A LEITER FROM GERMANY.
[To the Editor of the SPECTATOR.]
SIR,—Never in my life shall I forget the moment when last Sunday night I sat before my loud-speaker listening to the election results of September 14th, 1930. I felt as though I could hardly believe my ears. . . . Berlin : National Socialists 158,000 (16,0(10 in 1928) . . . Thuringen (where the National Socialist Minister, Frick, holds office, and where, so we were told by sections of the Press, the National Socialist vote would be reduced to a minimum) 263,000, in place of 40,000 in the year 1928 . . . so the long list continued. Gradually it dawned upon me that the "Nazis," as the people call the National Socialists, had become the second strongest political party in Germany. Their number of seats has jumped from 12 to 107, almost a nine-fold increase, the votes recorded in their favour from 809,000 to 6.4 millions. German political history knows no parallel.
And this has happened in spite of the fact that the propa- ganda of the strongest party, the Social Democrats, colleen. tmted upon stemming the flood-tide in favour of the National Socialists. Dozens of the latter party's candidates, who in
all probability never seriously contemplated entering the Reichstag, will be returned as representatives of the people. The Communist vote has also increased from 3.2 millions to 4.5 millions, and the number of their seats from 54 to 70. The Centre Party, to which Chancellor Bruning belongs, has advanced from 3.7 millions to 4.1 millions, its seats from 62 to 68. If the total 10 per cent, increase in the number of votes recorded is taken into account, the Centre Party can be said to have increased in direct proportion to the increase in the voting electorate.
But the other parties have another tale to tell : the Social Democratic vote receded from 9.1 millions, representing 153 seats, to 8.5 millions, representing 143 seats. The German Nationalists, led by Hugenberg, have also losses to record: only 41 seats and 2.4 million votes compared with 73 seats and 4.3 million votes in 1928. The newly formed Conservative party under the leadership of Treviranus only succeeded in obtaining 2 seats and 300,000 votes.
HOW is it that Germany, with her strong love of individual- ism, has declared herself to so large an extent for the National Socialist party, the extreme wing of which savours of Collecti- vism and Communism ?
What explanation can be given for this result ? Several
conjectures can be made :—this election has been fought out at a time of bitter distress ; unemployment is steadily in- creasing, discontent at parliamentary wrangling which leads to no definite action is spreading in every class of society. Added to this came the recent drastic emergency measures which demanded sacrifices, sacrifices which were very unpleasant for all whom they concerned. Then there has been much mistaken policy on the part of wide circles of industrialists in their attitude towards the problems affecting their employes and the whole question of employment.
Very strong, undoubtedly, has been the influence of the
foreign situation. The article in the Spectator of August 16th entitled A True Policy of Peace" will have found a warm echo in many a German heart. "Why," asks the man in the street," must the German boundary-zones be demilitarized, whilst the French ones are armed to the teeth ? Why does not France disarm? Why do not the other nations disarm ? Why, on the other hand, are difficulties placed in Germany's way if she only wants to build bridges over the Rhine, bridges which she badly needs for purposes of transport? Is this treatment fair ? " What must an average German think, when he reads that the decisions of the League of Nations in Upper Silesia, which were in Germany's favour, are not being carried out, or are being circumvented by every possible diplomatic means ? And what about the question of war guilt ? The German man in the street is prepared to discuss the question in how far military preparations can give rise to a war, but he will vehemently deny the fact that Germany was alone and solely guilty for the war. Closely connected with this feeling is another which arises in his mind : "It is perhaps justifiable that I should have to atone for my father's sins, but is it not rather hard that my children and grand-children must be so burdened with reparation debts that their life will probably never be free from financial care ? "
These may have been some of the reasons which influenced the average voter and which awoke an answering echo in his heart when he read the election pamphlets of Herr Hitler or of the Communists, who for their part also conducted an active campaign against the Treaty of Versailles.
What is to happen now ? Of course there are great problems to be faced. The Socialist parties are the strongest, although part of the Socialist electors have joined the Communist ranks. A large measure of the new support won by the National Socialists is drawn fromthe bourgeois class. The parliamentary situation is complicated, as 'almost a third of the future Reichstag is composed of political groups who are anti-parlia- mentary. If the Hugenberg group joins the Communists and the National Socialists, the effective working of the Reichstag may be difficult.
Probably the Government will not retire, but will lay its programme before the Reichstag. A great coalition of parties opposed to a radical policy may then be formed, and it is to be hoped that such a coalition may be able to hold its own. The President of the Prussian Ministry, Braun, a Socialist, states that public safety need not necessarily suffer or the trend of Germany's foreign policy be changed. Nor is there any likelihood that the Radical parties will put their Radical recipes to the test. This view is probably correct. It would be a useful experiment to entrust the formation of a Government to the National Socialists. They would then soon see how difficult it is to transform electioneering phrases into practical politics. But that would be a dangerous game.
The elections certainly give much food for thought. How is Germany to find at home a fair solution of the problem of capital and labour, how is the Reichstag to be persuaded to work for great ends and to abandon private interests ? And again abroad—how is Germany to find a really True Policy of Peace" ?—I am, Sir, &c.,
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