when finally, after three years of -endurance in that inferno, the day for the settling of accounts had -come. Once again the lusty cheering of victorious battalions was heard, -as they hung the last crowns of the immortal laurel on the standards -which they consecrated to Victory. Once again the strains of patriotic -songs soared upwards to the heavens above the endless columns of -marching troops, and for the last time the Lord smiled on his ungrateful -children. - -In the midsummer of 1918 a feeling of sultry oppression hung over the -front. At home they were quarrelling. About what? We heard a great deal -among various units at the front. The War was now a hopeless affair, and -only the foolhardy could think of victory. It was not the people but the -capitalists and the Monarchy who were interested in carrying on. Such -were the ideas that came from home and were discussed at the front. - -At first this gave rise to only very slight reaction. What did universal -suffrage matter to us? Is this what we had been fighting for during four -years? It was a dastardly piece of robbery thus to filch from the graves -of our heroes the ideals for which they had fallen. It was not to the -slogan, 'Long Live Universal Suffrage,' that our troops in Flanders once -faced certain death but with the cry, 'DEUTSCHLAND �BER ALLES IN DER -WELT'. A small but by no means an unimportant difference. And the -majority of those who were shouting for this suffrage were absent when -it came to fighting for it. All this political rabble were strangers to -us at the front. During those days only a fraction of these -parliamentarian gentry were to be seen where honest Germans -foregathered. - -The old soldiers who had fought at the front had little liking for those -new war aims of Messrs. Ebert, Scheidemann, Barth, Liebknecht and -others. We could not understand why, all of a sudden, the shirkers -should abrogate all executive powers to themselves, without having any -regard to the army. - -From the very beginning I had my own definite personal views. I -intensely loathed the whole gang of miserable party politicians who had -betrayed the people. I had long ago realized that the interests of the -nation played only a very small part with this disreputable crew and -that what counted with them was the possibility of filling their own -empty pockets. My opinion was that those people thoroughly deserved to -be hanged, because they were ready to sacrifice the peace and if -necessary allow Germany to be defeated just to serve their own ends. To -consider their wishes would mean to sacrifice the interests of the -working classes for the benefit of a gang of thieves. To meet their -wishes meant that one should agree to sacrifice Germany. - -Such, too, was the opinion still held by the majority of the army. But -the reinforcements which came from home were fast becoming worse and -worse; so much so that their arrival was a source of weakness rather -than of strength to our fighting forces. The young recruits in -particular were for the most part useless. Sometimes it was hard to -believe that they were sons of the same nation that sent its youth into -the battles that were fought round Ypres. - -In August and September the symptoms of moral disintegration increased -more and more rapidly, although the enemy's offensive was not at all -comparable to the frightfulness of our own former defensive battles. In -comparison with this offensive the battles fought on the Somme and in -Flanders remained in our memories as the most terrible of all horrors. - -At the end of September my division occupied, for the third time, those -positions which we had once taken by storm as young volunteers. What a -memory! - -Here we had received our baptism of fire, in October and November 1914. -With a burning love of the homeland in their hearts and a song on their -lips, our young regiment went into action as if going to a dance. The -dearest blood was given freely here in the belief that it was shed to -protect the freedom and independence of the Fatherland. - -In July 1917 we set foot for the second time on what we regarded as -sacred soil. Were not our best comrades at rest here, some of them -little more than boys--the soldiers who had rushed into death for their -country's sake, their eyes glowing with enthusiastic love. - -The older ones among us, who had been with the regiment from the -beginning, were deeply moved as we stood on this sacred spot where we -had sworn 'Loyalty and Duty unto Death'. Three years ago the regiment -had taken this position by storm; now it was called upon to defend it in -a gruelling struggle. - -With an artillery bombardment that lasted three weeks the English -prepared for their great offensive in Flanders. There the spirits of the -dead seemed to live again. The regiment dug itself into the mud, clung -to its shell-holes and craters, neither flinching nor wavering, but -growing smaller in numbers day after day. Finally the British launched -their attack on July 31st, 1917. - -We were relieved in the beginning of August. The regiment had dwindled -down to a few companies, who staggered back, mud-crusted, more like -phantoms than human beings. Besides a few hundred yards of shell-holes, -death was the only reward which the English gained. - -Now in the autumn of 1918 we stood for the third time on the ground we -had stormed in 1914. The village of Comines, which formerly had served -us as a base, was now within the fighting zone. Although little had -changed in the surrounding district itself, yet the men had become -different, somehow or other. They now talked politics. Like everywhere -else, the poison from home was having its effect here also. The young -drafts succumbed to it completely. They had come directly from home. - -During the night of October 13th-14th, the British opened an attack with -gas on the front south of Ypres. They used the yellow gas whose effect -was unknown to us, at least from personal experience. I was destined to -experience it that very night. On a hill south of Werwick, in the -evening of October 13th, we were subjected for several hours to a heavy -bombardment with gas bombs, which continued throughout the night with -more or less intensity. About midnight a number of us were put out of -action, some for ever. Towards morning I also began to feel pain. It -increased with every quarter of an hour; and about seven o'clock my eyes -were scorching as I staggered back and delivered the last dispatch I was -destined to carry in this war. A few hours later my eyes were like -glowing coals and all was darkness around me. - -I was sent into hospital at Pasewalk in Pomerania, and there it was that -I had to hear of the Revolution. - -For a long time there had been something in the air which was -indefinable and repulsive. People were saying that something was bound -to happen within the next few weeks, although I could not imagine what -this meant. In the first instance I thought of a strike similar to the -one which had taken place in spring. Unfavourable rumours were -constantly coming from the Navy, which was said to be in a state of -ferment. But this seemed to be a fanciful creation of a few isolated -young people. It is true that at the hospital they were all talking abut -the end of the war and hoping that this was not far off, but nobody -thought that the decision would come immediately. I was not able to read -the newspapers. - -In November the general tension increased. Then one day disaster broke -in upon us suddenly and without warning. Sailors came in motor-lorries -and called on us to rise in revolt. A few Jew-boys were the leaders in -that combat for the 'Liberty, Beauty, and Dignity' of our National -Being. Not one of them had seen active service at the front. Through the -medium of a hospital for venereal diseases these three Orientals had -been sent back home. Now their red rags were being hoisted here. - -During the last few days I had begun to feel somewhat better. The -burning pain in the eye-sockets had become less severe. Gradually I was -able to distinguish the general outlines of my immediate surroundings. -And it was permissible to hope that at least I would recover my sight -sufficiently to be able to take up some profession later on. That I -would ever be able to draw or design once again was naturally out of the -question. Thus I was on the way to recovery when the frightful hour -came. - -My first thought was that this outbreak of high treason was only a local -affair. I tried to enforce this belief among my comrades. My Bavarian -hospital mates, in particular, were readily responsive. Their -inclinations were anything but revolutionary. I could not imagine this -madness breaking out in Munich; for it seemed to me that loyalty to the -House of Wittelsbach was, after all, stronger than the will of a few -Jews. And so I could not help believing that this was merely a revolt in -the Navy and that it would be suppressed within the next few days. - -With the next few days came the most astounding information of my life. -The rumours grew more and more persistent. I was told that what I had -considered to be a local affair was in reality a general revolution. In -addition to this, from the front came the shameful news that they wished -to capitulate! What! Was such a thing possible? - -On November 10th the local pastor visited the hospital for the purpose -of delivering a short address. And that was how we came to know the -whole story. - -I was in a fever of excitement as I listened to the address. The -reverend old gentleman seemed to be trembling when he informed us that -the House of Hohen-zollern should no longer wear the Imperial Crown, -that the Fatherland had become a 'Republic', that we should pray to the -Almighty not to withhold His blessing from the new order of things and -not to abandon our people in the days to come. In delivering this -message he could not do more than briefly express appreciation of the -Royal House, its services to Pomerania, to Prussia, indeed, to the whole -of the German Fatherland, and--here he began to weep. A feeling of -profound dismay fell on the people in that assembly, and I do not think -there was a single eye that withheld its tears. As for myself, I broke -down completely when the old gentleman tried to resume his story by -informing us that we must now end this long war, because the war was -lost, he said, and we were at the mercy of the victor. The Fatherland -would have to bear heavy burdens in the future. We were to accept the -terms of the Armistice and trust to the magnanimity of our former -enemies. It was impossible for me to stay and listen any longer. -Darkness surrounded me as I staggered and stumbled back to my ward and -buried my aching head between the blankets and pillow. - -I had not cried since the day that I stood beside my mother's grave. -Whenever Fate dealt cruelly with me in my young days the spirit of -determination within me grew stronger and stronger. During all those -long years of war, when Death claimed many a true friend and comrade -from our ranks, to me it would have appeared sinful to have uttered a -word of complaint. Did they not die for Germany? And, finally, almost in -the last few days of that titanic struggle, when the waves of poison gas -enveloped me and began to penetrate my eyes, the thought of becoming -permanently blind unnerved me; but the voice of conscience cried out -immediately: Poor miserable fellow, will you start howling when there -are thousands of others whose lot is a hundred times worse than yours? -And so I accepted my misfortune in silence, realizing that this was the -only thing to be done and that personal suffering was nothing when -compared with the misfortune of one's country. - -So all had been in vain. In vain all the sacrifices and privations, in -vain the hunger and thirst for endless months, in vain those hours that -we stuck to our posts though the fear of death gripped our souls, and in -vain the deaths of two millions who fell in discharging this duty. Think -of those hundreds of thousands who set out with hearts full of faith in -their fatherland, and never returned; ought not their graves to open, so -that the spirits of those heroes bespattered with mud and blood should -come home and take vengeance on those who had so despicably betrayed the -greatest sacrifice which a human being can make for his country? Was it -for this that the soldiers died in August and September 1914, for this -that the volunteer regiments followed the old comrades in the autumn of -the same year? Was it for this that those boys of seventeen years of age -were mingled with the earth of Flanders? Was this meant to be the fruits -of the sacrifice which German mothers made for their Fatherland when, -with heavy hearts, they said good-bye to their sons who never returned? -Has all this been done in order to enable a gang of despicable criminals -to lay hands on the Fatherland? - -Was this then what the German soldier struggled for through sweltering -heat and blinding snowstorm, enduring hunger and thirst and cold, -fatigued from sleepless nights and endless marches? Was it for this that -he lived through an inferno of artillery bombardments, lay gasping and -choking during gas attacks, neither flinching nor faltering, but -remaining staunch to the thought of defending the Fatherland against the -enemy? Certainly these heroes also deserved the epitaph: - - Traveller, when you come to Germany, tell the Homeland that we lie - here, true to the Fatherland and faithful to our duty. (Note 13) - -[Note 13. Here again we have the defenders of Thermopylae recalled as the -prototype of German valour in the Great War. Hitler's quotation is a -German variant of the couplet inscribed on the monument erected at -Thermopylae to the memory of Leonidas and his Spartan soldiers who fell -defending the Pass. As given by Herodotus, who claims that he saw the -inscription himself, the original text may be literally translated thus: - - Go, tell the Spartans, thou who passeth by, - That here, obedient to their laws, we lie.] - -And at Home? But--was this the only sacrifice that we had to consider? -Was the Germany of the past a country of little worth? Did she not owe a -certain duty to her own history? Were we still worthy to partake in the -glory of the past? How could we justify this act to future generations? - -What a gang of despicable and depraved criminals! - -The more I tried then to glean some definite information of the terrible -events that had happened the more my head became afire with rage and -shame. What was all the pain I suffered in my eyes compared with this -tragedy? - -The following days were terrible to bear, and the nights still worse. To -depend on the mercy of the enemy was a precept which only fools or -criminal liars could recommend. During those nights my hatred -increased--hatred for the orignators of this dastardly crime. - -During the following days my own fate became clear to me. I was forced -now to scoff at the thought of my personal future, which hitherto had -been the cause of so much worry to me. Was it not ludicrous to think of -building up anything on such a foundation? Finally, it also became clear -to me that it was the inevitable that had happened, something which I -had feared for a long time, though I really did not have the heart to -believe it. - -Emperor William II was the first German Emperor to offer the hand of -friendship to the Marxist leaders, not suspecting that they were -scoundrels without any sense of honour. While they held the imperial -hand in theirs, the other hand was already feeling for the dagger. - -There is no such thing as coming to an understanding with the Jews. It -must be the hard-and-fast 'Either-Or.' - -For my part I then decided that I would take up political work. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - - - -THE BEGINNING OF MY POLITICAL ACTIVITIES - - -Towards the end of November I returned to Munich. I went to the depot of -my regiment, which was now in the hands of the 'Soldiers' Councils'. As -the whole administration was quite repulsive to me, I decided to leave -it as soon as I possibly could. With my faithful war-comrade, -Ernst-Schmidt, I came to Traunstein and remained there until the camp -was broken up. In March 1919 we were back again in Munich. - -The situation there could not last as it was. It tended irresistibly to -a further extension of the Revolution. Eisner's death served only to -hasten this development and finally led to the dictatorship of the -Councils--or, to put it more correctly, to a Jewish hegemony, which -turned out to be transitory but which was the original aim of those who -had contrived the Revolution. - -At that juncture innumerable plans took shape in my mind. I spent whole -days pondering on the problem of what could be done, but unfortunately -every project had to give way before the hard fact that I was quite -unknown and therefore did not have even the first pre-requisite -necessary for effective action. Later on I shall explain the reasons why -I could not decide to join any of the parties then in existence. - -As the new Soviet Revolution began to run its course in Munich my first -activities drew upon me the ill-will of the Central Council. In the -early morning of April 27th, 1919, I was to have been arrested; but the -three fellows who came to arrest me did not have the courage to face my -rifle and withdrew just as they had arrived. - -A few days after the liberation of Munich I was ordered to appear before -the Inquiry Commission which had been set up in the 2nd Infantry -Regiment for the purpose of watching revolutionary activities. That was -my first incursion into the more or less political field. - -After another few weeks I received orders to attend a course of lectures -which were being given to members of the army. This course was meant to -inculcate certain fundamental principles on which the soldier could base -his political ideas. For me the advantage of this organization was that -it gave me a chance of meeting fellow soldiers who were of the same way -of thinking and with whom I could discuss the actual situation. We were -all more or less firmly convinced that Germany could not be saved from -imminent disaster by those who had participated in the November -treachery--that is to say, the Centre and the Social-Democrats; and also -that the so-called Bourgeois-National group could not make good the -damage that had been done, even if they had the best intentions. They -lacked a number of requisites without which such a task could never be -successfully undertaken. The years that followed have justified the -opinions which we held at that time. - -In our small circle we discussed the project of forming a new party. The -leading ideas which we then proposed were the same as those which were -carried into effect afterwards, when the German Labour Party was -founded. The name of the new movement which was to be founded should be -such that of itself, it would appeal to the mass of the people; for all -our efforts would turn out vain and useless if this condition were -lacking. And that was the reason why we chose the name -'Social-Revolutionary Party', particularly because the social principles -of our new organization were indeed revolutionary. - -But there was also a more fundamental reason. The attention which I had -given to economic problems during my earlier years was more or less -confined to considerations arising directly out of the social problem. -Subsequently this outlook broadened as I came to study the German policy -of the Triple Alliance. This policy was very largely the result of an -erroneous valuation of the economic situation, together with a confused -notion as to the basis on which the future subsistence of the German -people could be guaranteed. All these ideas were based on the principle -that capital is exclusively the product of labour and that, just like -labour, it was subject to all the factors which can hinder or promote -human activity. Hence, from the national standpoint, the significance of -capital depended on the greatness and freedom and power of the State, -that is to say, of the nation, and that it is this dependence alone -which leads capital to promote the interests of the State and the -nation, from the instinct of self-preservation and for the sake of its -own development. - -On such principles the attitude of the State towards capital would be -comparatively simple and clear. Its only object would be to make sure -that capital remained subservient to the State and did not allocate to -itself the right to dominate national interests. Thus it could confine -its activities within the two following limits: on the one side, to -assure a vital and independent system of national economy and, on the -other, to safeguard the social rights of the workers. - -Previously I did not recognize with adequate clearness the difference -between capital which is purely the product of creative labour and the -existence and nature of capital which is exclusively the result of -financial speculation. Here I needed an impulse to set my mind thinking -in this direction; but that impulse had hitherto been lacking. - -The requisite impulse now came from one of the men who delivered -lectures in the course I have already mentioned. This was Gottfried -Feder. - -For the first time in my life I heard a discussion which dealt with the -principles of stock-exchange capital and capital which was used for loan -activities. After hearing the first lecture delivered by Feder, the idea -immediately came into my head that I had now found a way to one of the -most essential pre-requisites for the founding of a new party. - -To my mind, Feder's merit consisted in the ruthless and trenchant way in -which he described the double character of the capital engaged in -stock-exchange and loan transaction, laying bare the fact that this -capital is ever and always dependent on the payment of interest. In -fundamental questions his statements were so full of common sense that -those who criticized him did not deny that AU FOND his ideas were sound -but they doubted whether it be possible to put these ideas into -practice. To me this seemed the strongest point in Feder's teaching, -though others considered it a weak point. - -It is not the business of him who lays down a theoretical programme to -explain the various ways in which something can be put into practice. -His task is to deal with the problem as such; and, therefore, he has to -look to the end rather than the means. The important question is whether -an idea is fundamentally right or not. The question of whether or not it -may be difficult to carry it out in practice is quite another matter. -When a man whose task it is to lay down the principles of a programme or -policy begins to busy himself with the question as to whether it is -expedient and practical, instead of confining himself to the statement -of the absolute truth, his work will cease to be a guiding star to those -who are looking about for light and leading and will become merely a -recipe for every-day iife. The man who lays down the programme of a -movement must consider only the goal. It is for the political leader to -point out the way in which that goal may be reached. The thought of the -former will, therefore, be determined by those truths that are -everlasting, whereas the activity of the latter must always be guided by -taking practical account of the circumstances under which those truths -have to be carried into effect. - -The greatness of the one will depend on the absolute truth of his idea, -considered in the abstract; whereas that of the other will depend on -whether or not he correctly judges the given realities and how they may -be utilized under the guidance of the truths established by the former. -The test of greatness as applied to a political leader is the success of -his plans and his enterprises, which means his ability to reach the goal -for which he sets out; whereas the final goal set up by the political -philosopher can never be reached; for human thought may grasp truths and -picture ends which it sees like clear crystal, though such ends can -never be completely fulfilled because human nature is weak and -imperfect. The more an idea is correct in the abstract, and, therefore, -all the more powerful, the smaller is the possibility of putting it into -practice, at least as far as this latter depends on human beings. The -significance of a political philosopher does not depend on the practical -success of the plans he lays down but rather on their absolute truth and -the influence they exert on the progress of mankind. If it were -otherwise, the founders of religions could not be considered as the -greatest men who have ever lived, because their moral aims will never be -completely or even approximately carried out in practice. Even that -religion which is called the Religion of Love is really no more than a -faint reflex of the will of its sublime Founder. But its significance -lies in the orientation which it endeavoured to give to human -civilization, and human virtue and morals. - -This very wide difference between the functions of a political -philosopher and a practical political leader is the reason why the -qualifications necessary for both functions are scarcely ever found -associated in the same person. This applies especially to the so-called -successful politician of the smaller kind, whose activity is indeed -hardly more than practising the art of doing the possible, as Bismarck -modestly defined the art of politics in general. If such a politician -resolutely avoids great ideas his success will be all the easier to -attain; it will be attained more expeditely and frequently will be more -tangible. By reason of this very fact, however, such success is doomed -to futility and sometimes does not even survive the death of its author. -Generally speaking, the work of politicians is without significance for -the following generation, because their temporary success was based on -the expediency of avoiding all really great decisive problems and ideas -which would be valid also for future generations. - -To pursue ideals which will still be of value and significance for the -future is generally not a very profitable undertaking and he who follows -such a course is only very rarely understood by the mass of the people, -who find beer and milk a more persuasive index of political values than -far-sighted plans for the future, the realization of which can only take -place later on and the advantages of which can be reaped only by -posterity. - -Because of a certain vanity, which is always one of the blood-relations -of unintelligence, the general run of politicians will always eschew -those schemes for the future which are really difficult to put into -practice; and they will practise this avoidance so that they may not -lose the immediate favour of the mob. The importance and the success of -such politicians belong exclusively to the present and will be of no -consequence for the future. But that does not worry small-minded people; -they are quite content with momentary results. - -The position of the constructive political philosopher is quite -different. The importance of his work must always be judged from the -standpoint of the future; and he is frequently described by the word -WELTFREMD, or dreamer. While the ability of the politician consists in -mastering the art of the possible, the founder of a political system -belongs to those who are said to please the gods only because they wish -for and demand the impossible. They will always have to renounce -contemporary fame; but if their ideas be immortal, posterity will grant -them its acknowledgment. - -Within long spans of human progress it may occasionally happen that the -practical politician and political philosopher are one. The more -intimate this union is, the greater will be the obstacles which the -activity of the politician will have to encounter. Such a man does not -labour for the purpose of satisfying demands that are obvious to every -philistine, but he reaches out towards ends which can be understood only -by the few. His life is torn asunder by hatred and love. The protest of -his contemporaries, who do not understand the man, is in conflict with -the recognition of posterity, for whom he also works. - -For the greater the work which a man does for the future, the less will -he be appreciated by his contemporaries. His struggle will accordingly -be all the more severe, and his success all the rarer. When, in the -course of centuries, such a man appears who is blessed with success -then, towards the end of his days, he may have a faint prevision of his -future fame. But such great men are only the Marathon runners of -history. The laurels of contemporary fame are only for the brow of the -dying hero. - -The great protagonists are those who fight for their ideas and ideals -despite the fact that they receive no recognition at the hands of their -contemporaries. They are the men whose memories will be enshrined in the -hearts of the future generations. It seems then as if each individual -felt it his duty to make retroactive atonement for the wrong which great -men have suffered at the hands of their contemporaries. Their lives and -their work are then studied with touching and grateful admiration. -Especially in dark days of distress, such men have the power of healing -broken hearts and elevating the despairing spirit of a people. - -To this group belong not only the genuinely great statesmen but all the -great reformers as well. Beside Frederick the Great we have such men as -Martin Luther and Richard Wagner. - -When I heard Gottfried Feder's first lecture on 'The Abolition of the -Interest-Servitude', I understood immediately that here was a truth of -transcendental importance for the future of the German people. The -absolute separation of stock-exchange capital from the economic life of -the nation would make it possible to oppose the process of -internationalization in German business without at the same time -attacking capital as such, for to do this would jeopardize the -foundations of our national independence. I clearly saw what was -developing in Germany and I realized then that the stiffest fight we -would have to wage would not be against the enemy nations but against -international capital. In Feder's speech I found an effective -rallying-cry for our coming struggle. - -Here, again, later events proved how correct was the impression we then -had. The fools among our bourgeois politicians do not mock at us on this -point any more; for even those politicians now see--if they would speak -the truth--that international stock-exchange capital was not only the -chief instigating factor in bringing on the War but that now when the -War is over it turns the peace into a hell. - -The struggle against international finance capital and loan-capital has -become one of the most important points in the programme on which the -German nation has based its fight for economic freedom and independence. - -Regarding the objections raised by so-called practical people, the -following answer must suffice: All apprehensions concerning the fearful -economic consequences that would follow the abolition of the servitude -that results from interest-capital are ill-timed; for, in the first -place, the economic principles hitherto followed have proved quite fatal -to the interests of the German people. The attitude adopted when the -question of maintaining our national existence arose vividly recalls -similar advice once given by experts--the Bavarian Medical College, for -example--on the question of introducing railroads. The fears expressed -by that august body of experts were not realized. Those who travelled in -the coaches of the new 'Steam-horse' did not suffer from vertigo. Those -who looked on did not become ill and the hoardings which had been -erected to conceal the new invention were eventually taken down. Only -those blinds which obscure the vision of the would-be 'experts', have -remained. And that will be always so. - -In the second place, the following must be borne in mind: Any idea may -be a source of danger if it be looked upon as an end in itself, when -really it is only the means to an end. For me and for all genuine -National-Socialists there is only one doctrine. PEOPLE AND FATHERLAND. - -What we have to fight for is the necessary security for the existence -and increase of our race and people, the subsistence of its children and -the maintenance of our racial stock unmixed, the freedom and -independence of the Fatherland; so that our people may be enabled to -fulfil the mission assigned to it by the Creator. - -All ideas and ideals, all teaching and all knowledge, must serve these -ends. It is from this standpoint that everything must be examined and -turned to practical uses or else discarded. Thus a theory can never -become a mere dead dogma since everything will have to serve the -practical ends of everyday life. - -Thus the judgment arrived at by Gottfried Feder determined me to make a -fundamental study of a question with which I had hitherto not been very -familiar. - -I began to study again and thus it was that I first came to understand -perfectly what was the substance and purpose of the life-work of the -Jew, Karl Marx. His CAPITAL became intelligible to me now for the first -time. And in the light of it I now exactly understood the fight of the -Social-Democrats against national economics, a fight which was to -prepare the ground for the hegemony of a real international and -stock-exchange capital. - -In another direction also this course of lectures had important -consequences for me. - -One day I put my name down as wishing to take part in the discussion. -Another of the participants thought that he would break a lance for the -Jews and entered into a lengthy defence of them. This aroused my -opposition. An overwhelming number of those who attended the lecture -course supported my views. The consequence of it all was that, a few -days later, I was assigned to a regiment then stationed at Munich and -given a position there as 'instruction officer'. - -At that time the spirit of discipline was rather weak among those -troops. It was still suffering from the after-effects of the period when -the Soldiers' Councils were in control. Only gradually and carefully -could a new spirit of military discipline and obedience be introduced in -place of 'voluntary obedience', a term which had been used to express -the ideal of military discipline under Kurt Eisner's higgledy-piggledy -regime. The soldiers had to be taught to think and feel in a national -and patriotic way. In these two directions lay my future line of action. - -I took up my work with the greatest delight and devotion. Here I was -presented with an opportunity of speaking before quite a large audience. -I was now able to confirm what I had hitherto merely felt, namely, that -I had a talent for public speaking. My voice had become so much better -that I could be well understood, at least in all parts of the small hall -where the soldiers assembled. - -No task could have been more pleasing to me than this one; for now, -before being demobilized, I was in a position to render useful service -to an institution which had been infinitely dear to my heart: namely, -the army. - -I am able to state that my talks were successful. During the course of -my lectures I have led back hundreds and even thousands of my fellow -countrymen to their people and their fatherland. I 'nationalized' these -troops and by so doing I helped to restore general discipline. - -Here again I made the acquaintance of several comrades whose thought ran -along the same lines as my own and who later became members of the first -group out of which the new movement developed. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - - - -THE GERMAN LABOUR PARTY - - -One day I received an order from my superiors to investigate the nature -of an association which was apparently political. It called itself 'The -German Labour Party' and was soon to hold a meeting at which Gottfried -Feder would speak. I was ordered to attend this meeting and report on -the situation. - -The spirit of curiosity in which the army authorities then regarded -political parties can be very well understood. The Revolution had -granted the soldiers the right to take an active part in politics and it -was particularly those with the smallest experience who had availed -themselves of this right. But not until the Centre and the -Social-Democratic parties were reluctantly forced to recognize that the -sympathies of the soldiers had turned away from the revolutionary -parties towards the national movement and the national reawakening, did -they feel obliged to withdraw from the army the right to vote and to -forbid it all political activity. - -The fact that the Centre and Marxism had adopted this policy was -instructive, because if they had not thus curtailed the 'rights of the -citizen'--as they described the political rights of the soldiers after -the Revolution--the government which had been established in November -1918 would have been overthrown within a few years and the dishonour and -disgrace of the nation would not have been further prolonged. At that -time the soldiers were on the point of taking the best way to rid the -nation of the vampires and valets who served the cause of the Entente in -the interior of the country. But the fact that the so-called 'national' -parties voted enthusiastically for the doctrinaire policy of the -criminals who organized the Revolution in November (1918) helped also to -render the army ineffective as an instrument of national restoration and -thus showed once again where men might be led by the purely abstract -notions accepted by these most gullible people. - -The minds of the bourgeois middle classes had become so fossilized that -they sincerely believed the army could once again become what it had -previously been, namely, a rampart of German valour; while the Centre -Party and the Marxists intended only to extract the poisonous tooth of -nationalism, without which an army must always remain just a police -force but can never be in the position of a military organization -capable of fighting against the outside enemy. This truth was -sufficiently proved by subsequent events. - -Or did our 'national' politicians believe, after all, that the -development of our army could be other than national? This belief might -be possible and could be explained by the fact that during the War they -were not soldiers but merely talkers. In other words, they were -parliamentarians, and, as such, they did not have the slightest idea of -what was passing in the hearts of those men who remembered the greatness -of their own past and also remembered that they had once been the first -soldiers in the world. - -I decided to attend the meeting of this Party, which had hitherto been -entirely unknown to me. When I arrived that evening in the guest room of -the former Sternecker Brewery--which has now become a place of -historical significance for us--I found approximately 20-25 persons -present, most of them belonging to the lower classes. - -The theme of Feder's lecture was already familiar to me; for I had heard -it in the lecture course I have spoken of. Therefore, I could -concentrate my attention on studying the society itself. - -The impression it made upon me was neither good nor bad. I felt that -here was just another one of these many new societies which were being -formed at that time. In those days everybody felt called upon to found a -new Party whenever he felt displeased with the course of events and had -lost confidence in all the parties already existing. Thus it was that -new associations sprouted up all round, to disappear just as quickly, -without exercising any effect or making any noise whatsoever. Generally -speaking, the founders of such associations did not have the slightest -idea of what it means to bring together a number of people for the -foundations of a party or a movement. Therefore these associations -disappeared because of their woeful lack of anything like an adequate -grasp of the necessities of the situation. - -My opinion of the 'German Labour Party' was not very different after I -had listened to their proceedings for about two hours. I was glad when -Feder finally came to a close. I had observed enough and was just about -to leave when it was announced that anybody who wished was free to open -a discussion. Thereupon, I decided to remain. But the discussion seemed -to proceed without anything of vital importance being mentioned, when -suddenly a 'professor' commenced to speak. He opened by throwing doubt -on the accuracy of what Feder had said, and then. after Feder had -replied very effectively, the professor suddenly took up his position on -what he called 'the basis of facts,' but before this he recommended the -young party most urgently to introduce the secession of Bavaria from -Prussia as one of the leading proposals in its programme. In the most -self-assured way, this man kept on insisting that German-Austria would -join Bavaria and that the peace would then function much better. He made -other similarly extravagant statements. At this juncture I felt bound to -ask for permission to speak and to tell the learned gentleman what I -thought. The result was that the honourable gentleman who had last -spoken slipped out of his place, like a whipped cur, without uttering a -sound. While I was speaking the audience listened with an expression of -surprise on their faces. When I was just about to say good-night to the -assembly and to leave, a man came after me quickly and introduced -himself. I did not grasp the name correctly; but he placed a little book -in my hand, which was obviously a political pamphlet, and asked me very -earnestly to read it. - -I was quite pleased; because in this way, I could come to know about -this association without having to attend its tiresome meetings. -Moreover, this man, who had the appearance of a workman, made a good -impression on me. Thereupon, I left the hall. - -At that time I was living in one of the barracks of the 2nd Infantry -Regiment. I had a little room which still bore the unmistakable traces -of the Revolution. During the day I was mostly out, at the quarters of -Light Infantry No. 41 or else attending meetings or lectures, held at -some other branch of the army. I spent only the night at the quarters -where I lodged. Since I usually woke up about five o'clock every morning -I got into the habit of amusing myself with watching little mice which -played around in my small room. I used to place a few pieces of hard -bread or crust on the floor and watch the funny little beasts playing -around and enjoying themselves with these delicacies. I had suffered so -many privations in my own life that I well knew what hunger was and -could only too well picture to myself the pleasure these little -creatures were experiencing. - -So on the morning after the meeting I have mentioned, it happened that -about five o'clock I lay fully awake in bed, watching the mice playing -and vying with each other. As I was not able to go to sleep again, I -suddenly remembered the pamphlet that one of the workers had given me at -the meeting. It was a small pamphlet of which this worker was the -author. In his little book he described how his mind had thrown off the -shackles of the Marxist and trades-union phraseology, and that he had -come back to the nationalist ideals. That was the reason why he had -entitled his little book: "My Political Awakening". The pamphlet secured -my attention the moment I began to read, and I read it with interest to -the end. The process here described was similar to that which I had -experienced in my own case ten years previously. Unconsciously my own -experiences began to stir again in my mind. During that day my thoughts -returned several times to what I had read; but I finally decided to give -the matter no further attention. A week or so later, however, I received -a postcard which informed me, to my astonishment, that I had been -admitted into the German Labour Party. I was asked to answer this -communication and to attend a meeting of the Party Committee on -Wednesday next. - -This manner of getting members rather amazed me, and I did not know -whether to be angry or laugh at it. Hitherto I had not any idea of -entering a party already in existence but wanted to found one of my own. -Such an invitation as I now had received I looked upon as entirely out -of the question for me. - -I was about to send a written reply when my curiosity got the better of -me, and I decided to attend the gathering at the date assigned, so that -I might expound my principles to these gentlemen in person. - -Wednesday came. The tavern in which the meeting was to take place was -the 'Alte Rosenbad' in the Herrnstrasse, into which apparently only an -occasional guest wandered. This was not very surprising in the year -1919, when the bills of fare even at the larger restaurants were only -very modest and scanty in their pretensions and thus not very attractive -to clients. But I had never before heard of this restaurant. - -I went through the badly-lighted guest-room, where not a single guest -was to be seen, and searched for the door which led to the side room; -and there I was face-to-face with the 'Congress'. Under the dim light -shed by a grimy gas-lamp I could see four young people sitting around a -table, one of them the author of the pamphlet. He greeted me cordially -and welcomed me as a new member of the German Labour Party. - -I was taken somewhat aback on being informed that actually the National -President of the Party had not yet come; so I decided that I would keep -back my own exposition for the time being. Finally the President -appeared. He was the man who had been chairman of the meeting held in -the Sternecker Brewery, when Feder spoke. - -My curiosity was stimulated anew and I sat waiting for what was going to -happen. Now I got at least as far as learning the names of the gentlemen -who had been parties to the whole affair. The REICH National President -of the Association was a certain Herr Harrer and the President for the -Munich district was Anton Drexler. - -The minutes of the previous meeting were read out and a vote of -confidence in the secretary was passed. Then came the treasurer's -report. The Society possessed a total fund of seven marks and fifty -pfennigs (a sum corresponding to 7s. 6d. in English money at par), -whereupon the treasurer was assured that he had the confidence of the -members. This was now inserted in the minutes. Then letters of reply -which had been written by the Chairman were read; first, to a letter -received from Kiel, then to one from D�sseldorf and finally to one from -Berlin. All three replies received the approval of all present. Then the -incoming letters were read--one from Berlin, one from D�sseldorf and one -from Kiel. The reception of these letters seemed to cause great -satisfaction. This increasing bulk of correspondence was taken as the -best and most obvious sign of the growing importance of the German -Labour Party. And then? Well, there followed a long discussion of the -replies which would be given to these newly-received letters. - -It was all very awful. This was the worst kind of parish-pump clubbism. -And was I supposed to become a member of such a club? - -The question of new members was next discussed--that is to say, the -question of catching myself in the trap. - -I now began to ask questions. But I found that, apart from a few general -principles, there was nothing--no programme, no pamphlet, nothing at all -in print, no card of membership, not even a party stamp, nothing but -obvious good faith and good intentions. - -I no longer felt inclined to laugh; for what else was all this but a -typical sign of the most complete perplexity and deepest despair in -regard to all political parties, their programmes and views and -activities? The feeling which had induced those few young people to join -in what seemed such a ridiculous enterprise was nothing but the call of -the inner voice which told them--though more intuitively than -consciously--that the whole party system as it had hitherto existed was -not the kind of force that could restore the German nation or repair the -damages that had been done to the German people by those who hitherto -controlled the internal affairs of the nation. I quickly read through -the list of principles that formed the platform of the party. These -principles were stated on typewritten sheets. Here again I found -evidence of the spirit of longing and searching, but no sign whatever of -a knowledge of the conflict that had to be fought. I myself had -experienced the feelings which inspired those people. It was the longing -for a movement which should be more than a party, in the hitherto -accepted meaning of that word. - -When I returned to my room in the barracks that evening I had formed a -definite opinion on this association and I was facing the most difficult -problem of my life. Should I join this party or refuse? - -From the side of the intellect alone, every consideration urged me to -refuse; but my feelings troubled me. The more I tried to prove to myself -how senseless this club was, on the whole, the more did my feelings -incline me to favour it. During the following days I was restless. - -I began to consider all the pros and cons. I had long ago decided to -take an active part in politics. The fact that I could do so only -through a new movement was quite clear to me; but I had hitherto lacked -the impulse to take concrete action. I am not one of those people who -will begin something to-day and just give it up the next day for the -sake of something new. That was the main reason which made it so -difficult for me to decide in joining something newly founded; for this -must become the real fulfilment of everything I dreamt, or else it had -better not be started at all. I knew that such a decision should bind me -for ever and that there could be no turning back. For me there could be -no idle dallying but only a cause to be championed ardently. I had -already an instinctive feeling against people who took up everything, -but never carried anything through to the end. I loathed these -Jacks-of-all-Trades, and considered the activities of such people to be -worse than if they were to remain entirely quiescent. - -Fate herself now seemed to supply the finger-post that pointed out the -way. I should never have entered one of the big parties already in -existence and shall explain my reasons for this later on. This ludicrous -little formation, with its handful of members, seemed to have the unique -advantage of not yet being fossilized into an 'organization' and still -offered a chance for real personal activity on the part of the -individual. Here it might still be possible to do some effective work; -and, as the movement was still small, one could all the easier give it -the required shape. Here it was still possible to determine the -character of the movement, the aims to be achieved and the road to be -taken, which would have been impossible in the case of the big parties -already existing. - -The longer I reflected on the problem, the more my opinion developed -that just such a small movement would best serve as an instrument to -prepare the way for the national resurgence, but that this could never -be done by the political parliamentary parties which were too firmly -attached to obsolete ideas or had an interest in supporting the new -regime. What had to be proclaimed here was a new WELTANSCHAUUNG and not -a new election cry. - -It was, however, infinitely difficult to decide on putting the intention -into practice. What were the qualifications which I could bring to the -accomplishment of such a task? - -The fact that I was poor and without resources could, in my opinion, be -the easiest to bear. But the fact that I was utterly unknown raised a -more difficult problem. I was only one of the millions which Chance -allows to exist or cease to exist, whom even their next-door neighbours -will not consent to know. Another difficulty arose from the fact that I -had not gone through the regular school curriculum. - -The so-called 'intellectuals' still look down with infinite -superciliousness on anyone who has not been through the prescribed -schools and allowed them to pump the necessary knowledge into him. The -question of what a man can do is never asked but rather, what has he -learned? 'Educated' people look upon any imbecile who is plastered with -a number of academic certificates as superior to the ablest young fellow -who lacks these precious documents. I could therefore easily imagine how -this 'educated' world would receive me and I was wrong only in so far as -I then believed men to be for the most part better than they proved to -be in the cold light of reality. Because of their being as they are, the -few exceptions stand out all the more conspicuously. I learned more and -more to distinguish between those who will always be at school and those -who will one day come to know something in reality. - -After two days of careful brooding and reflection I became convinced -that I must take the contemplated step. - -It was the most fateful decision of my life. No retreat was possible. - -Thus I declared myself ready to accept the membership tendered me by the -German Labour Party and received a provisional certificate of -membership. I was numbered SEVEN. - - - - -CHAPTER X - - - -WHY THE SECOND REICH COLLAPSED - - -The depth of a fall is always measured by the difference between the -level of the original position from which a body has fallen and that in -which it is now found. The same holds good for Nations and States. The -matter of greatest importance here is the height of the original level, -or rather the greatest height that had been attained before the descent -began. - -For only the profound decline or collapse of that which was capable of -reaching extraordinary heights can make a striking impression on the eye -of the beholder. The collapse of the Second REICH was all the more -bewildering for those who could ponder over it and feel the effect of it -in their hearts, because the REICH had fallen from a height which can -hardly be imagined in these days of misery and humiliation. - -The Second REICH was founded in circumstances of such dazzling splendour -that the whole nation had become entranced and exalted by it. Following -an unparalleled series of victories, that Empire was handed over as the -guerdon of immortal heroism to the children and grandchildren of the -heroes. Whether they were fully conscious of it or not does not matter; -anyhow, the Germans felt that this Empire had not been brought into -existence by a series of able political negotiations through -parliamentary channels, but that it was different from political -institutions founded elsewhere by reason of the nobler circumstances -that had accompanied its establishment. When its foundations were laid -the accompanying music was not the chatter of parliamentary debates but -the thunder and boom of war along the battle front that encircled Paris. -It was thus that an act of statesmanship was accomplished whereby the -Germans, princes as well as people, established the future REICH and -restored the symbol of the Imperial Crown. Bismarck's State was not -founded on treason and assassination by deserters and shirkers but by -the regiments that had fought at the front. This unique birth and -baptism of fire sufficed of themselves to surround the Second Empire -with an aureole of historical splendour such as few of the older States -could lay claim to. - -And what an ascension then began! A position of independence in regard -to the outside world guaranteed the means of livelihood at home. The -nation increased in numbers and in worldly wealth. The honour of the -State and therewith the honour of the people as a whole were secured and -protected by an army which was the most striking witness of the -difference between this new REICH and the old German Confederation. - -But the downfall of the Second Empire and the German people has been so -profound that they all seem to have been struck dumbfounded and rendered -incapable of feeling the significance of this downfall or reflecting on -it. It seems as if people were utterly unable to picture in their minds -the heights to which the Empire formerly attained, so visionary and -unreal appears the greatness and splendour of those days in contrast to -the misery of the present. Bearing this in mind we can understand why -and how people become so dazed when they try to look back to the sublime -past that they forget to look for the symptoms of the great collapse -which must certainly have been present in some form or other. Naturally -this applies only to those for whom Germany was more than merely a place -of abode and a source of livelihood. These are the only people who have -been able to feel the present conditions as really catastrophic, whereas -others have considered these conditions as the fulfilment of what they -had looked forward to and hitherto silently wished. - -The symptoms of future collapse were definitely to be perceived in those -earlier days, although very few made any attempt to draw a practical -lesson from their significance. But this is now a greater necessity than -it ever was before. For just as bodily ailments can be cured only when -their origin has been diagnosed, so also political disease can be -treated only when it has been diagnosed. It is obvious of course that -the external symptoms of any disease can be more readily detected than -its internal causes, for these symptoms strike the eye more easily. This -is also the reason why so many people recognize only external effects -and mistake them for causes. Indeed they will sometimes try to deny the -existence of such causes. And that is why the majority of people among -us recognize the German collapse only in the prevailing economic -distress and the results that have followed therefrom. Almost everyone -has to carry his share of this burden, and that is why each one looks on -the economic catastrophe as the cause of the present deplorable state of -affairs. The broad masses of the people see little of the cultural, -political, and moral background of this collapse. Many of them -completely lack both the necessary feeling and powers of understanding -for it. - -That the masses of the people should thus estimate the causes of -Germany's downfall is quite understandable. But the fact that -intelligent sections of the community regard the German collapse -primarily as an economic catastrophe, and consequently think that a cure -for it may be found in an economic solution, seems to me to be the -reason why hitherto no improvement has been brought about. No -improvement can be brought about until it be understood that economics -play only a second or third role, while the main part is played by -political, moral and racial factors. Only when this is understood will -it be possible to understand the causes of the present evil and -consequently to find the ways and means of remedying them. - -Therefore the question of why Germany really collapsed is one of the -most urgent significance, especially for a political movement which aims -at overcoming this disaster. - -In scrutinizing the past with a view to discovering the causes of the -German break-up, it is necessary to be careful lest we may be unduly -impressed by external results that readily strike the eye and thus -ignore the less manifest causes of these results. - -The most facile, and therefore the most generally accepted, way of -accounting for the present misfortune is to say that it is the result of -a lost war, and that this is the real cause of the present misfortune. -Probably there are many who honestly believe in this absurd explanation -but there are many more in whose mouths it is a deliberate and conscious -falsehood. This applies to all those who are now feeding at the -Government troughs. For the prophets of the Revolution again and again -declared to the people that it would be immaterial to the great masses -what the result of the War might be. On the contrary, they solemnly -assured the public that it was High Finance which was principally -interested in a victorious outcome of this gigantic struggle among the -nations but that the German people and the German workers had no -interest whatsoever in such an outcome. Indeed the apostles of world -conciliation habitually asserted that, far from any German downfall, the -opposite was bound to take place--namely, the resurgence of the German -people--once 'militarism' had been crushed. Did not these self-same -circles sing the praises of the Entente and did they not also lay the -whole blame for the sanguinary struggle on the shoulders of Germany? -Without this explanation, would they have been able to put forward the -theory that a military defeat would have no political consequences for -the German people? Was not the whole Revolution dressed up in gala -colours as blocking the victorious advance of the German banners and -that thus the German people would be assured its liberty both at home -and abroad? - -Is not that so, you miserable, lying rascals? - -That kind of impudence which is typical of the Jews was necessary in -order to proclaim the defeat of the army as the cause of the German -collapse. Indeed the Berlin VORW�RTS, that organ and mouthpiece of -sedition then wrote on this occasion that the German nation should not -be permitted to bring home its banners triumphantly. - -And yet they attribute our collapse to the military defeat. - -Of course it would be out of the question to enter into an argument with -these liars who deny at one moment what they said the moment before. I -should waste no further words on them were it not for the fact that -there are many thoughtless people who repeat all this in parrot fashion, -without being necessarily inspired by any evil motives. But the -observations I am making here are also meant for our fighting followers, -seeing that nowadays one's spoken words are often forgotten and twisted -in their meaning. - -The assertion that the loss of the War was the cause of the German -collapse can best be answered as follows: - -It is admittedly a fact that the loss of the War was of tragic -importance for the future of our country. But that loss was not in -itself a cause. It was rather the consequence of other causes. That a -disastrous ending to this life-or-death conflict must have involved -catastrophes in its train was clearly seen by everyone of insight who -could think in a straightforward manner. But unfortunately there were -also people whose powers of understanding seemed to fail them at that -critical moment. And there were other people who had first questioned -that truth and then altogether denied it. And there were people who, -after their secret desire had been fulfilled, were suddenly faced with -the subsequent facts that resulted from their own collaboration. Such -people are responsible for the collapse, and not the lost war, though -they now want to attribute everything to this. As a matter of fact the -loss of the War was a result of their activities and not the result of -bad leadership as they now would like to maintain. Our enemies were not -cowards. They also know how to die. From the very first day of the War -they outnumbered the German Army, and the arsenals and armament -factories of the whole world were at their disposal for the -replenishment of military equipment. Indeed it is universally admitted -that the German victories, which had been steadily won during four years -of warfare against the whole world, were due to superior leadership, -apart of course from the heroism of the troops. And the organization was -solely due to the German military leadership. That organization and -leadership of the German Army was the most mighty thing that the world -has ever seen. Any shortcomings which became evident were humanly -unavoidable. The collapse of that army was not the cause of our present -distress. It was itself the consequence of other faults. But this -consequence in its turn ushered in a further collapse, which was more -visible. That such was actually the case can be shown as follows: - -Must a military defeat necessarily lead to such a complete overthrow of -the State and Nation? Whenever has this been the result of an unlucky -war? As a matter of fact, are nations ever ruined by a lost war and by -that alone? The answer to this question can be briefly stated by -referring to the fact that military defeats are the result of internal -decay, cowardice, want of character, and are a retribution for such -things. If such were not the causes then a military defeat would lead to -a national resurgence and bring the nation to a higher pitch of effort. -A military defeat is not the tombstone of national life. History affords -innumerable examples to confirm the truth of that statement. - -Unfortunately Germany's military overthrow was not an undeserved -catastrophe, but a well-merited punishment which was in the nature of an -eternal retribution. This defeat was more than deserved by us; for it -represented the greatest external phenomenon of decomposition among a -series of internal phenomena, which, although they were visible, were -not recognized by the majority of the people, who follow the tactics of -the ostrich and see only what they want to see. - -Let us examine the symptoms that were evident in Germany at the time -that the German people accepted this defeat. Is it not true that in -several circles the misfortunes of the Fatherland were even joyfully -welcomed in the most shameful manner? Who could act in such a way -without thereby meriting vengeance for his attitude? Were there not -people who even went further and boasted that they had gone to the -extent of weakening the front and causing a collapse? Therefore it was -not the enemy who brought this disgrace upon our shoulders but rather -our own countrymen. If they suffered misfortune for it afterwards, was -that misfortune undeserved? Was there ever a case in history where a -people declared itself guilty of a war, and that even against its better -conscience and its better knowledge? - -No, and again no. In the manner in which the German nation reacted to -its defeat we can see that the real cause of our collapse must be looked -for elsewhere and not in the purely military loss of a few positions or -the failure of an offensive. For if the front as such had given way and -thus brought about a national disaster, then the German nation would -have accepted the defeat in quite another spirit. They would have borne -the subsequent misfortune with clenched teeth, or they would have been -overwhelmed by sorrow. Regret and fury would have filled their hearts -against an enemy into whose hands victory had been given by a chance -event or the decree of Fate; and in that case the nation, following the -example of the Roman Senate (Note 14), would have faced the defeated -legions on their return and expressed their thanks for the sacrifices that -had been made and would have requested them not to lose faith in the -Empire. Even the capitulation would have been signed under the sway of -calm reason, while the heart would have beaten in the hope of the coming -REVANCHE. - -[Note 14. Probably the author has two separate incidents in mind. The -first happened in 390 B.C., when, as the victorious Gauls descended on -Rome, the Senators ordered their ivory chairs to be placed in the Forum -before the Temples ofthe Gods. There, clad in their robes of state, they -awaited the invader, hoping to save the city by sacrificing themselves. -This noble gesture failed for the time being; but it had an inspiring -influence on subsequent generations. The second incident, which has more -historical authenticity, occurred after the Roman defeat at Cannae in 216 -B.C. On that occasion Varro, the Roman commander, who, though in great -part responsible for the disaster, made an effort to carry on the -struggle, was, on his return to Rome, met by the citizens of all ranks -and publicly thanked because he had not despaired of the Republic. The -consequence was that the Republic refused to make peace with the -victorious Carthagenians.] - -That is the reception that would have been given to a military defeat -which had to be attributed only to the adverse decree of Fortune. There -would have been neither joy-making nor dancing. Cowardice would not have -been boasted of, and the defeat would not have been honoured. On -returning from the Front, the troops would not have been mocked at, and -the colours would not have been dragged in the dust. But above all, that -disgraceful state of affairs could never have arisen which induced a -British officer, Colonel Repington, to declare with scorn: Every third -German is a traitor! No, in such a case this plague would never have -assumed the proportions of a veritable flood which, for the past five -years, has smothered every vestige of respect for the German nation in -the outside world. - -This shows only too clearly how false it is to say that the loss of the -War was the cause of the German break-up. No. The military defeat was -itself but the consequence of a whole series of morbid symptoms and -their causes which had become active in the German nation before the War -broke out. The War was the first catastrophal consequence, visible to -all, of how traditions and national morale had been poisoned and how the -instinct of self-preservation had degenerated. These were the -preliminary causes which for many years had been undermining the -foundations of the nation and the Empire. - -But it remained for the Jews, with their unqualified capacity for -falsehood, and their fighting comrades, the Marxists, to impute -responsibility for the downfall precisely to the man who alone had shown -a superhuman will and energy in his effort to prevent the catastrophe -which he had foreseen and to save the nation from that hour of complete -overthrow and shame. By placing responsibility for the loss of the world -war on the shoulders of Ludendorff they took away the weapon of moral -right from the only adversary dangerous enough to be likely to succeed -in bringing the betrayers of the Fatherland to Justice. All this was -inspired by the principle--which is quite true in itself--that in the -big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the -broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper -strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and -thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall -victims to the big lie than the small lie, since they themselves often -tell small lies in little matters but would be ashamed to resort to -large-scale falsehoods. It would never come into their heads to -fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others -could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously. Even though -the facts which prove this to be so may be brought clearly to their -minds, they will still doubt and waver and will continue to think that -there may be some other explanation. For the grossly impudent lie always -leaves traces behind it, even after it has been nailed down, a fact -which is known to all expert liars in this world and to all who conspire -together in the art of lying. These people know only too well how to use -falsehood for the basest purposes. - -From time immemorial. however, the Jews have known better than any -others how falsehood and calumny can be exploited. Is not their very -existence founded on one great lie, namely, that they are a religious -community, whereas in reality they are a race? And what a race! One of -the greatest thinkers that mankind has produced has branded the Jews for -all time with a statement which is profoundly and exactly true. He -(Schopenhauer) called the Jew "The Great Master of Lies". Those who do -not realize the truth of that statement, or do not wish to believe it, -will never be able to lend a hand in helping Truth to prevail. - -We may regard it as a great stroke of fortune for the German nation that -its period of lingering suffering was so suddenly curtailed and -transformed into such a terrible catastrophe. For if things had gone on -as they were the nation would have more slowly, but more surely, gone to -ruin. The disease would have become chronic; whereas, in the acute form -of the disaster, it at least showed itself clearly to the eyes of a -considerable number of observers. It was not by accident that man -conquered the black plague more easily than he conquered tuberculosis. -The first appeared in terrifying waves of death that shook the whole of -mankind, the other advances insidiously; the first induces terror, the -other gradual indifference. The result is, however, that men opposed the -first with all the energy they were capable of, whilst they try to -arrest tuberculosis by feeble means. Thus man has mastered the black -plague, while tuberculosis still gets the better of him. - -The same applies to diseases in nations. So long as these diseases are -not of a catastrophic character, the population will slowly accustom -itself to them and later succumb. It is then a stroke of luck--although -a bitter one--when Fate decides to interfere in this slow process of -decay and suddenly brings the victim face to face with the final stage -of the disease. More often than not the result of a catastrophe is that -a cure is at once undertaken and carried through with rigid -determination. - -But even in such a case the essential preliminary condition is always -the recognition of the internal causes which have given rise to the -disease in question. - -The important question here is the differentiation of the root causes -from the circumstances developing out of them. This becomes all the more -difficult the longer the germs of disease remain in the national body -and the longer they are allowed to become an integral part of that body. -It may easily happen that, as time goes on, it will become so difficult -to recognize certain definite virulent poisons as such that they are -accepted as belonging to the national being; or they are merely -tolerated as a necessary evil, so that drastic attempts to locate those -alien germs are not held to be necessary. - -During the long period of peace prior to the last war certain evils were -apparent here and there although, with one or two exceptions, very -little effort was made to discover their origin. Here again these -exceptions were first and foremost those phenomena in the economic life -of the nation which were more apparent to the individual than the evil -conditions existing in a good many other spheres. - -There were many signs of decay which ought to have been given serious -thought. As far as economics were concerned, the following may be -said:-- - -The amazing increase of population in Germany before the war brought the -question of providing daily bread into a more and more prominent -position in all spheres of political and economic thought and action. -But unfortunately those responsible could not make up their minds to -arrive at the only correct solution and preferred to reach their -objective by cheaper methods. Repudiation of the idea of acquiring fresh -territory and the substitution for it of the mad desire for the -commercial conquest of the world was bound to lead eventually to -unlimited and injurious industrialization. - -The first and most fatal result brought about in this way was the -weakening of the agricultural classes, whose decline was proportionate -to the increase in the proletariat of the urban areas, until finally the -equilibrium was completely upset. - -The big barrier dividing rich and poor now became apparent. Luxury and -poverty lived so close to each other that the consequences were bound to -be deplorable. Want and frequent unemployment began to play havoc with -the people and left discontent and embitterment behind them. The result -of this was to divide the population into political classes. Discontent -increased in spite of commercial prosperity. Matters finally reached -that stage which brought about the general conviction that 'things -cannot go on as they are', although no one seemed able to visualize what -was really going to happen. - -These were typical and visible signs of the depths which the prevailing -discontent had reached. Far worse than these, however, were other -consequences which became apparent as a result of the industrialization -of the nation. - -In proportion to the extent that commerce assumed definite control of -the State, money became more and more of a God whom all had to serve and -bow down to. Heavenly Gods became more and more old-fashioned and were -laid away in the corners to make room for the worship of mammon. And -thus began a period of utter degeneration which became specially -pernicious because it set in at a time when the nation was more than -ever in need of an exalted idea, for a critical hour was threatening. -Germany should have been prepared to protect with the sword her efforts -to win her own daily bread in a peaceful way. - -Unfortunately, the predominance of money received support and sanction -in the very quarter which ought to have been opposed to it. His Majesty, -the Kaiser, made a mistake when he raised representatives of the new -finance capital to the ranks of the nobility. Admittedly, it may be -offered as an excuse that even Bismarck failed to realize the -threatening danger in this respect. In practice, however, all ideal -virtues became secondary considerations to those of money, for it was -clear that having once taken this road, the nobility of the sword would -very soon rank second to that of finance. - -Financial operations succeed easier than war operations. Hence it was no -longer any great attraction for a true hero or even a statesman to be -brought into touch with the nearest Jew banker. Real merit was not -interested in receiving cheap decorations and therefore declined them -with thanks. But from the standpoint of good breeding such a development -was deeply regrettable. The nobility began to lose more and more of the -racial qualities that were a condition of its very existence, with the -result that in many cases the term 'plebeian' would have been more -appropriate. - -A serious state of economic disruption was being brought about by the -slow elimination of the personal control of vested interests and the -gradual transference of the whole economic structure into the hands of -joint stock companies. - -In this way labour became degraded into an object of speculation in the -hands of unscrupulous exploiters. - -The de-personalization of property ownership increased on a vast scale. -Financial exchange circles began to triumph and made slow but sure -progress in assuming control of the whole of national life. - -Before the War the internationalization of the German economic structure -had already begun by the roundabout way of share issues. It is true that -a section of the German industrialists made a determined attempt to -avert the danger, but in the end they gave way before the united attacks -of money-grabbing capitalism, which was assisted in this fight by its -faithful henchmen in the Marxist movement. - -The persistent war against German 'heavy industries' was the visible -start of the internationalization of German economic life as envisaged -by the Marxists. This, however, could only be brought to a successful -conclusion by the victory which Marxism was able to gain in the -Revolution. As I write these words, success is attending the general -attack on the German State Railways which are now to be turned over to -international capitalists. Thus 'International Social-Democracy' has -once again attained one of its main objectives. - -The best evidence of how far this 'commercialization' of the German -nation was able to go can be plainly seen in the fact that when the War -was over one of the leading captains of German industry and commerce -gave it as his opinion that commerce as such was the only force which -could put Germany on its feet again. - -This sort of nonsense was uttered just at the time when France was -restoring public education on a humanitarian basis, thus doing away with -the idea that national life is dependent on commerce rather than ideal -values. The statement which Stinnes broadcasted to the world at that -time caused incredible confusion. It was immediately taken up and has -become the leading motto of all those humbugs and babblers--the -'statesmen' whom Fate let loose on Germany after the Revolution. - -One of the worst evidences of decadence in Germany before the War was -the ever increasing habit of doing things by halves. This was one of the -consequences of the insecurity that was felt all round. And it is to be -attributed also to a certain timidity which resulted from one cause or -another. And the latter malady was aggravated by the educational system. - -German education in pre-War times had an extraordinary number of weak -features. It was simply and exclusively limited to the production of -pure knowledge and paid little attention to the development of practical -ability. Still less attention was given to the development of individual -character, in so far as this is ever possible. And hardly any attention -at all was paid to the development of a sense of responsibility, to -strengthening the will and the powers of decision. The result of this -method was to produce erudite people who had a passion for knowing -everything. Before the War we Germans were accepted and estimated -accordingly. The German was liked because good use could be made of him; -but there was little esteem for him personally, on account of this -weakness of character. For those who can read its significance aright, -there is much instruction in the fact that among all nationalities -Germans were the first to part with their national citizenship when they -found themselves in a foreign country. And there is a world of meaning -in the saying that was then prevalent: 'With the hat in the hand one can -go through the whole country'. - -This kind of social etiquette turned out disastrous when it prescribed -the exclusive forms that had to be observed in the presence of His -Majesty. These forms insisted that there should be no contradiction -whatsoever, but that everything should be praised which His Majesty -condescended to like. - -It was just here that the frank expression of manly dignity, and not -subservience, was most needed. Servility in the presence of monarchs may -be good enough for the professional lackey and place-hunter, in fact for -all those decadent beings who are more pleased to be found moving in the -high circles of royalty than among honest citizens. These exceedingly -'humble' creatures however, though they grovel before their lord and -bread-giver, invariably put on airs of boundless superciliousness -towards other mortals, which was particularly impudent when they posed -as the only people who had the right to be called 'monarchists'. This -was a gross piece of impertinence such as only despicable specimens -among the newly-ennobled or yet-to-be-ennobled could be capable of. - -And these have always been just the people who have prepared the way for -the downfall of monarchy and the monarchical principle. It could not be -otherwise. For when a man is prepared to stand up for a cause, come what -may, he never grovels before its representative. A man who is serious -about the maintenance and welfare of an institution will not allow -himself to be discouraged when the representatives of that institution -show certain faults and failings. And he certainly will not run around -to tell the world about it, as certain false democratic 'friends' of the -monarchy have done; but he will approach His Majesty, the bearer of the -Crown himself, to warn him of the seriousness of a situation and -persuade the monarch to act. Furthermore, he will not take up the -standpoint that it must be left to His Majesty to act as the latter -thinks fit, even though the course which he would take must plainly lead -to disaster. But the man I am thinking of will deem it his duty to -protect the monarchy against the monarch himself, no matter what -personal risk he may run in doing so. If the worth of the monarchical -institution be dependent on the person of the monarch himself, then it -would be the worst institution imaginable; for only in rare cases are -kings found to be models of wisdom and understanding, and integrity of -character, though we might like to think otherwise. But this fact is -unpalatable to the professional knaves and lackeys. Yet all upright men, -and they are the backbone of the nation, repudiate the nonsensical -fiction that all monarchs are wise, etc. For such men history is history -and truth is truth, even where monarchs are concerned. But if a nation -should have the good luck to possess a great king or a great man it -ought to consider itself as specially favoured above all the other -nations, and these may be thankful if an adverse fortune has not -allotted the worst to them. - -It is clear that the worth and significance of the monarchical principle -cannot rest in the person of the monarch alone, unless Heaven decrees -that the crown should be set on the head of a brilliant hero like -Frederick the Great, or a sagacious person like William I. This may -happen once in several centuries, but hardly oftener than that. The -ideal of the monarchy takes precedence of the person of the monarch, -inasmuch as the meaning of the institution must lie in the institution -it self. Thus the monarchy may be reckoned in the category of those -whose duty it is to serve. He, too, is but a wheel in this machine and -as such he is obliged to do his duty towards it. He has to adapt himself -for the fulfilment of high aims. If, therefore, there were no -significance attached to the idea itself and everything merely centred -around the 'sacred' person, then it would never be possible to depose a -ruler who has shown himself to be an imbecile. - -It is essential to insist upon this truth at the present time, because -recently those phenomena have appeared again and were in no small -measure responsible for the collapse of the monarchy. With a certain -amount of native impudence these persons once again talk about 'their -King'--that is to say, the man whom they shamefully deserted a few years -ago at a most critical hour. Those who refrain from participating in -this chorus of lies are summarily classified as 'bad Germans'. They who -make the charge are the same class of quitters who ran away in 1918 and -took to wearing red badges. They thought that discretion was the better -part of valour. They were indifferent about what happened to the Kaiser. -They camouflaged themselves as 'peaceful citizens' but more often than -not they vanished altogether. All of a sudden these champions of royalty -were nowhere to be found at that time. Circumspectly, one by one, these -'servants and counsellors' of the Crown reappeared, to resume their -lip-service to royalty but only after others had borne the brunt of the -anti-royalist attack and suppressed the Revolution for them. Once again -they were all there. remembering wistfully the flesh-pots of Egypt and -almost bursting with devotion for the royal cause. This went on until -the day came when red badges were again in the ascendant. Then this -whole ramshackle assembly of royal worshippers scuttled anew like mice -from the cats. - -If monarchs were not themselves responsible for such things one could -not help sympathizing with them. But they must realize that with such -champions thrones can be lost but certainly never gained. - -All this devotion was a mistake and was the result of our whole system -of education, which in this case brought about a particularly severe -retribution. Such lamentable trumpery was kept up at the various courts -that the monarchy was slowly becoming under mined. When finally it did -begin to totter, everything was swept away. Naturally, grovellers and -lick-spittles are never willing to die for their masters. That monarchs -never realize this, and almost on principle never really take the -trouble to learn it, has always been their undoing. - -One visible result of wrong educational system was the fear of -shouldering responsibility and the resultant weakness in dealing with -obvious vital problems of existence. - -The starting point of this epidemic, however, was in our parliamentary -institution where the shirking of responsibility is particularly -fostered. Unfortunately the disease slowly spread to all branches of -everyday life but particularly affected the sphere of public affairs. -Responsibility was being shirked everywhere and this led to insufficient -or half-hearted measures being taken, personal responsibility for each -act being reduced to a minimum. - -If we consider the attitude of various Governments towards a whole -series of really pernicious phenomena in public life, we shall at once -recognize the fearful significance of this policy of half-measures and -the lack of courage to undertake responsibilities. I shall single out -only a few from the large numbers of instances known to me. - -In journalistic circles it is a pleasing custom to speak of the Press as -a 'Great Power' within the State. As a matter of fact its importance is -immense. One cannot easily overestimate it, for the Press continues the -work of education even in adult life. Generally, readers of the Press -can be classified into three groups: - -First, those who believe everything they read; - -Second, those who no longer believe anything; - -Third, those who critically examine what they read and form their -judgments accordingly. - -Numerically, the first group is by far the strongest, being composed of -the broad masses of the people. Intellectually, it forms the simplest -portion of the nation. It cannot be classified according to occupation -but only into grades of intelligence. Under this category come all those -who have not been born to think for themselves or who have not learnt to -do so and who, partly through incompetence and partly through ignorance, -believe everything that is set before them in print. To these we must -add that type of lazy individual who, although capable of thinking for -himself out of sheer laziness gratefully absorbs everything that others -had thought over, modestly believing this to have been thoroughly done. -The influence which the Press has on all these people is therefore -enormous; for after all they constitute the broad masses of a nation. -But, somehow they are not in a position or are not willing personally to -sift what is being served up to them; so that their whole attitude -towards daily problems is almost solely the result of extraneous -influence. All this can be advantageous where public enlightenment is of -a serious and truthful character, but great harm is done when scoundrels -and liars take a hand at this work. - -The second group is numerically smaller, being partly composed of those -who were formerly in the first group and after a series of bitter -disappointments are now prepared to believe nothing of what they see in -print. They hate all newspapers. Either they do not read them at all or -they become exceptionally annoyed at their contents, which they hold to -be nothing but a congeries of lies and misstatements. These people are -difficult to handle; for they will always be sceptical of the truth. -Consequently, they are useless for any form of positive work. - -The third group is easily the smallest, being composed of real -intellectuals whom natural aptitude and education have taught to think -for themselves and who in all things try to form their own judgments, -while at the same time carefully sifting what they read. They will not -read any newspaper without using their own intelligence to collaborate -with that of the writer and naturally this does not set writers an easy -task. Journalists appreciate this type of reader only with a certain -amount of reservation. - -Hence the trash that newspapers are capable of serving up is of little -danger--much less of importance--to the members of the third group of -readers. In the majority of cases these readers have learnt to regard -every journalist as fundamentally a rogue who sometimes speaks the -truth. Most unfortunately, the value of these readers lies in their -intelligence and not in their numerical strength, an unhappy state of -affairs in a period where wisdom counts for nothing and majorities for -everything. Nowadays when the voting papers of the masses are the -deciding factor; the decision lies in the hands of the numerically -strongest group; that is to say the first group, the crowd of simpletons -and the credulous. - -It is an all-important interest of the State and a national duty to -prevent these people from falling into the hands of false, ignorant or -even evil-minded teachers. Therefore it is the duty of the State to -supervise their education and prevent every form of offence in this -respect. Particular attention should be paid to the Press; for its -influence on these people is by far the strongest and most penetrating -of all; since its effect is not transitory but continual. Its immense -significance lies in the uniform and persistent repetition of its -teaching. Here, if anywhere, the State should never forget that all -means should converge towards the same end. It must not be led astray by -the will-o'-the-wisp of so-called 'freedom of the Press', or be talked -into neglecting its duty, and withholding from the nation that which is -good and which does good. With ruthless determination the State must -keep control of this instrument of popular education and place it at the -service of the State and the Nation. - -But what sort of pabulum was it that the German Press served up for the -consumption of its readers in pre-War days? Was it not the worst -virulent poison imaginable? Was not pacifism in its worst form -inoculated into our people at a time when others were preparing slowly -but surely to pounce upon Germany? Did not this self-same Press of ours -in peace time already instil into the public mind a doubt as to the -sovereign rights of the State itself, thereby already handicapping the -State in choosing its means of defence? Was it not the German Press that -under stood how to make all the nonsensical talk about 'Western -democracy' palatable to our people, until an exuberant public was -eventually prepared to entrust its future to the League of Nations? Was -not this Press instrumental in bringing in a state of moral degradation -among our people? Were not morals and public decency made to look -ridiculous and classed as out-of-date and banal, until finally our -people also became modernized? By means of persistent attacks, did not -the Press keep on undermining the authority of the State, until one blow -sufficed to bring this institution tottering to the ground? Did not the -Press oppose with all its might every movement to give the State that -which belongs to the State, and by means of constant criticism, injure -the reputation of the army, sabotage general conscription and demand -refusal of military credits, etc.--until the success of this campaign -was assured? - -The function of the so-called liberal Press was to dig the grave for the -German people and REICH. No mention need be made of the lying Marxist -Press. To them the spreading of falsehood is as much a vital necessity -as the mouse is to a cat. Their sole task is to break the national -backbone of the people, thus preparing the nation to become the slaves -of international finance and its masters, the Jews. - -And what measures did the State take to counteract this wholesale -poisoning of the public mind? None, absolutely nothing at all. By this -policy it was hoped to win the favour of this pest--by means of -flattery, by a recognition of the 'value' of the Press, its -'importance', its 'educative mission' and similar nonsense. The Jews -acknowledged all this with a knowing smile and returned thanks. - -The reason for this ignominious failure on the part of the State lay not -so much in its refusal to realize the danger as in the out-and-out -cowardly way of meeting the situation by the adoption of faulty and -ineffective measures. No one had the courage to employ any energetic and -radical methods. Everyone temporised in some way or other; and instead -of striking at its heart, the viper was only further irritated. The -result was that not only did everything remain as it was, but the power -of this institution which should have been combated grew greater from -year to year. - -The defence put up by the Government in those days against a mainly -Jew-controlled Press that was slowly corrupting the nation, followed no -definite line of action, it had no determination behind it and above -all, no fixed objective whatsoever in view. This is where official -understanding of the situation completely failed both in estimating the -importance of the struggle, choosing the means and deciding on a -definite plan. They merely tinkered with the problem. Occasionally, when -bitten, they imprisoned one or another journalistic viper for a few -weeks or months, but the whole poisonous brood was allowed to carry on -in peace. - -It must be admitted that all this was partly the result of extraordinary -crafty tactics on the part of Jewry on the one hand, and obvious -official stupidity or na�vet� on the other hand. The Jews were too -clever to allow a simultaneous attack to be made on the whole of their -Press. No one section functioned as cover for the other. While the -Marxist newspaper, in the most despicable manner possible, reviled -everything that was sacred, furiously attacked the State and Government -and incited certain classes of the community against each other, the -bourgeois-democratic papers, also in Jewish hands, knew how to -camouflage themselves as model examples of objectivity. They studiously -avoided harsh language, knowing well that block-heads are capable of -judging only by external appearances and never able to penetrate to the -real depth and meaning of anything. They measure the worth of an object -by its exterior and not by its content. This form of human frailty was -carefully studied and understood by the Press. - -For this class of blockheads the FRANKFURTER ZEITUNG would be -acknowledged as the essence of respectability. It always carefully -avoided calling a spade a spade. It deprecated the use of every form of -physical force and persistently appealed to the nobility of fighting -with 'intellectual' weapons. But this fight, curiously enough, was most -popular with the least intellectual classes. That is one of the results -of our defective education, which turns the youth away from the -instinctive dictates of Nature, pumps into them a certain amount of -knowledge without however being able to bring them to what is the -supreme act of knowing. To this end diligence and goodwill are of no -avail, if innate understanding fail. This final knowledge at which man -must aim is the understanding of causes which are instinctively -perceived. - -Let me explain: Man must not fall into the error of thinking that he was -ever meant to become lord and master of Nature. A lopsided education has -helped to encourage that illusion. Man must realize that a fundamental -law of necessity reigns throughout the whole realm of Nature and that -his existence is subject to the law of eternal struggle and strife. He -will then feel that there cannot be a separate law for mankind in a -world in which planets and suns follow their orbits, where moons and -planets trace their destined paths, where the strong are always the -masters of the weak and where those subject to such laws must obey them -or be destroyed. Man must also submit to the eternal principles of this -supreme wisdom. He may try to understand them but he can never free -himself from their sway. - -It is just for intellectual DEMI-MONDE that the Jew writes those papers -which he calls his 'intellectual' Press. For them the FRANKFURTER -ZEITUNG and BERLINER TAGEBLATT are written, the tone being adapted to -them, and it is over these people that such papers have an influence. -While studiously avoiding all forms of expression that might strike the -reader as crude, the poison is injected from other vials into the hearts -of the clientele. The effervescent tone and the fine phraseology lug the -readers into believing that a love for knowledge and moral principle is -the sole driving force that determines the policy of such papers, -whereas in reality these features represent a cunning way of disarming -any opposition that might be directed against the Jews and their Press. - -They make such a parade of respectability that the imbecile readers are -all the more ready to believe that the excesses which other papers -indulge in are only of a mild nature and not such as to warrant legal -action being taken against them. Indeed such action might trespass on -the freedom of the Press, that expression being a euphemism under which -such papers escape legal punishment for deceiving the public and -poisoning the public mind. Hence the authorities are very slow indeed to -take any steps against these journalistic bandits for fear of -immediately alienating the sympathy of the so-called respectable Press. -A fear that is only too well founded, for the moment any attempt is made -to proceed against any member of the gutter press all the others rush to -its assistance at once, not indeed to support its policy but simply and -solely to defend the principle of freedom of the Press and liberty of -public opinion. This outcry will succeed in cowering the most stalwart; -for it comes from the mouth of what is called decent journalism. - -And so this poison was allowed to enter the national bloodstream and -infect public life without the Government taking any effectual measures -to master the course of the disease. The ridiculous half-measures that -were taken were in themselves an indication of the process of -disintegration that was already threatening to break up the Empire. For -an institution practically surrenders its existence when it is no longer -determined to defend itself with all the weapons at its command. Every -half-measure is the outward expression of an internal process of decay -which must lead to an external collapse sooner or later. - -I believe that our present generation would easily master this danger if -they were rightly led. For this generation has gone through certain -experiences which must have strengthened the nerves of all those who did -not become nervously broken by them. Certainly in days to come the Jews -will raise a tremendous cry throughout their newspapers once a hand is -laid on their favourite nest, once a move is made to put an end to this -scandalous Press and once this instrument which shapes public opinion is -brought under State control and no longer left in the hands of aliens -and enemies of the people. I am certain that this will be easier for us -than it was for our fathers. The scream of the twelve-inch shrapnel is -more penetrating than the hiss from a thousand Jewish newspaper vipers. -Therefore let them go on with their hissing. - -A further example of the weak and hesitating way in which vital national -problems were dealt with in pre-War Germany is the following: Hand in -hand with the political and moral process of infecting the nation, for -many years an equally virulent process of infection had been attacking -the public health of the people. In large cities, particularly, syphilis -steadily increased and tuberculosis kept pace with it in reaping its -harvest of death almost in every part of the country. - -Although in both cases the effect on the nation was alarming, it seemed -as if nobody was in a position to undertake any decisive measures -against these scourges. - -In the case of syphilis especially the attitude of the State and public -bodies was one of absolute capitulation. To combat this state of affairs -something of far wider sweep should have been undertaken than was really -done. The discovery of a remedy which is of a questionable nature and -the excellent way in which it was placed on the market were only of -little assistance in fighting such a scourge. Here again the only course -to adopt is to attack the disease in its causes rather than in its -symptoms. But in this case the primary cause is to be found in the -manner in which love has been prostituted. Even though this did not -directly bring about the fearful disease itself, the nation must still -suffer serious damage thereby, for the moral havoc resulting from this -prostitution would be sufficient to bring about the destruction of the -nation, slowly but surely. This Judaizing of our spiritual life and -mammonizing of our natural instinct for procreation will sooner or later -work havoc with our whole posterity. For instead of strong, healthy -children, blessed with natural feelings, we shall see miserable -specimens of humanity resulting from economic calculation. For economic -considerations are becoming more and more the foundations of marriage -and the sole preliminary condition of it. And love looks for an outlet -elsewhere. - -Here, as elsewhere, one may defy Nature for a certain period of time; -but sooner or later she will take her inexorable revenge. And when man -realizes this truth it is often too late. - -Our own nobility furnishes an example of the devastating consequences -that follow from a persistent refusal to recognize the primary -conditions necessary for normal wedlock. Here we are openly brought face -to face with the results of those reproductive habits which on the one -hand are determined by social pressure and, on the other, by financial -considerations. The one leads to inherited debility and the other to -adulteration of the blood-strain; for all the Jewish daughters of the -department store proprietors are looked upon as eligible mates to -co-operate in propagating His Lordship's stock. And the stock certainly -looks it. All this leads to absolute degeneration. Nowadays our -bourgeoise are making efforts to follow in the same path, They will come -to the same journey's end. - -These unpleasant truths are hastily and nonchalantly brushed aside, as -if by so doing the real state of affairs could also be abolished. But -no. It cannot be denied that the population of our great towns and -cities is tending more and more to avail of prostitution in the exercise -of its amorous instincts and is thus becoming more and more contaminated -by the scourge of venereal disease. On the one hand, the visible effects -of this mass-infection can be observed in our insane asylums and, on the -other hand, alas! among the children at home. These are the doleful and -tragic witnesses to the steadily increasing scourge that is poisoning -our sexual life. Their sufferings are the visible results of parental -vice. - -There are many ways of becoming resigned to this unpleasant and terrible -fact. Many people go about seeing nothing or, to be more correct, not -wanting to see anything. This is by far the simplest and cheapest -attitude to adopt. Others cover themselves in the sacred mantle of -prudery, as ridiculous as it is false. They describe the whole condition -of affairs as sinful and are profoundly indignant when brought face to -face with a victim. They close their eyes in reverend abhorrence to this -godless scourge and pray to the Almighty that He--if possible after -their own death--may rain down fire and brimstone as on Sodom and -Gomorrah and so once again make an out standing example of this -shameless section of humanity. Finally, there are those who are well -aware of the terrible results which this scourge will and must bring -about, but they merely shrug their shoulders, fully convinced of their -inability to undertake anything against this peril. Hence matters are -allowed to take their own course. - -Undoubtedly all this is very convenient and simple, only it must not be -overlooked that this convenient way of approaching things can have fatal -consequences for our national life. The excuse that other nations are -also not faring any better does not alter the fact of our own -deterioration, except that the feeling of sympathy for other stricken -nations makes our own suffering easier to bear. But the important -question that arises here is: Which nation will be the first to take the -initiative in mastering this scourge, and which nations will succumb to -it? This will be the final upshot of the whole situation. The present is -a period of probation for racial values. The race that fails to come -through the test will simply die out and its place will be taken by the -healthier and stronger races, which will be able to endure greater -hardships. As this problem primarily concerns posterity, it belongs to -that category of which it is said with terrible justification that the -sins of the fathers are visited on their offspring unto the tenth -generation. This is a consequence which follows on an infringement of -the laws of blood and race. - -The sin against blood and race is the hereditary sin in this world and -it brings disaster on every nation that commits it. - -The attitude towards this one vital problem in pre-War Germany was most -regrettable. What measures were undertaken to arrest the infection of -our youth in the large cities? What was done to put an end to the -contamination and mammonization of sexual life among us? What was done -to fight the resultant spreading of syphilis throughout the whole of our -national life? The reply to this question can best be illustrated by -showing what should have been done. - -Instead of tackling this problem in a haphazard way, the authorities -should have realized that the fortunes or misfortunes of future -generations depended on its solution. But to admit this would have -demanded that active measures be carried out in a ruthless manner. The -primary condition would have been that the enlightened attention of the -whole country should be concentrated on this terrible danger, so that -every individual would realize the importance of fighting against it. It -would be futile to impose obligations of a definite character--which are -often difficult to bear--and expect them to become generally effective, -unless the public be thoroughly instructed on the necessity of imposing -and accepting such obligations. This demands a widespread and systematic -method of enlightenment and all other daily problems that might distract -public attention from this great central problem should be relegated to -the background. - -In every case where there are exigencies or tasks that seem impossible -to deal with successfully public opinion must be concentrated on the one -problem, under the conviction that the solution of this problem alone is -a matter of life or death. Only in this way can public interest be -aroused to such a pitch as will urge people to combine in a great -voluntary effort and achieve important results. - -This fundamental truth applies also to the individual, provided he is -desirous of attaining some great end. He must always concentrate his -efforts to one definitely limited stage of his progress which has to be -completed before the next step be attempted. Those who do not endeavour -to realize their aims step by step and who do not concentrate their -energy in reaching the individual stages, will never attain the final -objective. At some stage or other they will falter and fail. This -systematic way of approaching an objective is an art in itself, and -always calls for the expenditure of every ounce of energy in order to -conquer step after step of the road. - -Therefore the most essential preliminary condition necessary for an -attack on such a difficult stage of the human road is that the -authorities should succeed in convincing the masses that the immediate -objective which is now being fought for is the only one that deserves to -be considered and the only one on which everything depends. The broad -masses are never able clearly to see the whole stretch of the road lying -in front of them without becoming tired and thus losing faith in their -ability to complete the task. To a certain extent they will keep the -objective in mind, but they are only able to survey the whole road in -small stages, as in the case of the traveller who knows where his -journey is going to end but who masters the endless stretch far better -by attacking it in degrees. Only in this way can he keep up his -determination to reach the final objective. - -It is in this way, with the assistance of every form of propaganda, that -the problem of fighting venereal disease should be placed before the -public--not as a task for the nation but as THE main task. Every -possible means should be employed to bring the truth about this scourge -home to the minds of the people, until the whole nation has been -convinced that everything depends on the solution of this problem; that -is to say, a healthy future or national decay. - -Only after such preparatory measures--if necessary spread over a period -of many years--will public attention and public resolution be fully -aroused, and only then can serious and definite measures be undertaken -without running the risk of not being fully understood or of being -suddenly faced with a slackening of the public will. It must be made -clear to all that a serious fight against this scourge calls for vast -sacrifices and an enormous amount of work. - -To wage war against syphilis means fighting against prostitution, -against prejudice, against old-established customs, against current -fashion, public opinion, and, last but not least, against false prudery -in certain circles. - -The first preliminary condition to be fulfilled before the State can -claim a moral right to fight against all these things is that the young -generation should be afforded facilities for contracting early -marriages. Late marriages have the sanction of a custom which, from -whatever angle we view it, is and will remain a disgrace to humanity. - -Prostitution is a disgrace to humanity and cannot be removed simply by -charitable or academic methods. Its restriction and final extermination -presupposes the removal of a whole series of contributory circumstances. -The first remedy must always be to establish such conditions as will -make early marriages possible, especially for young men--for women are, -after all, only passive subjects in this matter. - -An illustration of the extent to which people have so often been led -astray nowadays is afforded by the fact that not infrequently one hears -mothers in so-called 'better' circles openly expressing their -satisfaction at having found as a husband for their daughter a man who -has already sown his wild oats, etc. As there is usually so little -shortage in men of this type, the poor girl finds no difficulty in -getting a mate of this description, and the children of this marriage -are a visible result of such supposedly sensible unions. - -When one realizes, apart from this, that every possible effort is being -made to hinder the process of procreation and that Nature is being -wilfully cheated of her rights, there remains really only one question: -Why is such an institution as marriage still in existence, and what are -its functions? Is it really nothing better than prostitution? Does our -duty to posterity no longer play any part? Or do people not realize the -nature of the curse they are inflicting on themselves and their -offspring by such criminally foolish neglect of one of the primary laws -of Nature? This is how civilized nations degenerate and gradually -perish. - -Marriage is not an end in itself but must serve the greater end, which -is that of increasing and maintaining the human species and the race. -This is its only meaning and purpose. - -This being admitted, then it is clear that the institution of marriage -must be judged by the manner in which its allotted function is -fulfilled. Therefore early marriages should be the rule, because thus -the young couple will still have that pristine force which is the -fountain head of a healthy posterity with unimpaired powers of -resistance. Of course early marriages cannot be made the rule unless a -whole series of social measures are first undertaken without which early -marriages cannot be even thought of. In other words, a solution of this -question, which seems a small problem in itself, cannot be brought about -without adopting radical measures to alter the social background. The -importance of such measures ought to be studied and properly estimated, -especially at a time when the so-called 'social' Republic has shown -itself unable to solve the housing problem and thus has made it -impossible for innumerable couples to get married. That sort of policy -prepares the way for the further advance of prostitution. - -Another reason why early marriages are impossible is our nonsensical -method of regulating the scale of salaries, which pays far too little -attention to the problem of family support. Prostitution, therefore, can -only be really seriously tackled if, by means of a radical social -reform, early marriage is made easier than hitherto. This is the first -preliminary necessity for the solution of this problem. - -Secondly, a whole series of false notions must be eradicated from our -system of bringing up and educating children--things which hitherto no -one seems to have worried about. In our present educational system a -balance will have to be established, first and foremost, between mental -instruction and physical training. - -What is known as GYMNASIUM (Grammar School) to-day is a positive insult -to the Greek institution. Our system of education entirely loses sight -of the fact that in the long run a healthy mind can exist only in a -healthy body. This statement, with few exceptions, applies particularly -to the broad masses of the nation. - -In the pre-War Germany there was a time when no one took the trouble to -think over this truth. Training of the body was criminally neglected, -the one-sided training of the mind being regarded as a sufficient -guarantee for the nation's greatness. This mistake was destined to show -its effects sooner than had been anticipated. It is not pure chance that -the Bolshevic teaching flourishes in those regions whose degenerate -population has been brought to the verge of starvation, as, for example, -in the case of Central Germany, Saxony, and the Ruhr Valley. In all -these districts there is a marked absence of any serious resistance, -even by the so-called intellectual classes, against this Jewish -contagion. And the simple reason is that the intellectual classes are -themselves physically degenerate, not through privation but through -education. The exclusive intellectualism of the education in vogue among -our upper classes makes them unfit for life's struggle at an epoch in -which physical force and not mind is the dominating factor. Thus they -are neither capable of maintaining themselves nor of making their way in -life. In nearly every case physical disability is the forerunner of -personal cowardice. - -The extravagant emphasis laid on purely intellectual education and the -consequent neglect of physical training must necessarily lead to sexual -thoughts in early youth. Those boys whose constitutions have been -trained and hardened by sports and gymnastics are less prone to sexual -indulgence than those stay-at-homes who have been fed exclusively with -mental pabulum. Sound methods of education cannot, however, afford to -disregard this, and we must not forget that the expectations of a -healthy young man from a woman will differ from those of a weakling who -has been prematurely corrupted. - -Thus in every branch of our education the day's curriculum must be -arranged so as to occupy a boy's free time in profitable development of -his physical powers. He has no right in those years to loaf about, -becoming a nuisance in public streets and in cinemas; but when his day's -work is done he ought to harden his young body so that his strength may -not be found wanting when the occasion arises. To prepare for this and -to carry it out should be the function of our educational system and not -exclusively to pump in knowledge or wisdom. Our school system must also -rid itself of the notion that the training of the body is a task that -should be left to the individual himself. There is no such thing as -allowing freedom of choice to sin against posterity and thus against the -race. - -The fight against pollution of the mind must be waged simultaneously -with the training of the body. To-day the whole of our public life may -be compared to a hot-house for the forced growth of sexual notions and -incitements. A glance at the bill-of-fare provided by our cinemas, -playhouses, and theatres suffices to prove that this is not the right -food, especially for our young people. Hoardings and advertisements -kiosks combine to attract the public in the most vulgar manner. Anyone -who has not altogether lost contact with adolescent yearnings will -realize that all this must have very grave consequences. This seductive -and sensuous atmosphere puts notions into the heads of our youth which, -at their age, ought still to be unknown to them. Unfortunately, the -results of this kind of education can best be seen in our contemporary -youth who are prematurely grown up and therefore old before their time. -The law courts from time to time throw a distressing light on the -spiritual life of our 14- and 15-year old children. Who, therefore, will -be surprised to learn that venereal disease claims its victims at this -age? And is it not a frightful shame to see the number of physically -weak and intellectually spoiled young men who have been introduced to -the mysteries of marriage by the whores of the big cities? - -No; those who want seriously to combat prostitution must first of all -assist in removing the spiritual conditions on which it thrives. They -will have to clean up the moral pollution of our city 'culture' -fearlessly and without regard for the outcry that will follow. If we do -not drag our youth out of the morass of their present environment they -will be engulfed by it. Those people who do not want to see these things -are deliberately encouraging them and are guilty of spreading the -effects of prostitution to the future--for the future belongs to our -young generation. This process of cleansing our 'Kultur' will have to be -applied in practically all spheres. The stage, art, literature, the -cinema, the Press and advertisement posters, all must have the stains of -pollution removed and be placed in the service of a national and -cultural idea. The life of the people must be freed from the -asphyxiating perfume of our modern eroticism and also from every unmanly -and prudish form of insincerity. In all these things the aim and the -method must be determined by thoughtful consideration for the -preservation of our national well-being in body and soul. The right to -personal freedom comes second in importance to the duty of maintaining -the race. - -Only after such measures have been put into practice can a medical -campaign against this scourge begin with some hope of success. But, here -again, half-measures will be valueless. Far-reaching and important -decisions will have to be made. It would be doing things by halves if -incurables were given the opportunity of infecting one healthy person -after another. This would be that kind of humanitarianism which would -allow hundreds to perish in order to save the suffering of one -individual. The demand that it should be made impossible for defective -people to continue to propagate defective offspring is a demand that is -based on most reasonable grounds, and its proper fulfilment is the most -humane task that mankind has to face. Unhappy and undeserved suffering -in millions of cases will be spared, with the result that there will be -a gradual improvement in national health. A determined decision to act -in this manner will at the same time provide an obstacle against the -further spread of venereal disease. It would then be a case, where -necessary, of mercilessly isolating all incurables--perhaps a barbaric -measure for those unfortunates--but a blessing for the present -generation and for posterity. The temporary pain thus experienced in -this century can and will spare future thousands of generations from -suffering. - -The fight against syphilis and its pace-maker, prostitution, is one of -the gigantic tasks of mankind; gigantic, because it is not merely a case -of solving a single problem but the removal of a whole series of evils -which are the contributory causes of this scourge. Disease of the body -in this case is merely the result of a diseased condition of the moral, -social, and racial instincts. - -But if for reasons of indolence or cowardice this fight is not fought to -a finish we may imagine what conditions will be like 500 years hence. -Little of God's image will be left in human nature, except to mock the -Creator. - -But what has been done in Germany to counteract this scourge? If we -think calmly over the answer we shall find it distressing. It is true -that in governmental circles the terrible and injurious effects of this -disease were well known, but the counter-measures which were officially -adopted were ineffective and a hopeless failure. They tinkered with -cures for the symptoms, wholly regardless of the cause of the disease. -Prostitutes were medically examined and controlled as far as possible, -and when signs of infection were apparent they were sent to hospital. -When outwardly cured, they were once more let loose on humanity. - -It is true that 'protective legislation' was introduced which made -sexual intercourse a punishable offence for all those not completely -cured, or those suffering from venereal disease. This legislation was -correct in theory, but in practice it failed completely. In the first -place, in the majority of cases women will decline to appear in court as -witnesses against men who have robbed them of their health. Women would -be exposed far more than men to uncharitable remarks in such cases, and -one can imagine what their position would be if they had been infected -by their own husbands. Should women in that case lay a charge? Or what -should they do? - -In the case of the man there is the additional fact that he frequently -is unfortunate enough to run up against this danger when he is under the -influence of alcohol. His condition makes it impossible for him to -assess the qualities of his 'amorous beauty,' a fact which is well known -to every diseased prostitute and makes them single out men in this ideal -condition for preference. The result is that the unfortunate man is not -able to recollect later on who his compassionate benefactress was, which -is not surprising in cities like Berlin and Munich. Many of such cases -are visitors from the provinces who, held speechless and enthralled by -the magic charm of city life, become an easy prey for prostitutes. - -In the final analysis who is able to say whether he has been infected or -not? - -Are there not innumerable cases on record where an apparently cured -person has a relapse and does untold harm without knowing it? - -Therefore in practice the results of these legislative measures are -negative. The same applies to the control of prostitution, and, finally, -even medical treatment and cure are nowadays unsafe and doubtful. One -thing only is certain. The scourge has spread further and further in -spite of all measures, and this alone suffices definitely to stamp and -substantiate their inefficiency. - -Everything else that was undertaken was just as inefficient as it was -absurd. The spiritual prostitution of the people was neither arrested -nor was anything whatsoever undertaken in this direction. - -Those, however, who do not regard this subject as a serious one would do -well to examine the statistical data of the spread of this disease, -study its growth in the last century and contemplate the possibilities -of its further development. The ordinary observer, unless he were -particularly stupid, would experience a cold shudder if the position -were made clear to him. - -The half-hearted and wavering attitude adopted in pre-War Germany -towards this iniquitous condition can assuredly be taken as a visible -sign of national decay. When the courage to fight for one's own health -is no longer in evidence, then the right to live in this world of -struggle also ceases. - -One of the visible signs of decay in the old REICH was the slow setback -which the general cultural level experienced. But by 'Kultur' I do not -mean that which we nowadays style as civilization, which on the contrary -may rather be regarded as inimical to the spiritual elevation of life. - -At the turn of the last century a new element began to make its -appearance in our world. It was an element which had been hitherto -absolutely unknown and foreign to us. In former times there had -certainly been offences against good taste; but these were mostly -departures from the orthodox canons of art, and posterity could -recognize a certain historical value in them. But the new products -showed signs, not only of artistic aberration but of spiritual -degeneration. Here, in the cultural sphere, the signs of the coming -collapse first became manifest. - -The Bolshevization of art is the only cultural form of life and the only -spiritual manifestation of which Bolshevism is capable. - -Anyone to whom this statement may appear strange need only take a glance -at those lucky States which have become Bolshevized and, to his horror, -he will there recognize those morbid monstrosities which have been -produced by insane and degenerate people. All those artistic aberrations -which are classified under the names of cubism and dadism, since the -opening of the present century, are manifestations of art which have -come to be officially recognized by the State itself. This phenomenon -made its appearance even during the short-lived period of the Soviet -Republic in Bavaria. At that time one might easily have recognized how -all the official posters, propagandist pictures and newspapers, etc., -showed signs not only of political but also of cultural decadence. - -About sixty years ago a political collapse such as we are experiencing -to-day would have been just as inconceivable as the cultural decline -which has been manifested in cubist and futurist pictures ever since -1900. Sixty years ago an exhibition of so-called dadistic 'experiences' -would have been an absolutely preposterous idea. The organizers of such -an exhibition would then have been certified for the lunatic asylum, -whereas, to-day they are appointed presidents of art societies. At that -time such an epidemic would never have been allowed to spread. Public -opinion would not have tolerated it, and the Government would not have -remained silent; for it is the duty of a Government to save its people -from being stampeded into such intellectual madness. But intellectual -madness would have resulted from a development that followed the -acceptance of this kind of art. It would have marked one of the worst -changes in human history; for it would have meant that a retrogressive -process had begun to take place in the human brain, the final stages of -which would be unthinkable. - -If we study the course of our cultural life during the last twenty-five -years we shall be astonished to note how far we have already gone in -this process of retrogression. Everywhere we find the presence of those -germs which give rise to protuberant growths that must sooner or later -bring about the ruin of our culture. Here we find undoubted symptoms of -slow corruption; and woe to the nations that are no longer able to bring -that morbid process to a halt. - -In almost all the various fields of German art and culture those morbid -phenomena may be observed. Here everything seems to have passed the -culminating point of its excellence and to have entered the curve of a -hasty decline. At the beginning of the century the theatres seemed -already degenerating and ceasing to be cultural factors, except the -Court theatres, which opposed this prostitution of the national art. -With these exceptions, and also a few other decent institutions, the -plays produced on the stage were of such a nature that the people would -have benefited by not visiting them at all. A sad symptom of decline was -manifested by the fact that in the case of many 'art centres' the sign -was posted on the entrance doors: FOR ADULTS ONLY. - -Let it be borne in mind that these precautions had to be taken in regard -to institutions whose main purpose should have been to promote the -education of the youth and not merely to provide amusement for -sophisticated adults. What would the great dramatists of other times -have said of such measures and, above all, of the conditions which made -these measures necessary? How exasperated Schiller would have been, and -how Goethe would have turned away in disgust! - -But what are Schiller, Goethe and Shakespeare when confronted with the -heroes of our modern German literature? Old and frowsy and outmoded and -finished. For it was typical of this epoch that not only were its own -products bad but that the authors of such products and their backers -reviled everything that had really been great in the past. This is a -phenomenon that is very characteristic of such epochs. The more vile and -miserable are the men and products of an epoch, the more they will hate -and denigrate the ideal achievements of former generations. What these -people would like best would be completely to destroy every vestige of -the past, in order to do away with that sole standard of comparison -which prevents their own daubs from being looked upon as art. Therefore -the more lamentable and wretched are the products of each new era, the -more it will try to obliterate all the memorials of the past. But any -real innovation that is for the benefit of mankind can always face -comparison with the best of what has gone before; and frequently it -happens that those monuments of the past guarantee the acceptance of -those modern productions. There is no fear that modern productions of -real worth will look pale and worthless beside the monuments of the -past. What is contributed to the general treasury of human culture often -fulfils a part that is necessary in order to keep the memory of old -achievements alive, because this memory alone is the standard whereby -our own works are properly appreciated. Only those who have nothing of -value to give to the world will oppose everything that already exists -and would have it destroyed at all costs. - -And this holds good not only for new phenomena in the cultural domain -but also in politics. The more inferior new revolutionary movements are, -the more will they try to denigrate the old forms. Here again the desire -to pawn off their shoddy products as great and original achievements -leads them into a blind hatred against everything which belongs to the -past and which is superior to their own work. As long as the historical -memory of Frederick the Great, for instance, still lives, Frederick -Ebert can arouse only a problematic admiration. The relation of the hero -of Sans Souci to the former republican of Bremen may be compared to that -of the sun to the moon; for the moon can shine only after the direct -rays of the sun have left the earth. Thus we can readily understand why -it is that all the new moons in human history have hated the fixed -stars. In the field of politics, if Fate should happen temporarily to -place the ruling power in the hands of those nonentities they are not -only eager to defile and revile the past but at the same time they will -use all means to evade criticism of their own acts. The Law for the -Protection of the Republic, which the new German State enacted, may be -taken as one example of this truth. - -One has good grounds to be suspicious in regard to any new idea, or any -doctrine or philosophy, any political or economical movement, which -tries to deny everything that the past has produced or to present it as -inferior and worthless. Any renovation which is really beneficial to -human progress will always have to begin its constructive work at the -level where the last stones of the structure have been laid. It need not -blush to utilize those truths which have already been established; for -all human culture, as well as man himself, is only the result of one -long line of development, where each generation has contributed but one -stone to the building of the whole structure. The meaning and purpose of -revolutions cannot be to tear down the whole building but to take away -what has not been well fitted into it or is unsuitable, and to rebuild -the free space thus caused, after which the main construction of the -building will be carried on. - -Thus alone will it be possible to talk of human progress; for otherwise -the world would never be free of chaos, since each generation would feel -entitled to reject the past and to destroy all the work of the past, as -the necessary preliminary to any new work of its own. - -The saddest feature of the condition in which our whole civilization -found itself before the War was the fact that it was not only barren of -any creative force to produce its own works of art and civilization but -that it hated, defiled and tried to efface the memory of the superior -works produced in the past. About the end of the last century people -were less interested in producing new significant works of their -own--particularly in the fields of dramatic art and literature--than in -defaming the best works of the past and in presenting them as inferior -and antiquated. As if this period of disgraceful decadence had the -slightest capacity to produce anything of superior quality! The efforts -made to conceal the past from the eyes of the present afforded clear -evidence of the fact that these apostles of the future acted from an -evil intent. These symptoms should have made it clear to all that it was -not a question of new, though wrong, cultural ideas but of a process -which was undermining the very foundations of civilization. It threw the -artistic feeling which had hitherto been quite sane into utter -confusion, thus spiritually preparing the way for political Bolshevism. -If the creative spirit of the Periclean age be manifested in the -Parthenon, then the Bolshevist era is manifested through its cubist -grimace. - -In this connection attention must be drawn once again to the want of -courage displayed by one section of our people, namely, by those who, in -virtue of their education and position, ought to have felt themselves -obliged to take up a firm stand against this outrage on our culture. But -they refrained from offering serious resistance and surrendered to what -they considered the inevitable. This abdication of theirs was due, -however, to sheer funk lest the apostles of Bolshevist art might raise a -rumpus; for those apostles always violently attacked everyone who was -not ready to recognize them as the choice spirits of artistic creation, -and they tried to strangle all opposition by saying that it was the -product of philistine and backwater minds. People trembled in fear lest -they might be accused by these yahoos and swindlers of lacking artistic -appreciation, as if it would have been a disgrace not to be able to -understand and appreciate the effusions of those mental degenerates or -arrant rogues. Those cultural disciples, however, had a very simple way -of presenting their own effusions as works of the highest quality. They -offered incomprehensible and manifestly crazy productions to their -amazed contemporaries as what they called 'an inner experience'. Thus -they forestalled all adverse criticism at very little cost indeed. Of -course nobody ever doubted that there could have been inner experiences -like that, but some doubt ought to have arisen as to whether or not -there was any justification for exposing these hallucinations of -psychopaths or criminals to the sane portion of human society. The works -produced by a Moritz von Schwind or a B�cklin were also externalizations -of an inner experience, but these were the experiences of divinely -gifted artists and not of buffoons. - -This situation afforded a good opportunity of studying the miserable -cowardliness of our so-called intellectuals who shirked the duty of -offering serious resistance to the poisoning of the sound instincts of -our people. They left it to the people themselves to formulate their own -attitude towards his impudent nonsense. Lest they might be considered as -understanding nothing of art, they accepted every caricature of art, -until they finally lost the power of judging what is really good or bad. - -Taken all in all, there were superabundant symptoms to show that a -diseased epoch had begun. - -Still another critical symptom has to be considered. In the course of -the nineteenth century our towns and cities began more and more to lose -their character as centres of civilization and became more and more -centres of habitation. In our great modern cities the proletariat does -not show much attachment to the place where it lives. This feeling -results from the fact that their dwelling-place is nothing but an -accidental abode, and that feeling is also partly due to the frequent -change of residence which is forced upon them by social conditions. -There is no time for the growth of any attachment to the town in which -they live. But another reason lies in the cultural barrenness and -superficiality of our modern cities. At the time of the German Wars of -Liberation our German towns and cities were not only small in number but -also very modest in size. The few that could really be called great -cities were mostly the residential cities of princes; as such they had -almost always a definite cultural value and also a definite cultural -aspect. Those few towns which had more than fifty thousand inhabitants -were, in comparison with modern cities of the same size, rich in -scientific and artistic treasures. At the time when Munich had not more -than sixty thousand souls it was already well on the way to become one -of the first German centres of art. Nowadays almost every industrial -town has a population at least as large as that, without having anything -of real value to call its own. They are agglomerations of tenement -houses and congested dwelling barracks, and nothing else. It would be a -miracle if anybody should grow sentimentally attached to such a -meaningless place. Nobody can grow attached to a place which offers only -just as much or as little as any other place would offer, which has no -character of its own and where obviously pains have been taken to avoid -everything that might have any resemblance to an artistic appearance. - -But this is not all. Even the great cities become more barren of real -works of art the more they increase in population. They assume more and -more a neutral atmosphere and present the same aspect, though on a -larger scale, as the wretched little factory towns. Everything that our -modern age has contributed to the civilization of our great cities is -absolutely deficient. All our towns are living on the glory and the -treasures of the past. If we take away from the Munich of to-day -everything that was created under Ludwig II we should be horror-stricken -to see how meagre has been the output of important artistic creations -since that time. One might say much the same of Berlin and most of our -other great towns. - -But the following is the essential thing to be noticed: Our great modern -cities have no outstanding monuments that dominate the general aspect of -the city and could be pointed to as the symbols of a whole epoch. Yet -almost every ancient town had a monument erected to its glory. It was -not in private dwellings that the characteristic art of ancient cities -was displayed but in the public monuments, which were not meant to have -a transitory interest but an enduring one. And this was because they did -not represent the wealth of some individual citizen but the greatness -and importance of the community. It was under this inspiration that -those monuments arose which bound the individual inhabitants to their -own town in a manner that is often almost incomprehensible to us to-day. -What struck the eye of the individual citizen was not a number of -mediocre private buildings, but imposing structures that belonged to the -whole community. In contradistinction to these, private dwellings were -of only very secondary importance indeed. - -When we compare the size of those ancient public buildings with that of -the private dwellings belonging to the same epoch then we can understand -the great importance which was given to the principle that those works -which reflected and affected the life of the community should take -precedence of all others. - -Among the broken arches and vast spaces that are covered with ruins from -the ancient world the colossal riches that still arouse our wonder have -not been left to us from the commercial palaces of these days but from -the temples of the Gods and the public edifices that belonged to the -State. The community itself was the owner of those great edifices. Even -in the pomp of Rome during the decadence it was not the villas and -palaces of some citizens that filled the most prominent place but rather -the temples and the baths, the stadia, the circuses, the aqueducts, the -basilicas, etc., which belonged to the State and therefore to the people -as a whole. - -In medieval Germany also the same principle held sway, although the -artistic outlook was quite different. In ancient times the theme that -found its expression in the Acropolis or the Pantheon was now clothed in -the forms of the Gothic Cathedral. In the medieval cities these -monumental structures towered gigantically above the swarm of smaller -buildings with their framework walls of wood and brick. And they remain -the dominant feature of these cities even to our own day, although they -are becoming more and more obscured by the apartment barracks. They -determine the character and appearance of the locality. Cathedrals, -city-halls, corn exchanges, defence towers, are the outward expression -of an idea which has its counterpart only in the ancient world. - -The dimensions and quality of our public buildings to-day are in -deplorable contrast to the edifices that represent private interests. If -a similar fate should befall Berlin as befell Rome future generations -might gaze upon the ruins of some Jewish department stores or -joint-stock hotels and think that these were the characteristic -expressions of the culture of our time. In Berlin itself, compare the -shameful disproportion between the buildings which belong to the REICH -and those which have been erected for the accommodation of trade and -finance. - -The credits that are voted for public buildings are in most cases -inadequate and really ridiculous. They are not built as structures that -were meant to last but mostly for the purpose of answering the need of -the moment. No higher idea influenced those who commissioned such -buildings. At the time the Berlin Schloss was built it had a quite -different significance from what the new library has for our time, -seeing that one battleship alone represents an expenditure of about -sixty million marks, whereas less than half that sum was allotted for -the building of the Reichstag, which is the most imposing structure -erected for the REICH and which should have been built to last for ages. -Yet, in deciding the question of internal decoration, the Upper House -voted against the use of stone and ordered that the walls should be -covered with stucco. For once, however, the parliamentarians made an -appropriate decision on that occasion; for plaster heads would be out of -place between stone walls. - -The community as such is not the dominant characteristic of our -contemporary cities, and therefore it is not to be wondered at if the -community does not find itself architecturally represented. Thus we must -eventually arrive at a veritable civic desert which will at last be -reflected in the total indifference of the individual citizen towards -his own country. - -This is also a sign of our cultural decay and general break-up. Our era -is entirely preoccupied with little things which are to no purpose, or -rather it is entirely preoccupied in the service of money. Therefore it -is not to be wondered at if, with the worship of such an idol, the sense -of heroism should entirely disappear. But the present is only reaping -what the past has sown. - -All these symptoms which preceded the final collapse of the Second -Empire must be attributed to the lack of a definite and uniformly -accepted WELTANSCHAUUNG and the general uncertainty of outlook -consequent on that lack. This uncertainty showed itself when the great -questions of the time had to be considered one after another and a -decisive policy adopted towards them. This lack is also accountable for -the habit of doing everything by halves, beginning with the educational -system, the shilly-shally, the reluctance to undertake responsibilites -and, finally, the cowardly tolerance of evils that were even admitted to -be destructive. Visionary humanitarianisms became the fashion. In weakly -submitting to these aberrations and sparing the feelings of the -individual, the future of millions of human beings was sacrificed. - -An examination of the religious situation before the War shows that the -general process of disruption had extended to this sphere also. A great -part of the nation itself had for a long time already ceased to have any -convictions of a uniform and practical character in their ideological -outlook on life. In this matter the point of primary importance was by -no means the number of people who renounced their church membership but -rather the widespread indifference. While the two Christian -denominations maintained missions in Asia and Africa, for the purpose of -securing new adherents to the Faith, these same denominations were -losing millions and millions of their adherents at home in Europe. These -former adherents either gave up religion wholly as a directive force in -their lives or they adopted their own interpretation of it. The -consequences of this were specially felt in the moral life of the -country. In parenthesis it may be remarked that the progress made by the -missions in spreading the Christian Faith abroad was only quite modest -in comparison with the spread of Mohammedanism. - -It must be noted too that the attack on the dogmatic principles -underlying ecclesiastical teaching increased steadily in violence. And -yet this human world of ours would be inconceivable without the -practical existence of a religious belief. The great masses of a nation -are not composed of philosophers. For the masses of the people, -especially faith is absolutely the only basis of a moral outlook on -life. The various substitutes that have been offered have not shown any -results that might warrant us in thinking that they might usefully -replace the existing denominations. But if religious teaching and -religious faith were once accepted by the broad masses as active forces -in their lives, then the absolute authority of the doctrines of faith -would be the foundation of all practical effort. There may be a few -hundreds of thousands of superior men who can live wisely and -intelligently without depending on the general standards that prevail in -everyday life, but the millions of others cannot do so. Now the place -which general custom fills in everyday life corresponds to that of -general laws in the State and dogma in religion. The purely spiritual -idea is of itself a changeable thing that may be subjected to endless -interpretations. It is only through dogma that it is given a precise and -concrete form without which it could not become a living faith. -Otherwise the spiritual idea would never become anything more than a -mere metaphysical concept, or rather a philosophical opinion. -Accordingly the attack against dogma is comparable to an attack against -the general laws on which the State is founded. And so this attack would -finally lead to complete political anarchy if it were successful, just -as the attack on religion would lead to a worthless religious nihilism. - -The political leader should not estimate the worth of a religion by -taking some of its shortcomings into account, but he should ask himself -whether there be any practical substitute in a view which is -demonstrably better. Until such a substitute be available only fools and -criminals would think of abolishing the existing religion. - -Undoubtedly no small amount of blame for the present unsatisfactory -religious situation must be attributed to those who have encumbered the -ideal of religion with purely material accessories and have thus given -rise to an utterly futile conflict between religion and science. In this -conflict victory will nearly always be on the side of science, even -though after a bitter struggle, while religion will suffer heavily in -the eyes of those who cannot penetrate beneath the mere superficial -aspects of science. - -But the greatest damage of all has come from the practice of debasing -religion as a means that can be exploited to serve political interests, -or rather commercial interests. The impudent and loud-mouthed liars who -do this make their profession of faith before the whole world in -stentorian tones so that all poor mortals may hear--not that they are -ready to die for it if necessary but rather that they may live all the -better. They are ready to sell their faith for any political QUID PRO -QUO. For ten parliamentary mandates they would ally themselves with the -Marxists, who are the mortal foes of all religion. And for a seat in the -Cabinet they would go the length of wedlock with the devil, if the -latter had not still retained some traces of decency. - -If religious life in pre-war Germany had a disagreeable savour for the -mouths of many people this was because Christianity had been lowered to -base uses by political parties that called themselves Christian and -because of the shameful way in which they tried to identify the Catholic -Faith with a political party. - -This substitution was fatal. It procured some worthless parliamentary -mandates for the party in question, but the Church suffered damage -thereby. - -The consequences of that situation had to be borne by the whole nation; -for the laxity that resulted in religious life set in at a juncture when -everything was beginning to lose hold and vacillate and the traditional -foundations of custom and of morality were threatening to fall asunder. - -Yet all those cracks and clefts in the social organism might not have -been dangerous if no grave burdens had been laid upon it; but they -became disastrous when the internal solidarity of the nation was the -most important factor in withstanding the storm of big events. - -In the political field also observant eyes might have noticed certain -anomalies of the REICH which foretold disaster unless some alteration -and correction took place in time. The lack of orientation in German -policy, both domestic and foreign, was obvious to everyone who was not -purposely blind. The best thing that could be said about the practice of -making compromises is that it seemed outwardly to be in harmony with -Bismarck's axiom that 'politics is the art of the possible'. But -Bismarck was a slightly different man from the Chancellors who followed -him. This difference allowed the former to apply that formula to the -very essence of his policy, while in the mouths of the others it took on -an utterly different significance. When he uttered that phrase Bismarck -meant to say that in order to attain a definite political end all -possible means should be employed or at least that all possibilities -should be tried. But his successors see in that phrase only a solemn -declaration that one is not necessarily bound to have political -principles or any definite political aims at all. And the political -leaders of the REICH at that time had no far-seeing policy. Here, again, -the necessary foundation was lacking, namely, a definite -WELTANSCHAUUNG, and these leaders also lacked that clear insight into -the laws of political evolution which is a necessary quality in -political leadership. - -Many people who took a gloomy view of things at that time condemned the -lack of ideas and lack of orientation which were evident in directing -the policy of the REICH. They recognized the inner weakness and futility -of this policy. But such people played only a secondary role in -politics. Those who had the Government of the country in their hands -were quite as indifferent to principles of civil wisdom laid down by -thinkers like Houston Stewart Chamberlain as our political leaders now -are. These people are too stupid to think for themselves, and they have -too much self-conceit to take from others the instruction which they -need. Oxenstierna (Note 14a) gave expression to a truth which has lasted -since time immemorial, when he said that the world is governed by only a -particle of wisdom. Almost every civil servant of councillor rank might -naturally be supposed to possess only an atom or so belonging to this -particle. But since Germany became a Republic even this modicum is -wanting. And that is why they had to promulgate the Law for the Defence -of the Republic, which prohibits the holding of such views or expressing -them. It was fortunate for Oxenstierna that he lived at that time and -not in this wise Republic of our time. - -[Note 14a. Swedish Chancellor who took over the reins of Government after -the death of Gustavus Adolphus] - -Already before the War that institution which should have represented -the strength of the Reich--the Parliament, the Reichstag--was widely -recognized as its weakest feature. Cowardliness and fear of shouldering -responsibilities were associated together there in a perfect fashion. - -One of the silliest notions that one hears expressed to-day is that in -Germany the parliamentary institution has ceased to function since the -Revolution. This might easily be taken to imply that the case was -different before the Revolution. But in reality the parliamentary -institution never functioned except to the detriment of the country. And -it functioned thus in those days when people saw nothing or did not wish -to see anything. The German downfall is to be attributed in no small -degree to this institution. But that the catastrophe did not take place -sooner is not to be credited to the Parliament but rather to those who -opposed the influence of this institution which, during peace times, was -digging the grave of the German Nation and the German REICH. - -From the immense mass of devastating evils that were due either directly -or indirectly to the Parliament I shall select one the most intimately -typical of this institution which was the most irresponsible of all -time. The evil I speak of was seen in the appalling shilly-shally and -weakness in conducting the internal and external affairs of the REICH. -It was attributable in the first place to the action of the Reichstag -and was one of the principal causes of the political collapse. - -Everything subject to the influence of Parliament was done by halves, no -matter from what aspect you may regard it. - -The foreign policy of the REICH in the matter of alliances was an -example of shilly-shally. They wished to maintain peace, but in doing so -they steered straight. into war. - -Their Polish policy was also carried out by half-measures. It resulted -neither in a German triumph nor Polish conciliation, and it made enemies -of the Russians. - -They tried to solve the Alsace-Lorraine question through half-measures. -Instead of crushing the head of the French hydra once and for all with -the mailed fist and granting Alsace-Lorraine equal rights with the other -German States, they did neither the one nor the other. Anyhow, it was -impossible for them to do otherwise, for they had among their ranks the -greatest traitors to the country, such as Herr Wetterl� of the Centre -Party. - -But still the country might have been able to bear with all this -provided the half-measure policy had not victimized that force in which, -as the last resort, the existence of the Empire depended: namely, the -Army. - -The crime committed by the so-called German Reichstag in this regard was -sufficient of itself to draw down upon it the curses of the German -Nation for all time. On the most miserable of pretexts these -parliamentary party henchmen filched from the hands of the nation and -threw away the weapons which were needed to maintain its existence and -therewith defend the liberty and independence of our people. If the -graves on the plains of Flanders were to open to-day the bloodstained -accusers would arise, hundreds of thousands of our best German youth who -were driven into the arms of death by those conscienceless parliamentary -ruffians who were either wrongly educated for their task or only -half-educated. Those youths, and other millions of the killed and -mutilated, were lost to the Fatherland simply and solely in order that a -few hundred deceivers of the people might carry out their political -manoeuvres and their exactions or even treasonably pursue their -doctrinaire theories. - -By means of the Marxist and democratic Press, the Jews spread the -colossal falsehood about 'German Militarism' throughout the world and -tried to inculpate Germany by every possible means, while at the same -time the Marxist and democratic parties refused to assent to the -measures that were necessary for the adequate training of our national -defence forces. The appalling crime thus committed by these people ought -to have been obvious to everybody who foresaw that in case of war the -whole nation would have to be called to arms and that, because of the -mean huckstering of these noble 'representatives of the people', as they -called themselves, millions of Germans would have to face the enemy -ill-equipped and insufficiently trained. But even apart from the -consequences of the crude and brutal lack of conscience which these -parliamentarian rascals displayed, it was quite clear that the lack of -properly trained soldiers at the beginning of a war would most probably -lead to the loss of such a war; and this probability was confirmed in a -most terrible way during the course of the world war. - -Therefore the German people lost the struggle for the freedom and -independence of their country because of the half-hearted and defective -policy employed during times of peace in the organization and training -of the defensive strength of the nation. - -The number of recruits trained for the land forces was too small; but -the same half-heartedness was shown in regard to the navy and made this -weapon of national self-preservation more or less ineffective. -Unfortunately, even the naval authorities themselves were contaminated -with this spirit of half-heartedness. The tendency to build the ship on -the stocks somewhat smaller than that just launched by the British did -not show much foresight and less genius. A fleet which cannot be brought -to the same numerical strength as that of the probable enemy ought to -compensate for this inferiority by the superior fighting power of the -individual ship. It is the weight of the fighting power that counts and -not any sort of traditional quality. As a matter of fact, modern -technical development is so advanced and so well proportioned among the -various civilized States that it must be looked on as practically -impossible for one Power to build vessels which would have a superior -fighting quality to that of the vessels of equal size built by the other -Powers. But it is even less feasible to build vessels of smaller -displacement which will be superior in action to those of larger -displacement. - -As a matter of fact, the smaller proportions of the German vessels could -be maintained only at the expense of speed and armament. The phrase used -to justify this policy was in itself an evidence of the lack of logical -thinking on the part of the naval authorities who were in charge of -these matters in times of peace. They declared that the German guns were -definitely superior to the British 30.5 cm. as regards striking -efficiency. - -But that was just why they should have adopted the policy of building -30.5 cm. guns also; for it ought to have been their object not to -achieve equality but superiority in fighting strength. If that were not -so then it would have been superfluous to equip the land forces with 42 -cm. mortars; for the German 21 cm. mortar could be far superior to any -high-angle guns which the French possessed at that time and since the -fortresses could probably have been taken by means of 30.5 cm. mortars. -The army authorities unfortunately failed to do so. If they refrained -from assuring superior efficiency in the artillery as in the velocity, -this was because of the fundamentally false 'principle of risk' which -they adopted. The naval authorities, already in times of peace, -renounced the principle of attack and thus had to follow a defensive -policy from the very beginning of the War. But by this attitude they -renounced also the chances of final success, which can be achieved only -by an offensive policy. - -A vessel with slower speed and weaker armament will be crippled and -battered by an adversary that is faster and stronger and can frequently -shoot from a favourable distance. A large number of cruisers have been -through bitter experiences in this matter. How wrong were the ideas -prevalent among the naval authorities in times of peace was proved -during the War. They were compelled to modify the armament of the old -vessels and to equip the new ones with better armament whenever there -was a chance to do so. If the German vessels in the Battle of the -Skagerrak had been of equal size, the same armament and the same speed -as the English, the British Fleet would have gone down under the tempest -of the German 38 centimeter shells, which hit their aims more accurately -and were more effective. - -Japan had followed a different kind of naval policy. There, care was -principally taken to create with every single new vessel a fighting -force that would be superior to those of the eventual adversaries. But, -because of this policy, it was afterwards possible to use the fleet for -the offensive. - -While the army authorities refused to adopt such fundamentally erroneous -principles, the navy--which unfortunately had more representatives in -Parliament--succumbed to the spirit that ruled there. The navy was not -organized on a strong basis, and it was later used in an unsystematic -and irresolute way. The immortal glory which the navy won, in spite of -these drawbacks, must be entirely credited to the good work and the -efficiency and incomparable heroism of officers and crews. If the former -commanders-in-chief had been inspired with the same kind of genius all -the sacrifices would not have been in vain. - -It was probably the very parliamentarian skill displayed by the chief of -the navy during the years of peace which later became the cause of the -fatal collapse, since parliamentarian considerations had begun to play a -more important role in the construction of the navy than fighting -considerations. The irresolution, the weakness and the failure to adopt -a logically consistent policy, which is typical of the parliamentary -system, contaminated the naval authorities. - -As I have already emphasized, the military authorities did not allow -themselves to be led astray by such fundamentally erroneous ideas. -Ludendorff, who was then a Colonel in the General Staff, led a desperate -struggle against the criminal vacillations with which the Reichstag -treated the most vital problems of the nation and in most cases voted -against them. If the fight which this officer then waged remained -unsuccessful this must be debited to the Parliament and partly also to -the wretched and weak attitude of the Chancellor, Bethmann-Hollweg. - -Yet those who are responsible for Germany's collapse do not hesitate now -to lay all the blame on the shoulders of the one man who took a firm -stand against the neglectful manner in which the interests of the nation -were managed. But one falsehood more or less makes no difference to -these congenital tricksters. - -Anybody who thinks of all the sacrifices which this nation has had to -bear, as a result of the criminal neglect of those irresponsible -individuals; anybody who thinks of the number of those who died or were -maimed unnecessarily; anybody who thinks of the deplorable shame and -dishonour which has been heaped upon us and of the illimitable distress -into which our people are now plunged--anybody who realizes that in -order to prepare the way to a few seats in Parliament for some -unscrupulous place-hunters and arrivists will understand that such -hirelings can be called by no other name than that of rascal and -criminal; for otherwise those words could have no meaning. In comparison -with traitors who betrayed the nation's trust every other kind of -twister may be looked upon as an honourable man. - -It was a peculiar feature of the situation that all the real faults of -the old Germany were exposed to the public gaze only when the inner -solidarity of the nation could be injured by doing so. Then, indeed, -unpleasant truths were openly proclaimed in the ears of the broad -masses, while many other things were at other times shamefully hushed up -or their existence simply denied, especially at times when an open -discussion of such problems might have led to an improvement in their -regard. The higher government authorities knew little or nothing of the -nature and use of propaganda in such matters. Only the Jew knew that by -an able and persistent use of propaganda heaven itself can be presented -to the people as if it were hell and, vice versa, the most miserable -kind of life can be presented as if it were paradise. The Jew knew this -and acted accordingly. But the German, or rather his Government, did not -have the slightest suspicion of it. During the War the heaviest of -penalties had to be paid for that ignorance. - -Over against the innumerable drawbacks which I have mentioned here and -which affected German life before the War there were many outstanding -features on the positive side. If we take an impartial survey we must -admit that most of our drawbacks were in great measure prevalent also in -other countries and among the other nations, and very often in a worse -form than with us; whereas among us there were many real advantages -which the other did not have. - -The leading phase of Germany's superiority arose from the fact that, -almost alone among all the other European nations, the German nation had -made the strongest effort to preserve the national character of its -economic structure and for this reason was less subject than other -countries to the power of international finance, though indeed there -were many untoward symptoms in this regard also. - -And yet this superiority was a perilous one and turned out later to be -one of the chief causes of the world war. - -But even if we disregard this advantage of national independence in -economic matters there were certain other positive features of our -social and political life which were of outstanding excellence. These -features were represented by three institutions which were constant -sources of regeneration. In their respective spheres they were models of -perfection and were partly unrivalled. - -The first of these was the statal form as such and the manner in which -it had been developed for Germany in modern times. Of course we must -except those monarchs who, as human beings, were subject to the failings -which afflict this life and its children. If we were not so tolerant in -these matters, then the case of the present generation would be -hopeless; for if we take into consideration the personal capabilities -and character of the representative figures in our present regime it -would be difficult to imagine a more modest level of intelligence and -moral character. If we measure the 'value' of the German Revolution by -the personal worth and calibre of the individuals whom this revolution -has presented to the German people since November 1918 then we may feel -ashamed indeed in thinking of the judgment which posterity will pass on -these people, when the Law for the Protection of the Republic can no -longer silence public opinion. Coming generations will surely decide -that the intelligence and integrity of our new German leaders were in -adverse ratio to their boasting and their vices. - -It must be admitted that the monarchy had become alien in spirit to many -citizens and especially the broad masses. This resulted from the fact -that the monarchs were not always surrounded by the highest -intelligence--so to say--and certainly not always by persons of the most -upright character. Unfortunately many of them preferred flatterers to -honest-spoken men and hence received their 'information' from the -former. This was a source of grave danger at a time when the world was -passing through a period in which many of the old conditions were -changing and when this change was affecting even the traditions of the -Court. - -The average man or woman could not have felt a wave of enthusiasm -surging within the breast when, for example, at the turn of the century, -a princess in uniform and on horseback had the soldiers file past her on -parade. Those high circles had apparently no idea of the impression -which such a parade made on the minds of ordinary people; else such -unfortunate occurrences would not have taken place. The sentimental -humanitarianism--not always very sincere--which was professed in those -high circles was often more repulsive than attractive. When, for -instance, the Princess X condescended to taste the products of a soup -kitchen and found them excellent, as usual, such a gesture might have -made an excellent impression in times long past, but on this occasion it -had the opposite effect to what was intended. For even if we take it for -granted that Her Highness did not have the slightest idea, that on the -day she sampled it, the food was not quite the same as on other days, it -sufficed that the people knew it. Even the best of intentions thus -became an object of ridicule or a cause of exasperation. - -Descriptions of the proverbial frugality practised by the monarch, his -much too early rise in the morning and the drudgery he had to go through -all day long until late at night, and especially the constantly -expressed fears lest he might become undernourished--all this gave rise -to ominous expression on the part of the people. Nobody was keen to know -what and how much the monarch ate or drank. Nobody grudged him a full -meal, or the necessary amount of sleep. Everybody was pleased when the -monarch, as a man and a personality, brought honour on his family and -his country and fulfilled his duties as a sovereign. All the legends -which were circulated about him helped little and did much damage. - -These and such things, however, are only mere bagatelle. What was much -worse was the feeling, which spread throughout large sections of the -nation, that the affairs of the individual were being taken care of from -above and that he did not need to bother himself with them. As long as -the Government was really good, or at least moved by goodwill, no -serious objections could be raised. - -But the country was destined to disaster when the old Government, which -had at least striven for the best, became replaced by a new regime which -was not of the same quality. Then the docile obedience and infantile -credulity which formerly offered no resistance was bound to be one of -the most fatal evils that can be imagined. - -But against these and other defects there were certain qualities which -undoubtedly had a positive effect. - -First of all the monarchical form of government guarantees stability in -the direction of public affairs and safeguards public offices from the -speculative turmoil of ambitious politicians. Furthermore, the venerable -tradition which this institution possesses arouses a feeling which gives -weight to the monarchical authority. Beyond this there is the fact that -the whole corps of officials, and the army in particular, are raised -above the level of political party obligations. And still another -positive feature was that the supreme rulership of the State was -embodied in the monarch, as an individual person, who could serve as the -symbol of responsibility, which a monarch has to bear more seriously -than any anonymous parliamentary majority. Indeed, the proverbial -honesty and integrity of the German administration must be attributed -chiefly to this fact. Finally, the monarchy fulfilled a high cultural -function among the German people, which made amends for many of its -defects. The German residential cities have remained, even to our time, -centres of that artistic spirit which now threatens to disappear and is -becoming more and more materialistic. The German princes gave a great -deal of excellent and practical encouragement to art and science, -especially during the nineteenth century. Our present age certainly has -nothing of equal worth. - -During that process of disintegration which was slowly extending -throughout the social order the most positive force of resistance was -that offered by the army. This was the strongest source of education -which the German people possessed. For that reason all the hatred of our -enemies was directed against the paladin of our national -self-preservation and our liberty. The strongest testimony in favour of -this unique institution is the fact that it was derided, hated and -fought against, but also feared, by worthless elements all round. The -fact that the international profiteers who gathered at Versailles, -further to exploit and plunder the nations directed their enmity -specially against the old German army proved once again that it deserved -to be regarded as the institution which protected the liberties of our -people against the forces of the international stock-exchange. If the -army had not been there to sound the alarm and stand on guard, the -purposes of the Versailles representatives would have been carried out -much sooner. There is only one word to express what the German people -owe to this army--Everything! - -It was the army that still inculcated a sense of responsibility among -the people when this quality had become very rare and when the habit of -shirking every kind of responsibility was steadily spreading. This habit -had grown up under the evil influences of Parliament, which was itself -the very model of irresponsibility. The army trained the people to -personal courage at a time when the virtue of timidity threatened to -become an epidemic and when the spirit of sacrificing one's personal -interests for the good of the community was considered as something that -amounted almost to weak-mindedness. At a time when only those were -estimated as intelligent who knew how to safeguard and promote their own -egotistic interests, the army was the school through which individual -Germans were taught not to seek the salvation of their nation in the -false ideology of international fraternization between negroes, Germans, -Chinese, French and English, etc., but in the strength and unity of -their own national being. - -The army developed the individual's powers of resolute decision, and -this at a time when a spirit of indecision and scepticism governed human -conduct. At a time when the wiseacres were everywhere setting the -fashion it needed courage to uphold the principle that any command is -better than none. This one principle represents a robust and sound style -of thought, of which not a trace would have been left in the other -branches of life if the army had not furnished a constant rejuvenation -of this fundamental force. A sufficient proof of this may be found in -the appalling lack of decision which our present government authorities -display. They cannot shake off their mental and moral lethargy and -decide on some definite line of action except when they are forced to -sign some new dictate for the exploitation of the German people. In that -case they decline all responsibility while at the same time they sign -everything which the other side places before them; and they sign with -the readiness of an official stenographer. Their conduct is here -explicable on the ground that in this case they are not under the -necessity of coming to a decision; for the decision is dictated to them. - -The army imbued its members with a spirit of idealism and developed -their readiness to sacrifice themselves for their country and its -honour, while greed and materialism dominated in all the other branches -of life. The army united a people who were split up into classes: and in -this respect had only one defect, which was the One Year Military -Service, a privilege granted to those who had passed through the high -schools. It was a defect, because the principle of absolute equality was -thereby violated; and those who had a better education were thus placed -outside the cadres to which the rest of their comrades belonged. The -reverse would have been better. Since our upper classes were really -ignorant of what was going on in the body corporate of the nation and -were becoming more and more estranged from the life of the people, the -army would have accomplished a very beneficial mission if it had refused -to discriminate in favour of the so-called intellectuals, especially -within its own ranks. It was a mistake that this was not done; but in -this world of ours can we find any institution that has not at least one -defect? And in the army the good features were so absolutely predominant -that the few defects it had were far below the average that generally -rises from human weakness. - -But the greatest credit which the army of the old Empire deserves is -that, at a time when the person of the individual counted for nothing -and the majority was everything, it placed individual personal values -above majority values. By insisting on its faith in personality, the -army opposed that typically Jewish and democratic apotheosis of the -power of numbers. The army trained what at that time was most surely -needed: namely, real men. In a period when men were falling a prey to -effeminacy and laxity, 350,000 vigorously trained young men went from -the ranks of the army each year to mingle with their fellow-men. In the -course of their two years' training they had lost the softness of their -young days and had developed bodies as tough as steel. The young man who -had been taught obedience for two years was now fitted to command. The -trained soldier could be recognized already by his walk. - -This was the great school of the German nation; and it was not without -reason that it drew upon its head all the bitter hatred of those who -wanted the Empire to be weak and defenceless, because they were jealous -of its greatness and were themselves possessed by a spirit of rapacity -and greed. The rest of the world recognized a fact which many Germans -did not wish to see, either because they were blind to facts or because -out of malice they did not wish to see it. This fact was that the German -Army was the most powerful weapon for the defence and freedom of the -German nation and the best guarantee for the livelihood of its citizens. - -There was a third institution of positive worth, which has to be placed -beside that of the monarchy and the army. This was the civil service. - -German administration was better organized and better carried out than -the administration of other countries. There may have been objections to -the bureaucratic routine of the officials, but from this point of view -the state of affairs was similar, if not worse, in the other countries. -But the other States did not have the wonderful solidarity which this -organization possessed in Germany, nor were their civil servants of that -same high level of scrupulous honesty. It is certainly better to be a -trifle over-bureaucratic and honest and loyal than to be -over-sophisticated and modern, the latter often implying an inferior -type of character and also ignorance and inefficiency. For if it be -insinuated to-day that the German administration of the pre-War period -may have been excellent so far as bureaucratic technique goes, but that -from the practical business point of view it was incompetent, I can only -give the following reply: What other country in the world possessed a -better-organized and administered business enterprise than the German -State Railways, for instance? It was left to the Revolution to destroy -this standard organization, until a time came when it was taken out of -the hands of the nation and socialized, in the sense which the founders -of the Republic had given to that word, namely, making it subservient to -the international stock-exchange capitalists, who were the wire-pullers -of the German Revolution. - -The most outstanding trait in the civil service and the whole body of -the civil administration was its independence of the vicissitudes of -government, the political mentality of which could exercise no influence -on the attitude of the German State officials. Since the Revolution this -situation has been completely changed. Efficiency and capability have -been replaced by the test of party-adherence; and independence of -character and initiative are no longer appreciated as positive qualities -in a public official. They rather tell against him. - -The wonderful might and power of the old Empire was based on the -monarchical form of government, the army and the civil service. On these -three foundations rested that great strength which is now entirely -lacking; namely, the authority of the State. For the authority of the -State cannot be based on the babbling that goes on in Parliament or in -the provincial diets and not upon laws made to protect the State, or -upon sentences passed by the law courts to frighten those who have had -the hardihood to deny the authority of the State, but only on the -general confidence which the management and administration of the -community establishes among the people. This confidence is in its turn, -nothing else than the result of an unshakable inner conviction that the -government and administration of a country is inspired by disinterested -and honest goodwill and on the feeling that the spirit of the law is in -complete harmony with the moral convictions of the people. In the long -run, systems of government are not maintained by terrorism but on the -belief of the people in the merits and sincerity of those who administer -and promote the public interests. - -Though it be true that in the period preceding the War certain grave -evils tended to infect and corrode the inner strength of the nation, it -must be remembered that the other States suffered even more than Germany -from these drawbacks and yet those other States did not fail and break -down when the time of crisis came. If we remember further that those -defects in pre-War Germany were outweighed by great positive qualities -we shall have to look elsewhere for the effective cause of the collapse. -And elsewhere it lay. - -The ultimate and most profound reason of the German downfall is to be -found in the fact that the racial problem was ignored and that its -importance in the historical development of nations was not grasped. For -the events that take place in the life of nations are not due to chance -but are the natural results of the effort to conserve and multiply the -species and the race, even though men may not be able consciously to -picture to their minds the profound motives of their conduct. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - - - -RACE AND PEOPLE - - -There are certain truths which stand out so openly on the roadsides of -life, as it were, that every passer-by may see them. Yet, because of -their very obviousness, the general run of people disregard such truths -or at least they do not make them the object of any conscious knowledge. -People are so blind to some of the simplest facts in every-day life that -they are highly surprised when somebody calls attention to what -everybody ought to know. Examples of The Columbus Egg lie around us in -hundreds of thousands; but observers like Columbus are rare. - -Walking about in the garden of Nature, most men have the self-conceit to -think that they know everything; yet almost all are blind to one of the -outstanding principles that Nature employs in her work. This principle -may be called the inner isolation which characterizes each and every -living species on this earth. - -Even a superficial glance is sufficient to show that all the innumerable -forms in which the life-urge of Nature manifests itself are subject to a -fundamental law--one may call it an iron law of Nature--which compels -the various species to keep within the definite limits of their own -life-forms when propagating and multiplying their kind. Each animal -mates only with one of its own species. The titmouse cohabits only with -the titmouse, the finch with the finch, the stork with the stork, the -field-mouse with the field-mouse, the house-mouse with the house-mouse, -the wolf with the she-wolf, etc. - -Deviations from this law take place only in exceptional circumstances. -This happens especially under the compulsion of captivity, or when some -other obstacle makes procreative intercourse impossible between -individuals of the same species. But then Nature abhors such intercourse -with all her might; and her protest is most clearly demonstrated by the -fact that the hybrid is either sterile or the fecundity of its -descendants is limited. In most cases hybrids and their progeny are -denied the ordinary powers of resistance to disease or the natural means -of defence against outer attack. - -Such a dispensation of Nature is quite logical. Every crossing between -two breeds which are not quite equal results in a product which holds an -intermediate place between the levels of the two parents. This means -that the offspring will indeed be superior to the parent which stands in -the biologically lower order of being, but not so high as the higher -parent. For this reason it must eventually succumb in any struggle -against the higher species. Such mating contradicts the will of Nature -towards the selective improvements of life in general. The favourable -preliminary to this improvement is not to mate individuals of higher and -lower orders of being but rather to allow the complete triumph of the -higher order. The stronger must dominate and not mate with the weaker, -which would signify the sacrifice of its own higher nature. Only the -born weakling can look upon this principle as cruel, and if he does so -it is merely because he is of a feebler nature and narrower mind; for if -such a law did not direct the process of evolution then the higher -development of organic life would not be conceivable at all. - -This urge for the maintenance of the unmixed breed, which is a -phenomenon that prevails throughout the whole of the natural world, -results not only in the sharply defined outward distinction between one -species and another but also in the internal similarity of -characteristic qualities which are peculiar to each breed or species. -The fox remains always a fox, the goose remains a goose, and the tiger -will retain the character of a tiger. The only difference that can exist -within the species must be in the various degrees of structural strength -and active power, in the intelligence, efficiency, endurance, etc., with -which the individual specimens are endowed. It would be impossible to -find a fox which has a kindly and protective disposition towards geese, -just as no cat exists which has a friendly disposition towards mice. - -That is why the struggle between the various species does not arise from -a feeling of mutual antipathy but rather from hunger and love. In both -cases Nature looks on calmly and is even pleased with what happens. The -struggle for the daily livelihood leaves behind in the ruck everything -that is weak or diseased or wavering; while the fight of the male to -possess the female gives to the strongest the right, or at least, the -possibility to propagate its kind. And this struggle is a means of -furthering the health and powers of resistance in the species. Thus it -is one of the causes underlying the process of development towards a -higher quality of being. - -If the case were different the progressive process would cease, and even -retrogression might set in. Since the inferior always outnumber the -superior, the former would always increase more rapidly if they -possessed the same capacities for survival and for the procreation of -their kind; and the final consequence would be that the best in quality -would be forced to recede into the background. Therefore a corrective -measure in favour of the better quality must intervene. Nature supplies -this by establishing rigorous conditions of life to which the weaker -will have to submit and will thereby be numerically restricted; but even -that portion which survives cannot indiscriminately multiply, for here a -new and rigorous selection takes place, according to strength and -health. - -If Nature does not wish that weaker individuals should mate with the -stronger, she wishes even less that a superior race should intermingle -with an inferior one; because in such a case all her efforts, throughout -hundreds of thousands of years, to establish an evolutionary higher -stage of being, may thus be rendered futile. - -History furnishes us with innumerable instances that prove this law. It -shows, with a startling clarity, that whenever Aryans have mingled their -blood with that of an inferior race the result has been the downfall of -the people who were the standard-bearers of a higher culture. In North -America, where the population is prevalently Teutonic, and where those -elements intermingled with the inferior race only to a very small -degree, we have a quality of mankind and a civilization which are -different from those of Central and South America. In these latter -countries the immigrants--who mainly belonged to the Latin races--mated -with the aborigines, sometimes to a very large extent indeed. In this -case we have a clear and decisive example of the effect produced by the -mixture of races. But in North America the Teutonic element, which has -kept its racial stock pure and did not mix it with any other racial -stock, has come to dominate the American Continent and will remain -master of it as long as that element does not fall a victim to the habit -of adulterating its blood. - -In short, the results of miscegenation are always the following: - -(a) The level of the superior race becomes lowered; - -(b) physical and mental degeneration sets in, thus leading slowly but -steadily towards a progressive drying up of the vital sap. - -The act which brings about such a development is a sin against the will -of the Eternal Creator. And as a sin this act will be avenged. - -Man's effort to build up something that contradicts the iron logic of -Nature brings him into conflict with those principles to which he -himself exclusively owes his own existence. By acting against the laws -of Nature he prepares the way that leads to his ruin. - -Here we meet the insolent objection, which is Jewish in its inspiration -and is typical of the modern pacifist. It says: "Man can control even -Nature." - -There are millions who repeat by rote that piece of Jewish babble and -end up by imagining that somehow they themselves are the conquerors of -Nature. And yet their only weapon is just a mere idea, and a very -preposterous idea into the bargain; because if one accepted it, then it -would be impossible even to imagine the existence of the world. - -The real truth is that, not only has man failed to overcome Nature in -any sphere whatsoever but that at best he has merely succeeded in -getting hold of and lifting a tiny corner of the enormous veil which she -has spread over her eternal mysteries and secret. He never creates -anything. All he can do is to discover something. He does not master -Nature but has only come to be the master of those living beings who -have not gained the knowledge he has arrived at by penetrating into some -of Nature's laws and mysteries. Apart from all this, an idea can never -subject to its own sway those conditions which are necessary for the -existence and development of mankind; for the idea itself has come only -from man. Without man there would be no human idea in this world. The -idea as such is therefore always dependent on the existence of man and -consequently is dependent on those laws which furnish the conditions of -his existence. - -And not only that. Certain ideas are even confined to certain people. -This holds true with regard to those ideas in particular which have not -their roots in objective scientific truth but in the world of feeling. -In other words, to use a phrase which is current to-day and which well -and clearly expresses this truth: THEY REFLECT AN INNER EXPERIENCE. All -such ideas, which have nothing to do with cold logic as such but -represent mere manifestations of feeling, such as ethical and moral -conceptions, etc., are inextricably bound up with man's existence. It is -to the creative powers of man's imagination that such ideas owe their -existence. - -Now, then, a necessary condition for the maintenance of such ideas is -the existence of certain races and certain types of men. For example, -anyone who sincerely wishes that the pacifist idea should prevail in -this world ought to do all he is capable of doing to help the Germans -conquer the world; for in case the reverse should happen it may easily -be that the last pacifist would disappear with the last German. I say -this because, unfortunately, only our people, and no other people in the -world, fell a prey to this idea. Whether you like it or not, you would -have to make up your mind to forget wars if you would achieve the -pacifist ideal. Nothing less than this was the plan of the American -world-redeemer, Woodrow Wilson. Anyhow that was what our visionaries -believed, and they thought that through his plans their ideals would be -attained. - -The pacifist-humanitarian idea may indeed become an excellent one when -the most superior type of manhood will have succeeded in subjugating the -world to such an extent that this type is then sole master of the earth. -This idea could have an injurious effect only in the measure according -to which its application would become difficult and finally impossible. -So, first of all, the fight and then pacifism. If the case were -different it would mean that mankind has already passed the zenith of -its development, and accordingly the end would not be the supremacy of -some moral ideal but degeneration into barbarism and consequent chaos. -People may laugh at this statement; but our planet has been moving -through the spaces of ether for millions and millions of years, -uninhabited by men, and at some future date may easily begin to do so -again--if men should forget that wherever they have reached a superior -level of existence, it was not the result of following the ideas of -crazy visionaries but by acknowledging and rigorously observing the iron -laws of Nature. - -All that we admire in the world to-day, its science, its art, its -technical developments and discoveries, are the products of the creative -activities of a few peoples, and it may be true that their first -beginnings must be attributed to one race. The maintenance of -civilization is wholly dependent on such peoples. Should they perish, -all that makes this earth beautiful will descend with them into the -grave. - -However great, for example, be the influence which the soil exerts on -men, this influence will always vary according to the race in which it -produces its effect. Dearth of soil may stimulate one race to the most -strenuous efforts and highest achievement; while, for another race, the -poverty of the soil may be the cause of misery and finally of -undernourishment, with all its consequences. The internal -characteristics of a people are always the causes which determine the -nature of the effect that outer circumstances have on them. What reduces -one race to starvation trains another race to harder work. - -All the great civilizations of the past became decadent because the -originally creative race died out, as a result of contamination of the -blood. - -The most profound cause of such a decline is to be found in the fact -that the people ignored the principle that all culture depends on men, -and not the reverse. In other words, in order to preserve a certain -culture, the type of manhood that creates such a culture must be -preserved. But such a preservation goes hand-in-hand with the inexorable -law that it is the strongest and the best who must triumph and that they -have the right to endure. - -He who would live must fight. He who does not wish to fight in this -world, where permanent struggle is the law of life, has not the right to -exist. - -Such a saying may sound hard; but, after all, that is how the matter -really stands. Yet far harder is the lot of him who believes that he can -overcome Nature and thus in reality insults her. Distress, misery, and -disease are her rejoinders. - -Whoever ignores or despises the laws of race really deprives himself of -the happiness to which he believes he can attain. For he places an -obstacle in the victorious path of the superior race and, by so doing, -he interferes with a prerequisite condition of all human progress. -Loaded with the burden of humanitarian sentiment, he falls back to the -level of those who are unable to raise themselves in the scale of being. - -It would be futile to attempt to discuss the question as to what race or -races were the original standard-bearers of human culture and were -thereby the real founders of all that we understand by the word -humanity. It is much simpler to deal with this question in so far as it -relates to the present time. Here the answer is simple and clear. Every -manifestation of human culture, every product of art, science and -technical skill, which we see before our eyes to-day, is almost -exclusively the product of the Aryan creative power. This very fact -fully justifies the conclusion that it was the Aryan alone who founded a -superior type of humanity; therefore he represents the architype of what -we understand by the term: MAN. He is the Prometheus of mankind, from -whose shining brow the divine spark of genius has at all times flashed -forth, always kindling anew that fire which, in the form of knowledge, -illuminated the dark night by drawing aside the veil of mystery and thus -showing man how to rise and become master over all the other beings on -the earth. Should he be forced to disappear, a profound darkness will -descend on the earth; within a few thousand years human culture will -vanish and the world will become a desert. - -If we divide mankind into three categories--founders of culture, bearers -of culture, and destroyers of culture--the Aryan alone can be considered -as representing the first category. It was he who laid the groundwork -and erected the walls of every great structure in human culture. Only -the shape and colour of such structures are to be attributed to the -individual characteristics of the various nations. It is the Aryan who -has furnished the great building-stones and plans for the edifices of -all human progress; only the way in which these plans have been executed -is to be attributed to the qualities of each individual race. Within a -few decades the whole of Eastern Asia, for instance, appropriated a -culture and called such a culture its own, whereas the basis of that -culture was the Greek mind and Teutonic skill as we know it. Only the -external form--at least to a certain degree--shows the traits of an -Asiatic inspiration. It is not true, as some believe, that Japan adds -European technique to a culture of her own. The truth rather is that -European science and technics are just decked out with the peculiar -characteristics of Japanese civilization. The foundations of actual life -in Japan to-day are not those of the native Japanese culture, although -this characterizes the external features of the country, which features -strike the eye of European observers on account of their fundamental -difference from us; but the real foundations of contemporary Japanese -life are the enormous scientific and technical achievements of Europe -and America, that is to say, of Aryan peoples. Only by adopting these -achievements as the foundations of their own progress can the various -nations of the Orient take a place in contemporary world progress. The -scientific and technical achievements of Europe and America provide the -basis on which the struggle for daily livelihood is carried on in the -Orient. They provide the necessary arms and instruments for this -struggle, and only the outer forms of these instruments have become -gradually adapted to Japanese ways of life. - -If, from to-day onwards, the Aryan influence on Japan would cease--and -if we suppose that Europe and America would collapse--then the present -progress of Japan in science and technique might still last for a short -duration; but within a few decades the inspiration would dry up, and -native Japanese character would triumph, while the present civilization -would become fossilized and fall back into the sleep from which it was -aroused about seventy years ago by the impact of Aryan culture. We may -therefore draw the conclusion that, just as the present Japanese -development has been due to Aryan influence, so in the immemorial past -an outside influence and an outside culture brought into existence the -Japanese culture of that day. This opinion is very strongly supported by -the fact that the ancient civilization of Japan actually became -fossilizied and petrified. Such a process of senility can happen only if -a people loses the racial cell which originally had been creative or if -the outside influence should be withdrawn after having awakened and -maintained the first cultural developments in that region. If it be -shown that a people owes the fundamental elements of its culture to -foreign races, assimilating and elaborating such elements, and if -subsequently that culture becomes fossilized whenever the external -influence ceases, then such a race may be called the depository but -never the creator of a culture. - -If we subject the different peoples to a strict test from this -standpoint we shall find that scarcely any one of them has originally -created a culture, but almost all have been merely the recipients of a -culture created elsewhere. - -This development may be depicted as always happening somewhat in the -following way: - -Aryan tribes, often almost ridiculously small in number, subjugated -foreign peoples and, stimulated by the conditions of life which their -new country offered them (fertility, the nature of the climate, etc.), -and profiting also by the abundance of manual labour furnished them by -the inferior race, they developed intellectual and organizing faculties -which had hitherto been dormant in these conquering tribes. Within the -course of a few thousand years, or even centuries, they gave life to -cultures whose primitive traits completely corresponded to the character -of the founders, though modified by adaptation to the peculiarities of -the soil and the characteristics of the subjugated people. But finally -the conquering race offended against the principles which they first had -observed, namely, the maintenance of their racial stock unmixed, and -they began to intermingle with the subjugated people. Thus they put an -end to their own separate existence; for the original sin committed in -Paradise has always been followed by the expulsion of the guilty -parties. - -After a thousand years or more the last visible traces of those former -masters may then be found in a lighter tint of the skin which the Aryan -blood had bequeathed to the subjugated race, and in a fossilized culture -of which those Aryans had been the original creators. For just as the -blood. of the conqueror, who was a conqueror not only in body but also -in spirit, got submerged in the blood of the subject race, so the -substance disappeared out of which the torch of human culture and -progress was kindled. In so far as the blood of the former ruling race -has left a light nuance of colour in the blood of its descendants, as a -token and a memory, the night of cultural life is rendered less dim and -dark by a mild light radiated from the products of those who were the -bearers of the original fire. Their radiance shines across the barbarism -to which the subjected race has reverted and might often lead the -superficial observer to believe that he sees before him an image of the -present race when he is really looking into a mirror wherein only the -past is reflected. - -It may happen that in the course of its history such a people will come -into contact a second time, and even oftener, with the original founders -of their culture and may not even remember that distant association. -Instinctively the remnants of blood left from that old ruling race will -be drawn towards this new phenomenon and what had formerly been possible -only under compulsion can now be successfully achieved in a voluntary -way. A new cultural wave flows in and lasts until the blood of its -standard-bearers becomes once again adulterated by intermixture with the -originally conquered race. - -It will be the task of those who set themselves to the study of a -universal history of civilization to investigate history from this point -of view instead of allowing themselves to be smothered under the mass of -external data, as is only too often the case with our present historical -science. - -This short sketch of the changes that take place among those races that -are only the depositories of a culture also furnishes a picture of the -development and the activity and the disappearance of those who are the -true founders of culture on this earth, namely the Aryans themselves. - -Just as in our daily life the so-called man of genius needs a particular -occasion, and sometimes indeed a special stimulus, to bring his genius -to light, so too in the life of the peoples the race that has genius in -it needs the occasion and stimulus to bring that genius to expression. -In the monotony and routine of everyday life even persons of -significance seem just like the others and do not rise beyond the -average level of their fellow-men. But as soon as such men find -themselves in a special situation which disconcerts and unbalances the -others, the humble person of apparently common qualities reveals traits -of genius, often to the amazement of those who have hitherto known him -in the small things of everyday life. That is the reason why a prophet -only seldom counts for something in his own country. War offers an -excellent occasion for observing this phenomenon. In times of distress, -when the others despair, apparently harmless boys suddenly spring up and -become heroes, full of determination, undaunted in the presence of Death -and manifesting wonderful powers of calm reflection under such -circumstances. If such an hour of trial did not come nobody would have -thought that the soul of a hero lurked in the body of that beardless -youth. A special impulse is almost always necessary to bring a man of -genius into the foreground. The sledge-hammer of Fate which strikes down -the one so easily suddenly finds the counter-impact of steel when it -strikes at the other. And, after the common shell of everyday life is -broken, the core that lay hidden in it is displayed to the eyes of an -astonished world. This surrounding world then grows obstinate and will -not believe that what had seemed so like itself is really of that -different quality so suddenly displayed. This is a process which is -repeated probably every time a man of outstanding significance appears. - -Though an inventor, for example, does not establish his fame until the -very day that he carries through his invention, it would be a mistake to -believe that the creative genius did not become alive in him until that -moment. From the very hour of his birth the spark of genius is living -within the man who has been endowed with the real creative faculty. True -genius is an innate quality. It can never be the result of education or -training. - -As I have stated already, this holds good not merely of the individual -but also of the race. Those peoples who manifest creative abilities in -certain periods of their history have always been fundamentally -creative. It belongs to their very nature, even though this fact may -escape the eyes of the superficial observer. Here also recognition from -outside is only the consequence of practical achievement. Since the rest -of the world is incapable of recognizing genius as such, it can only see -the visible manifestations of genius in the form of inventions, -discoveries, buildings, painting, etc.; but even here a long time passes -before recognition is given. Just as the individual person who has been -endowed with the gift of genius, or at least talent of a very high -order, cannot bring that endowment to realization until he comes under -the urge of special circumstances, so in the life of the nations the -creative capacities and powers frequently have to wait until certain -conditions stimulate them to action. - -The most obvious example of this truth is furnished by that race which -has been, and still is, the standard-bearer of human progress: I mean -the Aryan race. As soon as Fate brings them face to face with special -circumstances their powers begin to develop progressively and to be -manifested in tangible form. The characteristic cultures which they -create under such circumstances are almost always conditioned by the -soil, the climate and the people they subjugate. The last factor--that -of the character of the people--is the most decisive one. The more -primitive the technical conditions under which the civilizing activity -takes place, the more necessary is the existence of manual labour which -can be organized and employed so as to take the place of mechanical -power. Had it not been possible for them to employ members of the -inferior race which they conquered, the Aryans would never have been in -a position to take the first steps on the road which led them to a later -type of culture; just as, without the help of certain suitable animals -which they were able to tame, they would never have come to the -invention of mechanical power which has subsequently enabled them to do -without these beasts. The phrase, 'The Moor has accomplished his -function, so let him now depart', has, unfortunately, a profound -application. For thousands of years the horse has been the faithful -servant of man and has helped him to lay the foundations of human -progress, but now motor power has dispensed with the use of the horse. -In a few years to come the use of the horse will cease entirely; and yet -without its collaboration man could scarcely have come to the stage of -development which he has now created. - -For the establishment of superior types of civilization the members of -inferior races formed one of the most essential pre-requisites. They -alone could supply the lack of mechanical means without which no -progress is possible. It is certain that the first stages of human -civilization were not based so much on the use of tame animals as on the -employment of human beings who were members of an inferior race. - -Only after subjugated races were employed as slaves was a similar fate -allotted to animals, and not vice versa, as some people would have us -believe. At first it was the conquered enemy who had to draw the plough -and only afterwards did the ox and horse take his place. Nobody else but -puling pacifists can consider this fact as a sign of human degradation. -Such people fail to recognize that this evolution had to take place in -order that man might reach that degree of civilization which these -apostles now exploit in an attempt to make the world pay attention to -their rigmarole. - -The progress of mankind may be compared to the process of ascending an -infinite ladder. One does not reach the higher level without first -having climbed the lower rungs. The Aryan therefore had to take that -road which his sense of reality pointed out to him and not that which -the modern pacifist dreams of. The path of reality is, however, -difficult and hard to tread; yet it is the only one which finally leads -to the goal where the others envisage mankind in their dreams. But the -real truth is that those dreamers help only to lead man away from his -goal rather than towards it. - -It was not by mere chance that the first forms of civilization arose -there where the Aryan came into contact with inferior races, subjugated -them and forced them to obey his command. The members of the inferior -race became the first mechanical tools in the service of a growing -civilization. - -Thereby the way was clearly indicated which the Aryan had to follow. As -a conqueror, he subjugated inferior races and turned their physical -powers into organized channels under his own leadership, forcing them to -follow his will and purpose. By imposing on them a useful, though hard, -manner of employing their powers he not only spared the lives of those -whom he had conquered but probably made their lives easier than these -had been in the former state of so-called 'freedom'. While he ruthlessly -maintained his position as their master, he not only remained master but -he also maintained and advanced civilization. For this depended -exclusively on his inborn abilities and, therefore, on the preservation -of the Aryan race as such. As soon, however, as his subject began to -rise and approach the level of their conqueror, a phase of which -ascension was probably the use of his language, the barriers that had -distinguished master from servant broke down. The Aryan neglected to -maintain his own racial stock unmixed and therewith lost the right to -live in the paradise which he himself had created. He became submerged -in the racial mixture and gradually lost his cultural creativeness, -until he finally grew, not only mentally but also physically, more like -the aborigines whom he had subjected rather than his own ancestors. For -some time he could continue to live on the capital of that culture which -still remained; but a condition of fossilization soon set in and he sank -into oblivion. - -That is how cultures and empires decline and yield their places to new -formations. - -The adulteration of the blood and racial deterioration conditioned -thereby are the only causes that account for the decline of ancient -civilizations; for it is never by war that nations are ruined, but by -the loss of their powers of resistance, which are exclusively a -characteristic of pure racial blood. In this world everything that is -not of sound racial stock is like chaff. Every historical event in the -world is nothing more nor less than a manifestation of the instinct of -racial self-preservation, whether for weal or woe. - -The question as to the ground reasons for the predominant importance of -Aryanism can be answered by pointing out that it is not so much that the -Aryans are endowed with a stronger instinct for self-preservation, but -rather that this manifests itself in a way which is peculiar to -themselves. Considered from the subjective standpoint, the will-to-live -is of course equally strong all round and only the forms in which it is -expressed are different. Among the most primitive organisms the instinct -for self-preservation does not extend beyond the care of the individual -ego. Egotism, as we call this passion, is so predominant that it -includes even the time element; which means that the present moment is -deemed the most important and that nothing is left to the future. The -animal lives only for itself, searching for food only when it feels -hunger and fighting only for the preservation of its own life. As long -as the instinct for self-preservation manifests itself exclusively in -such a way, there is no basis for the establishment of a community; not -even the most primitive form of all, that is to say the family. The -society formed by the male with the female, where it goes beyond the -mere conditions of mating, calls for the extension of the instinct of -self-preservation, since the readiness to fight for one's own ego has to -be extended also to the mate. The male sometimes provides food for the -female, but in most cases both parents provide food for the offspring. -Almost always they are ready to protect and defend each other; so that -here we find the first, though infinitely simple, manifestation of the -spirit of sacrifice. As soon as this spirit extends beyond the narrow -limits of the family, we have the conditions under which larger -associations and finally even States can be formed. - -The lowest species of human beings give evidence of this quality only to -a very small degree, so that often they do not go beyond the formation -of the family society. With an increasing readiness to place their -immediate personal interests in the background, the capacity for -organizing more extensive communities develops. - -The readiness to sacrifice one's personal work and, if necessary, even -one's life for others shows its most highly developed form in the Aryan -race. The greatness of the Aryan is not based on his intellectual -powers, but rather on his willingness to devote all his faculties to the -service of the community. Here the instinct for self-preservation has -reached its noblest form; for the Aryan willingly subordinates his own -ego to the common weal and when necessity calls he will even sacrifice -his own life for the community. - -The constructive powers of the Aryan and that peculiar ability he has -for the building up of a culture are not grounded in his intellectual -gifts alone. If that were so they might only be destructive and could -never have the ability to organize; for the latter essentially depends -on the readiness of the individual to renounce his own personal opinions -and interests and to lay both at the service of the human group. By -serving the common weal he receives his reward in return. For example, -he does not work directly for himself but makes his productive work a -part of the activity of the group to which he belongs, not only for his -own benefit but for the general. The spirit underlying this attitude is -expressed by the word: WORK, which to him does not at all signify a -means of earning one's daily livelihood but rather a productive activity -which cannot clash with the interests of the community. Whenever human -activity is directed exclusively to the service of the instinct for -self-preservation it is called theft or usury, robbery or burglary, etc. - -This mental attitude, which forces self-interest to recede into the -background in favour of the common weal, is the first prerequisite for -any kind of really human civilization. It is out of this spirit alone -that great human achievements have sprung for which the original doers -have scarcely ever received any recompense but which turns out to be the -source of abundant benefit for their descendants. It is this spirit -alone which can explain why it so often happens that people can endure a -harsh but honest existence which offers them no returns for their toil -except a poor and modest livelihood. But such a livelihood helps to -consolidate the foundations on which the community exists. Every worker -and every peasant, every inventor, state official, etc., who works -without ever achieving fortune or prosperity for himself, is a -representative of this sublime idea, even though he may never become -conscious of the profound meaning of his own activity. - -Everything that may be said of that kind of work which is the -fundamental condition of providing food and the basic means of human -progress is true even in a higher sense of work that is done for the -protection of man and his civilization. The renunciation of one's own -life for the sake of the community is the crowning significance of the -idea of all sacrifice. In this way only is it possible to protect what -has been built up by man and to assure that this will not be destroyed -by the hand of man or of nature. - -In the German language we have a word which admirably expresses this -underlying spirit of all work: It is Pflichterf�llung, which means the -service of the common weal before the consideration of one's own -interests. The fundamental spirit out of which this kind of activity -springs is the contradistinction of 'Egotism' and we call it 'Idealism'. -By this we mean to signify the willingness of the individual to make -sacrifices for the community and his fellow-men. - -It is of the utmost importance to insist again and again that idealism -is not merely a superfluous manifestation of sentiment but rather -something which has been, is and always will be, a necessary -precondition of human civilization; it is even out of this that the very -idea of the word 'Human' arises. To this kind of mentality the Aryan -owes his position in the world. And the world is indebted to the Aryan -mind for having developed the concept of 'mankind'; for it is out of -this spirit alone that the creative force has come which in a unique way -combined robust muscular power with a first-class intellect and thus -created the monuments of human civilization. - -Were it not for idealism all the faculties of the intellect, even the -most brilliant, would be nothing but intellect itself, a mere external -phenomenon without inner value and never a creative force. - -Since true idealism, however, is essentially the subordination of the -interests and life of the individual to the interests and life of the -community, and since the community on its part represents the -pre-requisite condition of every form of organization, this idealism -accords in its innermost essence with the final purpose of Nature. This -feeling alone makes men voluntarily acknowledge that strength and power -are entitled to take the lead and thus makes them a constituent particle -in that order out of which the whole universe is shaped and formed. - -Without being conscious of it, the purest idealism is always associated -with the most profound knowledge. How true this is and how little -genuine idealism has to do with fantastic self-dramatization will become -clear the moment we ask an unspoilt child, a healthy boy for example, to -give his opinion. The very same boy who listens to the rantings of an -'idealistic' pacifist without understanding them, and even rejects them, -would readily sacrifice his young life for the ideal of his people. - -Unconsciously his instinct will submit to the knowledge that the -preservation of the species, even at the cost of the individual life, is -a primal necessity and he will protest against the fantasies of pacifist -ranters, who in reality are nothing better than cowardly egoists, even -though camouflaged, who contradict the laws of human development. For it -is a necessity of human evolution that the individual should be imbued -with the spirit of sacrifice in favour of the common weal, and that he -should not be influenced by the morbid notions of those knaves who -pretend to know better than Nature and who have the impudencc to -criticize her decrees. - -It is just at those junctures when the idealistic attitude threatens to -disappear that we notice a weakening of this force which is a necessary -constituent in the founding and maintenance of the community and is -thereby a necessary condition of civilization. As soon as the spirit of -egotism begins to prevail among a people then the bonds of the social -order break and man, by seeking his own personal happiness, veritably -tumbles out of heaven and falls into hell. - -Posterity will not remember those who pursued only their own individual -interests, but it will praise those heroes who renounced their own -happiness. - -The Jew offers the most striking contrast to the Aryan. There is -probably no other people in the world who have so developed the instinct -of self-preservation as the so-called 'chosen' people. The best proof of -this statement is found in the simple fact that this race still exists. -Where can another people be found that in the course of the last two -thousand years has undergone so few changes in mental outlook and -character as the Jewish people? And yet what other people has taken such -a constant part in the great revolutions? But even after having passed -through the most gigantic catastrophes that have overwhelmed mankind, -the Jews remain the same as ever. What an infinitely tenacious -will-to-live, to preserve one's kind, is demonstrated by that fact! - -The intellectual faculties of the Jew have been trained through -thousands of years. To-day the Jew is looked upon as specially -'cunning'; and in a certain sense he has been so throughout the ages. -His intellectual powers, however, are not the result of an inner -evolution but rather have been shaped by the object-lessons which the -Jew has received from others. The human spirit cannot climb upwards -without taking successive steps. For every step upwards it needs the -foundation of what has been constructed before--the past--which in, the -comprehensive sense here employed, can have been laid only in a general -civilization. All thinking originates only to a very small degree in -personal experience. The largest part is based on the accumulated -experiences of the past. The general level of civilization provides the -individual, who in most cases is not consciously aware of the fact, with -such an abundance of preliminary knowledge that with this equipment he -can more easily take further steps on the road of progress. The boy of -to-day, for example, grows up among such an overwhelming mass of -technical achievement which has accumulated during the last century that -he takes as granted many things which a hundred years ago were still -mysteries even to the greatest minds of those times. Yet these things -that are not so much a matter of course are of enormous importance to -those who would understand the progress we have made in these matters -and would carry on that progress a step farther. If a man of genius -belonging to the 'twenties of the last century were to arise from his -grave to-day he would find it more difficult to understand our present -age than the contemporary boy of fifteen years of age who may even have -only an average intelligence. The man of genius, thus come back from the -past, would need to provide himself with an extraordinary amount of -preliminary information which our contemporary youth receive -automatically, so to speak, during the time they are growing up among -the products of our modern civilization. - -Since the Jew--for reasons that I shall deal with immediately--never had -a civilization of his own, he has always been furnished by others with a -basis for his: intellectual work. His intellect has always developed by -the use of those cultural achievements which he has found ready-to-hand -around him. - -The process has never been the reverse. - -For, though among the Jews the instinct of self-preservation has not -been weaker but has been much stronger than among other peoples, and -though the impression may easily be created that the intellectual powers -of the Jew are at least equal to those of other races, the Jews -completely lack the most essential pre-requisite of a cultural people, -namely the idealistic spirit. With the Jewish people the readiness for -sacrifice does not extend beyond the simple instinct of individual -preservation. In their case the feeling of racial solidarity which they -apparently manifest is nothing but a very primitive gregarious instinct, -similar to that which may be found among other organisms in this world. -It is a remarkable fact that this herd instinct brings individuals -together for mutual protection only as long as there is a common danger -which makes mutual assistance expedient or inevitable. The same pack of -wolves which a moment ago joined together in a common attack on their -victim will dissolve into individual wolves as soon as their hunger has -been satisfied. This is also sure of horses, which unite to defend -themselves against any aggressor but separate the moment the danger is -over. - -It is much the same with the Jew. His spirit of sacrifice is only -apparent. It manifests itself only so long as the existence of the -individual makes this a matter of absolute necessity. But as soon as the -common foe is conquered and the danger which threatened the individual -Jews is overcome and the prey secured, then the apparent harmony -disappears and the original conditions set in again. Jews act in concord -only when a common danger threatens them or a common prey attracts them. -Where these two motives no longer exist then the most brutal egotism -appears and these people who before had lived together in unity will -turn into a swarm of rats that bitterly fight against each other. - -If the Jews were the only people in the world they would be wallowing in -filth and mire and would exploit one another and try to exterminate one -another in a bitter struggle, except in so far as their utter lack of -the ideal of sacrifice, which shows itself in their cowardly spirit, -would prevent this struggle from developing. - -Therefore it would be a complete mistake to interpret the mutual help -which the Jews render one another when they have to fight--or, to put it -more accurately, to exploit--their fellow being, as the expression of a -certain idealistic spirit of sacrifice. - -Here again the Jew merely follows the call of his individual egotism. -That is why the Jewish State, which ought to be a vital organization to -serve the purpose of preserving or increasing the race, has absolutely -no territorial boundaries. For the territorial delimitation of a State -always demands a certain idealism of spirit on the part of the race -which forms that State and especially a proper acceptance of the idea of -work. A State which is territorially delimited cannot be established or -maintained unless the general attitude towards work be a positive one. -If this attitude be lacking, then the necessary basis of a civilization -is also lacking. - -That is why the Jewish people, despite the intellectual powers with -which they are apparently endowed, have not a culture--certainly not a -culture of their own. The culture which the Jew enjoys to-day is the -product of the work of others and this product is debased in the hands -of the Jew. - -In order to form a correct judgment of the place which the Jew holds in -relation to the whole problem of human civilization, we must bear in -mind the essential fact that there never has been any Jewish art and -consequently that nothing of this kind exists to-day. We must realize -that especially in those two royal domains of art, namely architecture -and music, the Jew has done no original creative work. When the Jew -comes to producing something in the field of art he merely bowdler-izes -something already in existence or simply steals the intellectual word, -of others. The Jew essentially lacks those qualities which are -characteristic of those creative races that are the founders of -civilization. - -To what extent the Jew appropriates the civilization built up by -others--or rather corrupts it, to speak more accurately--is indicated by -the fact that he cultivates chiefly the art which calls for the smallest -amount of original invention, namely the dramatic art. And even here he -is nothing better than a kind of juggler or, perhaps more correctly -speaking, a kind of monkey imitator; for in this domain also he lacks -the creative elan which is necessary for the production of all really -great work. Even here, therefore, he is not a creative genius but rather -a superficial imitator who, in spite of all his retouching and tricks, -cannot disguise the fact that there is no inner vitality in the shape he -gives his products. At this juncture the Jewish Press comes in and -renders friendly assistance by shouting hosannas over the head of even -the most ordinary bungler of a Jew, until the rest of the world is -stampeded into thinking that the object of so much praise must really be -an artist, whereas in reality he may be nothing more than a low-class -mimic. - -No; the Jews have not the creative abilities which are necessary to the -founding of a civilization; for in them there is not, and never has -been, that spirit of idealism which is an absolutely necessary element -in the higher development of mankind. Therefore the Jewish intellect -will never be constructive but always destructive. At best it may serve -as a stimulus in rare cases but only within the meaning of the poet's -lines: 'THE POWER WHICH ALWAYS WILLS THE BAD, AND ALWAYS WORKS THE GOOD' -(KRAFT, DIE STETS DAS B�SE WILL UND STETS DAS GUTE SCHAFFT). (Note 15) It -is not through his help but in spite of his help that mankind makes any -progress. - -[Note 15. When Mephistopheles first appears to Faust, in the latter's -study, Faust inquires: "What is thy name?" To which Mephistopheles -replies: "A part ofthe Power which always wills the Bad and always works -the Good." And when Faust asks him what is meant by this riddle and why he -should call himself'a part,' the gist of Mephistopheles' reply is that he -is the Spirit of Negation and exists through opposition to the positive -Truth and Order and Beauty which proceed from the never-ending creative -energy of the Deity. In the Prologue to Faust the Lord declares that -man's active nature would grow sluggishin working the good and that -therefore he has to be aroused by the Spirit of Opposition. This Spirit -wills the Bad, but of itself it can do nothing positive, and by its -opposition always works the opposite of what it wills.] - -Since the Jew has never had a State which was based on territorial -delimitations, and therefore never a civilization of his own, the idea -arose that here we were dealing with a people who had to be considered -as Nomads. That is a great and mischievous mistake. The true nomad does -actually possess a definite delimited territory where he lives. It is -merely that he does not cultivate it, as the settled farmer does, but -that he lives on the products of his herds, with which he wanders over -his domain. The natural reason for this mode of existence is to be found -in the fact that the soil is not fertile and that it does not give the -steady produce which makes a fixed abode possible. Outside of this -natural cause, however, there is a more profound cause: namely, that no -mechanical civilization is at hand to make up for the natural poverty of -the region in question. There are territories where the Aryan can -establish fixed settlements by means of the technical skill which he has -developed in the course of more than a thousand years, even though these -territories would otherwise have to be abandoned, unless the Aryan were -willing to wander about them in nomadic fashion; but his technical -tradition and his age-long experience of the use of technical means -would probably make the nomadic life unbearable for him. We ought to -remember that during the first period of American colonization numerous -Aryans earned their daily livelihood as trappers and hunters, etc., -frequently wandering about in large groups with their women and -children, their mode of existence very much resembling that of ordinary -nomads. The moment, however, that they grew more numerous and were able -to accumulate larger resources, they cleared the land and drove out the -aborigines, at the same time establishing settlements which rapidly -increased all over the country. - -The Aryan himself was probably at first a nomad and became a settler in -the course of ages. But yet he was never of the Jewish kind. The Jew is -not a nomad; for the nomad has already a definite attitude towards the -concept of 'work', and this attitude served as the basis of a later -cultural development, when the necessary intellectual conditions were at -hand. There is a certain amount of idealism in the general attitude of -the nomad, even though it be rather primitive. His whole character may, -therefore, be foreign to Aryan feeling but it will never be repulsive. -But not even the slightest trace of idealism exists in the Jewish -character. The Jew has never been a nomad, but always a parasite, -battening on the substance of others. If he occasionally abandoned -regions where he had hitherto lived he did not do it voluntarily. He did -it because from time to time he was driven out by people who were tired -of having their hospitality abused by such guests. Jewish self-expansion -is a parasitic phenomenon--since the Jew is always looking for new -pastures for his race. - -But this has nothing to do with nomadic life as such; because the Jew -does not ever think of leaving a territory which he has once occupied. -He sticks where he is with such tenacity that he can hardly be driven -out even by superior physical force. He expands into new territories -only when certain conditions for his existence are provided therein; but -even then--unlike the nomad--he will not change his former abode. He is -and remains a parasite, a sponger who, like a pernicious bacillus, -spreads over wider and wider areas according as some favourable area -attracts him. The effect produced by his presence is also like that of -the vampire; for wherever he establishes himself the people who grant -him hospitality are bound to be bled to death sooner or later. Thus the -Jew has at all times lived in States that have belonged to other races -and within the organization of those States he had formed a State of his -own, which is, however, hidden behind the mask of a 'religious -community', as long as external circumstances do not make it advisable -for this community to declare its true nature. As soon as the Jew feels -himself sufficiently established in his position to be able to hold it -without a disguise, he lifts the mask and suddenly appears in the -character which so many did not formerly believe or wish to see: namely -that of the Jew. - -The life which the Jew lives as a parasite thriving on the substance of -other nations and States has resulted in developing that specific -character which Schopenhauer once described when he spoke of the Jew as -'The Great Master of Lies'. The kind of existence which he leads forces -the Jew to the systematic use of falsehood, just as naturally as the -inhabitants of northern climates are forced to wear warm clothes. - -He can live among other nations and States only as long as he succeeds -in persuading them that the Jews are not a distinct people but the -representatives of a religious faith who thus constitute a 'religious -community', though this be of a peculiar character. - -As a matter of fact, however, this is the first of his great falsehoods. - -He is obliged to conceal his own particular character and mode of life -that he may be allowed to continue his existence as a parasite among the -nations. The greater the intelligence of the individual Jew, the better -will he succeed in deceiving others. His success in this line may even -go so far that the people who grant him hospitality may be led to -believe that the Jew among them is a genuine Frenchman, for instance, or -Englishman or German or Italian, who just happens to belong to a -religious denomination which is different from that prevailing in these -countries. Especially in circles concerned with the executive -administration of the State, where the officials generally have only a -minimum of historical sense, the Jew is able to impose his infamous -deception with comparative ease. In these circles independent thinking -is considered a sin against the sacred rules according to which official -promotion takes place. It is therefore not surprising that even to-day -in the Bavarian government offices, for example, there is not the -slightest suspicion that the Jews form a distinct nation themselves and -are not merely the adherents of a 'Confession', though one glance at the -Press which belongs to the Jews ought to furnish sufficient evidence to -the contrary even for those who possess only the smallest degree of -intelligence. The JEWISH ECHO, however, is not an official gazette and -therefore not authoritative in the eyes of those government potentates. - -Jewry has always been a nation of a definite racial character and never -differentiated merely by the fact of belonging to a certain religion. At -a very early date, urged on by the desire to make their way in the -world, the Jews began to cast about for a means whereby they might -distract such attention as might prove inconvenient for them. What could -be more effective and at the same time more above suspicion than to -borrow and utilize the idea of the religious community? Here also -everything is copied, or rather stolen; for the Jew could not possess -any religious institution which had developed out of his own -consciousness, seeing that he lacks every kind of idealism; which means -that belief in a life beyond this terrestrial existence is foreign to -him. In the Aryan mind no religion can ever be imagined unless it -embodies the conviction that life in some form or other will continue -after death. As a matter of fact, the Talmud is not a book that lays -down principles according to which the individual should prepare for the -life to come. It only furnishes rules for a practical and convenient -life in this world. - -The religious teaching of the Jews is principally a collection of -instructions for maintaining the Jewish blood pure and for regulating -intercourse between Jews and the rest of the world: that is to say, -their relation with non-Jews. But the Jewish religious teaching is not -concerned with moral problems. It is rather concerned with economic -problems, and very petty ones at that. In regard to the moral value of -the religious teaching of the Jews there exist and always have existed -quite exhaustive studies (not from the Jewish side; for whatever the -Jews have written on this question has naturally always been of a -tendentious character) which show up the kind of religion that the Jews -have in a light that makes it look very uncanny to the Aryan mind. The -Jew himself is the best example of the kind of product which this -religious training evolves. His life is of this world only and his -mentality is as foreign to the true spirit of Christianity as his -character was foreign to the great Founder of this new creed two -thousand years ago. And the Founder of Christianity made no secret -indeed of His estimation of the Jewish people. When He found it -necessary He drove those enemies of the human race out of the Temple of -God; because then, as always, they used religion as a means of advancing -their commercial interests. But at that time Christ was nailed to the -Cross for his attitude towards the Jews; whereas our modern Christians -enter into party politics and when elections are being held they debase -themselves to beg for Jewish votes. They even enter into political -intrigues with the atheistic Jewish parties against the interests of -their own Christian nation. - -On this first and fundamental lie, the purpose of which is to make -people believe that Jewry is not a nation but a religion, other lies are -subsequently based. One of those further lies, for example, is in -connection with the language spoken by the Jew. For him language is not -an instrument for the expression of his inner thoughts but rather a -means of cloaking them. When talking French his thoughts are Jewish and -when writing German rhymes he only gives expression to the character of -his own race. - -As long as the Jew has not succeeded in mastering other peoples he is -forced to speak their language whether he likes it or not. But the -moment that the world would become the slave of the Jew it would have to -learn some other language (Esperanto, for example) so that by this means -the Jew could dominate all the more easily. - -How much the whole existence of this people is based on a permanent -falsehood is proved in a unique way by 'The Protocols of the Elders of -Zion', which are so violently repudiated by the Jews. With groans and -moans, the FRANKFURTER ZEITUNG repeats again and again that these are -forgeries. This alone is evidence in favour of their authenticity. What -many Jews unconsciously wish to do is here clearly set forth. It is not -necessary to ask out of what Jewish brain these revelations sprang; but -what is of vital interest is that they disclose, with an almost -terrifying precision, the mentality and methods of action characteristic -of the Jewish people and these writings expound in all their various -directions the final aims towards which the Jews are striving. The study -of real happenings, however, is the best way of judging the authenticity -of those documents. If the historical developments which have taken -place within the last few centuries be studied in the light of this book -we shall understand why the Jewish Press incessantly repudiates and -denounces it. For the Jewish peril will be stamped out the moment the -general public come into possession of that book and understand it. - -In order to get to know the Jew properly it is necessary to study the -road which he has been following among the other peoples during the last -few centuries. One example will suffice to give a clear insight here. -Since his career has been the same at all epochs--just as the people at -whose expense he has lived have remained the same--for the purposes of -making the requisite analysis it will be best to mark his progress by -stages. For the sake of simplicity we shall indicate these stages by -letters of the alphabet. - -The first Jews came into what was then called Germania during the period -of the Roman invasion; and, as usual, they came as merchants. During the -turmoil caused by the great migrations of the German tribes the Jews -seem to have disappeared. We may therefore consider the period when the -Germans formed the first political communities as the beginning of that -process whereby Central and Northern Europe was again, and this time -permanently, Judaized. A development began which has always been the -same or similar wherever and whenever Jews came into contact with Aryan -peoples. - -(a) As soon as the first permanent settlements had been established the -Jew was suddenly 'there'. He arrived as a merchant and in the beginning -did not trouble to disguise his nationality. He still remained openly a -Jew, partly it may be because he knew too little of the language. It may -also be that people of other races refused to mix with him, so that he -could not very well adopt any other appearance than that of a foreign -merchant. Because of his subtlety and cunning and the lack of experience -on the part of the people whose guest he became, it was not to his -disadvantage openly to retain his Jewish character. This may even have -been advantageous to him; for the foreigner was received kindly. - -(b) Slowly but steadily he began to take part in the economic life -around him; not as a producer, however, but only as a middleman. His -commercial cunning, acquired through thousands of years of negotiation -as an intermediary, made him superior in this field to the Aryans, who -were still quite ingenuous and indeed clumsy and whose honesty was -unlimited; so that after a short while commerce seemed destined to -become a Jewish monopoly. The Jew began by lending out money at usurious -interest, which is a permanent trade of his. It was he who first -introduced the payment of interest on borrowed money. The danger which -this innovation involved was not at first recognized; indeed the -innovation was welcomed, because it offered momentary advantages. - -(c) At this stage the Jew had become firmly settled down; that is to -say, he inhabited special sections of the cities and towns and had his -own quarter in the market-places. Thus he gradually came to form a State -within a State. He came to look upon the commercial domain and all money -transactions as a privilege belonging exclusively to himself and he -exploited it ruthlessly. - -(d) At this stage finance and trade had become his complete monopoly. -Finally, his usurious rate of interest aroused opposition and the -increasing impudence which the Jew began to manifest all round stirred -up popular indignation, while his display of wealth gave rise to popular -envy. The cup of his iniquity became full to the brim when he included -landed property among his commercial wares and degraded the soil to the -level of a market commodity. Since he himself never cultivated the soil -but considered it as an object to be exploited, on which the peasant may -still remain but only on condition that he submits to the most heartless -exactions of his new master, public antipathy against the Jew steadily -increased and finally turned into open animosity. His extortionate -tyranny became so unbearable that people rebelled against his control -and used physical violence against him. They began to scrutinize this -foreigner somewhat more closely, and then began to discover the -repulsive traits and characteristics inherent in him, until finally an -abyss opened between the Jews and their hosts, across which abyss there -could be no further contact. - -In times of distress a wave of public anger has usually arisen against -the Jew; the masses have taken the law into their own hands; they have -seized Jewish property and ruined the Jew in their urge to protect -themselves against what they consider to be a scourge of God. Having -come to know the Jew intimately through the course of centuries, in -times of distress they looked upon his presence among them as a public -danger comparable only to the plague. - -(e) But then the Jew began to reveal his true character. He paid court -to governments, with servile flattery, used his money to ingratiate -himself further and thus regularly secured for himself once again the -privilege of exploiting his victim. Although public wrath flared up -against this eternal profiteer and drove him out, after a few years he -reappeared in those same places and carried on as before. No persecution -could force him to give up his trade of exploiting other people and no -amount of harrying succeeded in driving him out permanently. He always -returned after a short time and it was always the old story with him. - -In an effort to save at least the worst from happening, legislation was -passed which debarred the Jew from obtaining possession of the land. - -(f) In proportion as the powers of kings and princes increased, the Jew -sidled up to them. He begged for 'charters' and 'privileges' which those -gentlemen, who were generally in financial straits, gladly granted if -they received adequate payment in return. However high the price he has -to pay, the Jew will succeed in getting it back within a few years from -operating the privilege he has acquired, even with interest and compound -interest. He is a real leech who clings to the body of his unfortunate -victims and cannot be removed; so that when the princes found themselves -in need once again they took the blood from his swollen veins with their -own hands. - -This game was repeated unendingly. In the case of those who were called -'German Princes', the part they played was quite as contemptible as that -played by the Jew. They were a real scourge for their people. Their -compeers may be found in some of the government ministers of our time. - -It was due to the German princes that the German nation could not -succeed in definitely freeing itself from the Jewish peril. -Unfortunately the situation did not change at a later period. The -princes finally received the reward which they had a thousand-fold -deserved for all the crimes committed by them against their own people. -They had allied themselves with Satan and later on they discovered that -they were in Satan's embrace. - -(g) By permitting themselves to be entangled in the toils of the Jew, -the princes prepared their own downfall. The position which they held -among their people was slowly but steadily undermined not only by their -continued failure to guard the interests of their subjects but by the -positive exploitation of them. The Jew calculated exactly the time when -the downfall of the princes was approaching and did his best to hasten -it. He intensified their financial difficulties by hindering them in the -exercise of their duty towards their people, by inveigling them through -the most servile flatteries into further personal display, whereby he -made himself more and more indispensable to them. His astuteness, or -rather his utter unscrupulousness, in money affairs enabled him to exact -new income from the princes, to squeeze the money out of them and then -have it spent as quickly as possible. Every Court had its 'Court Jews', -as this plague was called, who tortured the innocent victims until they -were driven to despair; while at the same time this Jew provided the -means which the princes squandered on their own pleasures. It is not to -be wondered at that these ornaments of the human race became the -recipients of official honours and even were admitted into the ranks of -the hereditary nobility, thus contributing not only to expose that -social institution to ridicule but also to contaminate it from the -inside. - -Naturally the Jew could now exploit the position to which he had -attained and push himself forward even more rapidly than before. Finally -he became baptized and thus entitled to all the rights and privileges -which belonged to the children of the nation on which he preyed. This -was a high-class stroke of business for him, and he often availed -himself of it, to the great joy of the Church, which was proud of having -gained a new child in the Faith, and also to the joy of Israel, which -was happy at seeing the trick pulled off successfully. - -(h) At this stage a transformation began to take place in the world of -Jewry. Up to now they had been Jews--that is to say, they did not -hitherto set any great value on pretending to be something else; and -anyhow the distinctive characteristics which separated them from other -races could not be easily overcome. Even as late as the time of -Frederick the Great nobody looked upon the Jews as other than a -'foreign' people, and Goethe rose up in revolt against the failure -legally to prohibit marriage between Christians and Jews. Goethe was -certainly no reactionary and no time-server. What he said came from the -voice of the blood and the voice of reason. Notwithstanding the -disgraceful happenings taking place in Court circles, the people -recognized instinctively that the Jew was the foreign body in their own -flesh and their attitude towards him was directed by recognition of that -fact. - -But a change was now destined to take place. In the course of more than -a thousand years the Jew had learned to master the language of his hosts -so thoroughly that he considered he might now lay stress on his Jewish -character and emphasize the 'Germanism' a bit more. Though it must have -appeared ridiculous and absurd at first sight, he was impudent enough to -call himself a 'Teuton', which in this case meant a German. In that way -began one of the most infamous impositions that can be imagined. The Jew -did not possess the slightest traces of the German character. He had -only acquired the art of twisting the German language to his own uses, -and that in a disgusting way, without having assimilated any other -feature of the German character. Therefore his command of the language -was the sole ground on which he could pretend to be a German. It is not -however by the tie of language, but exclusively by the tie of blood that -the members of a race are bound together. And the Jew himself knows this -better than any other, seeing that he attaches so little importance to -the preservation of his own language while at the same time he strives -his utmost to maintain his blood free from intermixture with that of -other races. A man may acquire and use a new language without much -trouble; but it is only his old ideas that he expresses through the new -language. His inner nature is not modified thereby. The best proof of -this is furnished by the Jew himself. He may speak a thousand tongues -and yet his Jewish nature will remain always one and the same. His -distinguishing characteristics were the same when he spoke the Latin -language at Ostia two thousand years ago as a merchant in grain, as they -are to-day when he tries to sell adulterated flour with the aid of his -German gibberish. He is always the same Jew. That so obvious a fact is -not recognized by the average head-clerk in a German government -department, or by an officer in the police administration, is also a -self-evident and natural fact; since it would be difficult to find -another class of people who are so lacking in instinct and intelligence -as the civil servants employed by our modern German State authorities. - -The reason why, at the stage I am dealing with, the Jew so suddenly -decided to transform himself into a German is not difficult to discover. -He felt the power of the princes slowly crumbling and therefore looked -about to find a new social plank on which he might stand. Furthermore, -his financial domination over all the spheres of economic life had -become so powerful that he felt he could no longer sustain that enormous -structure or add to it unless he were admitted to the full enjoyment of -the 'rights of citizenship.' He aimed at both, preservation and -expansion; for the higher he could climb the more alluring became the -prospect of reaching the old goal, which was promised to him in ancient -times, namely world-rulership, and which he now looked forward to with -feverish eyes, as he thought he saw it visibly approaching. Therefore -all his efforts were now directed to becoming a fully-fledged citizen, -endowed with all civil and political rights. - -That was the reason for his emancipation from the Ghetto. - -(i) And thus the Court Jew slowly developed into the national Jew. But -naturally he still remained associated with persons in higher quarters -and he even attempted to push his way further into the inner circles of -the ruling set. But at the same time some other representatives of his -race were currying favour with the people. If we remember the crimes the -Jew had committed against the masses of the people in the course of so -many centuries, how repeatedly and ruthlessly he exploited them and how -he sucked out even the very marrow of their substance, and when we -further remember how they gradually came to hate him and finally -considered him as a public scourge--then we may well understand how -difficult the Jew must have found this final transformation. Yes, -indeed, it must tax all their powers to be able to present themselves as -'friends of humanity' to the poor victims whom they have skinned raw. - -Therefore the Jew began by making public amends for the crimes which he -had committed against the people in the past. He started his -metamorphosis by first appearing as the 'benefactor' of humanity. Since -his new philanthropic policy had a very concrete aim in view, he could -not very well apply to himself the biblical counsel, not to allow the -left hand to know what the right hand is giving. He felt obliged to let -as many people as possible know how deeply the sufferings of the masses -grieved him and to what excesses of personal sacrifice he was ready to -go in order to help them. With this manifestation of innate modesty, so -typical of the Jew, he trumpeted his virtues before the world until -finally the world actually began to believe him. Those who refused to -share this belief were considered to be doing him an injustice. Thus -after a little while he began to twist things around, so as to make it -appear that it was he who had always been wronged, and vice versa. There -were really some particularly foolish people who could not help pitying -this poor unfortunate creature of a Jew. - -Attention may be called to the fact that, in spite of his proclaimed -readiness to make personal sacrifices, the Jew never becomes poor -thereby. He has a happy knack of always making both ends meet. -Occasionally his benevolence might be compared to the manure which is -not spread over the field merely for the purpose of getting rid of it, -but rather with a view to future produce. Anyhow, after a comparatively -short period of time, the world was given to know that the Jew had -become a general benefactor and philanthropist. What a transformation! - -What is looked upon as more or less natural when done by other people -here became an object of astonishment, and even sometimes of admiration, -because it was considered so unusual in a Jew. That is why he has -received more credit for his acts of benevolence than ordinary mortals. - -And something more: The Jew became liberal all of a sudden and began to -talk enthusiastically of how human progress must be encouraged. -Gradually he assumed the air of being the herald of a new age. - -Yet at the same time he continued to undermine the ground-work of that -part of the economic system in which the people have the most practical -interest. He bought up stock in the various national undertakings and -thus pushed his influence into the circuit of national production, -making this latter an object of buying and selling on the stock -exchange, or rather what might be called the pawn in a financial game of -chess, and thus ruining the basis on which personal proprietorship alone -is possible. Only with the entrance of the Jew did that feeling of -estrangement, between employers and employees begin which led at a later -date to the political class-struggle. - -Finally the Jew gained an increasing influence in all economic -undertakings by means of his predominance in the stock-exchange. If not -the ownership, at least he secured control of the working power of the -nation. - -In order to strengthen his political position, he directed his efforts -towards removing the barrier of racial and civic discrimination which -had hitherto hindered his advance at every turn. With characteristic -tenacity he championed the cause of religious tolerance for this -purpose; and in the freemason organization, which had fallen completely -into his hands, he found a magnificent weapon which helped him to -achieve his ends. Government circles, as well as the higher sections of -the political and commercial bourgeoisie, fell a prey to his plans -through his manipulation of the masonic net, though they themselves did -not even suspect what was happening. - -Only the people as such, or rather the masses which were just becoming -conscious of their own power and were beginning to use it in the fight -for their rights and liberties, had hitherto escaped the grip of the -Jew. At least his influence had not yet penetrated to the deeper and -wider sections of the people. This was unsatisfactory to him. The most -important phase of his policy was therefore to secure control over the -people. The Jew realized that in his efforts to reach the position of -public despot he would need a 'peace-maker.' And he thought he could -find a peace-maker if he could whip-in sufficient extensive sections of -the bourgeois. But the freemasons failed to catch the -glove-manufacturers and the linen-weavers in the frail meshes of their -net. And so it became necessary to find a grosser and withal a more -effective means. Thus another weapon beside that of freemasonry would -have to be secured. This was the Press. The Jew exercised all his skill -and tenacity in getting hold of it. By means of the Press he began -gradually to control public life in its entirety. He began to drive it -along the road which he had chosen to reach his own ends; for he was now -in a position to create and direct that force which, under the name of -'public opinion' is better known to-day than it was some decades ago. - -Simultaneously the Jew gave himself the air of thirsting after -knowledge. He lauded every phase of progress, particularly those phases -which led to the ruin of others; for he judges all progress and -development from the standpoint of the advantages which these bring to -his own people. When it brings him no such advantages he is the deadly -enemy of enlightenment and hates all culture which is real culture as -such. All the knowledge which he acquires in the schools of others is -exploited by him exclusively in the service of his own race. - -Even more watchfully than ever before, he now stood guard over his -Jewish nationality. Though bubbling over with 'enlightenment', -'progress', 'liberty', 'humanity', etc., his first care was to preserve -the racial integrity of his own people. He occasionally bestowed one of -his female members on an influential Christian; but the racial stock of -his male descendants was always preserved unmixed fundamentally. He -poisons the blood of others but preserves his own blood unadulterated. -The Jew scarcely ever marries a Christian girl, but the Christian takes -a Jewess to wife. The mongrels that are a result of this latter union -always declare themselves on the Jewish side. Thus a part of the higher -nobility in particular became completely degenerate. The Jew was well -aware of this fact and systematically used this means of disarming the -intellectual leaders of the opposite race. To mask his tactics and fool -his victims, he talks of the equality of all men, no matter what their -race or colour may be. And the simpletons begin to believe him. - -Since his whole nature still retains too foreign an odour for the broad -masses of the people to allow themselves to be caught in his snare, he -uses the Press to put before the public a picture of himself which is -entirely untrue to life but well designed to serve his purpose. In the -comic papers special efforts are made to represent the Jews as an -inoffensive little race which, like all others, has its peculiarities. -In spite of their manners, which may seem a bit strange, the comic -papers present the Jews as fundamentally good-hearted and honourable. -Attempts are generally made to make them appear insignificant rather -than dangerous. - -During this phase of his progress the chief goal of the Jew was the -victory of democracy, or rather the supreme hegemony of the -parliamentary system, which embodies his concept of democracy. This -institution harmonises best with his purposes; for thus the personal -element is eliminated and in its place we have the dunder-headed -majority, inefficiency and, last but by no means least, knavery. - -The final result must necessarily have been the overthrow of the -monarchy, which had to happen sooner or later. - -(j) A tremendous economic development transformed the social structure -of the nation. The small artisan class slowly disappeared and the -factory worker, who took its place, had scarcely any chance of -establishing an independent existence of his own but sank more and more -to the level of a proletariat. An essential characteristic of the -factory worker is that he is scarcely ever able to provide for an -independent source of livelihood which will support him in later life. -In the true sense of the word, he is 'disinherited'. His old age is a -misery to him and can hardly be called life at all. - -In earlier times a similar situation had been created, which had -imperatively demanded a solution and for which a solution was found. -Side by side with the peasant and the artisan, a new class was gradually -developed, namely that of officials and employees, especially those -employed in the various services of the State. They also were a -'disinherited' class, in the true sense of the word. But the State found -a remedy for this unhealthy situation by taking upon itself the duty of -providing for the State official who could establish nothing that would -be an independent means of livelihood for himself in his old age. Thus -the system of pensions and retiring allowances was introduced. Private -enterprises slowly followed this example in increasing numbers; so that -to-day every permanent non-manual worker receives a pension in his later -years, if the firm which he has served is one that has reached or gone -beyond a certain size. It was only by virtue of the assurance given of -State officials, that they would be cared for in their old age. that -such a high degree of unselfish devotion to duty was developed, which in -pre-war times was one of the distinguising characteristics of German -officials. - -Thus a whole class which had no personal property was saved from -destitution by an intelligent system of provision, and found a place in -the social structure of the national community. - -The problem is now put before the State and nation, but this time in a -much larger form. When the new industries sprang up and developed, -millions of people left the countryside and the villages to take up -employment in the big factories. The conditions under which this new -class found itself forced to live were worse than miserable. The more or -less mechanical transformation of the methods of work hitherto in vogue -among the artisans and peasants did not fit in well with the habits or -mentality of this new working-class. The way in which the peasants and -artisans had formerly worked had nothing comparable to the intensive -labour of the new factory worker. In the old trades time did not play a -highly important role, but it became an essential element in the new -industrial system. The formal taking over of the old working hours into -the mammoth industrial enterprises had fatal results. The actual amount -of work hitherto accomplished within a certain time was comparatively -small, because the modern methods of intensive production were then -unknown. Therefore, though in the older system a working day of fourteen -or even fifteen hours was not unendurable, now it was beyond the -possibilities of human endurance because in the new system every minute -was utilized to the extreme. This absurd transference of the old working -hours to the new industrial system proved fatal in two directions. -First, it ruined the health of the workers; secondly, it destroyed their -faith in a superior law of justice. Finally, on the one hand a miserable -wage was received and, on the other, the employer held a much more -lucrative position than before. Hence a striking difference between the -ways of life on the one side and on the other. - -In the open country there could be no social problem, because the master -and the farm-hand were doing the same kind of work and doing it -together. They ate their food in common, and sometimes even out of the -same dish. But in this sphere also the new system introduced an entirely -different set of conditions between masters and men. - -The division created between employer and employees seems not to have -extended to all branches of life. How far this Judaizing process has -been allowed to take effect among our people is illustrated by the fact -that manual labour not only receives practically no recognition but is -even considered degrading. That is not a natural German attitude. It is -due to the introduction of a foreign element into our lives, and that -foreign element is the Jewish spirit, one of the effects of which has -been to transform the high esteem in which our handicrafts once were -held into a definite feeling that all physical labour is something base -and unworthy. - -Thus a new social class has grown up which stands in low esteem; and the -day must come when we shall have to face the question of whether the -nation will be able to make this class an integral part of the social -community or whether the difference of status now existing will become a -permanent gulf separating this class from the others. - -One thing, however, is certain: This class does not include the worst -elements of the community in its ranks. Rather the contrary is the -truth: it includes the most energetic parts of the nation. The -sophistication which is the result of a so-called civilization has not -yet exercised its disintegrating and degenerating influence on this -class. The broad masses of this new lower class, constituted by the -manual labourers, have not yet fallen a prey to the morbid weakness of -pacifism. These are still robust and, if necessary, they can be brutal. - -While our bourgeoisie middle class paid no attention at all to this -momentous problem and indifferently allowed events to take their course, -the Jew seized upon the manifold possibilities which the situation -offered him for the future. While on the one hand he organized -capitalistic methods of exploitation to their ultimate degree of -efficiency, he curried favour with the victims of his policy and his -power and in a short while became the leader of their struggle against -himself. 'Against himself' is here only a figurative way of speaking; -for this 'Great Master of Lies' knows how to appear in the guise of the -innocent and throw the guilt on others. Since he had the impudence to -take a personal lead among the masses, they never for a moment suspected -that they were falling a prey to one of the most infamous deceits ever -practised. And yet that is what it actually was. - -The moment this new class had arisen out of the general economic -situation and taken shape as a definite body in the social order, the -Jew saw clearly where he would find the necessary pacemaker for his own -progressive march. At first he had used the bourgeois class as a -battering-ram against the feudal order; and now he used the worker -against the bourgeois world. Just as he succeeded in obtaining civic -rights by intrigues carried on under the protection of the bourgeois -class, he now hoped that by joining in the struggle which the workers -were waging for their own existence he would be able to obtain full -control over them. - -When that moment arrives, then the only objective the workers will have -to fight for will be the future of the Jewish people. Without knowing -it, the worker is placing himself at the service of the very power -against which he believes he is fighting. Apparently he is made to fight -against capital and thus he is all the more easily brought to fight for -capitalist interests. Outcries are systematically raised against -international capital but in reality it is against the structure of -national economics that these slogans are directed. The idea is to -demolish this structure and on its ruins triumphantly erect the -structure of the International Stock Exchange. - -In this line of action the procedure of the Jew was as follows: - -He kowtowed to the worker, hypocritically pretended to feel pity for him -and his lot, and even to be indignant at the misery and poverty which -the worker had to endure. That is the way in which the Jew endeavoured -to gain the confidence of the working class. He showed himself eager to -study their various hardships, whether real or imaginary, and strove to -awaken a yearning on the part of the workers to change the conditions -under which they lived. The Jew artfully enkindled that innate yearning -for social justice which is a typical Aryan characteristic. Once that -yearning became alive it was transformed into hatred against those in -more fortunate circumstances of life. The next stage was to give a -precise philosophical aspect to the struggle for the elimination of -social wrongs. And thus the Marxist doctrine was invented. - -By presenting his doctrine as part and parcel of a just revindication of -social rights, the Jew propagated the doctrine all the more effectively. -But at the same time he provoked the opposition of decent people who -refused to admit these demands which, because of the form and -pseudo-philosophical trimmings in which they are presented, seemed -fundamentally unjust and impossible for realization. For, under the -cloak of purely social concepts there are hidden aims which are of a -Satanic character. These aims are even expounded in the open with the -clarity of unlimited impudence. This Marxist doctrine is an individual -mixture of human reason and human absurdity; but the combination is -arranged in such a way that only the absurd part of it could ever be put -into practice, but never the reasonable part of it. By categorically -repudiating the personal worth of the individual and also the nation and -its racial constituent, this doctrine destroys the fundamental basis of -all civilization; for civilization essentially depends on these very -factors. Such is the true essence of the Marxist WELTANSCHAUUNG, so far -as the word WELTANSCHAUUNG can be applied at all to this phantom -arising from a criminal brain. The destruction of the concept of -personality and of race removes the chief obstacle which barred the way -to domination of the social body by its inferior elements, which are the -Jews. - -The very absurdity of the economic and political theories of Marxism -gives the doctrine its peculiar significance. Because of its -pseudo-logic, intelligent people refuse to support it, while all those -who are less accustomed to use their intellectual faculties, or who have -only a rudimentary notion of economic principles, join the Marxist cause -with flying banners. The intelligence behind the movement--for even this -movement needs intelligence if it is to subsist--is supplied by the Jews -themselves, naturally of course as a gratuitous service which is at the -same time a sacrifice on their part. - -Thus arose a movement which was composed exclusively of manual workers -under the leadership of Jews. To all external appearances, this movement -strives to ameliorate the conditions under which the workers live; but -in reality its aim is to enslave and thereby annihilate the non-Jewish -races. - -The propaganda which the freemasons had carried on among the so-called -intelligentsia, whereby their pacifist teaching paralysed the instinct -for national self-preservation, was now extended to the broad masses of -the workers and bourgeoisie by means of the Press, which was almost -everywhere in Jewish hands. To those two instruments of disintegration a -third and still more ruthless one was added, namely, the organization of -brute physical force among the masses. As massed columns of attacks, the -Marxist troops stormed those parts of the social order which had been -left standing after the two former undermining operations had done their -work. - -The combined activity of all these forces has been marvellously managed. -And it will not be surprising if it turns out that those institutions -which have always appeared as the organs of the more or less traditional -authority of the State should now fall before the Marxist attack. Among -our higher and highest State officials, with very few exceptions, the -Jew has found the cost complacent backers in his work of destruction. An -attitude of sneaking servility towards 'superiors' and supercilious -arrogance towards 'inferiors' are the characteristics of this class of -people, as well as a grade of stupidity which is really frightening and -at the same time a towering self-conceit, which has been so consistently -developed to make it amusing. - -But these qualities are of the greatest utility to the Jew in his -dealings with our authorities. Therefore they are qualities which he -appreciates most in the officials. - -If I were to sketch roughly the actual struggle which is now beginning I -should describe it somewhat thus: - -Not satisfied with the economic conquest of the world, but also -demanding that it must come under his political control, the Jew -subdivides the organized Marxist power into two parts, which correspond -to the ultimate objectives that are to be fought for in this struggle -which is carried on under the direction of the Jew. To outward -appearance, these seem to be two independent movements, but in reality -they constitute an indivisible unity. The two divisions are: The -political movement and the trades union movement. - -The trades union movement has to gather in the recruits. It offers -assistance and protection to the workers in the hard struggle which they -have to wage for the bare means of existence, a struggle which has been -occasioned by the greediness and narrow-mindedness of many of the -industrialists. Unless the workers be ready to surrender all claims to -an existence which the dignity of human nature itself demands, and -unless they are ready to submit their fate to the will of employers who -in many cases have no sense of human responsibilities and are utterly -callous to human wants, then the worker must necessarily take matters -into his own hands, seeing that the organized social community--that is -to say, the State--pays no attention to his needs. - -The so-called national-minded bourgeoisie, blinded by its own material -interests, opposes this life-or-death struggle of the workers and places -the most difficult obstacles in their way. Not only does this -bourgeoisie hinder all efforts to enact legislation which would shorten -the inhumanly long hours of work, prohibit child-labour, grant security -and protection to women and improve the hygienic conditions of the -workshops and the dwellings of the working-class, but while the -bourgeoisie hinders all this the shrewd Jew takes the cause of the -oppressed into his own hands. He gradually becomes the leader of the -trades union movements, which is an easy task for him, because he does -not genuinely intend to find remedies for the social wrong: he pursues -only one objective, namely, to gather and consolidate a body of -followers who will act under his commands as an armed weapon in the -economic war for the destruction of national economic independence. For, -while a sound social policy has to move between the two poles of -securing a decent level of public health and welfare on the one hand -and, on the other, that of safeguarding the independence of the economic -life of the nation, the Jew does not take these poles into account at -all. The destruction of both is one of his main objects. He would ruin, -rather than safeguard, the independence of the national economic system. -Therefore, as the leader of the trades union movement, he has no -scruples about putting forward demands which not only go beyond the -declared purpose of the movement but could not be carried into effect -without ruining the national economic structure. On the other hand, he -has no interest in seeing a healthy and sturdy population develop; he -would be more content to see the people degenerate into an unthinking -herd which could be reduced to total subjection. Because these are his -final objectives, he can afford to put forward the most absurd claims. -He knows very well that these claims can never be realized and that -therefore nothing in the actual state of affairs could be altered by -them, but that the most they can do is to arouse the spirit of unrest -among the masses. That is exactly the purpose which he wishes such -propaganda to serve and not a real and honest improvement of the social -conditions. - -The Jews will therefore remain the unquestioned leaders of the trades -union movement so long as a campaign is not undertaken, which must be -carried out on gigantic lines, for the enlightenment of the masses; so -that they will be enabled better to understand the causes of their -misery. Or the same end might be achieved if the government authorities -would get rid of the Jew and his work. For as long as the masses remain -so ill-informed as they actually are to-day, and as long as the State -remains as indifferent to their lot as it now is, the masses will follow -whatever leader makes them the most extravagant promises in regard to -economic matters. The Jew is a past master at this art and his -activities are not hampered by moral considerations of any kind. - -Naturally it takes him only a short time to defeat all his competitors -in this field and drive them from the scene of action. In accordance -with the general brutality and rapacity of his nature, he turns the -trades union movement into an organization for the exercise of physical -violence. The resistance of those whose common sense has hitherto saved -them from surrendering to the Jewish dictatorship is now broken down by -terrorization. The success of that kind of activity is enormous. - -Parallel with this, the political organization advances. It operates -hand-in-hand with the trades union movement, inasmuch as the latter -prepares the masses for the political organization and even forces them -into it. This is also the source that provides the money which the -political organization needs to keep its enormous apparatus in action. -The trades union organization is the organ of control for the political -activity of its members and whips in the masses for all great political -demonstrations. In the end it ceases to struggle for economic interests -but places its chief weapon, the refusal to continue work--which takes -the form of a general strike--at the disposal of the political movement. - -By means of a Press whose contents are adapted to the level of the most -ignorant readers, the political and trades union organizations are -provided with an instrument which prepares the lowest stratum of the -nation for a campaign of ruthless destruction. It is not considered part -of the purpose of this Press to inspire its readers with ideals which -might help them to lift their minds above the sordid conditions of their -daily lives; but, on the contrary, it panders to their lowest instincts. -Among the lazy-minded and self-seeking sections of the masses this kind -of speculation turns out lucrative. - -It is this Press above all which carries on a fanatical campaign of -calumny, strives to tear down everything that might be considered as a -mainstay of national independence and to sabotage all cultural values as -well as to destroy the autonomy of the national economic system. - -It aims its attack especially against all men of character who refuse to -fall into line with the Jewish efforts to obtain control over the State -or who appear dangerous to the Jews merely because of their superior -intelligence. For in order to incur the enmity of the Jew it is not -necessary to show any open hostility towards him. It is quite sufficient -if one be considered capable of opposing the Jew some time in the future -or using his abilities and character to enhance the power and position -of a nation which the Jew finds hostile to himself. - -The Jewish instinct, which never fails where these problems have to be -dealt with, readily discerns the true mentality of those whom the Jew -meets in everyday life; and those who are not of a kindred spirit with -him may be sure of being listed among his enemies. Since the Jew is not -the object of aggression but the aggressor himself, he considers as his -enemies not only those who attack him but also those who may be capable -of resisting him. The means which he employs to break people of this -kind, who may show themselves decent and upright, are not the open means -generally used in honourable conflict, but falsehood and calumny. - -He will stop at nothing. His utterly low-down conduct is so appalling -that one really cannot be surprised if in the imagination of our people -the Jew is pictured as the incarnation of Satan and the symbol of evil. - -The ignorance of the broad masses as regards the inner character of the -Jew, and the lack of instinct and insight that our upper classes -display, are some of the reasons which explain how it is that so many -people fall an easy prey to the systematic campaign of falsehood which -the Jew carries on. - -While the upper classes, with their innate cowardliness, turn away from -anyone whom the Jew thus attacks with lies and calumny, the common -people are credulous of everything, whether because of their ignorance -or their simple-mindedness. Government authorities wrap themselves up in -a robe of silence, but more frequently they persecute the victims of -Jewish attacks in order to stop the campaign in the Jewish Press. To the -fatuous mind of the government official such a line of conduct appears -to belong to the policy of upholding the authority of the State and -preserving public order. Gradually the Marxist weapon in the hands of -the Jew becomes a constant bogy to decent people. Sometimes the fear of -it sticks in the brain or weighs upon them as a kind of nightmare. -People begin to quail before this fearful foe and therewith become his -victims. - -(k) The Jewish domination in the State seems now so fully assured that -not only can he now afford to call himself a Jew once again, but he even -acknowledges freely and openly what his ideas are on racial and -political questions. A section of the Jews avows itself quite openly as -an alien people, but even here there is another falsehood. When the -Zionists try to make the rest of the world believe that the new national -consciousness of the Jews will be satisfied by the establishment of a -Jewish State in Palestine, the Jews thereby adopt another means to dupe -the simple-minded Gentile. They have not the slightest intention of -building up a Jewish State in Palestine so as to live in it. What they -really are aiming at is to establish a central organization for their -international swindling and cheating. As a sovereign State, this cannot -be controlled by any of the other States. Therefore it can serve as a -refuge for swindlers who have been found out and at the same time a -high-school for the training of other swindlers. - -As a sign of their growing presumption and sense of security, a certain -section of them openly and impudently proclaim their Jewish nationality -while another section hypocritically pretend that they are German, -French or English as the case may be. Their blatant behaviour in their -relations with other people shows how clearly they envisage their day of -triumph in the near future. - -The black-haired Jewish youth lies in wait for hours on end, satanically -glaring at and spying on the unsuspicious girl whom he plans to seduce, -adulterating her blood and removing her from the bosom of her own -people. The Jew uses every possible means to undermine the racial -foundations of a subjugated people. In his systematic efforts to ruin -girls and women he strives to break down the last barriers of -discrimination between him and other peoples. The Jews were responsible -for bringing negroes into the Rhineland, with the ultimate idea of -bastardizing the white race which they hate and thus lowering its -cultural and political level so that the Jew might dominate. For as long -as a people remain racially pure and are conscious of the treasure of -their blood, they can never be overcome by the Jew. Never in this world -can the Jew become master of any people except a bastardized people. - -That is why the Jew systematically endeavours to lower the racial -quality of a people by permanently adulterating the blood of the -individuals who make up that people. - -In the field of politics he now begins to replace the idea of democracy -by introducing the dictatorship of the proletariat. In the masses -organized under the Marxist banners he has found a weapon which makes it -possible for him to discard democracy, so as to subjugate and rule in a -dictatorial fashion by the aid of brute force. He is systematically -working in two ways to bring about this revolution. These ways are the -economic and the political respectively. - -Aided by international influences, he forms a ring of enemies around -those nations which have proved themselves too sturdy for him in -withstanding attacks from within. He would like to force them into war -and then, if it should be necessary to his plans, he will unfurl the -banners of revolt even while the troops are actually fighting at the -front. - -Economically he brings about the destruction of the State by a -systematic method of sabotaging social enterprises until these become so -costly that they are taken out of the hands of the State and then -submitted to the control of Jewish finance. Politically he works to -withdraw from the State its means of susbsistence, inasmuch as he -undermines the foundations of national resistance and defence, destroys -the confidence which the people have in their Government, reviles the -past and its history and drags everything national down into the gutter. - -Culturally his activity consists in bowdlerizing art, literature and the -theatre, holding the expressions of national sentiment up to scorn, -overturning all concepts of the sublime and beautiful, the worthy and -the good, finally dragging the people to the level of his own low -mentality. - -Of religion he makes a mockery. Morality and decency are described as -antiquated prejudices and thus a systematic attack is made to undermine -those last foundations on which the national being must rest if the -nation is to struggle for its existence in this world. - -(l) Now begins the great and final revolution. As soon as the Jew is in -possession of political power he drops the last few veils which have -hitherto helped to conceal his features. Out of the democratic Jew, the -Jew of the People, arises the 'Jew of the Blood', the tyrant of the -peoples. In the course of a few years he endeavours to exterminate all -those who represent the national intelligence. And by thus depriving the -peoples of their natural intellectual leaders he fits them for their -fate as slaves under a lasting despotism. - -Russia furnishes the most terrible example of such a slavery. In that -country the Jew killed or starved thirty millions of the people, in a -bout of savage fanaticism and partly by the employment of inhuman -torture. And he did this so that a gang of Jewish literati and financial -bandits should dominate over a great people. - -But the final consequence is not merely that the people lose all their -freedom under the domination of the Jews, but that in the end these -parasites themselves disappear. The death of the victim is followed -sooner or later by that of the vampire. - -If we review all the causes which contributed to bring about the -downfall of the German people we shall find that the most profound and -decisive cause must be attributed to the lack of insight into the racial -problem and especially in the failure to recognize the Jewish danger. - -It would have been easy enough to endure the defeats suffered on the -battlefields in August 1918. They were nothing when compared with the -military victories which our nation had achieved. Our downfall was not -the result of those defeats; but we were overthrown by that force which -had prepared those defeats by systematically operating for several -decades to destroy those political instincts and that moral stamina -which alone enable a people to struggle for its existence and therewith -secure the right to exist. - -By neglecting the problem of preserving the racial foundations of our -national life, the old Empire abrogated the sole right which entitles a -people to live on this planet. Nations that make mongrels of their -people, or allow their people to be turned into mongrels, sin against -the Will of Eternal Providence. And thus their overthrow at the hands of -a stronger opponent cannot be looked upon as a wrong but, on the -contrary, as a restoration of justice. If a people refuses to guard and -uphold the qualities with which it has been endowed by Nature and which -have their roots in the racial blood, then such a people has no right to -complain over the loss of its earthly existence. - -Everything on this earth can be made into something better. Every defeat -may be made the foundation of a future victory. Every lost war may be -the cause of a later resurgence. Every visitation of distress can give a -new impetus to human energy. And out of every oppression those forces -can develop which bring about a new re-birth of the national -soul--provided always that the racial blood is kept pure. - -But the loss of racial purity will wreck inner happiness for ever. It -degrades men for all time to come. And the physical and moral -consequences can never be wiped out. - -If this unique problem be studied and compared with the other problems -of life we shall easily recognize how small is their importance in -comparison with this. They are all limited to time; but the problem of -the maintenance or loss of the purity of the racial blood will last as -long as man himself lasts. - -All the symptoms of decline which manifested themselves already in -pre-war times can be traced back to the racial problem. - -Whether one is dealing with questions of general law, or monstrous -excrescences in economic life, of phenomena which point to a cultural -decline or political degeneration, whether it be a question of defects -in the school-system or of the evil influence which the Press exerts -over the adult population--always and everywhere these phenomena are at -bottom caused by a lack of consideration for the interests of the race -to which one's own nation belongs, or by the failure to recognize the -danger that comes from allowing a foreign race to exist within the -national body. - -That is why all attempts at reform, all institutions for social relief, -all political striving, all economic progress and all apparent increase -in the general stock of knowledge, were doomed to be unproductive of any -significant results. The nation, as well as the organization which -enables it to exist--namely, the State--were not developing in inner -strength and stability, but, on the contrary, were visibly losing their -vitality. The false brilliance of the Second Empire could not disguise -the inner weakness. And every attempt to invigorate it anew failed -because the main and most important problem was left out of -consideration. - -It would be a mistake to think that the followers of the various -political parties which tried to doctor the condition of the German -people, or even all their leaders, were bad in themselves or meant -wrong. Their activity even at best was doomed to fail, merely because of -the fact that they saw nothing but the symptoms of our general malady -and they tried to doctor the symptoms while they overlooked the real -cause of the disease. If one makes a methodical study of the lines along -which the old Empire developed one cannot help seeing, after a careful -political analysis, that a process of inner degeneration had already set -in even at the time when the united Empire was formed and the German -nation began to make rapid external progress. The general situation was -declining, in spite of the apparent political success and in spite of -the increasing economic wealth. At the elections to the Reichstag the -growing number of Marxist votes indicated that the internal breakdown -and the political collapse were then rapidly approaching. All the -victories of the so-called bourgeois parties were fruitless, not only -because they could not prevent the numerical increase in the growing -mass of Marxist votes, even when the bourgeois parties triumphed at the -polls, but mainly because they themselves were already infected with the -germs of decay. Though quite unaware of it, the bourgeois world was -infected from within with the deadly virus of Marxist ideas. The fact -that they sometimes openly resisted was to be explained by the -competitive strife among ambitious political leaders, rather than by -attributing it to any opposition in principle between adversaries who -were determined to fight one another to the bitter end. During all those -years only one protagonist was fighting with steadfast perseverance. -This was the Jew. The Star of David steadily ascended as the will to -national self-preservation declined. - -Therefore it was not a solid national phalanx that, of itself and out of -its own feeling of solidarity, rushed to the battlefields in August -1914. But it was rather the manifestation of the last flicker from the -instinct of national self-preservation against the progress of the -paralysis with which the pacifist and Marxist doctrine threatened our -people. Even in those days when the destinies of the nation were in the -balance the internal enemy was not recognized; therefore all efforts to -resist the external enemy were bound to be in vain. Providence did not -grant the reward to the victorious sword, but followed the eternal law -of retributive justice. A profound recognition of all this was the -source of those principles and tendencies which inspire our new -movement. We were convinced that only by recognizing such truths could -we stop the national decline in Germany and lay a granite foundation on -which the State could again be built up, a State which would not be a -piece of mechanism alien to our people, constituted for economic -purposes and interests, but an organism created from the soul of the -people themselves. - -A GERMAN STATE IN A GERMAN NATION - - - - -CHAPTER XII - - - -THE FIRST STAGE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE GERMAN -NATIONAL SOCIALIST LABOUR PARTY - - -Here at the close of the volume I shall describe the first stage in the -progress of our movement and shall give a brief account of the problems -we had to deal with during that period. In doing this I have no -intention of expounding the ideals which we have set up as the goal of -our movement; for these ideals are so momentous in their significance -that an exposition of them will need a whole volume. Therefore I shall -devote the second volume of this book to a detailed survey of the -principles which form the programme of our movement and I shall attempt -to draw a picture of what we mean by the word 'State'. When I say 'we' -in this connection I mean to include all those hundreds of thousands who -have fundamentally the same longing, though in the individual cases they -cannot find adequate words to describe the vision that hovers before -their eyes. It is a characteristic feature of all great reforms that in -the beginning there is only one single protagonist to come forward on -behalf of several millions of people. The final goal of a great -reformation has often been the object of profound longing on the parts -of hundreds of thousands for many centuries before, until finally one -among them comes forward as a herald to announce the will of that -multitude and become the standard-bearer of the old yearning, which he -now leads to a realization in a new idea. - -The fact that millions of our people yearn at heart for a radical change -in our present conditions is proved by the profound discontent which -exists among them. This feeling is manifested in a thousand ways. Some -express it in a form of discouragement and despair. Others show it in -resentment and anger and indignation. Among some the profound discontent -calls forth an attitude of indifference, while it urges others to -violent manifestations of wrath. Another indication of this feeling may -be seen on the one hand in the attitude of those who abstain from voting -at elections and, on the other, in the large numbers of those who side -with the fanatical extremists of the left wing. - -To these latter people our young movement had to appeal first of all. It -was not meant to be an organization for contented and satisfied people, -but was meant to gather in all those who were suffering from profound -anxiety and could find no peace, those who were unhappy and -discontented. It was not meant to float on the surface of the nation but -rather to push its roots deep among the masses. - -Looked at from the purely political point of view, the situation in 1918 -was as follows: A nation had been torn into two parts. One part, which -was by far the smaller of the two, contained the intellectual classes of -the nation from which all those employed in physical labour were -excluded. On the surface these intellectual classes appeared to be -national-minded, but that word meant nothing else to them except a very -vague and feeble concept of the duty to defend what they called the -interests of the State, which in turn seemed identical with those of the -dynastic regime. This class tried to defend its ideas and reach its aims -by carrying on the fight with the aid of intellectual weapons, which -could be used only here and there and which had only a superficial -effect against the brutal measures employed by the adversaries, in the -face of which the intellectual weapons were of their very nature bound -to fail. With one violent blow the class which had hitherto governed was -now struck down. It trembled with fear and accepted every humiliation -imposed on it by the merciless victor. - -Over against this class stood the broad masses of manual labourers who -were organized in movements with a more or less radically Marxist -tendency. These organized masses were firmly determined to break any -kind of intellectual resistance by the use of brute force. They had no -nationalist tendencies whatsoever and deliberately repudiated the idea -of advancing the interests of the nation as such. On the contrary, they -promoted the interests of the foreign oppressor. Numerically this class -embraced the majority of the population and, what is more important, -included all those elements of the nation without whose collaboration a -national resurgence was not only a practical impossibility but was even -inconceivable. - -For already in 1918 one thing had to be clearly recognized; namely, that -no resurgence of the German nation could take place until we had first -restored our national strength to face the outside world. For this -purpose arms are not the preliminary necessity, though our bourgeois -'statesmen' always blathered about it being so; what was wanted was -will-power. At one time the German people had more than sufficient -military armament. And yet they were not able to defend their liberty -because they lacked those energies which spring from the instinct of -national self-preservation and the will to hold on to one's own. The -best armament is only dead and worthless material as long as the spirit -is wanting which makes men willing and determined to avail themselves of -such weapons. Germany was rendered defenceless not because she lacked -arms, but because she lacked the will to keep her arms for the -maintenance of her people. - -To-day our Left-wing politicians in particular are constantly insisting -that their craven-hearted and obsequious foreign policy necessarily -results from the disarmament of Germany, whereas the truth is that this -is the policy of traitors. To all that kind of talk the answer ought to -be: No, the contrary is the truth. Your action in delivering up the arms -was dictated by your anti-national and criminal policy of abandoning the -interests of the nation. And now you try to make people believe that -your miserable whining is fundamentally due to the fact that you have no -arms. Just like everything else in your conduct, this is a lie and a -falsification of the true reason. - -But the politicians of the Right deserve exactly the same reproach. It -was through their miserable cowardice that those ruffians of Jews who -came into power in 1918 were able to rob the nation of its arms. The -conservative politicians have neither right nor reason on their side -when they appeal to disarmament as the cause which compelled them to -adopt a policy of prudence (that is to say, cowardice). Here, again, the -contrary is the truth. Disarmament is the result of their lack of -spirit. - -Therefore the problem of restoring Germany's power is not a question of -how can we manufacture arms but rather a question of how we can produce -that spirit which enables a people to bear arms. Once this spirit -prevails among a people then it will find a thousand ways, each of which -leads to the necessary armament. But a coward will not fire even a -single shot when attacked though he may be armed with ten pistols. For -him they are of less value than a blackthorn in the hands of a man of -courage. - -The problem of re-establishing the political power of our nation is -first of all a problem of restoring the instinct of national -self-preservation for if no other reason than that every preparatory -step in foreign policy and every foreign judgment on the worth of a -State has been proved by experience to be grounded not on the material -size of the armament such a State may possess but rather on the moral -capacity for resistance which such a State has or is believed to have. -The question whether or not a nation be desirable as an ally is not so -much determined by the inert mass of arms which it has at hand but by -the obvious presence of a sturdy will to national self-preservation and -a heroic courage which will fight through to the last breath. For an -alliance is not made between arms but between men. - -The British nation will therefore be considered as the most valuable -ally in the world as long as it can be counted upon to show that -brutality and tenacity in its government, as well as in the spirit of -the broad masses, which enables it to carry through to victory any -struggle that it once enters upon, no matter how long such a struggle -may last, or however great the sacrifice that may be necessary or -whatever the means that have to be employed; and all this even though -the actual military equipment at hand may be utterly inadequate when -compared with that of other nations. - -Once it is understood that the restoration of Germany is a question of -reawakening the will to political self-preservation we shall see quite -clearly that it will not be enough to win over those elements that are -already national-minded but that the deliberately anti-national masses -must be converted to believe in the national ideals. - -A young movement that aims at re-establishing a German State with full -sovereign powers will therefore have to make the task of winning over -the broad masses a special objective of its plan of campaign. Our -so-called 'national bourgeoisie' are so lamentably supine, generally -speaking, and their national spirit appears so feckless, that we may -feel sure they will offer no serious resistance against a vigorous -national foreign--or domestic policy. Even though the narrow-minded -German bourgeoisie should keep up a passive resistance when the hour of -deliverance is at hand, as they did in Bismarck's time, we shall never -have to fear any active resistance on their part, because of their -recognized proverbial cowardice. - -It is quite different with the masses of our population, who are imbued -with ideas of internationalism. Through the primitive roughness of their -natures they are disposed to accept the preaching of violence, while at -the same time their Jewish leaders are more brutal and ruthless. They -will crush any attempt at a German revival, just as they smashed the -German Army by striking at it from the rear. Above all, these organized -masses will use their numerical majority in this Parliamentarian State -not only to hinder any national foreign policy, but also to prevent -Germany from restoring her political power and therewith her prestige -abroad. Thus she becomes excluded from the ranks of desirable allies. -For it is not we ourselves alone who are aware of the handicap that -results from the existence of fifteen million Marxists, democrats, -pacifists and followers of the Centre, in our midst, but foreign nations -also recognize this internal burden which we have to bear and take it -into their calculations when estimating the value of a possible alliance -with us. Nobody would wish to form an alliance with a State where the -active portion of the population is at least passively opposed to any -resolute foreign policy. - -The situation is made still worse by reason of the fact that the leaders -of those parties which were responsible for the national betrayal are -ready to oppose any and every attempt at a revival, simply because they -want to retain the positions they now hold. According to the laws that -govern human history it is inconceivable that the German people could -resume the place they formerly held without retaliating on those who -were both cause and occasion of the collapse that involved the ruin of -our State. Before the judgment seat of posterity November 1918 will not -be regarded as a simple rebellion but as high treason against the -country. - -Therefore it is not possible to think of re-establishing German -sovereignty and political independence without at the same time -reconstructing a united front within the nation, by a peaceful -conversion of the popular will. - -Looked at from the standpoint of practical ways and means, it seems -absurd to think of liberating Germany from foreign bondage as long as -the masses of the people are not willing to support such an ideal of -freedom. After carefully considering this problem from the purely -military point of view, everybody, and in particular every officer, will -agree that a war cannot be waged against an outside enemy by battalions -of students; but that, together with the brains of the nation, the -physical strength of the nation is also necessary. Furthermore it must -be remembered that the nation would be robbed of its irreplaceable -assets by a national defence in which only the intellectual circles, as -they are called, were engaged. The young German intellectuals who joined -the volunteer regiments and fell on the battlefields of Flanders in the -autumn of 1914 were bitterly missed later on. They were the dearest -treasure which the nation possessed and their loss could not be made -good in the course of the war. And it is not only the struggle itself -which could not be waged if the working masses of the nation did not -join the storm battalions, but the necessary technical preparations -could not be made without a unified will and a common front within the -nation itself. Our nation which has to exist disarmed, under the -thousand eyes appointed by the Versailles Peace Treaty, cannot make any -technical preparations for the recovery of its freedom and human -independence until the whole army of spies employed within the country -is cut down to those few whose inborn baseness would lead them to betray -anything and everything for the proverbial thirty pieces of silver. But -we can deal with such people. The millions, however, who are opposed to -every kind of national revival simply because of their political -opinions, constitute an insurmountable obstacle. At least the obstacle -will remain insurmountable as long as the cause of their opposition, -which is international Marxism, is not overcome and its teachings -banished from both their hearts and heads. - -From whatever point of view we may examine the possibility of recovering -our independence as a State and a people, whether we consider the -problem from the standpoint of technical rearmament or from that of the -actual struggle itself, the necessary pre-requisite always remains the -same. This pre-requisite is that the broad masses of the people must -first be won over to accept the principle of our national independence. - -If we do not regain our external freedom every step forward in domestic -reform will at best be an augmentation of our productive powers for the -benefit of those nations that look upon us as a colony to be exploited. -The surplus produced by any so-called improvement would only go into the -hands of our international controllers and any social betterment would -at best increase the product of our labour in favour of those people. No -cultural progress can be made by the German nation, because such -progress is too much bound up with the political independence and -dignity of a people. - -Therefore, as we can find a satisfactory solution for the problem of -Germany's future only by winning over the broad masses of our people for -the support of the national idea, this work of education must be -considered the highest and most important task to be accomplished by a -movement which does not strive merely to satisfy the needs of the moment -but considers itself bound to examine in the light of future results -everything it decides to do or refrain from doing. - -As early as 1919 we were convinced that the nationalization of the -masses would have to constitute the first and paramount aim of the new -movement. From the tactical standpoint, this decision laid a certain -number of obligations on our shoulders. - -(1) No social sacrifice could be considered too great in this effort to -win over the masses for the national revival. - -In the field of national economics, whatever concessions are granted -to-day to the employees are negligible when compared with the benefit to -be reaped by the whole nation if such concessions contribute to bring -back the masses of the people once more to the bosom of their own -nation. Nothing but meanness and shortsightedness, which are -characteristics that unfortunately are only too prevalent among our -employers, could prevent people from recognizing that in the long run no -economic improvement and therefore no rise in profits are possible -unless internal solidarity be restored among the bulk of the people who -make up our nation. - -If the German trades unions had defended the interests of the -working-classes uncompromisingly during the War; if even during the War -they had used the weapon of the strike to force the industrialists--who -were greedy for higher dividends--to grant the demands of the workers -for whom the unions acted; if at the same time they had stood up as good -Germans for the defence of the nation as stoutly as for their own -claims, and if they had given to their country what was their country's -due--then the War would never have been lost. How ludicrously -insignificant would all, and even the greatest, economic concession have -been in face of the tremendous importance of such a victory. - -For a movement which would restore the German worker to the German -people it is therefore absolutely necessary to understand clearly that -economic sacrifices must be considered light in such cases, provided of -course that they do not go the length of endangering the independence -and stability of the national economic system. - -(2) The education of the masses along national lines can be carried out -only indirectly, by improving their social conditions; for only by such -a process can the economic conditions be created which enable everybody -to share in the cultural life of the nation. - -(3) The nationalization of the broad masses can never be achieved by -half-measures--that is to say, by feebly insisting on what is called the -objective side of the question--but only by a ruthless and devoted -insistence on the one aim which must be achieved. This means that a -people cannot be made 'national' according to the signification attached -to that word by our bourgeois class to-day--that is to say, nationalism -with many reservations--but national in the vehement and extreme sense. -Poison can be overcome only by a counter-poison, and only the supine -bourgeois mind could think that the Kingdom of Heaven can be attained by -a compromise. - -The broad masses of a nation are not made up of professors and -diplomats. Since these masses have only a poor acquaintance with -abstract ideas, their reactions lie more in the domain of the feelings, -where the roots of their positive as well as their negative attitudes -are implanted. They are susceptible only to a manifestation of strength -which comes definitely either from the positive or negative side, but -they are never susceptible to any half-hearted attitude that wavers -between one pole and the other. The emotional grounds of their attitude -furnish the reason for their extraordinary stability. It is always more -difficult to fight successfully against Faith than against knowledge. -Love is less subject to change than respect. Hatred is more lasting than -mere aversion. And the driving force which has brought about the most -tremendous revolutions on this earth has never been a body of scientific -teaching which has gained power over the masses, but always a devotion -which has inspired them, and often a kind of hysteria which has urged -them to action. - -Whoever wishes to win over the masses must know the key that will open -the door to their hearts. It is not objectivity, which is a feckless -attitude, but a determined will, backed up by force, when necessary. - -(4) The soul of the masses can be won only if those who lead the -movement for that purpose are determined not merely to carry through the -positive struggle for their own aims but are also determined to destroy -the enemy that opposes them. - -When they see an uncompromising onslaught against an adversary the -people have at all times taken this as a proof that right is on the side -of the active aggressor; but if the aggressor should go only half-way -and fail to push home his success by driving his opponent entirely from -the scene of action, the people will look upon this as a sign that the -aggressor is uncertain of the justice of his own cause and his half-way -policy may even be an acknowledgment that his cause is unjust. - -The masses are but a part of Nature herself. Their feeling is such that -they cannot understand mutual hand-shakings between men who are declared -enemies. Their wish is to see the stronger side win and the weaker wiped -out or subjected unconditionally to the will of the stronger. - -The nationalization of the masses can be successfully achieved only if, -in the positive struggle to win the soul of the people, those who spread -the international poison among them are exterminated. - -(5) All the great problems of our time are problems of the moment and -are only the results of certain definite causes. And among all those -there is only one that has a profoundly causal significance. This is the -problem of preserving the pure racial stock among the people. Human -vigour or decline depends on the blood. Nations that are not aware of -the importance of their racial stock, or which neglect to preserve it, -are like men who would try to educate the pug-dog to do the work of the -greyhound, not understanding that neither the speed of the greyhound nor -the imitative faculties of the poodle are inborn qualities which cannot -be drilled into the one or the other by any form of training. A people -that fails to preserve the purity of its racial blood thereby destroys -the unity of the soul of the nation in all its manifestations. A -disintegrated national character is the inevitable consequence of a -process of disintegration in the blood. And the change which takes place -in the spiritual and creative faculties of a people is only an effect of -the change that has modified its racial substance. - -If we are to free the German people from all those failings and ways of -acting which do not spring from their original character, we must first -get rid of those foreign germs in the national body which are the cause -of its failings and false ways. - -The German nation will never revive unless the racial problem is taken -into account and dealt with. The racial problem furnishes the key not -only to the understanding of human history but also to the understanding -of every kind of human culture. - -(6) By incorporating in the national community the masses of our people -who are now in the international camp we do not thereby mean to renounce -the principle that the interests of the various trades and professions -must be safeguarded. Divergent interests in the various branches of -labour and in the trades and professions are not the same as a division -between the various classes, but rather a feature inherent in the -economic situation. Vocational grouping does not clash in the least with -the idea of a national community, for this means national unity in -regard to all those problems that affect the life of the nation as such. - -To incorporate in the national community, or simply the State, a stratum -of the people which has now formed a social class the standing of the -higher classes must not be lowered but that of the lower classes must be -raised. The class which carries through this process is never the higher -class but rather the lower one which is fighting for equality of rights. -The bourgeoisie of to-day was not incorporated in the State through -measures enacted by the feudal nobility but only through its own energy -and a leadership that had sprung from its own ranks. - -The German worker cannot be raised from his present standing and -incorporated in the German folk-community by means of goody-goody -meetings where people talk about the brotherhood of the people, but -rather by a systematic improvement in the social and cultural life of -the worker until the yawning abyss between him and the other classes can -be filled in. A movement which has this for its aim must try to recruit -its followers mainly from the ranks of the working class. It must -include members of the intellectual classes only in so far as such -members have rightly understood and accepted without reserve the ideal -towards which the movement is striving. This process of transformation -and reunion cannot be completed within ten or twenty years. It will take -several generations, as the history of such movements has shown. - -The most difficult obstacle to the reunion of our contemporary worker in -the national folk-community does not consist so much in the fact that he -fights for the interests of his fellow-workers, but rather in the -international ideas with which he is imbued and which are of their -nature at variance with the ideas of nationhood and fatherland. This -hostile attitude to nation and fatherland has been inculcated by the -leaders of the working class. If they were inspired by the principle of -devotion to the nation in all that concerns its political and social -welfare, the trades unions would make those millions of workers most -valuable members of the national community, without thereby affecting -their own constant struggle for their economic demands. - -A movement which sincerely endeavours to bring the German worker back -into his folk-community, and rescue him from the folly of -internationalism, must wage a vigorous campaign against certain notions -that are prevalent among the industrialists. One of these notions is -that according to the concept of the folk-community, the employee is -obliged to surrender all his economic rights to the employer and, -further, that the workers would come into conflict with the -folk-community if they should attempt to defend their own just and vital -interests. Those who try to propagate such a notion are deliberate -liars. The idea of a folk-community does not impose any obligations on -the one side that are not imposed on the other. - -A worker certainly does something which is contrary to the spirit of -folk-community if he acts entirely on his own initiative and puts -forward exaggerated demands without taking the common good into -consideration or the maintenance of the national economic structure. But -an industrialist also acts against the spirit of the folk-community if -he adopts inhuman methods of exploitation and misuses the working forces -of the nation to make millions unjustly for himself from the sweat of -the workers. He has no right to call himself 'national' and no right to -talk of a folk-community, for he is only an unscrupulous egoist who sows -the seeds of social discontent and provokes a spirit of conflict which -sooner or later must be injurious to the interests of the country. - -The reservoir from which the young movement has to draw its members will -first of all be the working masses. Those masses must be delivered from -the clutches of the international mania. Their social distress must be -eliminated. They must be raised above their present cultural level, -which is deplorable, and transformed into a resolute and valuable factor -in the folk-community, inspired by national ideas and national -sentiment. - -If among those intellectual circles that are nationalist in their -outlook men can be found who genuinely love the people and look forward -eagerly to the future of Germany, and at the same time have a sound -grasp of the importance of a struggle whose aim is to win over the soul -of the masses, such men are cordially welcomed in the ranks of our -movement, because they can serve as a valuable intellectual force in the -work that has to be done. But this movement can never aim at recruiting -its membership from the unthinking herd of bourgeois voters. If it did -so the movement would be burdened with a mass of people whose whole -mentality would only help to paralyse the effort of our campaign to win -the mass of the people. In theory it may be very fine to say that the -broad masses ought to be influenced by a combined leadership of the -upper and lower social strata within the framework of the one movement; -but, notwithstanding all this, the fact remains that though it may be -possible to exercise a psychological influence on the bourgeois classes -and to arouse some enthusiasm or even awaken some understanding among -them by our public demonstrations, their traditional characteristics -cannot be changed. In other words, we could not eliminate from the -bourgeois classes the inefficiency and supineness which are part of a -tradition that has developed through centuries. The difference between -the cultural levels of the two groups and between their respective -attitudes towards social-economic questions is still so great that it -would turn out a hindrance to the movement the moment the first -enthusiasm aroused by our demonstrations calmed down. - -Finally, it is not part of our programme to transform the nationalist -camp itself, but rather to win over those who are anti-national in their -outlook. It is from this viewpoint that the strategy of the whole -movement must finally be decided. - -(7) This one-sided but accordingly clear and definite attitude must be -manifested in the propaganda of the movement; and, on the other hand, -this is absolutely necessary to make the propaganda itself effective. - -If propaganda is to be of service to the movement it must be addressed -to one side alone; for if it should vary the direction of its appeal it -will not be understood in the one camp or may be rejected by the other, -as merely insisting on obvious and uninteresting truisms; for the -intellectual training of the two camps that come into question here has -been very different. - -Even the manner in which something is presented and the tone in which -particular details are emphasized cannot have the same effect in those -two strata that belong respectively to the opposite extremes of the -social structure. If the propaganda should refrain from using primitive -forms of expression it will not appeal to the sentiments of the masses. -If, on the other hand, it conforms to the crude sentiments of the masses -in its words and gestures the intellectual circles will be averse to it -because of its roughness and vulgarity. Among a hundred men who call -themselves orators there are scarcely ten who are capable of speaking -with effect before an audience of street-sweepers, locksmiths and -navvies, etc., to-day and expound the same subject with equal effect -to-morrow before an audience of university professors and students. -Among a thousand public speakers there may be only one who can speak -before a composite audience of locksmiths and professors in the same -hall in such a way that his statements can be fully comprehended by each -group while at the same time he effectively influences both and awakens -enthusiasm, on the one side as well as on the other, to hearty applause. -But it must be remembered that in most cases even the most beautiful -idea embodied in a sublime theory can be brought home to the public only -through the medium of smaller minds. The thing that matters here is not -the vision of the man of genius who created the great idea but rather -the success which his apostles achieve in shaping the expression of this -idea so as to bring it home to the minds of the masses. - -Social-Democracy and the whole Marxist movement were particularly -qualified to attract the great masses of the nation, because of the -uniformity of the public to which they addressed their appeal. The more -limited and narrow their ideas and arguments, the easier it was for the -masses to grasp and assimilate them; for those ideas and arguments were -well adapted to a low level of intelligence. - -These considerations led the new movement to adopt a clear and simple -line of policy, which was as follows: - -In its message as well as in its forms of expression the propaganda must -be kept on a level with the intelligence of the masses, and its value -must be measured only by the actual success it achieves. - -At a public meeting where the great masses are gathered together the -best speaker is not he whose way of approaching a subject is most akin -to the spirit of those intellectuals who may happen to be present, but -the speaker who knows how to win the hearts of the masses. - -An educated man who is present and who finds fault with an address -because he considers it to be on an intellectual plane that is too low, -though he himself has witnessed its effect on the lower intellectual -groups whose adherence has to be won, only shows himself completely -incapable of rightly judging the situation and therewith proves that he -can be of no use in the new movement. Only intellectuals can be of use -to a movement who understand its mission and its aims so well that they -have learned to judge our methods of propaganda exclusively by the -success obtained and never by the impression which those methods made on -the intellectuals themselves. For our propaganda is not meant to serve -as an entertainment for those people who already have a nationalist -outlook, but its purpose is to win the adhesion of those who have -hitherto been hostile to national ideas and who are nevertheless of our -own blood and race. - -In general, those considerations of which I have given a brief summary -in the chapter on 'War Propaganda' became the guiding rules and -principles which determined the kind of propaganda we were to adopt in -our campaign and the manner in which we were to put it into practice. -The success that has been obtained proves that our decision was right. - -(8) The ends which any political reform movement sets out to attain can -never be reached by trying to educate the public or influence those in -power but only by getting political power into its hands. Every idea -that is meant to move the world has not only the right but also the -obligation of securing control of those means which will enable the idea -to be carried into effect. In this world success is the only rule of -judgment whereby we can decide whether such an undertaking was right or -wrong. And by the word 'success' in this connection I do not mean such a -success as the mere conquest of power in 1918 but the successful issue -whereby the common interests of the nation have been served. A COUP -D'ETAT cannot be considered successful if, as many empty-headed -government lawyers in Germany now believe, the revolutionaries succeeded -in getting control of the State into their hands but only if, in -comparison with the state of affairs under the old regime, the lot of -the nation has been improved when the aims and intentions on which the -revolution was based have been put into practice. This certainly does -not apply to the German Revolution, as that movement was called, which -brought a gang of bandits into power in the autumn of 1918. - -But if the conquest of political power be a requisite preliminary for -the practical realization of the ideals that inspire a reform movement, -then any movement which aims at reform must, from the very first day of -its activity, be considered by its leaders as a movement of the masses -and not as a literary tea club or an association of philistines who meet -to play ninepins. - -(9) The nature and internal organization of the new movement make it -anti-parliamentarian. That is to say, it rejects in general and in its -own structure all those principles according to which decisions are to -be taken on the vote of the majority and according to which the leader -is only the executor of the will and opinion of others. The movement -lays down the principle that, in the smallest as well as in the greatest -problems, one person must have absolute authority and bear all -responsibility. - -In our movement the practical consequences of this principle are the -following: - -The president of a large group is appointed by the head of the group -immediately above his in authority. He is then the responsible leader of -his group. All the committees are subject to his authority and not he to -theirs. There is no such thing as committees that vote but only -committees that work. This work is allotted by the responsible leader, -who is the president of the group. The same principle applies to the -higher organizations--the Bezirk (district), the KREIS (urban circuit) -and the GAU (the region). In each case the president is appointed from -above and is invested with full authority and executive power. Only the -leader of the whole party is elected at the general meeting of the -members. But he is the sole leader of the movement. All the committees -are responsible to him, but he is not responsible to the committees. His -decision is final, but he bears the whole responsibility of it. The -members of the movement are entitled to call him to account by means of -a new election, or to remove him from office if he has violated the -principles of the movement or has not served its interests adequately. -He is then replaced by a more capable man. who is invested with the same -authority and obliged to bear the same responsibility. - -One of the highest duties of the movement is to make this principle -imperative not only within its own ranks but also for the whole State. - -The man who becomes leader is invested with the highest and unlimited -authority, but he also has to bear the last and gravest responsibility. - -The man who has not the courage to shoulder responsibility for his -actions is not fitted to be a leader. Only a man of heroic mould can -have the vocation for such a task. - -Human progress and human cultures are not founded by the multitude. They -are exclusively the work of personal genius and personal efficiency. - -Because of this principle, our movement must necessarily be -anti-parliamentarian, and if it takes part in the parliamentary -institution it is only for the purpose of destroying this institution -from within; in other words, we wish to do away with an institution -which we must look upon as one of the gravest symptoms of human decline. - -(10) The movement steadfastly refuses to take up any stand in regard to -those problems which are either outside of its sphere of political work -or seem to have no fundamental importance for us. It does not aim at -bringing about a religious reformation, but rather a political -reorganization of our people. It looks upon the two religious -denominations as equally valuable mainstays for the existence of our -people, and therefore it makes war on all those parties which would -degrade this foundation, on which the religious and moral stability of -our people is based, to an instrument in the service of party interests. - -Finally, the movement does not aim at establishing any one form of State -or trying to destroy another, but rather to make those fundamental -principles prevail without which no republic and no monarchy can exist -for any length of time. The movement does not consider its mission to be -the establishment of a monarchy or the preservation of the Republic but -rather to create a German State. - -The problem concerning the outer form of this State, that is to say, its -final shape, is not of fundamental importance. It is a problem which -must be solved in the light of what seems practical and opportune at the -moment. - -Once a nation has understood and appreciated the great problems that -affect its inner existence, the question of outer formalities will never -lead to any internal conflict. - -(11) The problem of the inner organization of the movement is not one of -principle but of expediency. - -The best kind of organization is not that which places a large -intermediary apparatus between the leadership of the movement and the -individual followers but rather that which works successfully with the -smallest possible intermediary apparatus. For it is the task of such an -organization to transmit a certain idea which originated in the brain of -one individual to a multitude of people and to supervise the manner in -which this idea is being put into practice. - -Therefore, from any and every viewpoint, the organization is only a -necessary evil. At best it is only a means of reaching certain ends. The -worst happens when it becomes an end in itself. - -Since the world produces more mechanical than intelligent beings, it -will always be easier to develop the form of an organization than its -substance; that is to say, the ideas which it is meant to serve. - -The march of any idea which strives towards practical fulfilment, and in -particular those ideas which are of a reformatory character, may be -roughly sketched as follows: - -A creative idea takes shape in the mind of somebody who thereupon feels -himself called upon to transmit this idea to the world. He propounds his -faith before others and thereby gradually wins a certain number of -followers. This direct and personal way of promulgating one's ideas -among one's contemporaries is the most natural and the most ideal. But -as the movement develops and secures a large number of followers it -gradually becomes impossible for the original founder of the doctrine on -which the movement is based to carry on his propaganda personally among -his innumerable followers and at the same time guide the course of the -movement. - -According as the community of followers increases, direct communication -between the head and the individual followers becomes impossible. This -intercourse must then take place through an intermediary apparatus -introduced into the framework of the movement. Thus ideal conditions of -inter-communication cease, and organization has to be introduced as a -necessary evil. Small subsidiary groups come into existence, as in the -political movement, for example, where the local groups represent the -germ-cells out of which the organization develops later on. - -But such sub-divisions must not be introduced into the movement until -the authority of the spiritual founder and of the school he has created -are accepted without reservation. Otherwise the movement would run the -risk of becoming split up by divergent doctrines. In this connection too -much emphasis cannot be laid on the importance of having one geographic -centre as the chief seat of the movement. Only the existence of such a -seat or centre, around which a magic charm such as that of Mecca or Rome -is woven, can supply a movement with that permanent driving force which -has its sources in the internal unity of the movement and the -recognition of one head as representing this unity. - -When the first germinal cells of the organization are being formed care -must always be taken to insist on the importance of the place where the -idea originated. The creative, moral and practical greatness of the -place whence the movement went forth and from which it is governed must -be exalted to a supreme symbol, and this must be honoured all the more -according as the original cells of the movement become so numerous that -they have to be regrouped into larger units in the structure of the -organization. - -When the number of individual followers became so large that direct -personal contact with the head of the movement was out of the question, -then we had to form those first local groups. As those groups multiplied -to an extraordinary number it was necessary to establish higher cadres -into which the local groups were distributed. Examples of such cadres in -the political organization are those of the region (GAU) and the -district (BEZIRK). - -Though it may be easy enough to maintain the original central authority -over the lowest groups, it is much more difficult to do so in relation -to the higher units of organization which have now developed. And yet we -must succeed in doing this, for this is an indispensable condition if -the unity of the movement is to be guaranteed and the idea of it carried -into effect. - -Finally, when those larger intermediary organizations have to be -combined in new and still higher units it becomes increasingly difficult -to maintain over them the absolute supremacy of the original seat of the -movement and the school attached to it. - -Consequently the mechanical forms of an organization must only be -introduced if and in so far as the spiritual authority and the ideals of -the central seat of the organization are shown to be firmly established. -In the political sphere it may often happen that this supremacy can be -maintained only when the movement has taken over supreme political -control of the nation. - -Having taken all these considerations into account, the following -principles were laid down for the inner structure of the movement: - -(a) That at the beginning all activity should be concentrated in one -town: namely, Munich. That a band of absolutely reliable followers -should be trained and a school founded which would subsequently help to -propagate the idea of the movement. That the prestige of the movement, -for the sake of its subsequent extension, should first be established -here through gaining as many successful and visible results as possible -in this one place. To secure name and fame for the movement and its -leader it was necessary, not only to give in this one town a striking -example to shatter the belief that the Marxist doctrine was invincible -but also to show that a counter-doctrine was possible. - -(b) That local groups should not be established before the supremacy of -the central authority in Munich was definitely established and -acknowledged. - -(c) That District, Regional, and Provincial groups should be formed only -after the need for them has become evident and only after the supremacy -of the central authority has been satisfactorily guaranteed. - -Further, that the creation of subordinate organisms must depend on -whether or not those persons can be found who are qualified to undertake -the leadership of them. - -Here there were only two solutions: - -(a) That the movement should acquire the necessary funds to attract and -train intelligent people who would be capable of becoming leaders. The -personnel thus obtained could then be systematically employed according -as the tactical situation and the necessity for efficiency demanded. - -This solution was the easier and the more expedite. But it demanded -large financial resources; for this group of leaders could work in the -movement only if they could be paid a salary. - -(b) Because the movement is not in a position to employ paid officials -it must begin by depending on honorary helpers. Naturally this solution -is slower and more difficult. - -It means that the leaders of the movement have to allow vast territories -to lie fallow unless in these respective districts one of the members -comes forward who is capable and willing to place himself at the service -of the central authority for the purpose of organizing and directing the -movement in the region concerned. - -It may happen that in extensive regions no such leader can be found, but -that at the same time in other regions two or three or even more persons -appear whose capabilities are almost on a level. The difficulty which -this situation involves is very great and can be overcome only with the -passing of the years. - -For the establishment of any branch of the organization the decisive -condition must always be that a person can be found who is capable of -fulfilling the functions of a leader. - -Just as the army and all its various units of organization are useless -if there are no officers, so any political organization is worthless if -it has not the right kind of leaders. - -If an inspiring personality who has the gift of leadership cannot be -found for the organization and direction of a local group it is better -for the movement to refrain from establishing such a group than to run -the risk of failure after the group has been founded. - -The will to be a leader is not a sufficient qualification for -leadership. For the leader must have the other necessary qualities. -Among these qualities will-power and energy must be considered as more -serviceable than the intellect of a genius. The most valuable -association of qualities is to be found in a combination of talent, -determination and perseverance. - -(12) The future of a movement is determined by the devotion, and even -intolerance, with which its members fight for their cause. They must -feel convinced that their cause alone is just, and they must carry it -through to success, as against other similar organizations in the same -field. - -It is quite erroneous to believe that the strength of a movement must -increase if it be combined with other movements of a similar kind. Any -expansion resulting from such a combination will of course mean an -increase in external development, which superficial observers might -consider as also an increase of power; but in reality the movement thus -admits outside elements which will subsequently weaken its -constitutional vigour. - -Though it may be said that one movement is identical in character with -another, in reality no such identity exists. If it did exist then -practically there would not be two movements but only one. And whatever -the difference may be, even if it consist only of the measure in which -the capabilities of the one set of leaders differ from those of the -other, there it is. It is against the natural law of all development to -couple dissimilar organisms, or the law is that the stronger must -overcome the weaker and, through the struggle necessary for such a -conquest, increase the constitutional vigour and effective strength of -the victor. - -By amalgamating political organizations that are approximately alike, -certain immediate advantages may be gained, but advantages thus gained -are bound in the long run to become the cause of internal weaknesses -which will make their appearance later on. - -A movement can become great only if the unhampered development of its -internal strength be safeguarded and steadfastly augmented, until -victory over all its competitors be secured. - -One may safely say that the strength of a movement and its right to -existence can be developed only as long as it remains true to the -principle that struggle is a necessary condition of its progress and -that its maximum strength will be reached only as soon as complete -victory has been won. - -Therefore a movement must not strive to obtain successes that will be -only immediate and transitory, but it must show a spirit of -uncompromising perseverance in carrying through a long struggle which -will secure for it a long period of inner growth. - -All those movements which owe their expansion to a so-called combination -of similar organisms, which means that their external strength is due to -a policy of compromise, are like plants whose growth is forced in a -hothouse. They shoot up externally but they lack that inner strength -which enables the natural plant to grow into a tree that will withstand -the storms of centuries. - -The greatness of every powerful organization which embodies a creative -idea lies in the spirit of religious devotion and intolerance with which -it stands out against all others, because it has an ardent faith in its -own right. If an idea is right in itself and, furnished with the -fighting weapons I have mentioned, wages war on this earth, then it is -invincible and persecution will only add to its internal strength. - -The greatness of Christianity did not arise from attempts to make -compromises with those philosophical opinions of the ancient world which -had some resemblance to its own doctrine, but in the unrelenting and -fanatical proclamation and defence of its own teaching. - -The apparent advance that a movement makes by associating itself with -other movements will be easily reached and surpassed by the steady -increase of strength which a doctrine and its organization acquires if -it remains independent and fights its own cause alone. - -(13) The movement ought to educate its adherents to the principle that -struggle must not be considered a necessary evil but as something to be -desired in itself. Therefore they must not be afraid of the hostility -which their adversaries manifest towards them but they must take it as a -necessary condition on which their whole right to existence is based. -They must not try to avoid being hated by those who are the enemies of -our people and our philosophy of life, but must welcome such hatred. -Lies and calumnies are part of the method which the enemy employs to -express his chagrin. - -The man who is not opposed and vilified and slandered in the Jewish -Press is not a staunch German and not a true National Socialist. The -best rule whereby the sincerity of his convictions, his character and -strength of will, can be measured is the hostility which his name -arouses among the mortal enemies of our people. - -The followers of the movement, and indeed the whole nation, must be -reminded again and again of the fact that, through the medium of his -newspapers, the Jew is always spreading falsehood and that if he tells -the truth on some occasions it is only for the purpose of masking some -greater deceit, which turns the apparent truth into a deliberate -falsehood. The Jew is the Great Master of Lies. Falsehood and duplicity -are the weapons with which he fights. - -Every calumny and falsehood published by the Jews are tokens of honour -which can be worn by our comrades. He whom they decry most is nearest to -our hearts and he whom they mortally hate is our best friend. - -If a comrade of ours opens a Jewish newspaper in the morning and does -not find himself vilified there, then he has spent yesterday to no -account. For if he had achieved something he would be persecuted, -slandered, derided and abused. Those who effectively combat this mortal -enemy of our people, who is at the same time the enemy of all Aryan -peoples and all culture, can only expect to arouse opposition on the -part of this race and become the object of its slanderous attacks. - -When these truths become part of the flesh and blood, as it were, of our -members, then the movement will be impregnable and invincible. - -(14) The movement must use all possible means to cultivate respect for -the individual personality. It must never forget that all human values -are based on personal values, and that every idea and achievement is the -fruit of the creative power of one man. We must never forget that -admiration for everything that is great is not only a tribute to one -creative personality but that all those who feel such admiration become -thereby united under one covenant. - -Nothing can take the place of the individual, especially if the -individual embodies in himself not the mechanical element but the -element of cultural creativeness. No pupil can take the place of the -master in completing a great picture which he has left unfinished; and -just in the same way no substitute can take the place of the great poet -or thinker, or the great statesman or military general. For the source -of their power is in the realm of artistic creativeness. It can never be -mechanically acquired, because it is an innate product of divine grace. - -The greatest revolutions and the greatest achievements of this world, -its greatest cultural works and the immortal creations of great -statesmen, are inseparably bound up with one name which stands as a -symbol for them in each respective case. The failure to pay tribute to -one of those great spirits signifies a neglect of that enormous source -of power which lies in the remembrance of all great men and women. - -The Jew himself knows this best. He, whose great men have always been -great only in their efforts to destroy mankind and its civilization, -takes good care that they are worshipped as idols. But the Jew tries to -degrade the honour in which nations hold their great men and women. He -stigmatizes this honour as 'the cult of personality'. - -As soon as a nation has so far lost its courage as to submit to this -impudent defamation on the part of the Jews it renounces the most -important source of its own inner strength. This inner force cannot -arise from a policy of pandering to the masses but only from the worship -of men of genius, whose lives have uplifted and ennobled the nation -itself. - -When men's hearts are breaking and their souls are plunged into the -depths of despair, their great forebears turn their eyes towards them -from the dim shadows of the past--those forebears who knew how to -triumph over anxiety and affliction, mental servitude and physical -bondage--and extend their eternal hands in a gesture of encouragement to -despairing souls. Woe to the nation that is ashamed to clasp those -hands. - -During the initial phase of our movement our greatest handicap was the -fact that none of us were known and our names meant nothing, a fact -which then seemed to some of us to make the chances of final success -problematical. Our most difficult task then was to make our members -firmly believe that there was a tremendous future in store for the -movement and to maintain this belief as a living faith; for at that time -only six, seven or eight persons came to hear one of our speakers. - -Consider that only six or seven poor devils who were entirely unknown -came together to found a movement which should succeed in doing what the -great mass-parties had failed to do: namely, to reconstruct the German -REICH, even in greater power and glory than before. We should have been -very pleased if we were attacked or even ridiculed. But the most -depressing fact was that nobody paid any attention to us whatever. This -utter lack of interest in us caused me great mental pain at that time. - -When I entered the circle of those men there was not yet any question of -a party or a movement. I have already described the impression which was -made on me when I first came into contact with that small organization. -Subsequently I had time, and also the occasion, to study the form of -this so-called party which at first had made such a woeful impression. -The picture was indeed quite depressing and discouraging. There was -nothing, absolutely nothing at all. There was only the name of a party. -And the committee consisted of all the party members. Somehow or other -it seemed just the kind of thing we were about to fight against--a -miniature parliament. The voting system was employed. When the great -parliament cried until they were hoarse--at least they shouted over -problems of importance--here this small circle engaged in interminable -discussions as to the form in which they might answer the letters which -they were delighted to have received. - -Needless to say, the public knew nothing of all this. In Munich nobody -knew of the existence of such a party, not even by name, except our few -members and their small circle of acquaintances. - -Every Wednesday what was called a committee meeting was held in one of -the caf�s, and a debate was arranged for one evening each week. In the -beginning all the members of the movement were also members of the -committee, therefore the same persons always turned up at both meetings. -The first step that had to be taken was to extend the narrow limits of -this small circle and get new members, but the principal necessity was -to utilize all the means at our command for the purpose of making the -movement known. - -We chose the following methods: We decided to hold a monthly meeting to -which the public would be invited. Some of the invitations were -typewritten, and some were written by hand. For the first few meetings -we distributed them in the streets and delivered them personally at -certain houses. Each one canvassed among his own acquaintances and tried -to persuade some of them to attend our meetings. The result was -lamentable. - -I still remember once how I personally delivered eighty of these -invitations and how we waited in the evening for the crowds to come. -After waiting in vain for a whole hour the chairman finally had to open -the meeting. Again there were only seven people present, the old -familiar seven. - -We then changed our methods. We had the invitations written with a -typewriter in a Munich stationer's shop and then multigraphed them. - -The result was that a few more people attended our next meeting. The -number increased gradually from eleven to thirteen to seventeen, to -twenty-three and finally to thirty-four. We collected some money within -our own circle, each poor devil giving a small contribution, and in that -way we raised sufficient funds to be able to advertise one of our -meetings in the MUNICH OBSERVER, which was still an independent paper. - -This time we had an astonishing success. We had chosen the Munich -HOFBR�U HAUS KELLER (which must not be confounded with the Munich -HOFBR�U HAUS FESTSAAL) as our meeting-place. It was a small hall and -would accommodate scarcely more than 130 people. To me, however, the -hall seemed enormous, and we were all trembling lest this tremendous -edifice would remain partly empty on the night of the meeting. - -At seven o'clock 111 persons were present, and the meeting was opened. A -Munich professor delivered the principal address, and I spoke after him. -That was my first appearance in the role of public orator. The whole -thing seemed a very daring adventure to Herr Harrer, who was then -chairman of the party. He was a very decent fellow; but he had an -A PRIORI conviction that, although I might have quite a number of good -qualities, I certainly did not have a talent for public speaking. Even -later he could not be persuaded to change his opinion. But he was -mistaken. Twenty minutes had been allotted to me for my speech on this -occasion, which might be looked upon as our first public meeting. - -I talked for thirty minutes, and what I always had felt deep down in my -heart, without being able to put it to the test, was here proved to be -true: I could make a good speech. At the end of the thirty minutes it -was quite clear that all the people in the little hall had been -profoundly impressed. The enthusiasm aroused among them found its first -expression in the fact that my appeal to those present brought us -donations which amounted to three hundred marks. That was a great relief -for us. Our finances were at that time so meagre that we could not -afford to have our party prospectus printed, or even leaflets. Now we -possessed at least the nucleus of a fund from which we could pay the -most urgent and necessary expenses. - -But the success of this first larger meeting was also important from -another point of view. I had already begun to introduce some young and -fresh members into the committee. During the long period of my military -service I had come to know a large number of good comrades whom I was -now able to persuade to join our party. All of them were energetic and -disciplined young men who, through their years of military service, had -been imbued with the principle that nothing is impossible and that where -there's a will there's a way. - -The need for this fresh blood supply became evident to me after a few -weeks of collaboration with the new members. Herr Harrer, who was then -chairman of the party, was a journalist by profession, and as such he -was a man of general knowledge. But as leader of the party he had one -very serious handicap: he could not speak to the crowd. Though he did -his work conscientiously, it lacked the necessary driving force, -probably for the reason that he had no oratorical gifts whatsoever. Herr -Drexler, at that time chairman of the Munich local group, was a simple -working man. He, too, was not of any great importance as a speaker. -Moreover, he was not a soldier. He had never done military service, even -during the War. So that this man who was feeble and diffident by nature -had missed the only school which knows how to transform diffident and -weakly natures into real men. Therefore neither of those two men were of -the stuff that would have enabled them to stir up an ardent and -indomitable faith in the ultimate triumph of the movement and to brush -aside, with obstinate force and if necessary with brutal ruthlessness, -all obstacles that stood in the path of the new idea. Such a task could -be carried out only by men who had been trained, body and soul, in those -military virtues which make a man, so to speak, agile as a greyhound, -tough as leather, and hard as Krupp steel. - -At that time I was still a soldier. Physically and mentally I had the -polish of six years of service, so that in the beginning this circle -must have looked on me as quite a stranger. In common with my army -comrades, I had forgotten such phrases as: "That will not go", or "That -is not possible", or "We ought not to take such a risk; it is too -dangerous". - -The whole undertaking was of its very nature dangerous. At that time -there were many parts of Germany where it would have been absolutely -impossible openly to invite people to a national meeting that dared to -make a direct appeal to the masses. Those who attended such meetings -were usually dispersed and driven away with broken heads. It certainly -did not call for any great qualities to be able to do things in that -way. The largest so-called bourgeois mass meetings were accustomed to -dissolve, and those in attendance would run away like rabbits when -frightened by a dog as soon as a dozen communists appeared on the scene. -The Reds used to pay little attention to those bourgeois organizations -where only babblers talked. They recognized the inner triviality of such -associations much better than the members themselves and therefore felt -that they need not be afraid of them. On the contrary, however, they -were all the more determined to use every possible means of annihilating -once and for all any movement that appeared to them to be a danger to -their own interests. The most effective means which they always employed -in such cases were terror and brute force. - -The Marxist leaders, whose business consisted in deceiving and -misleading the public, naturally hated most of all a movement whose -declared aim was to win over those masses which hitherto had been -exclusively at the service of international Marxism in the Jewish and -Stock Exchange parties. The title alone, 'German Labour party', -irritated them. It could easily be foreseen that at the first opportune -moment we should have to face the opposition of the Marxist despots, who -were still intoxicated with their triumph in 1918. - -People in the small circles of our own movement at that time showed a -certain amount of anxiety at the prospect of such a conflict. They -wanted to refrain as much as possible from coming out into the open, -because they feared that they might be attacked and beaten. In their -minds they saw our first public meetings broken up and feared that the -movement might thus be ruined for ever. I found it difficult to defend -my own position, which was that the conflict should not be evaded but -that it should be faced openly and that we should be armed with those -weapons which are the only protection against brute force. Terror cannot -be overcome by the weapons of the mind but only by counter-terror. The -success of our first public meeting strengthened my own position. The -members felt encouraged to arrange for a second meeting, even on a -larger scale. - -Some time in October 1919 the second larger meeting took place in the -EBERLBR�U KELLER. The theme of our speeches was 'Brest-Litowsk and -Versailles'. There were four speakers. I talked for almost an hour, and -the success was even more striking than at our first meeting. The number -of people who attended had grown to more than 130. An attempt to disturb -the proceedings was immediately frustrated by my comrades. The would-be -disturbers were thrown down the stairs, bearing imprints of violence on -their heads. - -A fortnight later another meeting took place in the same hall. The -number in attendance had now increased to more than 170, which meant -that the room was fairly well filled. I spoke again, and once more the -success obtained was greater than at the previous meeting. - -Then I proposed that a larger hall should be found. After looking around -for some time we discovered one at the other end of the town, in the -'Deutschen REICH' in the Dachauer Strasse. The first meeting at this new -rendezvous had a smaller attendance than the previous meeting. There -were just less than 140 present. The members of the committee began to -be discouraged, and those who had always been sceptical were now -convinced that this falling-off in the attendance was due to the fact -that we were holding the meetings at too short intervals. There were -lively discussions, in which I upheld my own opinion that a city with -700,000 inhabitants ought to be able not only to stand one meeting every -fortnight but ten meetings every week. I held that we should not be -discouraged by one comparative setback, that the tactics we had chosen -were correct, and that sooner or later success would be ours if we only -continued with determined perseverance to push forward on our road. This -whole winter of 1919-20 was one continual struggle to strengthen -confidence in our ability to carry the movement through to success and -to intensify this confidence until it became a burning faith that could -move mountains. - -Our next meeting in the small hall proved the truth of my contention. -Our audience had increased to more than 200. The publicity effect and -the financial success were splendid. I immediately urged that a further -meeting should be held. It took place in less than a fortnight, and -there were more than 270 people present. Two weeks later we invited our -followers and their friends, for the seventh time, to attend our -meeting. The same hall was scarcely large enough for the number that -came. They amounted to more than four hundred. - -During this phase the young movement developed its inner form. Sometimes -we had more or less hefty discussions within our small circle. From -various sides--it was then just the same as it is to-day--objections -were made against the idea of calling the young movement a party. I have -always considered such criticism as a demonstration of practical -incapability and narrow-mindedness on the part of the critic. Those -objections have always been raised by men who could not differentiate -between external appearances and inner strength, but tried to judge the -movement by the high-sounding character of the name attached to it. To -this end they ransacked the vocabulary of our ancestors, with -unfortunate results. - -At that time it was very difficult to make the people understand that -every movement is a party as long as it has not brought its ideals to -final triumph and thus achieved its purpose. It is a party even if it -give itself a thousand difterent names. - -Any person who tries to carry into practice an original idea whose -realization would be for the benefit of his fellow men will first have -to look for disciples who are ready to fight for the ends he has in -view. And if these ends did not go beyond the destruction of the party -system and therewith put a stop to the process of disintegration, then -all those who come forward as protagonists and apostles of such an ideal -are a party in themselves as long as their final goal is reached. It is -only hair-splitting and playing with words when these antiquated -theorists, whose practical success is in reverse ratio to their wisdom, -presume to think they can change the character of a movement which is at -the same time a party, by merely changing its name. - -On the contrary, it is entirely out of harmony with the spirit of the -nation to keep harping on that far-off and forgotten nomenclature which -belongs to the ancient Germanic times and does not awaken any distinct -association in our age. This habit of borrowing words from the dead past -tends to mislead the people into thinking that the external trappings of -its vocabulary are the important feature of a movement. It is really a -mischievous habit; but it is quite prevalent nowadays. - -At that time, and subsequently, I had to warn followers repeatedly -against these wandering scholars who were peddling Germanic folk-lore -and who never accomplished anything positive or practical, except to -cultivate their own superabundant self-conceit. The new movement must -guard itself against an influx of people whose only recommendation is -their own statement that they have been fighting for these very same -ideals during the last thirty or forty years. - -Now if somebody has fought for forty years to carry into effect what he -calls an idea, and if these alleged efforts not only show no positive -results but have not even been able to hinder the success of the -opposing party, then the story of those forty years of futile effort -furnishes sufficient proof for the incompetence of such a protagonist. -People of that kind are specially dangerous because they do not want to -participate in the movement as ordinary members. They talk rather of the -leading positions which would be the only fitting posts for them, in -view of their past work and also so that they might be enabled to carry -on that work further. But woe to a young movement if the conduct of it -should fall into the hands of such people. A business man who has been -in charge of a great firm for forty years and who has completely ruined -it through his mismanagement is not the kind of person one would -recommend for the founding of a new firm. And it is just the same with a -new national movement. Nobody of common sense would appoint to a leading -post in such a movement some Teutonic Methuselah who had been -ineffectively preaching some idea for a period of forty years, until -himself and his idea had entered the stage of senile decay. - -Furthermore, only a very small percentage of such people join a new -movement with the intention of serving its end unselfishly and helping -in the spread of its principles. In most cases they come because they -think that, under the aegis of the new movement, it will be possible for -them to promulgate their old ideas to the misfortune of their new -listeners. Anyhow, nobody ever seems able to describe what exactly these -ideas are. - -It is typical of such persons that they rant about ancient Teutonic -heroes of the dim and distant ages, stone axes, battle spears and -shields, whereas in reality they themselves are the woefullest poltroons -imaginable. For those very same people who brandish Teutonic tin swords -that have been fashioned carefully according to ancient models and wear -padded bear-skins, with the horns of oxen mounted over their bearded -faces, proclaim that all contemporary conflicts must be decided by the -weapons of the mind alone. And thus they skedaddle when the first -communist cudgel appears. Posterity will have little occasion to write a -new epic on these heroic gladiators. - -I have seen too much of that kind of people not to feel a profound -contempt for their miserable play-acting. To the masses of the nation -they are just an object of ridicule; but the Jew finds it to his own -interest to treat these folk-lore comedians with respect and to prefer -them to real men who are fighting to establish a German State. And yet -these comedians are extremely proud of themselves. Notwithstanding their -complete fecklessness, which is an established fact, they pretend to -know everything better than other people; so much so that they make -themselves a veritable nuisance to all sincere and honest patriots, to -whom not only the heroism of the past is worthy of honour but who also -feel bound to leave examples of their own work for the inspiration of -the coming generation. - -Among those people there were some whose conduct can be explained by -their innate stupidity and incompetence; but there are others who have a -definite ulterior purpose in view. Often it is difficult to distinguish -between the two classes. The impression which I often get, especially of -those so-called religious reformers whose creed is grounded on ancient -Germanic customs, is that they are the missionaries and prot�g�s of -those forces which do not wish to see a national revival taking place in -Germany. All their activities tend to turn the attention of the people -away from the necessity of fighting together in a common cause against -the common enemy, namely the Jew. Moreover, that kind of preaching -induces the people to use up their energies, not in fighting for the -common cause, but in absurd and ruinous religious controversies within -their own ranks. There are definite grounds that make it absolutely -necessary for the movement to be dominated by a strong central force -which is embodied in the authoritative leadership. In this way alone is -it possible to counteract the activity of such fatal elements. And that -is just the reason why these folk-lore Ahasueruses are vigorously -hostile to any movement whose members are firmly united under one leader -and one discipline. Those people of whom I have spoken hate such a -movement because it is capable of putting a stop to their mischief. - -It was not without good reason that when we laid down a clearly defined -programme for the new movement we excluded the word V�LKISCH from it. -The concept underlying the term V�LKISCH cannot serve as the basis of a -movement, because it is too indefinite and general in its application. -Therefore, if somebody called himself V�LKISCH such a designation could -not be taken as the hall-mark of some definite, party affiliation. - -Because this concept is so indefinite from the practical viewpoint, it -gives rise to various interpretations and thus people can appeal to it -all the more easily as a sort of personal recommendation. Whenever such -a vague concept, which is subject to so many interpretations, is -admitted into a political movement it tends to break up the disciplined -solidarity of the fighting forces. No such solidarity can be maintained -if each individual member be allowed to define for himself what he -believes and what he is willing to do. - -One feels it a disgrace when one notices the kind of people who float -about nowadays with the V�LKISCH symbol stuck in their buttonholes, and -at the same time to notice how many people have various ideas of their -own as to the significance of that symbol. A well-known professor in -Bavaria, a famous combatant who fights only with the weapons of the mind -and who boasts of having marched against Berlin--by shouldering the -weapons of the mind, of course--believes that the word V�LKISCH is -synonymous with 'monarchical'. But this learned authority has hitherto -neglected to explain how our German monarchs of the past can be -identified with what we generally mean by the word V�LKISCH to-day. I am -afraid he will find himself at a loss if he is asked to give a precise -answer. For it would be very difficult indeed to imagine anything less -V�LKISCH than most of those German monarchical States were. Had they -been otherwise they would not have disappeared; or if they were -V�LKISCH, then the fact of their downfall may be taken as evidence that -the V�LKISCH outlook on the world (WELTANSCHAUUNG) is a false outlook. - -Everybody interprets this concept in his own way. But such multifarious -opinions cannot be adopted as the basis of a militant political -movement. I need not call attention to the absolute lack of worldly -wisdom, and especially the failure to understand the soul of the nation, -which is displayed by these Messianic Precursors of the Twentieth -Century. Sufficient attention has been called to those people by the -ridicule which the left-wing parties have bestowed on them. They allow -them to babble on and sneer at them. - -I do not set much value on the friendship of people who do not succeed -in getting disliked by their enemies. Therefore, we considered the -friendship of such people as not only worthless but even dangerous to -our young movement. That was the principal reason why we first called -ourselves a PARTY. We hoped that by giving ourselves such a name we -might scare away a whole host of V�LKISCH dreamers. And that was the -reason also why we named our Party, THE NATIONAL SOCIALIST GERMAN LABOUR -PARTY. - -The first term, Party, kept away all those dreamers who live in the past -and all the lovers of bombastic nomenclature, as well as those who went -around beating the big drum for the V�LKISCH idea. The full name of the -Party kept away all those heroes whose weapon is the sword of the spirit -and all those whining poltroons who take refuge behind their so-called -'intelligence' as if it were a kind of shield. - -It was only to be expected that this latter class would launch a massed -attack against us after our movement had started; but, of course, it was -only a pen-and-ink attack, for the goose-quill is the only weapon which -these V�LKISCH lancers wield. We had declared one of our principles -thus: "We shall meet violence with violence in our own defence". -Naturally that principle disturbed the equanimity of the knights of the -pen. They reproached us bitterly not only for what they called our crude -worship of the cudgel but also because, according to them, we had no -intellectual forces on our side. These charlatans did not think for a -moment that a Demosthenes could be reduced to silence at a mass-meeting -by fifty idiots who had come there to shout him down and use their fists -against his supporters. The innate cowardice of the pen-and-ink -charlatan prevents him from exposing himself to such a danger, for he -always works in safe retirement and never dares to make a noise or come -forward in public. - -Even to-day I must warn the members of our young movement in the -strongest possible terms to guard against the danger of falling into the -snare of those who call themselves 'silent workers'. These 'silent -workers' are not only a whitelivered lot but are also, and always will -be, ignorant do-nothings. A man who is aware of certain happenings and -knows that a certain danger threatens, and at the same time sees a -certain remedy which can be employed against it, is in duty bound not to -work in silence but to come into the open and publicly fight for the -destruction of the evil and the acceptance of his own remedy. If he does -not do so, then he is neglecting his duty and shows that he is weak in -character and that he fails to act either because of his timidity, or -indolence or incompetence. Most of these 'silent workers' generally -pretend to know God knows what. Not one of them is capable of any real -achievement, but they keep on trying to fool the world with their -antics. Though quite indolent, they try to create the impression that -their 'silent work' keeps them very busy. To put it briefly, they are -sheer swindlers, political jobbers who feel chagrined by the honest work -which others are doing. When you find one of these V�LKISCH moths -buzzing over the value of his 'silent work' you may be sure that you are -dealing with a fellow who does no productive work at all but steals from -others the fruits of their honest labour. - -In addition to all this one ought to note the arrogance and conceited -impudence with which these obscurantist idlers try to tear to pieces the -work of other people, criticizing it with an air of superiority, and -thus playing into the hands of the mortal enemy of our people. - -Even the simplest follower who has the courage to stand on the table in -some beer-hall where his enemies are gathered, and manfully and openly -defend his position against them, achieves a thousand times more than -these slinking hypocrites. He at least will convert one or two people to -believe in the movement. One can examine his work and test its -effectiveness by its actual results. But those knavish swindlers--who -praise their own 'silent work' and shelter themselves under the cloak of -anonymity, are just worthless drones, in the truest sense of the term, -and are utterly useless for the purpose of our national reconstruction. - -In the beginning of 1920 I put forward the idea of holding our first -mass meeting. On this proposal there were differences of opinion amongst -us. Some leading members of our party thought that the time was not ripe -for such a meeting and that the result might be detrimental. The Press -of the Left had begun to take notice of us and we were lucky enough in -being able gradually to arouse their wrath. We had begun to appear at -other meetings and to ask questions or contradict the speakers, with the -natural result that we were shouted down forthwith. But still we thereby -gained some of our ends. People began to know of our existence and the -better they understood us, the stronger became their aversion and their -enmity. Therefore we might expect that a large contingent of our friends -from the Red Camp would attend our first mass meeting. - -I fully realized that our meeting would probably be broken up. But we -had to face the fight; if not now, then some months later. Since the -first day of our foundation we were resolved to secure the future of the -movement by fighting our way forward in a spirit of blind faith and -ruthless determination. I was well acquainted with the mentality of all -those who belonged to the Red Camp, and I knew quite well that if we -opposed them tooth and nail not only would we make an impression on them -but that we even might win new followers for ourselves. Therefore I felt -that we must decide on a policy of active opposition. - -Herr Harrer was then chairman of our party. He did not see eye to eye -with me as to the opportune time for our first mass meeting. Accordingly -he felt himself obliged to resign from the leadership of the movement, -as an upright and honest man. Herr Anton Drexler took his place. I kept -the work of organizing the propaganda in my own hands and I listened to -no compromise in carrying it out. - -We decided on February 24th 1920 as the date for the first great popular -meeting to be held under the aegis of this movement which was hitherto -unknown. - -I made all the preparatory arrangements personally. They did not take -very long. The whole apparatus of our organization was set in motion for -the purpose of being able to secure a rapid decision as to our policy. -Within twenty-four hours we had to decide on the attitude we should take -in regard to the questions of the day which would be put forward at the -mass meeting. The notices which advertised the meeting had to bring -these points before the public. In this direction we were forced to -depend on the use of posters and leaflets, the contents of which and the -manner in which they were displayed were decided upon in accordance with -the principles which I have already laid down in dealing with propaganda -in general. They were produced in a form which would appeal to the -crowd. They concentrated on a few points which were repeated again and -again. The text was concise and definite, an absolutely dogmatic form of -expression being used. We distributed these posters and leaflets with a -dogged energy and then we patiently waited for the effect they would -produce. - -For our principal colour we chose red, as it has an exciting effect on -the eye and was therefore calculated to arouse the attention of our -opponents and irritate them. Thus they would have to take notice of -us--whether they liked it or not--and would not forget us. - -One result of our tactics was to show up clearly the close political -fraternization that existed also here in Bavaria between the Marxists -and the Centre Party. The political party that held power in Bavaria, -which was the Bavarian People's Party (affiliated with the Centre Party) -did its best to counteract the effect which our placards were having on -the 'Red' masses. Thus they made a definite step to fetter our -activities. If the police could find no other grounds for prohibiting -our placards, then they might claim that we were disturbing the traffic -in the streets. And thus the so-called German National People's Party -calmed the anxieties of their 'Red' allies by completely prohibiting -those placards which proclaimed a message that was bringing back to the -bosom of their own people hundreds of thousands of workers who had been -misled by international agitators and incensed against their own nation. -These placards bear witness to the bitterness of the struggle in which -the young movement was then engaged. Future generations will find in -these placards a documentary proof of our determination and the justice -of our own cause. And these placards will also prove how the so-called -national officials took arbitrary action to strangle a movement that did -not please them, because it was nationalizing the broad masses of the -people and winning them back to their own racial stock. - -These placards will also help to refute the theory that there was then a -national government in Bavaria and they will afford documentary -confirmation of the fact that if Bavaria remained nationally-minded -during the years 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922 and 1923, this was not due to a -national government but it was because the national spirit gradually -gained a deeper hold on the people and the Government was forced to -follow public feeling. The Government authorities themselves did -everything in their power to hamper this process of recovery and make it -impossible. But in this connection two officials must be mentioned as -outstanding exceptions. - -Ernst P�hner was Chief of Police at the time. He had a loyal counsellor -in Dr. Frick, who was his chief executive official. These were the only -men among the higher officials who had the courage to place the -interests of their country before their own interests in holding on to -their jobs. Of those in responsible positions Ernst P�hner was the only -one who did not pay court to the mob but felt that his duty was towards -the nation as such and was ready to risk and sacrifice everything, even -his personal livelihood, to help in the restoration of the German -people, whom he dearly loved. For that reason he was a bitter thorn in -the side of the venal group of Government officials. It was not the -interests of the nation or the necessity of a national revival that -inspired or directed their conduct. They simply truckled to the wishes -of the Government, so as to secure their daily bread for themselves, but -they had no thought whatsoever for the national welfare that had been -entrusted to their care. - -Above all, P�hner was one of those people who, in contradistinction to -the majority of our so-called defenders of the authority of the State, -did not fear to incur the enmity of the traitors to the country and the -nation but rather courted it as a mark of honour and honesty. For such -men the hatred of the Jews and Marxists and the lies and calumnies they -spread, were their only source of happiness in the midst of the national -misery. P�hner was a man of granite loyalty. He was like one of the -ascetic characters of the classical era and was at the same time that -kind of straightforward German for whom the saying 'Better dead than a -slave' is not an empty phrase but a veritable heart's cry. - -In my opinion he and his collaborator, Dr. Frick, are the only men -holding positions then in Bavaria who have the right to be considered as -having taken active part in the creation of a national Bavaria. - -Before holding our first great mass meeting it was necessary not only to -have our propaganda material ready but also to have the main items of -our programme printed. - -In the second volume of this book I shall give a detailed account of the -guiding principles which we then followed in drawing up our programme. -Here I will only say that the programme was arranged not merely to set -forth the form and content of the young movement but also with an eye to -making it understood among the broad masses. The so-called intellectual -circles made jokes and sneered at it and then tried to criticize it. But -the effect of our programme proved that the ideas which we then held -were right. - -During those years I saw dozens of new movements arise and disappear -without leaving a trace behind. Only one movement has survived. It is -the National Socialist German Labour Party. To-day I am more convinced -than ever before that, though they may combat us and try to paralyse our -movement, and though pettifogging party ministers may forbid us the -right of free speech, they cannot prevent the triumph of our ideas. When -the present system of statal administration and even the names of the -political parties that represent it will be forgotten, the programmatic -basis of the National Socialist movement will supply the groundwork on -which the future State will be built. - -The meetings which we held before January 1920 had enabled us to collect -the financial means that were necessary to have our first pamphlets and -posters and programmes printed. - -I shall bring the first part of this book to a close by referring to our -first great mass meeting, because that meeting marked the occasion on -which our framework as a small party had to be broken up and we started -to become the most powerful factor of this epoch in the influence we -exercised on public opinion. At that time my chief anxiety was that we -might not fill the hall and that we might have to face empty benches. I -myself was firmly convinced that if only the people would come this day -would turn out a great success for the young movement. That was my -feeling as I waited impatiently for the hour to come. - -It had been announced that the meeting would begin at 7.30. A -quarter-of-an-hour before the opening time I walked through the chief -hall of the Hofbr�uhaus on the PLATZ in Munich and my heart was nearly -bursting with joy. The great hall--for at that time it seemed very big -to me--was filled to overflowing. Nearly 2,000 people were present. And, -above all, those people had come whom we had always wished to reach. -More than half the audience consisted of persons who seemed to be -communists or independents. Our first great demonstration was destined, -in their view, to come to an abrupt end. - -But things happened otherwise. When the first speaker had finished I got -up to speak. After a few minutes I was met with a hailstorm of -interruptions and violent encounters broke out in the body of the hall. -A handful of my loyal war comrades and some other followers grappled -with the disturbers and restored order in a little while. I was able to -continue my speech. After half an hour the applause began to drown the -interruptions and the hootings. Then interruptions gradually ceased and -applause took their place. When I finally came to explain the -twenty-five points and laid them, point after point, before the masses -gathered there and asked them to pass their own judgment on each point, -one point after another was accepted with increasing enthusiasm. When -the last point was reached I had before me a hall full of people united -by a new conviction, a new faith and a new will. - -Nearly four hours had passed when the hall began to clear. As the masses -streamed towards the exits, crammed shoulder to shoulder, shoving and -pushing, I knew that a movement was now set afoot among the German -people which would never pass into oblivion. - -A fire was enkindled from whose glowing heat the sword would be -fashioned which would restore freedom to the German Siegfried and bring -back life to the German nation. - -Beside the revival which I then foresaw, I also felt that the Goddess of -Vengeance was now getting ready to redress the treason of the 9th of -November, 1918. The hall was emptied. The movement was on the march. - - - - - -VOLUME II: THE NATIONAL SOCIALIST MOVEMENT - - - - -CHAPTER I - - - -WELTANSCHAUUNG AND PARTY - - -On February 24th, 1920, the first great mass meeting under the auspices -of the new movement took place. In the Banquet Hall of the Hofbr�uhaus -in Munich the twenty-five theses which constituted the programme of our -new party were expounded to an audience of nearly two thousand people -and each thesis was enthusiastically received. - -Thus we brought to the knowledge of the public those first principles -and lines of action along which the new struggle was to be conducted for -the abolition of a confused mass of obsolete ideas and opinions which -had obscure and often pernicious tendencies. A new force was to make its -appearance among the timid and feckless bourgeoisie. This force was -destined to impede the triumphant advance of the Marxists and bring the -Chariot of Fate to a standstill just as it seemed about to reach its -goal. - -It was evident that this new movement could gain the public significance -and support which are necessary pre-requisites in such a gigantic -struggle only if it succeeded from the very outset in awakening a -sacrosanct conviction in the hearts of its followers, that here it was -not a case of introducing a new electoral slogan into the political -field but that an entirely new WELTANSCHAUUNG, which was of a radical -significance, had to be promoted. - -One must try to recall the miserable jumble of opinions that used to be -arrayed side by side to form the usual Party Programme, as it was -called, and one must remember how these opinions used to be brushed up -or dressed in a new form from time to time. If we would properly -understand these programmatic monstrosities we must carefully -investigate the motives which inspired the average bourgeois 'programme -committee'. - -Those people are always influenced by one and the same preoccupation -when they introduce something new into their programme or modify -something already contained in it. That preoccupation is directed -towards the results of the next election. The moment these artists in -parliamentary government have the first glimmering of a suspicion that -their darling public may be ready to kick up its heels and escape from -the harness of the old party wagon they begin to paint the shafts with -new colours. On such occasions the party astrologists and horoscope -readers, the so-called 'experienced men' and 'experts', come forward. -For the most part they are old parliamentary hands whose political -schooling has furnished them with ample experience. They can remember -former occasions when the masses showed signs of losing patience and -they now diagnose the menace of a similar situation arising. Resorting -to their old prescription, they form a 'committee'. They go around among -the darling public and listen to what is being said. They dip their -noses into the newspapers and gradually begin to scent what it is that -their darlings, the broad masses, are wishing for, what they reject and -what they are hoping for. The groups that belong to each trade or -business, and even office employees, are carefully studied and their -innermost desires are investigated. The 'malicious slogans' of the -opposition from which danger is threatened are now suddenly looked upon -as worthy of reconsideration, and it often happens that these slogans, -to the great astonishment of those who originally coined and circulated -them, now appear to be quite harmless and indeed are to be found among -the dogmas of the old parties. - -So the committees meet to revise the old programme and draw up a new -one. - -For these people change their convictions just as the soldier changes -his shirt in war--when the old one is bug-eaten. In the new programme -everyone gets everything he wants. The farmer is assured that the -interests of agriculture will be safeguarded. The industrialist is -assured of protection for his products. The consumer is assured that his -interests will be protected in the market prices. Teachers are given -higher salaries and civil servants will have better pensions. Widows and -orphans will receive generous assistance from the State. Trade will be -promoted. The tariff will be lowered and even the taxes, though they -cannot be entirely abolished, will be almost abolished. It sometimes -happens that one section of the public is forgotten or that one of the -demands mooted among the public has not reached the ears of the party. -This is also hurriedly patched on to the whole, should there be any -space available for it: until finally it is felt that there are good -grounds for hoping that the whole normal host of philistines, including -their wives, will have their anxieties laid to rest and will beam with -satisfaction once again. And so, internally armed with faith in the -goodness of God and the impenetrable stupidity of the electorate, the -struggle for what is called 'the reconstruction of the REICH' can now -begin. - -When the election day is over and the parliamentarians have held their -last public meeting for the next five years, when they can leave their -job of getting the populace to toe the line and can now devote -themselves to higher and more pleasing tasks--then the programme -committee is dissolved and the struggle for the progressive -reorganization of public affairs becomes once again a business of -earning one's daily bread, which for the parliamentarians means merely -the attendance that is required in order to be able to draw their daily -remunerations. Morning after morning the honourable deputy wends his way -to the House, and though he may not enter the Chamber itself he gets at -least as far as the front hall, where he will find the register on which -the names of the deputies in attendance have to be inscribed. As a part -of his onerous service to his constituents he enters his name, and in -return receives a small indemnity as a well-earned reward for his -unceasing and exhausting labours. - -When four years have passed, or in the meantime if there should be some -critical weeks during which the parliamentary corporations have to face -the danger of being dissolved, these honourable gentlemen become -suddenly seized by an irresistible desire to act. Just as the grub-worm -cannot help growing into a cock-chafer, these parliamentarian worms -leave the great House of Puppets and flutter on new wings out among the -beloved public. They address the electors once again, give an account of -the enormous labours they have accomplished and emphasize the malicious -obstinacy of their opponents. They do not always meet with grateful -applause; for occasionally the unintelligent masses throw rude and -unfriendly remarks in their faces. When this spirit of public -ingratitude reaches a certain pitch there is only one way of saving the -situation. The prestige of the party must be burnished up again. The -programme has to be amended. The committee is called into existence once -again. And the swindle begins anew. Once we understand the impenetrable -stupidity of our public we cannot be surprised that such tactics turn -out successful. Led by the Press and blinded once again by the alluring -appearance of the new programme, the bourgeois as well as the -proletarian herds of voters faithfully return to the common stall and -re-elect their old deceivers. The 'people's man' and labour candidate -now change back again into the parliamentarian grub and become fat and -rotund as they batten on the leaves that grow on the tree of public -life--to be retransformed into the glittering butterfly after another -four years have passed. - -Scarcely anything else can be so depressing as to watch this process in -sober reality and to be the eyewitness of this repeatedly recurring -fraud. On a spiritual training ground of that kind it is not possible -for the bourgeois forces to develop the strength which is necessary to -carry on the fight against the organized might of Marxism. Indeed they -have never seriously thought of doing so. Though these parliamentary -quacks who represent the white race are generally recognized as persons -of quite inferior mental capacity, they are shrewd enough to know that -they could not seriously entertain the hope of being able to use the -weapon of Western Democracy to fight a doctrine for the advance of which -Western Democracy, with all its accessories, is employed as a means to -an end. Democracy is exploited by the Marxists for the purpose of -paralysing their opponents and gaining for themselves a free hand to put -their own methods into action. When certain groups of Marxists use all -their ingenuity for the time being to make it be believed that they are -inseparably attached to the principles of democracy, it may be well to -recall the fact that when critical occasions arose these same gentlemen -snapped their fingers at the principle of decision by majority vote, as -that principle is understood by Western Democracy. Such was the case in -those days when the bourgeois parliamentarians, in their monumental -shortsightedness, believed that the security of the REICH was guaranteed -because it had an overwhelming numerical majority in its favour, and the -Marxists did not hesitate suddenly to grasp supreme power in their own -hands, backed by a mob of loafers, deserters, political place-hunters -and Jewish dilettanti. That was a blow in the face for that democracy in -which so many parliamentarians believed. Only those credulous -parliamentary wizards who represented bourgeois democracy could have -believed that the brutal determination of those whose interest it is to -spread the Marxist world-pest, of which they are the carriers, could for -a moment, now or in the future, be held in check by the magical formulas -of Western Parliamentarianism. Marxism will march shoulder to shoulder -with democracy until it succeeds indirectly in securing for its own -criminal purposes even the support of those whose minds are nationally -orientated and whom Marxism strives to exterminate. But if the Marxists -should one day come to believe that there was a danger that from this -witch's cauldron of our parliamentary democracy a majority vote might be -concocted, which by reason of its numerical majority would be empowered -to enact legislation and might use that power seriously to combat -Marxism, then the whole parliamentarian hocus-pocus would be at an end. -Instead of appealing to the democratic conscience, the standard bearers -of the Red International would immediately send forth a furious -rallying-cry among the proletarian masses and the ensuing fight would -not take place in the sedate atmosphere of Parliament but in the -factories and the streets. Then democracy would be annihilated -forthwith. And what the intellectual prowess of the apostles who -represented the people in Parliament had failed to accomplish would now -be successfully carried out by the crow-bar and the sledge-hammer of the -exasperated proletarian masses--just as in the autumn of 1918. At a blow -they would awaken the bourgeois world to see the madness of thinking -that the Jewish drive towards world-conquest can be effectually opposed -by means of Western Democracy. - -As I have said, only a very credulous soul could think of binding -himself to observe the rules of the game when he has to face a player -for whom those rules are nothing but a mere bluff or a means of serving -his own interests, which means he will discard them when they prove no -longer useful for his purpose. - -All the parties that profess so-called bourgeois principles look upon -political life as in reality a struggle for seats in Parliament. The -moment their principles and convictions are of no further use in that -struggle they are thrown overboard, as if they were sand ballast. And -the programmes are constructed in such a way that they can be dealt with -in like manner. But such practice has a correspondingly weakening effect -on the strength of those parties. They lack the great magnetic force -which alone attracts the broad masses; for these masses always respond -to the compelling force which emanates from absolute faith in the ideas -put forward, combined with an indomitable zest to fight for and defend -them. - -At a time in which the one side, armed with all the fighting power that -springs from a systematic conception of life--even though it be criminal -in a thousand ways--makes an attack against the established order the -other side will be able to resist when it draws its strength from a new -faith, which in our case is a political faith. This faith must supersede -the weak and cowardly command to defend. In its stead we must raise the -battle-cry of a courageous and ruthless attack. Our present movement is -accused, especially by the so-called national bourgeois cabinet -ministers--the Bavarian representatives of the Centre, for example--of -heading towards a revolution. We have one answer to give to those -political pigmies. We say to them: We are trying to make up for that -which you, in your criminal stupidity, have failed to carry out. By your -parliamentarian jobbing you have helped to drag the nation into ruin. -But we, by our aggressive policy, are setting up a new WELTANSCHAUUNG -which we shall defend with indomitable devotion. Thus we are building -the steps on which our nation once again may ascend to the temple of -freedom. - -And so during the first stages of founding our movement we had to take -special care that our militant group which fought for the establishment -of a new and exalted political faith should not degenerate into a -society for the promotion of parliamentarian interests. - -The first preventive measure was to lay down a programme which of itself -would tend towards developing a certain moral greatness that would scare -away all the petty and weakling spirits who make up the bulk of our -present party politicians. - -Those fatal defects which finally led to Germany's downfall afford the -clearest proof of how right we were in considering it absolutely -necessary to set up programmatic aims which were sharply and distinctly -defined. - -Because we recognized the defects above mentioned, we realized that a -new conception of the State had to be formed, which in itself became a -part of our new conception of life in general. - -In the first volume of this book I have already dealt with the term -V�LKISCH, and I said then that this term has not a sufficiently precise -meaning to furnish the kernel around which a closely consolidated -militant community could be formed. All kinds of people, with all kinds -of divergent opinions, are parading about at the present moment under -the device V�LKISCH on their banners. Before I come to deal with the -purposes and aims of the National Socialist Labour Party I want to -establish a clear understanding of what is meant by the concept V�LKISCH -and herewith explain its relation to our party movement. The word -V�LKISCH does not express any clearly specified idea. It may be -interpreted in several ways and in practical application it is just as -general as the word 'religious', for instance. It is difficult to attach -any precise meaning to this latter word, either as a theoretical concept -or as a guiding principle in practical life. The word 'religious' -acquires a precise meaning only when it is associated with a distinct -and definite form through which the concept is put into practice. To say -that a person is 'deeply religious' may be very fine phraseology; but, -generally speaking, it tells us little or nothing. There may be some few -people who are content with such a vague description and there may even -be some to whom the word conveys a more or less definite picture of the -inner quality of a person thus described. But, since the masses of the -people are not composed of philosophers or saints, such a vague -religious idea will mean for them nothing else than to justify each -individual in thinking and acting according to his own bent. It will not -lead to that practical faith into which the inner religious yearning is -transformed only when it leaves the sphere of general metaphysical ideas -and is moulded to a definite dogmatic belief. Such a belief is certainly -not an end in itself, but the means to an end. Yet it is a means without -which the end could never be reached at all. This end, however, is not -merely something ideal; for at the bottom it is eminently practical. We -must always bear in mind the fact that, generally speaking, the highest -ideals are always the outcome of some profound vital need, just as the -most sublime beauty owes its nobility of shape, in the last analysis, to -the fact that the most beautiful form is the form that is best suited to -the purpose it is meant to serve. - -By helping to lift the human being above the level of mere animal -existence, Faith really contributes to consolidate and safeguard its own -existence. Taking humanity as it exists to-day and taking into -consideration the fact that the religious beliefs which it generally -holds and which have been consolidated through our education, so that -they serve as moral standards in practical life, if we should now -abolish religious teaching and not replace it by anything of equal value -the result would be that the foundations of human existence would be -seriously shaken. We may safely say that man does not live merely to -serve higher ideals, but that these ideals, in their turn, furnish the -necessary conditions of his existence as a human being. And thus the -circle is closed. - -Of course, the word 'religious' implies some ideas and beliefs that are -fundamental. Among these we may reckon the belief in the immortality of -the soul, its future existence in eternity, the belief in the existence -of a Higher Being, and so on. But all these ideas, no matter how firmly -the individual believes in them, may be critically analysed by any -person and accepted or rejected accordingly, until the emotional concept -or yearning has been transformed into an active service that is governed -by a clearly defined doctrinal faith. Such a faith furnishes the -practical outlet for religious feeling to express itself and thus opens -the way through which it can be put into practice. - -Without a clearly defined belief, the religious feeling would not only -be worthless for the purposes of human existence but even might -contribute towards a general disorganization, on account of its vague -and multifarious tendencies. - -What I have said about the word 'religious' can also be applied to the -term V�LKISCH. This word also implies certain fundamental ideas. Though -these ideas are very important indeed, they assume such vague and -indefinite forms that they cannot be estimated as having a greater value -than mere opinions, until they become constituent elements in the -structure of a political party. For in order to give practical force to -the ideals that grow out of a WELTANSCHAUUNG and to answer the demands -which are a logical consequence of such ideals, mere sentiment and inner -longing are of no practical assistance, just as freedom cannot be won by -a universal yearning for it. No. Only when the idealistic longing for -independence is organized in such a way that it can fight for its ideal -with military force, only then can the urgent wish of a people be -transformed into a potent reality. - -Any WELTANSCHAUUNG, though a thousandfold right and supremely -beneficial to humanity, will be of no practical service for the -maintenance of a people as long as its principles have not yet become -the rallying point of a militant movement. And, on its own side, this -movement will remain a mere party until is has brought its ideals to -victory and transformed its party doctrines into the new foundations of -a State which gives the national community its final shape. - -If an abstract conception of a general nature is to serve as the basis -of a future development, then the first prerequisite is to form a clear -understanding of the nature and character and scope of this conception. -For only on such a basis can a movement he founded which will be able to -draw the necessary fighting strength from the internal cohesion of its -principles and convictions. From general ideas a political programme -must be constructed and a general WELTANSCHAUUNG must receive the stamp -of a definite political faith. Since this faith must be directed towards -ends that have to be attained in the world of practical reality, not -only must it serve the general ideal as such but it must also take into -consideration the means that have to be employed for the triumph of the -ideal. Here the practical wisdom of the statesman must come to the -assistance of the abstract idea, which is correct in itself. In that way -an eternal ideal, which has everlasting significance as a guiding star -to mankind, must be adapted to the exigencies of human frailty so that -its practical effect may not be frustrated at the very outset through -those shortcomings which are general to mankind. The exponent of truth -must here go hand in hand with him who has a practical knowledge of the -soul of the people, so that from the realm of eternal verities and -ideals what is suited to the capacities of human nature may be selected -and given practical form. To take abstract and general principles, -derived from a WELTANSCHAUUNG which is based on a solid foundation of -truth, and transform them into a militant community whose members have -the same political faith--a community which is precisely defined, -rigidly organized, of one mind and one will--such a transformation is -the most important task of all; for the possibility of successfully -carrying out the idea is dependent on the successful fulfilment of that -task. Out of the army of millions who feel the truth of these ideas, and -even may understand them to some extent, one man must arise. This man -must have the gift of being able to expound general ideas in a clear and -definite form, and, from the world of vague ideas shimmering before the -minds of the masses, he must formulate principles that will be as -clear-cut and firm as granite. He must fight for these principles as the -only true ones, until a solid rock of common faith and common will -emerges above the troubled waves of vagrant ideas. The general -justification of such action is to be sought in the necessity for it and -the individual will be justified by his success. - -If we try to penetrate to the inner meaning of the word V�LKISCH we -arrive at the following conclusions: - -The current political conception of the world is that the State, though -it possesses a creative force which can build up civilizations, has -nothing in common with the concept of race as the foundation of the -State. The State is considered rather as something which has resulted -from economic necessity, or, at best, the natural outcome of the play of -political forces and impulses. Such a conception of the foundations of -the State, together with all its logical consequences, not only ignores -the primordial racial forces that underlie the State, but it also leads -to a policy in which the importance of the individual is minimized. If -it be denied that races differ from one another in their powers of -cultural creativeness, then this same erroneous notion must necessarily -influence our estimation of the value of the individual. The assumption -that all races are alike leads to the assumption that nations and -individuals are equal to one another. And international Marxism is -nothing but the application--effected by the Jew, Karl Marx--of a -general conception of life to a definite profession of political faith; -but in reality that general concept had existed long before the time of -Karl Marx. If it had not already existed as a widely diffused infection -the amazing political progress of the Marxist teaching would never have -been possible. In reality what distinguished Karl Marx from the millions -who were affected in the same way was that, in a world already in a -state of gradual decomposition, he used his keen powers of prognosis to -detect the essential poisons, so as to extract them and concentrate -them, with the art of a necromancer, in a solution which would bring -about the rapid destruction of the independent nations on the globe. But -all this was done in the service of his race. - -Thus the Marxist doctrine is the concentrated extract of the mentality -which underlies the general concept of life to-day. For this reason -alone it is out of the question and even ridiculous to think that what -is called our bourgeois world can put up any effective fight against -Marxism. For this bourgeois world is permeated with all those same -poisons and its conception of life in general differs from Marxism only -in degree and in the character of the persons who hold it. The bourgeois -world is Marxist but believes in the possibility of a certain group of -people--that is to say, the bourgeoisie--being able to dominate the -world, while Marxism itself systematically aims at delivering the world -into the hands of the Jews. - -Over against all this, the V�LKISCH concept of the world recognizes that -the primordial racial elements are of the greatest significance for -mankind. In principle, the State is looked upon only as a means to an -end and this end is the conservation of the racial characteristics of -mankind. Therefore on the V�LKISCH principle we cannot admit that one -race is equal to another. By recognizing that they are different, the -V�LKISCH concept separates mankind into races of superior and inferior -quality. On the basis of this recognition it feels bound in conformity -with the eternal Will that dominates the universe, to postulate the -victory of the better and stronger and the subordination of the inferior -and weaker. And so it pays homage to the truth that the principle -underlying all Nature's operations is the aristocratic principle and it -believes that this law holds good even down to the last individual -organism. It selects individual values from the mass and thus operates -as an organizing principle, whereas Marxism acts as a disintegrating -solvent. The V�LKISCH belief holds that humanity must have its ideals, -because ideals are a necessary condition of human existence itself. But, -on the other hand, it denies that an ethical ideal has the right to -prevail if it endangers the existence of a race that is the -standard-bearer of a higher ethical ideal. For in a world which would be -composed of mongrels and negroids all ideals of human beauty and -nobility and all hopes of an idealized future for our humanity would be -lost forever. - -On this planet of ours human culture and civilization are indissolubly -bound up with the presence of the Aryan. If he should be exterminated or -subjugated, then the dark shroud of a new barbarian era would enfold the -earth. - -To undermine the existence of human culture by exterminating its -founders and custodians would be an execrable crime in the eyes of those -who believe that the folk-idea lies at the basis of human existence. -Whoever would dare to raise a profane hand against that highest image of -God among His creatures would sin against the bountiful Creator of this -marvel and would collaborate in the expulsion from Paradise. - -Hence the folk concept of the world is in profound accord with Nature's -will; because it restores the free play of the forces which will lead -the race through stages of sustained reciprocal education towards a -higher type, until finally the best portion of mankind will possess the -earth and will be free to work in every domain all over the world and -even reach spheres that lie outside the earth. - -We all feel that in the distant future many may be faced with problems -which can be solved only by a superior race of human beings, a race -destined to become master of all the other peoples and which will have -at its disposal the means and resources of the whole world. - -It is evident that such a general sketch of the ideas implied in the -folk concept of the world may easily be interpreted in a thousand -different ways. As a matter of fact there is scarcely one of our recent -political movements that does not refer at some point to this conception -of the world. But the fact that this conception of the world still -maintains its independent existence in face of all the others proves -that their ways of looking at life are quite difierent from this. Thus -the Marxist conception, directed by a central organization endowed with -supreme authority, is opposed by a motley crew of opinions which is not -very impressive in face of the solid phalanx presented by the enemy. -Victory cannot be achieved with such weak weapons. Only when the -international idea, politically organized by Marxism, is confronted by -the folk idea, equally well organized in a systematic way and equally -well led--only then will the fighting energy in the one camp be able to -meet that of the other on an equal footing; and victory will be found on -the side of eternal truth. - -But a general conception of life can never be given an organic -embodiment until it is precisely and definitely formulated. The function -which dogma fulfils in religious belief is parallel to the function -which party principles fulfil for a political party which is in the -process of being built up. Therefore, for the conception of life that is -based on the folk idea it is necessary that an instrument be forged -which can be used in fighting for this ideal, similar to the Marxist -party organization which clears the way for internationalism. - -And this is the aim which the German National Socialist Labour Movement -pursues. - -The folk conception must therefore be definitely formulated so that it -may be organically incorporated in the party. That is a necessary -prerequisite for the success of this idea. And that it is so is very -clearly proved even by the indirect acknowledgment of those who oppose -such an amalgamation of the folk idea with party principles. The very -people who never tire of insisting again and again that the conception -of life based on the folk idea can never be the exclusive property of a -single group, because it lies dormant or 'lives' in myriads of hearts, -only confirm by their own statements the simple fact that the general -presence of such ideas in the hearts of millions of men has not proved -sufficient to impede the victory of the opposing ideas, which are -championed by a political party organized on the principle of class -conflict. If that were not so, the German people ought already to have -gained a gigantic victory instead of finding themselves on the brink of -the abyss. The international ideology achieved success because it was -organized in a militant political party which was always ready to take -the offensive. If hitherto the ideas opposed to the international -concept have had to give way before the latter the reason is that they -lacked a united front to fight for their cause. A doctrine which forms a -definite outlook on life cannot struggle and triumph by allowing the -right of free interpretation of its general teaching, but only by -defining that teaching in certain articles of faith that have to be -accepted and incorporating it in a political organization. - -Therefore I considered it my special duty to extract from the extensive -but vague contents of a general WELTANSCHAUUNG the ideas which were -essential and give them a more or less dogmatic form. Because of their -precise and clear meaning, these ideas are suited to the purpose of -uniting in a common front all those who are ready to accept them as -principles. In other words: The German National Socialist Labour Party -extracts the essential principles from the general conception of the -world which is based on the folk idea. On these principles it -establishes a political doctrine which takes into account the practical -realities of the day, the nature of the times, the available human -material and all its deficiencies. Through this political doctrine it is -possible to bring great masses of the people into an organization which -is constructed as rigidly as it could be. Such an organization is the -main preliminary that is necessary for the final triumph of this ideal. - - - - -CHAPTER II - - - -THE STATE - - -Already in 1920-1921 certain circles belonging to the effete bourgeois -class accused our movement again and again of taking up a negative -attitude towards the modern State. For that reason the motley gang of -camp followers attached to the various political parties, representing a -heterogeneous conglomeration of political views, assumed the right of -utilizing all available means to suppress the protagonists of this young -movement which was preaching a new political gospel. Our opponents -deliberately ignored the fact that the bourgeois class itself stood for -no uniform opinion as to what the State really meant and that the -bourgeoisie did not and could not give any coherent definition of this -institution. Those whose duty it is to explain what is meant when we -speak of the State, hold chairs in State universities, often in the -department of constitutional law, and consider it their highest duty to -find explanations and justifications for the more or less fortunate -existence of that particular form of State which provides them with -their daily bread. The more absurd such a form of State is the more -obscure and artificial and incomprehensible are the definitions which -are advanced to explain the purpose of its existence. What, for -instance, could a royal and imperial university professor write about -the meaning and purpose of a State in a country whose statal form -represented the greatest monstrosity of the twentieth century? That -would be a difficult undertaking indeed, in view of the fact that the -contemporary professor of constitutional law is obliged not so much to -serve the cause of truth but rather to serve a certain definite purpose. -And this purpose is to defend at all costs the existence of that -monstrous human mechanism which we now call the State. Nobody can be -surprised if concrete facts are evaded as far as possible when the -problem of the State is under discussion and if professors adopt the -tactics of concealing themselves in morass of abstract values and duties -and purposes which are described as 'ethical' and 'moral'. - -Generally speaking, these various theorists may be classed in three -groups: - -1. Those who hold that the State is a more or less voluntary association -of men who have agreed to set up and obey a ruling authority. - -This is numerically the largest group. In its ranks are to be found -those who worship our present principle of legalized authority. In their -eyes the will of the people has no part whatever in the whole affair. -For them the fact that the State exists is sufficient reason to consider -it sacred and inviolable. To accept this aberration of the human brain -one would have to have a sort of canine adoration for what is called the -authority of the State. In the minds of these people the means is -substituted for the end, by a sort of sleight-of-hand movement. The -State no longer exists for the purpose of serving men but men exist for -the purpose of adoring the authority of the State, which is vested in -its functionaries, even down to the smallest official. So as to prevent -this placid and ecstatic adoration from changing into something that -might become in any way disturbing, the authority of the State is -limited simply to the task of preserving order and tranquillity. -Therewith it is no longer either a means or an end. The State must see -that public peace and order are preserved and, in their turn, order and -peace must make the existence of the State possible. All life must move -between these two poles. In Bavaria this view is upheld by the artful -politicians of the Bavarian Centre, which is called the 'Bavarian -Populist Party'. In Austria the Black-and-Yellow legitimists adopt a -similar attitude. In the REICH, unfortunately, the so-called -conservative elements follow the same line of thought. - -2. The second group is somewhat smaller in numbers. It includes those -who would make the existence of the State dependent on some conditions -at least. They insist that not only should there be a uniform system of -government but also, if possible, that only one language should be used, -though solely for technical reasons of administration. In this view the -authority of the State is no longer the sole and exclusive end for which -the State exists. It must also promote the good of its subjects. Ideas -of 'freedom', mostly based on a misunderstanding of the meaning of that -word, enter into the concept of the State as it exists in the minds of -this group. The form of government is no longer considered inviolable -simply because it exists. It must submit to the test of practical -efficiency. Its venerable age no longer protects it from being -criticized in the light of modern exigencies. Moreover, in this view the -first duty laid upon the State is to guarantee the economic well-being -of the individual citizens. Hence it is judged from the practical -standpoint and according to general principles based on the idea of -economic returns. The chief representatives of this theory of the State -are to be found among the average German bourgeoisie, especially our -liberal democrats. - -3. The third group is numerically the smallest. In the State they -discover a means for the realization of tendencies that arise from a -policy of power, on the part of a people who are ethnically homogeneous -and speak the same language. But those who hold this view are not clear -about what they mean by 'tendencies arising from a policy of power'. A -common language is postulated not only because they hope that thereby -the State would be furnished with a solid basis for the extension of its -power outside its own frontiers, but also because they think--though -falling into a fundamental error by doing so--that such a common -language would enable them to carry out a process of nationalization in -a definite direction. - -During the last century it was lamentable for those who had to witness -it, to notice how in these circles I have just mentioned the word -'Germanization' was frivolously played with, though the practice was -often well intended. I well remember how in the days of my youth this -very term used to give rise to notions which were false to an incredible -degree. Even in Pan-German circles one heard the opinion expressed that -the Austrian Germans might very well succeed in Germanizing the Austrian -Slavs, if only the Government would be ready to co-operate. Those people -did not understand that a policy of Germanization can be carried out -only as regards human beings. What they mostly meant by Germanization -was a process of forcing other people to speak the German language. But -it is almost inconceivable how such a mistake could be made as to think -that a Nigger or a Chinaman will become a German because he has learned -the German language and is willing to speak German for the future, and -even to cast his vote for a German political party. Our bourgeois -nationalists could never clearly see that such a process of -Germanization is in reality de-Germanization; for even if all the -outstanding and visible differences between the various peoples could be -bridged over and finally wiped out by the use of a common language, that -would produce a process of bastardization which in this case would not -signify Germanization but the annihilation of the German element. In the -course of history it has happened only too often that a conquering race -succeeded by external force in compelling the people whom they subjected -to speak the tongue of the conqueror and that after a thousand years -their language was spoken by another people and that thus the conqueror -finally turned out to be the conquered. - -What makes a people or, to be more correct, a race, is not language but -blood. Therefore it would be justifiable to speak of Germanization only -if that process could change the blood of the people who would be -subjected to it, which is obviously impossible. A change would be -possible only by a mixture of blood, but in this case the quality of the -superior race would be debased. The final result of such a mixture would -be that precisely those qualities would be destroyed which had enabled -the conquering race to achieve victory over an inferior people. It is -especially the cultural creativeness which disappears when a superior -race intermixes with an inferior one, even though the resultant mongrel -race should excel a thousandfold in speaking the language of the race -that once had been superior. For a certain time there will be a conflict -between the different mentalities, and it may be that a nation which is -in a state of progressive degeneration will at the last moment rally its -cultural creative power and once again produce striking examples of that -power. But these results are due only to the activity of elements that -have remained over from the superior race or hybrids of the first -crossing in whom the superior blood has remained dominant and seeks to -assert itself. But this will never happen with the final descendants of -such hybrids. These are always in a state of cultural retrogression. - -We must consider it as fortunate that a Germanization of Austria -according to the plan of Joseph II did not succeed. Probably the result -would have been that the Austrian State would have been able to survive, -but at the same time participation in the use of a common language would -have debased the racial quality of the German element. In the course of -centuries a certain herd instinct might have been developed but the herd -itself would have deteriorated in quality. A national State might have -arisen, but a people who had been culturally creative would have -disappeared. - -For the German nation it was better that this process of intermixture -did not take place, although it was not renounced for any high-minded -reasons but simply through the short-sighted pettiness of the Habsburgs. -If it had taken place the German people could not now be looked upon as -a cultural factor. - -Not only in Austria, however, but also in the REICH, these so-called -national circles were, and still are, under the influence of similar -erroneous ideas. Unfortunately, a policy towards Poland, whereby the -East was to be Germanized, was demanded by many and was based on the -same false reasoning. Here again it was believed that the Polish people -could be Germanized by being compelled to use the German language. The -result would have been fatal. A people of foreign race would have had to -use the German language to express modes of thought that were foreign to -the German, thus compromising by its own inferiority the dignity and -nobility of our nation. - -It is revolting to think how much damage is indirectly done to German -prestige to-day through the fact that the German patois of the Jews when -they enter the United States enables them to be classed as Germans, -because many Americans are quite ignorant of German conditions. Among -us, nobody would think of taking these unhygienic immigrants from the -East for members of the German race and nation merely because they -mostly speak German. - -What has been beneficially Germanized in the course of history was the -land which our ancestors conquered with the sword and colonized with -German tillers of the soil. To the extent that they introduced foreign -blood into our national body in this colonization, they have helped to -disintegrate our racial character, a process which has resulted in our -German hyper-individualism, though this latter characteristic is even -now frequently praised. - -In this third group also there are people who, to a certain degree, -consider the State as an end in itself. Hence they consider its -preservation as one of the highest aims of human existence. Our analysis -may be summed up as follows: - -All these opinions have this common feature and failing: that they are -not grounded in a recognition of the profound truth that the capacity -for creating cultural values is essentially based on the racial element -and that, in accordance with this fact, the paramount purpose of the -State is to preserve and improve the race; for this is an indispensable -condition of all progress in human civilization. - -Thus the Jew, Karl Marx, was able to draw the final conclusions from -these false concepts and ideas on the nature and purpose of the State. -By eliminating from the concept of the State all thought of the -obligation which the State bears towards the race, without finding any -other formula that might be universally accepted, the bourgeois teaching -prepared the way for that doctrine which rejects the State as such. - -That is why the bourgeois struggle against Marxist internationalism is -absolutely doomed to fail in this field. The bourgeois classes have -already sacrificed the basic principles which alone could furnish a -solid footing for their ideas. Their crafty opponent has perceived the -defects in their structure and advances to the assault on it with those -weapons which they themselves have placed in his hands though not -meaning to do so. - -Therefore any new movement which is based on the racial concept of the -world will first of all have to put forward a clear and logical doctrine -of the nature and purpose of the State. - -The fundamental principle is that the State is not an end in itself but -the means to an end. It is the preliminary condition under which alone a -higher form of human civilization can be developed, but it is not the -source of such a development. This is to be sought exclusively in the -actual existence of a race which is endowed with the gift of cultural -creativeness. There may be hundreds of excellent States on this earth, -and yet if the Aryan, who is the creator and custodian of civilization, -should disappear, all culture that is on an adequate level with the -spiritual needs of the superior nations to-day would also disappear. We -may go still further and say that the fact that States have been created -by human beings does not in the least exclude the possiblity that the -human race may become extinct, because the superior intellectual -faculties and powers of adaptation would be lost when the racial bearer -of these faculties and powers disappeared. - -If, for instance, the surface of the globe should be shaken to-day by -some seismic convulsion and if a new Himalaya would emerge from the -waves of the sea, this one catastrophe alone might annihilate human -civilization. No State could exist any longer. All order would be -shattered. And all vestiges of cultural products which had been evolved -through thousands of years would disappear. Nothing would be left but -one tremendous field of death and destruction submerged in floods of -water and mud. If, however, just a few people would survive this -terrible havoc, and if these people belonged to a definite race that had -the innate powers to build up a civilization, when the commotion had -passed, the earth would again bear witness to the creative power of the -human spirit, even though a span of a thousand years might intervene. -Only with the extermination of the last race that possesses the gift of -cultural creativeness, and indeed only if all the individuals of that -race had disappeared, would the earth definitely be turned into a -desert. On the other hand, modern history furnishes examples to show -that statal institutions which owe their beginnings to members of a race -which lacks creative genius are not made of stuff that will endure. Just -as many varieties of prehistoric animals had to give way to others and -leave no trace behind them, so man will also have to give way, if he -loses that definite faculty which enables him to find the weapons that -are necessary for him to maintain his own existence. - -It is not the State as such that brings about a certain definite advance -in cultural progress. The State can only protect the race that is the -cause of such progress. The State as such may well exist without -undergoing any change for hundreds of years, though the cultural -faculties and the general life of the people, which is shaped by these -faculties, may have suffered profound changes by reason of the fact that -the State did not prevent a process of racial mixture from taking place. -The present State, for instance, may continue to exist in a mere -mechanical form, but the poison of miscegenation permeating the national -body brings about a cultural decadence which manifests itself already in -various symptoms that are of a detrimental character. - -Thus the indispensable prerequisite for the existence of a superior -quality of human beings is not the State but the race, which is alone -capable of producing that higher human quality. - -This capacity is always there, though it will lie dormant unless -external circumstances awaken it to action. Nations, or rather races, -which are endowed with the faculty of cultural creativeness possess this -faculty in a latent form during periods when the external circumstances -are unfavourable for the time being and therefore do not allow the -faculty to express itself effectively. It is therefore outrageously -unjust to speak of the pre-Christian Germans as barbarians who had no -civilization. They never have been such. But the severity of the climate -that prevailed in the northern regions which they inhabited imposed -conditions of life which hampered a free development of their creative -faculties. If they had come to the fairer climate of the South, with no -previous culture whatsoever, and if they acquired the necessary human -material--that is to say, men of an inferior race--to serve them as -working implements, the cultural faculty dormant in them would have -splendidly blossomed forth, as happened in the case of the Greeks, for -example. But this primordial creative faculty in cultural things was not -solely due to their northern climate. For the Laplanders or the Eskimos -would not have become creators of a culture if they were transplanted to -the South. No, this wonderful creative faculty is a special gift -bestowed on the Aryan, whether it lies dormant in him or becomes active, -according as the adverse conditions of nature prevent the active -expression of that faculty or favourable circumstances permit it. - -From these facts the following conclusions may be drawn: - -The State is only a means to an end. Its end and its purpose is to -preserve and promote a community of human beings who are physically as -well as spiritually kindred. Above all, it must preserve the existence -of the race, thereby providing the indispensable condition for the free -development of all the forces dormant in this race. A great part of -these faculties will always have to be employed in the first place to -maintain the physical existence of the race, and only a small portion -will be free to work in the field of intellectual progress. But, as a -matter of fact, the one is always the necessary counterpart of the -other. - -Those States which do not serve this purpose have no justification for -their existence. They are monstrosities. The fact that they do exist is -no more of a justification than the successful raids carried out by a -band of pirates can be considered a justification of piracy. - -We National Socialists, who are fighting for a new WELTANSCHAUUNG, must -never take our stand on the famous 'basis of facts', and especially not -on mistaken facts. If we did so, we should cease to be the protagonists -of a new and great idea and would become slaves in the service of the -fallacy which is dominant to-day. We must make a clear-cut distinction -between the vessel and its contents. The State is only the vessel and -the race is what it contains. The vessel can have a meaning only if it -preserves and safeguards the contents. Otherwise it is worthless. - -Hence the supreme purpose of the ethnical State is to guard and preserve -those racial elements which, through their work in the cultural field, -create that beauty and dignity which are characteristic of a higher -mankind. As Aryans, we can consider the State only as the living -organism of a people, an organism which does not merely maintain the -existence of a people, but functions in such a way as to lead its people -to a position of supreme liberty by the progressive development of the -intellectual and cultural faculties. - -What they want to impose upon us as a State to-day is in most cases -nothing but a monstrosity, the product of a profound human aberration -which brings untold suffering in its train. - -We National Socialists know that in holding these views we take up a -revolutionary stand in the world of to-day and that we are branded as -revolutionaries. But our views and our conduct will not be determined by -the approbation or disapprobation of our contemporaries, but only by our -duty to follow a truth which we have acknowledged. In doing this we have -reason to believe that posterity will have a clearer insight, and will -not only understand the work we are doing to-day, but will also ratify -it as the right work and will exalt it accordingly. - -On these principles we National Socialists base our standards of value -in appraising a State. This value will be relative when viewed from the -particular standpoint of the individual nation, but it will be absolute -when considered from the standpoint of humanity as a whole. In other -words, this means: - -That the excellence of a State can never be judged by the level of its -culture or the degree of importance which the outside world attaches to -its power, but that its excellence must be judged by the degree to which -its institutions serve the racial stock which belongs to it. - -A State may be considered as a model example if it adequately serves not -only the vital needs of the racial stock it represents but if it -actually assures by its own existence the preservation of this same -racial stock, no matter what general cultural significance this statal -institution may have in the eyes of the rest of the world. For it is not -the task of the State to create human capabilities, but only to assure -free scope for the exercise of capabilities that already exist. On the -other hand, a State may be called bad if, in spite of the existence of a -high cultural level, it dooms to destruction the bearers of that culture -by breaking up their racial uniformity. For the practical effect of such -a policy would be to destroy those conditions that are indispensable for -the ulterior existence of that culture, which the State did not create -but which is the fruit of the creative power inherent in the racial -stock whose existence is assured by being united in the living organism -of the State. Once again let me emphasize the fact that the State itself -is not the substance but the form. Therefore, the cultural level is not -the standard by which we can judge the value of the State in which that -people lives. It is evident that a people which is endowed with high -creative powers in the cultural sphere is of more worth than a tribe of -negroes. And yet the statal organization of the former, if judged from -the standpoint of efficiency, may be worse than that of the negroes. Not -even the best of States and statal institutions can evolve faculties -from a people which they lack and which they never possessed, but a bad -State may gradually destroy the faculties which once existed. This it -can do by allowing or favouring the suppression of those who are the -bearers of a racial culture. - -Therefore, the worth of a State can be determined only by asking how far -it actually succeeds in promoting the well-being of a definite race and -not by the role which it plays in the world at large. Its relative worth -can be estimated readily and accurately; but it is difficult to judge -its absolute worth, because the latter is conditioned not only by the -State but also by the quality and cultural level of the people that -belong to the individual State in question. - -Therefore, when we speak of the high mission of the State we must not -forget that the high mission belongs to the people and that the business -of the State is to use its organizing powers for the purpose of -furnishing the necessary conditions which allow this people freely to -unfold its creative faculties. And if we ask what kind of statal -institution we Germans need, we must first have a clear notion as to the -people which that State must embrace and what purpose it must serve. - -Unfortunately the German national being is not based on a uniform racial -type. The process of welding the original elements together has not gone -so far as to warrant us in saying that a new race has emerged. On the -contrary, the poison which has invaded the national body, especially -since the Thirty Years' War, has destroyed the uniform constitution not -only of our blood but also of our national soul. The open frontiers of -our native country, the association with non-German foreign elements in -the territories that lie all along those frontiers, and especially the -strong influx of foreign blood into the interior of the REICH itself, -has prevented any complete assimilation of those various elements, -because the influx has continued steadily. Out of this melting-pot no -new race arose. The heterogeneous elements continue to exist side by -side. And the result is that, especially in times of crisis, when the -herd usually flocks together, the Germans disperse in all directions. -The fundamental racial elements are not only different in different -districts, but there are also various elements in the single districts. -Beside the Nordic type we find the East-European type, beside the -Eastern there is the Dinaric, the Western type intermingling with both, -and hybrids among them all. That is a grave drawback for us. Through it -the Germans lack that strong herd instinct which arises from unity of -blood and saves nations from ruin in dangerous and critical times; -because on such occasions small differences disappear, so that a united -herd faces the enemy. What we understand by the word hyper-individualism -arises from the fact that our primordial racial elements have existed -side by side without ever consolidating. During times of peace such a -situation may offer some advantages, but, taken all in all, it has -prevented us from gaining a mastery in the world. If in its historical -development the German people had possessed the unity of herd instinct -by which other peoples have so much benefited, then the German REICH -would probably be mistress of the globe to-day. World history would have -taken another course and in this case no man can tell if what many -blinded pacifists hope to attain by petitioning, whining and crying, may -not have been reached in this way: namely, a peace which would not be -based upon the waving of olive branches and tearful misery-mongering of -pacifist old women, but a peace that would be guaranteed by the -triumphant sword of a people endowed with the power to master the world -and administer it in the service of a higher civilization. - -The fact that our people did not have a national being based on a unity -of blood has been the source of untold misery for us. To many petty -German potentates it gave residential capital cities, but the German -people as a whole was deprived of its right to rulership. - -Even to-day our nation still suffers from this lack of inner unity; but -what has been the cause of our past and present misfortunes may turn out -a blessing for us in the future. Though on the one hand it may be a -drawback that our racial elements were not welded together, so that no -homogeneous national body could develop, on the other hand, it was -fortunate that, since at least a part of our best blood was thus kept -pure, its racial quality was not debased. - -A complete assimilation of all our racial elements would certainly have -brought about a homogeneous national organism; but, as has been proved -in the case of every racial mixture, it would have been less capable of -creating a civilization than by keeping intact its best original -elements. A benefit which results from the fact that there was no -all-round assimilation is to be seen in that even now we have large -groups of German Nordic people within our national organization, and -that their blood has not been mixed with the blood of other races. We -must look upon this as our most valuable treasure for the sake of the -future. During that dark period of absolute ignorance in regard to all -racial laws, when each individual was considered to be on a par with -every other, there could be no clear appreciation of the difference -between the various fundamental racial characteristics. We know to-day -that a complete assimilation of all the various elements which -constitute the national being might have resulted in giving us a larger -share of external power: but, on the other hand, the highest of human -aims would not have been attained, because the only kind of people which -fate has obviously chosen to bring about this perfection would have been -lost in such a general mixture of races which would constitute such a -racial amalgamation. - -But what has been prevented by a friendly Destiny, without any -assistance on our part, must now be reconsidered and utilized in the -light of our new knowledge. - -He who talks of the German people as having a mission to fulfil on this -earth must know that this cannot be fulfilled except by the building up -of a State whose highest purpose is to preserve and promote those nobler -elements of our race and of the whole of mankind which have remained -unimpaired. - -Thus for the first time a high inner purpose is accredited to the State. -In face of the ridiculous phrase that the State should do no more than -act as the guardian of public order and tranquillity, so that everybody -can peacefully dupe everybody else, it is given a very high mission -indeed to preserve and encourage the highest type of humanity which a -beneficent Creator has bestowed on this earth. Out of a dead mechanism -which claims to be an end in itself a living organism shall arise which -has to serve one purpose exclusively: and that, indeed, a purpose which -belongs to a higher order of ideas. - -As a State the German REICH shall include all Germans. Its task is not -only to gather in and foster the most valuable sections of our people -but to lead them slowly and surely to a dominant position in the world. - -Thus a period of stagnation is superseded by a period of effort. And -here, as in every other sphere, the proverb holds good that to rest is -to rust; and furthermore the proverb that victory will always be won by -him who attacks. The higher the final goal which we strive to reach, and -the less it be understood at the time by the broad masses, the more -magnificent will be its success. That is what the lesson of history -teaches. And the achievement will be all the more significant if the end -is conceived in the right way and the fight carried through with -unswerving persistence. Many of the officials who direct the affairs of -State nowadays may find it easier to work for the maintenance of the -present order than to fight for a new one. They will find it more -comfortable to look upon the State as a mechanism, whose purpose is its -own preservation, and to say that 'their lives belong to the State,' as -if anything that grew from the inner life of the nation can logically -serve anything but the national being, and as if man could be made for -anything else than for his fellow beings. Naturally, it is easier, as I -have said, to consider the authority of the State as nothing but the -formal mechanism of an organization, rather than as the sovereign -incarnation of a people's instinct for self-preservation on this earth. -For these weak minds the State and the authority of the State is nothing -but an aim in itself, while for us it is an effective weapon in the -service of the great and eternal struggle for existence, a weapon which -everyone must adopt, not because it is a mere formal mechanism, but -because it is the main expression of our common will to exist. - -Therefore, in the fight for our new idea, which conforms completely to -the primal meaning of life, we shall find only a small number of -comrades in a social order which has become decrepit not only physically -but mentally also. From these strata of our population only a few -exceptional people will join our ranks, only those few old people whose -hearts have remained young and whose courage is still vigorous, but not -those who consider it their duty to maintain the state of affairs that -exists. - -Against us we have the innumerable army of all those who are lazy-minded -and indifferent rather than evil, and those whose self-interest leads -them to uphold the present state of affairs. On the apparent -hopelessness of our great struggle is based the magnitude of our task -and the possibilities of success. A battle-cry which from the very start -will scare off all the petty spirits, or at least discourage them, will -become the signal for a rally of all those temperaments that are of the -real fighting metal. And it must be clearly recognized that if a highly -energetic and active body of men emerge from a nation and unite in the -fight for one goal, thereby ultimately rising above the inert masses of -the people, this small percentage will become masters of the whole. -World history is made by minorities if these numerical minorities -represent in themselves the will and energy and initiative of the people -as a whole. - -What seems an obstacle to many persons is really a preliminary condition -of our victory. Just because our task is so great and because so many -difficulties have to be overcome, the highest probability is that only -the best kind of protagonists will join our ranks. This selection is the -guarantee of our success. Nature generally takes certain measures to -correct the effect which racial mixture produces in life. She is not -much in favour of the mongrel. The later products of cross-breeding have -to suffer bitterly, especially the third, fourth and fifth generations. -Not only are they deprived of the higher qualities that belonged to the -parents who participated in the first mixture, but they also lack -definite will-power and vigorous vital energies owing to the lack of -harmony in the quality of their blood. At all critical moments in which -a person of pure racial blood makes correct decisions, that is to say, -decisions that are coherent and uniform, the person of mixed blood will -become confused and take measures that are incoherent. Hence we see that -a person of mixed blood is not only relatively inferior to a person of -pure blood, but is also doomed to become extinct more rapidly. In -innumerable cases wherein the pure race holds its ground the mongrel -breaks down. Therein we witness the corrective provision which Nature -adopts. She restricts the possibilities of procreation, thus impeding -the fertility of cross-breeds and bringing them to extinction. - -For instance, if an individual member of a race should mingle his blood -with the member of a superior race the first result would be a lowering -of the racial level, and furthermore the descendants of this -cross-breeding would be weaker than those of the people around them who -had maintained their blood unadulterated. Where no new blood from the -superior race enters the racial stream of the mongrels, and where those -mongrels continue to cross-breed among themselves, the latter will -either die out because they have insufficient powers of resistance, -which is Nature's wise provision, or in the course of many thousands of -years they will form a new mongrel race in which the original elements -will become so wholly mixed through this millennial crossing that traces -of the original elements will be no longer recognizable. And thus a new -people would be developed which possessed a certain resistance capacity -of the herd type, but its intellectual value and its cultural -significance would be essentially inferior to those which the first -cross-breeds possessed. But even in this last case the mongrel product -would succumb in the mutual struggle for existence with a higher racial -group that had maintained its blood unmixed. The herd solidarity which -this mongrel race had developed through thousands of years will not be -equal to the struggle. And this is because it would lack elasticity and -constructive capacity to prevail over a race of homogeneous blood that -was mentally and culturally superior. - -Therewith we may lay down the following principle as valid: every racial -mixture leads, of necessity, sooner or later to the downfall of the -mongrel product, provided the higher racial strata of this cross-breed -has not retained within itself some sort of racial homogeneity. The -danger to the mongrels ceases only when this higher stratum, which has -maintained certain standards of homogeneous breeding, ceases to be true -to its pedigree and intermingles with the mongrels. - -This principle is the source of a slow but constant regeneration whereby -all the poison which has invaded the racial body is gradually eliminated -so long as there still remains a fundamental stock of pure racial -elements which resists further crossbreeding. - -Such a process may set in automatically among those people where a -strong racial instinct has remained. Among such people we may count -those elements which, for some particular cause such as coercion, have -been thrown out of the normal way of reproduction along strict racial -lines. As soon as this compulsion ceases, that part of the race which -has remained intact will tend to marry with its own kind and thus impede -further intermingling. Then the mongrels recede quite naturally into the -background unless their numbers had increased so much as to be able to -withstand all serious resistance from those elements which had preserved -the purity of their race. - -When men have lost their natural instincts and ignore the obligations -imposed on them by Nature, then there is no hope that Nature will -correct the loss that has been caused, until recognition of the lost -instincts has been restored. Then the task of bringing back what has -been lost will have to be accomplished. But there is serious danger that -those who have become blind once in this respect will continue more and -more to break down racial barriers and finally lose the last remnants of -what is best in them. What then remains is nothing but a uniform -mish-mash, which seems to be the dream of our fine Utopians. But that -mish-mash would soon banish all ideals from the world. Certainly a great -herd could thus be formed. One can breed a herd of animals; but from a -mixture of this kind men such as have created and founded civilizations -would not be produced. The mission of humanity might then be considered -at an end. - -Those who do not wish that the earth should fall into such a condition -must realize that it is the task of the German State in particular to -see to it that the process of bastardization is brought to a stop. - -Our contemporary generation of weaklings will naturally decry such a -policy and whine and complain about it as an encroachment on the most -sacred of human rights. But there is only one right that is sacrosanct -and this right is at the same time a most sacred duty. This right and -obligation are: that the purity of the racial blood should be guarded, -so that the best types of human beings may be preserved and that thus we -should render possible a more noble development of humanity itself. - -A folk-State should in the first place raise matrimony from the level of -being a constant scandal to the race. The State should consecrate it as -an institution which is called upon to produce creatures made in the -likeness of the Lord and not create monsters that are a mixture of man -and ape. The protest which is put forward in the name of humanity does -not fit the mouth of a generation that makes it possible for the most -depraved degenerates to propagate themselves, thereby imposing -unspeakable suffering on their own products and their contemporaries, -while on the other hand contraceptives are permitted and sold in every -drug store and even by street hawkers, so that babies should not be born -even among the healthiest of our people. In this present State of ours, -whose function it is to be the guardian of peace and good order, our -national bourgeoisie look upon it as a crime to make procreation -impossible for syphilitics and those who suffer from tuberculosis or -other hereditary diseases, also cripples and imbeciles. But the -practical prevention of procreation among millions of our very best -people is not considered as an evil, nor does it offend against the -noble morality of this social class but rather encourages their -short-sightedness and mental lethargy. For otherwise they would at least -stir their brains to find an answer to the question of how to create -conditions for the feeding and maintaining of those future beings who -will be the healthy representatives of our nation and must also provide -the conditions on which the generation that is to follow them will have -to support itself and live. - -How devoid of ideals and how ignoble is the whole contemporary system! -The fact that the churches join in committing this sin against the image -of God, even though they continue to emphasize the dignity of that -image, is quite in keeping with their present activities. They talk -about the Spirit, but they allow man, as the embodiment of the Spirit, -to degenerate to the proletarian level. Then they look on with amazement -when they realize how small is the influence of the Christian Faith in -their own country and how depraved and ungodly is this riff-raff which -is physically degenerate and therefore morally degenerate also. To -balance this state of affairs they try to convert the Hottentots and the -Zulus and the Kaffirs and to bestow on them the blessings of the Church. -While our European people, God be praised and thanked, are left to -become the victims of moral depravity, the pious missionary goes out to -Central Africa and establishes missionary stations for negroes. Finally, -sound and healthy--though primitive and backward--people will be -transformed, under the name of our 'higher civilization', into a motley -of lazy and brutalized mongrels. - -It would better accord with noble human aspirations if our two Christian -denominations would cease to bother the negroes with their preaching, -which the negroes do not want and do not understand. It would be better -if they left this work alone, and if, in its stead, they tried to teach -people in Europe, kindly and seriously, that it is much more pleasing to -God if a couple that is not of healthy stock were to show loving -kindness to some poor orphan and become a father and mother to him, -rather than give life to a sickly child that will be a cause of -suffering and unhappiness to all. - -In this field the People's State will have to repair the damage that -arises from the fact that the problem is at present neglected by all the -various parties concerned. It will be the task of the People's State to -make the race the centre of the life of the community. It must make sure -that the purity of the racial strain will be preserved. It must proclaim -the truth that the child is the most valuable possession a people can -have. It must see to it that only those who are healthy shall beget -children; that there is only one infamy, namely, for parents that are -ill or show hereditary defects to bring children into the world and that -in such cases it is a high honour to refrain from doing so. But, on the -other hand, it must be considered as reprehensible conduct to refrain -from giving healthy children to the nation. In this matter the State -must assert itself as the trustee of a millennial future, in face of -which the egotistic desires of the individual count for nothing and will -have to give way before the ruling of the State. In order to fulfil this -duty in a practical manner the State will have to avail itself of modern -medical discoveries. It must proclaim as unfit for procreation all those -who are inflicted with some visible hereditary disease or are the -carriers of it; and practical measures must be adopted to have such -people rendered sterile. On the other hand, provision must be made for -the normally fertile woman so that she will not be restricted in -child-bearing through the financial and economic system operating in a -political regime that looks upon the blessing of having children as a -curse to their parents. The State will have to abolish the cowardly and -even criminal indifference with which the problem of social amenities -for large families is treated, and it will have to be the supreme -protector of this greatest blessing that a people can boast of. Its -attention and care must be directed towards the child rather than the -adult. - -Those who are physically and mentally unhealthy and unfit must not -perpetuate their own suffering in the bodies of their children. From the -educational point of view there is here a huge task for the People's -State to accomplish. But in a future era this work will appear greater -and more significant than the victorious wars of our present bourgeois -epoch. Through educational means the State must teach individuals that -illness is not a disgrace but an unfortunate accident which has to be -pitied, yet that it is a crime and a disgrace to make this affliction -all the worse by passing on disease and defects to innocent creatures -out of mere egotism. - -And the State must also teach the people that it is an expression of a -really noble nature and that it is a humanitarian act worthy of -admiration if a person who innocently suffers from hereditary disease -refrains from having a child of his own but gives his love and affection -to some unknown child who, through its health, promises to become a -robust member of a healthy community. In accomplishing such an -educational task the State integrates its function by this activity in -the moral sphere. It must act on this principle without paying any -attention to the question of whether its conduct will be understood or -misconstrued, blamed or praised. - -If for a period of only 600 years those individuals would be sterilized -who are physically degenerate or mentally diseased, humanity would not -only be delivered from an immense misfortune but also restored to a -state of general health such as we at present can hardly imagine. If the -fecundity of the healthy portion of the nation should be made a -practical matter in a conscientious and methodical way, we should have -at least the beginnings of a race from which all those germs would be -eliminated which are to-day the cause of our moral and physical -decadence. If a people and a State take this course to develop that -nucleus of the nation which is most valuable from the racial standpoint -and thus increase its fecundity, the people as a whole will subsequently -enjoy that most precious of gifts which consists in a racial quality -fashioned on truly noble lines. - -To achieve this the State should first of all not leave the colonization -of newly acquired territory to a haphazard policy but should have it -carried out under the guidance of definite principles. Specially -competent committees ought to issue certificates to individuals -entitling them to engage in colonization work, and these certificates -should guarantee the racial purity of the individuals in question. In -this way frontier colonies could gradually be founded whose inhabitants -would be of the purest racial stock, and hence would possess the best -qualities of the race. Such colonies would be a valuable asset to the -whole nation. Their development would be a source of joy and confidence -and pride to each citizen of the nation, because they would contain the -pure germ which would ultimately bring about a great development of the -nation and indeed of mankind itself. - -The WELTANSCHAUUNG which bases the State on the racial idea must -finally succeed in bringing about a nobler era, in which men will no -longer pay exclusive attention to breeding and rearing pedigree dogs and -horses and cats, but will endeavour to improve the breed of the human -race itself. That will be an era of silence and renunciation for one -class of people, while the others will give their gifts and make their -sacrifices joyfully. - -That such a mentality may be possible cannot be denied in a world where -hundreds and thousands accept the principle of celibacy from their own -choice, without being obliged or pledged to do so by anything except an -ecclesiastical precept. Why should it not be possible to induce people -to make this sacrifice if, instead of such a precept, they were simply -told that they ought to put an end to this truly original sin of racial -corruption which is steadily being passed on from one generation to -another. And, further, they ought to be brought to realize that it is -their bounden duty to give to the Almighty Creator beings such as He -himself made to His own image. - -Naturally, our wretched army of contemporary philistines will not -understand these things. They will ridicule them or shrug their round -shoulders and groan out their everlasting excuses: "Of course it is a -fine thing, but the pity is that it cannot be carried out." And we -reply: "With you indeed it cannot be done, for your world is incapable -of such an idea. You know only one anxiety and that is for your own -personal existence. You have one God, and that is your money. We do not -turn to you, however, for help, but to the great army of those who are -too poor to consider their personal existence as the highest good on -earth. They do not place their trust in money but in other gods, into -whose hands they confide their lives. Above all we turn to the vast army -of our German youth. They are coming to maturity in a great epoch, and -they will fight against the evils which were due to the laziness and -indifference of their fathers." Either the German youth will one day -create a new State founded on the racial idea or they will be the last -witnesses of the complete breakdown and death of the bourgeois world. - -For if a generation suffers from defects which it recognizes and even -admits and is nevertheless quite pleased with itself, as the bourgeois -world is to-day, resorting to the cheap excuse that nothing can be done -to remedy the situation, then such a generation is doomed to disaster. A -marked characteristic of our bourgeois world is that they no longer can -deny the evil conditions that exist. They have to admit that there is -much which is foul and wrong; but they are not able to make up their -minds to fight against that evil, which would mean putting forth the -energy to mobilize the forces of 60 or 70 million people and thus oppose -this menace. They do just the opposite. When such an effort is made -elsewhere they only indulge in silly comment and try from a safe -distance to show that such an enterprise is theoretically impossible and -doomed to failure. No arguments are too stupid to be employed in the -service of their own pettifogging opinions and their knavish moral -attitude. If, for instance, a whole continent wages war against -alcoholic intoxication, so as to free a whole people from this -devastating vice, our bourgeois European does not know better than to -look sideways stupidly, shake the head in doubt and ridicule the -movement with a superior sneer--a state of mind which is effective in a -society that is so ridiculous. But when all these stupidities miss their -aim and in that part of the world this sublime and intangible attitude -is treated effectively and success attends the movement, then such -success is called into question or its importance minimized. Even moral -principles are used in this slanderous campaign against a movement which -aims at suppressing a great source of immorality. - -No. We must not permit ourselves to be deceived by any illusions on this -point. Our contemporary bourgeois world has become useless for any such -noble human task because it has lost all high quality and is evil, not -so much--as I think--because evil is wished but rather because these -people are too indolent to rise up against it. That is why those -political societies which call themselves 'bourgeois parties' are -nothing but associations to promote the interests of certain -professional groups and classes. Their highest aim is to defend their -own egoistic interests as best they can. It is obvious that such a -guild, consisting of bourgeois politicians, may be considered fit for -anything rather than a struggle, especially when the adversaries are not -cautious shopkeepers but the proletarian masses, goaded on to -extremities and determined not to hesitate before deeds of violence. - -If we consider it the first duty of the State to serve and promote the -general welfare of the people, by preserving and encouraging the -development of the best racial elements, the logical consequence is that -this task cannot be limited to measures concerning the birth of the -infant members of the race and nation but that the State will also have -to adopt educational means for making each citizen a worthy factor in -the further propagation of the racial stock. - -Just as, in general, the racial quality is the preliminary condition for -the mental efficiency of any given human material, the training of the -individual will first of all have to be directed towards the development -of sound bodily health. For the general rule is that a strong and -healthy mind is found only in a strong and healthy body. The fact that -men of genius are sometimes not robust in health and stature, or even of -a sickly constitution, is no proof against the principle I have -enunciated. These cases are only exceptions which, as everywhere else, -prove the rule. But when the bulk of a nation is composed of physical -degenerates it is rare for a great spirit to arise from such a miserable -motley. And in any case his activities would never meet with great -success. A degenerate mob will either be incapable of understanding him -at all or their will-power is so feeble that they cannot follow the -soaring of such an eagle. - -The State that is grounded on the racial principle and is alive to the -significance of this truth will first of all have to base its -educational work not on the mere imparting of knowledge but rather on -physical training and development of healthy bodies. The cultivation of -the intellectual facilities comes only in the second place. And here -again it is character which has to be developed first of all, strength -of will and decision. And the educational system ought to foster the -spirit of readiness to accept responsibilities gladly. Formal -instruction in the sciences must be considered last in importance. -Accordingly the State which is grounded on the racial idea must start -with the principle that a person whose formal education in the sciences -is relatively small but who is physically sound and robust, of a -steadfast and honest character, ready and able to make decisions and -endowed with strength of will, is a more useful member of the national -community than a weakling who is scholarly and refined. A nation -composed of learned men who are physical weaklings, hesitant about -decisions of the will, and timid pacifists, is not capable of assuring -even its own existence on this earth. In the bitter struggle which -decides the destiny of man it is very rare that an individual has -succumbed because he lacked learning. Those who fail are they who try to -ignore these consequences and are too faint-hearted about putting them -into effect. There must be a certain balance between mind and body. An -ill-kept body is not made a more beautiful sight by the indwelling of a -radiant spirit. We should not be acting justly if we were to bestow the -highest intellectual training on those who are physically deformed and -crippled, who lack decision and are weak-willed and cowardly. What has -made the Greek ideal of beauty immortal is the wonderful union of a -splendid physical beauty with nobility of mind and spirit. - -Moltke's saying, that in the long run fortune favours only the -efficient, is certainly valid for the relationship between body and -spirit. A mind which is sound will generally maintain its dwelling in a -body that is sound. - -Accordingly, in the People's State physical training is not a matter for -the individual alone. Nor is it a duty which first devolves on the -parents and only secondly or thirdly a public interest; but it is -necessary for the preservation of the people, who are represented and -protected by the State. As regards purely formal education the State -even now interferes with the individual's right of self-determination -and insists upon the right of the community by submitting the child to -an obligatory system of training, without paying attention to the -approval or disapproval of the parents. In a similar way and to a higher -degree the new People's State will one day make its authority prevail -over the ignorance and incomprehension of individuals in problems -appertaining to the safety of the nation. It must organize its -educational work in such a way that the bodies of the young will be -systematically trained from infancy onwards, so as to be tempered and -hardened for the demands to be made on them in later years. Above all, -the State must see to it that a generation of stay-at-homes is not -developed. - -The work of education and hygiene has to begin with the young mother. -The painstaking efforts carried on for several decades have succeeded in -abolishing septic infection at childbirth and reducing puerperal fever -to a relatively small number of cases. And so it ought to be possible by -means of instructing sisters and mothers in an opportune way, to -institute a system of training the child from early infancy onwards so -that this may serve as an excellent basis for future development. - -The People's State ought to allow much more time for physical training -in the school. It is nonsense to burden young brains with a load of -material of which, as experience shows, they retain only a small part, -and mostly not the essentials, but only the secondary and useless -portion; because the young mind is incapable of sifting the right kind -of learning out of all the stuff that is pumped into it. To-day, even in -the curriculum of the high schools, only two short hours in the week are -reserved for gymnastics; and worse still, it is left to the pupils to -decide whether or not they want to take part. This shows a grave -disproportion between this branch of education and purely intellectual -instruction. Not a single day should be allowed to pass in which the -young pupil does not have one hour of physical training in the morning -and one in the evening; and every kind of sport and gymnastics should be -included. There is one kind of sport which should be specially -encouraged, although many people who call themselves V�LKISCH consider -it brutal and vulgar, and that is boxing. It is incredible how many -false notions prevail among the 'cultivated' classes. The fact that the -young man learns how to fence and then spends his time in duels is -considered quite natural and respectable. But boxing--that is brutal. -Why? There is no other sport which equals this in developing the -militant spirit, none that demands such a power of rapid decision or -which gives the body the flexibility of good steel. It is no more vulgar -when two young people settle their differences with their fists than -with sharp-pointed pieces of steel. One who is attacked and defends -himself with his fists surely does not act less manly than one who runs -off and yells for the assistance of a policeman. But, above all, a -healthy youth has to learn to endure hard knocks. This principle may -appear savage to our contemporary champions who fight only with the -weapons of the intellect. But it is not the purpose of the People's -State to educate a colony of aesthetic pacifists and physical -degenerates. This State does not consider that the human ideal is to be -found in the honourable philistine or the maidenly spinster, but in a -dareful personification of manly force and in women capable of bringing -men into the world. - -Generally speaking, the function of sport is not only to make the -individual strong, alert and daring, but also to harden the body and -train it to endure an adverse environment. - -If our superior class had not received such a distinguished education, -and if, on the contrary, they had learned boxing, it would never have -been possible for bullies and deserters and other such CANAILLE to carry -through a German revolution. For the success of this revolution was not -due to the courageous, energetic and audacious activities of its authors -but to the lamentable cowardice and irresolution of those who ruled the -German State at that time and were responsible for it. But our educated -leaders had received only an 'intellectual' training and thus found -themselves defenceless when their adversaries used iron bars instead of -intellectual weapons. All this could happen only because our superior -scholastic system did not train men to be real men but merely to be -civil servants, engineers, technicians, chemists, litterateurs, jurists -and, finally, professors; so that intellectualism should not die out. - -Our leadership in the purely intellectual sphere has always been -brilliant, but as regards will-power in practical affairs our leadership -has been beneath criticism. - -Of course education cannot make a courageous man out of one who is -temperamentally a coward. But a man who naturally possesses a certain -degree of courage will not be able to develop that quality if his -defective education has made him inferior to others from the very start -as regards physical strength and prowess. The army offers the best -example of the fact that the knowledge of one's physical ability -develops a man's courage and militant spirit. Outstanding heroes are not -the rule in the army, but the average represents men of high courage. -The excellent schooling which the German soldiers received before the -War imbued the members of the whole gigantic organism with a degree of -confidence in their own superiority such as even our opponents never -thought possible. All the immortal examples of dauntless courage and -daring which the German armies gave during the late summer and autumn of -1914, as they advanced from triumph to triumph, were the result of that -education which had been pursued systematically. During those long years -of peace before the last War men who were almost physical weaklings were -made capable of incredible deeds, and thus a self-confidence was -developed which did not fail even in the most terrible battles. - -It is our German people, which broke down and were delivered over to be -kicked by the rest of the world, that had need of the power that comes -by suggestion from self-confidence. But this confidence in one's self -must be instilled into our children from their very early years. The -whole system of education and training must be directed towards -fostering in the child the conviction that he is unquestionably a match -for any- and everybody. The individual has to regain his own physical -strength and prowess in order to believe in the invincibility of the -nation to which he belongs. What has formerly led the German armies to -victory was the sum total of the confidence which each individual had in -himself, and which all of them had in those who held the positions of -command. What will restore the national strength of the German people is -the conviction that they will be able to reconquer their liberty. But -this conviction can only be the final product of an equal feeling in the -millions of individuals. And here again we must have no illusions. - -The collapse of our people was overwhelming, and the efforts to put an -end to so much misery must also be overwhelming. It would be a bitter -and grave error to believe that our people could be made strong again -simply by means of our present bourgeois training in good order and -obedience. That will not suffice if we are to break up the present order -of things, which now sanctions the acknowledgment of our defeat and cast -the broken chains of our slavery in the face of our opponents. Only by a -superabundance of national energy and a passionate thirst for liberty -can we recover what has been lost. - -Also the manner of clothing the young should be such as harmonizes with -this purpose. It is really lamentable to see how our young people have -fallen victims to a fashion mania which perverts the meaning of the old -adage that clothes make the man. - -Especially in regard to young people clothes should take their place in -the service of education. The boy who walks about in summer-time wearing -long baggy trousers and clad up to the neck is hampered even by his -clothes in feeling any inclination towards strenuous physical exercise. -Ambition and, to speak quite frankly, even vanity must be appealed to. I -do not mean such vanity as leads people to want to wear fine clothes, -which not everybody can afford, but rather the vanity which inclines a -person towards developing a fine bodily physique. And this is something -which everybody can help to do. - -This will come in useful also for later years. The young girl must -become acquainted with her sweetheart. If the beauty of the body were -not completely forced into the background to-day through our stupid -manner of dressing, it would not be possible for thousands of our girls -to be led astray by Jewish mongrels, with their repulsive crooked -waddle. It is also in the interests of the nation that those who have a -beautiful physique should be brought into the foreground, so that they -might encourage the development of a beautiful bodily form among the -people in general. - -Military training is excluded among us to-day, and therewith the only -institution which in peace-times at least partly made up for the lack of -physical training in our education. Therefore what I have suggested is -all the more necessary in our time. The success of our old military -training not only showed itself in the education of the individual but -also in the influence which it exercised over the mutual relationship -between the sexes. The young girl preferred the soldier to one who was -not a soldier. The People's State must not confine its control of -physical training to the official school period, but it must demand -that, after leaving school and while the adolescent body is still -developing, the boy continues this training. For on such proper physical -development success in after-life largely depends. It is stupid to think -that the right of the State to supervise the education of its young -citizens suddenly comes to an end the moment they leave school and -recommences only with military service. This right is a duty, and as -such it must continue uninterruptedly. The present State, which does not -interest itself in developing healthy men, has criminally neglected this -duty. It leaves our contemporary youth to be corrupted on the streets -and in the brothels, instead of keeping hold of the reins and continuing -the physical training of these youths up to the time when they are grown -into healthy young men and women. - -For the present it is a matter of indifference what form the State -chooses for carrying on this training. The essential matter is that it -should be developed and that the most suitable ways of doing so should -be investigated. The People's State will have to consider the physical -training of the youth after the school period just as much a public duty -as their intellectual training; and this training will have to be -carried out through public institutions. Its general lines can be a -preparation for subsequent service in the army. And then it will no -longer be the task of the army to teach the young recruit the most -elementary drill regulations. In fact the army will no longer have to -deal with recruits in the present sense of the word, but it will rather -have to transform into a soldier the youth whose bodily prowess has been -already fully trained. - -In the People's State the army will no longer be obliged to teach boys -how to walk and stand erect, but it will be the final and supreme school -of patriotic education. In the army the young recruit will learn the art -of bearing arms, but at the same time he will be equipped for his other -duties in later life. And the supreme aim of military education must -always be to achieve that which was attributed to the old army as its -highest merit: namely, that through his military schooling the boy must -be transformed into a man, that he must not only learn to obey but also -acquire the fundamentals that will enable him one day to command. He -must learn to remain silent not only when he is rightly rebuked but also -when he is wrongly rebuked. - -Furthermore, on the self-consciousness of his own strength and on the -basis of that ESPRIT DE CORPS which inspires him and his comrades, he -must become convinced that he belongs to a people who are invincible. - -After he has completed his military training two certificates shall be -handed to the soldier. The one will be his diploma as a citizen of the -State, a juridical document which will enable him to take part in public -affairs. The second will be an attestation of his physical health, which -guarantees his fitness for marriage. - -The People's State will have to direct the education of girls just as -that of boys and according to the same fundamental principles. Here -again special importance must be given to physical training, and only -after that must the importance of spiritual and mental training be taken -into account. In the education of the girl the final goal always to be -kept in mind is that she is one day to be a mother. - -It is only in the second place that the People's State must busy itself -with the training of character, using all the means adapted to that -purpose. - -Of course the essential traits of the individual character are already -there fundamentally before any education takes place. A person who is -fundamentally egoistic will always remain fundamentally egoistic, and -the idealist will always remain fundamentally an idealist. Besides -those, however, who already possess a definite stamp of character there -are millions of people with characters that are indefinite and vague. -The born delinquent will always remain a delinquent, but numerous people -who show only a certain tendency to commit criminal acts may become -useful members of the community if rightly trained; whereas, on the -other hand, weak and unstable characters may easily become evil elements -if the system of education has been bad. - -During the War it was often lamented that our people could be so little -reticent. This failing made it very difficult to keep even highly -important secrets from the knowledge of the enemy. But let us ask this -question: What did the German educational system do in pre-War times to -teach the Germans to be discreet? Did it not very often happen in -schooldays that the little tell-tale was preferred to his companions who -kept their mouths shut? Is it not true that then, as well as now, -complaining about others was considered praiseworthy 'candour', while -silent discretion was taken as obstinacy? Has any attempt ever been made -to teach that discretion is a precious and manly virtue? No, for such -matters are trifles in the eyes of our educators. But these trifles cost -our State innumerable millions in legal expenses; for 90 per cent of all -the processes for defamation and such like charges arise only from a -lack of discretion. Remarks that are made without any sense of -responsibility are thoughtlessly repeated from mouth to mouth; and our -economic welfare is continually damaged because important methods of -production are thus disclosed. Secret preparations for our national -defence are rendered illusory because our people have never learned the -duty of silence. They repeat everything they happen to hear. In times of -war such talkative habits may even cause the loss of battles and -therefore may contribute essentially to the unsuccessful outcome of a -campaign. Here, as in other matters, we may rest assured that adults -cannot do what they have not learnt to do in youth. A teacher must not -try to discover the wild tricks of the boys by encouraging the evil -practice of tale-bearing. Young people form a sort of State among -themselves and face adults with a certain solidarity. That is quite -natural. The ties which unite the ten-year boys to one another are -stronger and more natural than their relationship to adults. A boy who -tells on his comrades commits an act of treason and shows a bent of -character which is, to speak bluntly, similar to that of a man who -commits high treason. Such a boy must not be classed as 'good', -'reliable', and so on, but rather as one with undesirable traits of -character. It may be rather convenient for the teacher to make use of -such unworthy tendencies in order to help his own work, but by such an -attitude the germ of a moral habit is sown in young hearts and may one -day show fatal consequences. It has happened more often than once that a -young informer developed into a big scoundrel. - -This is only one example among many. The deliberate training of fine and -noble traits of character in our schools to-day is almost negative. In -the future much more emphasis will have to be laid on this side of our -educational work. Loyalty, self-sacrifice and discretion are virtues -which a great nation must possess. And the teaching and development of -these in the school is a more important matter than many others things -now included in the curriculum. To make the children give up habits of -complaining and whining and howling when they are hurt, etc., also -belongs to this part of their training. If the educational system fails -to teach the child at an early age to endure pain and injury without -complaining we cannot be surprised if at a later age, when the boy has -grown to be the man and is, for example, in the trenches, the postal -service is used for nothing else than to send home letters of weeping -and complaint. If our youths, during their years in the primary schools, -had had their minds crammed with a little less knowledge, and if instead -they had been better taught how to be masters of themselves, it would -have served us well during the years 1914-1918. - -In its educational system the People's State will have to attach the -highest importance to the development of character, hand-in-hand with -physical training. Many more defects which our national organism shows -at present could be at least ameliorated, if not completely eliminated, -by education of the right kind. - -Extreme importance should be attached to the training of will-power and -the habit of making firm decisions, also the habit of being always ready -to accept responsibilities. - -In the training of our old army the principle was in vogue that any -order is always better than no order. Applied to our youth this -principle ought to take the form that any answer is better than no -answer. The fear of replying, because one fears to be wrong, ought to be -considered more humiliating than giving the wrong reply. On this simple -and primitive basis our youth should be trained to have the courage to -act. - -It has been often lamented that in November and December 1918 all the -authorities lost their heads and that, from the monarch down to the last -divisional commander, nobody had sufficient mettle to make a decision on -his own responsibility. That terrible fact constitutes a grave rebuke to -our educational system; because what was then revealed on a colossal -scale at that moment of catastrophe was only what happens on a smaller -scale everywhere among us. It is the lack of will-power, and not the -lack of arms, which renders us incapable of offering any serious -resistance to-day. This defect is found everywhere among our people and -prevents decisive action wherever risks have to be taken, as if any -great action can be taken without also taking the risk. Quite -unsuspectingly, a German General found a formula for this lamentable -lack of the will-to-act when he said: "I act only when I can count on a -51 per cent probability of success." In that '51 per cent probability' -we find the very root of the German collapse. The man who demands from -Fate a guarantee of his success deliberately denies the significance of -an heroic act. For this significance consists in the very fact that, in -the definite knowledge that the situation in question is fraught with -mortal danger, an action is undertaken which may lead to success. A -patient suffering from cancer and who knows that his death is certain if -he does not undergo an operation, needs no 51 per cent probability of a -cure before facing the operation. And if the operation promises only -half of one per cent probability of success a man of courage will risk -it and would not whine if it turned out unsuccessful. - -All in all, the cowardly lack of will-power and the incapacity for -making decisions are chiefly results of the erroneous education given us -in our youth. The disastrous effects of this are now widespread among -us. The crowning examples of that tragic chain of consequences are shown -in the lack of civil courage which our leading statesmen display. - -The cowardice which leads nowadays to the shirking of every kind of -responsibility springs from the same roots. Here again it is the fault -of the education given our young people. This drawback permeates all -sections of public life and finds its immortal consummation in the -institutions of government that function under the parliamentary regime. - -Already in the school, unfortunately, more value is placed on -'confession and full repentance' and 'contrite renouncement', on the -part of little sinners, than on a simple and frank avowal. But this -latter seems to-day, in the eyes of many an educator, to savour of a -spirit of utter incorrigibility and depravation. And, though it may seem -incredible, many a boy is told that the gallows tree is waiting for him -because he has shown certain traits which might be of inestimable value -in the nation as a whole. - -Just as the People's State must one day give its attention to training -the will-power and capacity for decision among the youth, so too it must -inculcate in the hearts of the young generation from early childhood -onwards a readiness to accept responsibilities, and the courage of open -and frank avowal. If it recognizes the full significance of this -necessity, finally--after a century of educative work--it will succeed -in building up a nation which will no longer be subject to those defeats -that have contributed so disastrously to bring about our present -overthrow. - -The formal imparting of knowledge, which constitutes the chief work of -our educational system to-day, will be taken over by the People's State -with only few modifications. These modifications must be made in three -branches. - -First of all, the brains of the young people must not generally be -burdened with subjects of which ninety-five per cent are useless to them -and are therefore forgotten again. The curriculum of the primary and -secondary schools presents an odd mixture at the present time. In many -branches of study the subject matter to be learned has become so -enormous that only a very small fraction of it can be remembered later -on, and indeed only a very small fraction of this whole mass of -knowledge can be used. On the other hand, what is learned is -insufficient for anybody who wishes to specialize in any certain branch -for the purpose of earning his daily bread. Take, for example, the -average civil servant who has passed through the GYMNASIUM or High -School, and ask him at the age of thirty or forty how much he has -retained of the knowledge that was crammed into him with so much pains. - -How much is retained from all that was stuffed into his brain? He will -certainly answer: "Well, if a mass of stuff was then taught, it was not -for the sole purpose of supplying the student with a great stock of -knowledge from which he could draw in later years, but it served to -develop the understanding, the memory, and above all it helped to -strengthen the thinking powers of the brain." That is partly true. And -yet it is somewhat dangerous to submerge a young brain in a flood of -impressions which it can hardly master and the single elements of which -it cannot discern or appreciate at their just value. It is mostly the -essential part of this knowledge, and not the accidental, that is -forgotten and sacrificed. Thus the principal purpose of this copious -instruction is frustrated, for that purpose cannot be to make the brain -capable of learning by simply offering it an enormous and varied amount -of subjects for acquisition, but rather to furnish the individual with -that stock of knowledge which he will need in later life and which he -can use for the good of the community. This aim, however, is rendered -illusory if, because of the superabundance of subjects that have been -crammed into his head in childhood, a person is able to remember -nothing, or at least not the essential portion, of all this in later -life. There is no reason why millions of people should learn two or -three languages during the school years, when only a very small fraction -will have the opportunity to use these languages in later life and when -most of them will therefore forget those languages completely. To take -an instance: Out of 100,000 students who learn French there are probably -not 2,000 who will be in a position to make use of this accomplishment -in later life, while 98,000 will never have a chance to utilize in -practice what they have learned in youth. They have spent thousands of -hours on a subject which will afterwards be without any value or -importance to them. The argument that these matters form part of the -general process of educating the mind is invalid. It would be sound if -all these people were able to use this learning in after life. But, as -the situation stands, 98,000 are tortured to no purpose and waste their -valuable time, only for the sake of the 2,000 to whom the language will -be of any use. - -In the case of that language which I have chosen as an example it cannot -be said that the learning of it educates the student in logical thinking -or sharpens his mental acumen, as the learning of Latin, for instance, -might be said to do. It would therefore be much better to teach young -students only the general outline, or, better, the inner structure of -such a language: that is to say, to allow them to discern the -characteristic features of the language, or perhaps to make them -acquainted with the rudiments of its grammar, its pronunciation, its -syntax, style, etc. That would be sufficient for average students, -because it would provide a clearer view of the whole and could be more -easily remembered. And it would be more practical than the present-day -attempt to cram into their heads a detailed knowledge of the whole -language, which they can never master and which they will readily -forget. If this method were adopted, then we should avoid the danger -that, out of the superabundance of matter taught, only some fragments -will remain in the memory; for the youth would then have to learn what -is worth while, and the selection between the useful and the useless -would thus have been made beforehand. - -As regards the majority of students the knowledge and understanding of -the rudiments of a language would be quite sufficient for the rest of -their lives. And those who really do need this language subsequently -would thus have a foundation on which to start, should they choose to -make a more thorough study of it. - -By adopting such a curriculum the necessary amount of time would be -gained for physical exercises as well as for a more intense training in -the various educational fields that have already been mentioned. - -A reform of particular importance is that which ought to take place in -the present methods of teaching history. Scarcely any other people are -made to study as much of history as the Germans, and scarcely any other -people make such a bad use of their historical knowledge. If politics -means history in the making, then our way of teaching history stands -condemned by the way we have conducted our politics. But there would be -no point in bewailing the lamentable results of our political conduct -unless one is now determined to give our people a better political -education. In 99 out of 100 cases the results of our present teaching of -history are deplorable. Usually only a few dates, years of birth and -names, remain in the memory, while a knowledge of the main and clearly -defined lines of historical development is completely lacking. The -essential features which are of real significance are not taught. It is -left to the more or less bright intelligence of the individual to -discover the inner motivating urge amid the mass of dates and -chronological succession of events. - -You may object as strongly as you like to this unpleasant statement. But -read with attention the speeches which our parliamentarians make during -one session alone on political problems and on questions of foreign -policy in particular. Remember that those gentlemen are, or claim to be, -the elite of the German nation and that at least a great number of them -have sat on the benches of our secondary schools and that many of them -have passed through our universities. Then you will realize how -defective the historical education of these people has been. If these -gentlemen had never studied history at all but had possessed a sound -instinct for public affairs, things would have gone better, and the -nation would have benefited greatly thereby. - -The subject matter of our historical teaching must be curtailed. The -chief value of that teaching is to make the principal lines of -historical development understood. The more our historical teaching is -limited to this task, the more we may hope that it will turn out -subsequently to be of advantage to the individual and, through the -individual, to the community as a whole. For history must not be studied -merely with a view to knowing what happened in the past but as a guide -for the future, and to teach us what policy would be the best to follow -for the preservation of our own people. That is the real end; and the -teaching of history is only a means to attain this end. But here again -the means has superseded the end in our contemporary education. The goal -is completely forgotten. Do not reply that a profound study of history -demands a detailed knowledge of all these dates because otherwise we -could not fix the great lines of development. That task belongs to the -professional historians. But the average man is not a professor of -history. For him history has only one mission and that is to provide him -with such an amount of historical knowledge as is necessary in order to -enable him to form an independent opinion on the political affairs of -his own country. The man who wants to become a professor of history can -devote himself to all the details later on. Naturally he will have to -occupy himself even with the smallest details. Of course our present -teaching of history is not adequate to all this. Its scope is too vast -for the average student and too limited for the student who wishes to be -an historical expert. - -Finally, it is the business of the People's State to arrange for the -writing of a world history in which the race problem will occupy a -dominant position. - -To sum up: The People's State must reconstruct our system of general -instruction in such a way that it will embrace only what is essential. -Beyond this it will have to make provision for a more advanced teaching -in the various subjects for those who want to specialize in them. It -will suffice for the average individual to be acquainted with the -fundamentals of the various subjects to serve as the basis of what may -be called an all-round education. He ought to study exhaustively and in -detail only that subject in which he intends to work during the rest of -his life. A general instruction in all subjects should be obligatory, -and specialization should be left to the choice of the individual. - -In this way the scholastic programme would be shortened, and thus -several school hours would be gained which could be utilized for -physical training and character training, in will-power, the capacity -for making practical judgments, decisions, etc. - -The little account taken by our school training to-day, especially in -the secondary schools, of the callings that have to be followed in after -life is demonstrated by the fact that men who are destined for the same -calling in life are educated in three different kinds of schools. What -is of decisive importance is general education only and not the special -teaching. When special knowledge is needed it cannot be given in the -curriculum of our secondary schools as they stand to-day. - -Therefore the People's State will one day have to abolish such -half-measures. - -The second modification in the curriculum which the People's State will -have to make is the following: - -It is a characteristic of our materialistic epoch that our scientific -education shows a growing emphasis on what is real and practical: such -subjects, for instance, as applied mathematics, physics, chemistry, etc. -Of course they are necessary in an age that is dominated by industrial -technology and chemistry, and where everyday life shows at least the -external manifestations of these. But it is a perilous thing to base the -general culture of a nation on the knowledge of these subjects. On the -contrary, that general culture ought always to be directed towards -ideals. It ought to be founded on the humanist disciplines and should -aim at giving only the ground work of further specialized instruction in -the various practical sciences. Otherwise we should sacrifice those -forces that are more important for the preservation of the nation than -any technical knowledge. In the historical department the study of -ancient history should not be omitted. Roman history, along general -lines, is and will remain the best teacher, not only for our own time -but also for the future. And the ideal of Hellenic culture should be -preserved for us in all its marvellous beauty. The differences between -the various peoples should not prevent us from recognizing the community -of race which unites them on a higher plane. The conflict of our times -is one that is being waged around great objectives. A civilization is -fighting for its existence. It is a civilization that is the product of -thousands of years of historical development, and the Greek as well as -the German forms part of it. - -A clear-cut division must be made between general culture and the -special branches. To-day the latter threaten more and more to devote -themselves exclusively to the service of Mammon. To counterbalance this -tendency, general culture should be preserved, at least in its ideal -forms. The principle should be repeatedly emphasized, that industrial -and technical progress, trade and commerce, can flourish only so long as -a folk community exists whose general system of thought is inspired by -ideals, since that is the preliminary condition for a flourishing -development of the enterprises I have spoken of. That condition is not -created by a spirit of materialist egotism but by a spirit of -self-denial and the joy of giving one's self in the service of others. - -The system of education which prevails to-day sees its principal object -in pumping into young people that knowledge which will help them to make -their way in life. This principle is expressed in the following terms: -"The young man must one day become a useful member of human society." By -that phrase they mean the ability to gain an honest daily livelihood. -The superficial training in the duties of good citizenship, which he -acquires merely as an accidental thing, has very weak foundations. For -in itself the State represents only a form, and therefore it is -difficult to train people to look upon this form as the ideal which they -will have to serve and towards which they must feel responsible. A form -can be too easily broken. But, as we have seen, the idea which people -have of the State to-day does not represent anything clearly defined. -Therefore, there is nothing but the usual stereotyped 'patriotic' -training. In the old Germany the greatest emphasis was placed on the -divine right of the small and even the smallest potentates. The way in -which this divine right was formulated and presented was never very -clever and often very stupid. Because of the large numbers of those -small potentates, it was impossible to give adequate biographical -accounts of the really great personalities that shed their lustre on the -history of the German people. The result was that the broad masses -received a very inadequate knowledge of German history. Here, too, the -great lines of development were missing. - -It is evident that in such a way no real national enthusiasm could be -aroused. Our educational system proved incapable of selecting from the -general mass of our historical personages the names of a few -personalities which the German people could be proud to look upon as -their own. Thus the whole nation might have been united by the ties of a -common knowledge of this common heritage. The really important figures -in German history were not presented to the present generation. The -attention of the whole nation was not concentrated on them for the -purpose of awakening a common national spirit. From the various subjects -that were taught, those who had charge of our training seemed incapable -of selecting what redounded most to the national honour and lifting that -above the common objective level, in order to inflame the national pride -in the light of such brilliant examples. At that time such a course -would have been looked upon as rank chauvinism, which did not then have -a very pleasant savour. Pettifogging dynastic patriotism was more -acceptable and more easily tolerated than the glowing fire of a supreme -national pride. The former could be always pressed into service, whereas -the latter might one day become a dominating force. Monarchist -patriotism terminated in Associations of Veterans, whereas passionate -national patriotism might have opened a road which would be difficult to -determine. This national passion is like a highly tempered thoroughbred -who is discriminate about the sort of rider he will tolerate in the -saddle. No wonder that most people preferred to shirk such a danger. -Nobody seemed to think it possible that one day a war might come which -would put the mettle of this kind of patriotism to the test, in -artillery bombardment and waves of attacks with poison gas. But when it -did come our lack of this patriotic passion was avenged in a terrible -way. None were very enthusiastic about dying for their imperial and -royal sovereigns; while on the other hand the 'Nation' was not -recognized by the greater number of the soldiers. - -Since the revolution broke out in Germany and the monarchist patriotism -was therefore extinguished, the purpose of teaching history was nothing -more than to add to the stock of objective knowledge. The present State -has no use for patriotic enthusiasm; but it will never obtain what it -really desires. For if dynastic patriotism failed to produce a supreme -power of resistance at a time when the principle of nationalism -dominated, it will be still less possible to arouse republican -enthusiasm. There can be no doubt that the German people would not have -stood on the field of battle for four and a half years to fight under -the battle slogan 'For the Republic,' and least of all those who created -this grand institution. - -In reality this Republic has been allowed to exist undisturbed only by -grace of its readiness and its promise to all and sundry, to pay tribute -and reparations to the stranger and to put its signature to any kind of -territorial renunciation. The rest of the world finds it sympathetic, -just as a weakling is always more pleasing to those who want to bend him -to their own uses than is a man who is made of harder metal. But the -fact that the enemy likes this form of government is the worst kind of -condemnation. They love the German Republic and tolerate its existence -because no better instrument could be found which would help them to -keep our people in slavery. It is to this fact alone that this -magnanimous institution owes its survival. And that is why it can -renounce any REAL system of national education and can feel satisfied -when the heroes of the REICH banner shout their hurrahs, but in reality -these same heroes would scamper away like rabbits if called upon to -defend that banner with their blood. - -The People's State will have to fight for its existence. It will not -gain or secure this existence by signing documents like that of the -Dawes Plan. But for its existence and defence it will need precisely -those things which our present system believes can be repudiated. The -more worthy its form and its inner national being. the greater will be -the envy and opposition of its adversaries. The best defence will not be -in the arms it possesses but in its citizens. Bastions of fortresses -will not save it, but the living wall of its men and women, filled with -an ardent love for their country and a passionate spirit of national -patriotism. - -Therefore the third point which will have to be considered in relation -to our educational system is the following: - -The People's State must realize that the sciences may also be made a -means of promoting a spirit of pride in the nation. Not only the history -of the world but the history of civilization as a whole must be taught -in the light of this principle. An inventor must appear great not only -as an inventor but also, and even more so, as a member of the nation. -The admiration aroused by the contemplation of a great achievement must -be transformed into a feeling of pride and satisfaction that a man of -one's own race has been chosen to accomplish it. But out of the -abundance of great names in German history the greatest will have to be -selected and presented to our young generation in such a way as to -become solid pillars of strength to support the national spirit. - -The subject matter ought to be systematically organized from the -standpoint of this principle. And the teaching should be so orientated -that the boy or girl, after leaving school, will not be a semi-pacifist, -a democrat or of something else of that kind, but a whole-hearted -German. So that this national feeling be sincere from the very -beginning, and not a mere pretence, the following fundamental and -inflexible principle should be impressed on the young brain while it is -yet malleable: The man who loves his nation can prove the sincerity of -this sentiment only by being ready to make sacrifices for the nation's -welfare. There is no such thing as a national sentiment which is -directed towards personal interests. And there is no such thing as a -nationalism that embraces only certain classes. Hurrahing proves nothing -and does not confer the right to call oneself national if behind that -shout there is no sincere preoccupation for the conservation of the -nation's well-being. One can be proud of one's people only if there is -no class left of which one need to be ashamed. When one half of a nation -is sunk in misery and worn out by hard distress, or even depraved or -degenerate, that nation presents such an unattractive picture that -nobody can feel proud to belong to it. It is only when a nation is sound -in all its members, physically and morally, that the joy of belonging to -it can properly be intensified to the supreme feeling which we call -national pride. But this pride, in its highest form, can be felt only by -those who know the greatness of their nation. - -The spirit of nationalism and a feeling for social justice must be fused -into one sentiment in the hearts of the youth. Then a day will come when -a nation of citizens will arise which will be welded together through a -common love and a common pride that shall be invincible and -indestructible for ever. - -The dread of chauvinism, which is a symptom of our time, is a sign of -its impotence. Since our epoch not only lacks everything in the nature -of exuberant energy but even finds such a manifestation disagreeable, -fate will never elect it for the accomplishment of any great deeds. For -the greatest changes that have taken place on this earth would have been -inconceivable if they had not been inspired by ardent and even -hysterical passions, but only by the bourgeois virtues of peacefulness -and order. - -One thing is certain: our world is facing a great revolution. The only -question is whether the outcome will be propitious for the Aryan portion -of mankind or whether the everlasting Jew will profit by it. - -By educating the young generation along the right lines, the People's -State will have to see to it that a generation of mankind is formed -which will be adequate to this supreme combat that will decide the -destinies of the world. - -That nation will conquer which will be the first to take this road. - -The whole organization of education and training which the People's -State is to build up must take as its crowning task the work of -instilling into the hearts and brains of the youth entrusted to it the -racial instinct and understanding of the racial idea. No boy or girl -must leave school without having attained a clear insight into the -meaning of racial purity and the importance of maintaining the racial -blood unadulterated. Thus the first indispensable condition for the -preservation of our race will have been established and thus the future -cultural progress of our people will be assured. - -For in the last analysis all physical and mental training would be in -vain unless it served an entity which is ready and determined to carry -on its own existence and maintain its own characteristic qualities. - -If it were otherwise, something would result which we Germans have cause -to regret already, without perhaps having hitherto recognized the extent -of the tragic calamity. We should be doomed to remain also in the future -only manure for civilization. And that not in the banal sense of the -contemporary bourgeois mind, which sees in a lost fellow member of our -people only a lost citizen, but in a sense which we should have -painfully to recognize: namely, that our racial blood would be destined -to disappear. By continually mixing with other races we might lift them -from their former lower level of civilization to a higher grade; but we -ourselves should descend for ever from the heights we had reached. - -Finally, from the racial standpoint this training also must find its -culmination in the military service. The term of military service is to -be a final stage of the normal training which the average German -receives. - -While the People's State attaches the greatest importance to physical -and mental training, it has also to consider, and no less importantly, -the task of selecting men for the service of the State itself. This -important matter is passed over lightly at the present time. Generally -the children of parents who are for the time being in higher situations -are in their turn considered worthy of a higher education. Here talent -plays a subordinate part. But talent can be estimated only relatively. -Though in general culture he may be inferior to the city child, a -peasant boy may be more talented than the son of a family that has -occupied high positions through many generations. But the superior -culture of the city child has in itself nothing to do with a greater or -lesser degree of talent; for this culture has its roots in the more -copious mass of impressions which arise from the more varied education -and the surroundings among which this child lives. If the intelligent -son of peasant parents were educated from childhood in similar -surroundings his intellectual accomplishments would be quite otherwise. -In our day there is only one sphere where the family in which a person -has been born means less than his innate gifts. That is the sphere of -art. Here, where a person cannot just 'learn,' but must have innate -gifts that later on may undergo a more or less happy development (in the -sense of a wise development of what is already there), money and -parental property are of no account. This is a good proof that genius is -not necessarily connected with the higher social strata or with wealth. -Not rarely the greatest artists come from poor families. And many a boy -from the country village has eventually become a celebrated master. - -It does not say much for the mental acumen of our time that advantage is -not taken of this truth for the sake of our whole intellectual life. The -opinion is advanced that this principle, though undoubtedly valid in the -field of art, has not the same validity in regard to what are called the -applied sciences. It is true that a man can be trained to a certain -amount of mechanical dexterity, just as a poodle can be taught -incredible tricks by a clever master. But such training does not bring -the animal to use his intelligence in order to carry out those tricks. -And the same holds good in regard to man. It is possible to teach men, -irrespective of talent or no talent, to go through certain scientific -exercises, but in such cases the results are quite as inanimate and -mechanical as in the case of the animal. It would even be possible to -force a person of mediocre intelligence, by means of a severe course of -intellectual drilling, to acquire more than the average amount of -knowledge; but that knowledge would remain sterile. The result would be -a man who might be a walking dictionary of knowledge but who will fail -miserably on every critical occasion in life and at every juncture where -vital decisions have to be taken. Such people need to be drilled -specially for every new and even most insignificant task and will never -be capable of contributing in the least to the general progress of -mankind. Knowledge that is merely drilled into people can at best -qualify them to fill government positions under our present regime. - -It goes without saying that, among the sum total of individuals who make -up a nation, gifted people are always to be found in every sphere of -life. It is also quite natural that the value of knowledge will be all -the greater the more vitally the dead mass of learning is animated by -the innate talent of the individual who possesses it. Creative work in -this field can be done only through the marriage of knowledge and -talent. - -One example will suffice to show how much our contemporary world is at -fault in this matter. From time to time our illustrated papers publish, -for the edification of the German philistine, the news that in some -quarter or other of the globe, and for the first time in that locality, -a Negro has become a lawyer, a teacher, a pastor, even a grand opera -tenor or something else of that kind. While the bourgeois blockhead -stares with amazed admiration at the notice that tells him how -marvellous are the achievements of our modern educational technique, the -more cunning Jew sees in this fact a new proof to be utilized for the -theory with which he wants to infect the public, namely that all men are -equal. It does not dawn on the murky bourgeois mind that the fact which -is published for him is a sin against reason itself, that it is an act -of criminal insanity to train a being who is only an anthropoid by birth -until the pretence can be made that he has been turned into a lawyer; -while, on the other hand, millions who belong to the most civilized -races have to remain in positions which are unworthy of their cultural -level. The bourgeois mind does not realize that it is a sin against the -will of the eternal Creator to allow hundreds of thousands of highly -gifted people to remain floundering in the swamp of proletarian misery -while Hottentots and Zulus are drilled to fill positions in the -intellectual professions. For here we have the product only of a -drilling technique, just as in the case of the performing dog. If the -same amount of care and effort were applied among intelligent races each -individual would become a thousand times more capable in such matters. - -This state of affairs would become intolerable if a day should arrive -when it no longer refers to exceptional cases. But the situation is -already intolerable where talent and natural gifts are not taken as -decisive factors in qualifying for the right to a higher education. It -is indeed intolerable to think that year after year hundreds of -thousands of young people without a single vestige of talent are deemed -worthy of a higher education, while other hundreds of thousands who -possess high natural gifts have to go without any sort of higher -schooling at all. The practical loss thus caused to the nation is -incalculable. If the number of important discoveries which have been -made in America has grown considerably in recent years one of the -reasons is that the number of gifted persons belonging to the lowest -social classes who were given a higher education in that country is -proportionately much larger than in Europe. - -A stock of knowledge packed into the brain will not suffice for the -making of discoveries. What counts here is only that knowledge which is -illuminated by natural talent. But with us at the present time no value -is placed on such gifts. Only good school reports count. - -Here is another educative work that is waiting for the People's State to -do. It will not be its task to assure a dominant influence to a certain -social class already existing, but it will be its duty to attract the -most competent brains in the total mass of the nation and promote them -to place and honour. It is not merely the duty of the State to give to -the average child a certain definite education in the primary school, -but it is also its duty to open the road to talent in the proper -direction. And above all, it must open the doors of the higher schools -under the State to talent of every sort, no matter in what social class -it may appear. This is an imperative necessity; for thus alone will it -be possible to develop a talented body of public leaders from the class -which represents learning that in itself is only a dead mass. - -There is still another reason why the State should provide for this -situation. Our intellectual class, particularly in Germany, is so shut -up in itself and fossilized that it lacks living contact with the -classes beneath it. Two evil consequences result from this: First, the -intellectual class neither understands nor sympathizes with the broad -masses. It has been so long cut off from all connection with them that -it cannot now have the necessary psychological ties that would enable it -to understand them. It has become estranged from the people. Secondly, -the intellectual class lacks the necessary will-power; for this faculty -is always weaker in cultivated circles, which live in seclusion, than -among the primitive masses of the people. God knows we Germans have -never been lacking in abundant scientific culture, but we have always -had a considerable lack of will-power and the capacity for making -decisions. For example, the more 'intellectual' our statesmen have been -the more lacking they have been, for the most part, in practical -achievement. Our political preparation and our technical equipment for -the world war were defective, certainly not because the brains governing -the nation were too little educated, but because the men who directed -our public affairs were over-educated, filled to over-flowing with -knowledge and intelligence, yet without any sound instinct and simply -without energy, or any spirit of daring. It was our nation's tragedy to -have to fight for its existence under a Chancellor who was a -dillydallying philosopher. If instead of a Bethmann von Hollweg we had -had a rough man of the people as our leader the heroic blood of the -common grenadier would not have been shed in vain. The exaggeratedly -intellectual material out of which our leaders were made proved to be -the best ally of the scoundrels who carried out the November revolution. -These intellectuals safeguarded the national wealth in a miserly -fashion, instead of launching it forth and risking it, and thus they set -the conditions on which the others won success. - -Here the Catholic Church presents an instructive example. Clerical -celibacy forces the Church to recruit its priests not from their own -ranks but progressively from the masses of the people. Yet there are not -many who recognize the significance of celibacy in this relation. But -therein lies the cause of the inexhaustible vigour which characterizes -that ancient institution. For by thus unceasingly recruiting the -ecclesiastical dignitaries from the lower classes of the people, the -Church is enabled not only to maintain the contact of instinctive -understanding with the masses of the population but also to assure -itself of always being able to draw upon that fund of energy which is -present in this form only among the popular masses. Hence the surprising -youthfulness of that gigantic organism, its mental flexibility and its -iron will-power. - -It will be the task of the Peoples' State so to organize and administer -its educational system that the existing intellectual class will be -constantly furnished with a supply of fresh blood from beneath. From the -bulk of the nation the State must sift out with careful scrutiny those -persons who are endowed with natural talents and see that they are -employed in the service of the community. For neither the State itself -nor the various departments of State exist to furnish revenues for -members of a special class, but to fulfil the tasks allotted to them. -This will be possible, however, only if the State trains individuals -specially for these offices. Such individuals must have the necessary -fundamental capabilities and will-power. The principle does not hold -true only in regard to the civil service but also in regard to all those -who are to take part in the intellectual and moral leadership of the -people, no matter in what sphere they may be employed. The greatness of -a people is partly dependent on the condition that it must succeed in -training the best brains for those branches of the public service for -which they show a special natural aptitude and in placing them in the -offices where they can do their best work for the good of the community. -If two nations of equal strength and quality engage in a mutual conflict -that nation will come out victorious which has entrusted its -intellectual and moral leadership to its best talents and that nation -will go under whose government represents only a common food trough for -privileged groups or classes and where the inner talents of its -individual members are not availed of. - -Of course such a reform seems impossible in the world as it is to-day. -The objection will at once be raised, that it is too much to expect from -the favourite son of a highly-placed civil servant, for instance, that -he shall work with his hands simply because somebody else whose parents -belong to the working-class seems more capable for a job in the civil -service. That argument may be valid as long as manual work is looked -upon in the same way as it is looked upon to-day. Hence the Peoples' -State will have to take up an attitude towards the appreciation of -manual labour which will be fundamentally different from that which now -exists. If necessary, it will have to organize a persistent system of -teaching which will aim at abolishing the present-day stupid habit of -looking down on physical labour as an occupation to be ashamed of. - -The individual will have to be valued, not by the class of work he does -but by the way in which he does it and by its usefulness to the -community. This statement may sound monstrous in an epoch when the most -brainless columnist on a newspaper staff is more esteemed than the most -expert mechanic, merely because the former pushes a pen. But, as I have -said, this false valuation does not correspond to the nature of things. -It has been artificially introduced, and there was a time when it did -not exist at all. The present unnatural state of affairs is one of those -general morbid phenomena that have arisen from our materialistic epoch. -Fundamentally every kind of work has a double value; the one material, -the other ideal. The material value depends on the practical importance -of the work to the life of the community. The greater the number of the -population who benefit from the work, directly or indirectly, the higher -will be its material value. This evaluation is expressed in the material -recompense which the individual receives for his labour. In -contradistinction to this purely material value there is the ideal -value. Here the work performed is not judged by its material importance -but by the degree to which it answers a necessity. Certainly the -material utility of an invention may be greater than that of the service -rendered by an everyday workman; but it is also certain that the -community needs each of those small daily services just as much as the -greater services. From the material point of view a distinction can be -made in the evaluation of different kinds of work according to their -utility to the community, and this distinction is expressed by the -differentiation in the scale of recompense; but on the ideal or abstract -plans all workmen become equal the moment each strives to do his best in -his own field, no matter what that field may be. It is on this that a -man's value must be estimated, and not on the amount of recompense -received. - -In a reasonably directed State care must be taken that each individual -is given the kind of work which corresponds to his capabilities. In -other words, people will be trained for the positions indicated by their -natural endowments; but these endowments or faculties are innate and -cannot be acquired by any amount of training, being a gift from Nature -and not merited by men. Therefore, the way in which men are generally -esteemed by their fellow-citizens must not be according to the kind of -work they do, because that has been more or less assigned to the -individual. Seeing that the kind of work in which the individual is -employed is to be accounted to his inborn gifts and the resultant -training which he has received from the community, he will have to be -judged by the way in which he performs this work entrusted to him by the -community. For the work which the individual performs is not the purpose -of his existence, but only a means. His real purpose in life is to -better himself and raise himself to a higher level as a human being; but -this he can only do in and through the community whose cultural life he -shares. And this community must always exist on the foundations on which -the State is based. He ought to contribute to the conservation of those -foundations. Nature determines the form of this contribution. It is the -duty of the individual to return to the community, zealously and -honestly, what the community has given him. He who does this deserves -the highest respect and esteem. Material remuneration may be given to -him whose work has a corresponding utility for the community; but the -ideal recompense must lie in the esteem to which everybody has a claim -who serves his people with whatever powers Nature has bestowed upon him -and which have been developed by the training he has received from the -national community. Then it will no longer be dishonourable to be an -honest craftsman; but it will be a cause of disgrace to be an -inefficient State official, wasting God's day and filching daily bread -from an honest public. Then it will be looked upon as quite natural that -positions should not be given to persons who of their very nature are -incapable of filling them. - -Furthermore, this personal efficiency will be the sole criterion of the -right to take part on an equal juridical footing in general civil -affairs. - -The present epoch is working out its own ruin. It introduces universal -suffrage, chatters about equal rights but can find no foundation for -this equality. It considers the material wage as the expression of a -man's value and thus destroys the basis of the noblest kind of equality -that can exist. For equality cannot and does not depend on the work a -man does, but only on the manner in which each one does the particular -work allotted to him. Thus alone will mere natural chance be set aside -in determining the work of a man and thus only does the individual -become the artificer of his own social worth. - -At the present time, when whole groups of people estimate each other's -value only by the size of the salaries which they respectively receive, -there will be no understanding of all this. But that is no reason why we -should cease to champion those ideas. Quite the opposite: in an epoch -which is inwardly diseased and decaying anyone who would heal it must -have the courage first to lay bare the real roots of the disease. And -the National Socialist Movement must take that duty on its shoulders. It -will have to lift its voice above the heads of the small bourgeoisie and -rally together and co-ordinate all those popular forces which are ready -to become the protagonists of a new WELTANSCHAUUNG. - - - -Of course the objection will be made that in general it is difficult to -differentiate between the material and ideal values of work and that the -lower prestige which is attached to physical labour is due to the fact -that smaller wages are paid for that kind of work. It will be said that -the lower wage is in its turn the reason why the manual worker has less -chance to participate in the culture of the nation; so that the ideal -side of human culture is less open to him because it has nothing to do -with his daily activities. It may be added that the reluctance to do -physical work is justified by the fact that, on account of the small -income, the cultural level of manual labourers must naturally be low, -and that this in turn is a justification for the lower estimation in -which manual labour is generally held. - -There is quite a good deal of truth in all this. But that is the very -reason why we ought to see that in the future there should not be such a -wide difference in the scale of remuneration. Don't say that under such -conditions poorer work would be done. It would be the saddest symptom of -decadence if finer intellectual work could be obtained only through the -stimulus of higher payment. If that point of view had ruled the world up -to now humanity would never have acquired its greatest scientific and -cultural heritage. For all the greatest inventions, the greatest -discoveries, the most profoundly revolutionary scientific work, and the -most magnificent monuments of human culture, were never given to the -world under the impulse or compulsion of money. Quite the contrary: not -rarely was their origin associated with a renunciation of the worldly -pleasures that wealth can purchase. - -It may be that money has become the one power that governs life to-day. -Yet a time will come when men will again bow to higher gods. Much that -we have to-day owes its existence to the desire for money and property; -but there is very little among all this which would leave the world -poorer by its lack. - -It is also one of the aims before our movement to hold out the prospect -of a time when the individual will be given what he needs for the -purposes of his life and it will be a time in which, on the other hand, -the principle will be upheld that man does not live for material -enjoyment alone. This principle will find expression in a wiser scale of -wages and salaries which will enable everyone, including the humblest -workman who fulfils his duties conscientiously, to live an honourable -and decent life both as a man and as a citizen. Let it not be said that -this is merely a visionary ideal, that this world would never tolerate -it in practice and that of itself it is impossible to attain. - -Even we are not so simple as to believe that there will ever be an age -in which there will be no drawbacks. But that does not release us from -the obligation to fight for the removal of the defects which we have -recognized, to overcome the shortcomings and to strive towards the -ideal. In any case the hard reality of the facts to be faced will always -place only too many limits to our aspirations. But that is precisely why -man must strive again and again to serve the ultimate aim and no -failures must induce him to renounce his intentions, just as we cannot -spurn the sway of justice because mistakes creep into the administration -of the law, and just as we cannot despise medical science because, in -spite of it, there will always be diseases. - -Man should take care not to have too low an estimate of the power of an -ideal. If there are some who may feel disheartened over the present -conditions, and if they happen to have served as soldiers, I would -remind them of the time when their heroism was the most convincing -example of the power inherent in ideal motives. It was not preoccupation -about their daily bread that led men to sacrifice their lives, but the -love of their country, the faith which they had in its greatness, and an -all round feeling for the honour of the nation. Only after the German -people had become estranged from these ideals, to follow the material -promises offered by the Revolution, only after they threw away their -arms to take up the rucksack, only then--instead of entering an earthly -paradise--did they sink into the purgatory of universal contempt and at -the same time universal want. - -That is why we must face the calculators of the materialist Republic -with faith in an idealist REICH. - - - - -CHAPTER III - - - -CITIZENS AND SUBJECTS OF THE STATE - - -The institution that is now erroneously called the State generally -classifies people only into two groups: citizens and aliens. Citizens -are all those who possess full civic rights, either by reason of their -birth or by an act of naturalization. Aliens are those who enjoy the -same rights in some other State. Between these two categories there are -certain beings who resemble a sort of meteoric phenomena. They are -people who have no citizenship in any State and consequently no civic -rights anywhere. - -In most cases nowadays a person acquires civic rights by being born -within the frontiers of a State. The race or nationality to which he may -belong plays no role whatsoever. The child of a Negro who once lived in -one of the German protectorates and now takes up his residence in -Germany automatically becomes a 'German Citizen' in the eyes of the -world. In the same way the child of any Jew, Pole, African or Asian may -automatically become a German Citizen. - -Besides naturalization that is acquired through the fact of having been -born within the confines of a State there exists another kind of -naturalization which can be acquired later. This process is subject to -various preliminary requirements. For example one condition is that, if -possible, the applicant must not be a burglar or a common street thug. -It is required of him that his political attitude is not such as to give -cause for uneasiness; in other words he must be a harmless simpleton in -politics. It is required that he shall not be a burden to the State of -which he wishes to become a citizen. In this realistic epoch of ours -this last condition naturally only means that he must not be a financial -burden. If the affairs of the candidate are such that it appears likely -he will turn out to be a good taxpayer, that is a very important -consideration and will help him to obtain civic rights all the more -rapidly. - -The question of race plays no part at all. - -The whole process of acquiring civic rights is not very different from -that of being admitted to membership of an automobile club, for -instance. A person files his application. It is examined. It is -sanctioned. And one day the man receives a card which informs him that -he has become a citizen. The information is given in an amusing way. An -applicant who has hitherto been a Zulu or Kaffir is told: "By these -presents you are now become a German Citizen." - -The President of the State can perform this piece of magic. What God -Himself could not do is achieved by some Theophrastus Paracelsus (Note 16) -of a civil servant through a mere twirl of the hand. Nothing but a stroke -of the pen, and a Mongolian slave is forthwith turned into a real -German. Not only is no question asked regarding the race to which the -new citizen belongs; even the matter of his physical health is not -inquired into. His flesh may be corrupted with syphilis; but he will -still be welcome in the State as it exists to-day so long as he may not -become a financial burden or a political danger. - -[Note 16. The last and most famous of the medieval alchemists. He was born -at Basleabout the year 1490 and died at Salzburg in 1541. He taught that -all metals could be transmuted through the action of one primary element -common to them all. This element he called ALCAHEST. If it could be found -it would proveto be at once the philosopher's stone, the universal -medicine and their resistible solvent. There are many aspects of his -teaching which are now looked upon as by no means so fantastic as they -were considered in his own time.] - -In this way, year after year, those organisms which we call States take -up poisonous matter which they can hardly ever overcome. - -Another point of distinction between a citizen and an alien is that the -former is admitted to all public offices, that he may possibly have to -do military service and that in return he is permitted to take a passive -or active part at public elections. Those are his chief privileges. For -in regard to personal rights and personal liberty the alien enjoys the -same amount of protection as the citizen, and frequently even more. -Anyhow that is how it happens in our present German Republic. - -I realize fully that nobody likes to hear these things. But it would be -difficult to find anything more illogical or more insane than our -contemporary laws in regard to State citizenship. - -At present there exists one State which manifests at least some modest -attempts that show a better appreciation of how things ought to be done -in this matter. It is not, however, in our model German Republic but in -the U.S.A. that efforts are made to conform at least partly to the -counsels of commonsense. By refusing immigrants to enter there if they -are in a bad state of health, and by excluding certain races from the -right to become naturalized as citizens, they have begun to introduce -principles similar to those on which we wish to ground the People's -State. - -The People's State will classify its population in three groups: -Citizens, subjects of the State, and aliens. - -The principle is that birth within the confines of the State gives only -the status of a subject. It does not carry with it the right to fill any -position under the State or to participate in political life, such as -taking an active or passive part in elections. Another principle is that -the race and nationality of every subject of the State will have to be -proved. A subject is at any time free to cease being a subject and to -become a citizen of that country to which he belongs in virtue of his -nationality. The only difference between an alien and a subject of the -State is that the former is a citizen of another country. - -The young boy or girl who is of German nationality and is a subject of -the German State is bound to complete the period of school education -which is obligatory for every German. Thereby he submits to the system -of training which will make him conscious of his race and a member of -the folk-community. Then he has to fulfil all those requirements laid -down by the State in regard to physical training after he has left -school; and finally he enters the army. The training in the army is of a -general kind. It must be given to each individual German and will render -him competent to fulfil the physical and mental requirements of military -service. The rights of citizenship shall be conferred on every young man -whose health and character have been certified as good, after having -completed his period of military service. This act of inauguration in -citizenship shall be a solemn ceremony. And the diploma conferring the -rights of citizenship will be preserved by the young man as the most -precious testimonial of his whole life. It entitles him to exercise all -the rights of a citizen and to enjoy all the privileges attached -thereto. For the State must draw a sharp line of distinction between -those who, as members of the nation, are the foundation and the support -of its existence and greatness, and those who are domiciled in the State -simply as earners of their livelihood there. - -On the occasion of conferring a diploma of citizenship the new citizen -must take a solemn oath of loyalty to the national community and the -State. This diploma must be a bond which unites together all the various -classes and sections of the nation. It shall be a greater honour to be a -citizen of this REICH, even as a street-sweeper, than to be the King of -a foreign State. - -The citizen has privileges which are not accorded to the alien. He is -the master in the REICH. But this high honour has also its obligations. -Those who show themselves without personal honour or character, or -common criminals, or traitors to the fatherland, can at any time be -deprived of the rights of citizenship. Therewith they become merely -subjects of the State. - -The German girl is a subject of the State but will become a citizen when -she marries. At the same time those women who earn their livelihood -independently have the right to acquire citizenship if they are German -subjects. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - - - -PERSONALITY AND THE IDEAL OF THE PEOPLE'S STATE - - -If the principal duty of the National Socialist People's State be to -educate and promote the existence of those who are the material out of -which the State is formed, it will not be sufficient to promote those -racial elements as such, educate them and finally train them for -practical life, but the State must also adapt its own organization to -meet the demands of this task. - -It would be absurd to appraise a man's worth by the race to which he -belongs and at the same time to make war against the Marxist principle, -that all men are equal, without being determined to pursue our own -principle to its ultimate consequences. If we admit the significance of -blood, that is to say, if we recognize the race as the fundamental -element on which all life is based, we shall have to apply to the -individual the logical consequences of this principle. In general I must -estimate the worth of nations differently, on the basis of the different -races from which they spring, and I must also differentiate in -estimating the worth of the individual within his own race. The -principle, that one people is not the same as another, applies also to -the individual members of a national community. No one brain, for -instance, is equal to another; because the constituent elements -belonging to the same blood vary in a thousand subtle details, though -they are fundamentally of the same quality. - -The first consequence of this fact is comparatively simple. It demands -that those elements within the folk-community which show the best racial -qualities ought to be encouraged more than the others and especially -they should be encouraged to increase and multiply. - -This task is comparatively simple because it can be recognized and -carried out almost mechanically. It is much more difficult to select -from among a whole multitude of people all those who actually possess -the highest intellectual and spiritual characteristics and assign them -to that sphere of influence which not only corresponds to their -outstanding talents but in which their activities will above all things -be of benefit to the nation. This selection according to capacity and -efficiency cannot be effected in a mechanical way. It is a work which -can be accomplished only through the permanent struggle of everyday life -itself. - -A WELTANSCHAUUNG which repudiates the democratic principle of the rule -of the masses and aims at giving this world to the best people--that -is, to the highest quality of mankind--must also apply that same -aristocratic postulate to the individuals within the folk-community. It -must take care that the positions of leadership and highest influence -are given to the best men. Hence it is not based on the idea of the -majority, but on that of personality. - -Anyone who believes that the People's National Socialist State should -distinguish itself from the other States only mechanically, as it were, -through the better construction of its economic life--thanks to a -better equilibrium between poverty and riches, or to the extension to -broader masses of the power to determine the economic process, or to a -fairer wage, or to the elimination of vast differences in the scale of -salaries--anyone who thinks this understands only the superficial -features of our movement and has not the least idea of what we mean when -we speak of our WELTANSCHAUUNG. All these features just mentioned could -not in the least guarantee us a lasting existence and certainly would be -no warranty of greatness. A nation that could content itself with -external reforms would not have the slightest chance of success in the -general struggle for life among the nations of the world. A movement -that would confine its mission to such adjustments, which are certainly -right and equitable, would effect no far-reaching or profound reform in -the existing order. The whole effect of such measures would be limited -to externals. They would not furnish the nation with that moral armament -which alone will enable it effectively to overcome the weaknesses from -which we are suffering to-day. - -In order to elucidate this point of view it may be worth while to glance -once again at the real origins and causes of the cultural evolution of -mankind. - -The first step which visibly brought mankind away from the animal world -was that which led to the first invention. The invention itself owes its -origin to the ruses and stratagems which man employed to assist him in -the struggle with other creatures for his existence and often to provide -him with the only means he could adopt to achieve success in the -struggle. Those first very crude inventions cannot be attributed to the -individual; for the subsequent observer, that is to say the modern -observer, recognizes them only as collective phenomena. Certain tricks -and skilful tactics which can be observed in use among the animals -strike the eye of the observer as established facts which may be seen -everywhere; and man is no longer in a position to discover or explain -their primary cause and so he contents himself with calling such -phenomena 'instinctive.' - -In our case this term has no meaning. Because everyone who believes in -the higher evolution of living organisms must admit that every -manifestation of the vital urge and struggle to live must have had a -definite beginning in time and that one subject alone must have -manifested it for the first time. It was then repeated again and again; -and the practice of it spread over a widening area, until finally it -passed into the subconscience of every member of the species, where it -manifested itself as 'instinct.' - -This is more easily understood and more easy to believe in the case of -man. His first skilled tactics in the struggle with the rest of the -animals undoubtedly originated in his management of creatures which -possessed special capabilities. - -There can be no doubt that personality was then the sole factor in all -decisions and achievements, which were afterwards taken over by the -whole of humanity as a matter of course. An exact exemplification of -this may be found in those fundamental military principles which have -now become the basis of all strategy in war. Originally they sprang from -the brain of a single individual and in the course of many years, maybe -even thousands of years, they were accepted all round as a matter of -course and this gained universal validity. - -Man completed his first discovery by making a second. Among other things -he learned how to master other living beings and make them serve him in -his struggle for existence. And thus began the real inventive activity -of mankind, as it is now visible before our eyes. Those material -inventions, beginning with the use of stones as weapons, which led to -the domestication of animals, the production of fire by artificial -means, down to the marvellous inventions of our own days, show clearly -that an individual was the originator in each case. The nearer we come -to our own time and the more important and revolutionary the inventions -become, the more clearly do we recognize the truth of that statement. -All the material inventions which we see around us have been produced by -the creative powers and capabilities of individuals. And all these -inventions help man to raise himself higher and higher above the animal -world and to separate himself from that world in an absolutely definite -way. Hence they serve to elevate the human species and continually to -promote its progress. And what the most primitive artifice once did for -man in his struggle for existence, as he went hunting through the -primeval forest, that same sort of assistance is rendered him to-day in -the form of marvellous scientific inventions which help him in the -present day struggle for life and to forge weapons for future struggles. -In their final consequences all human thought and invention help man in -his life-struggle on this planet, even though the so-called practical -utility of an invention, a discovery or a profound scientific theory, -may not be evident at first sight. Everything contributes to raise man -higher and higher above the level of all the other creatures that -surround him, thereby strengthening and consolidating his position; so -that he develops more and more in every direction as the ruling being on -this earth. - -Hence all inventions are the result of the creative faculty of the -individual. And all such individuals, whether they have willed it or -not, are the benefactors of mankind, both great and small. Through their -work millions and indeed billions of human beings have been provided -with means and resources which facilitate their struggle for existence. - -Thus at the origin of the material civilization which flourishes to-day -we always see individual persons. They supplement one another and one of -them bases his work on that of the other. The same is true in regard to -the practical application of those inventions and discoveries. For all -the various methods of production are in their turn inventions also and -consequently dependent on the creative faculty of the individual. Even -the purely theoretical work, which cannot be measured by a definite rule -and is preliminary to all subsequent technical discoveries, is -exclusively the product of the individual brain. The broad masses do not -invent, nor does the majority organize or think; but always and in every -case the individual man, the person. - -Accordingly a human community is well organized only when it facilitates -to the highest possible degree individual creative forces and utilizes -their work for the benefit of the community. The most valuable factor of -an invention, whether it be in the world of material realities or in the -world of abstract ideas, is the personality of the inventor himself. The -first and supreme duty of an organized folk community is to place the -inventor in a position where he can be of the greatest benefit to all. -Indeed the very purpose of the organization is to put this principle -into practice. Only by so doing can it ward off the curse of -mechanization and remain a living thing. In itself it must personify the -effort to place men of brains above the multitude and to make the latter -obey the former. - -Therefore not only does the organization possess no right to prevent men -of brains from rising above the multitude but, on the contrary, it must -use its organizing powers to enable and promote that ascension as far as -it possibly can. It must start out from the principle that the blessings -of mankind never came from the masses but from the creative brains of -individuals, who are therefore the real benefactors of humanity. It is -in the interest of all to assure men of creative brains a decisive -influence and facilitate their work. This common interest is surely not -served by allowing the multitude to rule, for they are not capable of -thinking nor are they efficient and in no case whatsoever can they be -said to be gifted. Only those should rule who have the natural -temperament and gifts of leadership. - -Such men of brains are selected mainly, as I have already said, through -the hard struggle for existence itself. In this struggle there are many -who break down and collapse and thereby show that they are not called by -Destiny to fill the highest positions; and only very few are left who -can be classed among the elect. In the realm of thought and of artistic -creation, and even in the economic field, this same process of selection -takes place, although--especially in the economic field--its operation -is heavily handicapped. This same principle of selection rules in the -administration of the State and in that department of power which -personifies the organized military defence of the nation. The idea of -personality rules everywhere, the authority of the individual over his -subordinates and the responsibility of the individual towards the -persons who are placed over him. It is only in political life that this -very natural principle has been completely excluded. Though all human -civilization has resulted exclusively from the creative activity of the -individual, the principle that it is the mass which counts--through the -decision of the majority--makes its appearance only in the -administration of the national community especially in the higher -grades; and from there downwards the poison gradually filters into all -branches of national life, thus causing a veritable decomposition. The -destructive workings of Judaism in different parts of the national body -can be ascribed fundamentally to the persistent Jewish efforts at -undermining the importance of personality among the nations that are -their hosts and, in place of personality, substituting the domination of -the masses. The constructive principle of Aryan humanity is thus -displaced by the destructive principle of the Jews, They become the -'ferment of decomposition' among nations and races and, in a broad -sense, the wreckers of human civilization. - -Marxism represents the most striking phase of the Jewish endeavour to -eliminate the dominant significance of personality in every sphere of -human life and replace it by the numerical power of the masses. In -politics the parliamentary form of government is the expression of this -effort. We can observe the fatal effects of it everywhere, from the -smallest parish council upwards to the highest governing circles of the -nation. In the field of economics we see the trade union movement, which -does not serve the real interests of the employees but the destructive -aims of international Jewry. Just to the same degree in which the -principle of personality is excluded from the economic life of the -nation, and the influence and activities of the masses substituted in -its stead, national economy, which should be for the service and benefit -of the community as a whole, will gradually deteriorate in its creative -capacity. The shop committees which, instead of caring for the interests -of the employees, strive to influence the process of production, serve -the same destructive purpose. They damage the general productive system -and consequently injure the individual engaged in industry. For in the -long run it is impossible to satisfy popular demands merely by -high-sounding theoretical phrases. These can be satisfied only by -supplying goods to meet the individual needs of daily life and by so -doing create the conviction that, through the productive collaboration -of its members, the folk community serves the interests of the -individual. - -Even if, on the basis of its mass-theory, Marxism should prove itself -capable of taking over and developing the present economic system, that -would not signify anything. The question as to whether the Marxist -doctrine be right or wrong cannot be decided by any test which would -show that it can administer for the future what already exists to-day, -but only by asking whether it has the creative power to build up -according to its own principles a civilization which would be a -counterpart of what already exists. Even if Marxism were a thousandfold -capable of taking over the economic life as we now have it and -maintaining it in operation under Marxist direction, such an achievement -would prove nothing; because, on the basis of its own principles, -Marxism would never be able to create something which could supplant -what exists to-day. - -And Marxism itself has furnished the proof that it cannot do this. Not -only has it been unable anywhere to create a cultural or economic system -of its own; but it was not even able to develop, according to its own -principles, the civilization and economic system it found ready at hand. -It has had to make compromises, by way of a return to the principle of -personality, just as it cannot dispense with that principle in its own -organization. - -The racial WELTANSCHAUUNG is fundamentally distinguished from the -Marxist by reason of the fact that the former recognizes the -significance of race and therefore also personal worth and has made -these the pillars of its structure. These are the most important factors -of its WELTANSCHAUUNG. - -If the National Socialist Movement should fail to understand the -fundamental importance of this essential principle, if it should merely -varnish the external appearance of the present State and adopt the -majority principle, it would really do nothing more than compete with -Marxism on its own ground. For that reason it would not have the right -to call itself a WELTANSCHAUUNG. If the social programme of the -movement consisted in eliminating personality and putting the multitude -in its place, then National Socialism would be corrupted with the poison -of Marxism, just as our national-bourgeois parties are. - -The People's State must assure the welfare of its citizens by -recognizing the importance of personal values under all circumstances -and by preparing the way for the maximum of productive efficiency in all -the various branches of economic life, thus securing to the individual -the highest possible share in the general output. - -Hence the People's State must mercilessly expurgate from all the leading -circles in the government of the country the parliamentarian principle, -according to which decisive power through the majority vote is invested -in the multitude. Personal responsibility must be substituted in its -stead. - -From this the following conclusion results: - -The best constitution and the best form of government is that which -makes it quite natural for the best brains to reach a position of -dominant importance and influence in the community. - -Just as in the field of economics men of outstanding ability cannot be -designated from above but must come forward in virtue of their own -efforts, and just as there is an unceasing educative process that leads -from the smallest shop to the largest undertaking, and just as life -itself is the school in which those lessons are taught, so in the -political field it is not possible to 'discover' political talent all in -a moment. Genius of an extraordinary stamp is not to be judged by normal -standards whereby we judge other men. - -In its organization the State must be established on the principle of -personality, starting from the smallest cell and ascending up to the -supreme government of the country. - -There are no decisions made by the majority vote, but only by -responsible persons. And the word 'council' is once more restored to its -original meaning. Every man in a position of responsibility will have -councillors at his side, but the decision is made by that individual -person alone. - -The principle which made the former Prussian Army an admirable -instrument of the German nation will have to become the basis of our -statal constitution, that is to say, full authority over his -subordinates must be invested in each leader and he must be responsible -to those above him. - -Even then we shall not be able to do without those corporations which at -present we call parliaments. But they will be real councils, in the -sense that they will have to give advice. The responsibility can and -must be borne by one individual, who alone will be vested with authority -and the right to command. - -Parliaments as such are necessary because they alone furnish the -opportunity for leaders to rise gradually who will be entrusted -subsequently with positions of special responsibility. - -The following is an outline of the picture which the organization will -present: - -From the municipal administration up to the government of the REICH, the -People's State will not have any body of representatives which makes its -decisions through the majority vote. It will have only advisory bodies -to assist the chosen leader for the time being and he will distribute -among them the various duties they are to perform. In certain fields -they may, if necessary, have to assume full responsibility, such as the -leader or president of each corporation possesses on a larger scale. - -In principle the People's State must forbid the custom of taking advice -on certain political problems--economics, for instance--from persons -who are entirely incompetent because they lack special training and -practical experience in such matters. Consequently the State must divide -its representative bodies into a political chamber and a corporative -chamber that represents the respective trades and professions. - -To assure an effective co-operation between those two bodies, a selected -body will be placed over them. This will be a special senate. - -No vote will be taken in the chambers or senate. They are to be -organizations for work and not voting machines. The individual members -will have consultive votes but no right of decision will be attached -thereto. The right of decision belongs exclusively to the president, who -must be entirely responsible for the matter under discussion. - -This principle of combining absolute authority with absolute -responsibility will gradually cause a selected group of leaders to -emerge; which is not even thinkable in our present epoch of -irresponsible parliamentarianism. - -The political construction of the nation will thereby be brought into -harmony with those laws to which the nation already owes its greatness -in the economic and cultural spheres. - -Regarding the possibility of putting these principles into practice, I -should like to call attention to the fact that the principle of -parliamentarian democracy, whereby decisions are enacted through the -majority vote, has not always ruled the world. On the contrary, we find -it prevalent only during short periods of history, and those have always -been periods of decline in nations and States. - -One must not believe, however, that such a radical change could be -effected by measures of a purely theoretical character, operating from -above downwards; for the change I have been describing could not be -limited to transforming the constitution of a State but would have to -include the various fields of legislation and civic existence as a -whole. Such a revolution can be brought about only by means of a -movement which is itself organized under the inspiration of these -principles and thus bears the germ of the future State in its own -organism. - -Therefore it is well for the National Socialist Movement to make itself -completely familiar with those principles to-day and actually to put -them into practice within its own organization, so that not only will it -be in a position to serve as a guide for the future State but will have -its own organization such that it can subsequently be placed at the -disposal of the State itself. - - - - -CHAPTER V - - - -WELTANSCHAUUNG AND ORGANIZATION - - -The People's State, which I have tried to sketch in general outline, -will not become a reality in virtue of the simple fact that we know the -indispensable conditions of its existence. It does not suffice to know -what aspect such a State would present. The problem of its foundation is -far more important. The parties which exist at present and which draw -their profits from the State as it now is cannot be expected to bring -about a radical change in the regime or to change their attitude on -their own initiative. This is rendered all the more impossible because -the forces which now have the direction of affairs in their hands are -Jews here and Jews there and Jews everywhere. The trend of development -which we are now experiencing would, if allowed to go on unhampered, -lead to the realization of the Pan-Jewish prophecy that the Jews will -one day devour the other nations and become lords of the earth. - -In contrast to the millions of 'bourgeois' and 'proletarian' Germans, -who are stumbling to their ruin, mostly through timidity, indolence and -stupidity, the Jew pursues his way persistently and keeps his eye always -fixed on his future goal. Any party that is led by him can fight for no -other interests than his, and his interests certainly have nothing in -common with those of the Aryan nations. - -If we would transform our ideal picture of the People's State into a -reality we shall have to keep independent of the forces that now control -public life and seek for new forces that will be ready and capable of -taking up the fight for such an ideal. For a fight it will have to be, -since the first objective will not be to build up the idea of the -People's State but rather to wipe out the Jewish State which is now in -existence. As so often happens in the course of history, the main -difficulty is not to establish a new order of things but to clear the -ground for its establishment. Prejudices and egotistic interests join -together in forming a common front against the new idea and in trying by -every means to prevent its triumph, because it is disagreeable to them -or threatens their existence. - -That is why the protagonist of the new idea is unfortunately, in spite -of his {254}desire for constructive work, compelled to wage a -destructive battle first, in order to abolish the existing state of -affairs. - -A doctrine whose principles are radically new and of essential -importance must adopt the sharp probe of criticism as its weapon, though -this may show itself disagreeable to the individual followers. - -It is evidence of a very superficial insight into historical -developments if the so-called folkists emphasize again and again that -they will adopt the use of negative criticism under no circumstances but -will engage only in constructive work. That is nothing but puerile -chatter and is typical of the whole lot of folkists. It is another proof -that the history of our own times has made no impression on these minds. -Marxism too has had its aims to pursue and it also recognizes -constructive work, though by this it understands only the establishment -of despotic rule in the hands of international Jewish finance. -Nevertheless for seventy years its principal work still remains in the -field of criticism. And what disruptive and destructive criticism it has -been! Criticism repeated again and again, until the corrosive acid ate -into the old State so thoroughly that it finally crumbled to pieces. -Only then did the so-called 'constructive' critical work of Marxism -begin. And that was natural, right and logical. An existing order of -things is not abolished by merely proclaiming and insisting on a new -one. It must not be hoped that those who are the partisans of the -existing order and have their interests bound up with it will be -converted and won over to the new movement simply by being shown that -something new is necessary. On the contrary, what may easily happen is -that two different situations will exist side by side and that a -WELTANSCHAUUNG is transformed into a party, above which level it will -not be able to raise itself afterwards. For a WELTANSCHAUUNG is -intolerant and cannot permit another to exist side by side with it. It -imperiously demands its own recognition as unique and exclusive and a -complete transformation in accordance with its views throughout all the -branches of public life. It can never allow the previous state of -affairs to continue in existence by its side. - -And the same holds true of religions. - -Christianity was not content with erecting an altar of its own. It had -first to destroy the pagan altars. It was only in virtue of this -passionate intolerance that an apodictic faith could grow up. And -intolerance is an indispensable condition for the growth of such a -faith. - -It may be objected here that in these phenomena which we find throughout -the history of the world we have to recognize mostly a specifically -Jewish mode of thought and that such fanaticism and intolerance are -typical symptoms of Jewish mentality. That may be a thousandfold true; -and it is a fact deeply to be regretted. The appearance of intolerance -and fanaticism in the history of mankind may be deeply regrettable, and -it may be looked upon as foreign to human nature, but the fact does not -change conditions as they exist to-day. The men who wish to liberate our -German nation from the conditions in which it now exists cannot cudgel -their brains with thinking how excellent it would be if this or that had -never arisen. They must strive to find ways and means of abolishing what -actually exists. A philosophy of life which is inspired by an infernal -spirit of intolerance can only be set aside by a doctrine that is -advanced in an equally ardent spirit and fought for with as determined a -will and which is itself a new idea, pure and absolutely true. - -Each one of us to-day may regret the fact that the advent of -Christianity was the first occasion on which spiritual terror was -introduced into the much freer ancient world, but the fact cannot be -denied that ever since then the world is pervaded and dominated by this -kind of coercion and that violence is broken only by violence and terror -by terror. Only then can a new regime be created by means of -constructive work. Political parties are prone to enter compromises; but -a WELTANSCHAUUNG never does this. A political party is inclined to -adjust its teachings with a view to meeting those of its opponents, but -a WELTANSCHAUUNG proclaims its own infallibility. - -In the beginning, political parties have also and nearly always the -intention of {255}securing an exclusive and despotic domination for -themselves. They always show a slight tendency to become -WELTANSCHHAUUNGen. But the limited nature of their programme is in -itself enough to rob them of that heroic spirit which a WELTANSCHAUUNG -demands. The spirit of conciliation which animates their will attracts -those petty and chicken-hearted people who are not fit to be -protagonists in any crusade. That is the reason why they mostly become -struck in their miserable pettiness very early on the march. They give -up fighting for their ideology and, by way of what they call 'positive -collaboration,' they try as quickly as possible to wedge themselves into -some tiny place at the trough of the existent regime and to stick there -as long as possible. Their whole effort ends at that. And if they should -get shouldered away from the common manger by a competition of more -brutal manners then their only idea is to force themselves in again, by -force or chicanery, among the herd of all the others who have similar -appetites, in order to get back into the front row, and finally--even -at the expense of their most sacred convictions--participate anew in -that beloved spot where they find their fodder. They are the jackals of -politics. - -But a general WELTANSCHAUUNG will never share its place with something -else. Therefore it can never agree to collaborate in any order of things -that it condemns. On the contrary it feels obliged to employ every means -in fighting against the old order and the whole world of ideas belonging -to that order and prepare the way for its destruction. - -These purely destructive tactics, the danger of which is so readily -perceived by the enemy that he forms a united front against them for his -common defence, and also the constructive tactics, which must be -aggressive in order to carry the new world of ideas to success--both -these phases of the struggle call for a body of resolute fighters. Any -new philosophy of life will bring its ideas to victory only if the most -courageous and active elements of its epoch and its people are enrolled -under its standards and grouped firmly together in a powerful fighting -organization. To achieve this purpose it is absolutely necessary to -select from the general system of doctrine a certain number of ideas -which will appeal to such individuals and which, once they are expressed -in a precise and clear-cut form, will serve as articles of faith for a -new association of men. While the programme of the ordinary political -party is nothing but the recipe for cooking up favourable results out of -the next general elections, the programme of a WELTANSCHAUUNG -represents a declaration of war against an existing order of things, -against present conditions, in short, against the established -WELTANSCHAUUNG. - -It is not necessary, however, that every individual fighter for such a -new doctrine need have a full grasp of the ultimate ideas and plans of -those who are the leaders of the movement. It is only necessary that -each should have a clear notion of the fundamental ideas and that he -should thoroughly assimilate a few of the most fundamental principles, -so that he will be convinced of the necessity of carrying the movement -and its doctrines to success. The individual soldier is not initiated in -the knowledge of high strategical plans. But he is trained to submit to -a rigid discipline, to be passionately convinced of the justice and -inner worth of his cause and that he must devote himself to it without -reserve. So, too, the individual follower of a movement must be made -acquainted with its far-reaching purpose, how it is inspired by a -powerful will and has a great future before it. - -Supposing that each soldier in an army were a general, and had the -training and capacity for generalship, that army would not be an -efficient fighting instrument. Similarly a political movement would not -be very efficient in fighting for a WELTANSCHAUUNG if it were made up -exclusively of intellectuals. No, we need the simple soldier also. -Without him no discipline can be established. - -By its very nature, an organization can exist only if leaders of high -intellectual ability are served by a large mass of men who are -emotionally devoted to the cause. To maintain discipline in a company of -two hundred men who are equally intelligent and capable would turn out -more difficult in the long run than in a company of one hundred and -ninety less gifted men and ten who have had a higher education. - -{256}The Social-Democrats have profited very much by recognizing this -truth. They took the broad masses of our people who had just completed -military service and learned to submit to discipline, and they subjected -this mass of men to the discipline of the Social-Democratic -organization, which was no less rigid than the discipline through which -the young men had passed in their military training. The -Social-Democratic organization consisted of an army divided into -officers and men. The German worker who had passed through his military -service became the private soldier in that army, and the Jewish -intellectual was the officer. The German trade union functionaries may -be compared to the non-commissioned officers. The fact, which was always -looked upon with indifference by our middle-classes, that only the -so-called uneducated classes joined Marxism was the very ground on which -this party achieved its success. For while the bourgeois parties, -because they mostly consisted of intellectuals, were only a feckless -band of undisciplined individuals, out of much less intelligent human -material the Marxist leaders formed an army of party combatants who obey -their Jewish masters just as blindly as they formerly obeyed their -German officers. The German middle-classes, who never; bothered their -heads about psychological problems because they felt themselves superior -to such matters, did not think it necessary to reflect on the profound -significance of this fact and the secret danger involved in it. Indeed -they believed. that a political movement which draws its followers -exclusively from intellectual circles must, for that very reason, be of -greater importance and have better grounds. for its chances of success, -and even a greater probability of taking over the government of the -country than a party made up of the ignorant masses. They completely -failed to realize the fact that the strength of a political party never -consists in the intelligence and independent spirit of the rank-and-file -of its members but rather in the spirit of willing obedience with which -they follow their intellectual leaders. What is of decisive importance -is the leadership itself. When two bodies of troops are arrayed in -mutual combat victory will not fall to that side in which every soldier -has an expert knowledge of the rules of strategy, but rather to that -side which has the best leaders and at the same time the best -disciplined, most blindly obedient and best drilled troops. - -That is a fundamental piece of knowledge which we must always bear in -mind when we examine the possibility of transforming a WELTANSCHAUUNG -into a practical reality. - -If we agree that in order to carry a WELTANSCHAUUNG into practical -effect it must be incorporated in a fighting movement, then the logical -consequence is that the programme of such a movement must take account -of the human material at its disposal. Just as the ultimate aims and -fundamental principles must be absolutely definite and unmistakable, so -the propagandist programme must be well drawn up and must be inspired by -a keen sense of its psychological appeals to the minds of those without -whose help the noblest ideas will be doomed to remain in the eternal, -realm of ideas. - -If the idea of the People's State, which is at present an obscure wish, -is one day to attain a clear and definite success, from its vague and -vast mass of thought it will have to put forward certain definite -principles which of their very nature and content are calculated to -attract a broad mass of adherents; in other words, such a group of -people as can guarantee that these principles will be fought for. That -group of people are the German workers. - -That is why the programme of the new movement was condensed into a few -fundamental postulates, twenty-five in all. They are meant first of all -to give the ordinary man a rough sketch of what the movement is aiming -at. They are, so to say, a profession of faith which on the one hand is -meant to win adherents to the movement and, on the other, they are meant -to unite such adherents together in a covenant to which all have -subscribed. - -In these matters we must never lose sight of the following: What we call -the programme of the movement is absolutely right as far as its ultimate -aims are concerned, but as regards the manner in which that programme is -formulated, certain psychological considerations had to be taken -into account. Hence, in the course of time, the opinion may well arise -that certain principles should be expressed differently and might be -better formulated. But any attempt at a different formulation has a -fatal effect in most cases. For something that ought to be fixed and -unshakable thereby becomes the subject of discussion. As soon as one -point alone is removed from the sphere of dogmatic certainty, the -discussion will not simply result in a new and better formulation which -will have greater consistency but may easily lead to endless debates and -general confusion. In such cases the question must always be carefully -considered as to whether a new and more adequate formulation is to be -preferred, though it may cause a controversy within the movement, or -whether it may not be better to retain the old formula which, though -probably not the best, represents an organism enclosed in itself, solid -and internally homogeneous. All experience shows that the second of -these alternatives is preferable. For since in these changes one is -dealing only with external forms such corrections will always appear -desirable and possible. But in the last analysis the generality of -people think superficially and therefore the great danger is that in -what is merely an external formulation of the programme people will see -an essential aim of the movement. In that way the will and the combative -force at the service of the ideas are weakened and the energies that -ought to be directed towards the outer world are dissipated in -programmatic discussions within the ranks of the movement. - -For a doctrine that is actually right in its main features it is less -dangerous to retain a formulation which may no longer be quite adequate -instead of trying to improve it and thereby allowing a fundamental -principle of the movement, which had hitherto been considered as solid -as granite, to become the subject of a general discussion which may have -unfortunate consequences. This is particularly to be avoided as long as -a movement is still fighting for victory. For would it be possible to -inspire people with blind faith in the truth of a doctrine if doubt and -uncertainty are encouraged by continual alterations in its external -formulation? - -The essentials of a teaching must never be looked for in its external -formulas, but always in its inner meaning. And this meaning is -unchangeable. And in its interest one can only wish that a movement -should exclude everything that tends towards disintegration and -uncertainty in order to preserve the unified force that is necessary for -its triumph. - -Here again the Catholic Church has a lesson to teach us. Though -sometimes, and often quite unnecessarily, its dogmatic system is in -conflict with the exact sciences and with scientific discoveries, it is -not disposed to sacrifice a syllable of its teachings. It has rightly -recognized that its powers of resistance would be weakened by -introducing greater or less doctrinal adaptations to meet the temporary -conclusions of science, which in reality are always vacillating. And -thus it holds fast to its fixed and established dogmas which alone can -give to the whole system the character of a faith. And that is the -reason why it stands firmer to-day than ever before. We may prophesy -that, as a fixed pole amid fleeting phenomena, it will continue to -attract increasing numbers of people who will be blindly attached to it -the more rapid the rhythm of changing phenomena around it. - -Therefore whoever really and seriously desires that the idea of the -People's State should triumph must realize that this triumph can be -assured only through a militant movement and that this movement must -ground its strength only on the granite firmness of an impregnable and -firmly coherent programme. In regard to its formulas it must never make -concessions to the spirit of the time but must maintain the form that -has once and for all been decided upon as the right one; in any case -until victory has crowned its efforts. Before this goal has been reached -any attempt to open a discussion on the opportuneness of this or that -point in the programme might tend to disintegrate the solidity and -fighting strength of the movement, according to the measures in which -its followers might take part in such an internal dispute. Some -'improvements' introduced to-day might be subjected to a critical -examination to-morrow, in order to substitute it with something better -{258}the day after. Once the barrier has been taken down the road is -opened and we know only the beginning, but we do not know to what -shoreless sea it may lead. - -This important principle had to be acknowledged in practice by the -members of the National Socialist Movement at its very beginning. In its -programme of twenty-five points the National Socialist German Labour -Party has been furnished with a basis that must remain unshakable. The -members of the movement, both present and future, must never feel -themselves called upon to undertake a critical revision of these leading -postulates, but rather feel themselves obliged to put them into practice -as they stand. Otherwise the next generation would, in its turn and with -equal right, expend its energy in such purely formal work within the -party, instead of winning new adherents to the movement and thus adding -to its power. For the majority of our followers the essence of the -movement will consist not so much in the letter of our theses but in the -meaning that we attribute to them. - -The new movement owes its name to these considerations, and later on its -programme was drawn up in conformity with them. They are the basis of -our propaganda. In order to carry the idea of the People's State to -victory, a popular party had to be founded, a party that did not consist -of intellectual leaders only but also of manual labourers. Any attempt -to carry these theories into effect without the aid of a militant -organization would be doomed to failure to-day, as it has failed in the -past and must fail in the future. That is why the movement is not only -justified but it is also obliged to consider itself as the champion and -representative of these ideas. Just as the fundamental principles of the -National Socialist Movement are based on the folk idea, folk ideas are -National Socialist. If National Socialism would triumph it will have to -hold firm to this fact unreservedly, and here again it has not only the -right but also the duty to emphasize most rigidly that any attempt to -represent the folk idea outside of the National Socialist German Labour -Party is futile and in most cases fraudulent. - -If the reproach should be launched against our movement that it has -'monopolized' the folk idea, there is only one answer to give. - -Not only have we monopolized the folk idea but, to all practical intents -and purposes, we have created it. - -For what hitherto existed under this name was not in the least capable -of influencing the destiny of our people, since all those ideas lacked a -political and coherent formulation. In most cases they are nothing but -isolated and incoherent notions which are more or less right. Quite -frequently these were in open contradiction to one another and in no -case was there any internal cohesion among them. And even if this -internal cohesion existed it would have been much too weak to form the -basis of any movement. - -Only the National Socialist Movement proved capable of fulfilling this -task. - -All kinds of associations and groups, big as well as little, now claim -the title V�LKISCH. This is one result of the work which National -Socialism has done. Without this work, not one of all these parties -would have thought of adopting the word V�LKISCH at all. That expression -would have meant nothing to them and especially their directors would -never have had anything to do with such an idea. Not until the work of -the German National Socialist Labour Party had given this idea a -pregnant meaning did it appear in the mouths of all kinds of people. Our -party above all, by the success of its propaganda, has shown the force -of the folk idea; so much so that the others, in an effort to gain -proselytes, find themselves forced to copy our example, at least in -words. - -Just as heretofore they exploited everything to serve their petty -electoral purposes, to-day they use the word V�LKISCH only as an -external and hollow-sounding phrase for the purpose of counteracting the -force of the impression which the National Socialist Party makes on the -members of those other parties. Only the desire to maintain their -existence and the fear that our movement may prevail, because it is -based on a WELTANSCHAUUNG that is of universal importance, and because -they feel that the exclusive character of our movement betokens danger -for them--only for these reasons do they use words which they -repudiated eight {259}years ago, derided seven years ago, branded as -stupid six years ago, combated five years ago, hated four years ago, and -finally, two years ago, annexed and incorporated them in their present -political vocabulary, employing them as war slogans in their struggle. - -And so it is necessary even now not to cease calling attention to the -fact that not one of those parties has the slightest idea of what the -German nation needs. The most striking proof of this is represented by -the superficial way in which they use the word V�LKISCH. - -Not less dangerous are those who run about as semi-folkists formulating -fantastic schemes which are mostly based on nothing else than a fixed -idea which in itself might be right but which, because it is an isolated -notion, is of no use whatsoever for the formation of a great homogeneous -fighting association and could by no means serve as the basis of its -organization. Those people who concoct a programme which consists partly -of their own ideas and partly of ideas taken from others, about which -they have read somewhere, are often more dangerous than the outspoken -enemies of the V�LKISCH idea. At best they are sterile theorists but -more frequently they are mischievous agitators of the public mind. They -believe that they can mask their intellectual vanity, the futility of -their efforts, and their lack of stability, by sporting flowing beards -and indulging in ancient German gestures. - -In face of all those futile attempts, it is therefore worth while to -recall the time when the new National Socialist Movement began its -fight. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - - - -THE FIRST PERIOD OF OUR STRUGGLE - - -The echoes of our first great meeting, in the banquet hall of the -Hofbr�uhaus on February 24th, 1920, had not yet died away when we began -preparations for our next meeting. Up to that time we had to consider -carefully the venture of holding a small meeting every month or at most -every fortnight in a city like Munich; but now it was decided that we -should hold a mass meeting every week. I need not say that we anxiously -asked ourselves on each occasion again and again: Will the people come -and will they listen? Personally I was firmly convinced that if once -they came they would remain and listen. - -During that period the hall of the Hofbrau Haus in Munich acquired for -us, National Socialists, a sort of mystic significance. Every week there -was a meeting, almost always in that hall, and each time the hall was -better filled than on the former occasion, and our public more -attentive. - -Starting with the theme, 'Responsibility for the War,' which nobody at -that time cared about, and passing on to the discussion of the peace -treaties, we dealt with almost everything that served to stimulate the -minds of our audience and make them interested in our ideas. We drew -attention to the peace treaties. What the new movement prophesied again -and again before those great masses of people has been fulfilled almost -in every detail. To-day it is easy to talk and write about these things. -But in those days a public mass meeting which was attended not by the -small bourgeoisie but by proletarians who had been aroused by agitators, -to criticize the Peace Treaty of Versailles meant an attack on the -Republic and an evidence of reaction, if not of monarchist tendencies. -The moment one uttered the first criticism of the Versailles Treaty one -could expect an immediate reply, which became almost stereotyped: 'And -Brest-Litowsk?' 'Brest-Litowsk!' And then the crowd would murmur and the -murmur would gradually swell into a roar, until the speaker would have -to give up his attempt to persuade them. It would be like knocking one's -head against a wall, so desperate were these people. They would not -listen nor understand that Versailles was a scandal and a disgrace and -that the dictate signified an act of highway robbery against our people. -The disruptive work done by the Marxists and the poisonous propaganda of -the external enemy had robbed these people of their reason. And one had -no right to complain. For the guilt on this side was enormous. What had -the German bourgeoisie done to call a halt to this terrible campaign of -disintegration, to oppose it and open a way to a recognition of the -truth by giving a better and more thorough explanation of the situation -than that of the Marxists? Nothing, nothing. At that time I never saw -those who are now the great apostles of the people. Perhaps they spoke -to select groups, at tea parties of their own little coteries; but there -where they should have been, where the wolves were at work, they never -risked their appearance, unless it gave them the opportunity of yelling -in concert with the wolves. - -As for myself, I then saw clearly that for the small group which first -composed our movement the question of war guilt had to be cleared up, -and cleared up in the light of historical truth. A preliminary condition -for the future success of our movement was that it should bring -knowledge of the meaning of the peace treaties to the minds of the -popular masses. In the opinion of the masses, the peace treaties then -signified a democratic success. Therefore, it was necessary to take the -opposite side and dig ourselves into the minds of the people as the -enemies of the peace treaties; so that later on, when the naked truth of -this despicable swindle would be disclosed in all its hideousness, the -people would recall the position which we then took and would give us -their confidence. - -Already at that time I took up my stand on those important fundamental -questions where public opinion had gone wrong as a whole. I opposed -these wrong notions without regard either for popularity or for hatred, -and I was ready to face the fight. The National Socialist German Labour -Party ought not to be the beadle but rather the master of public -opinion. It must not serve the masses but rather dominate them. - -In the case of every movement, especially during its struggling stages, -there is naturally a temptation to conform to the tactics of an opponent -and use the same battle-cries, when his tactics have succeeded in -leading the people to crazy conclusions or to adopt mistaken attitudes -towards the questions at issue. This temptation is particularly strong -when motives can be found, though they are entirely illusory, that seem -to point towards the same ends which the young movement is aiming at. -Human poltroonery will then all the more readily adopt those arguments -which give it a semblance of justification, 'from its own point of -view,' in participating in the criminal policy which the adversary is -following. - -On several occasions I have experienced such cases, in which the -greatest energy had to be employed to prevent the ship of our movement -from being drawn into a general current which had been started -artificially, and indeed from sailing with it. The last occasion was -when our German Press, the Hecuba of the existence of the German nation, -succeeded in bringing the question of South Tyrol into a position of -importance which was seriously damaging to the interests of the German -people. Without considering what interests they were serving, several -so-called 'national' men, parties and leagues, joined in the general -cry, simply for fear of public opinion which had been excited by the -Jews, and foolishly contributed to help in the struggle against a system -which we Germans ought, particularly in those days, to consider as the -one ray of light in this distracted world. While the international -World-Jew is slowly but surely strangling us, our so-called patriots -vociferate against a man and his system which have had the courage to -liberate themselves from the shackles of Jewish Freemasonry at least in -one quarter of the globe and to set the forces of national resistance -against the international world-poison. But weak characters were tempted -to set their sails according to the direction of the wind and capitulate -before the shout of public opinion. For it was veritably a capitulation. -They are so much in the habit of lying and so morally base that men may -not admit this even to themselves, but the truth remains that only -cowardice and fear of the public feeling aroused by the Jews induced -certain people to join in the hue and cry. All the other reasons put -forward were only miserable excuses of paltry culprits who were -conscious of their own crime. - -There it was necessary to grasp the rudder with an iron hand and turn -the movement about, so as to save it from a course that would have led -it on the rocks. Certainly to attempt such a change of course was not a -popular manoeuvre at that time, because all the leading forces of public -opinion had been active and a great flame of public feeling illuminated -only one direction. Such a decision almost always brings disfavour on -those who dare to take it. In the course of history not a few men have -been stoned for an act for which posterity has afterwards thanked them -on its knees. - -But a movement must count on posterity and not on the plaudits of the -movement. It may well be that at such moments certain individuals have -to endure hours of anguish; but they should not forget that the moment -of liberation will come and that a movement which purposes to reshape -the world must serve the future and not the passing hour. - -On this point it may be asserted that the greatest and most enduring -successes in history are mostly those which were least understood at the -beginning, because they were in strong contrast to public opinion and -the views and wishes of the time. - -We had experience of this when we made our own first public appearance. -In all truth it can be said that we did not court public favour but made -an onslaught on the follies of our people. In those days the following -happened almost always: I presented myself before an assembly of men who -believed the opposite of what I wished to say and who wanted the -opposite of what I believed in. Then I had to spend a couple of hours in -persuading two or three thousand people to give up the opinions they had -first held, in destroying the foundations of their views with one blow -after another and finally in leading them over to take their stand on -the grounds of our own convictions and our WELTANSCHAUUNG. - -I learned something that was important at that time, namely, to snatch -from the hands of the enemy the weapons which he was using in his reply. -I soon noticed that our adversaries, especially in the persons of those -who led the discussion against us, were furnished with a definite -repertoire of arguments out of which they took points against our claims -which were being constantly repeated. The uniform character of this mode -of procedure pointed to a systematic and unified training. And so we -were able to recognize the incredible way in which the enemy's -propagandists had been disciplined, and I am proud to-day that I -discovered a means not only of making this propaganda ineffective but of -beating the artificers of it at their own work. Two years later I was -master of that art. - -In every speech which I made it was important to get a clear idea -beforehand of the probable form and matter of the counter-arguments we -had to expect in the discussion, so that in the course of my own speech -these could be dealt with and refuted. To this end it was necessary to -mention all the possible objections and show their inconsistency; it was -all the easier to win over an honest listener by expunging from his -memory the arguments which had been impressed upon it, so that we -anticipated our replies. What he had learned was refuted without having -been mentioned by him and that made him all the more attentive to what I -had to say. - -That was the reason why, after my first lecture on the 'Peace Treaty of -Versailles,' which I delivered to the troops while I was still a -political instructor in my regiment, I made an alteration in the title -and subject and henceforth spoke on 'The Treaties of Brest-Litowsk and -Versailles.' For after the discussion which followed my first lecture I -quickly ascertained that in reality people knew nothing about the Treaty -of Brest-Litowsk and that able party propaganda had succeeded in -presenting that Treaty as one of the most scandalous acts of violence in -the history of the world. - -As a result of the persistency with which this falsehood was repeated -again and again before the masses of the people, millions of Germans saw -in the Treaty of Versailles a just castigation for the crime we had -committed at Brest-Litowsk. Thus they considered all opposition to -Versailles as unjust and in many cases there was an honest moral dislike -to such a proceeding. And this was also the reason why the shameless and -monstrous word 'Reparations' came into common use in Germany. This -hypocritical falsehood appeared to millions of our exasperated fellow -countrymen as the fulfilment of a higher justice. It is a terrible -thought, but the fact was so. The best proof of this was the propaganda -which I initiated against Versailles by explaining the Treaty of -Brest-Litowsk. I compared the two treaties with one another, point by -point, and showed how in truth the one treaty was immensely humane, in -contradistinction to the inhuman barbarity of the other. The effect was -very striking. Then I spoke on this theme before an assembly of two -thousand persons, during which I often saw three thousand six hundred -hostile eyes fixed on me. And three hours later I had in front of me a -swaying mass of righteous indignation and fury. A great lie had been -uprooted from the hearts and brains of a crowd composed of thousands of -individuals and a truth had been implanted in its place. - -The two lectures--that 'On the Causes of the World War' and 'On the -Peace Treaties of Brest-Litowsk and Versailles' respectively--I then -considered as the most important of all. Therefore I repeated them -dozens of times, always giving them a new intonation; until at least on -those points a definitely clear and unanimous opinion reigned among -those from whom our movement recruited its first members. - -Furthermore, these gatherings brought me the advantage that I slowly -became a platform orator at mass meetings, and gave me practice in the -pathos and gesture required in large halls that held thousands of -people. - -Outside of the small circles which I have mentioned, at that time I -found no party engaged in explaining things to the people in this way. -Not one of these parties was then active which talk to-day as if it was -they who had brought about the change in public opinion. If a political -leader, calling himself a nationalist, pronounced a discourse somewhere -or other on this theme it was only before circles which for the most -part were already of his own conviction and among whom the most that was -done was to confirm them in their opinions. But that was not what was -needed then. What was needed was to win over through propaganda and -explanation those whose opinions and mental attitudes held them bound to -the enemy's camp. - -The one-page circular was also adopted by us to help in this propaganda. -While still a soldier I had written a circular in which I contrasted the -Treaty of Brest-Litowsk with that of Versailles. That circular was -printed and distributed in large numbers. Later on I used it for the -party, and also with good success. Our first meetings were distinguished -by the fact that there were tables covered with leaflets, papers, and -pamphlets of every kind. But we relied principally on the spoken word. -And, in fact, this is the only means capable of producing really great -revolutions, which can be explained on general psychological grounds. - -In the first volume I have already stated that all the formidable events -which have changed the aspect of the world were carried through, not by -the written but by the spoken word. On that point there was a long -discussion in a certain section of the Press during the course of which -our shrewd bourgeois people strongly opposed my thesis. But the reason -for this attitude confounded the sceptics. The bourgeois intellectuals -protested against my attitude simply because they themselves did not -have the force or ability to influence the masses through the spoken -word; for they always relied exclusively on the help of writers and did -not enter the arena themselves as orators for the purpose of arousing -the people. The development of events necessarily led to that condition -of affairs which is characteristic of the bourgeoisie to-day, namely, -the loss of the psychological instinct to act upon and influence the -masses. - -An orator receives continuous guidance from the people before whom he -speaks. This helps him to correct the direction of his speech; for he -can always gauge, by the faces of his hearers, how far they follow and -understand him, and whether his words are producing the desired effect. -But the writer does not know his reader at all. Therefore, from the -outset he does not address himself to a definite human group of persons -which he has before his eyes but must write in a general way. Hence, up -to a certain extent he must fail in psychological finesse and -flexibility. Therefore, in general it may be said that a brilliant -orator writes better than a brilliant writer can speak, unless the -latter has continual practice in public speaking. One must also remember -that of itself the multitude is mentally inert, that it remains attached -to its old habits and that it is not naturally prone to read something -which does not conform with its own pre-established beliefs when such -writing does not contain what the multitude hopes to find there. -Therefore, some piece of writing which has a particular tendency is for -the most part read only by those who are in sympathy with it. Only a -leaflet or a placard, on account of its brevity, can hope to arouse a -momentary interest in those whose opinions differ from it. The picture, -in all its forms, including the film, has better prospects. Here there -is less need of elaborating the appeal to the intelligence. It is -sufficient if one be careful to have quite short texts, because many -people are more ready to accept a pictorial presentation than to read a -long written description. In a much shorter time, at one stroke I might -say, people will understand a pictorial presentation of something which -it would take them a long and laborious effort of reading to understand. - -The most important consideration, however, is that one never knows into -what hands a piece of written material comes and yet the form in which -its subject is presented must remain the same. In general the effect is -greater when the form of treatment corresponds to the mental level of -the reader and suits his nature. Therefore, a book which is meant for -the broad masses of the people must try from the very start to gain its -effects through a style and level of ideas which would be quite -different from a book intended to be read by the higher intellectual -classes. - -Only through his capacity for adaptability does the force of the written -word approach that of oral speech. The orator may deal with the same -subject as a book deals with; but if he has the genius of a great and -popular orator he will scarcely ever repeat the same argument or the -same material in the same form on two consecutive occasions. He will -always follow the lead of the great mass in such a way that from the -living emotion of his hearers the apt word which he needs will be -suggested to him and in its turn this will go straight to the hearts of -his hearers. Should he make even a slight mistake he has the living -correction before him. As I have already said, he can read the play of -expression on the faces of his hearers, first to see if they understand -what he says, secondly to see if they take in the whole of his argument, -and, thirdly, in how far they are convinced of the justice of what has -been placed before them. Should he observe, first, that his hearers do -not understand him he will make his explanation so elementary and clear -that they will be able to grasp it, even to the last individual. -Secondly, if he feels that they are not capable of following him he will -make one idea follow another carefully and slowly until the most -slow-witted hearer no longer lags behind. Thirdly, as soon as he has the -feeling that they do not seem convinced that he is right in the way he -has put things to them he will repeat his argument over and over again, -always giving fresh illustrations, and he himself will state their -unspoken objection. He will repeat these objections, dissecting them and -refuting them, until the last group of the opposition show him by their -behaviour and play of expression that they have capitulated before his -exposition of the case. - -Not infrequently it is a case of overcoming ingrained prejudices which -are mostly unconscious and are supported by sentiment rather than -reason. It is a thousand times more difficult to overcome this barrier -of instinctive aversion, emotional hatred and preventive dissent than to -correct opinions which are founded on defective or erroneous knowledge. -False ideas and ignorance may be set aside by means of instruction, but -emotional resistance never can. Nothing but an appeal to these hidden -forces will be effective here. And that appeal can be made by scarcely -any writer. Only the orator can hope to make it. - -A very striking proof of this is found in the fact that, though we had a -bourgeois Press which in many cases was well written and produced and -had a circulation of millions among the people, it could not prevent the -broad masses from becoming the implacable enemies of the bourgeois -class. The deluge of papers and books published by the intellectual -circles year after year passed over the millions of the lower social -strata like water over glazed leather. This proves that one of two -things must be true: either that the matter offered in the bourgeois -Press was worthless or that it is impossible to reach the hearts of the -broad masses by means of the written word alone. Of course, the latter -would be specially true where the written material shows such little -psychological insight as has hitherto been the case. - -It is useless to object here, as certain big Berlin papers of -German-National tendencies have attempted to do, that this statement is -refuted by the fact that the Marxists have exercised their greatest -influence through their writings, and especially through their principal -book, published by Karl Marx. Seldom has a more superficial argument -been based on a false assumption. What gave Marxism its amazing -influence over the broad masses was not that formal printed work which -sets forth the Jewish system of ideas, but the tremendous oral -propaganda carried on for years among the masses. Out of one hundred -thousand German workers scarcely one hundred know of Marx's book. It has -been studied much more in intellectual circles and especially by the -Jews than by the genuine followers of the movement who come from the -lower classes. That work was not written for the masses, but exclusively -for the intellectual leaders of the Jewish machine for conquering the -world. The engine was heated with quite different stuff: namely, the -journalistic Press. What differentiates the bourgeois Press from the -Marxist Press is that the latter is written by agitators, whereas the -bourgeois Press would like to carry on agitation by means of -professional writers. The Social-Democrat sub-editor, who almost always -came directly from the meeting to the editorial offices of his paper, -felt his job on his finger-tips. But the bourgeois writer who left his -desk to appear before the masses already felt ill when he smelled the -very odour of the crowd and found that what he had written was useless -to him. - -What won over millions of workpeople to the Marxist cause was not the EX -CATHEDRA style of the Marxist writers but the formidable propagandist -work done by tens of thousands of indefatigable agitators, commencing -with the leading fiery agitator down to the smallest official in the -syndicate, the trusted delegate and the platform orator. Furthermore, -there were the hundreds of thousands of meetings where these orators, -standing on tables in smoky taverns, hammered their ideas into the heads -of the masses, thus acquiring an admirable psychological knowledge of -the human material they had to deal with. And in this way they were -enabled to select the best weapons for their assault on the citadel of -public opinion. In addition to all this there were the gigantic -mass-demonstrations with processions in which a hundred thousand men -took part. All this was calculated to impress on the petty-hearted -individual the proud conviction that, though a small worm, he was at the -same time a cell of the great dragon before whose devastating breath the -hated bourgeois world would one day be consumed in fire and flame, and -the dictatorship of the proletariat would celebrate its conclusive -victory. - -This kind of propaganda influenced men in such a way as to give them a -taste for reading the Social Democratic Press and prepare their minds -for its teaching. That Press, in its turn, was a vehicle of the spoken -word rather than of the written word. Whereas in the bourgeois camp -professors and learned writers, theorists and authors of all kinds, made -attempts at talking, in the Marxist camp real speakers often made -attempts at writing. And it was precisely the Jew who was most prominent -here. In general and because of his shrewd dialectical skill and his -knack of twisting the truth to suit his own purposes, he was an -effective writer but in reality his M�TIER was that of a revolutionary -orator rather than a writer. - -For this reason the journalistic bourgeois world, setting aside the fact -that here also the Jew held the whip hand and that therefore this press -did not really interest itself in the instructtion of the broad masses, -was not able to exercise even the least influence over the opinions held -by the great masses of our people. - -It is difficult to remove emotional prejudices, psychological bias, -feelings, etc., and to put others in their place. Success depends here -on imponderable conditions and influences. Only the orator who is gifted -with the most sensitive insight can estimate all this. Even the time of -day at which the speech is delivered has a decisive influence on its -results. The same speech, made by the same orator and on the same theme, -will have very different results according as it is delivered at ten -o'clock in the forenoon, at three in the afternoon, or in the evening. -When I first engaged in public speaking I arranged for meetings to take -place in the forenoon and I remember particularly a demonstration that -we held in the Munich Kindl Keller 'Against the Oppression of German -Districts.' That was the biggest hall then in Munich and the audacity of -our undertaking was great. In order to make the hour of the meeting -attractive for all the members of our movement and the other people who -might come, I fixed it for ten o'clock on a Sunday morning. The result -was depressing. But it was very instructive. The hall was filled. The -impression was profound, but the general feeling was cold as ice. Nobody -got warmed up, and I myself, as the speaker of the occasion, felt -profoundly unhappy at the thought that I could not establish the -slightest contact with my audience. I do not think I spoke worse than -before, but the effect seemed absolutely negative. I left the hall very -discontented, but also feeling that I had gained a new experience. Later -on I tried the same kind of experiment, but always with the same -results. - -That was nothing to be wondered at. If one goes to a theatre to see a -matin�e performance and then attends an evening performance of the same -play one is astounded at the difference in the impressions created. A -sensitive person recognizes for himself the fact that these two states -of mind caused by the matinee and the evening performance respectively -are quite different in themselves. The same is true of cinema -productions. This latter point is important; for one may say of the -theatre that perhaps in the afternoon the actor does not make the same -effort as in the evening. But surely it cannot be said that the cinema -is different in the afternoon from what it is at nine o'clock in the -evening. No, here the time exercises a distinct influence, just as a -room exercises a distinct influence on a person. There are rooms which -leave one cold, for reasons which are difficult to explain. There are -rooms which refuse steadfastly to allow any favourable atmosphere to be -created in them. Moreover, certain memories and traditions which are -present as pictures in the human mind may have a determining influence -on the impression produced. Thus, a representation of Parsifal at -Bayreuth will have an effect quite different from that which the same -opera produces in any other part of the world. The mysterious charm of -the House on the 'Festival Heights' in the old city of The Margrave -cannot be equalled or substituted anywhere else. - -In all these cases one deals with the problem of influencing the freedom -of the human will. And that is true especially of meetings where there -are men whose wills are opposed to the speaker and who must be brought -around to a new way of thinking. In the morning and during the day it -seems that the power of the human will rebels with its strongest energy -against any attempt to impose upon it the will or opinion of another. On -the other hand, in the evening it easily succumbs to the domination of a -stronger will. Because really in such assemblies there is a contest -between two opposite forces. The superior oratorical art of a man who -has the compelling character of an apostle will succeed better in -bringing around to a new way of thinking those who have naturally been -subjected to a weakening of their forces of resistance rather than in -converting those who are in full possession of their volitional and -intellectual energies. - -The mysterious artificial dimness of the Catholic churches also serves -this purpose, the burning candles, the incense, the thurible, etc. - -In this struggle between the orator and the opponent whom he must -convert to his cause this marvellous sensibility towards the -psychological influences of propaganda can hardly ever be availed of by -an author. Generally speaking, the effect of the writer's work helps -rather to conserve, reinforce and deepen the foundations of a mentality -already existing. All really great historical revolutions were not -produced by the written word. At most, they were accompanied by it. - -It is out of the question to think that the French Revolution could have -been carried into effect by philosophizing theories if they had not -found an army of agitators led by demagogues of the grand style. These -demagogues inflamed popular passion that had been already aroused, until -that volcanic eruption finally broke out and convulsed the whole of -Europe. And the same happened in the case of the gigantic Bolshevik -revolution which recently took place in Russia. It was not due to the -writers on Lenin's side but to the oratorical activities of those who -preached the doctrine of hatred and that of the innumerable small and -great orators who took part in the agitation. - -The masses of illiterate Russians were not fired to Communist -revolutionary enthusiasm by reading the theories of Karl Marx but by the -promises of paradise made to the people by thousands of agitators in the -service of an idea. - -It was always so, and it will always be so. - -It is just typical of our pig-headed intellectuals, who live apart from -the practical world, to think that a writer must of necessity be -superior to an orator in intelligence. This point of view was once -exquisitely illustrated by a critique, published in a certain National -paper which I have already mentioned, where it was stated that one is -often disillusioned by reading the speech of an acknowledged great -orator in print. That reminded me of another article which came into my -hands during the War. It dealt with the speeches of Lloyd George, who -was then Minister of Munitions, and examined them in a painstaking way -under the microscope of criticism. The writer made the brilliant -statement that these speeches showed inferior intelligence and learning -and that, moreover, they were banal and commonplace productions. I -myself procured some of these speeches, published in pamphlet form, and -had to laugh at the fact that a normal German quill-driver did not in -the least understand these psychological masterpieces in the art of -influencing the masses. This man criticized these speeches exclusively -according to the impression they made on his own blas� mind, whereas the -great British Demagogue had produced an immense effect on his audience -through them, and in the widest sense on the whole of the British -populace. Looked at from this point of view, that Englishman's speeches -were most wonderful achievements, precisely because they showed an -astounding knowledge of the soul of the broad masses of the people. For -that reason their effect was really penetrating. Compare with them the -futile stammerings of a Bethmann-Hollweg. On the surface his speeches -were undoubtedly more intellectual, but they just proved this man's -inability to speak to the people, which he really could not do. -Nevertheless, to the average stupid brain of the German writer, who is, -of course, endowed with a lot of scientific learning, it came quite -natural to judge the speeches of the English Minister--which were made -for the purpose of influencing the masses--by the impression which they -made on his own mind, fossilized in its abstract learning. And it was -more natural for him to compare them in the light of that impression -with the brilliant but futile talk of the German statesman, which of -course appealed to the writer's mind much more favourably. That the -genius of Lloyd George was not only equal but a thousandfold superior to -that of a Bethmann-Hollweg is proved by the fact that he found for his -speeches that form and expression which opened the hearts of his people -to him and made these people carry out his will absolutely. The -primitive quality itself of those speeches, the originality of his -expressions, his choice of clear and simple illustration, are examples -which prove the superior political capacity of this Englishman. For one -must never judge the speech of a statesman to his people by the -impression which it leaves on the mind of a university professor but by -the effect it produces on the people. And this is the sole criterion of -the orator's genius. - -The astonishing development of our movement, which was created from -nothing a few years ago and is to-day singled out for persecution by all -the internal and external enemies of our nation, must be attributed to -the constant recognition and practical application of those principles. - -Written matter also played an important part in our movement; but at the -stage of which I am writing it served to give an equal and uniform -education to the directors of the movement, in the upper as well as in -the lower grades, rather than to convert the masses of our adversaries. -It was only in very rare cases that a convinced and devoted Social -Democrat or Communist was induced to acquire an understanding of our -WELTANSCHAUUNG or to study a criticism of his own by procuring and -reading one of our pamphlets or even one of our books. Even a newspaper -is rarely read if it does not bear the stamp of a party affiliation. -Moreover, the reading of newspapers helps little; because the general -picture given by a single number of a newspaper is so confused and -produces such a fragmentary impression that it really does not influence -the occasional reader. And where a man has to count his pennies it -cannot be assumed that, exclusively for the purpose of being objectively -informed, he will become a regular reader or subscriber to a paper which -opposes his views. Only one who has already joined a movement will -regularly read the party organ of that movement, and especially for the -purpose of keeping himself informed of what is happening in the -movement. - -It is quite different with the 'spoken' leaflet. Especially if it be -distributed gratis it will be taken up by one person or another, all the -more willingly if its display title refers to a question about which -everybody is talking at the moment. Perhaps the reader, after having -read through such a leaflet more or less thoughtfully, will have new -viewpoints and mental attitudes and may give his attention to a new -movement. But with these, even in the best of cases, only a small -impulse will be given, but no definite conviction will be created; -because the leaflet can do nothing more than draw attention to something -and can become effective only by bringing the reader subsequently into a -situation where he is more fundamentally informed and instructed. Such -instruction must always be given at the mass assembly. - -Mass assemblies are also necessary for the reason that, in attending -them, the individual who felt himself formerly only on the point of -joining the new movement, now begins to feel isolated and in fear of -being left alone as he acquires for the first time the picture of a -great community which has a strengthening and encouraging effect on most -people. Brigaded in a company or battalion, surrounded by his -companions, he will march with a lighter heart to the attack than if he -had to march alone. In the crowd he feels himself in some way thus -sheltered, though in reality there are a thousand arguments against such -a feeling. - -Mass demonstrations on the grand scale not only reinforce the will of -the individual but they draw him still closer to the movement and help -to create an ESPRIT DE CORPS. The man who appears first as the -representative of a new doctrine in his place of business or in his -factory is bound to feel himself embarrassed and has need of that -reinforcement which comes from the consciousness that he is a member of -a great community. And only a mass demonstration can impress upon him -the greatness of this community. If, on leaving the shop or mammoth -factory, in which he feels very small indeed, he should enter a vast -assembly for the first time and see around him thousands and thousands -of men who hold the same opinions; if, while still seeking his way, he -is gripped by the force of mass-suggestion which comes from the -excitement and enthusiasm of three or four thousand other men in whose -midst he finds himself; if the manifest success and the concensus of -thousands confirm the truth and justice of the new teaching and for the -first time raise doubt in his mind as to the truth of the opinions held -by himself up to now--then he submits himself to the fascination of -what we call mass-suggestion. The will, the yearning and indeed the -strength of thousands of people are in each individual. A man who enters -such a meeting in doubt and hesitation leaves it inwardly fortified; he -has become a member of a community. - -The National Socialist Movement should never forget this, and it should -never allow itself to be influenced by these bourgeois duffers who think -they know everything but who have foolishly gambled away a great State, -together with their own existence and the supremacy of their own class. -They are overflowing with ability; they can do everything, and they know -everything. But there is one thing they have not known how to do, and -that is how to save the German people from falling into the arms of -Marxism. In that they have shown themselves most pitiably and miserably -impotent. So that the present opinion they have of themselves is only -equal to their conceit. Their pride and stupidity are fruits of the same -tree. - -If these people try to disparage the importance of the spoken word -to-day, they do it only because they realize--God be praised and -thanked--how futile all their own speechifying has been. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - - - -THE CONFLICT WITH THE RED FORCES - - -In 1919-20 and also in 1921 I attended some of the bourgeois meetings. -Invariably I had the same feeling towards these as towards the -compulsory dose of castor oil in my boyhood days. It just had to be -taken because it was good for one: but it certainly tasted unpleasant. -If it were possible to tie ropes round the German people and forcibly -drag them to these bourgeois meetings, keeping them there behind barred -doors and allowing nobody to escape until the meeting closed, then this -procedure might prove successful in the course of a few hundred years. -For my own part, I must frankly admit that, under such circumstances, I -could not find life worth living; and indeed I should no longer wish to -be a German. But, thank God, all this is impossible. And so it is not -surprising that the sane and unspoilt masses shun these 'bourgeois mass -meetings' as the devil shuns holy water. - -I came to know the prophets of the bourgeois WELTANSCHAUUNG, and I was -not surprised at what I learned, as I knew that they attached little -importance to the spoken word. At that time I attended meetings of the -Democrats, the German Nationalists, the German People's Party and the -Bavarian People's Party (the Centre Party of Bavaria). What struck me at -once was the homogeneous uniformity of the audiences. Nearly always they -were made up exclusively of party members. The whole affair was more -like a yawning card party than an assembly of people who had just passed -through a great revolution. The speakers did all they could to maintain -this tranquil atmosphere. They declaimed, or rather read out, their -speeches in the style of an intellectual newspaper article or a learned -treatise, avoiding all striking expressions. Here and there a feeble -professorial joke would be introduced, whereupon the people sitting at -the speaker's table felt themselves obliged to laugh--not loudly but -encouragingly and with well-bred reserve. - -And there were always those people at the speaker's table. I once -attended a meeting in the Wagner Hall in Munich. It was a demonstration -to celebrate the anniversary of the Battle of Leipzig. (Note 17) The -speech was delivered or rather read out by a venerable old professor from -one or other of the universities. The committee sat on the platform: one -monocle on the right, another monocle on the left, and in the centre a -gentleman with no monocle. All three of them were punctiliously attired -in morning coats, and I had the impression of being present before a -judge's bench just as the death sentence was about to be pronounced or -at a christening or some more solemn religious ceremony. The so-called -speech, which in printed form may have read quite well, had a disastrous -effect. After three quarters of an hour the audience fell into a sort of -hypnotic trance, which was interrupted only when some man or woman left -the hall, or by the clatter which the waitresses made, or by the -increasing yawns of slumbering individuals. I had posted myself behind -three workmen who were present either out of curiosity or because they -were sent there by their parties. From time to time they glanced at one -another with an ill-concealed grin, nudged one another with the elbow, -and then silently left the hall. One could see that they had no -intention whatsoever of interrupting the proceedings, nor indeed was it -necessary to interrupt them. At long last the celebration showed signs -of drawing to a close. After the professor, whose voice had meanwhile -become more and more inaudible, finally ended his speech, the gentleman -without the monocle delivered a rousing peroration to the assembled -'German sisters and brothers.' On behalf of the audience and himself he -expressed gratitude for the magnificent lecture which they had just -heard from Professor X and emphasized how deeply the Professor's words -had moved them all. If a general discussion on the lecture were to take -place it would be tantamount to profanity, and he thought he was voicing -the opinion of all present in suggesting that such a discussion should -not be held. Therefore, he would ask the assembly to rise from their -seats and join in singing the patriotic song, WIR SIND EIN EINIG VOLK -VON BR�DERN. The proceedings finally closed with the anthem, DEUTSCHLAND -�BER ALLES. - -[Note 17. The Battle of Leipzig (1813), where the Germans inflicted an -overwhelming defeat on Napoleon, was the decisive event which put an end -to the French occupation of Germany. - -The occupation had lasted about twenty years. After the Great War, and -the partial occupation of Germany once again by French forces, the -Germans used to celebrate the anniversary of the Battle of Leipzig as a -symbol of their yearning.] - -And then they all sang. It appeared to me that when the second verse was -reached the voices were fewer and that only when the refrain came on -they swelled loudly. When we reached the third verse my belief was -confirmed that a good many of those present were not very familiar with -the text. - -But what has all this to do with the matter when such a song is sung -wholeheartedly and fervidly by an assembly of German nationals? - -After this the meeting broke up and everyone hurried to get outside, one -to his glass of beer, one to a cafe, and others simply into the fresh -air. - -Out into the fresh air! That was also my feeling. And was this the way -to honour an heroic struggle in which hundreds of thousands of Prussians -and Germans had fought? To the devil with it all! - -That sort of thing might find favour with the Government, it being -merely a 'peaceful' meeting. The Minister responsible for law and order -need not fear that enthusiasm might suddenly get the better of public -decorum and induce these people to pour out of the room and, instead of -dispersing to beer halls and cafes, march in rows of four through the -town singing DEUTSCHLAND hoch in Ehren and causing some unpleasantness -to a police force in need of rest. - -No. That type of citizen is of no use to anyone. - -On the other hand the National Socialist meetings were by no means -'peaceable' affairs. Two distinct WELTANSCHHAUUNGen raged in bitter -opposition to one another, and these meetings did not close with the -mechanical rendering of a dull patriotic song but rather with a -passionate outbreak of popular national feeling. - -It was imperative from the start to introduce rigid discipline into our -meetings and establish the authority of the chairman absolutely. Our -purpose was not to pour out a mixture of soft-soap bourgeois talk; what -we had to say was meant to arouse the opponents at our meetings! How -often did they not turn up in masses with a few individual agitators -among them and, judging by the expression on all their faces, ready to -finish us off there and then. - -Yes, how often did they not turn up in huge numbers, those supporters of -the Red Flag, all previously instructed to smash up everything once and -for all and put an end to these meetings. More often than not everything -hung on a mere thread, and only the chairman's ruthless determination -and the rough handling by our ushers baffled our adversaries' -intentions. And indeed they had every reason for being irritated. - -The fact that we had chosen red as the colour for our posters sufficed -to attract them to our meetings. The ordinary bourgeoisie were very -shocked to see that, we had also chosen the symbolic red of Bolshevism -and they regarded this as something ambiguously significant. The -suspicion was whispered in German Nationalist circles that we also were -merely another variety of Marxism, perhaps even Marxists suitably -disguised, or better still, Socialists. The actual difference between -Socialism and Marxism still remains a mystery to these people up to this -day. The charge of Marxism was conclusively proved when it was -discovered that at our meetings we deliberately substituted the words -'Fellow-countrymen and Women' for 'Ladies and Gentlemen' and addressed -each other as 'Party Comrade'. We used to roar with laughter at these -silly faint-hearted bourgeoisie and their efforts to puzzle out our -origin, our intentions and our aims. - -We chose red for our posters after particular and careful deliberation, -our intention being to irritate the Left, so as to arouse their -attention and tempt them to come to our meetings--if only in order to -break them up--so that in this way we got a chance of talking to the -people. - -In those years' it was indeed a delightful experience to follow the -constantly changing tactics of our perplexed and helpless adversaries. -First of all they appealed to their followers to ignore us and keep away -from our meetings. Generally speaking this appeal was heeded. But, as -time went on, more and more of their followers gradually found their way -to us and accepted our teaching. Then the leaders became nervous and -uneasy. They clung to their belief that such a development should not be -ignored for ever, and that terror must be applied in order to put an end -to it. - -Appeals were then made to the 'class-conscious proletariat' to attend -our meetings in masses and strike with the clenched hand of the -proletarian at the representatives of a 'monarchist and reactionary -agitation'. - -Our meetings suddenly became packed with work-people fully -three-quarters of an hour before the proceedings were scheduled to -begin. These gatherings resembled a powder cask ready to explode at any -moment; and the fuse was conveniently at hand. But matters always turned -out differently. People came as enemies and left, not perhaps prepared -to join us, yet in a reflective mood and disposed critically to examine -the correctness of their own doctrine. Gradually as time went on my -three-hour lectures resulted in supporters and opponents becoming united -in one single enthusiastic group of people. Every signal for the -breaking-up of the meeting failed. The result was that the opposition -leaders became frightened and once again looked for help to those -quarters that had formerly discountenanced these tactics and, with some -show of right, had been of the opinion that on principle the workers -should be forbidden to attend our meetings. - -Then they did not come any more, or only in small numbers. But after a -short time the whole game started all over again. The instructions to -keep away from us were ignored; the comrades came in steadily increasing -numbers, until finally the advocates of the radical tactics won the day. -We were to be broken up. - -Yet when, after two, three and even eight meetings, it was realized that -to break up these gatherings was easier said than done and that every -meeting resulted in a decisive weakening of the red fighting forces, -then suddenly the other password was introduced: 'Proletarians, comrades -and comradesses, avoid meetings of the National Socialist agitators'. - -The same eternally alternating tactics were also to be observed in the -Red Press. Soon they tried to silence us but discovered the uselessness -of such an attempt. After that they swung round to the opposite tactics. -Daily 'reference' was made to us solely for the purpose of absolutely -ridiculing us in the eyes of the working-classes. After a time these -gentlemen must have felt that no harm was being done to us, but that, on -the contrary, we were reaping an advantage in that people were asking -themselves why so much space was being devoted to a subject which was -supposed to be so ludicrous. People became curious. Suddenly there was a -change of tactics and for a time we were treated as veritable criminals -against mankind. One article followed the other, in which our criminal -intentions were explained and new proofs brought forward to support what -was said. Scandalous tales, all of them fabricated from start to finish, -were published in order to help to poison the public mind. But in a -short time even these attacks also proved futile; and in fact they -assisted materially because they attracted public attention to us. - -In those days I took up the standpoint that it was immaterial whether -they laughed at us or reviled us, whether they depicted us as fools or -criminals; the important point was that they took notice of us and that -in the eyes of the working-classes we came to be regarded as the only -force capable of putting up a fight. I said to myself that the followers -of the Jewish Press would come to know all about us and our real aims. - -One reason why they never got so far as breaking up our meetings was -undoubtedly the incredible cowardice displayed by the leaders of the -opposition. On every critical occasion they left the dirty work to the -smaller fry whilst they waited outside the halls for the results of the -break up. - -We were exceptionally well informed in regard to our opponents' -intentions, not only because we allowed several of our party colleagues -to remain members of the Red organizations for reasons of expediency, -but also because the Red wire-pullers, fortunately for us, were -afflicted with a degree of talkativeness that is still unfortunately -very prevalent among Germans. They could not keep their own counsel, and -more often than not they started cackling before the proverbial egg was -laid. Hence, time and again our precautions were such that Red agitators -had no inkling of how near they were to being thrown out of the -meetings. - -This state of affairs compelled us to take the work of safeguarding our -meetings into our own hands. No reliance could be placed on official -protection. On the contrary; experience showed that such protection -always favoured only the disturbers. The only real outcome of police -intervention would be that the meeting would be dissolved, that is to -say, closed. And that is precisely what our opponents granted. - -Generally speaking, this led the police to adopt a procedure which, to -say the least, was a most infamous sample of official malpractice. The -moment they received information of a threat that the one or other -meeting was to be broken up, instead of arresting the would-be -disturbers, they promptly advised the innocent parties that the meeting -was forbidden. This step the police proclaimed as a 'precautionary -measure in the interests of law and order'. - -The political work and activities of decent people could therefore -always be hindered by desperate ruffians who had the means at their -disposal. In the name of peace and order State authority bowed down to -these ruffians and demanded that others should not provoke them. When -National Socialism desired to hold meetings in certain parts and the -labour unions declared that their members would resist, then it was not -these blackmailers that were arrested and gaoled. No. Our meetings were -forbidden by the police. Yes, this organ of the law had the unspeakable -impudence to advise us in writing to this effect in innumerable -instances. To avoid such eventualities, it was necessary to see to it -that every attempt to disturb a meeting was nipped in the bud. Another -feature to be taken into account in this respect is that all meetings -which rely on police protection must necessarily bring discredit to -their promoters in the eyes of the general public. Meetings that are -only possible with the protective assistance of a strong force of police -convert nobody; because in order to win over the lower strata of the -people there must be a visible show of strength on one's own side. In -the same way that a man of courage will win a woman's affection more -easily than a coward, so a heroic movement will be more successful in -winning over the hearts of a people than a weak movement which relies on -police support for its very existence. - -It is for this latter reason in particular that our young movement was -to be charged with the responsibility of assuring its own existence, -defending itself; and conducting its own work of smashing the Red -opposition. - -The work of organizing the protective measures for our meetings was -based on the following: - -(1) An energetic and psychologically judicious way of conducting the -meeting. - -(2) An organized squad of troops to maintain order. - -In those days we and no one else were masters of the situation at our -meetings and on no occasion did we fail to emphasize this. Our opponents -fully realized that any provocation would be the occasion of throwing -them out of the hall at once, whatever the odds against us. At meetings, -particularly outside Munich, we had in those days from five to eight -hundred opponents against fifteen to sixteen National Socialists; yet we -brooked no interference, for we were ready to be killed rather than -capitulate. More than once a handful of party colleagues offered a -heroic resistance to a raging and violent mob of Reds. Those fifteen or -twenty men would certainly have been overwhelmed in the end had not the -opponents known that three or four times as many of themselves would -first get their skulls cracked. Arid that risk they were not willing to -run. We had done our best to study Marxist and bourgeois methods of -conducting meetings, and we had certainly learnt something. - -The Marxists had always exercised a most rigid discipline so that the -question of breaking up their meetings could never have originated in -bourgeois quarters. This gave the Reds all the more reason for acting on -this plan. In time they not only became past-masters in this art but in -certain large districts of the REICH they went so far as to declare that -non-Marxist meetings were nothing less than a cause of' provocation -against the proletariat. This was particularly the case when the -wire-pullers suspected that a meeting might call attention to their own -transgressions and thus expose their own treachery and chicanery. -Therefore the moment such a meeting was announced to be held a howl of -rage went up from the Red Press. These detractors of the law nearly -always turned first to the authorities and requested in imperative and -threatening language that this 'provocation of the proletariat' be -stopped forthwith in the 'interests of law and order'. Their language -was chosen according to the importance of the official blockhead they -were dealing with and thus success was assured. If by chance the -official happened to be a true German--and not a mere figurehead--and he -declined the impudent request, then the time-honoured appeal to stop -'provocation of the proletariat' was issued together with instructions -to attend such and such a meeting on a certain date in full strength for -the purpose of 'putting a stop to the disgraceful machinations of the -bourgeoisie by means of the proletarian fist'. - -The pitiful and frightened manner in which these bourgeois meetings are -conducted must be seen in order to be believed. Very frequently these -threats were sufficient to call off such a meeting at once. The feeling -of fear was so marked that the meeting, instead of commencing at eight -o'clock, very seldom was opened before a quarter to nine or nine -o'clock. The Chairman thereupon did his best, by showering compliments -on the 'gentleman of the opposition' to prove how he and all others -present were pleased (a palpable lie) to welcome a visit from men who as -yet were not in sympathy with them for the reason that only by mutual -discussion (immediately agreed to) could they be brought closer together -in mutual understanding. Apart from this the Chairman also assured them -that the meeting had no intention whatsoever of interfering with the -professed convictions of anybody. Indeed no. Everyone had the right to -form and hold his own political views, but others should be allowed to -do likewise. He therefore requested that the speaker be allowed to -deliver his speech without interruption--the speech in any case not -being a long affair. People abroad, he continued, would thus not come to -regard this meeting as another shameful example of the bitter fraternal -strife that is raging in Germany. And so on and so forth - -The brothers of the Left had little if any appreciation for that sort of -talk; the speaker had hardly commenced when he was shouted down. One -gathered the impression at times that these speakers were graceful for -being peremptorily cut short in their martyr-like discourse. These -bourgeois toreadors left the arena in the midst of a vast uproar, that -is to say, provided that they were not thrown down the stairs with -cracked skulls, which was very often the case. - -Therefore, our methods of organization at National Socialist meetings -were something quite strange to the Marxists. They came to our meetings -in the belief that the little game which they had so often played could -as a matter of course be also repeated on us. "To-day we shall finish -them off." How often did they bawl this out to each other on entering -the meeting hall, only to be thrown out with lightning speed before they -had time to repeat it. - -In the first place our method of conducting a meeting was entirely -different. We did not beg and pray to be allowed to speak, and we did -not straightway give everybody the right to hold endless discussions. We -curtly gave everyone to understand that we were masters of the meeting -and that we would do as it pleased us and that everyone who dared to -interrupt would be unceremoniously thrown out. We stated clearly our -refusal to accept responsibility for anyone treated in this manner. If -time permitted and if it suited us, a discussion would be allowed to -take place. Our party colleague would now make his speech.... That kind -of talk was sufficient in itself to astonish the Marxists. - -Secondly, we had at our disposal a well-trained and organized body of -men for maintaining order at our meetings. On the other hand the -bourgeois parties protected their meetings with a body of men better -classified as ushers who by virtue of their age thought they were -entitled to-authority and respect. But as Marxism has little or no -respect for these things, the question of suitable self-protection at -these bourgeois meetings was, so to speak, in practice non-existent. - -When our political meetings first started I made it a special point to -organize a suitable defensive squad--a squad composed chiefly of young -men. Some of them were comrades who had seen active service with me; -others were young party members who, right from the start, had been -trained and brought up to realize that only terror is capable of -smashing terror--that only courageous and determined people had made a -success of things in this world and that, finally, we were fighting for -an idea so lofty that it was worth the last drop of our blood. These -young men had been brought up to realize that where force replaced -common sense in the solution of a problem, the best means of defence was -attack and that the reputation of our hall-guard squads should stamp us -as a political fighting force and not as a debating society. - -And it was extraordinary how eagerly these boys of the War generation -responded to this order. They had indeed good reason for being bitterly -disappointed and indignant at the miserable milksop methods employed by -the bourgeoise. - -Thus it became clear to everyone that the Revolution had only been -possible thanks to the dastardly methods of a bourgeois government. At -that time there was certainly no lack of man-power to suppress the -revolution, but unfortunately there was an entire lack of directive -brain power. How often did the eyes of my young men light up with -enthusiasm when I explained to them the vital functions connected with -their task and assured them time and again that all earthly wisdom is -useless unless it be supported by a measure of strength, that the gentle -goddess of Peace can only walk in company with the god of War, and that -every great act of peace must be protected and assisted by force. In -this way the idea of military service came to them in a far more -realistic form--not in the fossilized sense of the souls of decrepit -officials serving the dead authority of a dead State, but in the living -realization of the duty of each man to sacrifice his life at all times -so that his country might live. - -How those young men did their job! - -Like a swarm of hornets they tackled disturbers at our meetings, -regardless of superiority of numbers, however great, indifferent to -wounds and bloodshed, inspired with the great idea of blazing a trail -for the sacred mission of our movement. - -As early as the summer of 1920 the organization of squads of men as hall -guards for maintaining order at our meetings was gradually assuming -definite shape. By the spring of 1921 this body of men were sectioned -off into squads of one hundred, which in turn were sub-divided into -smaller groups. - -The urgency for this was apparent, as meanwhile the number of our -meetings had steadily increased. We still frequently met in the Munich -Hofbr�uhaus but more frequently in the large meeting halls throughout -the city itself. In the autumn and winter of 1920-1921 our meetings in -the B�rgerbr�u and Munich Kindlbr�u had assumed vast proportions and it -was always the same picture that presented itself; namely, meetings of -the NSDAP (The German National Socialist Labour Party) were always -crowded out so that the police were compelled to close and bar the doors -long before proceedings commenced. - -The organization of defence guards for keeping order at our meetings -cleared up a very difficult question. Up till then the movement had -possessed no party badge and no party flag. The lack of these tokens was -not only a disadvantage at that time but would prove intolerable in the -future. The disadvantages were chiefly that members of the party -possessed no outward broken of membership which linked them together, -and it was absolutely unthinkable that for the future they should remain -without some token which would be a symbol of the movement and could be -set against that of the International. - -More than once in my youth the psychological importance of such a symbol -had become clearly evident to me and from a sentimental point of view -also it was advisable. In Berlin, after the War, I was present at a -mass-demonstration of Marxists in front of the Royal Palace and in the -Lustgarten. A sea of red flags, red armlets and red flowers was in -itself sufficient to give that huge assembly of about 120,000 persons an -outward appearance of strength. I was now able to feel and understand -how easily the man in the street succumbs to the hypnotic magic of such -a grandiose piece of theatrical presentation. - -The bourgeoisie, which as a party neither possesses or stands for any -WELTANSCHAUUNG, had therefore not a single banner. Their party was -composed of 'patriots' who went about in the colours of the REICH. If -these colours were the symbol of a definite WELTANSCHAUUNG then one -could understand the rulers of the State regarding this flag as -expressive of their own WELTANSCHAUUNG, seeing that through their -efforts the official REICH flag was expressive of their own -WELTANSCHAUUNG. - -But in reality the position was otherwise. - -The REICH was morticed together without the aid of the German -bourgeoisie and the flag itself was born of the War and therefore merely -a State flag possessing no importance in the sense of any particular -ideological mission. - -Only in one part of the German-speaking territory--in -German-Austria--was there anything like a bourgeois party flag in -evidence. Here a section of the national bourgeoisie selected the 1848 -colours (black, red and gold) as their party flag and therewith created -a symbol which, though of no importance from a weltanschauliche -viewpoint, had, nevertheless, a revolutionary character from a national -point of view. The most bitter opponents of this flag at that time, and -this should not be forgotten to-day, were the Social Democrats and the -Christian Socialists or clericals. They, in particular, were the ones -who degraded and besmirched these colours in the same way as in 1918 -they dragged black, white and red into the gutter. Of course, the black, -red and gold of the German parties in the old Austria were the colours -of the year 1848: that is to say, of a period likely to be regarded as -somewhat visionary, but it was a period that had honest German souls as -its representatives, although the Jews were lurking unseen as -wire-pullers in the background. It was high treason and the shameful -enslavement of the German territory that first of all made these colours -so attractive to the Marxists of the Centre Party; so much so that -to-day they revere them as their most cherished possession and use them -as their own banners for the protection of the flag they once foully -besmirched. - -It is a fact, therefore, that, up till 1920, in opposition to the -Marxists there was no flag that would have stood for a consolidated -resistance to them. For even if the better political elements of the -German bourgeoisie were loath to accept the suddenly discovered black, -red and gold colours as their symbol after the year 1918, they -nevertheless were incapable of counteracting this with a future -programme of their own that would correspond to the new trend of -affairs. At the most, they had a reconstruction of the old REICH in -mind. - -And it is to this way of thinking that the black, white and red colours -of the old REICH are indebted for their resurrection as the flag of our -so-called national bourgeois parties. - -It was obvious that the symbol of a r�gime which had been overthrown by -the Marxists under inglorious circumstances was not now worthy to serve -as a banner under which the same Marxism was to be crushed in its turn. -However much any decent German may love and revere those old colours, -glorious when placed side by side in their youthful freshness, when he -had fought under them and seen the sacrifice of so many lives, that flag -had little value for the struggle of the future. - -In our Movement I have always adopted the standpoint that it was a -really lucky thing for the German nation that it had lost its old flag -(Note 18). This standpoint of mine was in strong contrast to that of the -bourgeois politicians. It may be immaterial to us what the Republic does -under its flag. But let us be deeply grateful to fate for having so -graciously spared the most glorious war flag for all time from becoming -an ignominious rag. The REICH of to-day, which sells itself and its -people, must never be allowed to adopt the honourable and heroic black, -white and red colours. - -[Note 18. The flag of the German Empire, founded in 1871, was -Black-White-Red. This was discarded in 1918 and Black-Red-Gold was chosen -as the flag of the German Republic founded at Weimar in 1919. The flag -designed by Hitler--red with a white disc in the centre, bearing the -black swastika--is now the national flag.] - -As long as the November outrage endures, that outrage may continue to -bear its own external sign and not steal that of an honourable past. Our -bourgeois politicians should awaken their consciences to the fact that -whoever desires this State to have the black, white and red colours is -pilfering from the past. The old flag was suitable only for the old -REICH and, thank Heaven, the Republic chose the colours best suited to -itself. - -This was also the reason why we National Socialists recognized that -hoisting the old colours would be no symbol of our special aims; for we -had no wish to resurrect from the dead the old REICH which had been -ruined through its own blunders, but to build up a new State. - -The Movement which is fighting Marxism to-day along these lines must -display on its banner the symbol of the new State. - -The question of the new flag, that is to say the form and appearance it -must take, kept us very busy in those days. Suggestions poured in from -all quarters, which although well meant were more or less impossible in -practice. The new flag had not only to become a symbol expressing our -own struggle but on the other hand it was necessary that it should prove -effective as a large poster. All those who busy themselves with the -tastes of the public will recognize and appreciate the great importance -of these apparently petty matters. In hundreds of thousands of cases a -really striking emblem may be the first cause of awakening interest in a -movement. - -For this reason we declined all suggestions from various quarters for -identifying our movement by means of a white flag with the old State or -rather with those decrepit parties whose sole political objective is the -restoration of past conditions. And, apart from this, white is not a -colour capable of attracting and focusing public attention. It is a -colour suitable only for young women's associations and not for a -movement that stands for reform in a revolutionary period. - -Black was also suggested--certainly well-suited to the times, but -embodying no significance to empress the will behind our movement. And, -finally, black is incapable of attracting attention. - -White and blue was discarded, despite its admirable aesthetic appeal--as -being the colours of an individual German Federal State--a State that, -unfortunately, through its political attitude of particularist -narrow-mindedness did not enjoy a good reputation. And, generally -speaking, with these colours it would have been difficult to attract -attention to our movement. The same applies to black and white. - -Black, red and gold did not enter the question at all. - -And this also applies to black, white and red for reasons already -stated. At least, not in the form hitherto in use. But the effectiveness -of these three colours is far superior to all the others and they are -certainly the most strikingly harmonious combination to be found. - -I myself was always for keeping the old colours, not only because I, as -a soldier, regarded them as my most sacred possession, but because in -their aesthetic effect, they conformed more than anything else to my -personal taste. Accordingly I had to discard all the innumerable -suggestions and designs which had been proposed for the new movement, -among which were many that had incorporated the swastika into the old -colours. I, as leader, was unwilling to make public my own design, as it -was possible that someone else could come forward with a design just as -good, if not better, than my own. As a matter of fact, a dental surgeon -from Starnberg submitted a good design very similar to mine, with only -one mistake, in that his swastika with curved corners was set upon a -white background. - -After innumerable trials I decided upon a final form--a flag of red -material with a white disc bearing in its centre a black swastika. After -many trials I obtained the correct proportions between the dimensions of -the flag and of the white central disc, as well as that of the swastika. -And this is how it has remained ever since. - -At the same time we immediately ordered the corresponding armlets for -our squad of men who kept order at meetings, armlets of red material, a -central white disc with the black swastika upon it. Herr F�ss, a Munich -goldsmith, supplied the first practical and permanent design. - -The new flag appeared in public in the midsummer of 1920. It suited our -movement admirably, both being new and young. Not a soul had seen this -flag before; its effect at that time was something akin to that of a -blazing torch. We ourselves experienced almost a boyish delight when one -of the ladies of the party who had been entrusted with the making of the -flag finally handed it over to us. And a few months later those of us in -Munich were in possession of six of these flags. The steadily increasing -strength of our hall guards was a main factor in popularizing the -symbol. - -And indeed a symbol it proved to be. - -Not only because it incorporated those revered colours expressive of our -homage to the glorious past and which once brought so much honour to the -German nation, but this symbol was also an eloquent expression of the -will behind the movement. We National Socialists regarded our flag as -being the embodiment of our party programme. The red expressed the -social thought underlying the movement. White the national thought. And -the swastika signified the mission allotted to us--the struggle for the -victory of Aryan mankind and at the same time the triumph of the ideal -of creative work which is in itself and always will be anti-Semitic. - -Two years later, when our squad of hall guards had long since grown into -storm detachments, it seemed necessary to give this defensive -organization of a young WELTANSCHAUUNG a particular symbol of victory, -namely a Standard. I also designed this and entrusted the execution of -it to an old party comrade, Herr Gahr, who was a goldsmith. Ever since -that time this Standard has been the distinctive token of the National -Socialist struggle. - -The increasing interest taken in our meetings, particularly during 1920, -compelled us at times to hold two meetings a week. Crowds gathered round -our posters; the large meeting halls in the town were always filled and -tens of thousands of people, who had been led astray by the teachings of -Marxism, found their way to us and assisted in the work of fighting for -the liberation of the REICH. The public in Munich had got to know us. We -were being spoken about. The words 'National Socialist' had become -common property to many and signified for them a definite party -programme. Our circle of supporters and even of members was constantly -increasing, so that in the winter of 1920-21 we were able to appear as a -strong party in Munich. - -At that time there was no party in Munich with the exception of the -Marxist parties--certainly no nationalist party--which was able to hold -such mass demonstrations as ours. The Munich Kindl Hall, which held -5,000 people, was more than once overcrowded and up till then there was -only one other hall, the Krone Circus Hall, into which we had not -ventured. - -At the end of January 1921 there was again great cause for anxiety in -Germany. The Paris Agreement, by which Germany pledged herself to pay -the crazy sum of a hundred milliards of gold marks, was to be confirmed -by the London Ultimatum. - -Thereupon an old-established Munich working committee, representative of -so-called V�LKISCH groups, deemed it advisable to call for a public -meeting of protest. I became nervous and restless when I saw that a lot -of time was being wasted and nothing undertaken. At first a meeting was -suggested in the K�NIG PLATZ; on second thoughts this was turned down, -as someone feared the proceedings might be wrecked by Red elements. -Another suggestion was a demonstration in front of the Feldherrn Hall, -but this also came to nothing. Finally a combined meeting in the Munich -Kindl Hall was suggested. Meanwhile, day after day had gone by; the big -parties had entirely ignored the terrible event, and the working -committee could not decide on a definite date for holding the -demonstration. - -On Tuesday, February 1st, I put forward an urgent demand for a final -decision. I was put off until Wednesday. On that day I demanded to be -told clearly if and when the meeting was to take place. The reply was -again uncertain and evasive, it being stated that it was 'intended' to -arrange a demonstration that day week. - -At that I lost all patience and decided to conduct a demonstration of -protest on my own. At noon on Wednesday I dictated in ten minutes the -text of the poster and at the same time hired the Krone Circus Hall for -the next day, February 3rd. - -In those days this was a tremendous venture. Not only because of the -uncertainty of filling that vast hall, but also because of the risk of -the meeting being wrecked. - -Numerically our squad of hall guards was not strong enough for this vast -hall. I was also uncertain about what to do in case the meeting was -broken up--a huge circus building being a different proposition from an -ordinary meeting hall. But events showed that my fears were misplaced, -the opposite being the case. In that vast building a squad of wreckers -could be tackled and subdued more easily than in a cramped hall. - -One thing was certain: A failure would throw us back for a long time to -come. If one meeting was wrecked our prestige would be seriously injured -and our opponents would be encouraged to repeat their success. That -would lead to sabotage of our work in connection with further meetings -and months of difficult struggle would be necessary to overcome this. - -We had only one day in which to post our bills, Thursday. Unfortunately -it rained on the morning of that day and there was reason to fear that -many people would prefer to remain at home rather than hurry to a -meeting through rain and snow, especially when there was likely to be -violence and bloodshed. - -And indeed on that Thursday morning I was suddenly struck with fear that -the hall might never be filled to capacity, which would have made me -ridiculous in the eyes of the working committee. I therefore immediately -dictated various leaflets, had them printed and distributed in the -afternoon. Of course they contained an invitation to attend the meeting. - -Two lorries which I hired were draped as much as possible in red, each -had our new flag hoisted on it and was then filled with fifteen or -twenty members of our party. Orders were given the members to canvas the -streets thoroughly, distribute leaflets and conduct propaganda for the -mass meeting to be held that evening. It was the first time that lorries -had driven through the streets bearing flags and not manned by Marxists. -The public stared open-mouthed at these red-draped cars, and in the -outlying districts clenched fists were angrily raised at this new -evidence of 'provocation of the proletariat'. Were not the Marxists the -only ones entitled to hold meetings and drive about in motor lorries? - -At seven o'clock in the evening only a few had gathered in the circus -hall. I was being kept informed by telephone every ten minutes and was -becoming uneasy. Usually at seven or a quarter past our meeting halls -were already half filled; sometimes even packed. But I soon found out -the reason why I was uneasy. I had entirely forgotten to take into -account the huge dimensions of this new meeting place. A thousand people -in the Hofbr�uhaus was quite an impressive sight, but the same number in -the Circus building was swallowed up in its dimensions and was hardly -noticeable. Shortly afterwards I received more hopeful reports and at a -quarter to eight I was informed that the hall was three-quarters filled, -with huge crowds still lined up at the pay boxes. I then left for the -meeting. - -I arrived at the Circus building at two minutes past eight. There was -still a crowd of people outside, partly inquisitive people and many -opponents who preferred to wait outside for developments. - -When I entered the great hall I felt the same joy I had felt a year -previously at the first meeting in the Munich Hofbr�u Banquet Hall; but -it was not until I had forced my way through the solid wall of people -and reached the platform that I perceived the full measure of our -success. The hall was before me, like a huge shell, packed with -thousands and thousands of people. Even the arena was densely crowded. -More than 5,600 tickets had been sold and, allowing for the unemployed, -poor students and our own detachments of men for keeping order, a crowd -of about 6,500 must have been present. - -My theme was 'Future or Downfall' and I was filled with joy at the -conviction that the future was represented by the crowds that I was -addressing. - -I began, and spoke for about two and a half hours. I had the feeling -after the first half-hour that the meeting was going to be a big -success. Contact had been at once established with all those thousands -of individuals. After the first hour the speech was already being -received by spontaneous outbreaks of applause, but after the second hour -this died down to a solemn stillness which I was to experience so often -later on in this same hall, and which will for ever be remembered by all -those present. Nothing broke this impressive silence and only when the -last word had been spoken did the meeting give vent to its feelings by -singing the national anthem. - -I watched the scene during the next twenty minutes, as the vast hall -slowly emptied itself, and only then did I leave the platform, a happy -man, and made my way home. - -Photographs were taken of this first meeting in the Krone Circus Hall in -Munich. They are more eloquent than words to demonstrate the success of -this demonstration. The bourgeois papers reproduced photographs and -reported the meeting as having been merely 'nationalist' in character; -in their usual modest fashion they omitted all mention of its promoters. - -Thus for the first time we had developed far beyond the dimensions of an -ordinary party. We could no longer be ignored. And to dispel all doubt -that the meeting was merely an isolated success, I immediately arranged -for another at the Circus Hall in the following week, and again we had -the same success. Once more the vast hall was overflowing with people; -so much so that I decided to hold a third meeting during the following -week, which also proved a similar success. - -After these initial successes early in 1921 I increased our activity in -Munich still further. I not only held meetings once a week, but during -some weeks even two were regularly held and very often during midsummer -and autumn this increased to three. We met regularly at the Circus Hall -and it gave us great satisfaction to see that every meeting brought us -the same measure of success. - -The result was shown in an ever-increasing number of supporters and -members into our party. - -Naturally, such success did not allow our opponents to sleep soundly. At -first their tactics fluctuated between the use of terror and silence in -our regard. Then they recognized that neither terror nor silence could -hinder the progress of our movement. So they had recourse to a supreme -act of terror which was intended to put a definite end to our activities -in the holding of meetings. - -As a pretext for action along this line they availed themselves of a -very mysterious attack on one of the Landtag deputies, named Erhard -Auer. It was declared that someone had fired several shots at this man -one evening. This meant that he was not shot but that an attempt had -been made to shoot him. A fabulous presence of mind and heroic courage -on the part of Social Democratic leaders not only prevented the -sacrilegious intention from taking effect but also put the crazy -would-be assassins to flight, like the cowards that they were. They were -so quick and fled so far that subsequently the police could not find -even the slightest traces of them. This mysterious episode was used by -the organ of the Social Democratic Party to arouse public feeling -against the movement, and while doing this it delivered its old -rigmarole about the tactics that were to be employed the next time. -Their purpose was to see to it that our movement should not grow but -should be immediately hewn down root and branch by the hefty arm of the -proletariat. - -A few days later the real attack came. It was decided finally to -interrupt one of our meetings which was billed to take place in the -Munich Hofbr�uhaus, and at which I myself was to speak. - -On November 4th, 1921, in the evening between six and seven o'clock I -received the first precise news that the meeting would positively be -broken up and that to carry out this action our adversaries had decided -to send to the meeting great masses of workmen employed in certain 'Red' -factories. - -It was due to an unfortunate accident that we did not receive this news -sooner. On that day we had given up our old business office in the -Sternecker Gasse in Munich and moved into other quarters; or rather we -had given up the old offices and our new quarters were not yet in -functioning order. The telephone arrangements had been cut off by the -former tenants and had not yet been reinstalled. Hence it happened that -several attempts made that day to inform us by telephone of the break-up -which had been planned for the evening did not reach us. - -Consequently our order troops were not present in strong force at that -meeting. There was only one squad present, which did not consist of the -usual one hundred men, but only of about forty-six. And our telephone -connections were not yet sufficiently organized to be able to give the -alarm in the course of an hour or so, so that a sufficiently powerful -number of order troops to deal with the situation could be called. It -must also be added that on several previous occasions we had been -forewarned, but nothing special happened. The old proverb, 'Revolutions -which were announced have scarcely ever come off', had hitherto been -proved true in our regard. - -Possibly for this reason also sufficiently strong precautions had not -been taken on that day to cope with the brutal determination of our -opponents to break up our meeting. - -Finally, we did not believe that the Hofbr�uhaus in Munich was suitable -for the interruptive tactics of our adversaries. We had feared such a -thing far more in the bigger halls, especially that of the Krone Circus. -But on this point we learned a very serviceable lesson that evening. -Later, we studied this whole question according to a scientific system -and arrived at results, both interesting and incredible, and which -subsequently were an essential factor in the direction of our -organization and in the tactics of our Storm Troops. - -When I arrived in the entrance halt of the Hofbr�uhaus at 7.45 that -evening I realizcd that there could be no doubt as to what the 'Reds' -intended. The hall was filled, and for that reason the police had barred -the entrances. Our adversaries, who had arrived very early, were in the -hall, and our followers were for the most part outside. The small -bodyguard awaited me at the entrance. I had the doors leading to the -principal hall closed and then asked the bodyguard of forty-five or -forty-six men to come forward. I made it clear to the boys that perhaps -on that evening for the first time they would have to show their -unbending and unbreakable loyalty to the movement and that not one of us -should leave the hall unless carried out dead. I added that I would -remain in the hall and that I did not believe that one of them would -abandon me, and that if I saw any one of them act the coward I myself -would personally tear off his armlet and his badge. I demanded of them -that they should come forward if the slightest attempt to sabotage the -meeting were made and that they must remember that the best defence is -always attack. - -I was greeted with a triple 'HEIL' which sounded more hoarse and violent -than usual. - -Then I advanced through the hall and could take in the situation with my -own eyes. Our opponents sat closely huddled together and tried to pierce -me through with their looks. Innumerable faces glowing with hatred and -rage were fixed on me, while others with sneering grimaces shouted at me -together. Now they would 'Finish with us. We must look out for our -entrails. To-day they would smash in our faces once and for all.' And -there were other expressions of an equally elegant character. They knew -that they were there in superior numbers and they acted accordingly. - -Yet we were able to open the meeting; and I began to speak. In the Hall -of the Hofbr�uhaus I stood always at the side, away from the entry and -on top of a beer table. Therefore I was always right in the midst of the -audience. Perhaps this circumstance was responsible for creating a -certain feeling and a sense of agreement which I never found elsewhere. - -Before me, and especially towards my left, there were only opponents, -seated or standing. They were mostly robust youths and men from the -Maffei Factory, from Kustermann's, and from the factories on the Isar, -etc. Along the right-hand wall of the hall they were thickly massed -quite close to my table. They now began to order litre mugs of beer, one -after the other, and to throw the empty mugs under the table. In this -way whole batteries were collected. I should have been surprised had -this meeting ended peacefully. - -In spite of all the interruptions, I was able to speak for about an hour -and a half and I felt as if I were master of the situation. Even the -ringleaders of the disturbers appeared to be convinced of this; for they -steadily became more uneasy, often left the hall, returned and spoke to -their men in an obviously nervous way. - -A small psychological error which I committed in replying to an -interruption, and the mistake of which I myself was conscious the moment -the words had left my mouth, gave the sign for the outbreak. - -There were a few furious outbursts and all in a moment a man jumped on a -seat and shouted "Liberty". At that signal the champions of liberty -began their work. - -In a few moments the hall was filled with a yelling and shrieking mob. -Numerous beer-mugs flew like howitzers above their heads. Amid this -uproar one heard the crash of chair legs, the crashing of mugs, groans -and yells and screams. - -It was a mad spectacle. I stood where I was and could observe my boys -doing their duty, every one of them. - -There I had the chance of seeing what a bourgeois meeting could be. - -The dance had hardly begun when my Storm Troops, as they were called -from that day onwards, launched their attack. Like wolves they threw -themselves on the enemy again and again in parties of eight or ten and -began steadily to thrash them out of the hall. After five minutes I -could see hardly one of them that was not streaming with blood. Then I -realized what kind of men many of them were, above all my brave Maurice -Hess, who is my private secretary to-day, and many others who, even -though seriously wounded, attacked again and again as long as they could -stand on their feet. Twenty minutes long the pandemonium continued. Then -the opponents, who had numbered seven or eight hundred, had been driven -from the hall or hurled out headlong by my men, who had not numbered -fifty. Only in the left corner a big crowd still stood out against our -men and put up a bitter fight. Then two pistol shots rang out from the -entrance to the hall in the direction of the platform and now a wild din -of shooting broke out from all sides. One's heart almost rejoiced at -this spectacle which recalled memories of the War. - -At that moment it was not possible to identify the person who had fired -the shots. But at any rate I could see that my boys renewed the attack -with increased fury until finally the last disturbers were overcome and -flung out of the hall. - -About twenty-five minutes had passed since it all began. The hall looked -as if a bomb had exploded there. Many of my comrades had to be bandaged -and others taken away. But we remained masters of the situation. Hermann -Essen, who was chairman of the meeting, announced: "The meeting will -continue. The speaker shall proceed." So I went on with my speech. - -When we ourselves declared the meeting at an end an excited police -officer rushed in, waved his hands and declared: "The meeting is -dissolved." - -Without wishing to do so I had to laugh at this example of the law's -delay. It was the authentic constabulary officiosiousness. The smaller -they are the greater they must always appear. - -That evening we learned a real lesson. And our adversaries never forgot -the lesson they had received. - -Up to the autumn of 1923 the M�nchener post did not again mention the -clenched fists of the Proletariat. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - - - -THE STRONG IS STRONGEST WHEN ALONE - - -In the preceding chapter I mentioned the existence of a co-operative -union between the German patriotic associations. Here I shall deal -briefly with this question. - -In speaking of a co-operative union we generally mean a group of -associations which, for the purpose of facilitating their work, -establish mutual relations for collaborating with one another along -certain lines, appointing a common directorate with varying powers and -thenceforth carrying out a common line of action. The average citizen is -pleased and reassured when he hears that these associations, by -establishing a co-operative union among one another, have at long last -discovered a common platform on which they can stand united and have -eliminated all grounds of mutual difference. Therewith a general -conviction arises, to the effect that such a union is an immense gain in -strength and that small groups which were weak as long as they stood -alone have now suddenly become strong. Yet this conviction is for the -most part a mistaken one. - -It will be interesting and, in my opinion, important for the better -understanding of this question if we try to get a clear notion of how it -comes about that these associations, unions, etc., are established, when -all of them declare that they have the same ends in view. In itself it -would be logical to expect that one aim should be fought for by a single -association and it would be more reasonable if there were not a number -of associations fighting for the same aim. In the beginning there was -undoubtedly only one association which had this one fixed aim in view. -One man proclaimed a truth somewhere and, calling for the solution of a -definite question, fixed his aim and founded a movement for the purpose -of carrying his views into effect. - -That is how an association or a party is founded, the scope of whose -programme is either the abolition of existing evils or the positive -establishment of a certain order of things in the future. - -Once such a movement has come into existence it may lay practical claim -to certain priority rights. The natural course of things would now be -that all those who wish to fight for the same objective as this movement -is striving for should identify themselves with it and thus increase its -strength, so that the common purpose in view may be all the better -served. Especially men of superior intelligence must feel, one and all, -that by joining the movement they are establishing precisely those -conditions which are necessary for practical success in the common -struggle. Accordingly it is reasonable and, in a certain sense, -honest--which honesty, as I shall show later, is an element of very -great importance--that only one movement should be founded for the -purpose of attaining the one aim. - -The fact that this does not happen must be attributed to two causes. The -first may almost be described as tragic. The second is a matter for -pity, because it has its foundation in the weaknesses of human nature. -But, on going to the bottom of things, I see in both causes only facts -which give still another ground for strengthening our will, our energy -and intensity of purpose; so that finally, through the higher -development of the human faculties, the solution of the problem in -question may be rendered possible. - -The tragic reason why it so often happens that the pursuit of one -definite task is not left to one association alone is as follows: -Generally speaking, every action carried out on the grand style in this -world is the expression of a desire that has already existed for a long -time in millions of human hearts, a longing which may have been -nourished in silence. Yes, it may happen that throughout centuries men -may have been yearning for the solution of a definite problem, because -they have been suffering under an unendurable order of affairs, without -seeing on the far horizon the coming fulfilment of the universal -longing. Nations which are no longer capable of finding an heroic -deliverance from such a sorrowful fate may be looked upon as effete. -But, on the other hand, nothing gives better proof of the vital forces -of a people and the consequent guarantee of its right to exist than that -one day, through a happy decree of Destiny, a man arises who is capable -of liberating his people from some great oppression, or of wiping out -some bitter distress, or of calming the national soul which had been -tormented through its sense of insecurity, and thus fulfilling what had -long been the universal yearning of the people. - -An essential characteristic of what are called the great questions of -the time is that thousands undertake the task of solving them and that -many feel themselves called to this task: yea, even that Destiny itself -has proposed many for the choice, so that through the free play of -forces the stronger and bolder shall finally be victorious and to him -shall be entrusted the task of solving the problem. - -Thus it may happen that for centuries many are discontented with the -form in which their religious life expresses itself and yearn for a -renovation of it; and so it may happen that through this impulse of the -soul some dozens of men may arise who believe that, by virtue of their -understanding and their knowledge, they are called to solve the -religious difficulties of the time and accordingly present themselves as -the prophets of a new teaching or at least as declared adversaries of -the standing beliefs. - -Here also it is certain that the natural law will take its course, -inasmuch as the strongest will be destined to fulfil the great mission. -But usually the others are slow to acknowledge that only one man is -called. On the contrary, they all believe that they have an equal right -to engage in the solution of the diffculties in question and that they -are equally called to that task. Their contemporary world is generally -quite unable to decide which of all these possesses the highest gifts -and accordingly merits the support of all. - -So in the course of centuries, or indeed often within the same epoch, -different men establish different movements to struggle towards the same -end. At least the end is declared by the founders of the movements to be -the same, or may be looked upon as such by the masses of the people. The -populace nourishes vague desires and has only general opinions, without -having any precise notion of their own ideals and desires or of the -question whether and how it is impossible for these ideals and desires -to be fulfilled. - -The tragedy lies in the fact that many men struggle to reach the same -objective by different roads, each one genuinely believing in his own -mission and holding himself in duty bound to follow his own road without -any regard for the others. - -These movements, parties, religious groups, etc., originate entirely -independently of one another out of the general urge of the time, and -all with a view to working towards the same goal. It may seem a tragic -thing, at least at first sight, that this should be so, because people -are too often inclined to think that forces which are dispersed in -different directions would attain their ends far more quickly and more -surely if they were united in one common effort. But that is not so. For -Nature herself decides according to the rules of her inexorable logic. -She leaves these diverse groups to compete with one another and dispute -the palm of victory and thus she chooses the clearest, shortest and -surest way along which she leads the movement to its final goal. - -How could one decide from outside which is the best way, if the forces -at hand were not allowed free play, if the final decision were to rest -with the doctrinaire judgment of men who are so infatuated with their -own superior knowledge that their minds are not open to accept the -indisputable proof presented by manifest success, which in the last -analysis always gives the final confirmation of the justice of a course -of action. - -Hence, though diverse groups march along different routes towards the -same objective, as soon as they come to know that analogous efforts are -being made around them, they will have to study all the more carefully -whether they have chosen the best way and whether a shorter way may not -be found and how their efforts can best be employed to reach the -objective more quickly. - -Through this rivalry each individual protagonist develops his faculties -to a still higher pitch of perfection and the human race has frequently -owed its progress to the lessons learned from the misfortunes of former -attempts which have come to grief. Therefore we may conclude that we -come to know the better ways of reaching final results through a state -of things which at first sight appeared tragic; namely, the initial -dispersion of individual efforts, wherein each group was unconsciously -responsible for such dispersion. - -In studying the lessons of history with a view to finding a way for the -solution of the German problem, the prevailing opinion at one time was -that there were two possible paths along which that problem might be -solved and that these two paths should have united from the very -beginning. The chief representatives and champions of these two paths -were Austria and Prussia respectively, Habsburg and Hohenzollern. All -the rest, according to this prevalent opinion, ought to have entrusted -their united forces to the one or the other party. But at that time the -path of the most prominent representative, the Habsburg, would have been -taken, though the Austrian policy would never have led to the foundation -of a united German REICH. - -Finally, a strong and united German REICH arose out of that which many -millions of Germans deplored in their hearts as the last and most -terrible manifestation of our fratricidal strife. The truth is that the -German Imperial Crown was retrieved on the battle field of K�niggr�tz -and not in the fights that were waged before Paris, as was commonly -asserted afterwards. - -Thus the foundation of the German REICH was not the consequence of any -common will working along common lines, but it was much more the outcome -of a deliberate struggle for hegemony, though the protagonists were -often hardly conscious of this. And from this struggle Prussia finally -came out victorious. Anybody who is not so blinded by partisan politics -as to deny this truth will have to agree that the so-called wisdom of -men would never have come to the same wise decision as the wisdom of -Life itself, that is to say, the free play of forces, finally brought to -realization. For in the German lands of two hundred years before who -would seriously have believed that Hohenzollern Prussia, and not -Habsburg, would become the germ cell, the founder and the tutor of the -new REICH? And, on the other hand, who would deny to-day that Destiny -thus acted wiser than human wisdom. Who could now imagine a German REICH -based on the foundations of an effete and degenerate dynasty? - -No. The general evolution of things, even though it took a century of -struggle, placed the best in the position that it had merited. - -And that will always be so. Therefore it is not to be regretted if -different men set out to attain the same objective. In this way the -strongest and swiftest becomes recognized and turns out to be the -victor. - -Now there is a second cause for the fact that often in the lives of -nations several movements which show the same characteristics strive -along different ways to reach what appears to be the same goal. This -second cause is not at all tragic, but just something that rightly calls -forth pity. It arises from a sad mixture of envy, jealousy, ambition, -and the itch for taking what belongs to others. Unfortunately these -failings are often found united in single specimens of the human -species. - -The moment a man arises who profoundly understands the distress of his -people and, having diagnosed the evil with perfect accuracy, takes -measures to cure it; the moment he fixes his aim and chooses the means -to reach it--then paltry and pettifogging people become all attention -and eagerly follow the doings of this man who has thus come before the -public gaze. Just like sparrows who are apparently indifferent, but in -reality are firmly intent on the movements of the fortunate companion -with the morsel of bread so that they may snatch it from him if he -should momentarily relax his hold on it, so it is also with the human -species. All that is needed is that one man should strike out on a new -road and then a crowd of poltroons will prick up their ears and begin to -sniff for whatever little booty may possibly lie at the end of that -road. The moment they think they have discovered where the booty is to -be gathered they hurry to find another way which may prove to be quicker -in reaching that goal. - -As soon as a new movement is founded and has formulated a definite -programme, people of that kind come forward and proclaim that they are -fighting for the same cause. This does not imply that they are ready -honestly to join the ranks of such a movement and thus recognize its -right of priority. It implies rather that they intend to steal the -programme and found a new party on it. In doing this they are shameless -enough to assure the unthinking public that for a long time they had -intended to take the same line of action as the other has now taken, and -frequently they succeed in thus placing themselves in a favourable -light, instead of arousing the general disapprobation which they justly -deserve. For it is a piece of gross impudence to take what has already -been inscribed on another's flag and display it on one's own, to steal -the programme of another, and then to form a separate group as if all -had been created by the new founder of this group. The impudence of such -conduct is particularly demonstrated when the individuals who first -caused dispersion and disruption by their new foundation are those -who--as experience has shown--are most emphatic in proclaiming the -necessity of union and unity the moment they find they cannot catch up -with their adversary's advance. - -It is to that kind of conduct that the so-called 'patriotic -disintegration' is to be attributed. - -Certainly in the years 1918--1919 the founding of a multitude of new -groups, parties, etc., calling themselves 'Patriotic,' was a natural -phenomenon of the time, for which the founders were not at all -responsible. By 1920 the National Socialist German Labour Party had -slowly crystallized from all these parties and had become supreme. There -could be no better proof of the sterling honesty of certain individual -founders than the fact that many of them decided, in a really admirable -manner, to sacrifice their manifestly less successful movements to the -stronger movement, by joining it unconditionally and dissolving their -own. - -This is specially true in regard to Julius Streicher, who was at that -time the protagonist of the German Socialist party in N�rnberg. The -National Socialist German Labour Party had been founded with similar -aims in view, but quite independently of the other. I have already said -that Streicher, then a teacher in N�rnberg, was the chief protagonist of -the German Socialist Party. He had a sacred conviction of the mission -and future of his own movement. As soon, however, as the superior -strength and stronger growth of the National Socialist Party became -clear and unquestionable to his mind, he gave up his work in the German -Socialist Party and called upon his followers to fall into line with the -National Socialist German Labour Party, which had come out victorious -from the mutual contest, and carry on the fight within its ranks for the -common cause. The decision was personally a difficult one for him, but -it showed a profound sense of honesty. - -When that first period of the movement was over there remained no -further dispersion of forces: for their honest intentions had led the -men of that time to the same honourable, straightforward and just -conclusion. What we now call the 'patriotic disintegration' owes its -existence exclusively to the second of the two causes which I have -mentioned. Ambitious men who at first had no ideas of their own, and -still less any concept of aims to be pursued, felt themselves 'called' -exactly at that moment in which the success of the National Socialist -German Labour Party became unquestionable. - -Suddenly programmes appeared which were mere transcripts of ours. Ideas -were proclaimed which had been taken from us. Aims were set up on behalf -of which we had been fighting for several years, and ways were mapped -out which the National Socialists had for a long time trodden. All kinds -of means were resorted to for the purpose of trying to convince the -public that, although the National Socialist German Labour Party had now -been for a long time in existence, it was found necessary to establish -these new parties. But all these phrases were just as insincere as the -motives behind them were ignoble. - -In reality all this was grounded only on one dominant motive. That -motive was the personal ambition of the founders, who wished to play a -part in which their own pigmy talents could contribute nothing original -except the gross effrontery which they displayed in appropriating the -ideas of others, a mode of conduct which in ordinary life is looked upon -as thieving. - -At that time there was not an idea or concept launched by other people -which these political kleptomaniacs did not seize upon at once for the -purpose of applying to their own base uses. Those who did all this were -the same people who subsequently, with tears in their eyes, profoundly -deplored the 'patriotic disintegration' and spoke unceasingly about the -'necessity of unity'. In doing this they nurtured the secret hope that -they might be able to cry down the others, who would tire of hearing -these loud-mouthed accusations and would end up by abandoning all claim -to the ideas that had been stolen from them and would abandon to the -thieves not only the task of carrying these ideas into effect but also -the task of carrying on the movements of which they themselves were the -original founders. - -When that did not succeed, and the new enterprises, thanks to the paltry -mentality of their promoters, did not show the favourable results which -had been promised beforehand, then they became more modest in their -pretences and were happy if they could land themselves in one of the -so-called 'co-operative unions'. - -At that period everything which could not stand on its own feet joined -one of those co-operative unions, believing that eight lame people -hanging on to one another could force a gladiator to surrender to them. - -But if among all these cripples there was one who was sound of limb he -had to use all his strength to sustain the others and thus he himself -was practically paralysed. - -We ought to look upon the question of joining these working coalitions -as a tactical problem, but, in coming to a decision, we must never -forget the following fundamental principle: - -Through the formation of a working coalition associations which are weak -in themselves can never be made strong, whereas it can and does happen -not infrequently that a strong association loses its strength by joining -in a coalition with weaker ones. It is a mistake to believe that a -factor of strength will result from the coalition of weak groups; -because experience shows that under all forms and all conditions the -majority represents the duffers and poltroons. Hence a multiplicity of -associations, under a directorate of many heads, elected by these same -associations, is abandoned to the control of poltroons and weaklings. -Through such a coalition the free play of forces is paralysed, the -struggle for the selection of the best is abolished and therewith the -necessary and final victory of the healthier and stronger is impeded. -Coalitions of that kind are inimical to the process of natural -development, because for the most part they hinder rather than advance -the solution of the problem which is being fought for. - -It may happen that, from considerations of a purely tactical kind, the -supreme command of a movement whose goal is set in the future will enter -into a coalition with such associations for the treatment of special -questions and may also stand on a common platform with them, but this -can be only for a short and limited period. Such a coalition must not be -permanent, if the movement does not wish to renounce its liberating -mission. Because if it should become indissolubly tied up in such a -combination it would lose the capacity and the right to allow its own -forces to work freely in following out a natural development, so as to -overcome rivals and attain its own objective triumphantly. - -It must never be forgotten that nothing really great in this world has -ever been achieved through coalitions, but that such achievements have -always been due to the triumph of the individual. Successes achieved -through coalitions, owing to the very nature of their source, carry the -germs of future disintegration in them from the very start; so much so -that they have already forfeited what has been achieved. The great -revolutions which have taken place in human thought and have veritably -transformed the aspect of the world would have been inconceivable and -impossible to carry out except through titanic struggles waged between -individual natures, but never as the enterprises of coalitions. - -And, above all things, the People's State will never be created by the -desire for compromise inherent in a patriotic coalition, but only by the -iron will of a single movement which has successfully come through in -the struggle with all the others. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - - - -FUNDAMENTAL IDEAS REGARDING THE NATURE AND ORGANIZATION OF THE STORM TROOPS - - -The strength of the old state rested on three pillars: the monarchical -form of government, the civil service, and the army. The Revolution of -1918 abolished the form of government, dissolved the army and abandoned -the civil service to the corruption of party politics. Thus the -essential supports of what is called the Authority of the State were -shattered. This authority nearly always depends on three elements, which -are the essential foundations of all authority. - -Popular support is the first element which is necessary for the creation -of authority. But an authority resting on that foundation alone is still -quite frail, uncertain and vacillating. Hence everyone who finds himself -vested with an authority that is based only on popular support must take -measures to improve and consolidate the foundations of that authority by -the creation of force. Accordingly we must look upon power, that is to -say, the capacity to use force, as the second foundation on which all -authority is based. This foundation is more stable and secure, but not -always stronger, than the first. If popular support and power are united -together and can endure for a certain time, then an authority may arise -which is based on a still stronger foundation, namely, the authority of -tradition. And, finally, if popular support, power, and tradition are -united together, then the authority based on them may be looked upon as -invincible. - -In Germany the Revolution abolished this last foundation. There was no -longer even a traditional authority. With the collapse of the old REICH, -the suppression of the monarchical form of government, the destruction -of all the old insignia of greatness and the imperial symbols, tradition -was shattered at a blow. The result was that the authority of the State -was shaken to its foundations. - -The second pillar of statal authority, namely POWER, also ceased to -exist. In order to carry through the Revolution it was necessary to -dissolve that body which had hitherto incorporated the organized force -and power of the State, namely, the Army. Indeed, some detached -fragments of the Army itself had to be employed as fighting elements in -the Revolution. The Armies at the front were not subjected in the same -measure to this process of disruption; but as they gradually left -farther behind them the fields of glory on which they had fought -heroically for four-and-half years, they were attacked by the solvent -acid that had permeated the Fatherland; and when they arrived at the -demobilizing centres they fell into that state of confusion which was -styled voluntary obedience in the time of the Soldiers' Councils. - -Of course it was out of the question to think of founding any kind of -authority on this crowd of mutineering soldiers, who looked upon -military service as a work of eight hours per day. Therefore the second -element, that which guarantees the stability of authority, was also -abolished and the Revolution had only the original element, popular -support, on which to build up its authority. But this basis was -extraordinarily insecure. By means of a few violent thrusts the -Revolution had shattered the old statal edifice to its deepest -foundations, but only because the normal equilibrium within the social -structure of the nation had already been destroyed by the war. - -Every national body is made up of three main classes. At one extreme we -have the best of the people, taking the word 'best' here to indicate -those who are highly endowed with the civic virtues and are noted for -their courage and their readiness to sacrifice their private interests. -At the other extreme are the worst dregs of humanity, in whom vice and -egotistic interests prevail. Between these two extremes stands the third -class, which is made up of the broad middle stratum, who do not -represent radiant heroism or vulgar vice. - -The stages of a nation's rise are accomplished exclusively under the -leadership of the best extreme. - -Times of normal and symmetrical development, or of stable conditions, -owe their existence and outwardly visible characteristics to the -preponderating influence of the middle stratum. In this stage the two -extreme classes are balanced against one another; in other words, they -are relatively cancelled out. - -Times of national collapse are determined by the preponderating -influence of the worst elements. - -It must be noted here, however, that the broad masses, which constitute -what I have called the middle section, come forward and make their -influence felt only when the two extreme sections are engaged in mutual -strife. In case one of the extreme sections comes out victorious the -middle section will readily submit to its domination. If the best -dominate, the broad masses will follow it. Should the worst extreme turn -out triumphant, then the middle section will at least offer no -opposition to it; for the masses that constitute the middle class never -fight their own battles. - -The outpouring of blood for four-and-a-half years during the war -destroyed the inner equilibrium between these three sections in so far -as it can be said--though admitting the sacrifices made by the middle -section--that the class which consisted of the best human elements -almost completely disappeared through the loss of so much of its blood -in the war, because it was impossible to replace the truly enormous -quantity of heroic German blood which had been shed during those -four-and-a-half years. In hundreds of thousands of cases it was always a -matter of 'VOLUNTEERS to the front', VOLUNTEERS for patrol and duty, -VOLUNTEER dispatch carriers, VOLUNTEERS for establishing and working -telephonic communications, VOLUNTEERS for bridge-building, VOLUNTEERS -for the submarines, VOLUNTEERS for the air service, VOLUNTEERS for the -storm battalions, and so on, and so on. During four-and-a-half years, -and on thousands of occasions, there was always the call for volunteers -and again for volunteers. And the result was always the same. Beardless -young fellows or fully developed men, all filled with an ardent love for -their country, urged on by their own courageous spirit or by a lofty -sense of their duty--it was always such men who answered the call for -volunteers. Tens of thousands, indeed hundreds of thousands, of such men -came forward, so that that kind of human material steadily grew scarcer -and scarcer. What did not actually fall was maimed in the fight or -gradually had to join the ranks of the crippled because of the wounds -they were constantly receiving, and thus they had to carry on -interminably owing to the steady decrease in the supply of such men. In -1914 whole armies were composed of volunteers who, owing to a criminal -lack of conscience on the part of our feckless parliamentarians, had not -received any proper training in times of peace, and so were thrown as -defenceless cannon-fodder to the enemy. The four hundred thousand who -thus fell or were permanently maimed on the battlefields of Flanders -could not be replaced any more. Their loss was something far more than -merely numerical. With their death the scales, which were already too -lightly weighed at that end of the social structure which represented -our best human quality, now moved upwards rapidly, becoming heavier on -the other end with those vulgar elements of infamy and cowardice--in -short, there was an increase in the elements that constituted the worst -extreme of our population. - -And there was something more: While for four-and-a-half years our best -human material was being thinned to an exceptional degree on the -battlefields, our worst people wonderfully succeeded in saving -themselves. For each hero who made the supreme sacrifice and ascended -the steps of Valhalla, there was a shirker who cunningly dodged death on -the plea of being engaged in business that was more or less useful at -home. - -And so the picture which presented itself at the end of the war was -this: The great middle stratum of the nation had fulfilled its duty and -paid its toll of blood. One extreme of the population, which was -constituted of the best elements, had given a typical example of its -heroism and had sacrificed itself almost to a man. The other extreme, -which was constituted of the worst elements of the population, had -preserved itself almost intact, through taking advantage of absurd laws -and also because the authorities failed to enforce certain articles of -the military code. - -This carefully preserved scum of our nation then made the Revolution. -And the reason why it could do so was that the extreme section composed -of the best elements was no longer there to oppose it. It no longer -existed. - -Hence the German Revolution, from the very beginning, depended on only -one section of the population. This act of Cain was not committed by the -German people as such, but by an obscure CANAILLE of deserters, -hooligans, etc. - -The man at the front gladly welcomed the end of the strife in which so -much blood had been shed. He was happy to be able to return home and see -his wife and children once again. But he had no moral connection with -the Revolution. He did not like it, nor did he like those who had -provoked and organized it. During the four-and-a-half years of that -bitter struggle at the front he had come to forget the party hyenas at -home and all their wrangling had become foreign to him. - -The Revolution was really popular only with a small section of the -German people: namely, that class and their accomplices who had selected -the rucksack as the hall-mark of all honourable citizens in this new -State. They did not like the Revolution for its own sake, though many -people still erroneously believe the contrary, but for the consequences -which followed in its train. - -But it was very difficult to establish any abiding authority on the -popular support given to these Marxist freebooters. And yet the young -Republic stood in need of authority at any cost, unless it was ready to -agree to be overthrown after a short period of chaos by an elementary -force assembled from those last elements that still remained among the -best extreme of the population. - -The danger which those who were responsible for the Revolution feared -most at that time was that, in the turmoil of the confusion which they -themselves had created, the ground would suddenly be taken from under -their feet, that they might be suddenly seized and transported to -another terrain by an iron grip, such as has often appeared at these -junctures in the history of nations. The Republic must be consolidated -at all costs. - -Hence it was forced almost immediately after its foundation to erect -another pillar beside that wavering pillar of popularity. They found -that power must be organized once again in order to procure a firmer -foundation for their authority. - -When those who had been the matadors of the Revolution in December 1918, -and January and February 1919, felt the ground trembling beneath their -feet they looked around them for men who would be ready to reinforce -them with military support; for their feeble position was dependent only -on whatever popular favour they enjoyed. The 'anti-militarist' Republic -had need of soldiers. But the first and only pillar on which the -authority of the State rested, namely, its popularity, was grounded only -on a conglomeration of rowdies and thieves, burglars, deserters, -shirkers, etc. Therefore in that section of the nation which we have -called the evil extreme it was useless to look for men who would be -willing to sacrifice their lives on behalf of a new ideal. The section -which had nourished the revolutionary idea and carried out the -Revolution was neither able nor willing to call on the soldiers to -protect it. For that section had no wish whatsoever to organize a -republican State, but to disorganize what already existed and thus -satisfy its own instincts all the better. Their password was not the -organization and construction of the German Republic, but rather the -plundering of it. - -Hence the cry for help sent out by the public representatives, who were -beset by a thousand anxieties, did not find any response among this -class of people, but rather provoked a feeling of bitterness and -repudiation. For they looked upon this step as the beginning of a breach -of faith and trust, and in the building up of an authority which was no -longer based on popular support but also on force they saw the beginning -of a hostile move against what the Revolution meant essentially for -those elements. They feared that measures might be taken against the -right to robbery and absolute domination on the part of a horde of -thieves and plunderers--in short, the worst rabble--who had broken out -of the convict prisons and left their chains behind. - -The representatives of the people might cry out as much as they liked, -but they could get no help from that rabble. The cries for help were met -with the counter-cry 'traitors' by those very people on whose support -the popularity of the regime was founded. - -Then for the first time large numbers of young Germans were found who -were ready to button on the military uniform once again in the service -of 'Peace and Order', as they believed, shouldering the carbine and -rifle and donning the steel helmet to defend the wreckers of the -Fatherland. Volunteer corps were assembled and, although hating the -Revolution, they began to defend it. The practical effect of their -action was to render the Revolution firm and stable. In doing this they -acted in perfect good faith. - -The real organizer of the Revolution and the actual wire-puller behind -it, the international Jew, had sized up the situation correctly. The -German people were not yet ripe to be drawn into the blood swamp of -Bolshevism, as the Russian people had been drawn. And that was because -there was a closer racial union between the intellectual classes in -Germany and the manual workers, and also because broad social strata -were permeated with cultured people, such as was the case also in the -other States of Western Europe; but this state of affairs was completely -lacking in Russia. In that country the intellectual classes were mostly -not of Russian nationality, or at least they did not have the racial -characteristics of the Slav. The thin upper layer of intellectuals which -then existed in Russia might be abolished at any time, because there was -no intermediate stratum connecting it organically with the great mass of -the people. There the mental and moral level of the great mass of the -people was frightfully low. - -In Russia the moment the agitators were successful in inciting broad -masses of the people, who could not read or write, against the upper -layer of intellectuals who were not in contact with the masses or -permanently linked with them in any way--at that moment the destiny of -Russia was decided, the success of the Revolution was assured. Thereupon -the analphabetic Russian became the slave of his Jewish dictators who, -on their side, were shrewd enough to name their dictatorship 'The -Dictatorship of the People'. - -In the case of Germany an additional factor must be taken into account. -Here the Revolution could be carried into effect only if the Army could -first be gradually dismembered. But the real author of the Revolution -and of the process of disintegration in the Army was not the soldier who -had fought at the front but the CANAILLE which more or less shunned the -light and which were either quartered in the home garrisons or were -officiating as 'indispensables' somewhere in the business world at home. -This army was reinforced by ten thousand deserters who, without running -any particular risk, could turn their backs on the Front. At all times -the real poltroon fears nothing so much as death. But at the Front he -had death before his eyes every day in a thousand different shapes. -There has always been one possible way, and one only, of making weak or -wavering men, or even downright poltroons, face their duty steadfastly. -This means that the deserter must be given to understand that his -desertion will bring upon him just the very thing he is flying from. At -the Front a man may die, but the deserter MUST die. Only this draconian -threat against every attempt to desert the flag can have a terrifying -effect, not merely on the individual but also on the mass. Therein lay -the meaning and purpose of the military penal code. - -It was a fine belief to think that the great struggle for the life of a -nation could be carried through if it were based solely on voluntary -fidelity arising from and sustained by the knowledge that such a -struggle was necessary. The voluntary fulfilment of one's duty is a -motive that determines the actions of only the best men, but not of the -average type of men. Hence special laws are necessary; just as, for -instance, the law against stealing, which was not made for men who are -honest on principle but for the weak and unstable elements. Such laws -are meant to hinder the evil-doer through their deterrent effect and -thus prevent a state of affairs from arising in which the honest man is -considered the more stupid, and which would end in the belief that it is -better to have a share in the robbery than to stand by with empty hands -or allow oneself to be robbed. - -It was a mistake to believe that in a struggle which, according to all -human foresight, might last for several years it would be possible to -dispense with those expedients which the experience of hundreds and even -of thousands of years had proved to be effective in making weak and -unstable men face and fulfil their duty in difficult times and at -moments of great nervous stress. - -For the voluntary war hero it is, of course, not necessary to have the -death penalty in the military code, but it is necessary for the cowardly -egoists who value their own lives more than the existence of the -community in the hour of national need. Such weak and characterless -people can be held back from surrendering to their cowardice only by the -application of the heaviest penalties. When men have to struggle with -death every day and remain for weeks in trenches of mire, often very -badly supplied with food, the man who is unsure of himself and begins to -waver cannot be made to stick to his post by threats of imprisonment or -even penal servitude. Only by a ruthless enforcement of the death -penalty can this be effected. For experience shows that at such a time -the recruit considers prison a thousand times more preferable than the -battlefield. In prison at least his precious life is not in danger. The -practical abolition of the death penalty during the war was a mistake -for which we had to pay dearly. Such omission really meant that the -military penal code was no longer recognized as valid. An army of -deserters poured into the stations at the rear or returned home, -especially in 1918, and there began to form that huge criminal -organization with which we were suddenly faced, after November 7th, -1918, and which perpetrated the Revolution. - -The Front had nothing to do with all this. Naturally, the soldiers at -the Front were yearning for peace. But it was precisely that fact which -represented a special danger for the Revolution. For when the German -soldiers began to draw near home, after the Armistice, the -revolutionaries were in trepidation and asked the same question again -and again: What will the troops from the Front do? Will the field-greys -stand for it? - -During those weeks the Revolution was forced to give itself at least an -external appearance of moderation, if it were not to run the risk of -being wrecked in a moment by a few German divisions. For at that time, -even if the commander of one division alone had made up his mind to -rally the soldiers of his division, who had always remained faithful to -him, in an onslaught to tear down the red flag and put the 'councils' up -against the wall, or, if there was any resistance, to break it with -trench-mortars and hand grenades, that division would have grown into an -army of sixty divisions in less than four weeks. The Jew wire-pullers -were terrified by this prospect more than by anything else; and to -forestall this particular danger they found it necessary to give the -Revolution a certain aspect of moderation. They dared not allow it to -degenerate into Bolshevism, so they had to face the existing conditions -by putting up the hypocritical picture of 'order and tranquillity'. -Hence many important concessions, the appeal to the old civil service -and to the heads of the old Army. They would be needed at least for a -certain time, and only when they had served the purpose of Turks' Heads -could the deserved kick-out be administered with impunity. Then the -Republic would be taken entirely out of the hands of the old servants of -the State and delivered into the claws of the revolutionaries. - -They thought that this was the only plan which would succeed in duping -the old generals and civil servants and disarm any eventual opposition -beforehand through the apparently harmless and mild character of the new -regime. - -Practical experience has shown to what extent the plan succeeded. - -The Revolution, however, was not made by the peaceful and orderly -elements of the nation but rather by rioters, thieves and robbers. And -the way in which the Revolution was developing did not accord with the -intentions of these latter elements; still, on tactical grounds, it was -not possible to explain to them the reasons for the course things were -taking and make that course acceptable. - -As Social Democracy gradually gained power it lost more and more the -character of a crude revolutionary party. Of course in their inner -hearts the Social Democrats wanted a revolution; and their leaders had -no other end in view. Certainly not. But what finally resulted was only -a revolutionary programme; but not a body of men who would be able to -carry it out. A revolution cannot be carried through by a party of ten -million members. If such a movement were attempted the leaders would -find that it was not an extreme section of the population on which they -had to depend butrather the broad masses of the middle stratum; hence -the inert masses. - -Recognizing all this, already during the war, the Jews caused the famous -split in the Social Democratic Party. While the Social Democratic Party, -conforming to the inertia of its mass following, clung like a leaden -weight on the neck of the national defence, the actively radical -elements were extracted from it and formed into new aggressive columns -for purposes of attack. The Independent Socialist Party and the -Spartacist League were the storm battalions of revolutionary Marxism. -The objective assigned to them was to create a FAIT ACCOMPLI, on the -grounds of which the masses of the Social Democratic Party could take -their stand, having been prepared for this event long beforehand. The -feckless bourgeoisie had been estimated at its just value by the -Marxists and treated EN CANAILLE. Nobody bothered about it, knowing well -that in their canine servility the representatives of an old and -worn-out generation would not be able to offer any serious resistance. - -When the Revolution had succeeded and its artificers believed that the -main pillars of the old State had been broken down, the Army returning -from the Front began to appear in the light of a sinister sphinx and -thus made it necessary to slow down the national course of the -Revolution. The main body of the Social Democratic horde occupied the -conquered positions, and the Independent Socialist and Spartacist storm -battalions were side-tracked. - -But that did not happen without a struggle. - -The activist assault formations that had started the Revolution were -dissatisfied and felt that they had been betrayed. They now wanted to -continue the fight on their own account. But their illimitable -racketeering became odious even to the wire-pullers of the Revolution. -For the Revolution itself had scarcely been accomplished when two camps -appeared. In the one camp were the elements of peace and order; in the -other were those of blood and terror. Was it not perfectly natural that -our bourgeoisie should rush with flying colours to the camp of peace and -order? For once in their lives their piteous political organizations -found it possible to act, inasmuch as the ground had been prepared for -them on which they were glad to get a new footing; and thus to a certain -extent they found themselves in coalition with that power which they -hated but feared. The German political bourgeoisie achieved the high -honour of being able to associate itself with the accursed Marxist -leaders for the purpose of combating Bolshevism. - -Thus the following state of affairs took shape as early as December 1918 -and January 1919: - -A minority constituted of the worst elements had made the Revolution. -And behind this minority all the Marxist parties immediately fell into -step. The Revolution itself had an outward appearance of moderation, -which aroused against it the enmity of the fanatical extremists. These -began to launch hand-grenades and fire machine-guns, occupying public -buildings, thus threatening to destroy the moderate appearance of the -Revolution. To prevent this terror from developing further a truce was -concluded between the representatives of the new regime and the -adherents of the old order, so as to be able to wage a common fight -against the extremists. The result was that the enemies of the Republic -ceased to oppose the Republic as such and helped to subjugate those who -were also enemies of the Republic, though for quite different reasons. -But a further result was that all danger of the adherents of the old -State putting up a fight against the new was now definitely averted. - -This fact must always be clearly kept in mind. Only by remembering it -can we understand how it was possible that a nation in which nine-tenths -of the people had not joined in a revolution, where seven-tenths -repudiated it and six-tenths detested it--how this nation allowed the -Revolution to be imposed upon it by the remaining one-tenth of the -population. - -Gradually the barricade heroes in the Spartacist camp petered out, and -so did the nationalist patriots and idealists on the other side. As -these two groups steadily dwindled, the masses of the middle stratum, as -always happens, triumphed. The Bourgeoisie and the Marxists met together -on the grounds of accomplished facts, and the Republic began to be -consolidated. At first, however, that did not prevent the bourgeois -parties from propounding their monarchist ideas for some time further, -especially at the elections, whereby they endeavoured to conjure up the -spirits of the dead past to encourage their own feeble-hearted -followers. It was not an honest proceeding. In their hearts they had -broken with the monarchy long ago; but the foulness of the new regime -had begun to extend its corruptive action and make itself felt in the -camp of the bourgeois parties. The common bourgeois politician now felt -better in the slime of republican corruption than in the severe decency -of the defunct State, which still lived in his memory. - -As I have already pointed out, after the destruction of the old Army the -revolutionary leaders were forced to strengthen statal authority by -creating a new factor of power. In the conditions that existed they -could do this only by winning over to their side the adherents of a -WELTANSCHAUUNG which was a direct contradiction of their own. From -those elements alone it was possible slowly to create a new army which, -limited numerically by the peace treaties, had to be subsequently -transformed in spirit so as to become an instrument of the new regime. - -Setting aside the defects of the old State, which really became the -cause of the Revolution, if we ask how it was possible to carry the -Revolution to a successful issue as a political act, we arrive at the -following conclusions: - -l. It was due to a process of dry rot in our conceptions of duty and -obedience. - -2. It was due also to the passive timidity of the Parties who were -supposed to uphold the State. - -To this the following must be added: The dry rot which attacked our -concepts of duty and obedience was fundamentally due to our wholly -non-national and purely State education. From this came the habit of -confusing means and ends. Consciousness of duty, fulfilment of duty, and -obedience, are not ends in themselves no more than the State is an end -in itself; but they all ought to be employed as means to facilitate and -assure the existence of a community of people who are kindred both -physically and spiritually. At a moment when a nation is manifestly -collapsing and when all outward signs show that it is on the point of -becoming the victim of ruthless oppression, thanks to the conduct of a -few miscreants, to obey these people and fulfil one's duty towards them -is merely doctrinaire formalism, and indeed pure folly; whereas, on the -other hand, the refusal of obedience and fulfilment of duty in such a -case might save the nation from collapse. According to our current -bourgeois idea of the State, if a divisional general received from above -the order not to shoot he fulfilled his duty and therefore acted rightly -in not shooting, because to the bourgeois mind blind formal obedience is -a more valuable thing than the life of a nation. But according to the -National Socialist concept it is not obedience to weak superiors that -should prevail at such moments, in such an hour the duty of assuming -personal responsibility towards the whole nation makes its appearance. - -The Revolution succeeded because that concept had ceased to be a vital -force with our people, or rather with our governments, and died down to -something that was merely formal and doctrinaire. - -As regards the second point, it may be said that the more profound cause -of the fecklessness of the bourgeois parties must be attributed to the -fact that the most active and upright section of our people had lost -their lives in the war. Apart from that, the bourgeois parties, which -may be considered as the only political formations that stood by the old -State, were convinced that they ought to defend their principles only by -intellectual ways and means, since the use of physical force was -permitted only to the State. That outlook was a sign of the weakness and -decadence which had been gradually developing. And it was also senseless -at a period when there was a political adversary who had long ago -abandoned that standpoint and, instead of this, had openly declared that -he meant to attain his political ends by force whenever that became -possible. When Marxism emerged in the world of bourgeois democracy, as a -consequence of that democracy itself, the appeal sent out by the -bourgeois democracy to fight Marxism with intellectual weapons was a -piece of folly for which a terrible expiation had to be made later on. -For Marxism always professed the doctrine that the use of arms was a -matter which had to be judged from the standpoint of expediency and that -success justified the use of arms. - -This idea was proved correct during the days from November 7 to 10, -1918. The Marxists did not then bother themselves in the least about -parliament or democracy, but they gave the death blow to both by turning -loose their horde of criminals to shoot and raise hell. - -When the Revolution was over the bourgeois parties changed the title of -their firm and suddenly reappeared, the heroic leaders emerging from -dark cellars or more lightsome storehouses where they had sought refuge. -But, just as happens in the case of all representatives of antiquated -institutions, they had not forgotten their errors or learned anything -new. Their political programme was grounded in the past, even though -they themselves had become reconciled to the new regime. Their aim was -to secure a share in the new establishment, and so they continued the -use of words as their sole weapon. - -Therefore after the Revolution the bourgeois parties also capitulated to -the street in a miserable fashion. - -When the law for the Protection of the Republic was introduced the -majority was not at first in favour of it. But, confronted with two -hundred thousand Marxists demonstrating in the streets, the bourgeois -'statesmen' were so terror-stricken that they voted for the Law against -their wills, for the edifying reason that otherwise they feared they -might get their heads smashed by the enraged masses on leaving the -Reichstag. - -And so the new State developed along its own course, as if there had -been no national opposition at all. - -The only organizations which at that time had the strength and courage -to face Marxism and its enraged masses were first of all the volunteer -corps (Note 19), and subsequently the organizations for self-defence, the -civic guards and finally the associations formed by the demobilized -soldiers of the old Army. - -[Note 19. After the DEBACLE of 1918 several semi-military associations were -formed by demobilized officers who had fought at the Front. These were -semi-clandestine associations and were known as FREIKORPS (Volunteer -corps). Their principal purpose was to act as rallying centres for the -old nationalist elements.] - -But the existence of these bodies did not appreciably change the course -of German history; and that for the following causes: - -As the so-called national parties were without influence, because they -had no force which could effectively demonstrate in the street, the -Leagues of Defence could not exercise any influence because they had no -political idea and especially because they had no definite political aim -in view. - -The success which Marxism once attained was due to perfect co-operation -between political purposes and ruthless force. What deprived nationalist -Germany of all practical hopes of shaping German development was the -lack of a determined co-operation between brute force and political aims -wisely chosen. - -Whatever may have been the aspirations of the 'national' parties, they -had no force whatsoever to fight for these aspirations, least of all in -the streets. - -The Defence Leagues had force at their disposal. They were masters of -the street and of the State, but they lacked political ideas and aims on -behalf of which their forces might have been or could have been employed -in the interests of the German nation. The cunning Jew was able in both -cases, by his astute powers of persuasion, in reinforcing an already -existing tendency to make this unfortunate state of affairs permanent -and at the same time to drive the roots of it still deeper. - -The Jew succeeded brilliantly in using his Press for the purpose of -spreading abroad the idea that the defence associations were of a -'non-political' character just as in politics he was always astute -enough to praise the purely intellectual character of the struggle and -demand that it must always be kept on that plane - -Millions of German imbeciles then repeated this folly without having the -slightest suspicion that by so doing they were, for all practical -purposes, disarming themselves and delivering themselves defenceless -into the hands of the Jew. - -But there is a natural explanation of this also. The lack of a great -idea which would re-shape things anew has always meant a limitation in -fighting power. The conviction of the right to employ even the most -brutal weapons is always associated with an ardent faith in the -necessity for a new and revolutionary transformation of the world. - -A movement which does not fight for such high aims and ideals will never -have recourse to extreme means. - -The appearance of a new and great idea was the secret of success in the -French Revolution. The Russian Revolution owes its triumph to an idea. -And it was only the idea that enabled Fascism triumphantly to subject a -whole nation to a process of complete renovation. - -Bourgeois parties are not capable of such an achievement. And it was not -the bourgeois parties alone that fixed their aim in a restoration of the -past. The defence associations also did so, in so far as they concerned -themselves with political aims at all. The spirit of the old war legions -and Kyffauser tendencies lived in them and therewith helped politically -to blunt the sharpest weapons which the German nation then possessed and -allow them to rust in the hands of republican serfs. The fact that these -associations were inspired by the best of intentions in so doing, and -certainly acted in good faith, does not alter in the slightest degree -the foolishness of the course they adopted. - -In the consolidated REICHSWEHR Marxism gradually acquired the support of -force, which it needed for its authority. As a logical consequence it -proceeded to abolish those defence associations which it considered -dangerous, declaring that they were now no longer necessary. Some rash -leaders who defied the Marxist orders were summoned to court and sent to -prison. But they all got what they had deserved. - -The founding of the National Socialist German Labour Party incited a -movement which was the first to fix its aim, not in a mechanical -restoration of the past--as the bourgeois parties did--but in the -substitution of an organic People's State for the present absurd statal -mechanism. - -From the first day of its foundation the new movement took its stand on -the principle that its ideas had to be propagated by intellectual means -but that, wherever necessary, muscular force must be employed to support -this propaganda. In accordance with their conviction of the paramount -importance of the new doctrine, the leaders of the new movement -naturally believe that no sacrifice can be considered too great when it -is a question of carrying through the purpose of the movement. - -I have emphasized that in certain circumstances a movement which is -meant to win over the hearts of the people must be ready to defend -itself with its own forces against terrorist attempts on the part of its -adversaries. It has invariably happened in the history of the world that -formal State authority has failed to break a reign of terror which was -inspired by a WELTANSCHAUUNG. It can only be conquered by a new and -different WELTANSCHAUUNG whose representatives are quite as audacious -and determined. The acknowledgment of this fact has always been very -unpleasant for the bureaucrats who are the protectors of the State, but -the fact remains nevertheless. The rulers of the State can guarantee -tranquillity and order only in case the State embodies a WELTANSCHAUUNG -which is shared in by the people as a whole; so that elements of -disturbance can be treated as isolated criminals, instead of being -considered as the champions of an idea which is diametrically opposed to -official opinions. If such should be the case the State may employ the -most violent measures for centuries long against the terror that -threatens it; but in the end all these measures will prove futile, and -the State will have to succumb. - -The German State is intensely overrun by Marxism. In a struggle that -went on for seventy years the State was not able to prevent the triumph -of the Marxist idea. Even though the sentences to penal servitude and -imprisonment amounted in all to thousands of years, and even though the -most sanguinary methods of repression were in innumerable instances -threatened against the champions of the Marxist WELTANSCHAUUNG, in the -end the State was forced to capitulate almost completely. The ordinary -bourgeois political leaders will deny all this, but their protests are -futile. - -Seeing that the State capitulated unconditionally to Marxism on November -9th, 1918, it will not suddenly rise up tomorrow as the conqueror of -Marxism. On the contrary. Bourgeois simpletons sitting on office stools -in the various ministries babble about the necessity of not governing -against the wishes of the workers, and by the word 'workers' they mean -the Marxists. By identifying the German worker with Marxism not only are -they guilty of a vile falsification of the truth, but they thus try to -hide their own collapse before the Marxist idea and the Marxist -organization. - -In view of the complete subordination of the present State to Marxism, -the National Socialist Movement feels all the more bound not only to -prepare the way for the triumph of its idea by appealing to the reason -and understanding of the public but also to take upon itself the -responsibility of organizing its own defence against the terror of the -International, which is intoxicated with its own victory. - -I have already described how practical experience in our young movement -led us slowly to organize a system of defence for our meetings. This -gradually assumed the character of a military body specially trained for -the maintenance of order, and tended to develop into a service which -would have its properly organized cadres. - -This new formation might resemble the defence associations externally, -but in reality there were no grounds of comparison between the one and -the other. - -As I have already said, the German defence organizations did not have -any definite political ideas of their own. They really were only -associations for mutual protection, and they were trained and organized -accordingly, so that they were an illegal complement or auxiliary to the -legal forces of the State. Their character as free corps arose only from -the way in which they were constructed and the situation in which the -State found itself at that time. But they certainly could not claim to -be free corps on the grounds that they were associations formed freely -and privately for the purpose of fighting for their own freely formed -political convictions. Such they were not, despite the fact that some of -their leaders and some associations as such were definitely opposed to -the Republic. For before we can speak of political convictions in the -higher sense we must be something more than merely convinced that the -existing regime is defective. Political convictions in the higher sense -mean that one has the picture of a new regime clearly before one's mind, -feels that the establishment of this regime is an absolute necessity and -sets himself to carry out that purpose as the highest task to which his -life can be devoted. - -The troops for the preservation of order, which were then formed under -the National Socialist Movement, were fundamentally different from all -the other defence associations by reason of the fact that our formations -were not meant in any way to defend the state of things created by the -Revolution, but rather that they were meant exclusively to support our -struggle for the creation of a new Germany. - -In the beginning this body was merely a guard to maintain order at our -meetings. Its first task was limited to making it possible for us to -hold our meetings, which otherwise would have been completely prevented -by our opponents. These men were at that time trained merely for -purposes of attack, but they were not taught to adore the big stick -exclusively, as was then pretended in stupid German patriotic circles. -They used the cudgel because they knew that it can be made impossible -for high ideals to be put forward if the man who endeavours to propagate -them can be struck down with the cudgel. As a matter of fact, it has -happened in history not infrequently that some of the greatest minds -have perished under the blows of the most insignificant helots. Our -bodyguards did not look upon violence as an end in itself, but they -protected the expositors of ideal aims and purposes against hostile -coercion by violence. They also understood that there was no obligation -to undertake the defence of a State which did not guarantee the defence -of the nation, but that, on the contrary, they had to defend the nation -against those who were threatening to destroy nation and State. - -After the fight which took place at the meeting in the Munich -Hofbr�uhaus, where the small number of our guards who were present won -everlasting fame for themselves by the heroic manner in which they -stormed the adversaries; these guards were called THE STORM DETACHMENT. -As the name itself indicates, they represent only a DETACHMENT of the -Movement. They are one constituent element of it, just as is the Press, -the propaganda, educational institutes, and other sections of the Party. - -We learned how necessary was the formation of such a body, not only from -our experience on the occasion of that memorable meeting but also when -we sought gradually to carry the Movement beyond Munich and extend it to -the other parts of Germany. Once we had begun to appear as a danger to -Marxism the Marxists lost no opportunity of trying to crush beforehand -all preparations for the holding of National Socialist meetings. When -they did not succeed in this they tried to break up the meeting itself. -It goes without saying that all the Marxist organizations, no matter of -what grade or view, blindly supported the policy and activities of their -representations in every case. But what is to be said of the bourgeois -parties who, when they were reduced to silence by these same Marxists -and in many places did not dare to send their speakers to appear before -the public, yet showed themselves pleased, in a stupid and -incomprehensible manner, every time we received any kind of set-back in -our fight against Marxism. The bourgeois parties were happy to think -that those whom they themselves could not stand up against, but had to -knuckle down to, could not be broken by us. What must be said of those -State officials, chiefs of police, and even cabinet ministers, who -showed a scandalous lack of principle in presenting themselves -externally to the public as 'national' and yet shamelessly acted as the -henchmen of the Marxists in the disputes which we, National Socialists, -had with the latter. What can be said of persons who debased themselves -so far, for the sake of a little abject praise in the Jewish Press, that -they persecuted those men to whose heroic courage and intervention, -regardless of risk, they were partly indebted for not having been torn -to pieces by the Red mob a few years previously and strung up to the -lamp-posts? - -One day these lamentable phenomena fired the late but unforgotten -Prefect P�hner--a man whose unbending straightforwardness forced him to -hate all twisters and to hate them as only a man with an honest heart -can hate--to say: "In all my life I wished to be first a German and then -an official, and I never wanted to mix up with these creatures who, as -if they were kept officials, prostituted themselves before anybody who -could play lord and master for the time being." - -It was a specially sad thing that gradually tens of thousands of honest -and loyal servants of the State did not only come under the power of -such people but were also slowly contaminated by their unprincipled -morals. Moreover, these kind of men pursued honest officials with a -furious hatred, degrading them and driving them from their positions, -and yet passed themselves off as 'national' by the aid of their lying -hypocrisy. - -From officials of that kind we could expect no support, and only in very -rare instances was it given. Only by building up its own defence could -our movement become secure and attract that amount of public attention -and general respect which is given to those who can defend themselves -when attacked. - -As an underlying principle in the internal development of the Storm -Detachment, we came to the decision that not only should it be perfectly -trained in bodily efficiency but that the men should be so instructed as -to make them indomitably convinced champions of the National Socialist -ideas and, finally, that they should be schooled to observe the -strictest discipline. This body was to have nothing to do with the -defence organizations of the bourgeois type and especially not with any -secret organization. - -My reasons at that time for guarding strictly against letting the Storm -Detachment of the German National Socialist Labour Party appear as a -defence association were as follows: - -On purely practical grounds it is impossible to build up a national -defence organization by means of private associations, unless the State -makes an enormous contribution to it. Whoever thinks otherwise -overestimates his own powers. Now it is entirely out of the question to -form organizations of any military value for a definite purpose on the -principle of so-called 'voluntary discipline'. Here the chief support -for enforcing orders, namely, the power of inflicting punishment, is -lacking. In the autumn, or rather in the spring, of 1919 it was still -possible to raise 'volunteer corps', not only because most of the men -who came forward at that time had been through the school of the old -Army, but also because the kind of duty imposed there constrained the -individual to absolute obedience at least for a definite period of time. - -That spirit is entirely lacking in the volunteer defence organizations -of to-day. The more the defence association grows, the weaker its -discipline becomes and so much the less can one demand from the -individual members. Thus the whole organization will more and more -assume the character of the old non-political associations of war -comrades and veterans. - -It is impossible to carry through a voluntary training in military -service for larger masses unless one is assured absolute power of -command. There will always be few men who will voluntarily and -spontaneously submit to that kind of obedience which is considered -natural and necessary in the Army. - -Moreover, a proper system of military training cannot be developed where -there are such ridiculously scanty means as those at the disposal of the -defence associations. The principal task of such an institution must be -to impart the best and most reliable kind of instruction. Eight years -have passed since the end of the War, and during that time none of our -German youth, at an age when formerly they would have had to do military -service, have received any systematic training at all. The aim of a -defence association cannot be to enlist here and now all those who have -already received a military training; for in that case it could be -reckoned with mathematical accuracy when the last member would leave the -association. Even the younger soldier from 1918 will no longer be fit -for front-line service twenty years later, and we are approaching that -state of things with a rapidity that gives cause for anxiety. Thus the -defence associations must assume more and more the aspect of the old -ex-service men's societies. But that cannot be the meaning and purpose -of an institution which calls itself, not an association of ex-service -men but a DEFENCE association, indicating by this title that it -considers its task to be, not only to preserve the tradition of the old -soldiers and hold them together but also to propagate the idea of -national defence and be able to carry this idea into practical effect, -which means the creation of a body of men who are fit and trained for -military defence. - -But this implies that those elements will receive a military training -which up to now have received none. This is something that in practice -is impossible for the defence associations. Real soldiers cannot be made -by a training of one or two hours per week. In view of the enormously -increasing demands which modern warfare imposes on each individual -soldier to-day, a military service of two years is barely sufficient to -transform a raw recruit into a trained soldier. At the Front during the -War we all saw the fearful consequences which our young recruits had to -suffer from their lack of a thorough military training. Volunteer -formations which had been drilled for fifteen or twenty weeks under an -iron discipline and shown unlimited self-denial proved nevertheless to -be no better than cannon fodder at the Front. Only when distributed -among the ranks of the old and experienced soldiers could the young -recruits, who had been trained for four or six months, become useful -members of a regiment. Guided by the 'old men', they adapted themselves -gradually to their task. - -In the light of all this, how hopeless must the attempt be to create a -body of fighting troops by a so-called training of one or two hours in -the week, without any definite power of command and without any -considerable means. In that way perhaps one could refresh military -training in old soldiers, but raw recruits cannot thus be transformed -into expert soldiers. - -How such a proceeding produces utterly worthless results may also be -demonstrated by the fact that at the same time as these so-called -volunteer defence associations, with great effort and outcry and under -difficulties and lack of necessities, try to educate and train a few -thousand men of goodwill (the others need not be taken into account) for -purposes of national defence, the State teaches our young men democratic -and pacifist ideas and thus deprives millions and millions of their -national instincts, poisons their logical sense of patriotism and -gradually turns them into a herd of sheep who will patiently follow any -arbitrary command. Thus they render ridiculous all those attempts made -by the defence associations to inculcate their ideas in the minds of the -German youth. - -Almost more important is the following consideration, which has always -made me take up a stand against all attempts at a so-called military -training on the basis of the volunteer associations. - -Assuming that, in spite of all the difficulties just mentioned, a -defence association were successful in training a certain number of -Germans every year to be efficient soldiers, not only as regards their -mental outlook but also as regards bodily efficiency and the expert -handling of arms, the result must necessarily be null and void in a -State whose whole tendency makes it not only look upon such a defensive -formation as undesirable but even positively hate it, because such an -association would completely contradict the intimate aims of the -political leaders, who are the corrupters of this State. - -But anyhow, such a result would be worthless under governments which -have demonstrated by their own acts that they do not lay the slightest -importance on the military power of the nation and are not disposed to -permit an appeal to that power only in case that it were necessary for -the protection of their own malignant existence. - -And that is the state of affairs to-day. It is not ridiculous to think -of training some ten thousand men in the use of arms, and carry on that -training surreptitiously, when a few years previously the State, having -shamefully sacrificed eight-and-a-half million highly trained soldiers, -not merely did not require their services any more, but, as a mark of -gratitude for their sacrifices, held them up to public contumely. Shall -we train soldiers for a regime which besmirched and spat upon our most -glorious soldiers, tore the medals and badges from their breasts, -trampled on their flags and derided their achievements? Has the present -regime taken one step towards restoring the honour of the old army and -bringing those who destroyed and outraged it to answer for their deeds? -Not in the least. On the contrary, the people I have just referred to -may be seen enthroned in the highest positions under the State to-day. -And yet it was said at Leipzig: "Right goes with might." Since, however, -in our Republic to-day might is in the hands of the very men who -arranged for the Revolution, and since that Revolution represents a most -despicable act of high treason against the nation--yea, the vilest act -in German history--there can surely be no grounds for saying that might -of this character should be enhanced by the formation of a new young -army. It is against all sound reason. - -The importance which this State attached, after the Revolution of 1918, -to the reinforcement of its position from the military point of view is -clearly and unmistakably demonstrated by its attitude towards the large -self-defence organizations which existed in that period. They were not -unwelcome as long as they were of use for the personal protection of the -miserable creatures cast up by the Revolution. - -But the danger to these creatures seemed to disappear as the debasement -of our people gradually increased. As the existence of the defence -associations no longer implied a reinforcement of the national policy -they became superfluous. Hence every effort was made to disarm them and -suppress them wherever that was possible. - -History records only a few examples of gratitude on the part of princes. -But there is not one patriot among the new bourgeoisie who can count on -the gratitude of revolutionary incendiaries and assassins, persons who -have enriched themselves from the public spoil and betrayed the nation. -In examining the problem as to the wisdom of forming these defence -associations I have never ceased to ask: 'For whom shall I train these -young men? For what purpose will they be employed when they will have to -be called out?' The answer to these questions lays down at the same time -the best rule for us to follow. - -If the present State should one day have to call upon trained troops of -this kind it would never be for the purpose of defending the interests -of the nation VIS-�-VIS those of the stranger but rather to protect the -oppressors of the nation inside the country against the danger of a -general outbreak of wrath on the part of a nation which has been -deceived and betrayed and whose interests have been bartered away. - -For this reason it was decided that the Storm Detachment of the German -National Socialist Labour Party ought not to be in the nature of a -military organization. It had to be an instrument of protection and -education for the National Socialist Movement and its duties should be -in quite a different sphere from that of the military defence -association. - -And, of course, the Storm Detachment should not be in the nature of a -secret organization. Secret organizations are established only for -purposes that are against the law. Therewith the purpose of such an -organization is limited by its very nature. Considering the loquacious -propensities of the German people, it is not possible to build up any -vast organization, keeping it secret at the same time and cloaking its -purpose. Every attempt of that kind is destined to turn out absolutely -futile. It is not merely that our police officials to-day have at their -disposal a staff of eaves-droppers and other such rabble who are ready -to play traitor, like Judas, for thirty pieces of silver and will betray -whatever secrets they can discover and will invent what they would like -to reveal. In order to forestall such eventualities, it is never -possible to bind one's own followers to the silence that is necessary. -Only small groups can become really secret societies, and that only -after long years of filtration. But the very smallness of such groups -would deprive them of all value for the National Socialist Movement. -What we needed then and need now is not one or two hundred dare-devil -conspirators but a hundred thousand devoted champions of our -WELTANSCHAUUNG. The work must not be done through secret conventicles -but through formidable mass demonstrations in public. Dagger and pistol -and poison-vial cannot clear the way for the progress of the movement. -That can be done only by winning over the man in the street. We must -overthrow Marxism, so that for the future National Socialism will be -master of the street, just as it will one day become master of the -State. - -There is another danger connected with secret societies. It lies in the -fact that their members often completely misunderstand the greatness of -the task in hand and are apt to believe that a favourable destiny can be -assured for the nation all at once by means of a single murder. Such a -belief may find historical justification by appealing to cases where a -nation had been suffering under the tyranny of some oppressor who at the -same time was a man of genius and whose extraordinary personality -guaranteed the internal solidity of his position and enabled him to -maintain his fearful oppression. In such cases a man may suddenly arise -from the ranks of the people who is ready to sacrifice himself and -plunge the deadly steel into the heart of the hated individual. In order -to look upon such a deed as abhorrent one must have the republican -mentality of that petty CANAILLE who are conscious of their own crime. -But the greatest champion (Note 20) of liberty that the German people have -ever had has glorified such a deed in WILLIAM TELL. - -[Note 20. Schiller, who wrote the famous drama of WILLIAM TELL.] - -During 1919 and 1920 there was danger that the members of secret -organizations, under the influence of great historical examples and -overcome by the immensity of the nation's misfortunes, might attempt to -wreak vengeance on the destroyers of their country, under the belief -that this would end the miseries of the people. All such attempts were -sheer folly, for the reason that the Marxist triumph was not due to the -superior genius of one remarkable person but rather to immeasurable -incompetence and cowardly shirking on the part of the bourgeoisie. The -hardest criticism that can be uttered against our bourgeoisie is simply -to state the fact that it submitted to the Revolution, even though the -Revolution did not produce one single man of eminent worth. One can -always understand how it was possible to capitulate before a -Robespierre, a Danton, or a Marat; but it was utterly scandalous to go -down on all fours before the withered Scheidemann, the obese Herr -Erzberger, Frederick Ebert, and the innumerable other political pigmies -of the Revolution. There was not a single man of parts in whom one could -see the revolutionary man of genius. Therein lay the country's -misfortune; for they were only revolutionary bugs, Spartacists wholesale -and retail. To suppress one of them would be an act of no consequence. -The only result would be that another pair of bloodsuckers, equally fat -and thirsty, would be ready to take his place. - -During those years we had to take up a determined stand against an idea -which owed its origin and foundation to historical episodes that were -really great, but to which our own despicable epoch did not bear the -slightest similarity. - -The same reply may be given when there is question of putting somebody -'on the spot' who has acted as a traitor to his country. It would be -ridiculous and illogical to shoot a poor wretch (Note 21) who had betrayed -the position of a howitzer to the enemy while the highest positions of the -government are occupied by a rabble who bartered away a whole empire, -who have on their consciences the deaths of two million men who were -sacrificed in vain, fellows who were responsible for the millions maimed -in the war and who make a thriving business out of the republican regime -without allowing their souls to be disturbed in any way. It would be -absurd to do away with small traitors in a State whose government has -absolved the great traitors from all punishment. For it might easily -happen that one day an honest idealist, who, out of love for his -country, had removed from circulation some miserable informer that had -given information about secret stores of arms might now be called to -answer for his act before the chief traitors of the country. And there -is still an important question: Shall some small traitorous creature be -suppressed by another small traitor, or by an idealist? In the former -case the result would be doubtful and the deed would almost surely be -revealed later on. In the second case a petty rascal is put out of the -way and the life of an idealist who may be irreplaceable is in jeopardy. - -[Note 21. The reference here is to those who gave information to the -Allied Commissions about hidden stores of arms in Germany.] - -For myself, I believe that small thieves should not be hanged while big -thieves are allowed to go free. One day a national tribunal will have to -judge and sentence some tens of thousands of organizers who were -responsible for the criminal November betrayal and all the consequences -that followed on it. Such an example will teach the necessary lesson, -once and for ever, to those paltry traitors who revealed to the enemy -the places where arms were hidden. - -On the grounds of these considerations I steadfastly forbade all -participation in secret societies, and I took care that the Storm -Detachment should not assume such a character. During those years I kept -the National Socialist Movement away from those experiments which were -being undertaken by young Germans who for the most part were inspired -with a sublime idealism but who became the victims of their own deeds, -because they could not ameliorate the lot of their fatherland to the -slightest degree. - -If then the Storm Detachment must not be either a military defence -organization or a secret society, the following conclusions must result: - -1. Its training must not be organized from the military standpoint but -from the standpoint of what is most practical for party purposes. Seeing -that its members must undergo a good physical training, the place of -chief importance must not be given to military drill but rather to the -practice of sports. I have always considered boxing and ju-jitsu more -important than some kind of bad, because mediocre, training in -rifle-shooting. If the German nation were presented with a body of young -men who had been perfectly trained in athletic sports, who were imbued -with an ardent love for their country and a readiness to take the -initiative in a fight, then the national State could make an army out of -that body within less than two years if it were necessary, provided the -cadres already existed. In the actual state of affairs only the -REICHSWEHR could furnish the cadres and not a defence organization that -was neither one thing nor the other. Bodily efficiency would develop in -the individual a conviction of his superiority and would give him that -confidence which is always based only on the consciousness of one's own -powers. They must also develop that athletic agility which can be -employed as a defensive weapon in the service of the Movement. - -2. In order to safeguard the Storm Detachment against any tendency -towards secrecy, not only must the uniform be such that it can -immediately be recognized by everybody, but the large number of its -effectives show the direction in which the Movement is going and which -must be known to the whole public. The members of the Storm Detachment -must not hold secret gatherings but must march in the open and thus, by -their actions, put an end to all legends about a secret organization. In -order to keep them away from all temptations towards finding an outlet -for their activities in small conspiracies, from the very beginning we -had to inculcate in their minds the great idea of the Movement and -educate them so thoroughly to the task of defending this idea that their -horizon became enlarged and that the individual no longer considered it -his mission to remove from circulation some rascal or other, whether big -or small, but to devote himself entirely to the task of bringing about -the establishment of a new National Socialist People's State. In this -way the struggle against the present State was placed on a higher plane -than that of petty revenge and small conspiracies. It was elevated to -the level of a spiritual struggle on behalf of a WELTANSCHAUUNG, for -the destruction of Marxism in all its shapes and forms. - -3. The form of organization adopted for the Storm Detachment, as well as -its uniform and equipment, had to follow different models from those of -the old Army. They had to be specially suited to the requirements of the -task that was assigned to the Storm Detachment. - -These were the ideas I followed in 1920 and 1921. I endeavoured to -instil them gradually into the members of the young organization. And -the result was that by the midsummer of 1922 we had a goodly number of -formations which consisted of a hundred men each. By the late autumn of -that year these formations received their distinctive uniforms. There -were three events which turned out to be of supreme importance for the -subsequent development of the Storm Detachment. - -1. The great mass demonstration against the Law for the Protection of -the Republic. This demonstration was held in the late summer of 1922 on -the K�NIGS-PLATZ in Munich, by all the patriotic societies. The National -Socialist Movement also participated in it. The march-past of our party, -in serried ranks, was led by six Munich companies of a hundred men each, -followed by the political sections of the Party. Two bands marched with -us and about fifteen flags were carried. When the National Socialists -arrived at the great square it was already half full, but no flag was -flying. Our entry aroused unbounded enthusiasm. I myself had the honour -of being one of the speakers who addressed that mass of about sixty -thousand people. - -The demonstration was an overwhelming success; especially because it was -proved for the first time that nationalist Munich could march on the -streets, in spite of all threats from the Reds. Members of the -organization for the defence of the Red Republic endeavoured to hinder -the marching columns by their terrorist activities, but they were -scattered by the companies of the Storm Detachment within a few minutes -and sent off with bleeding skulls. The National Socialist Movement had -then shown for the first time that in future it was determined to -exercise the right to march on the streets and thus take this monopoly -away from the international traitors and enemies of the country. - -The result of that day was an incontestable proof that our ideas for the -creation of the Storm Detachment were right, both from the psychological -viewpoint and as to the manner in which this body was organized. - -On the basis of this success the enlistment progressed so rapidly that -within a few weeks the number of Munich companies of a hundred men each -became doubled. - -2. The expedition to Coburg in October 1922. - -Certain People's Societies had decided to hold a German Day at Coburg. I -was invited to take part, with the intimation that they wished me to -bring a following along. This invitation, which I received at eleven -o'clock in the morning, arrived just in time. Within an hour the -arrangements for our participation in the German Congress were ready. I -picked eight hundred men of the Storm Detachment to accompany me. These -were divided into about fourteen companies and had to be brought by -special train from Munich to Coburg, which had just voted by plebiscite -to be annexed to Bavaria. Corresponding orders were given to other -groups of the National Socialist Storm Detachment which had meanwhile -been formed in various other localities. - -This was the first time that such a special train ran in Germany. At all -the places where the new members of the Storm Detachment joined us our -train caused a sensation. Many of the people had never seen our flag. -And it made a very great impression. - -As we arrived at the station in Coburg we were received by a deputation -of the organizing committee of the German Day. They announced that it -had been 'arranged' at the orders of local trades unions--that is to -say, the Independent and Communist Parties--that we should not enter the -town with our flags unfurled and our band playing (we had a band -consisting of forty-two musicians with us) and that we should not march -with closed ranks. - -I immediately rejected these unmilitary conditions and did not fail to -declare before the gentlemen who had arranged this 'day' how astonished -I was at the idea of their negotiating with such people and coming to an -agreement with them. Then I announced that the Storm Troops would -immediately march into the town in company formation, with our flags -flying and the band playing. - -And that is what happened. - -As we came out into the station yard we were met by a growling and -yelling mob of several thousand, that shouted at us: 'Assassins', -'Bandits', 'Robbers', 'Criminals'. These were the choice names which -these exemplary founders of the German Republic showered on us. The -young Storm Detachment gave a model example of order. The companies fell -into formation on the square in front of the station and at first took -no notice of the insults hurled at them by the mob. The police were -anxious. They did not pilot us to the quarters assigned to us on the -outskirts of Coburg, a city quite unknown to us, but to the Hofbr�uhaus -Keller in the centre of the town. Right and left of our march the tumult -raised by the accompanying mob steadily increased. Scarcely had the last -company entered the courtyard of the Hofbr�uhaus when the huge mass made -a rush to get in after them, shouting madly. In order to prevent this, -the police closed the gates. Seeing the position was untenable I called -the Storm Detachment to attention and then asked the police to open the -gates immediately. After a good deal of hesitation, they consented. - -We now marched back along the same route as we had come, in the -direction of our quarters, and there we had to make a stand against the -crowd. As their cries and yells all along the route had failed to -disturb the equanimity of our companies, the champions of true -Socialism, Equality, and Fraternity now took to throwing stones. That -brought our patience to an end. For ten minutes long, blows fell right -and left, like a devastating shower of hail. Fifteen minutes later there -were no more Reds to be seen in the street. - -The collisions which took place when the night came on were more -serious. Patrols of the Storm Detachment had discovered National -Socialists who had been attacked singly and were in an atrocious state. -Thereupon we made short work of the opponents. By the following morning -the Red terror, under which Coburg had been suffering for years, was -definitely smashed. - -Adopting the typically Marxist and Jewish method of spreading -falsehoods, leaflets were distributed by hand on the streets, bearing -the caption: "Comrades and Comradesses of the International -Proletariat." These leaflets were meant to arouse the wrath of the -populace. Twisting the facts completely around, they declared that our -'bands of assasins' had commenced 'a war of extermination against the -peaceful workers of Coburg'. At half-past one that day there was to be a -'great popular demonstration', at which it was hoped that the workers of -the whole district would turn up. I was determined finally to crush this -Red terror and so I summoned the Storm Detachment to meet at midday. -Their number had now increased to 1,500. I decided to march with these -men to the Coburg Festival and to cross the big square where the Red -demonstration was to take place. I wanted to see if they would attempt -to assault us again. When we entered the square we found that instead of -the ten thousand that had been advertised, there were only a few hundred -people present. As we approached they remained silent for the most part, -and some ran away. Only at certain points along the route some bodies of -Reds, who had arrived from outside the city and had not yet come to know -us, attempted to start a row. But a few fisticuffs put them to flight. -And now one could see how the population, which had for such a long time -been so wretchedly intimidated, slowly woke up and recovered their -courage. They welcomed us openly, and in the evening, on our return -march, spontaneous shouts of jubilation broke out at several points -along the route. - -At the station the railway employees informed us all of a sudden that -our train would not move. Thereupon I had some of the ringleaders told -that if this were the case I would have all the Red Party heroes -arrested that fell into our hands, that we would drive the train -ourselves, but that we would take away with us, in the locomotive and -tender and in some of the carriages, a few dozen members of this -brotherhood of international solidarity. I did not omit to let those -gentry know that if we had to conduct the train the journey would -undoubtedly be a very risky adventure and that we might all break our -necks. It would be a consolation, however, to know that we should not go -to Eternity alone, but in equality and fraternity with the Red gentry. - -Thereupon the train departed punctually and we arrived next morning in -Munich safe and sound. - -Thus at Coburg, for the first time since 1914, the equality of all -citizens before the law was re-established. For even if some coxcomb of -a higher official should assert to-day that the State protects the lives -of its citizens, at least in those days it was not so. For at that time -the citizens had to defend themselves against the representatives of the -present State. - -At first it was not possible fully to estimate the importance of the -consequences which resulted from that day. The victorious Storm Troops -had their confidence in themselves considerably reinforced and also -their faith in the sagacity of their leaders. Our contemporaries began -to pay us special attention and for the first time many recognized the -National Socialist Movement as an organization that in all probability -was destined to bring the Marxist folly to a deserving end. - -Only the democrats lamented the fact that we had not the complaisance to -allow our skulls to be cracked and that we had dared, in a democratic -Republic, to hit back with fists and sticks at a brutal assault, rather -than with pacifist chants. - -Generally speaking, the bourgeois Press was partly distressed and partly -vulgar, as always. Only a few decent newspapers expressed their -satisfaction that at least in one locality the Marxist street bullies -had been effectively dealt with. - -And in Coburg itself at least a part of the Marxist workers who must be -looked upon as misled, learned from the blows of National Socialist -fists that these workers were also fighting for ideals, because -experience teaches that the human being fights only for something in -which he believes and which he loves. - -The Storm Detachment itself benefited most from the Coburg events. It -grew so quickly in numbers that at the Party Congress in January 1923 -six thousand men participated in the ceremony of consecrating the flags -and the first companies were fully clad in their new uniform. - -Our experience in Coburg proved how essential it is to introduce one -distinctive uniform for the Storm Detachment, not only for the purpose -of strengthening the ESPRIT DE CORPS but also to avoid confusion and the -danger of not recognizing the opponent in a squabble. Up to that time -they had merely worn the armlet, but now the tunic and the well-known -cap were added. - -But the Coburg experience had also another important result. We now -determined to break the Red Terror in all those localities where for -many years it had prevented men of other views from holding their -meetings. We were determined to restore the right of free assembly. From -that time onwards we brought our battalions together in such places and -little by little the red citadels of Bavaria, one after another, fell -before the National Socialist propaganda. The Storm Troops became more -and more adept at their job. They increasingly lost all semblance of an -aimless and lifeless defence movement and came out into the light as an -active militant organization, fighting for the establishment of a new -German State. - -This logical development continued until March 1923. Then an event -occurred which made me divert the Movement from the course hitherto -followed and introduce some changes in its outer formation. - -In the first months of 1923 the French occupied the Ruhr district. The -consequence of this was of great importance in the development of the -Storm Detachment. - -It is not yet possible, nor would it be in the interest of the nation, -to write or speak openly and freely on the subject. I shall speak of it -only as far as the matter has been dealt with in public discussions and -thus brought to the knowledge of everybody. - -The occupation of the Ruhr district, which did not come as a surprise to -us, gave grounds for hoping that Germany would at last abandon its -cowardly policy of submission and therewith give the defensive -associations a definite task to fulfil. The Storm Detachment also, which -now numbered several thousand of robust and vigorous young men, should -not be excluded from this national service. During the spring and summer -of 1923 it was transformed into a fighting military organization. It is -to this reorganization that we must in great part attribute the later -developments that took place during 1923, in so far as it affected our -Movement. - -Elsewhere I shall deal in broad outline with the development of events -in 1923. Here I wish only to state that the transformation of the Storm -Detachment at that time must have been detrimental to the interests of -the Movement if the conditions that had motivated the change were not to -be carried into effect, namely, the adoption of a policy of active -resistance against France. - -The events which took place at the close of 1923, terrible as they may -appear at first sight, were almost a necessity if looked at from a -higher standpoint; because, in view of the attitude taken by the -Government of the German REICH, conversion of the Storm Troops into a -military force would be meaningless and thus a transformation which -would also be harmful to the Movement was ended at one stroke. At the -same time it was made possible for us to reconstruct at the point where -we had been diverted from the proper course. - -In the year 1925 the German National Socialist Labour Party was -re-founded and had to organize and train its Storm Detachment once again -according to the principles I have laid down. It must return to the -original idea and once more it must consider its most essential task to -function as the instrument of defence and reinforcement in the spiritual -struggle to establish the ideals of the Movement. - -The Storm Detachment must not be allowed to sink to the level of -something in the nature of a defence organization or a secret society. -Steps must be taken rather to make it a vanguard of 100,000 men in the -struggle for the National Socialist ideal which is based on the profound -principle of a People's State. - - - - -CHAPTER X - - - -THE MASK OF FEDERALISM - - -In the winter of 1919, and still more in the spring and summer of 1920, -the young Party felt bound to take up a definite stand on a question -which already had become quite serious during the War. In the first -volume of this book I have briefly recorded certain facts which I had -personally witnessed and which foreboded the break-up of Germany. In -describing these facts I made reference to the special nature of the -propaganda which was directed by the English as well as the French -towards reopening the breach that had existed between North and South in -Germany. In the spring of 1915 there appeared the first of a series of -leaflets which was systematically followed up and the aim of which was -to arouse feeling against Prussia as being solely responsible for the -war. Up to 1916 this system had been developed and perfected in a -cunning and shameless manner. Appealing to the basest of human -instincts, this propaganda endeavoured to arouse the wrath of the South -Germans against the North Germans and after a short time it bore fruit. -Persons who were then in high positions under the Government and in the -Army, especially those attached to headquarters in the Bavarian Army, -merited the just reproof of having blindly neglected their duty and -failed to take the necessary steps to counter such propaganda. But -nothing was done. On the contrary, in some quarters it did not appear to -be quite unwelcome and probably they were short-sighted enough to think -that such propaganda might help along the development of unification in -Germany but even that it might automatically bring about consolidation -of the federative forces. Scarcely ever in history was such a wicked -neglect more wickedly avenged. The weakening of Prussia, which they -believed would result from this propaganda, affected the whole of -Germany. It resulted in hastening the collapse which not only wrecked -Germany as a whole but even more particularly the federal states. - -In that town where the artificially created hatred against Prussia raged -most violently the revolt against the reigning House was the beginning -of the Revolution. - -It would be a mistake to think that the enemy propaganda was exclusively -responsible for creating an anti-Prussian feeling and that there were no -reasons which might excuse the people for having listened to this -propaganda. The incredible fashion in which the national economic -interests were organized during the War, the absolutely crazy system of -centralization which made the whole REICH its ward and exploited the -REICH, furnished the principal grounds for the growth of that -anti-Prussian feeling. The average citizen looked upon the companies for -the placing of war contracts, all of which had their headquarters in -Berlin, as identical with Berlin and Berlin itself as identical with -Prussia. The average citizen did not know that the organization of these -robber companies, which were called War Companies, was not in the hands -of Berlin or Prussia and not even in German hands at all. People -recognized only the gross irregularities and the continual encroachments -of that hated institution in the Metropolis of the REICH and directed -their anger towards Berlin and Prussia, all the more because in certain -quarters (the Bavarian Government) nothing was done to correct this -attitude, but it was even welcomed with silent rubbing of hands. - -The Jew was far too shrewd not to understand that the infamous campaign -which he had organized, under the cloak of War Companies, for plundering -the German nation would and must eventually arouse opposition. As long -as that opposition did not spring directly at his own throat he had no -reason to be afraid. Hence he decided that the best way of forestalling -an outbreak on the part of the enraged and desperate masses would be to -inflame their wrath and at the same time give it another outlet. - -Let Bavaria quarrel as much as it liked with Prussia and Prussia with -Bavaria. The more, the merrier. This bitter strife between the two -states assured peace to the Jew. Thus public attention was completely -diverted from the international maggot in the body of the nation; -indeed, he seemed to have been forgotten. Then when there came a danger -that level-headed people, of whom there are many to be found also in -Bavaria, would advise a little more reserve and a more judicious -evaluation of things, thus calming the rage against Prussia, all the Jew -had to do in Berlin was to stage a new provocation and await results. -Every time that was done all those who had profiteered out of the -conflict between North and South filled their lungs and again fanned the -flame of indignation until it became a blaze. - -It was a shrewd and expert manoeuvre on the part of the Jew, to set the -different branches of the German people quarrelling with one another, so -that their attention would be turned away from himself and he could -plunder them all the more completely. - -Then came the Revolution. - -Until the year 1918, or rather until the November of that year, the -average German citizen, particularly the less educated lower -middle-class and the workers, did not rightly understand what was -happening and did not realize what must be the inevitable consequences, -especially for Bavaria, of this internecine strife between the branches -of the German people; but at least those sections which called -themselves 'National' ought to have clearly perceived these consequences -on the day that the Revolution broke out. For the moment the COUP D'�TAT -had succeeded, the leader and organizer of the Revolution in Bavaria put -himself forward as the defender of 'Bavarian' interests. The -international Jew, Kurt Eisner, began to play off Bavaria against -Prussia. This Oriental was just about the last person in the world that -could be pointed to as the logical defender of Bavarian interests. In -his trade as newspaper reporter he had wandered from place to place all -over Germany and to him it was a matter of sheer indifference whether -Bavaria or any other particular part of God's whole world continued to -exist. - -In deliberately giving the revolutionary rising in Bavaria the character -of an offensive against Prussia, Kurt Eisner was not acting in the -slightest degree from the standpoint of Bavarian interests, but merely -as the commissioned representative of Jewry. He exploited existing -instincts and antipathies in Bavaria as a means which would help to make -the dismemberment of Germany all the more easy. When once dismembered, -the REICH would fall an easy prey to Bolshevism. - -The tactics employed by him were continued for a time after his death. -The Marxists, who had always derided and exploited the individual German -states and their princes, now suddenly appealed, as an 'Independent -Party' to those sentiments and instincts which had their strongest roots -in the families of the reigning princes and the individual states. - -The fight waged by the Bavarian Soviet Republic against the military -contingents that were sent to free Bavaria from its grasp was -represented by the Marxist propagandists as first of all the 'Struggle -of the Bavarian Worker' against 'Prussian Militarism.' This explains why -it was that the suppression of the Soviet Republic in Munich did not -have the same effect there as in the other German districts. Instead of -recalling the masses to a sense of reason, it led to increased -bitterness and anger against Prussia. - -The art of the Bolshevik agitators, in representing the suppression of -the Bavarian Soviet Republic as a victory of 'Prussian Militarism' over -the 'Anti-militarists' and 'Anti-Prussian' people of Bavaria, bore rich -fruit. Whereas on the occasion of the elections to the Bavarian -Legislative Diet, Kurt Eisner did not have ten thousand followers in -Munich and the Communist party less than three thousand, after the fall -of the Bavarian Republic the votes given to the two parties together -amounted to nearly one hundred thousand. - -It was then that I personally began to combat that crazy incitement of -some branches of the German people against other branches. - -I believe that never in my life did I undertake a more unpopular task -than I did when I took my stand against the anti-Prussian incitement. -During the Soviet regime in Munich great public meetings were held at -which hatred against the rest of Germany, but particularly against -Prussia, was roused up to such a pitch that a North German would have -risked his life in attending one of those meetings. These meetings often -ended in wild shouts: "Away from Prussia", "Down with the Prussians", -"War against Prussia", and so on. This feeling was openly expressed in -the Reichstag by a particularly brilliant defender of Bavarian sovereign -rights when he said: "Rather die as a Bavarian than rot as a Prussian". - -One should have attended some of the meetings held at that time in order -to understand what it meant for one when, for the first time and -surrounded by only a handful of friends, I raised my voice against this -folly at a meeting held in the Munich L�wenbr�u Keller. Some of my War -comrades stood by me then. And it is easy to imagine how we felt when -that raging crowd, which had lost all control of its reason, roared at -us and threatened to kill us. During the time that we were fighting for -the country the same crowd were for the most part safely ensconced in -the rear positions or were peacefully circulating at home as deserters -and shirkers. It is true that that scene turned out to be of advantage -to me. My small band of comrades felt for the first time absolutely -united with me and readily swore to stick by me through life and death. - -These conflicts, which were constantly repeated in 1919, seemed to -become more violent soon after the beginning of 1920. There were -meetings--I remember especially one in the Wagner Hall in the -Sonnenstrasse in Munich--during the course of which my group, now grown -much larger, had to defend themselves against assaults of the most -violent character. It happened more than once that dozens of my -followers were mishandled, thrown to the floor and stamped upon by the -attackers and were finally thrown out of the hall more dead than alive. - -The struggle which I had undertaken, first by myself alone and -afterwards with the support of my war comrades, was now continued by the -young movement, I might say almost as a sacred mission. - -I am proud of being able to say to-day that we--depending almost -exclusively on our followers in Bavaria--were responsible for putting an -end, slowly but surely, to the coalition of folly and treason. I say -folly and treason because, although convinced that the masses who joined -in it meant well but were stupid, I cannot attribute such simplicity as -an extenuating circumstance in the case of the organizers and their -abetters. I then looked upon them, and still look upon them to-day, as -traitors in the payment of France. In one case, that of Dorten, history -has already pronounced its judgment. - -The situation became specially dangerous at that time by reason of the -fact that they were very astute in their ability to cloak their real -tendencies, by insisting primarily on their federative intentions and -claiming that those were the sole motives of the agitation. Of course it -is quite obvious that the agitation against Prussia had nothing to do -with federalism. Surely 'Federal Activities' is not the phrase with -which to describe an effort to dissolve and dismember another federal -state. For an honest federalist, for whom the formula used by Bismarck -to define his idea of the REICH is not a counterfeit phrase, could not -in the same breath express the desire to cut off portions of the -Prussian State, which was created or at least completed by Bismarck. Nor -could he publicly support such a separatist attempt. - -What an outcry would be raised in Munich if some prussian conservative -party declared itself in favour of detaching Franconia from Bavaria or -took public action in demanding and promoting such a separatist policy. -Nevertheless, one can only have sympathy for all those real and honest -federalists who did not see through this infamous swindle, for they were -its principal victims. By distorting the federalist idea in such a way -its own champions prepared its grave. One cannot make propaganda for a -federalist configuration of the REICH by debasing and abusing and -besmirching the essential element of such a political structure, namely -Prussia, and thus making such a Confederation impossible, if it ever had -been possible. It is all the more incredible by reason of the fact that -the fight carried on by those so-called federalists was directed against -that section of the Prussian people which was the last that could be -looked upon as connected with the November democracy. For the abuse and -attacks of these so-called federalists were not levelled against the -fathers of the Weimar Constitution--the majority of whom were South -Germans or Jews--but against those who represented the old conservative -Prussia, which was the antipodes of the Weimar Constitution. The fact -that the directors of this campaign were careful not to touch the Jews -is not to be wondered at and perhaps gives the key to the whole riddle. - -Before the Revolution the Jew was successful in distracting attention -from himself and his War Companies by inciting the masses, and -especially the Bavarians, against Prussia. Similarly he felt obliged, -after the Revolution, to find some way of camouflaging his new plunder -campaign which was nine or ten times greater. And again he succeeded, in -this case by provoking the so-called 'national' elements against one -another: the conservative Bavarians against the Prussians, who were just -as conservative. He acted again with extreme cunning, inasmuch as he who -held the reins of Prussia's destiny in his hands provoked such crude and -tactless aggressions that again and again they set the blood boiling in -those who were being continually duped. Never against the Jew, however, -but always the German against his own brother. The Bavarian did not see -the Berlin of four million industrious and efficient working people, but -only the lazy and decadent Berlin which is to be found in the worst -quarters of the West End. And his antipathy was not directed against -this West End of Berlin but against the 'Prussian' city. - -In many cases it tempted one to despair. - -The ability which the Jew has displayed in turning public attention away -from himself and giving it another direction may be studied also in what -is happening to-day. - -In 1918 there was nothing like an organized anti-Semitic feeling. I -still remember the difficulties we encountered the moment we mentioned -the Jew. We were either confronted with dumb-struck faces or else a -lively and hefty antagonism. The efforts we made at the time to point -out the real enemy to the public seemed to be doomed to failure. But -then things began to change for the better, though only very slowly. The -'League for Defence and Offence' was defectively organized but at least -it had the great merit of opening up the Jewish question once again. In -the winter of 1918-1919 a kind of anti-semitism began slowly to take -root. Later on the National Socialist Movement presented the Jewish -problem in a new light. Taking the question beyond the restricted -circles of the upper classes and small bourgeoisie we succeeded in -transforming it into the driving motive of a great popular movement. But -the moment we were successful in placing this problem before the German -people in the light of an idea that would unite them in one struggle the -Jew reacted. He resorted to his old tactics. With amazing alacrity he -hurled the torch of discord into the patriotic movement and opened a -rift there. In bringing forward the ultramontane question and in the -mutual quarrels that it gave rise to between Catholicism and -Protestantism lay the sole possibility, as conditions then were, of -occupying public attention with other problems and thus ward off the -attack which had been concentrated against Jewry. The men who dragged -our people into this controversy can never make amends for the crime -they then committed against the nation. Anyhow, the Jew has attained the -ends he desired. Catholics and Protestants are fighting with one another -to their hearts' content, while the enemy of Aryan humanity and all -Christendom is laughing up his sleeve. - -Once it was possible to occupy the attention of the public for several -years with the struggle between federalism and unification, wearing out -their energies in this mutual friction while the Jew trafficked in the -freedom of the nation and sold our country to the masters of -international high finance. So in our day he has succeeded again, this -time by raising ructions between the two German religious denominations -while the foundations on which both rest are being eaten away and -destroyed through the poison injected by the international and -cosmopolitan Jew. - -Look at the ravages from which our people are suffering daily as a -result of being contaminated with Jewish blood. Bear in mind the fact -that this poisonous contamination can be eliminated from the national -body only after centuries, or perhaps never. Think further of how the -process of racial decomposition is debasing and in some cases even -destroying the fundamental Aryan qualities of our German people, so that -our cultural creativeness as a nation is gradually becoming impotent and -we are running the danger, at least in our great cities, of falling to -the level where Southern Italy is to-day. This pestilential adulteration -of the blood, of which hundreds of thousands of our people take no -account, is being systematically practised by the Jew to-day. -Systematically these negroid parasites in our national body corrupt our -innocent fair-haired girls and thus destroy something which can no -longer be replaced in this world. - -The two Christian denominations look on with indifference at the -profanation and destruction of a noble and unique creature who was given -to the world as a gift of God's grace. For the future of the world, -however, it does not matter which of the two triumphs over the other, -the Catholic or the Protestant. But it does matter whether Aryan -humanity survives or perishes. And yet the two Christian denominations -are not contending against the destroyer of Aryan humanity but are -trying to destroy one another. Everybody who has the right kind of -feeling for his country is solemnly bound, each within his own -denomination, to see to it that he is not constantly talking about the -Will of God merely from the lips but that in actual fact he fulfils the -Will of God and does not allow God's handiwork to be debased. For it was -by the Will of God that men were made of a certain bodily shape, were -given their natures and their faculties. Whoever destroys His work wages -war against God's Creation and God's Will. Therefore everyone should -endeavour, each in his own denomination of course, and should consider -it as his first and most solemn duty to hinder any and everyone whose -conduct tends, either by word or deed, to go outside his own religious -body and pick a quarrel with those of another denomination. For, in view -of the religious schism that exists in Germany, to attack the essential -characteristics of one denomination must necessarily lead to a war of -extermination between the two Christian denominations. Here there can be -no comparison between our position and that of France, or Spain or -Italy. In those three countries one may, for instance, make propaganda -for the side that is fighting against ultramontanism without thereby -incurring the danger of a national rift among the French, or Spanish or -Italian people. In Germany, however, that cannot be so, for here the -Protestants would also take part in such propaganda. And thus the -defence which elsewhere only Catholics organize against clerical -aggression in political matters would assume with us the character of a -Protestant attack against Catholicism. What may be tolerated by the -faithful in one denomination even when it seems unjust to them, will at -once be indignantly rejected and opposed on A PRIORI grounds if it -should come from the militant leaders of another denomination. This is -so true that even men who would be ready and willing to fight for the -removal of manifest grievances within their own religious denomination -will drop their own fight and turn their activities against the outsider -the moment the abolition of such grievances is counselled or demanded by -one who is not of the same faith. They consider it unjustified and -inadmissible and incorrect for outsiders to meddle in matters which do -not affect them at all. Such attempts are not excused even when they are -inspired by a feeling for the supreme interests of the national -community; because even in our day religious feelings still have deeper -roots than all feeling for political and national expediency. That -cannot be changed by setting one denomination against another in bitter -conflict. It can be changed only if, through a spirit of mutual -tolerance, the nation can be assured of a future the greatness of which -will gradually operate as a conciliating factor in the sphere of -religion also. I have no hesitation in saying that in those men who seek -to-day to embroil the patriotic movement in religious quarrels I see -worse enemies of my country than the international communists are. For -the National Socialist Movement has set itself to the task of converting -those communists. But anyone who goes outside the ranks of his own -Movement and tends to turn it away from the fulfilment of its mission is -acting in a manner that deserves the severest condemnation. He is acting -as a champion of Jewish interests, whether consciously or unconsciously -does not matter. For it is in the interests of the Jews to-day that the -energies of the patriotic movement should be squandered in a religious -conflict, because it is beginning to be dangerous for the Jews. I have -purposely used the phrase about SQUANDERING the energies of the -Movement, because nobody but some person who is entirely ignorant of -history could imagine that this movement can solve a question which the -greatest statesmen have tried for centuries to solve, and tried in vain. - -Anyhow the facts speak for themselves. The men who suddenly discovered, -in 1924, that the highest mission of the patriotic movement was to fight -ultramontanism, have not succeeded in smashing ultramontanism, but they -succeeded in splitting the patriotic movement. I have to guard against -the possibility of some immature brain arising in the patriotic movement -which thinks that it can do what even a Bismarck failed to do. It will -be always one of the first duties of those who are directing the -National Socialist Movement to oppose unconditionally any attempt to -place the National Socialist Movement at the service of such a conflict. -And anybody who conducts a propaganda with that end in view must be -expelled forthwith from its ranks. - -As a matter of fact we succeeded until the autumn of 1923 in keeping our -movement away from such controversies. The most devoted Protestant could -stand side by side with the most devoted Catholic in our ranks without -having his conscience disturbed in the slightest as far as concerned his -religious convictions. The bitter struggle which both waged in common -against the wrecker of Aryan humanity taught them natural respect and -esteem. And it was just in those years that our movement had to engage -in a bitter strife with the Centre Party not for religious ends but for -national, racial, political and economic ends. The success we then -achieved showed that we were right, but it does not speak to-day in -favour of those who thought they knew better. - -In recent years things have gone so far that patriotic circles, in -god-forsaken blindness of their religious strife, could not recognize -the folly of their conduct even from the fact that atheist Marxist -newspapers advocated the cause of one religious denomination or the -other, according as it suited Marxist interests, so as to create -confusion through slogans and declarations which were often immeasurably -stupid, now molesting the one party and again the other, and thus poking -the fire to keep the blaze at its highest. - -But in the case of a people like the Germans, whose history has so often -shown them capable of fighting for phantoms to the point of complete -exhaustion, every war-cry is a mortal danger. By these slogans our -people have often been drawn away from the real problems of their -existence. While we were exhausting our energies in religious wars the -others were acquiring their share of the world. And while the patriotic -movement is debating with itself whether the ultramontane danger be -greater than the Jewish, or vice versa, the Jew is destroying the racial -basis of our existence and thereby annihilating our people. As far as -regards that kind of 'patriotic' warrior, on behalf of the National -Socialist Movement and therefore of the German people I pray with all my -heart: "Lord, preserve us from such friends, and then we can easily deal -with our enemies." - -The controversy over federation and unification, so cunningly -propagandized by the Jews in 1919-1920 and onwards, forced National -Socialism, which repudiated the quarrel, to take up a definite stand in -relation to the essential problem concerned in it. Ought Germany to be a -confederacy or a military State? What is the practical significance of -these terms? To me it seems that the second question is more important -than the first, because it is fundamental to the understanding of the -whole problem and also because the answer to it may help to clear up -confusion and therewith have a conciliating effect. - -What is a Confederacy? (Note 22) - -[Note 22. Before 1918 Germany was a federal Empire, composed of -twenty-five federal states.] - -By a Confederacy we mean a union of sovereign states which of their own -free will and in virtue of their sovereignty come together and create a -collective unit, ceding to that unit as much of their own sovereign -rights as will render the existence of the union possible and will -guarantee it. - -But the theoretical formula is not wholly put into practice by any -confederacy that exists to-day. And least of all by the American Union, -where it is impossible to speak of original sovereignty in regard to the -majority of the states. Many of them were not included in the federal -complex until long after it had been established. The states that make -up the American Union are mostly in the nature of territories, more or -less, formed for technical administrative purposes, their boundaries -having in many cases been fixed in the mapping office. Originally these -states did not and could not possess sovereign rights of their own. -Because it was the Union that created most of the so-called states. -Therefore the sovereign rights, often very comprehensive, which were -left, or rather granted, to the various territories correspond not only -to the whole character of the Confederation but also to its vast space, -which is equivalent to the size of a Continent. Consequently, in -speaking of the United States of America one must not consider them as -sovereign states but as enjoying rights or, better perhaps, autarchic -powers, granted to them and guaranteed by the Constitution. - -Nor does our definition adequately express the condition of affairs in -Germany. It is true that in Germany the individual states existed as -states before the REICH and that the REICH was formed from them. The -REICH, however, was not formed by the voluntary and equal co-operation -of the individual states, but rather because the state of Prussia -gradually acquired a position of hegemony over the others. The -difference in the territorial area alone between the German states -prevents any comparison with the American Union. The great difference in -territorial area between the very small German states that then existed -and the larger, or even still more the largest, demonstrates the -inequality of their achievements and shows that they could not take an -equal part in founding and shaping the federal Empire. In the case of -most of these individual states it cannot be maintained that they ever -enjoyed real sovereignty; and the term 'State Sovereignty' was really -nothing more than an administrative formula which had no inner meaning. -As a matter of fact, not only developments in the past but also in our -own time wiped out several of these so-called 'Sovereign States' and -thus proved in the most definite way how frail these 'sovereign' state -formations were. - -I cannot deal here with the historical question of how these individual -states came to be established, but I must call attention to the fact -that hardly in any case did their frontiers coincide with ethical -frontiers of the inhabitants. They were purely political phenomena which -for the most part emerged during the sad epoch when the German Empire -was in a state of exhaustion and was dismembered. They represented both -cause and effect in the process of exhaustion and partition of our -fatherland. - -The Constitution of the old REICH took all this into account, at least -up to a certain degree, in so far as the individual states were not -accorded equal representation in the Reichstag, but a representation -proportionate to their respective areas, their actual importance and the -role which they played in the formation of the REICH. - -The sovereign rights which the individual states renounced in order to -form the REICH were voluntarily ceded only to a very small degree. For -the most part they had no practical existence or they were simply taken -by Prussia under the pressure of her preponderant power. The principle -followed by Bismarck was not to give the REICH what he could take from -the individual states but to demand from the individual states only what -was absolutely necessary for the REICH. A moderate and wise policy. On -the one side Bismarck showed the greatest regard for customs and -traditions; on the other side his policy secured for the new REICH from -its foundation onwards a great measure of love and willing co-operation. -But it would be a fundamental error to attribute Bismarck's decision to -any conviction on his part that the REICH was thus acquiring all the -rights of sovereignty which would suflice for all time. That was far -from Bismarck's idea. On the contrary, he wished to leave over for the -future what it would be difficult to carry through at the moment and -might not have been readily agreed to by the individual states. He -trusted to the levelling effect of time and to the pressure exercised by -the process of evolution, the steady action of which appeared more -effective than an attempt to break the resistance which the individual -states offered at the moment. By this policy he showed his great ability -in the art of statesmanship. And, as a matter of fact, the sovereignty -of the REICH has continually increased at the cost of the sovereignty of -the individual states. The passing of time has achieved what Bismarck -hoped it would. - -The German collapse and the abolition of the monarchical form of -government necessarily hastened this development. The German federal -states, which had not been grounded on ethnical foundations but arose -rather out of political conditions, were bound to lose their importance -the moment the monarchical form of government and the dynasties -connected with it were abolished, for it was to the spirit inherent in -these that the individual states owned their political origin and -development. Thus deprived of their internal RAISON D'�TRE, they -renounced all right to survival and were induced by purely practical -reasons to fuse with their neighbours or else they joined the more -powerful states out of their own free will. That proved in a striking -manner how extraordinarily frail was the actual sovereignty these small -phantom states enjoyed, and it proved too how lightly they were -estimated by their own citizens. - -Though the abolition of the monarchical regime and its representatives -had dealt a hard blow to the federal character of the REICH, still more -destructive, from the federal point of view, was the acceptance of the -obligations that resulted from the 'peace' treaty. - -It was only natural and logical that the federal states should lose all -sovereign control over the finances the moment the REICH, in consequence -of a lost war, was subjected to financial obligations which could never -be guaranteed through separate treaties with the individual states. The -subsequent steps which led the REICH to take over the posts and railways -were an enforced advance in the process of enslaving our people, a -process which the peace treaties gradually developed. The REICH was -forced to secure possession of resources which had to be constantly -increased in order to satisfy the demands made by further extortions. - -The form in which the powers of the REICH were thus extended to embrace -the federal states was often ridiculously stupid, but in itself the -procedure was logical and natural. The blame for it must be laid at the -door of these men and those parties that failed in the hour of need to -concentrate all their energies in an effort to bring the war to a -victorious issue. The guilt lies on those parties which, especially in -Bavaria, catered for their own egotistic interests during the war and -refused to the REICH what the REICH had to requisition to a tenfold -greater measure when the war was lost. The retribution of History! -Rarely has the vengeance of Heaven followed so closely on the crime as -it did in this case. Those same parties which, a few years previously, -placed the interests of their own states--especially in Bavaria--before -those of the REICH had now to look on passively while the pressure of -events forced the REICH, in its own interests, to abolish the existence -of the individual states. They were the victims of their own defaults. - -It was an unparalleled example of hypocrisy to raise the cry of -lamentation over the loss which the federal states suffered in being -deprived of their sovereign rights. This cry was raised before the -electorate, for it is only to the electorate that our contemporary -parties address themselves. But these parties, without exception, outbid -one another in accepting a policy of fulfilment which, by the sheer -force of circumstances and in its ultimate consequences, could not but -lead to a profound alteration in the internal structure of the REICH. -Bismarck's REICH was free and unhampered by any obligations towards the -outside world. - -Bismarck's REICH never had to shoulder such heavy and entirely -unproductive obligations as those to which Germany was subjected under -the Dawes Plan. Also in domestic affairs Bismarck's REICH was able to -limit its powers to a few matters that were absolutely necessary for its -existence. Therefore it could dispense with the necessity of a financial -control over these states and could live from their contributions. On -the other side the relatively small financial tribute which the federal -states had to pay to the REICH induced them to welcome its existence. -But it is untrue and unjust to state now, as certain propagandists do, -that the federal states are displeased with the REICH merely because of -their financial subjection to it. No, that is not how the matter really -stands. The lack of sympathy for the political idea embodied in the -REICH is not due to the loss of sovereign rights on the part of the -individual states. It is much more the result of the deplorable fashion -in which the present r�gime cares for the interests of the German -people. Despite all the celebrations in honour of the national flag and -the Constitution, every section of the German people feels that the -present REICH is not in accordance with its heart's desire. And the Law -for the Protection of the Republic may prevent outrages against -republican institutions, but it will not gain the love of one single -German. In its constant anxiety to protect itself against its own -citizens by means of laws and sentences of imprisonment, the Republic -has aroused sharp and humiliating criticism of all republican -institutions as such. - -For another reason also it is untrue to say, as certain parties affirm -to-day, that the REICH has ceased to be popular on account of its -overbearing conduct in regard to certain sovereign rights which the -individual states had heretofore enjoyed. Supposing the REICH had not -extended its authority over the individual states, there is no reason to -believe that it would find more favour among those states if the general -obligations remained so heavy as they now are. On the contrary, if the -individual states had to pay their respective shares of the highly -increased tribute which the REICH has to meet to-day in order to fulfil -the provisions of the Versailles Dictate, the hostility towards the -REICH would be infinitely greater. For then not only would it prove -difficult to collect the respective contributions due to the REICH from -the federal states, but coercive methods would have to be employed in -making the collections. The Republic stands on the footing of the peace -treaties and has neither the courage nor the intention to break them. -That being so, it must observe the obligations which the peace treaties -have imposed on it. The responsibility for this situation is to be -attributed solely to those parties who preach unceasingly to the patient -electoral masses on the necessity of maintaining the autonomy of the -federal states, while at the same time they champion and demand of the -REICH a policy which must necessarily lead to the suppression of even -the very last of those so-called 'sovereign' rights. - -I say NECESSARILY because the present REICH has no other possible means -of bearing the burden of charges which an insane domestic and foreign -policy has laid on it. Here still another wedge is placed on the former, -to drive it in still deeper. Every new debt which the REICH contracts, -through the criminal way in which the interests of Germany are -represented VIS-�-VIS foreign countries, necessitates a new and stronger -blow which drives the under wedges still deeper, That blow demands -another step in the progressive abolition of the sovereign rights of the -individual states, so as not to allow the germs of opposition to rise up -into activity or even to exist. - -The chief characteristic difference between the policy of the present -REICH and that of former times lies in this: The old REICH gave freedom -to its people at home and showed itself strong towards the outside -world, whereas the Republic shows itself weak towards the stranger and -oppresses its own citizens at home. In both cases one attitude -determines the other. A vigorous national State does not need to make -many laws for the interior, because of the affection and attachment of -its citizens. The international servile State can live only by coercing -its citizens to render it the services it demands. And it is a piece of -impudent falsehood for the present regime to speak of 'Free citizens'. -Only the old Germany could speak in that manner. The present Republic is -a colony of slaves at the service of the stranger. At best it has -subjects, but not citizens. Hence it does not possess a national flag -but only a trade mark, introduced and protected by official decree and -legislative measures. This symbol, which is the Gessler's cap of German -Democracy, will always remain alien to the spirit of our people. On its -side, the Republic having no sense of tradition or respect for past -greatness, dragged the symbol of the past in the mud, but it will be -surprised one day to discover how superficial is the devotion of its -citizens to its own symbol. The Republic has given to itself the -character of an intermezzo in German history. And so this State is bound -constantly to restrict more and more the sovereign rights of the -individual states, not only for general reasons of a financial character -but also on principle. For by enforcing a policy of financial blackmail, -to squeeze the last ounce of substance out of its people, it is forced -also to take their last rights away from them, lest the general -discontent may one day flame up into open rebellion. - -We, National Socialists, would reverse this formula and would adopt the -following axiom: A strong national REICH which recognizes and protects -to the largest possible measure the rights of its citizens both within -and outside its frontiers can allow freedom to reign at home without -trembling for the safety of the State. On the other hand, a strong -national Government can intervene to a considerable degree in the -liberties of the individual subject as well as in the liberties of the -constituent states without thereby weakening the ideal of the REICH; and -it can do this while recognizing its responsibility for the ideal of the -REICH, because in these particular acts and measures the individual -citizen recognizes a means of promoting the prestige of the nation as a -whole. - -Of course, every State in the world has to face the question of -unification in its internal organization. And Germany is no exception in -this matter. Nowadays it is absurd to speak of 'statal sovereignty' for -the constituent states of the REICH, because that has already become -impossible on account of the ridiculously small size of so many of these -states. In the sphere of commerce as well as that of administration the -importance of the individual states has been steadily decreasing. Modern -means of communication and mechanical progress have been increasingly -restricting distance and space. What was once a State is to-day only a -province and the territory covered by a modern State had once the -importance of a continent. The purely technical difficulty of -administering a State like Germany is not greater than that of governing -a province like Brandenburg a hundred years ago. And to-day it is easier -to cover the distance from Munich to Berlin than it was to cover the -distance from Munich to Starnberg a hundred years ago. In view of the -modern means of transport, the whole territory of the REICH to-day is -smaller than that of certain German federal states at the time of the -Napoleonic wars. To close one's eyes to the consequences of these facts -means to live in the past. There always were, there are and always will -be, men who do this. They may retard but they cannot stop the -revolutions of history. - -We, National Socialists, must not allow the consequences of that truth -to pass by us unnoticed. In these matters also we must not permit -ourselves to be misled by the phrases of our so-called national -bourgeois parties. I say 'phrases', because these same parodies do not -seriously believe that it is possible for them to carry out their -proposals, and because they themselves are the chief culprits and also -the accomplices responsible for the present state of affairs. Especially -in Bavaria, the demands for a halt in the process of centralization can -be no more than a party move behind which there is no serious idea. If -these parties ever had to pass from the realm of phrase-making into that -of practical deeds they would present a sorry spectacle. Every so-called -'Robbery of Sovereign Rights' from Bavaria by the REICH has met with no -practical resistance, except for some fatuous barking by way of protest. -Indeed, when anyone seriously opposed the madness that was shown in -carrying out this system of centralization he was told by those same -parties that he understood nothing of the nature and needs of the State -to-day. They slandered him and pronounced him anathema and persecuted -him until he was either shut up in prison or illegally deprived of the -right of public speech. In the light of these facts our followers should -become all the more convinced of the profound hypocrisy which -characterizes these so-called federalist circles. To a certain extent -they use the federalist doctrine just as they use the name of religion, -merely as a means of promoting their own base party interests. - -A certain unification, especially in the field of transport, appears -logical. But we, National Socialists, feel it our duty to oppose with -all our might such a development in the modern State, especially when -the measures proposed are solely for the purpose of screening a -disastrous foreign policy and making it possible. And just because the -present REICH has threatened to take over the railways, the posts, the -finances, etc., not from the high standpoint of a national policy, but -in order to have in its hands the means and pledges for an unlimited -policy of fulfilment--for that reason we, National Socialists, must take -every step that seems suitable to obstruct and, if possible, definitely -to prevent such a policy. We must fight against the present system of -amalgamating institutions that are vitally important for the existence -of our people, because this system is being adopted solely to facilitate -the payment of milliards and the transference of pledges to the -stranger, under the post-War provisions which our politicians have -accepted. - -For these reasons also the National Socialist Movement has to take up a -stand against such tendencies. - -Moreover, we must oppose such centralization because in domestic affairs -it helps to reinforce a system of government which in all its -manifestations has brought the greatest misfortunes on the German -nation. The present Jewish-Democratic REICH, which has become a -veritable curse for the German people, is seeking to negative the force -of the criticism offered by all the federal states which have not yet -become imbued with the spirit of the age, and is trying to carry out -this policy by crushing them to the point of annihilation. In face of -this we National Socialists must try to ground the opposition of the -individual states on such a basis that it will be able to operate with a -good promise of success. We must do this by transforming the struggle -against centralization into something that will be an expression of the -higher interests of the German nation as such. Therefore, while the -Bavarian Populist Party, acting from its own narrow and particularist -standpoint, fights to maintain the 'special rights' of the Bavarian -State, we ought to stand on quite a different ground in fighting for the -same rights. Our grounds ought to be those of the higher national -interests in opposition to the November Democracy. - -A still further reason for opposing a centralizing process of that kind -arises from the certain conviction that in great part this so-called -nationalization does not make for unification at all and still less for -simplification. In many cases it is adopted simply as a means of -removing from the sovereign control of the individual states certain -institutions which they wish to place in the hands of the revolutionary -parties. In German History favouritism has never been of so base a -character as in the democratic republic. A great portion of this -centralization to-day is the work of parties which once promised that -they would open the way for the promotion of talent, meaning thereby -that they would fill those posts and offices entirely with their own -partisans. Since the foundation of the Republic the Jews especially have -been obtaining positions in the economic institutions taken over by the -REICH and also positions in the national administration, so that the one -and the other have become preserves of Jewry. - -For tactical reasons, this last consideration obliges us to watch with -the greatest attention every further attempt at centralization and fight -it at each step. But in doing this our standpoint must always be that of -a lofty national policy and never a pettifogging particularism. - -This last observation is necessary, lest an opinion might arise among -our own followers that we do not accredit to the REICH the right of -incorporating in itself a sovereignty which is superior to that of the -constituent states. As regards this right we cannot and must not -entertain the slightest doubt. Because for us the State is nothing but a -form. Its substance, or content, is the essential thing. And that is the -nation, the people. It is clear therefore that every other interest must -be subordinated to the supreme interests of the nation. In particular we -cannot accredit to any other state a sovereign power and sovereign -rights within the confines of the nation and the REICH, which represents -the nation. The absurdity which some federal states commit by -maintaining 'representations' abroad and corresponding foreign -'representations' among themselves--that must cease and will cease. -Until this happens we cannot be surprised if certain foreign countries -are dubious about the political unity of the REICH and act accordingly. -The absurdity of these 'representations' is all the greater because they -do harm and do not bring the slightest advantage. If the interests of a -German abroad cannot be protected by the ambassador of the REICH, much -less can they be protected by the minister from some small federal state -which appears ridiculous in the framework of the present world order. -The real truth is that these small federal states are envisaged as -points of attack for attempts at secession, which prospect is always -pleasing to a certain foreign State. We, National Socialists, must not -allow some noble caste which has become effete with age to occupy an -ambassadorial post abroad, with the idea that by engrafting one of its -withered branches in new soil the green leaves may sprout again. Already -in the time of the old REICH our diplomatic representatives abroad were -such a sorry lot that a further trial of that experience would be out of -the question. - -It is certain that in the future the importance of the individual states -will be transferred to the sphere of our cultural policy. The monarch -who did most to make Bavaria an important centre was not an obstinate -particularist with anti-German tendencies, but Ludwig I who was as much -devoted to the ideal of German greatness as he was to that of art. His -first consideration was to use the powers of the state to develop the -cultural position of Bavaria and not its political power. And in doing -this he produced better and more durable results than if he had followed -any other line of conduct. Up to this time Munich was a provincial -residence town of only small importance, but he transformed it into the -metropolis of German art and by doing so he made it an intellectual -centre which even to-day holds Franconia to Bavaria, though the -Franconians are of quite a different temperament. If Munich had remained -as it had been earlier, what has happened in Saxony would have been -repeated in Bavaria, with the difference that Leipzig and Bavarian -N�rnberg would have become, not Bavarian but Franconian cities. It was -not the cry of "Down with Prussia" that made Munich great. What made -this a city of importance was the King who wished to present it to the -German nation as an artistic jewel that would have to be seen and -appreciated, and so it has turned out in fact. Therein lies a lesson for -the future. The importance of the individual states in the future will -no longer lie in their political or statal power. I look to them rather -as important ethnical and cultural centres. But even in this respect -time will do its levelling work. Modern travelling facilities shuffle -people among one another in such a way that tribal boundaries will fade -out and even the cultural picture will gradually become more of a -uniform pattern. - -The army must definitely be kept clear of the influence of the -individual states. The coming National Socialist State must not fall -back into the error of the past by imposing on the army a task which is -not within its sphere and never should have been assigned to it. The -German army does not exist for the purpose of being a school in which -tribal particularisms are to be cultivated and preserved, but rather as -a school for teaching all the Germans to understand and adapt their -habits to one another. Whatever tends to have a separating influence in -the life of the nation ought to be made a unifying influence in the -army. The army must raise the German boy above the narrow horizon of his -own little native province and set him within the broad picture of the -nation. The youth must learn to know, not the confines of his own region -but those of the fatherland, because it is the latter that he will have -to defend one day. It is therefore absurd to have the German youth do -his military training in his own native region. During that period he -ought to learn to know Germany. This is all the more important to-day, -since young Germans no longer travel on their own account as they once -used to do and thus enlarge their horizon. In view of this, is it not -absurd to leave the young Bavarian recruit at Munich, the recruit from -Baden at Baden itself and the W�rttemberger at Stuttgart and so on? And -would it not be more reasonable to show the Rhine and the North Sea to -the Bavarian, the Alps to the native of Hamburg and the mountains of -Central Germany to the boy from East Prussia? The character proper to -each region ought to be maintained in the troops but not in the training -garrisons. We may disapprove of every attempt at unification but not -that of unifying the army. On the contrary, even though we should wish -to welcome no other kind of unification, this must be greeted with joy. -In view of the size of the present army of the REICH, it would be absurd -to maintain the federal divisions among the troops. Moreover, in the -unification of the German army which has actually been effected we see a -fact which we must not renounce but restore in the future national army. - -Finally a new and triumphant idea should burst every chain which tends -to paralyse its efforts to push forward. National Socialism must claim -the right to impose its principles on the whole German nation, without -regard to what were hitherto the confines of federal states. And we must -educate the German nation in our ideas and principles. As the Churches -do not feel themselves bound or limited by political confines, so the -National Socialist Idea cannot feel itself limited to the territories of -the individual federal states that belong to our Fatherland. - -The National Socialist doctrine is not handmaid to the political -interests of the single federal states. One day it must become teacher -to the whole German nation. It must determine the life of the whole -people and shape that life anew. For this reason we must imperatively -demand the right to overstep boundaries that have been traced by a -political development which we repudiate. - -The more completely our ideas triumph, the more liberty can we concede -in particular affairs to our citizens at home. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - - - -PROPAGANDA AND ORGANIZATION - - -The year 1921 was specially important for me from many points of view. - -When I entered the German Labour Party I at once took charge of the -propaganda, believing this branch to be far the most important for the -time being. Just then it was not a matter of pressing necessity to -cudgel one's brains over problems of organization. The first necessity -was to spread our ideas among as many people as possible. Propaganda -should go well ahead of organization and gather together the human -material for the latter to work up. I have never been in favour of hasty -and pedantic methods of organization, because in most cases the result -is merely a piece of dead mechanism and only rarely a living -organization. Organization is a thing that derives its existence from -organic life, organic evolution. When the same set of ideas have found a -lodgement in the minds of a certain number of people they tend of -themselves to form a certain degree of order among those people and out -of this inner formation something that is very valuable arises. Of -course here, as everywhere else, one must take account of those human -weaknesses which make men hesitate, especially at the beginning, to -submit to the control of a superior mind. If an organization is imposed -from above downwards in a mechanical fashion, there is always the danger -that some individual may push himself forward who is not known for what -he is and who, out of jealousy, will try to hinder abler persons from -taking a leading place in the movement. The damage that results from -that kind of thing may have fatal consequences, especially in a new -movement. - -For this reason it is advisable first to propagate and publicly expound -the ideas on which the movement is founded. This work of propaganda -should continue for a certain time and should be directed from one -centre. When the ideas have gradually won over a number of people this -human material should be carefully sifted for the purpose of selecting -those who have ability in leadership and putting that ability to the -test. It will often be found that apparently insignificant persons will -nevertheless turn out to be born leaders. - -Of course, it is quite a mistake to suppose that those who show a very -intelligent grasp of the theory underlying a movement are for that -reason qualified to fill responsible positions on the directorate. The -contrary is very frequently the case. - -Great masters of theory are only very rarely great organizers also. And -this is because the greatness of the theorist and founder of a system -consists in being able to discover and lay down those laws that are -right in the abstract, whereas the organizer must first of all be a man -of psychological insight. He must take men as they are, and for that -reason he must know them, not having too high or too low an estimate of -human nature. He must take account of their weaknesses, their baseness -and all the other various characteristics, so as to form something out -of them which will be a living organism, endowed with strong powers of -resistance, fitted to be the carrier of an idea and strong enough to -ensure the triumph of that idea. - -But it is still more rare to find a great theorist who is at the same -time a great leader. For the latter must be more of an agitator, a truth -that will not be readily accepted by many of those who deal with -problems only from the scientific standpoint. And yet what I say is only -natural. For an agitator who shows himself capable of expounding ideas -to the great masses must always be a psychologist, even though he may be -only a demagogue. Therefore he will always be a much more capable leader -than the contemplative theorist who meditates on his ideas, far from the -human throng and the world. For to be a leader means to be able to move -the masses. The gift of formulating ideas has nothing whatsoever to do -with the capacity for leadership. It would be entirely futile to discuss -the question as to which is the more important: the faculty of -conceiving ideals and human aims or that of being able to have them put -into practice. Here, as so often happens in life, the one would be -entirely meaningless without the other. The noblest conceptions of the -human understanding remain without purpose or value if the leader cannot -move the masses towards them. And, conversely, what would it avail to -have all the genius and elan of a leader if the intellectual theorist -does not fix the aims for which mankind must struggle. But when the -abilities of theorist and organizer and leader are united in the one -person, then we have the rarest phenomenon on this earth. And it is that -union which produces the great man. - -As I have already said, during my first period in the Party I devoted -myself to the work of propaganda. I had to succeed in gradually -gathering together a small nucleus of men who would accept the new -teaching and be inspired by it. And in this way we should provide the -human material which subsequently would form the constituent elements of -the organization. Thus the goal of the propagandist is nearly always -fixed far beyond that of the organizer. - -If a movement proposes to overthrow a certain order of things and -construct a new one in its place, then the following principles must be -clearly understood and must dominate in the ranks of its leadership: -Every movement which has gained its human material must first divide -this material into two groups: namely, followers and members. - -It is the task of the propagandist to recruit the followers and it is -the task of the organizer to select the members. - -The follower of a movement is he who understands and accepts its aims; -the member is he who fights for them. - -The follower is one whom the propaganda has converted to the doctrine of -the movement. The member is he who will be charged by the organization -to collaborate in winning over new followers from which in turn new -members can be formed. - -To be a follower needs only the passive recognition of the idea. To be a -member means to represent that idea and fight for it. From ten followers -one can have scarcely more than two members. To be a follower simply -implies that a man has accepted the teaching of the movement; whereas to -be a member means that a man has the courage to participate actively in -diffusing that teaching in which he has come to believe. - -Because of its passive character, the simple effort of believing in a -political doctrine is enough for the majority, for the majority of -mankind is mentally lazy and timid. To be a member one must be -intellectually active, and therefore this applies only to the minority. - -Such being the case, the propagandist must seek untiringly to acquire -new followers for the movement, whereas the organizer must diligently -look out for the best elements among such followers, so that these -elements may be transformed into members. The propagandist need not -trouble too much about the personal worth of the individual proselytes -he has won for the movement. He need not inquire into their abilities, -their intelligence or character. From these proselytes, however, the -organizer will have to select those individuals who are most capable of -actively helping to bring the movement to victory. - -The propagandist aims at inducing the whole people to accept his -teaching. The organizer includes in his body of membership only those -who, on psychological grounds, will not be an impediment to the further -diffusion of the doctrines of the movement. - -The propagandist inculcates his doctrine among the masses, with the idea -of preparing them for the time when this doctrine will triumph, through -the body of combatant members which he has formed from those followers -who have given proof of the necessary ability and will-power to carry -the struggle to victory. - -The final triumph of a doctrine will be made all the more easy if the -propagandist has effectively converted large bodies of men to the belief -in that doctrine and if the organization that actively conducts the -fight be exclusive, vigorous and solid. - -When the propaganda work has converted a whole people to believe in a -doctrine, the organization can turn the results of this into practical -effect through the work of a mere handful of men. Propaganda and -organization, therefore follower and member, then stand towards one -another in a definite mutual relationship. The better the propaganda has -worked, the smaller will the organization be. The greater the number of -followers, so much the smaller can be the number of members. And -conversely. If the propaganda be bad, the organization must be large. -And if there be only a small number of followers, the membership must be -all the larger--if the movement really counts on being successful. - -The first duty of the propagandist is to win over people who can -subsequently be taken into the organization. And the first duty of the -organization is to select and train men who will be capable of carrying -on the propaganda. The second duty of the organization is to disrupt the -existing order of things and thus make room for the penetration of the -new teaching which it represents, while the duty of the organizer must -be to fight for the purpose of securing power, so that the doctrine may -finally triumph. - -A revolutionary conception of the world and human existence will always -achieve decisive success when the new WELTANSCHAUUNG has been taught to -a whole people, or subsequently forced upon them if necessary, and when, -on the other hand, the central organization, the movement itself, is in -the hands of only those few men who are absolutely indispensable to form -the nerve-centres of the coming State. - -Put in another way, this means that in every great revolutionary -movement that is of world importance the idea of this movement must -always be spread abroad through the operation of propaganda. The -propagandist must never tire in his efforts to make the new ideas -clearly understood, inculcating them among others, or at least he must -place himself in the position of those others and endeavour to upset -their confidence in the convictions they have hitherto held. In order -that such propaganda should have backbone to it, it must be based on an -organization. The organization chooses its members from among those -followers whom the propaganda has won. That organization will become all -the more vigorous if the work of propaganda be pushed forward -intensively. And the propaganda will work all the better when the -organization back of it is vigorous and strong in itself. - -Hence the supreme task of the organizer is to see to it that any discord -or differences which may arise among the members of the movement will -not lead to a split and thereby cramp the work within the movement. -Moreover, it is the duty of the organization to see that the fighting -spirit of the movement does not flag or die out but that it is -constantly reinvigorated and restrengthened. It is not necessary the -number of members should increase indefinitely. Quite the contrary would -be better. In view of the fact that only a fraction of humanity has -energy and courage, a movement which increases its own organization -indefinitely must of necessity one day become plethoric and inactive. -Organizations, that is to say, groups of members, which increase their -size beyond certain dimensions gradually lose their fighting force and -are no longer in form to back up the propagation of a doctrine with -aggressive elan and determination. - -Now the greater and more revolutionary a doctrine is, so much the more -active will be the spirit inspiring its body of members, because the -subversive energy of such a doctrine will frighten way the -chicken-hearted and small-minded bourgeoisie. In their hearts they may -believe in the doctrine but they are afraid to acknowledge their belief -openly. By reason of this very fact, however, an organization inspired -by a veritable revolutionary idea will attract into the body of its -membership only the most active of those believers who have been won for -it by its propaganda. It is in this activity on the part of the -membership body, guaranteed by the process of natural selection, that we -are to seek the prerequisite conditions for the continuation of an -active and spirited propaganda and also the victorious struggle for the -success of the idea on which the movement is based. - -The greatest danger that can threaten a movement is an abnormal increase -in the number of its members, owing to its too rapid success. So long as -a movement has to carry on a hard and bitter fight, people of weak and -fundamentally egotistic temperament will steer very clear of it; but -these will try to be accepted as members the moment the party achieves a -manifest success in the course of its development. - -It is on these grounds that we are to explain why so many movements -which were at first successful slowed down before reaching the -fulfilment of their purpose and, from an inner weakness which could not -otherwise be explained, gave up the struggle and finally disappeared -from the field. As a result of the early successes achieved, so many -undesirable, unworthy and especially timid individuals became members of -the movement that they finally secured the majority and stifled the -fighting spirit of the others. These inferior elements then turned the -movement to the service of their personal interests and, debasing it to -the level of their own miserable heroism, no longer struggled for the -triumph of the original idea. The fire of the first fervour died out, -the fighting spirit flagged and, as the bourgeois world is accustomed to -say very justly in such cases, the party mixed water with its wine. - -For this reason it is necessary that a movement should, from the sheer -instinct of self-preservation, close its lists to new membership the -moment it becomes successful. And any further increase in its -organization should be allowed to take place only with the most careful -foresight and after a painstaking sifting of those who apply for -membership. Only thus will it be possible to keep the kernel of the -movement intact and fresh and sound. Care must be taken that the conduct -of the movement is maintained exclusively in the hands of this original -nucleus. This means that the nucleus must direct the propaganda which -aims at securing general recognition for the movement. And the movement -itself, when it has secured power in its hands, must carry out all those -acts and measures which are necessary in order that its ideas should be -finally established in practice. - -With those elements that originally made the movement, the organization -should occupy all the important positions that have been conquered and -from those elements the whole directorate should be formed. This should -continue until the maxims and doctrines of the party have become the -foundation and policy of the new State. Only then will it be permissible -gradually to give the reins into the hands of the Constitution of that -State which the spirit of the movement has created. But this usually -happens through a process of mutual rivalry, for here it is less a -question of human intelligence than of the play and effect of the forces -whose development may indeed be foreseen from the start but not -perpetually controlled. - -All great movements, whether of a political or religious nature, owe -their imposing success to the recognition and adoption of those -principles. And no durable success is conceivable if these laws are not -observed. - -As director of propaganda for the party, I took care not merely to -prepare the ground for the greatness of the movement in its subsequent -stages, but I also adopted the most radical measures against allowing -into the organization any other than the best material. For the more -radical and exciting my propaganda was, the more did it frighten weak -and wavering characters away, thus preventing them from entering the -first nucleus of our organization. Perhaps they remained followers, but -they did not raise their voices. On the contrary, they maintained a -discreet silence on the fact. Many thousands of persons then assured me -that they were in full agreement with us but they could not on any -account become members of our party. They said that the movement was so -radical that to take part in it as members would expose them to grave -censures and grave dangers, so that they would rather continue to be -looked upon as honest and peaceful citizens and remain aside, for the -time being at least, though devoted to our cause with all their hearts. - -And that was all to the good. If all these men who in their hearts did -not approve of revolutionary ideas came into our movement as members at -that time, we should be looked upon as a pious confraternity to-day and -not as a young movement inspired with the spirit of combat. - -The lively and combative form which I gave to all our propaganda -fortified and guaranteed the radical tendency of our movement, and the -result was that, with a few exceptions, only men of radical views were -disposed to become members. - -It was due to the effect of our propaganda that within a short period of -time hundreds of thousands of citizens became convinced in their hearts -that we were right and wished us victory, although personally they were -too timid to make sacrifices for our cause or even participate in it. - -Up to the middle of 1921 this simple activity of gathering in followers -was sufficient and was of value to the movement. But in the summer of -that year certain events happened which made it seem opportune for us to -bring our organization into line with the manifest successes which the -propaganda had achieved. - -An attempt made by a group of patriotic visionaries, supported by the -chairman of the party at that time, to take over the direction of the -party led to the break up of this little intrigue and, by a unanimous -vote at a general meeting, entrusted the entire direction of the party -to my own hands. At the same time a new statute was passed which -invested sole responsibility in the chairman of the movement, abolished -the system of resolutions in committee and in its stead introduced the -principle of division of labour which since that time has worked -excellently. - -From August 1st, 1921, onwards I undertook this internal reorganization -of the party and was supported by a number of excellent men. I shall -mention them and their work individually later on. - -In my endeavour to turn the results gained by the propaganda to the -advantage of the organization and thus stabilize them, I had to abolish -completely a number of old customs and introduce regulations which none -of the other parties possessed or had adopted. - -In the years 1920-21 the movement was controlled by a committee elected -by the members at a general meeting. The committee was composed of a -first and second treasurer, a first and second secretary, and a first -and second chairman at the head of it. In addition to these there was a -representative of the members, the director of propaganda, and various -assessors. - -Comically enough, the committee embodied the very principle against -which the movement itself wanted to fight with all its energy, namely, -the principle of parliamentarianism. Here was a principle which -personified everything that was being opposed by the movement, from the -smallest local groups to the district and regional groups, the state -groups and finally the national directorate itself. It was a system -under which we all suffered and are still suffering. - -It was imperative to change this state of affairs forthwith, if this bad -foundation in the internal organization was not to keep the movement -insecure and render the fulfilment of its high mission impossible. - -The sessions of the committee, which were ruled by a protocol, and in -which decisions were made according to the vote of the majority, -presented the picture of a miniature parliament. Here also there was no -such thing as personal responsibility. And here reigned the same -absurdities and illogical state of affairs as flourish in our great -representative bodies of the State. Names were presented to this -committee for election as secretaries, treasurers, representatives of -the members of the organization, propaganda agents and God knows what -else. And then they all acted in common on every particular question and -decided it by vote. Accordingly, the director of propaganda voted on a -question that concerned the man who had to do with the finances and the -latter in his turn voted on a question that concerned only the -organization as such, the organizer voting on a subject that had to do -with the secretarial department, and so on. - -Why select a special man for propaganda if treasurers and scribes and -commissaries, etc., had to deliver judgment on questions concerning it? -To a person of commonsense that sort of thing seemed as incomprehensible -as it would be if in a great manufacturing concern the board of -directors were to decide on technical questions of production or if, -inversely, the engineers were to decide on questions of administration. - -I refused to countenance that kind of folly and after a short time I -ceased to appear at the meetings of the committee. I did nothing else -except attend to my own department of propaganda and I did not permit -any of the others to poke their heads into my activities. Conversely, I -did not interfere in the affairs of others. - -When the new statute was approved and I was appointed as president, I -had the necessary authority in my hands and also the corresponding right -to make short shrift of all that nonsense. In the place of decisions by -the majority vote of the committee, the principle of absolute -responsibility was introduced. - -The chairman is responsible for the whole control of the movement. He -apportions the work among the members of the committee subordinate to -him and for special work he selects other individuals. Each of these -gentlemen must bear sole responsibility for the task assigned to him. He -is subordinate only to the chairman, whose duty is to supervise the -general collaboration, selecting the personnel and giving general -directions for the co-ordination of the common work. - -This principle of absolute responsibility is being adopted little by -little throughout the movement. In the small local groups and perhaps -also in the regional and district groups it will take yet a long time -before the principle can be thoroughly imposed, because timid and -hesitant characters are naturally opposed to it. For them the idea of -bearing absolute responsibility for an act opens up an unpleasant -prospect. They would like to hide behind the shoulders of the majority -in the so-called committee, having their acts covered by decisions -passed in that way. But it seems to me a matter of absolute necessity to -take a decisive stand against that view, to make no concessions -whatsoever to this fear of responsibility, even though it takes some -time before we can put fully into effect this concept of duty and -ability in leadership, which will finally bring forward leaders who have -the requisite abilities to occupy the chief posts. - -In any case, a movement which must fight against the absurdity of -parliamentary institutions must be immune from this sort of thing. Only -thus will it have the requisite strength to carry on the struggle. - -At a time when the majority dominates everywhere else a movement which -is based on the principle of one leader who has to bear personal -responsibility for the direction of the official acts of the movement -itself will one day overthrow the present situation and triumph over the -existing regime. That is a mathematical certainty. - -This idea made it necessary to reorganize our movement internally. The -logical development of this reorganization brought about a clear-cut -distinction between the economic section of the movement and the general -political direction. The principle of personal responsibility was -extended to all the administrative branches of the party and it brought -about a healthy renovation, by liberating them from political influences -and allowing them to operate solely on economic principles. - -In the autumn of 1921, when the party was founded, there were only six -members. The party did not have any headquarters, nor officials, nor -formularies, nor a stamp, nor printed material of any sort. The -committee first held its sittings in a restaurant on the Herrengasse and -then in a caf� at Gasteig. This state of affairs could not last. So I at -once took action in the matter. I went around to several restaurants and -hotels in Munich, with the idea of renting a room in one of them for the -use of the Party. In the old Sterneckerbr�u im Tal, there was a small -room with arched roof, which in earlier times was used as a sort of -festive tavern where the Bavarian Counsellors of the Holy Roman Empire -foregathered. It was dark and dismal and accordingly well suited to its -ancient uses, though less suited to the new purpose it was now destined -to serve. The little street on which its one window looked out was so -narrow that even on the brightest summer day the room remained dim and -sombre. Here we took up our first fixed abode. The rent came to fifty -marks per month, which was then an enormous sum for us. But our -exigencies had to be very modest. We dared not complain even when they -removed the wooden wainscoting a few days after we had taken possession. -This panelling had been specially put up for the Imperial Counsellors. -The place began to look more like a grotto than an office. - -Still it marked an important step forward. Slowly we had electric light -installed and later on a telephone. A table and some borrowed chairs -were brought, an open paper-stand and later on a cupboard. Two -sideboards, which belonged to the landlord, served to store our -leaflets, placards, etc. - -As time went on it turned out impossible to direct the course of the -movement merely by holding a committee meeting once a week. The current -business administration of the movement could not be regularly attended -to except we had a salaried official. - -But that was then very difficult for us. The movement had still so few -members that it was hard to find among them a suitable person for the -job who would be content with very little for himself and at the same -time would be ready to meet the manifold demands which the movement -would make on his time and energy. - -After long searching we discovered a soldier who consented to become our -first administrator. His name was Sch�ssler, an old war comrade of mine. -At first he came to our new office every day between six and eight -o'clock in the evening. Later on he came from five to eight and -subsequently for the whole afternoon. Finally it became a full-time job -and he worked in the office from morning until late at night. He was an -industrious, upright and thoroughly honest man, faithful and devoted to -the movement. He brought with him a small Adler typewriter of his own. -It was the first machine to be used in the service of the party. -Subsequently the party bought it by paying for it in installments. We -needed a small safe in order to keep our papers and register of -membership from danger of being stolen--not to guard our funds, which -did not then exist. On the contrary, our financial position was so -miserable that I often had to dip my hand into my own personal savings. - -After eighteen months our business quarters had become too small, so we -moved to a new place in the Cornelius Strasse. Again our office was in a -restaurant, but instead of one room we now had three smaller rooms and -one large room with great windows. At that time this appeared a -wonderful thing to us. We remained there until the end of November 1923. - -In December 1920, we acquired the V�LKISCHER BEOBACHTER. This newspaper -which, as its name implies, championed the claims of the people, was now -to become the organ of the German National Socialist Labour Party. At -first it appeared twice weekly; but at the beginning of 1928 it became a -daily paper, and at the end of August in the same year it began to -appear in the large format which is now well known. - -As a complete novice in journalism I then learned many a lesson for -which I had to pay dearly. - -In contradistinction to the enormous number of papers in Jewish hands, -there was at that time only one important newspaper that defended the -cause of the people. This was a matter for grave consideration. As I -have often learned by experience, the reason for that state of things -must be attributed to the incompetent way in which the business side of -the so-called popular newspapers was managed. These were conducted too -much according to the rule that opinion should prevail over action that -produces results. Quite a wrong standpoint, for opinion is of itself -something internal and finds its best expression in productive activity. -The man who does valuable work for his people expresses thereby his -excellent sentiments, whereas another who merely talks about his -opinions and does nothing that is of real value or use to the people is -a person who perverts all right thinking. And that attitude of his is -also pernicious for the community. - -The V�LKISCHE BEOBACHTER was a so-called 'popular' organ, as its name -indicated. It had all the good qualities, but still more the errors and -weaknesses, inherent in all popular institutions. Though its contents -were excellent, its management as a business concern was simply -impossible. Here also the underlying idea was that popular newspapers -ought to be subsidized by popular contributions, without recognizing -that it had to make its way in competition with the others and that it -was dishonest to expect the subscriptions of good patriots to make up -for the mistaken management of the undertaking. - -I took care to alter those conditions promptly, for I recognized the -danger lurking in them. Luck was on my side here, inasmuch as it brought -me the man who since that time has rendered innumerable services to the -movement, not only as business manager of the newspaper but also as -business manager of the party. In 1914, in the War, I made the -acquaintance of Max Amann, who was then my superior and is to-day -general business Director of the Party. During four years in the War I -had occasion to observe almost continually the unusual ability, the -diligence and the rigorous conscientiousness of my future collaborator. - -In the summer of 1921 I applied to my old regimental comrade, whom I met -one day by chance, and asked him to become business manager of the -movement. At that time the movement was passing through a grave crisis -and I had reason to be dissatisfied with several of our officials, with -one of whom I had had a very bitter experience. Amann then held a good -situation in which there were also good prospects for him. - -After long hesitation he agreed to my request, but only on condition -that he must not be at the mercy of incompetent committees. He must be -responsible to one master, and only one. - -It is to the inestimable credit of this first business manager of the -party, whose commercial knowledge is extensive and profound, that he -brought order and probity into the various offices of the party. Since -that time these have remained exemplary and cannot be equalled or -excelled in this by any other branches of the movement. But, as often -happens in life, great ability provokes envy and disfavour. That had -also to be expected in this case and borne patiently. - -Since 1922 rigorous regulations have been in force, not only for the -commercial construction of the movement but also in the organization of -it as such. There exists now a central filing system, where the names -and particulars of all the members are enrolled. The financing of the -party has been placed on sound lines. The current expenditure must be -covered by the current receipts and special receipts can be used only -for special expenditures. Thus, notwithstanding the difficulties of the -time the movement remained practically without any debts, except for a -few small current accounts. Indeed, there was a permanent increase in -the funds. Things are managed as in a private business. The employed -personnel hold their jobs in virtue of their practical efficiency and -could not in any manner take cover behind their professed loyalty to the -party. A good National Socialist proves his soundness by the readiness, -diligence and capability with which he discharges whatever duties are -assigned to him in whatever situation he holds within the national -community. The man who does not fulfil his duty in the job he holds -cannot boast of a loyalty against which he himself really sins. - -Adamant against all kinds of outer influence, the new business director -of the party firmly maintained the standpoint that there were no -sinecure posts in the party administration for followers and members of -the movement whose pleasure is not work. A movement which fights so -energetically against the corruption introduced into our civil service -by the various political parties must be immune from that vice in its -own administrative department. It happened that some men were taken on -the staff of the paper who had formerly been adherents of the Bavarian -People's Party, but their work showed that they were excellently -qualified for the job. The result of this experiment was generally -excellent. It was owing to this honest and frank recognition of -individual efficiency that the movement won the hearts of its employees -more swiftly and more profoundly than had ever been the case before. -Subsequently they became good National Socialists and remained so. Not -in word only, but they proved it by the steady and honest and -conscientious work which they performed in the service of the new -movement. Naturally a well qualified party member was preferred to -another who had equal qualifications but did not belong to the party. -The rigid determination with which our new business chief applied these -principles and gradually put them into force, despite all -misunderstandings, turned out to be of great advantage to the movement. -To this we owe the fact that it was possible for us--during the -difficult period of the inflation, when thousands of businesses failed -and thousands of newspapers had to cease publication--not only to keep -the commercial department of the movement going and meet all its -obligations but also to make steady progress with the V�LKISCHE -BEOBACHTER. At that time it came to be ranked among the great -newspapers. - -The year 1921 was of further importance for me by reason of the fact -that in my position as chairman of the party I slowly but steadily -succeeded in putting a stop to the criticisms and the intrusions of some -members of the committee in regard to the detailed activities of the -party administration. This was important, because we could not get a -capable man to take on a job if nincompoops were constantly allowed to -butt in, pretending that they knew everything much better; whereas in -reality they had left only general chaos behind them. Then these -wise-acres retired, for the most part quite modestly, to seek another -field for their activities where they could supervise and tell how -things ought to be done. Some men seemed to have a mania for sniffing -behind everything and were, so to say, always in a permanent state of -pregnancy with magnificent plans and ideas and projects and methods. -Naturally their noble aim and ideal were always the formation of a -committee which could pretend to be an organ of control in order to be -able to sniff as experts into the regular work done by others. But it is -offensive and contrary to the spirit of National Socialism when -incompetent people constantly interfere in the work of capable persons. -But these makers of committees do not take that very much into account. -In those years I felt it my duty to safeguard against such annoyance all -those who were entrusted with regular and responsible work, so that -there should be no spying over the shoulder and they would be guaranteed -a free hand in their day's work. - -The best means of making committees innocuous, which either did nothing -or cooked up impracticable decisions, was to give them some real work to -do. It was then amusing to see how the members would silently fade away -and were soon nowhere to be found. It made me think of that great -institution of the same kind, the Reichstag. How quickly they would -evanesce if they were put to some real work instead of talking, -especially if each member were made personally responsible for the work -assigned to him. - -I always demanded that, just as in private life so also in the movement, -one should not tire of seeking until the best and honestest and -manifestly the most competent person could be found for the position of -leader or administrator in each section of the movement. Once installed -in his position he was given absolute authority and full freedom of -action towards his subordinates and full responsibility towards his -superiors. Nobody was placed in a position of authority towards his -subordinates unless he himself was competent in the work entrusted to -them. In the course of two years I brought my views more and more into -practice; so that to-day, at least as far as the higher direction of the -movement is concerned, they are accepted as a matter of course. - -The manifest success of this attitude was shown on November 9th, 1923. -Four years previously, when I entered the movement, it did not have even -a rubber stamp. On November 9th, 1923, the party was dissolved and its -property confiscated. The total sum realized by all the objects of value -and the paper amounted to more than 170,000 gold marks. - - - - -CHAPTER XII - - - -THE PROBLEM OF THE TRADE UNIONS - - -Owing to the rapid growth of the movement, in 1922 we felt compelled to -take a definite stand on a question which has not been fully solved even -yet. - -In our efforts to discover the quickest and easiest way for the movement -to reach the heart of the broad masses we were always confronted with -the objection that the worker could never completely belong to us while -his interests in the purely vocational and economic sphere were cared -for by a political organization conducted by men whose principles were -quite different from ours. - -That was quite a serious objection. The general belief was that a -workman engaged in some trade or other could not exist if he did not -belong to a trade union. Not only were his professional interests thus -protected but a guarantee of permanent employment was simply -inconceivable without membership in a trade union. The majority of the -workers were in the trades unions. Generally speaking, the unions had -successfully conducted the battle for the establishment of a definite -scale of wages and had concluded agreements which guaranteed the worker -a steady income. Undoubtedly the workers in the various trades benefited -by the results of that campaign and, for honest men especially, -conflicts of conscience must have arisen if they took the wages which -had been assured through the struggle fought by the trades unions and if -at the same time the men themselves withdrew from the fight. - -It was difficult to discuss this problem with the average bourgeois -employer. He had no understanding (or did not wish to have any) for -either the material or moral side of the question. Finally he declared -that his own economic interests were in principle opposed to every kind -of organization which joined together the workmen that were dependent on -him. Hence it was for the most part impossible to bring these bourgeois -employers to take an impartial view of the situation. Here, therefore, -as in so many other cases, it was necessary to appeal to disinterested -outsiders who would not be subject to the temptation of fixing their -attention on the trees and failing to see the forest. With a little good -will on their part, they could much more easily understand a state of -affairs which is of the highest importance for our present and future -existence. - -In the first volume of this book I have already expressed my views on -the nature and purpose and necessity of trade unions. There I took up -the standpoint that unless measures are undertaken by the State (usually -futile in such cases) or a new ideal is introduced in our education, -which would change the attitude of the employer towards the worker, no -other course would be open to the latter except to defend his own -interests himself by appealing to his equal rights as a contracting -party within the economic sphere of the nation's existence. I stated -further that this would conform to the interests of the national -community if thereby social injustices could be redressed which -otherwise would cause serious damage to the whole social structure. I -stated, moreover, that the worker would always find it necessary to -undertake this protective action as long as there were men among the -employers who had no sense of their social obligations nor even of the -most elementary human rights. And I concluded by saying that if such -self-defence be considered necessary its form ought to be that of an -association made up of the workers themselves on the basis of trades -unions. - -This was my general idea and it remained the same in 1922. But a clear -and precise formula was still to be discovered. We could not be -satisfied with merely understanding the problem. It was necessary to -come to some conclusions that could be put into practice. The following -questions had to be answered: - -(1) Are trade unions necessary? - -(2) Should the German National Socialist Labour Party itself operate on -a trade unionist basis or have its members take part in trade unionist -activities in some form or other? - -(3) What form should a National Socialist Trades Union take? What are -the tasks confronting us and the ends we must try to attain? - -(4) How can we establish trade unions for such tasks and aims? - -I think that I have already answered the first question adequately. In -the present state of affairs I am convinced that we cannot possibly -dispense with the trades unions. On the contrary, they are among the -most important institutions in the economic life of the nation. Not only -are they important in the sphere of social policy but also, and even -more so, in the national political sphere. For when the great masses of -a nation see their vital needs satisfied through a just trade unionist -movement the stamina of the whole nation in its struggle for existence -will be enormously reinforced thereby. - -Before everything else, the trades unions are necessary as building -stones for the future economic parliament, which will be made up of -chambers representing the various professions and occupations. - -The second question is also easy to answer. If the trade unionist -movement is important, then it is clear that National Socialism ought to -take a definite stand on that question, not only theoretically but also -in practice. But how? That is more difficult to see clearly. - -The National Socialist Movement, which aims at establishing the National -Socialist People's State, must always bear steadfastly in mind the -principle that every future institution under that State must be rooted -in the movement itself. It is a great mistake to believe that by -acquiring possession of supreme political power we can bring about a -definite reorganization, suddenly starting from nothing, without the -help of a certain reserve stock of men who have been trained beforehand, -especially in the spirit of the movement. Here also the principle holds -good that the spirit is always more important than the external form -which it animates; since this form can be created mechanically and -quickly. For instance, the leadership principle may be imposed on an -organized political community in a dictatorial way. But this principle -can become a living reality only by passing through the stages that are -necessary for its own evolution. These stages lead from the smallest -cell of the State organism upwards. As its bearers and representatives, -the leadership principle must have a body of men who have passed through -a process of selection lasting over several years, who have been -tempered by the hard realities of life and thus rendered capable of -carrying the principle into practical effect. - -It is out of the question to think that a scheme for the Constitution of -a State can be pulled out of a portfolio at a moment's notice and -'introduced' by imperative orders from above. One may try that kind of -thing but the result will always be something that has not sufficient -vitality to endure. It will be like a stillborn infant. The idea of it -calls to mind the origin of the Weimar Constitution and the attempt to -impose on the German people a new Constitution and a new flag, neither -of which had any inner relation to the vicissitudes of our people's -history during the last half century. - -The National Socialist State must guard against all such experiments. It -must grow out of an organization which has already existed for a long -time. This organization must possess National Socialist life in itself, -so that finally it may be able to establish a National Socialist State -that will be a living reality. - -As I have already said, the germ cells of this State must lie in the -administrative chambers which will represent the various occupations and -professions, therefore first of all in the trades unions. If this -subsequent vocational representation and the Central Economic Parliament -are to be National Socialist institutions, these important germ cells -must be vehicles of the National Socialist concept of life. The -institutions of the movement are to be brought over into the State; for -the State cannot call into existence all of a sudden and as if by magic -those institutions which are necessary to its existence, unless it -wishes to have institutions that are bound to remain completely -lifeless. - -Looking at the matter from the highest standpoint, the National -Socialist Movement will have to recognize the necessity of adopting its -own trade-unionist policy. - -It must do this for a further reason, namely because a real National -Socialist education for the employer as well as for the employee, in the -spirit of a mutual co-operation within the common framework of the -national community, cannot be secured by theoretical instruction, -appeals and exhortations, but through the struggles of daily life. In -this spirit and through this spirit the movement must educate the -several large economic groups and bring them closer to one another under -a wider outlook. Without this preparatory work it would be sheer -illusion to hope that a real national community can be brought into -existence. The great ideal represented by its philosophy of life and for -which the movement fights can alone form a general style of thought -steadily and slowly. And this style will show that the new state of -things rests on foundations that are internally sound and not merely an -external fa�ade. - -Hence the movement must adopt a positive attitude towards the -trade-unionist idea. But it must go further than this. For the enormous -number of members and followers of the trade-unionist movement it must -provide a practical education which will meet the exigencies of the -coming National Socialist State. - -The answer to the third question follows from what has been already -said. - -The National Socialist Trades Union is not an instrument for class -warfare, but a representative organ of the various occupations and -callings. The National Socialist State recognizes no 'classes'. But, -under the political aspect, it recognizes only citizens with absolutely -equal rights and equal obligations corresponding thereto. And, side by -side with these, it recognizes subjects of the State who have no -political rights whatsoever. - -According to the National Socialist concept, it is not the task of the -trades union to band together certain men within the national community -and thus gradually transform these men into a class, so as to use them -in a conflict against other groups similarly organized within the -national community. We certainly cannot assign this task to the trades -union as such. This was the task assigned to it the moment it became a -fighting weapon in the hands of the Marxists. The trades union is not -naturally an instrument of class warfare; but the Marxists transformed -it into an instrument for use in their own class struggle. They created -the economic weapon which the international Jew uses for the purpose of -destroying the economic foundations of free and independent national -States, for ruining their national industry and trade and thereby -enslaving free nations to serve Jewish world-finance, which transcends -all State boundaries. - -In contradistinction to this, the National Socialist Trades Union must -organize definite groups and those who participate in the economic life -of the nation and thus enhance the security of the national economic -system itself, reinforcing it by the elimination of all those anomalies -which ultimately exercise a destructive influence on the social body of -the nation, damaging the vital forces of the national community, -prejudicing the welfare of the State and, by no means as a last -consequence, bringing evil and destruction on economic life itself. - -Therefore in the hands of the National Socialist Trades Union the strike -is not an instrument for disturbing and dislocating the national -production, but for increasing it and making it run smoothly, by -fighting against all those annoyances which by reason of their unsocial -character hinder efficiency in business and thereby hamper the existence -of the whole nation. For individual efficiency stands always in casual -relation to the general social and juridical position of the individual -in the economic process. Individual efficiency is also the sole root of -the conviction that the economic prosperity of the nation must -necessarily redound to the benefit of the individual citizen. - -The National Socialist employee will have to recognize the fact that the -economic prosperity of the nation brings with it his own material -happiness. - -The National Socialist employer must recognize that the happiness and -contentment of his employees are necessary pre-requisites for the -existence and development of his own economic prosperity. - -National Socialist workers and employers are both together the delegates -and mandatories of the whole national community. The large measure of -personal freedom which is accorded to them for their activities must be -explained by the fact that experience has shown that the productive -powers of the individual are more enhanced by being accorded a generous -measure of freedom than by coercion from above. Moreover, by according -this freedom we give free play to the natural process of selection which -brings forward the ablest and most capable and most industrious. For the -National Socialist Trades Union, therefore, the strike is a means that -may, and indeed must, be resorted to as long as there is not a National -Socialist State yet. But when that State is established it will, as a -matter of course, abolish the mass struggle between the two great groups -made up of employers and employees respectively, a struggle which has -always resulted in lessening the national production and injuring the -national community. In place of this struggle, the National Socialist -State will take over the task of caring for and defending the rights of -all parties concerned. It will be the duty of the Economic Chamber -itself to keep the national economic system in smooth working order and -to remove whatever defects or errors it may suffer from. Questions that -are now fought over through a quarrel that involves millions of people -will then be settled in the Representative Chambers of Trades and -Professions and in the Central Economic Parliament. Thus employers and -employees will no longer find themselves drawn into a mutual conflict -over wages and hours of work, always to the detriment of their mutual -interests. But they will solve these problems together on a higher -plane, where the welfare of the national community and of the State will -be as a shining ideal to throw light on all their negotiations. - -Here again, as everywhere else, the inflexible principle must be -observed, that the interests of the country must come before party -interests. - -The task of the National Socialist Trades Union will be to educate and -prepare its members to conform to these ideals. That task may be stated -as follows: All must work together for the maintenance and security of -our people and the People's State, each one according to the abilities -and powers with which Nature has endowed him and which have been -developed and trained by the national community. - -Our fourth question was: How shall we establish trades unions for such -tasks and aims? That is far more difficult to answer. - -Generally speaking, it is easier to establish something in new territory -than in old territory which already has its established institutions. In -a district where there is no existing business of a special character -one can easily establish a new business of this character. But it is -more difficult if the same kind of enterprise already exists and it is -most difficult of all when the conditions are such that only one -enterprise of this kind can prosper. For here the promoters of the new -enterprise find themselves confronted not only with the problem of -introducing their own business but also that of how to bring about the -destruction of the other business already existing in the district, so -that the new enterprise may be able to exist. - -It would be senseless to have a National Socialist Trades Union side by -side with other trades unions. For this Trades Union must be thoroughly -imbued with a feeling for the ideological nature of its task and of the -resulting obligation not to tolerate other similar or hostile -institutions. It must also insist that itself alone is necessary, to the -exclusion of all the rest. It can come to no arrangement and no -compromise with kindred tendencies but must assert its own absolute and -exclusive right. - -There were two ways which might lead to such a development: - -(1) We could establish our Trades Union and then gradually take up the -fight against the Marxist International Trades Union. - -(2) Or we could enter the Marxist Trades Union and inculcate a new -spirit in it, with the idea of transforming it into an instrument in the -service of the new ideal. - -The first way was not advisable, by reason of the fact that our -financial situation was still the cause of much worry to us at that time -and our resources were quite slender. The effects of the inflation were -steadily spreading and made the particular situation still more -difficult for us, because in those years one could scarcely speak of any -material help which the trades unions could extend to their members. -From this point of view, there was no reason why the individual worker -should pay his dues to the union. Even the Marxist unions then existing -were already on the point of collapse until, as the result of Herr -Cuno's enlightened Ruhr policy, millions were suddenly poured into their -coffers. This so-called 'national' Chancellor of the REICH should go -down in history as the Redeemer of the Marxist trades unions. - -We could not count on similar financial facilities. And nobody could be -induced to enter a new Trades Union which, on account of its financial -weakness, could not offer him the slightest material benefit. On the -other hand, I felt bound absolutely to guard against the creation of -such an organization which would only be a shelter for shirkers of the -more or less intellectual type. - -At that time the question of personnel played the most important role. I -did not have a single man whom I might call upon to carry out this -important task. Whoever could have succeeded at that time in -overthrowing the Marxist unions to make way for the triumph of the -National Socialist corporative idea, which would then take the place of -the ruinous class warfare--such a person would be fit to rank with the -very greatest men our nation has produced and his bust should be -installed in the Valhalla at Regensburg for the admiration of posterity. - -But I knew of no person who could qualify for such a pedestal. - -In this connection we must not be led astray by the fact that the -international trades unions are conducted by men of only mediocre -significance, for when those unions were founded there was nothing else -of a similar kind already in existence. To-day the National Socialist -Movement must fight against a monster organization which has existed for -a long time, rests on gigantic foundations and is carefully constructed -even in the smallest details. An assailant must always exercise more -intelligence than the defender, if he is to overthrow the latter. The -Marxist trade-unionist citadel may be governed to-day by mediocre -leaders, but it cannot be taken by assault except through the dauntless -energy and genius of a superior leader on the other side. If such a -leader cannot be found it is futile to struggle with Fate and even more -foolish to try to overthrow the existing state of things without being -able to construct a better in its place. - -Here one must apply the maxim that in life it is often better to allow -something to go by the board rather than try to half do it or do it -badly, owing to a lack of suitable means. - -To this we must add another consideration, which is not at all of a -demagogic character. At that time I had, and I still have to-day, a -firmly rooted conviction that when one is engaged in a great ideological -struggle in the political field it would be a grave mistake to mix up -economic questions with this struggle in its earlier stages. This -applies particularly to our German people. For if such were to happen in -their case the economic struggle would immediately distract the energy -necessary for the political fight. Once the people are brought to -believe that they can buy a little house with their savings they will -devote themselves to the task of increasing their savings and no spare -time will be left to them for the political struggle against those who, -in one way or another, will one day secure possession of the pennies -that have been saved. Instead of participating in the political conflict -on behalf of the opinions and convictions which they have been brought -to accept they will now go further with their 'settlement' idea and in -the end they will find themselves for the most part sitting on the -ground amidst all the stools. - -To-day the National Socialist Movement is at the beginning of its -struggle. In great part it must first of all shape and develop its -ideals. It must employ every ounce of its energy in the struggle to have -its great ideal accepted, and the success of this effort is not -conceivable unless the combined energies of the movement be entirely at -the service of this struggle. - -To-day we have a classical example of how the active strength of a -people becomes paralysed when that people is too much taken up with -purely economic problems. - -The Revolution which took place in November 1918 was not made by the -trades unions, but it was carried out in spite of them. And the people -of Germany did not wage any political fight for the future of their -country because they thought that the future could be sufficiently -secured by constructive work in the economic field. - -We must learn a lesson from this experience, because in our case the -same thing must happen under the same circumstances. The more the -combined strength of our movement is concentrated in the political -struggle, the more confidently may we count on being successful along -our whole front. But if we busy ourselves prematurely with trade -unionist problems, settlement problems, etc., it will be to the -disadvantage of our own cause, taken as a whole. For, though these -problems may be important, they cannot be solved in an adequate manner -until we have political power in our hand and are able to use it in the -service of this idea. Until that day comes these problems can have only -a paralysing effect on the movement. And if it takes them up too soon -they will only be a hindrance in the effort to attain its own -ideological aims. It may then easily happen that trade unionist -considerations will control the political direction of the movement, -instead of the ideological aims of the movement directing the way that -the trades unions are to take. - -The movement and the nation can derive advantage from a National -Socialist trade unionist organization only if the latter be so -thoroughly inspired by National Socialist ideas that it runs no danger -of falling into step behind the Marxist movement. For a National -Socialist Trades Union which would consider itself only as a competitor -against the Marxist unions would be worse than none. It must declare war -against the Marxist Trades Union, not only as an organization but, above -all, as an idea. It must declare itself hostile to the idea of class and -class warfare and, in place of this, it must declare itself as the -defender of the various occupational and professional interests of the -German people. - -Considered from all these points of view it was not then advisable, nor -is it yet advisable, to think of founding our own Trades Union. That -seemed clear to me, at least until somebody appeared who was obviously -called by fate to solve this particular problem. - -Therefore there remained only two possible ways. Either to recommend our -own party members to leave the trades unions in which they were enrolled -or to remain in them for the moment, with the idea of causing as much -destruction in them as possible. - -In general, I recommended the latter alternative. - -Especially in the year 1922-23 we could easily do that. For, during the -period of inflation, the financial advantages which might be reaped from -a trades union organization would be negligible, because we could expect -to enroll only a few members owing to the undeveloped condition of our -movement. The damage which might result from such a policy was all the -greater because its bitterest critics and opponents were to be found -among the followers of the National Socialist Party. - -I had already entirely discountenanced all experiments which were -destined from the very beginning to be unsuccessful. I would have -considered it criminal to run the risk of depriving a worker of his -scant earnings in order to help an organization which, according to my -inner conviction, could not promise real advantages to its members. - -Should a new political party fade out of existence one day nobody would -be injured thereby and some would have profited, but none would have a -right to complain. For what each individual contributes to a political -movement is given with the idea that it may ultimately come to nothing. -But the man who pays his dues to a trade union has the right to expect -some guarantee in return. If this is not done, then the directors of -such a trade union are swindlers or at least careless people who ought -to be brought to a sense of their responsibilities. - -We took all these viewpoints into consideration before making our -decision in 1922. Others thought otherwise and founded trades unions. -They upbraided us for being short-sighted and failing to see into the -future. But it did not take long for these organizations to disappear -and the result was what would have happened in our own case. But the -difference was that we should have deceived neither ourselves nor those -who believed in us. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - - - -THE GERMAN POST-WAR POLICY OF ALLIANCES - - -The erratic manner in which the foreign affairs of the REICH were -conducted was due to a lack of sound guiding principles for the -formation of practical and useful alliances. Not only was this state of -affairs continued after the Revolution, but it became even worse. - -For the confused state of our political ideas in general before the War -may be looked upon as the chief cause of our defective statesmanship; -but in the post-War period this cause must be attributed to a lack of -honest intentions. It was natural that those parties who had fully -achieved their destructive purpose by means of the Revolution should -feel that it would not serve their interests if a policy of alliances -were adopted which must ultimately result in the restoration of a free -German State. A development in this direction would not be in conformity -with the purposes of the November crime. It would have interrupted and -indeed put an end to the internationalization of German national economy -and German Labour. But what was feared most of all was that a successful -effort to make the REICH independent of foreign countries might have an -influence in domestic politics which one day would turn out disastrous -for those who now hold supreme power in the government of the REICH. One -cannot imagine the revival of a nation unless that revival be preceded -by a process of nationalization. Conversely, every important success in -the field of foreign politics must call forth a favourable reaction at -home. Experience proves that every struggle for liberty increases the -national sentiment and national self-consciousness and therewith gives -rise to a keener sensibility towards anti-national elements and -tendencies. A state of things, and persons also, that may be tolerated -and even pass unnoticed in times of peace will not only become the -object of aversion when national enthusiasm is aroused but will even -provoke positive opposition, which frequently turns out disastrous for -them. In this connection we may recall the spy-scare that became -prevalent when the war broke out, when human passion suddenly manifested -itself to such a heightened degree as to lead to the most brutal -persecutions, often without any justifiable grounds, although everybody -knew that the danger resulting from spies is greater during the long -periods of peace; but, for obvious reasons, they do not then attract a -similar amount of public attention. For this reason the subtle instinct -of the State parasites who came to the surface of the national body -through the November happenings makes them feel at once that a policy of -alliances which would restore the freedom of our people and awaken -national sentiment might possibly ruin their own criminal existence. - -Thus we may explain the fact that since 1918 the men who have held the -reins of government adopted an entirely negative attitude towards -foreign affairs and that the business of the State has been almost -constantly conducted in a systematic way against the interests of the -German nation. For that which at first sight seemed a matter of chance -proved, on closer examination, to be a logical advance along the road -which was first publicly entered upon by the November Revolution of -1918. - -Undoubtedly a distinction ought to be made between (1) the responsible -administrators of our affairs of State, or rather those who ought to be -responsible; (2) the average run of our parliamentary politicasters, and -(3) the masses of our people, whose sheepish docility corresponds to -their want of intelligence. - -The first know what they want. The second fall into line with them, -either because they have been already schooled in what is afoot or -because they have not the courage to take an uncompromising stand -against a course which they know and feel to be detrimental. The third -just submit to it because they are too stupid to understand. - -While the German National Socialist Labour Party was only a small and -practically unknown society, problems of foreign policy could have only -a secondary importance in the eyes of many of its members. This was the -case especially because our movement has always proclaimed the -principle, and must proclaim it, that the freedom of the country in its -foreign relations is not a gift that will be bestowed upon us by Heaven -or by any earthly Powers, but can only be the fruit of a development of -our inner forces. We must first root out the causes which led to our -collapse and we must eliminate all those who are profiting by that -collapse. Then we shall be in a position to take up the fight for the -restoration of our freedom in the management of our foreign relations. - -It will be easily understood therefore why we did not attach so much -importance to foreign affairs during the early stages of our young -movement, but preferred to concentrate on the problem of internal -reform. - -But when the small and insignificant society expanded and finally grew -too large for its first framework, the young organization assumed the -importance of a great association and we then felt it incumbent on us to -take a definite stand on problems regarding the development of a foreign -policy. It was necessary to lay down the main lines of action which -would not only be in accord with the fundamental ideas of our -WELTANSCHAUUNG but would actually be an expansion of it in the -practical world of foreign affairs. - -Just because our people have had no political education in matters -concerning our relations abroad, it was necessary to teach the leaders -in the various sections of our movement, and also the masses of the -people, the chief principles which ought to guide the development of our -foreign relations. That was one of the first tasks to be accomplished in -order to prepare the ground for the practical carrying out of a foreign -policy which would win back the independence of the nation in managing -its external affairs and thus restore the real sovereignty of the REICH. - -The fundamental and guiding principles which we must always bear in mind -when studying this question is that foreign policy is only a means to an -end and that the sole end to be pursued is the welfare of our own -people. Every problem in foreign politics must be considered from this -point of view, and this point of view alone. Shall such and such a -solution prove advantageous to our people now or in the future, or will -it injure their interests? That is the question. - -This is the sole preoccupation that must occupy our minds in dealing -with a question. Party politics, religious considerations, humanitarian -ideals--all such and all other preoccupations must absolutely give way -to this. - -Before the War the purpose to which German foreign policy should have -been devoted was to assure the supply of material necessities for the -maintenance of our people and their children. And the way should have -been prepared which would lead to this goal. Alliances should have been -established which would have proved beneficial to us from this point of -view and would have brought us the necessary auxiliary support. The task -to be accomplished is the same to-day, but with this difference: In -pre-War times it was a question of caring for the maintenance of the -German people, backed up by the power which a strong and independent -State then possessed, but our task to-day is to make our nation powerful -once again by re-establishing a strong and independent State. The -re-establishment of such a State is the prerequisite and necessary -condition which must be fulfilled in order that we may be able -subsequently to put into practice a foreign policy which will serve to -guarantee the existence of our people in the future, fulfilling their -needs and furnishing them with those necessities of life which they -lack. In other words, the aim which Germany ought to pursue to-day in -her foreign policy is to prepare the way for the recovery of her liberty -to-morrow. In this connection there is a fundamental principle which we -must keep steadily before our minds. It is this: The possibility of -winning back the independence of a nation is not absolutely bound up -with the question of territorial reintegration but it will suffice if a -small remnant, no matter how small, of this nation and State will exist, -provided it possesses the necessary independence to become not only the -vehicle of' the common spirit of the whole people but also to prepare -the way for the military fight to reconquer the nation's liberty. - -When a people who amount to a hundred million souls tolerate the yoke of -common slavery in order to prevent the territory belonging to their -State from being broken up and divided, that is worse than if such a -State and such a people were dismembered while one fragment still -retained its complete independence. Of course, the natural proviso here -is that this fragment must be inspired with a consciousness of the -solemn duty that devolves upon it, not only to proclaim persistently the -inviolable unity of its spiritual and cultural life with that of its -detached members but also to prepare the means that are necessary for -the military conflict which will finally liberate and re-unite the -fragments that are suffering under oppression. - -One must also bear in mind the fact that the restoration of lost -districts which were formerly parts of the State, both ethnically and -politically, must in the first instance be a question of winning back -political power and independence for the motherland itself, and that in -such cases the special interests of the lost districts must be -uncompromisingly regarded as a matter of secondary importance in the -face of the one main task, which is to win back the freedom of the -central territory. For the detached and oppressed fragments of a nation -or an imperial province cannot achieve their liberation through the -expression of yearnings and protests on the part of the oppressed and -abandoned, but only when the portion which has more or less retained its -sovereign independence can resort to the use of force for the purpose of -reconquering those territories that once belonged to the common -fatherland. - -Therefore, in order to reconquer lost territories the first condition to -be fulfilled is to work energetically for the increased welfare and -reinforcement of the strength of that portion of the State which has -remained over after the partition. Thus the unquenchable yearning which -slumbers in the hearts of the people must be awakened and restrengthened -by bringing new forces to its aid, so that when the hour comes all will -be devoted to the one purpose of liberating and uniting the whole -people. Therefore, the interests of the separated territories must be -subordinated to the one purpose. That one purpose must aim at obtaining -for the central remaining portion such a measure of power and might that -will enable it to enforce its will on the hostile will of the victor and -thus redress the wrong. For flaming protests will not restore the -oppressed territories to the bosom of a common REICH. That can be done -only through the might of the sword. - -The forging of this sword is a work that has to be done through the -domestic policy which must be adopted by a national government. To see -that the work of forging these arms is assured, and to recruit the men -who will bear them, that is the task of the foreign policy. - -In the first volume of this book I discussed the inadequacy of our -policy of alliances before the War. There were four possible ways to -secure the necessary foodstuffs for the maintenance of our people. Of -these ways the fourth, which was the most unfavourable, was chosen. -Instead of a sound policy of territorial expansion in Europe, our rulers -embarked on a policy of colonial and trade expansion. That policy was -all the more mistaken inasmuch as they presumed that in this way the -danger of an armed conflict would be averted. The result of the attempt -to sit on many stools at the same time might have been foreseen. It let -us fall to the ground in the midst of them all. And the World War was -only the last reckoning presented to the REICH to pay for the failure of -its foreign policy. - -The right way that should have been taken in those days was the third -way I indicated: namely, to increase the strength of the REICH as a -Continental Power by the acquisition of new territory in Europe. And at -the same time a further expansion, through the subsequent acquisition of -colonial territory, might thus be brought within the range of practical -politics. Of course, this policy could not have been carried through -except in alliance with England, or by devoting such abnormal efforts to -the increase of military force and armament that, for forty or fifty -years, all cultural undertakings would have to be completely relegated -to the background. This responsibility might very well have been -undertaken. The cultural importance of a nation is almost always -dependent on its political freedom and independence. Political freedom -is a prerequisite condition for the existence, or rather the creation, -of great cultural undertakings. Accordingly no sacrifice can be too -great when there is question of securing the political freedom of a -nation. What might have to be deducted from the budget expenses for -cultural purposes, in order to meet abnormal demands for increasing the -military power of the State, can be generously paid back later on. -Indeed, it may be said that after a State has concentrated all its -resources in one effort for the purpose of securing its political -independence a certain period of ease and renewed equilibrium sets in. -And it often happens that the cultural spirit of the nation, which had -been heretofore cramped and confined, now suddenly blooms forth. Thus -Greece experienced the great Periclean era after the miseries it had -suffered during the Persian Wars. And the Roman Republic turned its -energies to the cultivation of a higher civilization when it was freed -from the stress and worry of the Punic Wars. - -Of course, it could not be expected that a parliamentary majority of -feckless and stupid people would be capable of deciding on such a -resolute policy for the absolute subordination of all other national -interests to the one sole task of preparing for a future conflict of -arms which would result in establishing the security of the State. The -father of Frederick the Great sacrificed everything in order to be ready -for that conflict; but the fathers of our absurd parliamentarian -democracy, with the Jewish hall-mark, could not do it. - -That is why, in pre-War times, the military preparation necessary to -enable us to conquer new territory in Europe was only very mediocre, so -that it was difficult to obtain the support of really helpful allies. - -Those who directed our foreign affairs would not entertain even the idea -of systematically preparing for war. They rejected every plan for the -acquisition of territory in Europe. And by preferring a policy of -colonial and trade expansion, they sacrificed the alliance with England, -which was then possible. At the same time they neglected to seek the -support of Russia, which would have been a logical proceeding. Finally -they stumbled into the World War, abandoned by all except the -ill-starred Habsburgs. - -The characteristic of our present foreign policy is that it follows no -discernible or even intelligible lines of action. Whereas before the War -a mistake was made in taking the fourth way that I have mentioned, and -this was pursued only in a halfhearted manner, since the Revolution not -even the sharpest eye can detect any way that is being followed. Even -more than before the War, there is absolutely no such thing as a -systematic plan, except the systematic attempts that are made to destroy -the last possibility of a national revival. - -If we make an impartial examination of the situation existing in Europe -to-day as far as concerns the relation of the various Powers to one -another, we shall arrive at the following results: - -For the past three hundred years the history of our Continent has been -definitely determined by England's efforts to keep the European States -opposed to one another in an equilibrium of forces, thus assuring the -necessary protection of her own rear while she pursued the great aims of -British world-policy. - -The traditional tendency of British diplomacy ever since the reign of -Queen Elizabeth has been to employ systematically every possible means -to prevent any one Power from attaining a preponderant position over the -other European Powers and, if necessary, to break that preponderance by -means of armed intervention. The only parallel to this has been the -tradition of the Prussian Army. England has made use of various forces -to carry out its purpose, choosing them according to the actual -situation or the task to be faced; but the will and determination to use -them has always been the same. The more difficult England's position -became in the course of history the more the British Imperial Government -considered it necessary to maintain a condition of political paralysis -among the various European States, as a result of their mutual -rivalries. When the North American colonies obtained their political -independence it became still more necessary for England to use every -effort to establish and maintain the defence of her flank in Europe. In -accordance with this policy she reduced Spain and the Netherlands to the -position of inferior naval Powers. Having accomplished this, England -concentrated all her forces against the increasing strength of France, -until she brought about the downfall of Napoleon Bonaparte and therewith -destroyed the military hegemony of France, which was the most dangerous -rival that England had to fear. - -The change of attitude in British statesmanship towards Germany took -place only very slowly, not only because the German nation did not -represent an obvious danger for England as long as it lacked national -unification, but also because public opinion in England, which had been -directed to other quarters by a system of propaganda that had been -carried out for a long time, could be turned to a new direction only by -slow degrees. In order to reach the proposed ends the calmly reflecting -statesman had to bow to popular sentiment, which is the most powerful -motive-force and is at the same time the most lasting in its energy. -When the statesman has attained one of his ends, he must immediately -turn his thoughts to others; but only by degrees and the slow work of -propaganda can the sentiment of the masses be shaped into an instrument -for the attainment of the new aims which their leaders have decided on. - -As early as 1870-71 England had decided on the new stand it would take. -On certain occasions minor oscillations in that policy were caused by -the growing influence of America in the commercial markets of the world -and also by the increasing political power of Russia; but, -unfortunately, Germany did not take advantage of these and, therefore, -the original tendency of British diplomacy was only reinforced. - -England looked upon Germany as a Power which was of world importance -commercially and politically and which, partly because of its enormous -industrial development, assumed such threatening proportions that the -two countries already contended against one another in the same sphere -and with equal energy. The so-called peaceful conquest of the world by -commercial enterprise, which, in the eyes of those who governed our -public affairs at that time, represented the highest peak of human -wisdom, was just the thing that led English statesmen to adopt a policy -of resistance. That this resistance assumed the form of an organized -aggression on a vast scale was in full conformity with a type of -statesmanship which did not aim at the maintenance of a dubious world -peace but aimed at the consolidation of British world-hegemony. In -carrying out this policy, England allied herself with those countries -which had a definite military importance. And that was in keeping with -her traditional caution in estimating the power of her adversary and -also in recognizing her own temporary weakness. That line of conduct -cannot be called unscrupulous; because such a comprehensive organization -for war purposes must not be judged from the heroic point of view but -from that of expediency. The object of a diplomatic policy must not be -to see that a nation goes down heroically but rather that it survives in -a practical way. Hence every road that leads to this goal is opportune -and the failure to take it must be looked upon as a criminal neglect of -duty. - -When the German Revolution took place England's fears of a German world -hegemony came to a satisfactory end. - -From that time it was not an English interest to see Germany totally -cancelled from the geographic map of Europe. On the contrary, the -astounding collapse which took place in November 1918 found British -diplomacy confronted with a situation which at first appeared untenable. - -For four-and-a-half years the British Empire had fought to break the -presumed preponderance of a Continental Power. A sudden collapse now -happened which removed this Power from the foreground of European -affairs. That collapse disclosed itself finally in the lack of even the -primordial instinct of self-preservation, so that European equilibrium -was destroyed within forty-eight hours. Germany was annihilated and -France became the first political Power on the Continent of Europe. - -The tremendous propaganda which was carried on during this war for the -purpose of encouraging the British public to stick it out to the end -aroused all the primitive instincts and passions of the populace and was -bound eventually to hang as a leaden weight on the decisions of British -statesmen. With the colonial, economical and commercial destruction of -Germany, England's war aims were attained. Whatever went beyond those -aims was an obstacle to the furtherance of British interests. Only the -enemies of England could profit by the disappearance of Germany as a -Great Continental Power in Europe. In November 1918, however, and up to -the summer of 1919, it was not possible for England to change its -diplomatic attitude; because during the long war it had appealed, more -than it had ever done before, to the feelings of the populace. In view -of the feeling prevalent among its own people, England could not change -its foreign policy; and another reason which made that impossible was -the military strength to which other European Powers had now attained. -France had taken the direction of peace negotiations into her own hands -and could impose her law upon the others. During those months of -negotiations and bargaining the only Power that could have altered the -course which things were taking was Germany herself; but Germany was -torn asunder by a civil war, and her so-called statesmen had declared -themselves ready to accept any and every dictate imposed on them. - -Now, in the comity of nations, when one nation loses its instinct for -self-preservation and ceases to be an active member it sinks to the -level of an enslaved nation and its territory will have to suffer the -fate of a colony. - -To prevent the power of France from becoming too great, the only form -which English negotiations could take was that of participating in -France's lust for aggrandizement. - -As a matter of fact, England did not attain the ends for which she went -to war. Not only did it turn out impossible to prevent a Continental -Power from obtaining a preponderance over the ratio of strength in the -Continental State system of Europe, but a large measure of preponderance -had been obtained and firmly established. - -In 1914 Germany, considered as a military State, was wedged in between -two countries, one of which had equal military forces at its disposal -and the other had greater military resources. Then there was England's -overwhelming supremacy at sea. France and Russia alone hindered and -opposed the excessive aggrandizement of Germany. The unfavourable -geographical situation of the REICH, from the military point of view, -might be looked upon as another coefficient of security against an -exaggerated increase of German power. From the naval point of view, the -configuration of the coast-line was unfavourable in case of a conflict -with England. And though the maritime frontier was short and cramped, -the land frontier was widely extended and open. - -France's position is different to-day. It is the first military Power -without a serious rival on the Continent. It is almost entirely -protected by its southern frontier against Spain and Italy. Against -Germany it is safeguarded by the prostrate condition of our country. A -long stretch of its coast-line faces the vital nervous system of the -British Empire. Not only could French aeroplanes and long-range -batteries attack the vital centres of the British system, but submarines -can threaten the great British commercial routes. A submarine campaign -based on France's long Atlantic coast and on the European and North -African coasts of the Mediterranean would have disastrous consequences -for England. - -Thus the political results of the war to prevent the development of -German power was the creation of a French hegemony on the Continent. The -military result was the consolidation of France as the first Continental -Power and the recognition of American equality on the sea. The economic -result was the cession of great spheres of British interests to her -former allies and associates. - -The Balkanization of Europe, up to a certain degree, was desirable and -indeed necessary in the light of the traditional policy of Great -Britain, just as France desired the Balkanization of Germany. - -What England has always desired, and will continue to desire, is to -prevent any one Continental Power in Europe from attaining a position of -world importance. Therefore England wishes to maintain a definite -equilibrium of forces among the European States--for this equilibrium -seems a necessary condition of England's world-hegemony. - -What France has always desired, and will continue to desire, is to -prevent Germany from becoming a homogeneous Power. Therefore France -wants to maintain a system of small German States whose forces would -balance one another and over which there should be no central -government. Then, by acquiring possession of the left bank of the Rhine, -she would have fulfilled the pre-requisite conditions for the -establishment and security of her hegemony in Europe. - -The final aims of French diplomacy must be in perpetual opposition to -the final tendencies of British statesmanship. - -Taking these considerations as a starting-point, anyone who investigates -the possibilities that exist for Germany to find allies must come to the -conclusion that there remains no other way of forming an alliance except -to approach England. The consequences of England's war policy were and -are disastrous for Germany. However, we cannot close our eyes to the -fact that, as things stand to-day, the necessary interests of England no -longer demand the destruction of Germany. On the contrary, British -diplomacy must tend more and more, from year to year, towards curbing -France's unbridled lust after hegemony. Now, a policy of alliances -cannot be pursued by bearing past grievances in mind, but it can be -rendered fruitful by taking account of past experiences. Experience -should have taught us that alliances formed for negative purposes suffer -from intrinsic weakness. The destinies of nations can be welded together -only under the prospect of a common success, of common gain and -conquest, in short, a common extension of power for both contracting -parties. - -The ignorance of our people on questions of foreign politics is clearly -demonstrated by the reports in the daily Press which talk about -"friendship towards Germany" on the part of one or the other foreign -statesman, whereby this professed friendship is taken as a special -guarantee that such persons will champion a policy that will be -advantageous to our people. That kind of talk is absurd to an incredible -degree. It means speculating on the unparalleled simplicity of the -average German philistine when he comes to talking politics. There is -not any British, American, or Italian statesman who could ever be -described as 'pro-German'. Every Englishman must naturally be British -first of all. The same is true of every American. And no Italian -statesman would be prepared to adopt a policy that was not pro-Italian. -Therefore, anyone who expects to form alliances with foreign nations on -the basis of a pro-German feeling among the statesmen of other countries -is either an ass or a deceiver. The necessary condition for linking -together the destinies of nations is never mutual esteem or mutual -sympathy, but rather the prospect of advantages accruing to the -contracting parties. It is true that a British statesman will always -follow a pro-British and not a pro-German policy; but it is also true -that certain definite interests involved in this pro-British policy may -coincide on various grounds with German interests. Naturally that can be -so only to a certain degree and the situation may one day be completely -reversed. But the art of statesmanship is shown when at certain periods -there is question of reaching a certain end and when allies are found -who must take the same road in order to defend their own interests. - -The practical application of these principles at the present time must -depend on the answer given to the following questions: What States are -not vitally interested in the fact that, by the complete abolition of a -German Central Europe, the economic and military power of France has -reached a position of absolute hegemony? Which are the States that, in -consideration of the conditions which are essential to their own -existence and in view of the tradition that has hitherto been followed -in conducting their foreign policy, envisage such a development as a -menace to their own future? - -Finally, we must be quite clear on the following point: France is and -will remain the implacable enemy of Germany. It does not matter what -Governments have ruled or will rule in France, whether Bourbon or -Jacobin, Napoleonic or Bourgeois-Democratic, Clerical Republican or Red -Bolshevik, their foreign policy will always be directed towards -acquiring possession of the Rhine frontier and consolidating France's -position on this river by disuniting and dismembering Germany. - -England did not want Germany to be a world Power. France desired that -there should be no Power called Germany. Therefore there was a very -essential difference. To-day we are not fighting for our position as a -World-Power but only for the existence of our country, for national -unity and the daily bread of our children. Taking this point of view -into consideration, only two States remain to us as possible allies in -Europe--England and Italy. - -England is not pleased to see a France on whose military power there is -no check in Europe, so that one day she might undertake the support of a -policy which in some way or other might come into conflict with British -interests. Nor can England be pleased to see France in possession of -such enormous coal and iron mines in Western Europe as would make it -possible for her one day to play a role in world-commerce which might -threaten danger to British interests. Moreover, England can never be -pleased to see a France whose political position on the Continent, owing -to the dismemberment of the rest of Europe, seems so absolutely assured -that she is not only able to resume a French world-policy on great lines -but would even find herself compelled to do so. The bombs which were -once dropped by the Zeppelins might be multiplied by the thousand every -night. The military predominance of France is a weight that presses -heavily on the hearts of the World Empire over which Great Britain -rules. - -Nor can Italy desire, nor will she desire, any further strengthening of -France's power in Europe. The future of Italy will be conditioned by the -development of events in the Mediterranean and by the political -situation in the area surrounding that sea. The reason that led Italy -into the War was not a desire to contribute towards the aggrandizement -of France but rather to deal her hated Adriatic rival a mortal blow. Any -further increase of France's power on the Continent would hamper the -development of Italy's future, and Italy does not deceive herself by -thinking that racial kindred between the nations will in any way -eliminate rivalries. - -Serious and impartial consideration proves that it is these two States, -Great Britain and Italy, whose natural interests not only do not -contrast with the conditions essential to the existence of the German -nation but are identical with them, to a certain extent. - -But when we consider the possibilities of alliances we must be careful -not to lose sight of three factors. The first factor concerns ourselves; -the other two concern the two States I have mentioned. - -Is it at all possible to conclude an alliance with Germany as it is -to-day? Can a Power which would enter into an alliance for the purpose -of securing assistance in an effort to carry out its own OFFENSIVE -aims--can such a Power form an alliance with a State whose rulers have -for years long presented a spectacle of deplorable incompetence and -pacifist cowardice and where the majority of the people, blinded by -democratic and Marxist teachings, betray the interests of their own -people and country in a manner that cries to Heaven for vengeance? As -things stand to-day, can any Power hope to establish useful relations -and hope to fight together for the furtherance of their common interests -with this State which manifestly has neither the will nor the courage to -move a finger even in the defence of its bare existence? Take the case -of a Power for which an alliance must be much more than a pact to -guarantee a state of slow decomposition, such as happened with the old -and disastrous Triple Alliance. Can such a Power associate itself for -life or death with a State whose most characteristic signs of activity -consist of a rampant servility in external relations and a scandalous -repression of the national spirit at home? Can such a Power be -associated with a State in which there is nothing of greatness, because -its whole policy does not deserve it? Or can alliances be made with -Governments which are in the hands of men who are despised by their own -fellow-citizens and consequently are not respected abroad? - -No. A self-respecting Power which expects something more from alliances -than commissions for greedy Parliamentarians will not and cannot enter -into an alliance with our present-day Germany. Our present inability to -form alliances furnishes the principle and most solid basis for the -combined action of the enemies who are robbing us. Because Germany does -not defend itself in any other way except by the flamboyant protests of -our parliamentarian elect, there is no reason why the rest of the world -should take up the fight in our defence. And God does not follow the -principle of granting freedom to a nation of cowards, despite all the -implications of our 'patriotic' associations. Therefore, for those -States which have not a direct interest in our annihilation no other -course remains open except to participate in France's campaign of -plunder, at least to make it impossible for the strength of France to be -exclusively aggrandized thereby. - -In the second place, we must not forget that among the nations which -were formerly our enemies mass-propaganda has turned the opinions and -feelings of large sections of the population in a fixed direction. When -for years long a foreign nation has been presented to the public as a -horde of 'Huns', 'Robbers', 'Vandals', etc., they cannot suddenly be -presented as something different, and the enemy of yesterday cannot be -recommended as the ally of tomorrow. - -But the third factor deserves greater attention, since it is of -essential importance for establishing future alliances in Europe. - -From the political point of view it is not in the interests of Great -Britain that Germany should be ruined even still more, but such a -proceeding would be very much in the interests of the international -money-markets manipulated by the Jew. The cleavage between the official, -or rather traditional, British statesmanship and the controlling -influence of the Jew on the money-markets is nowhere so clearly -manifested as in the various attitudes taken towards problems of British -foreign policy. Contrary to the interests and welfare of the British -State, Jewish finance demands not only the absolute economic destruction -of Germany but its complete political enslavement. The -internationalization of our German economic system, that is to say, the -transference of our productive forces to the control of Jewish -international finance, can be completely carried out only in a State -that has been politically Bolshevized. But the Marxist fighting forces, -commanded by international and Jewish stock-exchange capital, cannot -finally smash the national resistance in Germany without friendly help -from outside. For this purpose French armies would first have to invade -and overcome the territory of the German REICH until a state of -international chaos would set in, and then the country would have to -succumb to Bolshevik storm troops in the service of Jewish international -finance. - -Hence it is that at the present time the Jew is the great agitator for -the complete destruction of Germany. Whenever we read of attacks against -Germany taking place in any part of the world the Jew is always the -instigator. In peace-time, as well as during the War, the Jewish-Marxist -stock-exchange Press systematically stirred up hatred against Germany, -until one State after another abandoned its neutrality and placed itself -at the service of the world coalition, even against the real interests -of its own people. - -The Jewish way of reasoning thus becomes quite clear. The Bolshevization -of Germany, that is to say, the extermination of the patriotic and -national German intellectuals, thus making it possible to force German -Labour to bear the yoke of international Jewish finance--that is only -the overture to the movement for expanding Jewish power on a wider scale -and finally subjugating the world to its rule. As has so often happened -in history, Germany is the chief pivot of this formidable struggle. If -our people and our State should fall victims to these oppressors of the -nations, lusting after blood and money, the whole earth would become the -prey of that hydra. Should Germany be freed from its grip, a great -menace for the nations of the world would thereby be eliminated. - -It is certain that Jewry uses all its subterranean activities not only -for the purpose of keeping alive old national enmities against Germany -but even to spread them farther and render them more acute wherever -possible. It is no less certain that these activities are only very -partially in keeping with the true interests of the nations among whose -people the poison is spread. As a general principle, Jewry carries on -its campaign in the various countries by the use of arguments that are -best calculated to appeal to the mentality of the respective nations and -are most likely to produce the desired results; for Jewry knows what the -public feeling is in each country. Our national stock has been so much -adulterated by the mixture of alien elements that, in its fight for -power, Jewry can make use of the more or less 'cosmopolitan' circles -which exist among us, inspired by the pacifist and international -ideologies. In France they exploit the well-known and accurately -estimated chauvinistic spirit. In England they exploit the commercial -and world-political outlook. In short, they always work upon the -essential characteristics that belong to the mentality of each nation. -When they have in this way achieved a decisive influence in the -political and economic spheres they can drop the limitations which their -former tactics necessitated, now disclosing their real intentions and -the ends for which they are fighting. Their work of destruction now goes -ahead more quickly, reducing one State after another to a mass of ruins -on which they will erect the everlasting and sovereign Jewish Empire. - -In England, and in Italy, the contrast between the better kind of solid -statesmanship and the policy of the Jewish stock-exchange often becomes -strikingly evident. - -Only in France there exists to-day more than ever before a profound -accord between the views of the stock-exchange, controlled by the Jews, -and the chauvinistic policy pursued by French statesmen. This identity -of views constitutes an immense, danger for Germany. And it is just for -this reason that France is and will remain by far the most dangerous -enemy. The French people, who are becoming more and more obsessed by -negroid ideas, represent a threatening menace to the existence of the -white race in Europe, because they are bound up with the Jewish campaign -for world-domination. For the contamination caused by the influx of -negroid blood on the Rhine, in the very heart of Europe, is in accord -with the sadist and perverse lust for vengeance on the part of the -hereditary enemy of our people, just as it suits the purpose of the cool -calculating Jew who would use this means of introducing a process of -bastardization in the very centre of the European Continent and, by -infecting the white race with the blood of an inferior stock, would -destroy the foundations of its independent existence. - -France's activities in Europe to-day, spurred on by the French lust for -vengeance and systematically directed by the Jew, are a criminal attack -against the life of the white race and will one day arouse against the -French people a spirit of vengeance among a generation which will have -recognized the original sin of mankind in this racial pollution. - -As far as concerns Germany, the danger which France represents involves -the duty of relegating all sentiment to a subordinate place and -extending the hand to those who are threatened with the same menace and -who are not willing to suffer or tolerate France's lust for hegemony. - -For a long time yet to come there will be only two Powers in Europe with -which it may be possible for Germany to conclude an alliance. These -Powers are Great Britain and Italy. - -If we take the trouble to cast a glance backwards on the way in which -German foreign policy has been conducted since the Revolution we must, -in view of the constant and incomprehensible acts of submission on the -part. of our governments, either lose heart or become fired with rage -and take up the cudgels against such a regime. Their way of acting -cannot be attributed to a want of understanding, because what seemed to -every thinking man to be inconceivable was accomplished by the leaders -of the November parties with their Cyclopean intellects. They bowed to -France and begged her favour. Yes, during all these recent years, with -the touching simplicity of incorrigible visionaries, they went on their -knees to France again and again. They perpetuaily wagged their tails -before the GRANDE NATION. And in each trick-o'-the-loop which the French -hangmen performed with his rope they recognized a visible change of -feeling. Our real political wire-pullers never shared in this absurd -credulity. The idea of establishing a friendship with France was for -them only a means of thwarting every attempt on Germany's part to adopt -a practical policy of alliances. They had no illusions about French aims -or those of the men behind the scenes in France. What induced them to -take up such an attitude and to act as if they honestly believed that -the fate of Germany could possibly be changed in this way was the cool -calculation that if this did not happen our people might take the reins -into their own hands and choose another road. - -Of course it is difficult for us to propose England as our possible ally -in the future. Our Jewish Press has always been adept in concentrating -hatred against England particularly. And many of our good German -simpletons perch on these branches which the Jews have limed to capture -them. They babble about a restoration of German sea power and protest -against the robbery of our colonies. Thus they furnish material which -the contriving Jew transmits to his clansmen in England, so that it can -be used there for purposes of practical propaganda. For our -simple-minded bourgeoisie who indulge in politics can take in only -little by little the idea that to-day we have not to fight for -'sea-power' and such things. Even before the War it was absurd to direct -the national energies of Germany towards this end without first having -secured our position in Europe. Such a hope to-day reaches that peak of -absurdity which may be called criminal in the domain of politics. - -Often one becomes really desperate on seeing how the Jewish wire-pullers -succeeded in concentrating the attention of the people on things which -are only of secondary importance to-day, They incited the people to -demonstrations and protests while at the same time France was tearing -our nation asunder bit by bit and systematically removing the very -foundations of our national independence. - -In this connection I have to think of the Wooden Horse in the riding of -which the Jew showed extraordinary skill during these years. I mean -South Tyrol. - -Yes, South Tyrol. The reason why I take up this question here is just -because I want to call to account that shameful CANAILLE who relied on -the ignorance and short memories of large sections of our people and -stimulated a national indignation which is as foreign to the real -character of our parliamentary impostors as the idea of respect for -private property is to a magpie. - -I should like to state here that I was one of those who, at the time -when the fate of South Tyrol was being decided--that is to say, from -August 1914 to November 1918--took my place where that country also -could have been effectively defended, namely, in the Army. I did my -share in the fighting during those years, not merely to save South Tyrol -from being lost but also to save every other German province for the -Fatherland. - -The parliamentary sharpers did not take part in that combat. The whole -CANAILLE played party politics. On the other hand, we carried on the -fight in the belief that a victorious issue of the War would enable the -German nation to keep South Tyrol also; but the loud-mouthed traitor -carried on a seditious agitation against such a victorious issue, until -the fighting Siegfried succumbed to the dagger plunged in his back. It -was only natural that the inflammatory and hypocritical speeches of the -elegantly dressed parliamentarians on the Vienna RATHAUS PLATZ or in -front of the FELDHERRNHALLE in Munich could not save South Tyrol for -Germany. That could be done only by the fighting battalions at the -Front. Those who broke up that fighting front betrayed South Tyrol, as -well as the other districts of Germany. - -Anyone who thinks that the South Tyrol question can be solved to-day by -protests and manifestations and processions organized by various -associations is either a humbug or merely a German philistine. - -In this regard it must be quite clearly understood that we cannot get -back the territories we have lost if we depend on solemn imprecations -before the throne of the Almighty God or on pious hopes in a League of -Nations, but only by the force of arms. - -Therefore the only remaining question is: Who is ready to take up arms -for the restoration of the lost territories? - -As far as concerns myself personally, I can state with a good conscience -that I would have courage enough to take part in a campaign for the -reconquest of South Tyrol, at the head of parliamentarian storm -battalions consisting of parliamentarian gasconaders and all the party -leaders, also the various Councillors of State. Only the Devil knows -whether I might have the luck of seeing a few shells suddenly burst over -this 'burning' demonstration of protest. I think that if a fox were to -break into a poultry yard his presence would not provoke such a -helter-skelter and rush to cover as we should witness in the band of -'protesters'. - -The vilest part of it all is that these talkers themselves do not -believe that anything can be achieved in this way. Each one of them -knows very well how harmless and ineffective their whole pretence is. -They do it only because it is easier now to babble about the restoration -of South Tyrol than to fight for its preservation in days gone by. - -Each one plays the part that he is best capable of playing in life. In -those days we offered our blood. To-day these people are engaged in -whetting their tusks. - -It is particularly interesting to note to-day how legitimist circles in -Vienna preen themselves on their work for the restoration of South -Tyrol. Seven years ago their august and illustrious Dynasty helped, by -an act of perjury and treason, to make it possible for the victorious -world-coalition to take away South Tyrol. At that time these circles -supported the perfidious policy adopted by their Dynasty and did not -trouble themselves in the least about the fate of South Tyrol or any -other province. Naturally it is easier to-day to take up the fight for -this territory, since the present struggle is waged with 'the weapons of -the mind'. Anyhow, it is easier to join in a 'meeting of protestation' -and talk yourself hoarse in giving vent to the noble indignation that -fills your breast, or stain your finger with the writing of a newspaper -article, than to blow up a bridge, for instance, during the occupation -of the Ruhr. - -The reason why certain circles have made the question of South Tyrol the -pivot of German-Italian relations during the past few years is quite -evident. Jews and Habsburg legitimists are greatly interested in -preventing Germany from pursuing a policy of alliance which might lead -one day to the resurgence of a free German fatherland. It is not out of -love for South Tyrol that they play this role to-day--for their policy -would turn out detrimental rather than helpful to the interests of that -province--but through fear of an agreement being established between -Germany and Italy. - -A tendency towards lying and calumny lies in the nature of these people, -and that explains how they can calmly and brazenly attempt to twist -things in such a way as to make it appear that we have 'betrayed' South -Tyrol. - -There is one clear answer that must be given to these gentlemen. It is -this: Tyrol has been betrayed, in the first place, by every German who -was sound in limb and body and did not offer himself for service at the -Front during 1914-1918 to do his duty towards his country. - -In the second place, Tyrol was betrayed by every man who, during those -years did not help to reinforce the national spirit and the national -powers of resistance, so as to enable the country to carry through the -War and keep up the fight to the very end. - -In the third place, South Tyrol was betrayed by everyone who took part -in the November Revolution, either directly by his act or indirectly by -a cowardly toleration of it, and thus broke the sole weapon that could -have saved South Tyrol. - -In the fourth place, South Tyrol was betrayed by those parties and their -adherents who put their signatures to the disgraceful treaties of -Versailles and St. Germain. - -And so the matter stands, my brave gentlemen, who make your protests -only with words. - -To-day I am guided by a calm and cool recognition of the fact that the -lost territories cannot be won back by the whetted tongues of -parliamentary spouters but only by the whetted sword; in other words, -through a fight where blood will have to be shed. - -Now, I have no hesitations in saying that to-day, once the die has been -cast, it is not only impossible to win back South Tyrol through a war -but I should definitely take my stand against such a movement, because I -am convinced that it would not be possible to arouse the national -enthusiasm of the German people and maintain it in such a way as would -be necessary in order to carry through such a war to a successful issue. -On the contrary, I believe that if we have to shed German blood once -again it would be criminal to do so for the sake of liberating 200,000 -Germans, when more than seven million neighbouring Germans are suffering -under foreign domination and a vital artery of the German nation has -become a playground for hordes of African niggers. - -If the German nation is to put an end to a state of things which -threatens to wipe it off the map of Europe it must not fall into the -errors of the pre-War period and make the whole world its enemy. But it -must ascertain who is its most dangerous enemy so that it can -concentrate all its forces in a struggle to beat him. And if, in order -to carry through this struggle to victory, sacrifices should be made in -other quarters, future generations will not condemn us for that. They -will take account of the miseries and anxieties which led us to make -such a bitter decision, and in the light of that consideration they will -more clearly recognize the brilliancy of our success. - -Again I must say here that we must always be guided by the fundamental -principle that, as a preliminary to winning back lost provinces, the -political independence and strength of the motherland must first be -restored. - -The first task which has to be accomplished is to make that independence -possible and to secure it by a wise policy of alliances, which -presupposes an energetic management of our public affairs. - -But it is just on this point that we, National Socialists, have to guard -against being dragged into the tow of our ranting bourgeois patriots who -take their cue from the Jew. It would be a disaster if, instead of -preparing for the coming struggle, our Movement also were to busy itself -with mere protests by word of mouth. - -It was the fantastic idea of a Nibelungen alliance with the decomposed -body of the Habsburg State that brought about Germany's ruin. Fantastic -sentimentality in dealing with the possibilities of foreign policy -to-day would be the best means of preventing our revival for innumerable -years to come. - -Here I must briefly answer the objections which may be raised in regard -to the three questions I have put. - -1. Is it possible at all to form an alliance with the present Germany, -whose weakness is so visible to all eyes? - -2. Can the ex-enemy nations change their attitude towards Germany? - -3. In other nations is not the influence of Jewry stronger than the -recognition of their own interests, and does not this influence thwart -all their good intentions and render all their plans futile? - -I think that I have already dealt adequately with one of the two aspects -of the first point. Of course nobody will enter into an alliance with -the present Germany. No Power in the world would link its fortunes with -a State whose government does not afford grounds for the slightest -confidence. As regards the attempt which has been made by many of our -compatriots to explain the conduct of the Government by referring to the -woeful state of public feeling and thus excuse such conduct, I must -strongly object to that way of looking at things. - -The lack of character which our people have shown during the last six -years is deeply distressing. The indifference with which they have -treated the most urgent necessities of our nation might veritably lead -one to despair. Their cowardice is such that it often cries to heaven -for vengeance. But one must never forget that we are dealing with a -people who gave to the world, a few years previously, an admirable -example of the highest human qualities. From the first days of August -1914 to the end of the tremendous struggle between the nations, no -people in the world gave a better proof of manly courage, tenacity and -patient endurance, than this people gave who are so cast down and -dispirited to-day. Nobody will dare to assert that the lack of character -among our people to-day is typical of them. What we have to endure -to-day, among us and around us, is due only to the influence of the sad -and distressing effects that followed the high treason committed on -November 9th, 1918. More than ever before the word of the poet is true: -that evil can only give rise to evil. But even in this epoch those -qualities among our people which are fundamentally sound are not -entirely lost. They slumber in the depths of the national conscience, -and sometimes in the clouded firmament we see certain qualities like -shining lights which Germany will one day remember as the first symptoms -of a revival. We often see young Germans assembling and forming -determined resolutions, as they did in 1914, freely and willingly to -offer themselves as a sacrifice on the altar of their beloved -Fatherland. Millions of men have resumed work, whole-heartedly and -zealously, as if no revolution had ever affected them. The smith is at -his anvil once again. And the farmer drives his plough. The scientist is -in his laboratory. And everybody is once again attending to his duty -with the same zeal and devotion as formerly. - -The oppression which we suffer from at the hands of our enemies is no -longer taken, as it formerly was, as a matter for laughter; but it is -resented with bitterness and anger. There can be no doubt that a great -change of attitude has taken place. - -This evolution has not yet taken the shape of a conscious intention and -movement to restore the political power and independence of our nation; -but the blame for this must be attributed to those utterly incompetent -people who have no natural endowments to qualify them for statesmanship -and yet have been governing our nation since 1918 and leading it to -ruin. - -Yes. If anybody accuses our people to-day he ought to be asked: What is -being done to help them? What are we to say of the poor support which -the people give to any measures introduced by the Government? Is it not -true that such a thing as a Government hardly exists at all? And must we -consider the poor support which it receives as a sign of a lack of -vitality in the nation itself; or is it not rather a proof of the -complete failure of the methods employed in the management of this -valuable trust? What have our Governments done to re-awaken in the -nation a proud spirit of self-assertion, up-standing manliness, and a -spirit of righteous defiance towards its enemies? - -In 1919, when the Peace Treaty was imposed on the German nation, there -were grounds for hoping that this instrument of unrestricted oppression -would help to reinforce the outcry for the freedom of Germany. Peace -treaties which make demands that fall like a whip-lash on the people -turn out not infrequently to be the signal of a future revival. - -To what purpose could the Treaty of Versailles have been exploited? - -In the hands of a willing Government, how could this instrument of -unlimited blackmail and shameful humiliation have been applied for the -purpose of arousing national sentiment to its highest pitch? How could a -well-directed system of propaganda have utilized the sadist cruelty of -that treaty so as to change the indifference of the people to a feeling -of indignation and transform that indignation into a spirit of dauntless -resistance? - -Each point of that Treaty could have been engraved on the minds and -hearts of the German people and burned into them until sixty million men -and women would find their souls aflame with a feeling of rage and -shame; and a torrent of fire would burst forth as from a furnace, and -one common will would be forged from it, like a sword of steel. Then the -people would join in the common cry: "To arms again!" - -Yes. A treaty of that kind can be used for such a purpose. Its unbounded -oppression and its impudent demands were an excellent propaganda weapon -to arouse the sluggish spirit of the nation and restore its vitality. - -Then, from the child's story-book to the last newspaper in the country, -and every theatre and cinema, every pillar where placards are posted and -every free space on the hoardings should be utilized in the service of -this one great mission, until the faint-hearted cry, "Lord, deliver us," -which our patriotic associations send up to Heaven to-day would be -transformed into an ardent prayer: "Almighty God, bless our arms when -the hour comes. Be just, as Thou hast always been just. Judge now if we -deserve our freedom. Lord, bless our struggle." - -All opportunities were neglected and nothing was done. - -Who will be surprised now if our people are not such as they should be -or might be? The rest of the world looks upon us only as its valet, or -as a kindly dog that will lick its master's hand after he has been -whipped. - -Of course the possibilities of forming alliances with other nations are -hampered by the indifference of our own people, but much more by our -Governments. They have been and are so corrupt that now, after eight -years of indescribable oppression, there exists only a faint desire for -liberty. - -In order that our nation may undertake a policy of alliances, it must -restore its prestige among other nations, and it must have an -authoritative Government that is not a drudge in the service of foreign -States and the taskmaster of its own people, but rather the herald of -the national will. - -If our people had a government which would look upon this as its -mission, six years would not have passed before a courageous foreign -policy on the part of the REICH would find a corresponding support among -the people, whose desire for freedom would be encouraged and intensified -thereby. - -The third objection referred to the difficulty of changing the ex-enemy -nations into friendly allies. That objection may be answered as follows: - -The general anti-German psychosis which has developed in other countries -through the war propaganda must of necessity continue to exist as long -as there is not a renaissance of the national conscience among the -German people, so that the German REICH may once again become a State -which is able to play its part on the chess-board of European politics -and with whom the others feel that they can play. Only when the -Government and the people feel absolutely certain of being able to -undertake a policy of alliances can one Power or another, whose -interests coincide with ours, think of instituting a system of -propaganda for the purpose of changing public opinion among its own -people. Naturally it will take several years of persevering and ably -directed work to reach such a result. Just because a long period is -needed in order to change the public opinion of a country, it is -necessary to reflect calmly before such an enterprise be undertaken. -This means that one must not enter upon this kind of work unless one is -absolutely convinced that it is worth the trouble and that it will bring -results which will be valuable in the future. One must not try to change -the opinions and feelings of a people by basing one's actions on the -vain cajolery of a more or less brilliant Foreign Minister, but only if -there be a tangible guarantee that the new orientation will be really -useful. Otherwise public opinion in the country dealt with may be just -thrown into a state of complete confusion. The most reliable guarantee -that can be given for the possibility of subsequently entering into an -alliance with a certain State cannot be found in the loquacious suavity -of some individual member of the Government, but in the manifest -stability of a definite and practical policy on the part of the -Government as a whole, and in the support which is given to that policy -by the public opinion of the country. The faith of the public in this -policy will be strengthened all the more if the Government organize one -active propaganda to explain its efforts and secure public support for -them, and if public opinion favourably responds to the Government's -policy. - -Therefore a nation in such a position as ours will be looked upon as a -possible ally if public opinion supports the Government's policy and if -both are united in the same enthusiastic determination to carry through -the fight for national freedom. That condition of affairs must be firmly -established before any attempt can be made to change public opinion in -other countries which, for the sake of defending their most elementary -interests, are disposed to take the road shoulder-to-shoulder with a -companion who seems able to play his part in defending those interests. -In other words, this means that they will be ready to establish an -alliance. - -For this purpose, however, one thing is necessary. Seeing that the task -of bringing about a radical change in the public opinion of a country -calls for hard work, and many do not at first understand what it means, -it would be both foolish and criminal to commit mistakes which could be -used as weapons in the hands of those who are opposed to such a change. - -One must recognize the fact that it takes a long time for a people to -understand completely the inner purposes which a Government has in view, -because it is not possible to explain the ultimate aims of the -preparations that are being made to carry through a certain policy. In -such cases the Government has to count on the blind faith of the masses -or the intuitive instinct of the ruling caste that is more developed -intellectually. But since many people lack this insight, this political -acumen and faculty for seeing into the trend of affairs, and since -political considerations forbid a public explanation of why such and -such a course is being followed, a certain number of leaders in -intellectual circles will always oppose new tendencies which, because -they are not easily grasped, can be pointed to as mere experiments. And -that attitude arouses opposition among conservative circles regarding -the measures in question. - -For this reason a strict duty devolves upon everybody not to allow any -weapon to fall into the hands of those who would interfere with the work -of bringing about a mutual understanding with other nations. This is -specially so in our case, where we have to deal with the pretentions and -fantastic talk of our patriotic associations and our small bourgeoisie -who talk politics in the cafes. That the cry for a new war fleet, the -restoration of our colonies, etc., has no chance of ever being carried -out in practice will not be denied by anyone who thinks over the matter -calmly and seriously. These harmless and sometimes half-crazy spouters -in the war of protests are serving the interests of our mortal enemy, -while the manner in which their vapourings are exploited for political -purposes in England cannot be considered as advantageous to Germany. - -They squander their energies in futile demonstrations against the whole -world. These demonstrations are harmful to our interests and those who -indulge in them forget the fundamental principle which is a preliminary -condition of all success. What thou doest, do it thoroughly. Because we -keep on howling against five or ten States we fail to concentrate all -the forces of our national will and our physical strength for a blow at -the heart of our bitterest enemy. And in this way we sacrifice the -possibility of securing an alliance which would reinforce our strength -for that decisive conflict. - -Here, too, there is a mission for National Socialism to fulfil. It must -teach our people not to fix their attention on the little things but -rather on the great things, not to exhaust their energies on secondary -objects, and not to forget that the object we shall have to fight for -one day is the bare existence of our people and that the sole enemy we -shall have to strike at is that Power which is robbing us of this -existence. - -It may be that we shall have many a heavy burden to bear. But this is by -no means an excuse for refusing to listen to reason and raise -nonsensical outcries against the rest of the world, instead of -concentrating all our forces against the most deadly enemy. - -Moreover, the German people will have no moral right to complain of the -manner in which the rest of the world acts towards them, as long as they -themselves have not called to account those criminals who sold and -betrayed their own country. We cannot hope to be taken very seriously if -we indulge in long-range abuse and protests against England and Italy -and then allow those scoundrels to circulate undisturbed in our own -country who were in the pay of the enemy war propaganda, took the -weapons out of our hands, broke the backbone of our resistance and -bartered away the REICH for thirty pieces of silver. - -The enemy did only what was expected. And we ought to learn from the -stand he took and the way he acted. - -Anyone who cannot rise to the level of this outlook must reflect that -otherwise there would remain nothing else than to renounce the idea of -adopting any policy of alliances for the future. For if we cannot form -an alliance with England because she has robbed us of our colonies, or -with Italy because she has taken possession of South Tyrol, or with -Poland or Czechoslovakia, then there remains no other possibility of an -alliance in Europe except with France which, inter alia, has robbed us -of Alsace and Lorraine. - -There can scarcely be any doubt as to whether this last alternative -would be advantageous to the interests of the German people. But if it -be defended by somebody one is always doubtful whether that person be -merely a simpleton or an astute rogue. - -As far as concerns the leaders in these activities, I think the latter -hypothesis is true. - -A change in public feeling among those nations which have hitherto been -enemies and whose true interests will correspond in the future with ours -could be effected, as far as human calculation goes, if the internal -strength of our State and our manifest determination to secure our own -existence made it clear that we should be valuable allies. Moreover, it -is necessary that our incompetent way of doing things and our criminal -conduct in some matters should not furnish grounds which may be utilized -for purposes of propaganda by those who would oppose our projects of -establishing an alliance with one or other of our former enemies. - -The answer to the third question is still more difficult: Is it -conceivable that they who represent the true interests of those nations -which may possibly form an alliance with us could put their views into -practice against the will of the Jew, who is the mortal enemy of -national and independent popular States? - -For instance, could the motive-forces of Great Britain's traditional -statesmanship smash the disastrous influence of the Jew, or could they -not? - -This question, as I have already said, is very difficult to answer. The -answer depends on so many factors that it is impossible to form a -conclusive judgment. Anyhow, one thing is certain: The power of the -Government in a given State and at a definite period may be so firmly -established in the public estimation and so absolutely at the service of -the country's interests that the forces of international Jewry could not -possibly organize a real and effective obstruction against measures -considered to be politically necessary. - -The fight which Fascist Italy waged against Jewry's three principal -weapons, the profound reasons for which may not have been consciously -understood (though I do not believe this myself) furnishes the best -proof that the poison fangs of that Power which transcends all State -boundaries are being drawn, even though in an indirect way. The -prohibition of Freemasonry and secret societies, the suppression of the -supernational Press and the definite abolition of Marxism, together with -the steadily increasing consolidation of the Fascist concept of the -State--all this will enable the Italian Government, in the course of -some years, to advance more and more the interests of the Italian people -without paying any attention to the hissing of the Jewish world-hydra. - -The English situation is not so favourable. In that country which has -'the freest democracy' the Jew dictates his will, almost unrestrained -but indirectly, through his influence on public opinion. And yet there -is a perpetual struggle in England between those who are entrusted with -the defence of State interests and the protagonists of Jewish -world-dictatorship. - -After the War it became clear for the first time how sharp this contrast -is, when British statesmanship took one stand on the Japanese problem -and the Press took a different stand. - -Just after the War had ceased the old mutual antipathy between America -and Japan began to reappear. Naturally the great European Powers could -not remain indifferent to this new war menace. In England, despite the -ties of kinship, there was a certain amount of jealousy and anxiety over -the growing importance of the United States in all spheres of -international economics and politics. What was formerly a colonial -territory, the daughter of a great mother, seemed about to become the -new mistress of the world. It is quite understandable that to-day -England should re-examine her old alliances and that British -statesmanship should look anxiously to the danger of a coming moment -when the cry would no longer be: "Britain rules the waves", but rather: -"The Seas belong to the United States". - -The gigantic North American State, with the enormous resources of its -virgin soil, is much more invulnerable than the encircled German REICH. -Should a day come when the die which will finally decide the destinies -of the nations will have to be cast in that country, England would be -doomed if she stood alone. Therefore she eagerly reaches out her hand to -a member of the yellow race and enters an alliance which, from the -racial point of view is perhaps unpardonable; but from the political -viewpoint it represents the sole possibility of reinforcing Britain's -world position in face of the strenuous developments taking place on the -American continent. - -Despite the fact that they fought side by side on the European -battlefields, the British Government did not decide to conclude an -alliance with the Asiatic partner, yet the whole Jewish Press opposed -the idea of a Japanese alliance. - -How can we explain the fact that up to 1918 the Jewish Press championed -the policy of the British Government against the German REICH and then -suddenly began to take its own way and showed itself disloyal to the -Government? - -It was not in the interests of Great Britain to have Germany -annihilated, but primarily a Jewish interest. And to-day the destruction -of Japan would serve British political interests less than it would -serve the far-reaching intentions of those who are leading the movement -that hopes to establish a Jewish world-empire. While England is using -all her endeavours to maintain her position in the world, the Jew is -organizing his aggressive plans for the conquest of it. - -He already sees the present European States as pliant instruments in his -hands, whether indirectly through the power of so-called Western -Democracy or in the form of a direct domination through Russian -Bolshevism. But it is not only the old world that he holds in his snare; -for a like fate threatens the new world. Jews control the financial -forces of America on the stock exchange. Year after year the Jew -increases his hold on Labour in a nation of 120 million souls. But a -very small section still remains quite independent and is thus the cause -of chagrin to the Jew. - -The Jews show consummate skill in manipulating public opinion and using -it as an instrument in fighting for their own future. - -The great leaders of Jewry are confident that the day is near at hand -when the command given in the Old Testament will be carried out and the -Jews will devour the other nations of the earth. - -Among this great mass of denationalized countries which have become -Jewish colonies one independent State could bring about the ruin of the -whole structure at the last moment. The reason for doing this would be -that Bolshevism as a world-system cannot continue to exist unless it -encompasses the whole earth. Should one State preserve its national -strength and its national greatness the empire of the Jewish satrapy, -like every other tyranny, would have to succumb to the force of the -national idea. - -As a result of his millennial experience in accommodating himself to -surrounding circumstances, the Jew knows very well that he can undermine -the existence of European nations by a process of racial bastardization, -but that he could hardly do the same to a national Asiatic State like -Japan. To-day he can ape the ways of the German and the Englishman, the -American and the Frenchman, but he has no means of approach to the -yellow Asiatic. Therefore he seeks to destroy the Japanese national -State by using other national States as his instruments, so that he may -rid himself of a dangerous opponent before he takes over supreme control -of the last national State and transforms that control into a tyranny -for the oppression of the defenceless. - -He does not want to see a national Japanese State in existence when he -founds his millennial empire of the future, and therefore he wants to -destroy it before establishing his own dictatorship. - -And so he is busy to-day in stirring up antipathy towards Japan among -the other nations, as he stirred it up against Germany. Thus it may -happen that while British statesmanship is still endeavouring to ground -its policy in the alliance with Japan, the Jewish Press in Great Britain -may be at the same time leading a hostile movement against that ally and -preparing for a war of destruction by pretending that it is for the -triumph of democracy and at the same time raising the war-cry: Down with -Japanese militarism and imperialism. - -Thus in England to-day the Jew opposes the policy of the State. And for -this reason the struggle against the Jewish world-danger will one day -begin also in that country. - -And here again the National Socialist Movement has a tremendous task -before it. - -It must open the eyes of our people in regard to foreign nations and it -must continually remind them of the real enemy who menaces the world -to-day. In place of preaching hatred against Aryans from whom we may be -separated on almost every other ground but with whom the bond of kindred -blood and the main features of a common civilization unite us, we must -devote ourselves to arousing general indignation against the maleficent -enemy of humanity and the real author of all our sufferings. - -The National Socialist Movement must see to it that at least in our own -country the mortal enemy is recognized and that the fight against him -may be a beacon light pointing to a new and better period for other -nations as well as showing the way of salvation for Aryan humanity in -the struggle for its existence. - -Finally, may reason be our guide and will-power our strength. And may -the sacred duty of directing our conduct as I have pointed out give us -perseverance and tenacity; and may our faith be our supreme protection. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - - - -GERMANY'S POLICY IN EASTERN EUROPE - - -There are two considerations which induce me to make a special analysis -of Germany's position in regard to Russia. These are: - -(1) This may prove to be the most decisive point in determining -Germany's foreign policy. - -(2) The problem which has to be solved in this connection is also a -touchstone to test the political capacity of the young National -Socialist Movement for clear thinking and acting along the right lines. - -I must confess that the second consideration has often been a source of -great anxiety to me. The members of our movement are not recruited from -circles which are habitually indifferent to public affairs, but mostly -from among men who hold more or less extreme views. Such being the case, -it is only natural that their understanding of foreign politics should -suffer from the prejudice and inadequate knowledge of those circles to -which they were formerly attached by political and ideological ties. And -this is true not merely of the men who come to us from the Left. On the -contrary, however subversive may have been the kind of teaching they -formerly received in regard to these problems, in very many cases this -was at least partly counterbalanced by the residue of sound and natural -instincts which remained. In such cases it is only necessary to -substitute a better teaching in place of the earlier influences, in -order to transform the instinct of self-preservation and other sound -instincts into valuable assets. - -On the other hand, it is much more difficult to impress definite -political ideas on the minds of men whose earlier political education -was not less nonsensical and illogical than that given to the partisans -of the Left. These men have sacrificed the last residue of their natural -instincts to the worship of some abstract and entirely objective theory. -It is particularly difficult to induce these representatives of our -so-called intellectual circles to take a realistic and logical view of -their own interests and the interests of their nation in its relations -with foreign countries. Their minds are overladen with a huge burden of -prejudices and absurd ideas and they have lost or renounced every -instinct of self-preservation. With those men also the National -Socialist Movement has to fight a hard battle. And the struggle is all -the harder because, though very often they are utterly incompetent, they -are so self-conceited that, without the slightest justification, they -look down with disdain on ordinary commonsense people. These arrogant -snobs who pretend to know better than other people, are wholly incapable -of calmly and coolly analysing a problem and weighing its pros and cons, -which are the necessary preliminaries of any decision or action in the -field of foreign politics. - -It is just this circle which is beginning to-day to divert our foreign -policy into most disastrous directions and turn it away from the task of -promoting the real interests of the nation. Seeing that they do this in -order to serve their own fantastic ideologies, I feel myself obliged to -take the greatest pains in laying before my own colleagues a clear -exposition of the most important problem in our foreign policy, namely, -our position in relation to Russia. I shall deal with it, as thoroughly -as may be necessary to make it generally understood and as far as the -limits of this book permit. Let me begin by laying down the following -postulate: - -When we speak of foreign politics we understand that domain of -government which has set before it the task of managing the affairs of a -nation in its relations with the rest of the world. Now the guiding -principles which must be followed in managing these affairs must be -based on the definite facts that are at hand. Moreover, as National -Socialists, we must lay down the following axiom regarding the manner in -which the foreign policy of a People's State should be conducted: - -The foreign policy of a People's State must first of all bear in mind -the duty of securing the existence of the race which is incorporated in -this State. And this must be done by establishing a healthy and natural -proportion between the number and growth of the population on the one -hand and the extent and resources of the territory they inhabit, on the -other. That balance must be such that it accords with the vital -necessities of the people. - -What I call a HEALTHY proportion is that in which the support of a -people is guaranteed by the resources of its own soil and sub-soil. Any -situation which falls short of this condition is none the less unhealthy -even though it may endure for centuries or even a thousand years. Sooner -or later, this lack of proportion must of necessity lead to the decline -or even annihilation of the people concerned. - -Only a sufficiently large space on this earth can assure the independent -existence of a people. - -The extent of the territorial expansion that may be necessary for the -settlement of the national population must not be estimated by present -exigencies nor even by the magnitude of its agricultural productivity in -relation to the number of the population. In the first volume of this -book, under the heading "Germany's Policy of Alliances before the War," -I have already explained that the geometrical dimensions of a State are -of importance not only as the source of the nation's foodstuffs and raw -materials, but also from the political and military standpoints. Once a -people is assured of being able to maintain itself from the resources of -the national territory, it must think of how this national territory can -be defended. National security depends on the political strength of a -State, and this strength, in its turn, depends on the military -possibilities inherent in the geographical situation. - -Thus the German nation could assure its own future only by being a World -Power. For nearly two thousand years the defence of our national -interests was a matter of world history, as can be seen from our more or -less successful activities in the field of foreign politics. We -ourselves have been witnesses to this, seeing that the gigantic struggle -that went on from 1914 to 1918 was only the struggle of the German -people for their existence on this earth, and it was carried out in such -a way that it has become known in history as the World War. - -When Germany entered this struggle it was presumed that she was a World -Power. I say PRESUMED, because in reality she was no such thing. In -1914, if there had been a different proportion between the German -population and its territorial area, Germany would have been really a -World Power and, if we leave other factors out of count, the War would -have ended in our favour. - -It is not my task nor my intention here to discuss what would have -happened if certain conditions had been fulfilled. But I feel it -absolutely incumbent on me to show the present conditions in their bare -and unadorned reality, insisting on the weakness inherent in them, so -that at least in the ranks of the National Socialist Movement they -should receive the necessary recognition. - -Germany is not at all a World Power to-day. Even though our present -military weakness could be overcome, we still would have no claim to be -called a World Power. What importance on earth has a State in which the -proportion between the size of the population and the territorial area -is so miserable as in the present German REICH? At an epoch in which the -world is being gradually portioned out among States many of whom almost -embrace whole continents one cannot speak of a World Power in the case -of a State whose political motherland is confined to a territorial area -of barely five-hundred-thousand square kilometres. - -Looked at purely from the territorial point of view, the area comprised -in the German REICH is insignificant in comparison with the other States -that are called World Powers. England must not be cited here as an -example to contradict this statement; for the English motherland is in -reality the great metropolis of the British World Empire, which owns -almost a fourth of the earth's surface. Next to this we must consider -the American Union as one of the foremost among the colossal States, -also Russia and China. These are enormous spaces, some of which are more -than ten times greater in territorial extent than the present German -REICH. France must also be ranked among these colossal States. Not only -because she is adding to the strength of her army in a constantly -increasing measure by recruiting coloured troops from the population of -her gigantic empire, but also because France is racially becoming more -and more negroid, so much so that now one can actually speak of the -creation of an African State on European soil. The contemporary colonial -policy of France cannot be compared with that of Germany in the past. If -France develops along the lines it has taken in our day, and should that -development continue for the next three hundred years, all traces of -French blood will finally be submerged in the formation of a -Euro-African Mulatto State. This would represent a formidable and -compact colonial territory stretching from the Rhine to the Congo, -inhabited by an inferior race which had developed through a slow and -steady process of bastardization. - -That process distinguishes French colonial policy from the policy -followed by the old Germany. - -The former German colonial policy was carried out by half-measures, as -was almost everything they did at that time. They did not gain an -expanse of territory for the settlement of German nationals nor did they -attempt to reinforce the power of the REICH through the enlistment of -black troops, which would have been a criminal undertaking. The Askari -in German East Africa represented a small and hesitant step along this -road; but in reality they served only for the defence of the colony -itself. The idea of importing black troops to a European theatre of -war--apart entirely from the practical impossibility of this in the -World War--was never entertained as a proposal to be carried out under -favourable circumstances; whereas, on the contrary, the French always -looked on such an idea as fundamental in their colonial activities. - -Thus we find in the world to-day not only a number of States that are -much greater than the German in the mere numerical size of their -populations, but also possess a greater support for their political -power. The proportion between the territorial dimensions of the German -REICH and the numerical size of its population was never so unfavourable -in comparison with the other world States as at the beginning of our -history two thousand years ago and again to-day. At the former juncture -we were a young people and we stormed a world which was made up of great -States that were already in a decadent condition, of which the last -giant was Rome, to whose overthrow we contributed. To-day we find -ourselves in a world of great and powerful States, among which the -importance of our own REICH is constantly declining more and more. - -We must always face this bitter truth with clear and calm minds. We must -study the area and population of the German REICH in relation to the -other States and compare them down through the centuries. Then we shall -find that, as I have said, Germany is not a World Power whether its -military strength be great or not. - -There is no proportion between our position and that of the other States -throughout the world. And this lack of proportion is to be attributed to -the fact that our foreign policy never had a definite aim to attain, and -also to the fact that we lost every sound impulse and instinct for -self-preservation. - -If the historians who are to write our national history at some future -date are to give the National Socialist Movement the credit of having -devoted itself to a sacred duty in the service of our people, this -movement will have to recognize the real truth of our situation in -regard to the rest of the world. However painful this recognition may -be, the movement must draw courage from it and a sense of practical -realities in fighting against the aimlessness and incompetence which has -hitherto been shown by our people in the conduct of their foreign -policy. Without respect for 'tradition,' and without any preconceived -notions, the movement must find the courage to organize our national -forces and set them on the path which will lead them away from that -territorial restriction which is the bane of our national life to-day, -and win new territory for them. Thus the movement will save the German -people from the danger of perishing or of being slaves in the service of -any other people. - -Our movement must seek to abolish the present disastrous proportion -between our population and the area of our national territory, -considering national territory as the source of our maintenance or as a -basis of political power. And it ought to strive to abolish the contrast -between past history and the hopelessly powerless situation in which we -are to-day. In striving for this it must bear in mind the fact that we -are members of the highest species of humanity on this earth, that we -have a correspondingly high duty, and that we shall fulfil this duty -only if we inspire the German people with the racial idea, so that they -will occupy themselves not merely with the breeding of good dogs and -horses and cats, but also care for the purity of their own blood. - -When I say that the foreign policy hitherto followed by Germany has been -without aim and ineffectual, the proof of my statement will be found in -the actual failures of this policy. Were our people intellectually -backward, or if they lacked courage, the final results of their efforts -could not have been worse than what we see to-day. What happened during -the last decades before the War does not permit of any illusions on this -point; because we must not measure the strength of a State taken by -itself, but in comparison with other States. Now, this comparison shows -that the other States increased their strength in such a measure that -not only did it balance that of Germany but turned out in the end to be -greater; so that, contrary to appearances, when compared with the other -States Germany declined more and more in power until there was a large -margin in her disfavour. Yes, even in the size of our population we -remained far behind, and kept on losing ground. Though it is true that -the courage of our people was not surpassed by that of any other in the -world and that they poured out more blood than any other nation in -defence of their existence, their failure was due only to the erroneous -way in which that courage was turned to practical purposes. - -In this connection, if we examine the chain of political vicissitudes -through which our people have passed during more than a thousand years, -recalling the innumerable struggles and wars and scrutinizing it all in -the light of the results that are before our eyes to-day, we must -confess that from the ocean of blood only three phenomena have emerged -which we must consider as lasting fruits of political happenings -definitely determined by our foreign policy. - -(1) The colonization of the Eastern Mark, which was mostly the work of -the Bajuvari. - -(2) The conquest and settlement of the territory east of the Elbe. - -(3) The organization of the Brandenburg-Prussian State, which was the -work of the Hohenzollerns and which became the model for the -crystallization of a new REICH. - -An instructive lesson for the future. - -These first two great successes of our foreign policy turned out to be -the most enduring. Without them our people would play no role in the -world to-day. These achievements were the first and unfortunately the -only successful attempts to establish a harmony between our increasing -population and the territory from which it drew its livelihood. And we -must look upon it as of really fatal import that our German historians -have never correctly appreciated these formidable facts which were so -full of importance for the following generations. In contradistinction -to this, they wrote panegyrics on many other things, fantastic heroism, -innumerable adventures and wars, without understanding that these latter -had no significance whatsoever for the main line of our national -development. - -The third great success achieved by our political activity was the -establishment of the Prussian State and the development of a particular -State concept which grew out of this. To the same source we are to -attribute the organization of the instinct of national self-preservation -and self-defence in the German Army, an achievement which suited the -modern world. The transformation of the idea of self-defence on the part -of the individual into the duty of national defence is derived from the -Prussian State and the new statal concept which it introduced. It would -be impossible to over-estimate the importance of this historical -process. Disrupted by excessive individualism, the German nation became -disciplined under the organization of the Prussian Army and in this way -recovered at least some of the capacity to form a national community, -which in the case of other people had originally arisen through the -constructive urge of the herd instinct. Consequently the abolition of -compulsory national military service--which may have no meaning for -dozens of other nations--had fatal consequences for us. Ten generations -of Germans left without the corrective and educative effect of military -training and delivered over to the evil effects of those dissensions and -divisions the roots of which lie in their blood and display their force -also in a disunity of world-outlook--these ten generations would be -sufficient to allow our people to lose the last relics of an independent -existence on this earth. - -The German spirit could then make its contribution to civilization only -through individuals living under the rule of foreign nations and the -origin of those individuals would remain unknown. They would remain as -the fertilizing manure of civilization, until the last residue of -Nordic-Aryan blood would become corrupted or drained out. - -It is a remarkable fact that the real political successes achieved by -our people during their millennial struggles are better appreciated and -understood among our adversaries than among ourselves. Even still to-day -we grow enthusiastic about a heroism which robbed our people of millions -of their best racial stock and turned out completely fruitless in the -end. - -The distinction between the real political successes which our people -achieved in the course of their long history and the futile ends for -which the blood of the nation has been shed is of supreme importance for -the determination of our policy now and in the future. - -We, National Socialists, must never allow ourselves to re-echo the -hurrah patriotism of our contemporary bourgeois circles. It would be a -fatal danger for us to look on the immediate developments before the War -as constituting a precedent which we should be obliged to take into -account, even though only to the very smallest degree, in choosing our -own way. We can recognize no obligation devolving on us which may have -its historical roots in any part of the nineteenth century. In -contradistinction to the policy of those who represented that period, we -must take our stand on the principles already mentioned in regard to -foreign policy: namely, the necessity of bringing our territorial area -into just proportion with the number of our population. From the past we -can learn only one lesson. And this is that the aim which is to be -pursued in our political conduct must be twofold: namely (1) the -acquisition of territory as the objective of our foreign policy and (2) -the establishment of a new and uniform foundation as the objective of -our political activities at home, in accordance with our doctrine of -nationhood. - -I shall briefly deal with the question of how far our territorial aims -are justified according to ethical and moral principles. This is all the -more necessary here because, in our so-called nationalist circles, there -are all kinds of plausible phrase-mongers who try to persuade the German -people that the great aim of their foreign policy ought to be to right -the wrongs of 1918, while at the same time they consider it incumbent on -them to assure the whole world of the brotherly spirit and sympathy of -the German people towards all other nations. - -In regard to this point I should like to make the following statement: -To demand that the 1914 frontiers should be restored is a glaring -political absurdity that is fraught with such consequences as to make -the claim itself appear criminal. The confines of the REICH as they -existed in 1914 were thoroughly illogical; because they were not really -complete, in the sense of including all the members of the German -nation. Nor were they reasonable, in view of the geographical exigencies -of military defence. They were not the consequence of a political plan -which had been well considered and carried out. But they were temporary -frontiers established in virtue of a political struggle that had not -been brought to a finish; and indeed they were partly the chance result -of circumstances. One would have just as good a right, and in many cases -a better right, to choose some other outstanding year than 1914 in the -course of our history and demand that the objective of our foreign -policy should be the re-establishment of the conditions then existing. -The demands I have mentioned are quite characteristic of our bourgeois -compatriots, who in such matters take no political thought of the -future, They live only in the past and indeed only in the immediate -past; for their retrospect does not go back beyond their own times. The -law of inertia binds them to the present order of things, leading them -to oppose every attempt to change this. Their opposition, however, never -passes over into any kind of active defence. It is only mere passive -obstinacy. Therefore, we must regard it as quite natural that the -political horizon of such people should not reach beyond 1914. In -proclaiming that the aim of their political activities is to have the -frontiers of that time restored, they only help to close up the rifts -that are already becoming apparent in the league which our enemies have -formed against us. Only on these grounds can we explain the fact that -eight years after a world conflagration in which a number of Allied -belligerents had aspirations and aims that were partly in conflict with -one another, the coalition of the victors still remains more or less -solid. - -Each of those States in its turn profited by the German collapse. In the -fear which they all felt before the proof of strength that we had given, -the Great Powers maintained a mutual silence about their individual -feelings of envy and enmity towards one another. They felt that the best -guarantee against a resurgence of our strength in the future would be to -break up and dismember our REICH as thoroughly as possible. A bad -conscience and fear of the strength of our people made up the durable -cement which has held the members of that league together, even up to -the present moment. - -And our conduct does not tend to change this state of affairs. Inasmuch -as our bourgeoisie sets up the restoration of the 1914 frontiers as the -aim of Germany's political programme, each member of the enemy coalition -who otherwise might be inclined to withdraw from the combination sticks -to it, out of fear lest he might be attacked by us if he isolated -himself and in that case would not have the support of his allies. Each -individual State feels itself aimed at and threatened by this programme. -And the programme is absurd, for the following two reasons: - -(1) Because there are no available means of extricating it from the -twilight atmosphere of political soirees and transforming it into -reality. - -(2) Even if it could be really carried into effect the result would be -so miserable that, surely to God, it would not be worth while to risk -the blood of our people once again for such a purpose. - -For there can be scarcely any doubt whatsoever that only through -bloodshed could we achieve the restoration of the 1914 frontiers. One -must have the simple mind of a child to believe that the revision of the -Versailles Treaty can be obtained by indirect means and by beseeching -the clemency of the victors; without taking into account the fact that -for this we should need somebody who had the character of a -Talleyrand, and there is no Talleyrand among us. Fifty percent of our -politicians consists of artful dodgers who have no character and are -quite hostile to the sympathies of our people, while the other fifty per -cent is made up of well-meaning, harmless, and complaisant incompetents. -Times have changed since the Congress of Vienna. It is no longer princes -or their courtesans who contend and bargain about State frontiers, but -the inexorable cosmopolitan Jew who is fighting for his own dominion -over the nations. The sword is the only means whereby a nation can -thrust that clutch from its throat. Only when national sentiment is -organized and concentrated into an effective force can it defy that -international menace which tends towards an enslavement of the nations. -But this road is and will always be marked with bloodshed. - -If we are once convinced that the future of Germany calls for the -sacrifice, in one way or another, of all that we have and are, then we -must set aside considerations of political prudence and devote ourselves -wholly to the struggle for a future that will be worthy of our country. - -For the future of the German nation the 1914 frontiers are of no -significance. They did not serve to protect us in the past, nor do they -offer any guarantee for our defence in the future. With these frontiers -the German people cannot maintain themselves as a compact unit, nor can -they be assured of their maintenance. From the military viewpoint these -frontiers are not advantageous or even such as not to cause anxiety. And -while we are bound to such frontiers it will not be possible for us to -improve our present position in relation to the other World Powers, or -rather in relation to the real World Powers. We shall not lessen the -discrepancy between our territory and that of Great Britain, nor shall -we reach the magnitude of the United States of America. Not only that, -but we cannot substantially lessen the importance of France in -international politics. - -One thing alone is certain: The attempt to restore the frontiers of -1914, even if it turned out successful, would demand so much bloodshed -on the part of our people that no future sacrifice would be possible to -carry out effectively such measures as would be necessary to assure the -future existence of the nation. On the contrary, under the intoxication -of such a superficial success further aims would be renounced, all the -more so because the so-called 'national honour' would seem to be -revindicated and new ports would be opened, at least for a certain time, -to our commercial development. - -Against all this we, National Socialists, must stick firmly to the aim -that we have set for our foreign policy; namely, that the German people -must be assured the territorial area which is necessary for it to exist -on this earth. And only for such action as is undertaken to secure those -ends can it be lawful in the eyes of God and our German posterity to -allow the blood of our people to be shed once again. Before God, because -we are sent into this world with the commission to struggle for our -daily bread, as creatures to whom nothing is donated and who must be -able to win and hold their position as lords of the earth only through -their own intelligence and courage. And this justification must be -established also before our German posterity, on the grounds that for -each one who has shed his blood the life of a thousand others will be -guaranteed to posterity. The territory on which one day our German -peasants will be able to bring forth and nourish their sturdy sons will -justify the blood of the sons of the peasants that has to be shed -to-day. And the statesmen who will have decreed this sacrifice may be -persecuted by their contemporaries, but posterity will absolve them from -all guilt for having demanded this offering from their people. - -Here I must protest as sharply as possible against those nationalist -scribes who pretend that such territorial extension would be a -"violation of the sacred rights of man" and accordingly pour out their -literary effusions against it. One never knows what are the hidden -forces behind the activities of such persons. But it is certain that the -confusion which they provoke suits the game our enemies are playing -against our nation and is in accordance with their wishes. By taking -such an attitude these scribes contribute criminally to weaken from the -inside and to destroy the will of our people to promote their own vital -interests by the only effective means that can be used for that purpose. -For no nation on earth possesses a square yard of ground and soil by -decree of a higher Will and in virtue of a higher Right. The German -frontiers are the outcome of chance, and are only temporary frontiers -that have been established as the result of political struggles which -took place at various times. The same is also true of the frontiers -which demarcate the territories on which other nations live. And just as -only an imbecile could look on the physical geography of the globe as -fixed and unchangeable--for in reality it represents a definite stage in -a given evolutionary epoch which is due to the formidable forces of -Nature and may be altered to-morrow by more powerful forces of -destruction and change--so, too, in the lives of the nations the -confines which are necessary for their sustenance are subject to change. - -State frontiers are established by human beings and may be changed by -human beings. - -The fact that a nation has acquired an enormous territorial area is no -reason why it should hold that territory perpetually. At most, the -possession of such territory is a proof of the strength of the conqueror -and the weakness of those who submit to him. And in this strength alone -lives the right of possession. If the German people are imprisoned -within an impossible territorial area and for that reason are face to -face with a miserable future, this is not by the command of Destiny, and -the refusal to accept such a situation is by no means a violation of -Destiny's laws. For just as no Higher Power has promised more territory -to other nations than to the German, so it cannot be blamed for an -unjust distribution of the soil. The soil on which we now live was not a -gift bestowed by Heaven on our forefathers. But they had to conquer it -by risking their lives. So also in the future our people will not obtain -territory, and therewith the means of existence, as a favour from any -other people, but will have to win it by the power of a triumphant -sword. - -To-day we are all convinced of the necessity of regulating our situation -in regard to France; but our success here will be ineffective in its -broad results if the general aims of our foreign policy will have to -stop at that. It can have significance for us only if it serves to cover -our flank in the struggle for that extension of territory which is -necessary for the existence of our people in Europe. For colonial -acquisitions will not solve that question. It can be solved only by the -winning of such territory for the settlement of our people as will -extend the area of the motherland and thereby will not only keep the new -settlers in the closest communion with the land of their origin, but -will guarantee to this territorial ensemble the advantages which arise -from the fact that in their expansion over greater territory the people -remain united as a political unit. - -The National Movement must not be the advocate for other nations, but -the protagonist for its own nation. Otherwise it would be something -superfluous and, above all, it would have no right to clamour against -the action of the past; for then it would be repeating the action of the -past. The old German policy suffered from the mistake of having been -determined by dynastic considerations. The new German policy must not -follow the sentimentality of cosmopolitan patriotism. Above all, we must -not form a police guard for the famous 'poor small nations'; but we must -be the soldiers of the German nation. - -We National Socialists have to go still further. The right to territory -may become a duty when a great nation seems destined to go under unless -its territory be extended. And that is particularly true when the nation -in question is not some little group of negro people but the Germanic -mother of all the life which has given cultural shape to the modern -world. Germany will either become a World Power or will not continue to -exist at all. But in order to become a World Power it needs that -territorial magnitude which gives it the necessary importance to-day and -assures the existence of its citizens. - -Therefore we National Socialists have purposely drawn a line through the -line of conduct followed by pre-War Germany in foreign policy. We put an -end to the perpetual Germanic march towards the South and West of Europe -and turn our eyes towards the lands of the East. We finally put a stop -to the colonial and trade policy of pre-War times and pass over to the -territorial policy of the future. - -But when we speak of new territory in Europe to-day we must principally -think of Russia and the border States subject to her. - -Destiny itself seems to wish to point out the way for us here. In -delivering Russia over to Bolshevism, Fate robbed the Russian people of -that intellectual class which had once created the Russian State and -were the guarantee of its existence. For the Russian State was not -organized by the constructive political talent of the Slav element in -Russia, but was much more a marvellous exemplification of the capacity -for State-building possessed by the Germanic element in a race of -inferior worth. Thus were many powerful Empires created all over the -earth. More often than once inferior races with Germanic organizers and -rulers as their leaders became formidable States and continued to exist -as long as the racial nucleus remained which had originally created each -respective State. For centuries Russia owed the source of its livelihood -as a State to the Germanic nucleus of its governing class. But this -nucleus is now almost wholly broken up and abolished. The Jew has taken -its place. Just as it is impossible for the Russian to shake off the -Jewish yoke by exerting his own powers, so, too, it is impossible for -the Jew to keep this formidable State in existence for any long period -of time. He himself is by no means an organizing element, but rather a -ferment of decomposition. This colossal Empire in the East is ripe for -dissolution. And the end of the Jewish domination in Russia will also be -the end of Russia as a State. We are chosen by Destiny to be the -witnesses of a catastrophe which will afford the strongest confirmation -of the nationalist theory of race. - -But it is our task, and it is the mission of the National Socialist -Movement, to develop in our people that political mentality which will -enable them to realize that the aim which they must set to themselves -for the fulfilment of their future must not be some wildly enthusiastic -adventure in the footsteps of Alexander the Great but industrious labour -with the German plough, for which the German sword will provide the -soil. - -That the Jew should declare himself bitterly hostile to such a policy is -only quite natural. For the Jews know better than any others what the -adoption of this line of conduct must mean for their own future. That -fact alone ought to teach all genuine nationalists that this new -orientation is the right and just one. But, unfortunately, the opposite -is the case. Not only among the members of the German-National Party but -also in purely nationalist circles violent opposition is raised against -this Eastern policy. And in connection with that opposition, as in all -such cases, the authority of great names is appealed to. The spirit of -Bismarck is evoked in defence of a policy which is as stupid as it is -impossible, and is in the highest degree detrimental to the interests of -the German people. They say that Bismarck laid great importance on the -value of good relations with Russia. To a certain extent, that is true. -But they quite forget to add that he laid equal stress on the importance -of good relations with Italy, for example. Indeed, the same Herr von -Bismarck once concluded an alliance with Italy so that he might more -easily settle accounts with Austria. Why is not this policy now -advocated? They will reply that the Italy of to-day is not the Italy of -that time. Good. But then, honourable sirs, permit me to remind you that -the Russia of to-day is no longer the Russia of that time. Bismarck -never laid down a policy which would be permanently binding under all -circumstances and should be adhered to on principle. He was too much the -master of the moment to burden himself with that kind of obligation. -Therefore, the question ought not to be what Bismarck then did, but -rather what he would do to-day. And that question is very easy to -answer. His political sagacity would never allow him to ally himself -with a State that is doomed to disappear. - -Moreover, Bismarck looked upon the colonial and trade policy of his time -with mixed feelings, because what he most desired was to assure the best -possibilities of consolidating and internally strengthening the state -system which he himself had created. That was the sole ground on which -he then welcomed the Russian defence in his rear, so as to give him a -free hand for his activities in the West. But what was advantageous then -to Germany would now be detrimental. - -As early as 1920-21, when the young movement began slowly to appear on -the political horizon and movements for the liberation of the German -nation were formed here and there, the Party was approached from various -quarters in an attempt to bring it into definite connection with the -liberationist movements in other countries. This was in line with the -plans of the 'League of Oppressed Nations', which had been advertised in -many quarters and was composed principally of representatives of some of -the Balkan States and also of Egypt and India. These always impressed me -as charlatans who gave themselves big airs but had no real background at -all. Not a few Germans, however, especially in the nationalist camp, -allowed themselves to be taken in by these pompous Orientals, and in the -person of some wandering Indian or Egyptian student they believed at -once that they were face to face with a 'representative' of India or -Egypt. They did not realize that in most cases they were dealing with -persons who had no backing whatsoever, who were not authorized by -anybody to conclude any sort of agreement whatsoever; so that the -practical result of every negotiation with such individuals was negative -and the time spent in such dealings had to be reckoned as utterly lost. -I was always on my guard against these attempts. Not only that I had -something better to do than to waste weeks in such sterile -'discussions', but also because I believed that even if one were dealing -with genuine representatives that whole affair would be bound to turn -out futile, if not positively harmful. - -In peace-time it was already lamentable enough that the policy of -alliances, because it had no active and aggressive aims in view, ended -in a defensive association with antiquated States that had been -pensioned off by the history of the world. The alliance with Austria, as -well as that with Turkey, was not much to be joyful about. While the -great military and industrial States of the earth had come together in a -league for purposes of active aggression, a few old and effete States -were collected, and with this antique bric-�-brac an attempt was made to -face an active world coalition. Germany had to pay dearly for that -mistaken foreign policy and yet not dearly enough to prevent our -incorrigible visionaries from falling back into the same error again. -For the attempt to make possible the disarmament of the all-powerful -victorious States through a 'League of Oppressed Nations' is not only -ridiculous but disastrous. It is disastrous because in that way the -German people are again being diverted from real possibilities, which -they abandon for the sake of fruitless hopes and illusions. In reality -the German of to-day is like a drowning man that clutches at any straw -which may float beside him. And one finds people doing this who are -otherwise highly educated. Wherever some will-o'-the-wisp of a fantastic -hope appears these people set off immediately to chase it. Let this be a -League of Oppressed Nations, a League of Nations, or some other -fantastic invention, thousands of ingenuous souls will always be found -to believe in it. - -I remember well the childish and incomprehensible hopes which arose -suddenly in nationalist circles in the years 1920-21 to the effect that -England was just nearing its downfall in India. A few Asiatic -mountebanks, who put themselves forward as "the champions of Indian -Freedom", then began to peregrinate throughout Europe and succeeded in -inspiring otherwise quite reasonable people with the fixed notion that -the British World Empire, which had its pivot in India, was just about -to collapse there. They never realized that their own wish was the -father of all these ideas. Nor did they stop to think how absurd their -wishes were. For inasmuch as they expected the end of the British Empire -and of England's power to follow the collapse of its dominion over -India, they themselves admitted that India was of the most outstanding -importance for England. - -Now in all likelihood the deep mysteries of this most important problem -must have been known not only to the German-National prophets but also -to those who had the direction of British history in their hands. It is -right down puerile to suppose that in England itself the importance of -India for the British Empire was not adequately appreciated. And it is a -proof of having learned nothing from the world war and of thoroughly -misunderstanding or knowing nothing about Anglo-Saxon determination, -when they imagine that England could lose India without first having put -forth the last ounce of her strength in the struggle to hold it. -Moreover, it shows how complete is the ignorance prevailing in Germany -as to the manner in which the spirit of England permeates and -administers her Empire. England will never lose India unless she admits -racial disruption in the machinery of her administration (which at -present is entirely out of the question in India) or unless she is -overcome by the sword of some powerful enemy. But Indian risings will -never bring this about. We Germans have had sufficient experience to -know how hard it is to coerce England. And, apart from all this, I as a -German would far rather see India under British domination than under -that of any other nation. - -The hopes of an epic rising in Egypt were just as chimerical. The 'Holy -War' may bring the pleasing illusion to our German nincompoops that -others are now ready to shed their blood for them. Indeed, this cowardly -speculation is almost always the father of such hopes. But in reality -the illusion would soon be brought to an end under the fusillade from a -few companies of British machine-guns and a hail of British bombs. - -A coalition of cripples cannot attack a powerful State which is -determined, if necessary, to shed the last drop of its blood to maintain -its existence. To me, as a nationalist who appreciates the worth of the -racial basis of humanity, I must recognize the racial inferiority of the -so-called 'Oppressed Nations', and that is enough to prevent me from -linking the destiny of my people with the destiny of those inferior -races. - -To-day we must take up the same sort of attitude also towards Russia. -The Russia of to-day, deprived of its Germanic ruling class, is not a -possible ally in the struggle for German liberty, setting aside entirely -the inner designs of its new rulers. From the purely military viewpoint -a Russo-German coalition waging war against Western Europe, and probably -against the whole world on that account, would be catastrophic for us. -The struggle would have to be fought out, not on Russian but on German -territory, without Germany being able to receive from Russia the -slightest effective support. The means of power at the disposal of the -present German REICH are so miserable and so inadequate to the waging of -a foreign war that it would be impossible to defend our frontiers -against Western Europe, England included. And the industrial area of -Germany would have to be abandoned undefended to the concentrated attack -of our adversaries. It must be added that between Germany and Russia -there is the Polish State, completely in the hands of the French. In -case Germany and Russia together should wage war against Western Europe, -Russia would have to overthrow Poland before the first Russian soldier -could arrive on the German front. But it is not so much a question of -soldiers as of technical equipment. In this regard we should have our -situation in the world war repeated, but in a more terrible manner. At -that time German industry had to be drained to help our glorious allies, -and from the technical side Germany had to carry on the war almost -alone. In this new hypothetical war Russia, as a technical factor, would -count for nothing. We should have practically nothing to oppose to the -general motorization of the world, which in the next war will make its -appearance in an overwhelming and decisive form. In this important field -Germany has not only shamefully lagged behind, but with the little it -has it would have to reinforce Russia, which at the present moment does -not possess a single factory capable of producing a motor gun-wagon. -Under such conditions the presupposed coming struggle would assume the -character of sheer slaughter. The German youth would have to shed more -of its blood than it did even in the world war; for, as always, the -honour of fighting will fall on us alone, and the result would be an -inevitable catastrophe. But even admitting that a miracle were produced -and that this war did not end in the total annihilation of Germany, the -final result would be that the German nation would be bled white, and, -surrounded by great military States, its real situation would be in no -way ameliorated. - -It is useless to object here that in case of an alliance with Russia we -should not think of an immediate war or that, anyhow, we should have -means of making thorough preparations for war. No. An alliance which is -not for the purpose of waging war has no meaning and no value. Even -though at the moment when an alliance is concluded the prospect of war -is a distant one, still the idea of the situation developing towards war -is the profound reason for entering into an alliance. It is out of the -question to think that the other Powers would be deceived as to the -purpose of such an alliance. A Russo-German coalition would remain -either a matter of so much paper--and in this case it would have no -meaning for us--or the letter of the treaty would be put into practice -visibly, and in that case the rest of the world would be warned. It -would be childish to think that in such circumstances England and France -would wait for ten years to give the Russo-German alliance time to -complete its technical preparations. No. The storm would break over -Germany immediately. - -Therefore the fact of forming an alliance with Russia would be the -signal for a new war. And the result of that would be the end of -Germany. - -To these considerations the following must be added: - -(1) Those who are in power in Russia to-day have no idea of forming an -honourable alliance or of remaining true to it, if they did. - -It must never be forgotten that the present rulers of Russia are -blood-stained criminals, that here we have the dregs of humanity which, -favoured by the circumstances of a tragic moment, overran a great State, -degraded and extirpated millions of educated people out of sheer -blood-lust, and that now for nearly ten years they have ruled with such -a savage tyranny as was never known before. It must not be forgotten -that these rulers belong to a people in whom the most bestial cruelty is -allied with a capacity for artful mendacity and believes itself to-day -more than ever called to impose its sanguinary despotism on the rest of -the world. It must not be forgotten that the international Jew, who is -to-day the absolute master of Russia, does not look upon Germany as an -ally but as a State condemned to the same doom as Russia. One does not -form an alliance with a partner whose only aim is the destruction of his -fellow-partner. Above all, one does not enter into alliances with people -for whom no treaty is sacred; because they do not move about this earth -as men of honour and sincerity but as the representatives of lies and -deception, thievery and plunder and robbery. The man who thinks that he -can bind himself by treaty with parasites is like the tree that believes -it can form a profitable bargain with the ivy that surrounds it. - -(2) The menace to which Russia once succumbed is hanging steadily over -Germany. Only a bourgeois simpleton could imagine that Bolshevism can be -tamed. In his superficial way of thinking he does not suspect that here -we are dealing with a phenomenon that is due to an urge of the blood: -namely, the aspiration of the Jewish people to become the despots of the -world. That aspiration is quite as natural as the impulse of the -Anglo-Saxon to sit in the seats of rulership all over the earth. And as -the Anglo-Saxon chooses his own way of reaching those ends and fights -for them with his characteristic weapons, so also does the Jew. The Jew -wriggles his way in among the body of the nations and bores them hollow -from inside. The weapons with which he works are lies and calumny, -poisonous infection and disintegration, until he has ruined his hated -adversary. In Russian Bolshevism we ought to recognize the kind of -attempt which is being made by the Jew in the twentieth century to -secure dominion over the world. In other epochs he worked towards the -same goal but with different, though at bottom similar, means. The kind -of effort which the Jew puts forth springs from the deepest roots in the -nature of his being. A people does not of itself renounce the impulse to -increase its stock and power. Only external circumstances or senile -impotence can force them to renounce this urge. In the same way the Jew -will never spontaneously give up his march towards the goal of world -dictatorship or repress his external urge. He can be thrown back on his -road only by forces that are exterior to him, for his instinct towards -world domination will die out only with himself. The impotence of -nations and their extinction through senility can come only when their -blood has remained no longer pure. And the Jewish people preserve the -purity of their blood better than any other nation on earth. Therefore -the Jew follows his destined road until he is opposed by a force -superior to him. And then a desperate struggle takes place to send back -to Lucifer him who would assault the heavens. - -To-day Germany is the next battlefield for Russian Bolshevism. All the -force of a fresh missionary idea is needed to raise up our nation once -more, to rescue it from the coils of the international serpent and stop -the process of corruption which is taking place in the internal -constitution of our blood; so that the forces of our nation, once -liberated, may be employed to preserve our nationality and prevent the -repetition of the recent catastrophe from taking place even in the most -distant future. If this be the goal we set to ourselves it would be -folly to ally ourselves with a country whose master is the mortal enemy -of our future. How can we release our people from this poisonous grip if -we accept the same grip ourselves? How can we teach the German worker -that Bolshevism is an infamous crime against humanity if we ally -ourselves with this infernal abortion and recognize its existence as -legitimate. With what right shall we condemn the members of the broad -masses whose sympathies lie with a certain WELTANSCHAUUNG if the rulers -of our State choose the representatives of that WELTANSCHAUUNG as their -allies? The struggle against the Jewish Bolshevization of the world -demands that we should declare our position towards Soviet Russia. We -cannot cast out the Devil through Beelzebub. If nationalist circles -to-day grow enthusiastic about the idea of an alliance with Bolshevism, -then let them look around only in Germany and recognize from what -quarter they are being supported. Do these nationalists believe that a -policy which is recommended and acclaimed by the Marxist international -Press can be beneficial for the German people? Since when has the Jew -acted as shield-bearer for the militant nationalist? - -One special reproach which could be made against the old German REICH -with regard to its policy of alliances was that it spoiled its relations -towards all others by continually swinging now this way and now that way -and by its weakness in trying to preserve world peace at all costs. But -one reproach which cannot be made against it is that it did not continue -to maintain good relations with Russia. - -I admit frankly that before the War I thought it would have been better -if Germany had abandoned her senseless colonial policy and her naval -policy and had joined England in an alliance against Russia, therewith -renouncing her weak world policy for a determined European policy, with -the idea of acquiring new territory on the Continent. I do not forget -the constant insolent threats which Pan-Slavist Russia made against -Germany. I do not forget the continual trial mobilizations, the sole -object of which was to irritate Germany. I cannot forget the tone of -public opinion in Russia which in pre-War days excelled itself in -hate-inspired outbursts against our nation and REICH. Nor can I forget -the big Russian Press which was always more favourable to France than to -us. - -But, in spite of everything, there was still a second way possible -before the War. We might have won the support of Russia and turned -against England. Circumstances are entirely different to-day. If, before -the War, throwing all sentiment to the winds, we could have marched by -the side of Russia, that is no longer possible for us to-day. Since then -the hand of the world-clock has moved forward. The hour has struck and -struck loudly, when the destiny of our people must be decided one way or -another. - -The present consolidation of the great States of the world is the last -warning signal for us to look to ourselves and bring our people back -from their land of visions to the land of hard truth and point the way -into the future, on which alone the old REICH can march triumphantly -once again. - -If, in view of this great and most important task placed before it, the -National Socialist Movement sets aside all illusions and takes reason as -its sole effective guide the catastrophe of 1918 may turn out to be an -infinite blessing for the future of our nation. From the lesson of that -collapse it may formulate an entirely new orientation for the conduct of -its foreign policy. Internally reinforced through its new -WELTANSCHAUUNG, the German nation may reach a final stabilization of -its policy towards the outside world. It may end by gaining what England -has, what even Russia had, and what France again and again utilized as -the ultimate grounds on which she was able to base correct decisions for -her own interests: namely, A Political Testament. Political Testament of -the German Nation ought to lay down the following rules, which will be -always valid for its conduct towards the outside world: - -Never permit two Continental Powers to arise in Europe. Should any -attempt be made to organize a second military Power on the German -frontier by the creation of a State which may become a Military Power, -with the prospect of an aggression against Germany in view, such an -event confers on Germany not only the right but the duty to prevent by -every means, including military means, the creation of such a State and -to crush it if created. See to it that the strength of our nation does -not rest on colonial foundations but on those of our own native -territory in Europe. Never consider the REICH secure unless, for -centuries to come, it is in a position to give every descendant of our -race a piece of ground and soil that he can call his own. Never forget -that the most sacred of all rights in this world is man's right to the -earth which he wishes to cultivate for himself and that the holiest of -all sacrifices is that of the blood poured out for it. - -I should not like to close this chapter without referring once again to -the one sole possibility of alliances that exists for us in Europe at -the present moment. In speaking of the German alliance problem in the -present chapter I mentioned England and Italy as the only countries with -which it would be worth while for us to strive to form a close alliance -and that this alliance would be advantageous. I should like here to -underline again the military importance of such an alliance. - -The military consequences of forming this alliance would be the direct -opposite of the consequences of an alliance with Russia. Most important -of all is the fact that a RAPPROCHEMENT with England and Italy would in -no way involve a danger of war. The only Power that could oppose such an -arrangement would be France; and France would not be in a position to -make war. But the alliance should allow to Germany the possibility of -making those preparations in all tranquillity which, within the -framework of such a coalition, might in one way or another be requisite -in view of a regulation of accounts with France. For the full -significance of such an alliance lies in the fact that on its conclusion -Germany would no longer be subject to the threat of a sudden invasion. -The coalition against her would disappear automatically; that is to say, -the Entente which brought such disaster to us. Thus France, the mortal -enemy of our people, would be isolated. And even though at first this -success would have only a moral effect, it would be sufficient to give -Germany such liberty of action as we cannot now imagine. For the new -Anglo-German-Italian alliance would hold the political initiative and no -longer France. - -A further success would be that at one stroke Germany would be delivered -from her unfavourable strategical situation. On the one side her flank -would be strongly protected; and, on the other, the assurance of being -able to import her foodstuffs and raw materials would be a beneficial -result of this new alignment of States. But almost of greater importance -would be the fact that this new League would include States that possess -technical qualities which mutually supplement each other. For the first -time Germany would have allies who would not be as vampires on her -economic body but would contribute their part to complete our technical -equipment. And we must not forget a final fact: namely, that in this -case we should not have allies resembling Turkey and Russia to-day. The -greatest World Power on this earth and a young national State would -supply far other elements for a struggle in Europe than the putrescent -carcasses of the States with which Germany was allied in the last war. - -As I have already said, great difficulties would naturally be made to -hinder the conclusion of such an alliance. But was not the formation of -the Entente somewhat more difficult? Where King Edward VII succeeded -partly against interests that were of their nature opposed to his work -we must and will succeed, if the recognition of the necessity of such a -development so inspires us that we shall be able to act with skill and -conquer our own feelings in carrying the policy through. This will be -possible when, incited to action by the miseries of our situation, we -shall adopt a definite purpose and follow it out systematically instead -of the defective foreign policy of the last decades, which never had a -fixed purpose in view. - -The future goal of our foreign policy ought not to involve an -orientation to the East or the West, but it ought to be an Eastern -policy which will have in view the acquisition of such territory as is -necessary for our German people. To carry out this policy we need that -force which the mortal enemy of our nation, France, now deprives us of -by holding us in her grip and pitilessly robbing us of our strength. -Therefore we must stop at no sacrifice in our effort to destroy the -French striving towards hegemony over Europe. As our natural ally to-day -we have every Power on the Continent that feels France's lust for -hegemony in Europe unbearable. No attempt to approach those Powers ought -to appear too difficult for us, and no sacrifice should be considered -too heavy, if the final outcome would be to make it possible for us to -overthrow our bitterest enemy. The minor wounds will be cured by the -beneficent influence of time, once the ground wounds have been -cauterized and closed. - -Naturally the internal enemies of our people will howl with rage. But -this will not succeed in forcing us as National Socialists to cease our -preaching in favour of that which our most profound conviction tells us -to be necessary. We must oppose the current of public opinion which will -be driven mad by Jewish cunning in exploiting our German -thoughtlessness. The waves of this public opinion often rage and roar -against us; but the man who swims with the current attracts less -attention than he who buffets it. To-day we are but a rock in the river. -In a few years Fate may raise us up as a dam against which the general -current will be broken, only to flow forward in a new bed. Therefore it -is necessary that in the eyes of the rest of the world our movement -should be recognized as representing a definite and determined political -programme. We ought to bear on our visors the distinguishing sign of -that task which Heaven expects us to fulfil. - -When we ourselves are fully aware of the ineluctable necessity which -determines our external policy this knowledge will fill us with the grit -which we need in order to stand up with equanimity under the bombardment -launched against us by the enemy Press and to hold firm when some -insinuating voice whispers that we ought to give ground here and there -in order not to have all against us and that we might sometimes howl -with the wolves. - - - - -CHAPTER XV - - - -THE RIGHT TO SELF-DEFENCE - - -After we had laid down our arms, in November 1918, a policy was adopted -which in all human probability was bound to lead gradually to our -complete subjugation. Analogous examples from history show that those -nations which lay down their arms without being absolutely forced to do -so subsequently prefer to submit to the greatest humiliations and -exactions rather than try to change their fate by resorting to arms -again. - -That is intelligible on purely human grounds. A shrewd conqueror will -always enforce his exactions on the conquered only by stages, as far as -that is possible. Then he may expect that a people who have lost all -strength of character--which is always the case with every nation that -voluntarily submits to the threats of an opponent--will not find in any -of these acts of oppression, if one be enforced apart from the other, -sufficient grounds for taking up arms again. The more numerous the -extortions thus passively accepted so much the less will resistance -appear justified in the eyes of other people, if the vanquished nation -should end by revolting against the last act of oppression in a long -series. And that is specially so if the nation has already patiently and -silently accepted impositions which were much more exacting. - -The fall of Carthage is a terrible example of the slow agony of a people -which ended in destruction and which was the fault of the people -themselves. - -In his THREE ARTICLES OF FAITH Clausewitz expressed this idea admirably -and gave it a definite form when he said: "The stigma of shame incurred -by a cowardly submission can never be effaced. The drop of poison which -thus enters the blood of a nation will be transmitted to posterity. It -will undermine and paralyse the strength of later generations." But, on -the contrary, he added: "Even the loss of its liberty after a sanguinary -and honourable struggle assures the resurgence of the nation and is the -vital nucleus from which one day a new tree can draw firm roots." - -Naturally a nation which has lost all sense of honour and all strength -of character will not feel the force of such a doctrine. But any nation -that takes it to heart will never fall very low. Only those who forget -it or do not wish to acknowledge it will collapse. Hence those -responsible for a cowardly submission cannot be expected suddenly to -take thought with themselves, for the purpose of changing their former -conduct and directing it in the way pointed out by human reason and -experience. On the contrary, they will repudiate such a doctrine, until -the people either become permanently habituated to the yoke of slavery -or the better elements of the nation push their way into the foreground -and forcibly take power away from the hands of an infamous and corrupt -regime. In the first case those who hold power will be pleased with the -state of affairs, because the conquerors often entrust them with the -task of supervising the slaves. And these utterly characterless beings -then exercise that power to the detriment of their own people, more -cruelly than the most cruel-hearted stranger that might be nominated by -the enemy himself. - -The events which happened subsequent to 1918 in Germany prove how the -hope of securing the clemency of the victor by making a voluntary -submission had the most disastrous influence on the political views and -conduct of the broad masses. I say the broad masses explicitly, because -I cannot persuade myself that the things which were done or left undone -by the leaders of the people are to be attributed to a similar -disastrous illusion. Seeing that the direction of our historical destiny -after the war was now openly controlled by the Jews, it is impossible to -admit that a defective knowledge of the state of affairs was the sole -cause of our misfortunes. On the contrary, the conclusion that must be -drawn from the facts is that our people were intentionally driven to -ruin. If we examine it from this point of view we shall find that the -direction of the nation's foreign policy was not so foolish as it -appeared; for on scrutinizing the matter closely we see clearly that -this conduct was a procedure which had been calmly calculated, shrewdly -defined and logically carried out in the service of the Jewish idea and -the Jewish endeavour to secure the mastery of the world. - -From 1806 to 1813 Prussia was in a state of collapse. But that period -sufficed to renew the vital energies of the nation and inspire it once -more with a resolute determination to fight. An equal period of time has -passed over our heads from 1918 until to-day, and no advantage has been -derived from it. On the contrary, the vital strength of our State has -been steadily sapped. - -Seven years after November 1918 the Locarno Treaty was signed. - -Thus the development which took place was what I have indicated above. -Once the shameful Armistice had been signed our people were unable to -pluck up sufficient courage and energy to call a halt suddenly to the -conduct of our adversary as the oppressive measures were being -constantly renewed. The enemy was too shrewd to put forward all his -demands at once. He confined his duress always to those exactions which, -in his opinion and that of our German Government, could be submitted to -for the moment: so that in this way they did not risk causing an -explosion of public feeling. But according as the single impositions -were increasingly subscribed to and tolerated it appeared less -justifiable to do now in the case of one sole imposition or act of -duress what had not been previously done in the case of so many others, -namely, to oppose it. That is the 'drop of poison' of which Clausewitz -speaks. Once this lack of character is manifested the resultant -condition becomes steadily aggravated and weighs like an evil -inheritance on all future decisions. It may become as a leaden weight -around the nation's neck, which cannot be shaken off but which forces it -to drag out its existence in slavery. - -Thus, in Germany, edicts for disarmament and oppression and economic -plunder followed one after the other, making us politically helpless. -The result of all this was to create that mood which made so many look -upon the Dawes Plan as a blessing and the Locarno Treaty as a success. -From a higher point of view we may speak of one sole blessing in the -midst of so much misery. This blessing is that, though men may be -fooled, Heaven can't be bribed. For Heaven withheld its blessing. Since -that time Misery and Anxiety have been the constant companions of our -people, and Distress is the one Ally that has remained loyal to us. In -this case also Destiny has made no exceptions. It has given us our -deserts. Since we did not know how to value honour any more, it has -taught us to value the liberty to seek for bread. Now that the nation -has learned to cry for bread, it may one day learn to pray for freedom. - -The collapse of our nation in the years following 1918 was bitter and -manifest. And yet that was the time chosen to persecute us in the most -malicious way our enemies could devise, so that what happened afterwards -could have been foretold by anybody then. The government to which our -people submitted was as hopelessly incompetent as it was conceited, and -this was especially shown in repudiating those who gave any warning that -disturbed or displeased. Then we saw--and to-day also--the greatest -parliamentary nincompoops, really common saddlers and glove-makers--not -merely by trade, for that would signify very little--suddenly raised to -the rank of statesmen and sermonizing to humble mortals from that -pedestal. It did not matter, and it still does not matter, that such a -'statesman', after having displayed his talents for six months or so as -a mere windbag, is shown up for what he is and becomes the object of -public raillery and sarcasm. It does not matter that he has given the -most evident proof of complete incompetency. No. That does not matter at -all. On the contrary, the less real service the parliamentary statesmen -of this Republic render the country, the more savagely they persecute -all who expect that parliamentary deputies should show some positive -results of their activities. And they persecute everybody who dares to -point to the failure of these activities and predict similar failures -for the future. If one finally succeeds in nailing down one of these -parliamentarians to hard facts, so that this political artist can no -longer deny the real failure of his whole action and its results, then -he will find thousands of grounds for excuse, but will in no way admit -that he himself is the chief cause of the evil. - -In the winter of 1922-23, at the latest, it ought to have been generally -recognized that, even after the conclusion of peace, France was still -endeavouring with iron consistency to attain those ends which had been -originally envisaged as the final purpose of the War. For nobody could -think of believing that for four and a half years France continued to -pour out the not abundant supply of her national blood in the most -decisive struggle throughout all her history in order subsequently to -obtain compensation through reparations for the damages sustained. Even -Alsace and Lorraine, taken by themselves, would not account for the -energy with which the French conducted the War, if Alsace-Lorraine were -not already considered as a part of the really vast programme which -French foreign policy had envisaged for the future. The aim of that -programme was: Disintegration of Germany into a collection of small -states. It was for this that Chauvinist France waged war; and in doing -so she was in reality selling her people to be the serfs of the -international Jew. - -French war aims would have been obtained through the World War if, as -was originally hoped in Paris, the struggle had been carried out on -German soil. Let us imagine the bloody battles of the World War not as -having taken place on the Somme, in Flanders, in Artois, in front of -Warsaw, Nizhni-Novogorod, Kowno, and Riga but in Germany, in the Ruhr or -on the Maine, on the Elbe, in front of Hanover, Leipzig, N�rnberg, etc. -If such happened, then we must admit that the destruction of Germany -might have been accomplished. It is very much open to question if our -young federal State could have borne the hard struggle for four and a -half years, as it was borne by a France that had been centralized for -centuries, with the whole national imagination focused on Paris. If this -titanic conflict between the nations developed outside the frontiers of -our fatherland, not only is all the merit due to the immortal service -rendered by our old army but it was also very fortunate for the future -of Germany. I am fully convinced that if things had taken a different -course there would no longer be a German REICH to-day but only 'German -States'. And that is the only reason why the blood which was shed by our -friends and brothers in the War was at least not shed in vain. - -The course which events took was otherwise. In November 1918 Germany did -indeed collapse with lightning suddenness. But when the catastrophe took -place at home the armies under the Commander-in-Chief were still deep in -the enemy's country. At that time France's first preoccupation was not -the dismemberment of Germany but the problem of how to get the German -armies out of France and Belgium as quickly as possible. And so, in -order to put an end to the War, the first thing that had to be done by -the Paris Government was to disarm the German armies and push them back -into Germany if possible. Until this was done the French could not -devote their attention to carrying out their own particular and original -war aims. As far as concerned England, the War was really won when -Germany was destroyed as a colonial and commercial Power and was reduced -to the rank of a second-class State. It was not in England's interest to -wipe out the German State altogether. In fact, on many grounds it was -desirable for her to have a future rival against France in Europe. -Therefore French policy was forced to carry on by peaceful means the -work for which the War had opened the way; and Clemenceau's statement, -that for him Peace was merely a continuation of the War, thus acquired -an enhanced significance. - -Persistently and on every opportunity that arose, the effort to -dislocate the framework of the REICH was to have been carried on. By -perpetually sending new notes that demanded disarmament, on the one -hand, and by the imposition of economic levies which, on the other hand, -could be carried out as the process of disarmament progressed, it was -hoped in Paris that the framework of the REICH would gradually fall to -pieces. The more the Germans lost their sense of national honour the -more could economic pressure and continued economic distress be -effective as factors of political destruction. Such a policy of -political oppression and economic exploitation, carried out for ten or -twenty years, must in the long run steadily ruin the most compact -national body and, under certain circumstances, dismember it. Then the -French war aims would have been definitely attained. - -By the winter of 1922-23 the intentions of the French must already have -been known for a long time back. There remained only two possible ways -of confronting the situation. If the German national body showed itself -sufficiently tough-skinned, it might gradually blunt the will of the -French or it might do--once and for all--what was bound to become -inevitable one day: that is to say, under the provocation of some -particularly brutal act of oppression it could put the helm of the -German ship of state to roundabout and ram the enemy. That would -naturally involve a life-and-death-struggle. And the prospect of coming -through the struggle alive depended on whether France could be so far -isolated that in this second battle Germany would not have to fight -against the whole world but in defence of Germany against a France that -was persistently disturbing the peace of the world. - -I insist on this point, and I am profoundly convinced of it, namely, -that this second alternative will one day be chosen and will have to be -chosen and carried out in one way or another. I shall never believe that -France will of herself alter her intentions towards us, because, in the -last analysis, they are only the expression of the French instinct for -self-preservation. Were I a Frenchman and were the greatness of France -so dear to me as that of Germany actually is, in the final reckoning I -could not and would not act otherwise than a Clemenceau. The French -nation, which is slowly dying out, not so much through depopulation as -through the progressive disappearance of the best elements of the race, -can continue to play an important role in the world only if Germany be -destroyed. French policy may make a thousand detours on the march -towards its fixed goal, but the destruction of Germany is the end which -it always has in view as the fulfilment of the most profound yearning -and ultimate intentions of the French. Now it is a mistake to believe -that if the will on one side should remain only PASSIVE and intent on -its own self-preservation it can hold out permanently against another -will which is not less forceful but is ACTIVE. As long as the eternal -conflict between France and Germany is waged only in the form of a -German defence against the French attack, that conflict can never be -decided; and from century to century Germany will lose one position -after another. If we study the changes that have taken place, from the -twelfth century up to our day, in the frontiers within which the German -language is spoken, we can hardly hope for a successful issue to result -from the acceptance and development of a line of conduct which has -hitherto been so detrimental for us. - -Only when the Germans have taken all this fully into account will they -cease from allowing the national will-to-life to wear itself out in -merely passive defence, but they will rally together for a last decisive -contest with France. And in this contest the essential objective of the -German nation will be fought for. Only then will it be possible to put -an end to the eternal Franco-German conflict which has hitherto proved -so sterile. Of course it is here presumed that Germany sees in the -suppression of France nothing more than a means which will make it -possible for our people finally to expand in another quarter. To-day -there are eighty million Germans in Europe. And our foreign policy will -be recognized as rightly conducted only when, after barely a hundred -years, there will be 250 million Germans living on this Continent, not -packed together as the coolies in the factories of another Continent but -as tillers of the soil and workers whose labour will be a mutual -assurance for their existence. - -In December 1922 the situation between Germany and France assumed a -particularly threatening aspect. France had new and vast oppressive -measures in view and needed sanctions for her conduct. Political -pressure had to precede the economic plunder, and the French believed -that only by making a violent attack against the central nervous system -of German life would they be able to make our 'recalcitrant' people bow -to their galling yoke. By the occupation of the Ruhr District, it was -hoped in France that not only would the moral backbone of Germany be -broken finally but that we should be reduced to such a grave economic -condition that we should be forced, for weal or woe, to subscribe to the -heaviest possible obligations. - -It was a question of bending and breaking Germany. At first Germany bent -and subsequently broke in pieces completely. - -Through the occupation of the Ruhr, Fate once more reached out its hand -to the German people and bade them arise. For what at first appeared as -a heavy stroke of misfortune was found, on closer examination, to -contain extremely encouraging possibilities of bringing Germany's -sufferings to an end. - -As regards foreign politics, the action of France in occupying the Ruhr -really estranged England for the first time in quite a profound way. -Indeed it estranged not merely British diplomatic circles, which had -concluded the French alliance and had upheld it from motives of calm and -objective calculation, but it also estranged large sections of the -English nation. The English business world in particular scarcely -concealed the displeasure it felt at this incredible forward step in -strengthening the power of France on the Continent. From the military -standpoint alone France now assumed a position in Europe such as Germany -herself had not held previously. Moreover, France thus obtained control -over economic resources which practically gave her a monopoly that -consolidated her political and commercial strength against all -competition. The most important iron and coal mines of Europe were now -united in the hand of one nation which, in contrast to Germany, had -hitherto defended her vital interests in an active and resolute fashion -and whose military efficiency in the Great War was still fresh in the -memories of the whole world. The French occupation of the Ruhr coal -field deprived England of all the successes she had gained in the War. -And the victors were now Marshal Foch and the France he represented, no -longer the calm and painstaking British statesmen. - -In Italy also the attitude towards France, which had not been very -favourable since the end of the War, now became positively hostile. The -great historic moment had come when the Allies of yesterday might become -the enemies of to-morrow. If things happened otherwise and if the Allies -did not suddenly come into conflict with one another, as in the Second -Balkan War, that was due to the fact that Germany had no Enver Pasha but -merely a Cuno as Chancellor of the REICH. - -Nevertheless, the French invasion of the Ruhr opened up great -possibilities for the future not only in Germany's foreign politics but -also in her internal politics. A considerable section of our people who, -thanks to the persistent influence of a mendacious Press, had looked -upon France as the champion of progress and liberty, were suddenly cured -of this illusion. In 1914 the dream of international solidarity suddenly -vanished from the brain of our German working class. They were brought -back into the world of everlasting struggle, where one creature feeds on -the other and where the death of the weaker implies the life of the -stronger. The same thing happened in the spring of 1923. - -When the French put their threats into effect and penetrated, at first -hesitatingly and cautiously, into the coal-basin of Lower Germany the -hour of destiny had struck for Germany. It was a great and decisive -moment. If at that moment our people had changed not only their frame of -mind but also their conduct the German Ruhr District could have been -made for France what Moscow turned out to be for Napoleon. Indeed, there -were only two possibilities: either to leave this move also to take its -course and do nothing or to turn to the German people in that region of -sweltering forges and flaming furnaces. An effort might have been made -to set their wills afire with determination to put an end to this -persistent disgrace and to face a momentary terror rather than submit to -a terror that was endless. - -Cuno, who was then Chancellor of the REICH, can claim the immortal merit -of having discovered a third way; and our German bourgeois political -parties merit the still more glorious honour of having admired him and -collaborated with him. - -Here I shall deal with the second way as briefly as possible. - -By occupying the Ruhr France committed a glaring violation of the -Versailles Treaty. Her action brought her into conflict with several of -the guarantor Powers, especially with England and Italy. She could no -longer hope that those States would back her up in her egotistic act of -brigandage. She could count only on her own forces to reap anything like -a positive result from that adventure, for such it was at the start. For -a German National Government there was only one possible way left open. -And this was the way which honour prescribed. Certainly at the beginning -we could not have opposed France with an active armed resistance. But it -should have been clearly recognized that any negotiations which did not -have the argument of force to back them up would turn out futile and -ridiculous. If it were not possible to organize an active resistance, -then it was absurd to take up the standpoint: "We shall not enter into -any negotiations." But it was still more absurd finally to enter into -negotiations without having organized the necessary force as a support. - -Not that it was possible for us by military means to prevent the -occupation of the Ruhr. Only a madman could have recommended such a -decision. But under the impression produced by the action which France -had taken, and during the time that it was being carried out, measures -could have been, and should have been, undertaken without any regard to -the Versailles Treaty, which France herself had violated, to provide -those military resources which would serve as a collateral argument to -back up the negotiations later on. For it was quite clear from the -beginning that the fate of this district occupied by the French would -one day be decided at some conference table or other. But it also must -have been quite to everybody that even the best negotiators could have -little success as long as the ground on which they themselves stood and -the chair on which they sat were not under the armed protection of their -own people. A weak pigmy cannot contend against athletes, and a -negotiator without any armed defence at his back must always bow in -obeisance when a Brennus throws the sword into the scales on the enemy's -side, unless an equally strong sword can be thrown into the scales at -the other end and thus maintain the balance. It was really distressing -to have to observe the comedy of negotiations which, ever since 1918, -regularly preceded each arbitrary dictate that the enemy imposed upon -us. We offered a sorry spectacle to the eyes of the whole world when we -were invited, for the sake of derision, to attend conference tables -simply to be presented with decisions and programmes which had already -been drawn up and passed a long time before, and which we were permitted -to discuss, but from the beginning had to be considered as unalterable. -It is true that in scarcely a single instance were our negotiators men -of more than mediocre abilities. For the most part they justified only -too well the insolent observation made by Lloyd George when he -sarcastically remarked, in the presence of a former Chancellor of the -REICH, Herr Simon, that the Germans were not able to choose men of -intelligence as their leaders and representatives. But in face of the -resolute determination and the power which the enemy held in his hands, -on the one side, and the lamentable impotence of Germany on the other, -even a body of geniuses could have obtained only very little for -Germany. - -In the spring of 1923, however, anyone who might have thought of seizing -the opportunity of the French invasion of the Ruhr to reconstruct the -military power of Germany would first have had to restore to the nation -its moral weapons, to reinforce its will-power, and to extirpate those -who had destroyed this most valuable element of national strength. - -Just as in 1918 we had to pay with our blood for the failure to crush -the Marxist serpent underfoot once and for all in 1914 and 1915, now we -have to suffer retribution for the fact that in the spring of 1923 we -did not seize the opportunity then offered us for finally wiping out the -handiwork done by the Marxists who betrayed their country and were -responsible for the murder of our people. - -Any idea of opposing French aggression with an efficacious resistance -was only pure folly as long as the fight had not been taken up against -those forces which, five years previously, had broken the German -resistance on the battlefields by the influences which they exercised at -home. Only bourgeois minds could have arrived at the incredible belief -that Marxism had probably become quite a different thing now and that -the CANAILLE of ringleaders in 1918, who callously used the bodies of -our two million dead as stepping-stones on which they climbed into the -various Government positions, would now, in the year 1923, suddenly show -themselves ready to pay their tribute to the national conscience. It was -veritably a piece of incredible folly to expect that those traitors -would suddenly appear as the champions of German freedom. They had no -intention of doing it. Just as a hyena will not leave its carrion, a -Marxist will not give up indulging in the betrayal of his country. It is -out of the question to put forward the stupid retort here, that so many -of the workers gave their blood for Germany. German workers, yes, but no -longer international Marxists. If the German working class, in 1914, -consisted of real Marxists the War would have ended within three weeks. -Germany would have collapsed before the first soldier had put a foot -beyond the frontiers. No. The fact that the German people carried on the -War proved that the Marxist folly had not yet been able to penetrate -deeply. But as the War was prolonged German soldiers and workers -gradually fell back into the hands of the Marxist leaders, and the -number of those who thus relapsed became lost to their country. At the -beginning of the War, or even during the War, if twelve or fifteen -thousand of these Jews who were corrupting the nation had been forced to -submit to poison-gas, just as hundreds of thousands of our best German -workers from every social stratum and from every trade and calling had -to face it in the field, then the millions of sacrifices made at the -front would not have been in vain. On the contrary: If twelve thousand -of these malefactors had been eliminated in proper time probably the -lives of a million decent men, who would be of value to Germany in the -future, might have been saved. But it was in accordance with bourgeois -'statesmanship' to hand over, without the twitch of an eyelid, millions -of human beings to be slaughtered on the battlefields, while they looked -upon ten or twelve thousand public traitors, profiteers, usurers and -swindlers, as the dearest and most sacred national treasure and -proclaimed their persons to be inviolable. Indeed it would be hard to -say what is the most outstanding feature of these bourgeois circles: -mental debility, moral weakness and cowardice, or a mere down-at-heel -mentality. It is a class that is certainly doomed to go under but, -unhappily, it drags down the whole nation with it into the abyss. - -The situation in 1923 was quite similar to that of 1918. No matter what -form of resistance was decided upon, the first prerequisite for taking -action was the elimination of the Marxist poison from the body of the -nation. And I was convinced that the first task then of a really -National Government was to seek and find those forces that were -determined to wage a war of destruction against Marxism and to give -these forces a free hand. It was their duty not to bow down before the -fetish of 'order and tranquillity' at a moment when the enemy from -outside was dealing the Fatherland a death-blow and when high treason -was lurking behind every street corner at home. No. A really National -Government ought then to have welcomed disorder and unrest if this -turmoil would afford an opportunity of finally settling with the -Marxists, who are the mortal enemies of our people. If this precaution -were neglected, then it was sheer folly to think of resisting, no matter -what form that resistance might take. - -Of course, such a settlement of accounts with the Marxists as would be -of real historical importance could not be effected along lines laid -down by some secret council or according to some plan concocted by the -shrivelled mind of some cabinet minister. It would have to be in -accordance with the eternal laws of life on this Earth which are and -will remain those of a ceaseless struggle for existence. It must always -be remembered that in many instances a hardy and healthy nation has -emerged from the ordeal of the most bloody civil wars, while from peace -conditions which had been artificially maintained there often resulted a -state of national putrescence that reeked to the skies. The fate of a -nation cannot be changed in kid gloves. And so in the year 1923 brutal -action should have been taken to stamp out the vipers that battened on -the body of the nation. If this were done, then the first prerequisite -for an active opposition would have been fulfilled. - -At that time I often talked myself hoarse in trying to make it clear, at -least to the so-called national circles, what was then at stake and that -by repeating the errors committed in 1914 and the following years we -must necessarily come to the same kind of catastrophe as in 1918. I -frequently implored of them to let Fate have a free hand and to make it -possible for our Movement to settle with the Marxists. But I preached to -deaf ears. They all thought they knew better, including the Chief of the -Defence Force, until finally they found themselves forced to subscribe -to the vilest capitulation that history records. - -I then became profoundly convinced that the German bourgeoisie had come -to the end of its mission and was not capable of fulfilling any further -function. And then also I recognized the fact that all the bourgeois -parties had been fighting Marxism merely from the spirit of competition -without sincerely wishing to destroy it. For a long time they had been -accustomed to assist in the destruction of their country, and their one -great care was to secure good seats at the funeral banquet. It was for -this alone that they kept on 'fighting'. - -At that time--I admit it openly--I conceived a profound admiration for -the great man beyond the Alps, whose ardent love for his people inspired -him not to bargain with Italy's internal enemies but to use all possible -ways and means in an effort to wipe them out. What places Mussolini in -the ranks of the world's great men is his decision not to share Italy -with the Marxists but to redeem his country from Marxism by destroying -internationalism. - -What miserable pigmies our sham statesmen in Germany appear by -comparison with him. And how nauseating it is to witness the conceit and -effrontery of these nonentities in criticizing a man who is a thousand -times greater than them. And how painful it is to think that this takes -place in a country which could point to a Bismarck as its leader as -recently as fifty years ago. - -The attitude adopted by the bourgeoisie in 1923 and the way in which -they dealt kindly with Marxism decided from the outset the fate of any -attempt at active resistance in the Ruhr. With that deadly enemy in our -own ranks it was sheer folly to think of fighting France. The most that -could then be done was to stage a sham fight in order to satisfy the -German national element to some extent, to tranquillize the 'boiling -state of the public mind', or dope it, which was what was really -intended. Had they really believed in what they did, they ought to have -recognized that the strength of a nation lies, first of all, not in its -arms but in its will, and that before conquering the external enemy the -enemy at home would have to be eliminated. If not, then disaster must -result if victory be not achieved on the very first day of the fight. -The shadow of one defeat is sufficient to break up the resistance of a -nation that has not been liberated from its internal enemies, and give -the adversary a decisive victory. - -In the spring of 1923 all this might have been predicted. It is useless -to ask whether it was then possible to count on a military success -against France. For if the result of the German action in regard to the -French invasion of the Ruhr had been only the destruction of Marxism at -home, success would have been on our side. Once liberated from the -deadly enemies of her present and future existence, Germany would -possess forces which no power in the world could strangle again. On the -day when Marxism is broken in Germany the chains that bind Germany will -be smashed for ever. For never in our history have we been conquered by -the strength of our outside enemies but only through our own failings -and the enemy in our own camp. - -Since it was not able to decide on such heroic action at that time, the -Government could have chosen the first way: namely, to allow things to -take their course and do nothing at all. - -But at that great moment Heaven made Germany a present of a great man. -This was Herr Cuno. He was neither a statesman nor a politician by -profession, still less a politician by birth. But he belonged to that -type of politician who is merely used for liGYMNASIUMating some definite -question. Apart from that, he had business experience. It was a curse -for Germany that, in the practice of politics, this business man looked -upon politics also as a business undertaking and regulated his conduct -accordingly. - -"France occupies the Ruhr. What is there in the Ruhr? Coal. And so -France occupies the Ruhr for the sake of its coal?" What could come more -naturally to the mind of Herr Cuno than the idea of a strike, which -would prevent the French from obtaining any coal? And therefore, in the -opinion of Herr Cuno, one day or other they would certainly have to get -out of the Ruhr again if the occupation did not prove to be a paying -business. Such were approximately the lines along which that OUTSTANDING -NATIONAL STATESMAN reasoned. At Stuttgart and other places he spoke to -'his people' and this people became lost in admiration for him. Of -course they needed the Marxists for the strike, because the workers -would have to be the first to go on strike. Now, in the brain of a -bourgeois statesman such as Cuno, a Marxist and a worker are one and the -same thing. Therefore it was necessary to bring the worker into line -with all the other Germans in a united front. One should have seen how -the countenances of these party politicians beamed with the light of -their moth-eaten bourgeois culture when the great genius spoke the word -of revelation to them. Here was a nationalist and also a man of genius. -At last they had discovered what they had so long sought. For now the -abyss between Marxism and themselves could be bridged over. And thus it -became possible for the pseudo-nationalist to ape the German manner and -adopt nationalist phraseology in reaching out the ingenuous hand of -friendship to the internationalist traitors of their country. The -traitor readily grasped that hand, because, just as Herr Cuno had need -of the Marxist chiefs for his 'united front', the Marxist chiefs needed -Herr Cuno's money. So that both parties mutually benefited by the -transaction. Cuno obtained his united front, constituted of nationalist -charlatans and international swindlers. And now, with the help of the -money paid to them by the State, these people were able to pursue their -glorious mission, which was to destroy the national economic system. It -was an immortal thought, that of saving a nation by means of a general -strike in which the strikers were paid by the State. It was a command -that could be enthusiastically obeyed by the most indifferent of -loafers. - -Everybody knows that prayers will not make a nation free. But that it is -possible to liberate a nation by giving up work has yet to be proved by -historical experience. Instead of promoting a paid general strike at -that time, and making this the basis of his 'united front', if Herr Cuno -had demanded two hours more work from every German, then the swindle of -the 'united front' would have been disposed of within three days. -Nations do not obtain their freedom by refusing to work but by making -sacrifices. - -Anyhow, the so-called passive resistance could not last long. Nobody but -a man entirely ignorant of war could imagine that an army of occupation -might be frightened and driven out by such ridiculous means. And yet -this could have been the only purpose of an action for which the country -had to pay out milliards and which contributed seriously to devaluate -the national currency. - -Of course the French were able to make themselves almost at home in the -Ruhr basin the moment they saw that such ridiculous measures were being -adopted against them. They had received the prescription directly from -ourselves of the best way to bring a recalcitrant civil population to a -sense of reason if its conduct implied a serious danger for the -officials which the army of occupation had placed in authority. Nine -years previously we wiped out with lightning rapidity bands of Belgian -FRANCS-TIREURS and made the civil population clearly understand the -seriousness of the situation, when the activities of these bands -threatened grave danger for the German army. In like manner if the -passive resistance of the Ruhr became really dangerous for the French, -the armies of occupation would have needed no more than eight days to -bring the whole piece of childish nonsense to a gruesome end. For we -must always go back to the original question in all this business: What -were we to do if the passive resistance came to the point where it -really got on the nerves of our opponents and they proceeded to suppress -it with force and bloodshed? Would we still continue to resist? If so, -then, for weal or woe, we would have to submit to a severe and bloody -persecution. And in that case we should be faced with the same situation -as would have faced us in the case of an active resistance. In other -words, we should have to fight. Therefore the so-called passive -resistance would be logical only if supported by the determination to -come out and wage an open fight in case of necessity or adopt a kind of -guerilla warfare. Generally speaking, one undertakes such a struggle -when there is a possibility of success. The moment a besieged fortress -is taken by assault there is no practical alternative left to the -defenders except to surrender, if instead of probable death they are -assured that their lives will be spared. Let the garrison of a citadel -which has been completely encircled by the enemy once lose all hope of -being delivered by their friends, then the strength of the defence -collapses totally. - -That is why passive resistance in the Ruhr, when one considers the final -consequences which it might and must necessarily have if it were to turn -out really successful, had no practical meaning unless an active front -had been organized to support it. Then one might have demanded immense -efforts from our people. If each of these Westphalians in the Ruhr could -have been assured that the home country had mobilized an army of eighty -or a hundred divisions to support them, the French would have found -themselves treading on thorns. Surely a greater number of courageous men -could be found to sacrifice themselves for a successful enterprise than -for an enterprise that was manifestly futile. - -This was the classic occasion that induced us National Socialists to -take up a resolute stand against the so-called national word of command. -And that is what we did. During those months I was attacked by people -whose patriotism was a mixture of stupidity and humbug and who took part -in the general hue and cry because of the pleasant sensation they felt -at being suddenly enabled to show themselves as nationalists, without -running any danger thereby. In my estimation, this despicable 'united -front' was one of the most ridiculous things that could be imagined. And -events proved that I was right. - -As soon as the Trades Unions had nearly filled their treasuries with -Cuno's contributions, and the moment had come when it would be necessary -to transform the passive resistance from a mere inert defence into -active aggression, the Red hyenas suddenly broke out of the national -sheepfold and returned to be what they always had been. Without sounding -any drums or trumpets, Herr Cuno returned to his ships. Germany was -richer by one experience and poorer by the loss of one great hope. - -Up to midsummer of that year several officers, who certainly were not -the least brave and honourable of their kind, had not really believed -that the course of things could take a turn that was so humiliating. -They had all hoped that--if not openly, then at least secretly--the -necessary measures would be taken to make this insolent French invasion -a turning-point in German history. In our ranks also there were many who -counted at least on the intervention of the REICHSWEHR. That conviction -was so ardent that it decisively influenced the conduct and especially -the training of innumerable young men. - -But when the disgraceful collapse set in and the most humiliating kind -of capitulation was made, indignation against such a betrayal of our -unhappy country broke out into a blaze. Millions of German money had -been spent in vain and thousands of young Germans had been sacrificed, -who were foolish enough to trust in the promises made by the rulers of -the REICH. Millions of people now became clearly convinced that Germany -could be saved only if the whole prevailing system were destroyed root -and branch. - -There never had been a more propitious moment for such a solution. On -the one side an act of high treason had been committed against the -country, openly and shamelessly. On the other side a nation found itself -delivered over to die slowly of hunger. Since the State itself had -trodden down all the precepts of faith and loyalty, made a mockery of -the rights of its citizens, rendered the sacrifices of millions of its -most loyal sons fruitless and robbed other millions of their last penny, -such a State could no longer expect anything but hatred from its -subjects. This hatred against those who had ruined the people and the -country was bound to find an outlet in one form or another. In this -connection I shall quote here the concluding sentence of a speech which -I delivered at the great court trial that took place in the spring of -1924. - -"The judges of this State may tranquilly condemn us for our conduct at -that time, but History, the goddess of a higher truth and a better legal -code, will smile as she tears up this verdict and will acquit us all of -the crime for which this verdict demands punishment." - -But History will then also summon before its own tribunal those who, -invested with power to-day, have trampled on law and justice, condemning -our people to misery and ruin, and who, in the hour of their country's -misfortune, took more account of their own ego than of the life of the -community. - -Here I shall not relate the course of events which led to November 8th, -1923, and closed with that date. I shall not do so because I cannot see -that this would serve any beneficial purpose in the future and also -because no good could come of opening old sores that have been just only -closed. Moreover, it would be out of place to talk about the guilt of -men who perhaps in the depths of their hearts have as much love for -their people as I myself, and who merely did not follow the same road as -I took or failed to recognize it as the right one to take. - -In the face of the great misfortune which has befallen our fatherland -and affects all us, I must abstain from offending and perhaps disuniting -those men who must at some future date form one great united front which -will be made up of true and loyal Germans and which will have to -withstand the common front presented by the enemy of our people. For I -know that a time will come when those who then treated us as enemies -will venerate the men who trod the bitter way of death for the sake of -their people. - -I have dedicated the first volume of this book to our eighteen fallen -heroes. Here at the end of this second volume let me again bring those -men to the memory of the adherents and champions of our ideals, as -heroes who, in the full consciousness of what they were doing, -sacrificed their lives for us all. We must never fail to recall those -names in order to encourage the weak and wavering among us when duty -calls, that duty which they fulfilled with absolute faith, even to its -extreme consequences. Together with those, and as one of the best of -all, I should like to mention the name of a man who devoted his life to -reawakening his and our people, through his writing and his ideas and -finally through positive action. I mean: Dietrich Eckart. - - - - -EPILOGUE - - - -On November 9th, 1923, four and a half years after its foundation, the -German National Socialist Labour Party was dissolved and forbidden -throughout the whole of the REICH. To-day, in November 1926, it is again -established throughout the REICH, enjoying full liberty, stronger and -internally more compact than ever before. - -All persecutions of the Movement and the individuals at its head, all -the imputations and calumnies, have not been able to prevail against it. -Thanks to the justice of its ideas, the integrity of its intentions and -the spirit of self-denial that animates its members, it has overcome all -oppression and increased its strength through the ordeal. If, in our -contemporary world of parliamentary corruption, our Movement remains -always conscious of the profound nature of its struggle and feels that -it personifies the values of individual personality and race, and orders -its action accordingly--then it may count with mathematical certainty on -achieving victory some day in the future. And Germany must necessarily -win the position which belongs to it on this Earth if it is led and -organized according to these principles. - -A State which, in an epoch of racial adulteration, devotes itself to the -duty of preserving the best elements of its racial stock must one day -become ruler of the Earth. - -The adherents of our Movements must always remember this, whenever they -may have misgivings lest the greatness of the sacrifices demanded of -them may not be justified by the possibilities of success. - - - -THE END