(eBook) History - Adolf Hitler - Mein Kampf - English (1)

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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 !nich "eople#s $o!rt of that time%

After years of !ninterr!pted labor it was now possible for the first time to begin a wor& which many hadas&ed for and which I myself felt wo!ld be profitable for the ovement% 'o I decided to devote two

vol!mes to a description not only of the aims of o!r ovement b!t also of its development% (here is more

to be learned from this than from any p!rely doctrinaire treatise%

(his has also given me the opport!nity of describing my own development in so far as s!ch a description isnecessary to the !nderstanding of the first as well as the second vol!me and to destroy the legendary

fabrications which the )ewish "ress have circ!lated abo!t me%

In this wor& I t!rn not to strangers b!t to those followers of the ovement whose hearts belong to it and

who wish to st!dy it more profo!ndly% I &now that fewer people are won over by the written word than bythe spo&en word and that every great movement on this earth owes its growth to great spea&ers and not to

great writers%

*evertheless, in order to prod!ce more e+!ality and !niformity in the defense of any doctrine, its

f!ndamental principles m!st be committed to writing% ay these two vol!mes therefore serve as the b!ilding stones which I contrib!te to the oint wor&%

(he Fortress, Landsberg am Lech%

At half-past twelve in the afternoon of *ovember 9th, 192., those whose names are given below fell in

front of the Feldherrnhalle and in the foreco!rt of the former /ar inistry in !nich for their loyal faith inthe res!rrection of their people0

Alfarth, Felix, Merchant, born July th, !"#! $aurie%l, An%rea&, Hat'a(er, born May )th, !*+"

Ca&ella, Theo%or, $an( Official, born Auu&t *th, !"## Ehrlich, -ilhel', $an( Official, born Auu&t !"th, !*") Fau&t, Martin, $an( Official, born January .+th, !"#!

Hechenberer, Anton, /oc(&'ith, born Se0te'ber .*th, !"#. 1oerner, O&(ar, Merchant, born January )th, !*+

1uhn, 1arl, Hea% -aiter, born July .th, !*"+ /aforce, 1arl, Stu%ent of Enineerin, born October .*th, !"#)

2eubauer, 1urt, -aiter, born March .+th, !*"" Pa0e, Clau& 3on, Merchant, born Auu&t !4th, !"#)

Pfor%ten, Theo%or 3on %er, Councillor to the Su0erior Pro3incial Court, born May !)th, !*+5 Ric('er&, Johann, retire% Ca3alry Ca0tain, born May +th, !**!

Scheubner6Richter, Max Er7in 3on, 8r9 of Enineerin, born January "th, !**) Stran&(y, /oren: Ritter 3on, Enineer, born March !)th, !*""

-olf, -ilhel', Merchant, born October !"th, !*"*

'o-called national officials ref!sed to allow the dead heroes a common b!rial% 'o I dedicate the first

vol!me of this wor& to them as a common memorial, that the memory of those martyrs may be a permanentso!rce of light for the followers of o!r ovement%The Fortre&&, /an%&ber a;/9, October !4th, !".)

TRA2S/ATOR’S <2TRO8UCT<O2

In placing before the reader this !nabridged translation of Adolf itler#s boo&, ein ampf, I feel it my

d!ty to call attention to certain historical facts which m!st be borne in mind if the reader wo!ld form a fair !dgment of what is written in this e3traordinary wor&%(he first vol!me of ein ampf was written while the a!thor was imprisoned in a avarian fortress% ow

did he get there and why5 (he answer to that +!estion is important, beca!se the boo& deals with the events

which bro!ght the a!thor into this plight and beca!se he wrote !nder the emotional stress ca!sed by the

historical happenings of the time% It was the ho!r of 6ermany#s deepest h!miliation, somewhat parallel tothat of a little over a cent!ry before, when *apoleon had dismembered the old 6erman 7mpire and French

soldiers occ!pied almost the whole of 6ermany%

In the beginning of 192. the French invaded 6ermany, occ!pied the 8!hr district and seied several6erman towns in the 8hineland% (his was a flagrant breach of international law and was protested against



by every section of ritish political opinion at that time% (he 6ermans co!ld not effectively defend

themselves, as they had been already disarmed !nder the provisions of the :ersailles (reaty% (o ma&e the

sit!ation more fra!ght with disaster for 6ermany, and therefore more appalling in its prospect, the French

carried on an intensive propaganda for the separation of the 8hineland from the 6erman 8ep!blic and theestablishment of an independent 8henania% oney was po!red o!t lavishly to bribe agitators to carry on

this wor&, and some of the most insidio!s elements of the 6erman pop!lation became active in the pay of

the invader% At the same time a vigoro!s movement was being carried on in avaria for the secession of

that co!ntry and the establishment of an independent $atholic monarchy there, !nder vassalage to France,as *apoleon had done when he made a3imilian the first ing of avaria in 1;<=%

(he separatist movement in the 8hineland went so far that some leading 6erman politicians came o!t in

favo!r of it, s!ggesting that if the 8hineland were th!s ceded it might be possible for the 6erman 8ep!blic

to stri&e a bargain with the French in regard to 8eparations% !t in avaria the movement went evenfarther% And it was more far-reaching in its implications> for, if an independent $atholic monarchy co!ld be

set !p in avaria, the ne3t move wo!ld have been a !nion with $atholic 6erman-A!stria% possibly !nder a

absb!rg ing% (h!s a $atholic bloc wo!ld have been created which wo!ld e3tend from the 8hineland

thro!gh avaria and A!stria into the ?an!be :alley and wo!ld have been at least !nder the moral andmilitary, if not the f!ll political, hegemony of France% (he dream seems fantastic now, b!t it was considered

+!ite a practical thing in those fantastic times% (he effect of p!tting s!ch a plan into action wo!ld have

meant the complete dismemberment of 6ermany> and that is what French diplomacy aimed at% Of co!rse

s!ch an aim no longer e3ists% And I sho!ld not recall what m!st now seem @old, !nhappy, far-off things to

the modern generation, were it not that they were very near and act!al at the time Mein Kampf was writtenand were more !nhappy then than we can even imagine now%

y the a!t!mn of 192. the separatist movement in avaria was on the point of becoming an accomplished

fact% 6eneral von Lossow, the avarian chief of the 8eichswehr no longer too& orders from erlin% (he flagof the 6erman 8ep!blic was rarely to be seen, Finally, the avarian "rime inister decided to proclaim an

independent avaria and its secession from the 6erman 8ep!blic% (his was to have ta&en place on the eve

of the Fifth Anniversary of the establishment of the 6erman 8ep!blic B*ovember 9th, 191;%C

itler staged a co!nter-stro&e% For several days he had been mobiliing his storm battalions in theneighbo!rhood of !nich, intending to ma&e a national demonstration and hoping that the Reichswehr

wo!ld stand by him to prevent secession% L!dendorff was with him% And he tho!ght that the prestige of the

great 6erman $ommander in the /orld /ar wo!ld be s!fficient to win the allegiance of the professional

army%A meeting had been anno!nced to ta&e place in the DrgerbrE! eller on the night of *ovember ;th% (he

avarian patriotic societies were gathered there, and the "rime inister, ?r% von ahr, started to read hisofficial pron!nciamento, which practically amo!nted to a proclamation of avarian independence and

secession from the 8ep!blic% /hile von ahr was spea&ing itler entered the hall, followed by L!dendorff%And the meeting was bro&en !p%

*e3t day the *ai battalions too& the street for the p!rpose of ma&ing a mass demonstration in favo!r of

national !nion% (hey marched in massed formation, led by itler and L!dendorff% As they reached one of

the central s+!ares of the city the army opened fire on them% 'i3teen of the marchers were instantly &illed,and two died of their wo!nds in the local barrac&s of the Reichswehr % 'everal others were wo!nded also%

itler fell on the pavement and bro&e a collar-bone% L!dendorff marched straight !p to the soldiers who

were firing from the barricade, b!t not a man dared draw a trigger on his old $ommander%

itler was arrested with several of his comrades and imprisoned in the fortress of Landsberg on the 8iver Lech% On Febr!ary 2th, 1924, he was bro!ght to trial before the :ol&sgericht, or "eople#s $o!rt in

!nich% e was sentenced to detention in a fortress for five years% /ith several companions, who had been

also sentenced to vario!s periods of imprisonment, he ret!rned to Landsberg am Lech and remained there!ntil the 2<th of the following ?ecember, when he was released% In all he spent abo!t thirteen months in prison% It was d!ring this period that he wrote the first vol!me of Mein Kampf %

If we bear all this in mind we can acco!nt for the emotional stress !nder which ein ampf was written%

itler was nat!rally incensed against the avarian government a!thorities, against the footling patriotic

societies who were pawns in the French game, tho!gh often !nconscio!sly so, and of co!rse against theFrench% (hat he sho!ld write harshly of the French was only nat!ral in the circ!mstances% At that time there

was no e3aggeration whatsoever in calling France the implacable and mortal enemy of 6ermany% '!ch

lang!age was being !sed by even the pacifists themselves, not only in 6ermany b!t abroad% And eventho!gh the second vol!me of Mein Kampf was written after itler#s release from prison and was p!blished



after the French had left the 8!hr, the tramp of the invading armies still echoed in 6erman ears, and the

terrible ravages that had been wro!ght in the ind!strial and financial life of 6ermany, as a conse+!ence of

the French invasion, had pl!nged the co!ntry into a state of social and economic chaos% In France itself the

franc fell to fifty per cent of its previo!s val!e% Indeed, the whole of 7!rope had been bro!ght to the brin& of r!in, following the French invasion of the 8!hr and 8hineland%

!t, as those things belong to the limbo of a dead past that nobody wishes to have remembered now, it is

often as&ed0 /hy doesn#t itler revise ein ampf5 (he answer, as I thin&, which wo!ld immediately

come into the mind of an impartial critic is that Mein Kampf is an historical doc!ment which bears theimprint of its own time% (o revise it wo!ld involve ta&ing it o!t of its historical conte3t% oreover itler

has declared that his acts and p!blic statements constit!te a partial revision of his boo& and are to be ta&en

as s!ch% (his refers especially to the statements in Mein Kampf regarding France and those 6erman

&insfol& that have not yet been incorporated in the 8eich% On behalf of 6ermany he has definitelyac&nowledged the 6erman portion of 'o!th (yrol as permanently belonging to Italy and, in regard to

France, he has again and again declared that no gro!nds now e3ist for a conflict of political interests

between 6ermany and France and that 6ermany has no territorial claims against France% Finally, I may

note here that itler 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 boo&, what he stated in Mein Kampf does not

implicate him as $hancellor of the 8eich%

I now come to some references in the te3t which are fre+!ently rec!rring and which may not always be

clear to every reader% For instance, itler spea&s indiscriminately of the 6erman Reich% 'ometimes he

means to refer to the first Reich, or 7mpire, and sometimes to the 6erman 7mpire as fo!nded !nder /illiam I in 1;G1% Incidentally the regime which he ina!g!rated in 19.. is generally &nown as the Third

Reich, tho!gh this e3pression is not !sed in ein ampf% itler also spea&s of the A!strian Reich and the

7ast ar&, witho!t always e3plicitly disting!ishing between the absb!rg 7mpire and A!stria proper% If the reader will bear the following historical o!tline in mind, he will !nderstand the references as they occ!r%

(he word Reich, which is a 6erman form of the Latin word Regnum, does not mean ingdom or 7mpire or

8ep!blic% It is a sort of basic word that may apply to any form of $onstit!tion% "erhaps o!r word, 8ealm,

wo!ld be the best translation, tho!gh the word 7mpire can be !sed when the 8eich was act!ally an 7mpire%(he forer!nner of the first 6erman 7mpire was the oly 8oman 7mpire which $harlemagne fo!nded in

A%?% ;<<% $harlemagne was ing of the Fran&s, a gro!p of 6ermanic tribes that s!bse+!ently became

8omanied% In the tenth cent!ry $harlemagne#s 7mpire passed into 6erman hands when Otto I B9.-9G.C

became 7mperor% As the oly 8oman 7mpire of the 6erman *ation, its formal appellation, it contin!ed toe3ist !nder 6erman 7mperors !ntil *apoleon overran and dismembered 6ermany d!ring the first decade of

the last cent!ry% On A!g!st th, 1;<, the last 7mperor, Francis II, formally resigned the 6erman crown% Inthe following October *apoleon entered erlin in tri!mph, after the attle of )ena%

After the fall of *apoleon a movement set in for the re!nion of the 6erman states in one 7mpire% !t thefirst decisive step towards that end was the fo!ndation of the 'econd 6erman 7mpire in 1;G1, after the

Franco-"r!ssian /ar% (his 7mpire, however, did not incl!de the 6erman lands which remained !nder the

absb!rg $rown% (hese were &nown as 6erman A!stria% It was ismarc&#s dream to !nite 6erman A!stria

with the 6erman 7mpire> b!t it remained only a dream !ntil itler t!rned it into a reality in 19.;#% It is wellto bear that point in mind, beca!se this dream of re!niting all the 6erman states in one 8eich has been a

dominant feat!re of 6erman patriotism and statesmanship for over a cent!ry and has been one of itler#s

ideals since his childhood%

In Mein Kampf itler often spea&s of the 7ast ar&% (his 7ast ar& - i%e% eastern frontier land - wasfo!nded by $harlemagne as the eastern b!lwar& of the 7mpire% It was inhabited principally by 6ermano-

$eltic tribes called a!vari and stood for cent!ries as the firm b!lwar& of /estern $hristendom against

invasion from the 7ast, especially against the (!r&s% 6eographically it was almost identical with 6ermanA!stria%(here are a few points more that I wish to mention in this introd!ctory note% For instance, I have let the

word Weltanschhauung stand in its original form very often% /e have no one 7nglish word to convey the

same meaning as the 6erman word, and it wo!ld have b!rdened the te3t too m!ch if I were to !se a

circ!mloc!tion each time the word occ!rs% Weltanschhauung literally means @O!tloo&-on-the /orld% !tas generally !sed in 6erman this o!tloo& on the world means a whole system of ideas associated together

in an organic !nity - ideas of h!man life, h!man val!es, c!lt!ral and religio!s ideas, politics, economics,

etc%, in fact a totalitarian view of h!man e3istence% (h!s $hristianity co!ld be called a Weltanschhauung ,and ohammedanism co!ld be called a Weltanschhauung , and 'ocialism co!ld be called a



/eltanschha!!ng, especially as preached in 8!ssia% *ational 'ocialism claims definitely to be a

Weltanschhauung %

Another word I have often left standing in the original is völkisch% (he basic word here is Volk , which is

sometimes translated as People> b!t the 6erman word, Volk , means the whole body of the people witho!tany distinction of class or caste% It is a primary word also that s!ggests what might be called the basic

national stoc&% *ow, after the defeat in 191;, the downfall of the onarchy and the destr!ction of the

aristocracy and the !pper classes, the concept of Das Volk came into prominence as the !nifying co-

efficient which wo!ld embrace the whole 6erman people% ence the large n!mber of völkisch societies thatarose after the war and hence also the *ational 'ocialist concept of !nification which is e3pressed by the

word Volksgemeinschaft , or fol& comm!nity% (his is !sed in contradistinction to the 'ocialist concept of the

nation as being divided into classes% itler#s ideal is the Völkischer Staat , which I have translated as the

"eople#s 'tate%Finally, I wo!ld point o!t that the term 'ocial ?emocracy may be misleading in 7nglish, as it has not a

democratic connotation in o!r sense% It was the name given to the 'ocialist "arty in 6ermany% And that

"arty was p!rely ar3ist> b!t it adopted the name 'ocial ?emocrat in order to appeal to the democratic

sections of the 6erman people%JAMES MURPH=9

Abbot& /anley, February, !"5"

Excer0t&>

H/hat soon gave me ca!se for very serio!s consideration were the activities of the )ews in certain branchesof life, into the mystery of which I penetrated little by little% /as there any shady !nderta&ing, any form of

fo!lness, especially in c!lt!ral life, in which at least one )ew did not participate5 On p!tting the probing

&nife caref!lly to that &ind of abscess one immediately discovered, li&e a maggot in a p!trescent body, alittle )ew who was often blinded by the s!dden light%H Bp%42C

HAnd so I believe to-day that my cond!ct is in accordance with the will of the Almighty $reator% In

standing g!ard against the )ew I am defending the handiwor& of the Lord%H Bp%4C

H(he yo&e of slavery is and always will remain the most !npleasant e3perience that man&ind can end!re%?o the 'chwabing decadents loo& !pon 6ermany#s lot to-day as aesthetic#5 Of co!rse, one doesn#t disc!ss

s!ch a +!estion with the )ews, beca!se they are the modern inventors of this c!lt!ral perf!me% (heir very

e3istence is an incarnate denial of the bea!ty of 6od#s image in is creation%H Bp%1<GC

H/hat we have to fight for is the necessary sec!rity for the e3istence and increase of o!r race and people,the s!bsistence of its children and the maintenance of o!r racial stoc& !nmi3ed, the freedom and

independence of the Fatherland> so that o!r people may be enabled to f!lfil the mission assigned to it by the$reator%H Bp%12=C

HFrom time immemorial, however, the )ews have &nown better than any others how falsehood and cal!mnycan be e3ploited% Is not their very e3istence fo!nded on one great lie, namely, that they are a religio!s

comm!nity, whereas in reality they are a race5 And what a raceJ One of the greatest thin&ers that man&ind

has prod!ced has branded the )ews for all time with a statement which is profo!ndly and e3actly tr!e% e

B'chopenha!erC called the )ew @(he 6reat aster of Lies% (hose who do not realie the tr!th of thatstatement, or do not wish to believe it, will never be able to lend a hand in helping (r!th to prevail%H Bp%1.4C

HIn short, the res!lts of miscegenation are always the following0?a@ The le3el of the &u0erior race beco'e& lo7ere% ?b@ 0hy&ical an% 'ental %eeneration &et& in, thu& lea%in &lo7ly but &tea%ily to7ar%& a 0rore&&i3e

%ryin u0 of the 3ital &a09

(he act which brings abo!t s!ch a development is a sin against the will of the 7ternal $reator% And as a sin

this act will be avenged% an#s effort to b!ild !p something that contradicts the iron logic of *at!re bringshim into conflict with those principles to which he himself e3cl!sively owes his own e3istence% y actingagainst the laws of *at!re he prepares the way that leads to his r!in%H Bp%12C

HIt is !st at those !nct!res when the idealistic attit!de threatens to disappear that we notice a wea&ening of

this force which is a necessary constit!ent in the fo!nding and maintenance of the comm!nity and is

thereby a necessary condition of civiliation% As soon as the spirit of egotism begins to prevail among a people then the bonds of the social order brea& and man, by see&ing his own personal happiness, veritably

t!mbles o!t of heaven and falls into hell%H Bp%1<C

HIn times of distress a wave of p!blic anger has !s!ally arisen against the )ew> the masses have ta&en thelaw into their own hands> they have seied )ewish property and r!ined the )ew in their !rge to protect



themselves against what they consider to be a sco!rge of 6od% aving come to &now the )ew intimately

thro!gh the co!rse of cent!ries, in times of distress they loo&ed !pon his presence among them as a p!blic

danger comparable only to the plag!e%H Bp%1G4C

He will stop at nothing% is !tterly low-down cond!ct is so appalling that one really cannot be s!rprised if in the imagination of o!r people the )ew is pict!red as the incarnation of 'atan and the symbol of evil% (he

ignorance of the broad masses as regards the inner character of the )ew, and the lac& of instinct and insight

that o!r !pper classes display, are some of the reasons which e3plain how it is that so many people fall an

easy prey to the systematic campaign of falsehood which the )ew carries on% /hile the !pper classes, withtheir innate cowardliness, t!rn away from anyone whom the )ew th!s attac&s with lies and cal!mny, the

common people are cred!lo!s of everything, whether beca!se of their ignorance or their simple-

mindedness% 6overnment a!thorities wrap themselves !p in a robe of silence, b!t more fre+!ently they

persec!te the victims of )ewish attac&s in order to stop the campaign in the )ewish "ress%H Bp%1;4CHow devoid of ideals and how ignoble is the whole contemporary systemJ (he fact that the ch!rches oin

in committing this sin against the image of 6od, even tho!gh they contin!e to emphasie the dignity of that

image, is +!ite in &eeping with their present activities% (hey tal& abo!t the 'pirit, b!t they allow man, as the

embodiment of the 'pirit, to degenerate to the proletarian level% (hen they loo& on with amaement whenthey realie how small is the infl!ence of the $hristian Faith in their own co!ntry and how depraved and

!ngodly is this riff-raff which is physically degenerate and therefore morally degenerate also% (o balance

this state of affairs they try to convert the ottentots and the K!l!s and the affirs and to bestow on them

the blessings of the $h!rch% /hile o!r 7!ropean people, 6od be praised and than&ed, are left to become

the victims of moral depravity, the pio!s missionary goes o!t to $entral Africa and establishes missionarystations for negroes% Finally, so!nd and healthy - tho!gh primitive and bac&ward - people will be

transformed, !nder the name of o!r higher civiliation#, into a motley of lay and br!talied mongrels%H

Bp%22CHLoo& at the ravages from which o!r people are s!ffering daily as a res!lt of being contaminated with

)ewish blood% ear in mind the fact that this poisono!s contamination can be eliminated from the national

body only after cent!ries, or perhaps never% (hin& f!rther of how the process of racial decomposition is

debasing and in some cases even destroying the f!ndamental Aryan +!alities of o!r 6erman people, so thato!r c!lt!ral creativeness as a nation is grad!ally becoming impotent and we are r!nning the danger, at least

in o!r great cities, of falling to the level where 'o!thern Italy is to-day% (his pestilential ad!lteration of the

blood, of which h!ndreds of tho!sands of o!r people ta&e no acco!nt, is being systematically practised by

the )ew to-day% 'ystematically these negroid parasites in o!r national body corr!pt o!r innocent fair-hairedgirls and th!s destroy something which can no longer be replaced in this world%

(he two $hristian denominations loo& on with indifference at the profanation and destr!ction of a nobleand !ni+!e creat!re who was given to the world as a gift of 6od#s grace% For the f!t!re of the world,

however, it does not matter which of the two tri!mphs over the other, the $atholic or the "rotestant% !t itdoes matter whether Aryan h!manity s!rvives or perishes% And yet the two $hristian denominations are not

contending against the destroyer of Aryan h!manity b!t are trying to destroy one another% 7verybody who

has the right &ind of feeling for his co!ntry is solemnly bo!nd, each within his own denomination, to see to

it that he is not constantly tal&ing abo!t the /ill of 6od merely from the lips b!t that in act!al fact hef!lfils the /ill of 6od and does not allow 6od#s handiwor& to be debased% For it was by the /ill of 6od

that men were made of a certain bodily shape, were given their nat!res and their fac!lties% /hoever

destroys is wor& wages war against 6od#s $reation and 6od#s /ill%H Bp%.1<C

:ol!me One, H8etrospectH - $hapter One HIn the ome of y "arents

It has t!rned o!t fort!nate for me to-day that destiny appointed ra!na!-on-the-Inn to be my birthplace%For that little town is sit!ated !st on the frontier between those two 'tates the re!nion of which seems, atleast to !s of the yo!nger generation, a tas& to which we sho!ld devote o!r lives and in the p!rs!it of which

every possible means sho!ld be employed%

6erman-A!stria m!st be restored to the great 6erman otherland% And not indeed on any gro!nds of

economic calc!lation whatsoever% *o, no% 7ven if the !nion were a matter of economic indifference, andeven if it were to be disadvantageo!s from the economic standpoint, still it o!ght to ta&e place% "eople of

the same blood sho!ld be in the same 8eich% (he 6erman people will have no right to engage in a colonial

policy !ntil they shall have bro!ght all their children together in the one 'tate% /hen the territory of the8eich embraces all the 6ermans and finds itself !nable to ass!re them a livelihood, only then can the moral



right arise, from the need of the people to ac+!ire foreign territory% (he plo!gh is then the sword> and the

tears of war will prod!ce the daily bread for the generations to come%

And so this little frontier town appeared to me as the symbol of a great tas&% !t in another regard also it

points to a lesson that is applicable to o!r day% Over a h!ndred years ago this se+!estered spot was thescene of a tragic calamity which affected the whole 6erman nation and will be remembered for ever, at

least in the annals of 6erman history% At the time of o!r Fatherland#s deepest h!miliation a boo&seller,

)ohannes "alm, !ncompromising nationalist and enemy of the French, was p!t to death here beca!se he had

the misfort!ne to have loved 6ermany well% e obstinately ref!sed to disclose the names of his associates,or rather the principals who were chiefly responsible for the affair% )!st as it happened with Leo 'chlageter%

(he former, li&e the latter, was deno!nced to the French by a 6overnment agent% It was a director of police

from A!gsb!rg who won an ignoble renown on that occasion and set the e3ample which was to be copied

at a later date by the neo-6erman officials of the 8eich !nder err 'evering#s regime 1C%In this little town on the Inn, haloed by the memory of a 6erman martyr, a town that was avarian by blood

b!t !nder the r!le of the A!strian 'tate, my parents were domiciled towards the end of the last cent!ry% y

father was a civil servant who f!lfilled his d!ties very conscientio!sly% y mother loo&ed after the

ho!sehold and lovingly devoted herself to the care of her children% From that period I have not retainedvery m!ch in my memory> beca!se after a few years my father had to leave that frontier town which I had

come to love so m!ch and ta&e !p a new post farther down the Inn valley, at "assa!, therefore act!ally in

6ermany itself%

In those days it was the !s!al lot of an A!strian civil servant to be transferred periodically from one post to

another% *ot long after coming to "assa! my father was transferred to Lin, and while there he retiredfinally to live on his pension% !t this did not mean that the old gentleman wo!ld now rest from his labo!rs%

e was the son of a poor cottager, and while still a boy he grew restless and left home% /hen he was barely

thirteen years old he b!c&led on his satchel and set forth from his native woodland parish% ?espite thediss!asion of villagers who co!ld spea& from e3perience,# he went to :ienna to learn a trade there% (his

was in the fiftieth year of the last cent!ry% It was a sore trial, that of deciding to leave home and face the

!n&nown, with three g!lden in his poc&et% y when the boy of thirteen was a lad of seventeen and had

passed his apprenticeship e3amination as a craftsman he was not content% !ite the contrary% (he persistenteconomic depression of that period and the constant want and misery strengthened his resol!tion to give !p

wor&ing 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 h!man attainment> b!t now that the big city

had enlarged his o!tloo& the yo!ng man loo&ed !p to the dignity of a 'tate official as the highest of all%/ith the tenacity of one whom misery and tro!ble had already made old when only half-way thro!gh his

yo!th the yo!ng man of seventeen obstinately set o!t on his new proect and st!c& to it !ntil he wonthro!gh% e became a civil servant% e was abo!t twenty-three years old, I thin&, when he s!cceeded in

ma&ing himself what he had resolved to become% (h!s he was able to f!lfil the promise he had made as a poor boy not to ret!rn to his native village !ntil he was somebody%#

e had gained his end% !t in the village there was nobody who had remembered him as a little boy, and

the village itself had become strange to him%

*ow at last, when he was fifty-si3 years old, he gave !p his active career> b!t he co!ld not bear to be idlefor a single day% On the o!ts&irts of the small mar&et town of Lambach in Mpper A!stria he bo!ght a farm

and tilled it himself% (h!s, at the end of a long and hard-wor&ing career, he came bac& 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 scamperingabo!t in the open, on the long road from school, and mi3ing !p with some of the ro!ghest of the boys,

which ca!sed my mother many an3io!s moments% All this tended to ma&e me something +!ite the reverse

of a stay-at-home% I gave scarcely any serio!s tho!ght to the +!estion of choosing a vocation in life> b!t Iwas certainly +!ite o!t of sympathy with the &ind of career which my father had followed% I thin& that aninborn talent for spea&ing now began to develop and ta&e shape d!ring the more or less stren!o!s

arg!ments which I !sed to have with my comrades% I had become a !venile ringleader who learned well

and easily at school b!t was rather diffic!lt to manage% In my freetime I practised singing in the choir of the

monastery ch!rch at Lambach, and th!s it happened that I was placed in a very favo!rable position to beemotionally impressed again and again by the magnificent splendo!r of ecclesiastical ceremonial% /hat

co!ld be more nat!ral for me than to loo& !pon the Abbot as representing the highest h!man ideal worth

striving for, !st as the position of the h!mble village priest had appeared to my father in his own boyhooddays5 At least, that was my idea for a while% !t the !venile disp!tes I had with my father did not lead him



to appreciate his son#s oratorical gifts in s!ch a way as to see in them a favo!rable promise for s!ch a

career, and so he nat!rally co!ld not !nderstand the boyish ideas I had in my head at that time% (his

contradiction in my character made him feel somewhat an3io!s%

As a matter of fact, that transitory yearning after s!ch a vocation soon gave way to hopes that were better s!ited to my temperament% rowsing thro!gh my father#s boo&s, I chanced to come across some

p!blications that dealt with military s!bects% One of these p!blications was a pop!lar history of the Franco-

6erman /ar of 1;G<-G1% It consisted of two vol!mes of an ill!strated periodical dating from those years%

(hese became my favo!rite reading% In a little while that great and heroic conflict began to ta&e first placein my mind% And from that time onwards I became more and more enth!siastic abo!t everything that was in

any way connected with war or military affairs%

!t this story of the Franco-6erman /ar had a special significance for me on other gro!nds also% For the

first time, and as yet only in +!ite a vag!e way, the +!estion began to present itself0 Is there a difference -and if there be, what is it - between the 6ermans who fo!ght that war and the other 6ermans5 /hy did not

A!stria also ta&e part in it5 /hy did not my father and all the others fight in that str!ggle5 Are we not the

same as the other 6ermans5 ?o we not all belong together5

(hat was the first time that this problem began to agitate my small brain% And from the replies that weregiven to the +!estions which I as&ed very tentatively, I was forced to accept the fact, tho!gh with a secret

envy, that not all 6ermans had the good l!c& to belong to ismarc&#s 7mpire% (his was something that I

co!ld not !nderstand%

It was decided that I sho!ld st!dy% $onsidering my character as a whole, and especially my temperament,

my father decided that the classical s!bects st!died at the Lyce!m were not s!ited to my nat!ral talents% etho!ght that the 8ealsch!le 2C wo!ld s!it me better% y obvio!s talent for drawing confirmed him in that

view> for in his opinion drawing was a s!bect too m!ch neglected in the A!strian 6ymnasi!m% "robably

also the memory of the hard road which he himself had travelled contrib!ted to ma&e him loo& !ponclassical st!dies as !npractical and accordingly to set little val!e on them% At the bac& of his mind he had

the idea that his son also sho!ld become an official of the 6overnment% Indeed he had decided on that

career for me% (he diffic!lties thro!gh which he had to str!ggle in ma&ing his own career led him to

overestimate what he had achieved, beca!se this was e3cl!sively the res!lt of his own indefatigableind!stry and energy% (he characteristic pride of the self-made man !rged him towards the idea that his son

sho!ld follow the same calling and if possible rise to a higher position in it% oreover, this idea was

strengthened by the consideration that the res!lts of his own life#s ind!stry had placed him in a position to

facilitate his son#s advancement in the same career%e was simply incapable of imagining that I might reect what had meant everything in life to him% y

father#s decision was simple, definite, clear and, in his eyes, it was something to be ta&en for granted% Aman of s!ch a nat!re who had become an a!tocrat by reason of his own hard str!ggle for e3istence, co!ld

not thin& of allowing ine3perienced# and irresponsible yo!ng fellows to choose their own careers% (o act ins!ch a way, where the f!t!re of his own son was concerned, wo!ld have been a grave and reprehensible

wea&ness in the e3ercise of parental a!thority and responsibility, something !tterly incompatible with his

characteristic sense of d!ty%

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% *o

matter how hard and determined my father might be abo!t p!tting his own plans and opinions into action,

his son was no less obstinate in ref!sing to accept ideas on which he set little or no val!e%

I wo!ld not become a civil servant% *o amo!nt of pers!asion and no amo!nt of grave# warnings co!ld brea& down that opposition% I wo!ld not

become a 'tate official, not on any acco!nt% All the attempts which my father made to aro!se in me a love

or li&ing for that profession, by pict!ring his own career for me, had only the opposite effect% It na!seatedme to thin& that one day I might be fettered to an office stool, that I co!ld not dispose of my own time b!two!ld be forced to spend the whole of my life filling o!t forms%

One can imagine what &ind of tho!ghts s!ch a prospect awa&ened in the mind of a yo!ng fellow who was

by no means what is called a good boy# in the c!rrent sense of that term% (he ridic!lo!sly easy school

tas&s which we were given made it possible for me to spend far more time in the open air than at home% (o-day, when my political opponents pry into my life with diligent scr!tiny, as far bac& as the days of my

boyhood, so as finally to be able to prove what disrep!table tric&s this itler was acc!stomed to in his

yo!ng days, I than& heaven that I can loo& bac& to those happy days and find the memory of them helpf!l%(he fields and the woods were then the terrain on which all disp!tes were fo!ght o!t%



7ven attendance at the 8ealsch!le co!ld not alter my way of spending my time% !t I had now another

battle to fight%

'o long as the paternal plan to ma&e a 'tate f!nctionary contradicted my own inclinations only in the

abstract, the conflict was easy to bear% I co!ld be discreet abo!t e3pressing my personal views and th!savoid constantly rec!rrent disp!tes% y own resol!tion not to become a 6overnment official was s!fficient

for the time being to p!t my mind completely at rest% I held on to that resol!tion ine3orably% !t the

sit!ation became more diffic!lt once I had a positive plan of my own which I might present to my father as

a co!nter-s!ggestion% (his happened when I was twelve years old% ow it came abo!t I cannot e3actly saynow> b!t one day it became clear to me that I wo!ld be a painter - I mean an artist% (hat I had an aptit!de

for drawing was an admitted fact% It was even one of the reasons why my father had sent me to the

8ealsch!le> b!t he had never tho!ght of having that talent developed in s!ch a way that I co!ld ta&e !p

painting as a professional career% !ite the contrary% /hen, as a res!lt of my renewed ref!sal to adopt hisfavo!rite plan, my father as&ed me for the first time what I myself really wished to be, the resol!tion that I

had already formed e3pressed itself almost a!tomatically% For a while my father was speechless% HA

painter5 An artist-painter5H he e3claimed%

e wondered whether I was in a so!nd state of mind% e tho!ght that he might not have ca!ght my wordsrightly, or that he had mis!nderstood what I meant% !t when I had e3plained my ideas to him and he saw

how serio!sly I too& them, he opposed them with that f!ll determination which was characteristic of him%

is decision was e3ceedingly simple and co!ld not be deflected from its co!rse by any consideration of

what my own nat!ral +!alifications really were%

HArtistJ *ot as long as I live, never%H As the son had inherited some of the father#s obstinacy, besides havingother +!alities of his own, my reply was e+!ally energetic% !t it stated something +!ite the contrary%

At that o!r str!ggle became stalemate% (he father wo!ld not abandon his *ever#, and I became all the

more consolidated in my *evertheless#% *at!rally the res!lting sit!ation was not pleasant% (he old gentleman was bitterly annoyed> and indeed so

was I, altho!gh I really loved him% y father forbade me to entertain any hopes of ta&ing !p the art of

painting as a profession% I went a step f!rther and declared that I wo!ld not st!dy anything else% /ith s!ch

declarations the sit!ation became still more strained, so that the old gentleman irrevocably decided to asserthis parental a!thority at all costs% (hat led me to adopt an attit!de of circ!mspect silence, b!t I p!t my

threat into e3ec!tion% I tho!ght that, once it became clear to my father that I was ma&ing no progress at the

8ealsch!le, for weal or for woe, he wo!ld be forced to allow me to follow the happy career I had dreamed

of%I do not &now whether I calc!lated rightly or not% $ertainly my fail!re to ma&e progress became +!ite

visible in the school% I st!died !st the s!bects that appealed to me, especially those which I tho!ght might be of advantage to me later on as a painter% /hat did not appear to have any importance from this point of

view, or what did not otherwise appeal to me favo!rably, I completely sabotaged% y school reports of thattime were always in the e3tremes of good or bad, according to the s!bect and the interest it had for me% In

one col!mn my +!alification read very good# or e3cellent#% In another it read average# or even below

average#% y far my best s!bects were geography and, even more so, general history% (hese were my two

favo!rite s!bects, and I led the class in them%/hen I loo& bac& over so many years and try to !dge the res!lts of that e3perience I find two very

significant facts standing o!t clearly before my mind%

First, I became a nationalist%

'econd, I learned to !nderstand and grasp the tr!e meaning of history%(he old A!stria was a m!lti-national 'tate% In those days at least the citiens of the 6erman 7mpire, ta&en

thro!gh and thro!gh, co!ld not !nderstand what that fact meant in the everyday life of the individ!als

within s!ch a 'tate% After the magnificent tri!mphant march of the victorio!s armies in the Franco-6erman/ar the 6ermans in the 8eich became steadily more and more estranged from the 6ermans beyond their frontiers, partly beca!se they did not deign to appreciate those other 6ermans at their tr!e val!e or simply

beca!se they were incapable of doing so%

(he 6ermans of the 8eich did not realie that if the 6ermans in A!stria had not been of the best racial

stoc& they co!ld never have given the stamp of their own character to an 7mpire of =2 millions, sodefinitely that in 6ermany itself the idea arose - tho!gh +!ite an erroneo!s one - that A!stria was a 6erman

'tate% (hat was an error which led to dire conse+!ences> b!t all the same it was a magnificent testimony to

the character of the ten million 6ermans in that 7ast ar&% .C Only very few of the 6ermans in the 8eichitself had an idea of the bitter str!ggle which those 7astern 6ermans had to carry on daily for the



preservation of their 6erman lang!age, their 6erman schools and their 6erman character% Only to-day,

when a tragic fate has torn several millions of o!r &insfol& away from the 8eich and has forced them to live

!nder the r!le of the stranger, dreaming of that common fatherland towards which all their yearnings are

directed and str!ggling to !phold at least the sacred right of !sing their mother tong!e - only now have thewider circles of the 6erman pop!lation come to realie 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

6erman spirit which animated the old 7ast ar& and enabled those people, left entirely dependent on their

own reso!rces, to defend the 7mpire against the Orient for several cent!ries and s!bse+!ently to hold fastthe frontiers of the 6erman lang!age thro!gh a g!erilla warfare of attrition, at a time when the 6erman

7mpire was sed!lo!sly c!ltivating an interest for colonies b!t not for its own flesh and blood before the

threshold of its own door%

/hat has happened always and everywhere, in every &ind of str!ggle, happened also in the lang!age fightwhich was carried on in the old A!stria% (here were three gro!ps - the fighters, the hedgers and the traitors%

7ven in the schools this sifting already began to ta&e place% And it is worth noting that the str!ggle for the

lang!age was waged perhaps in its bitterest form aro!nd the school> beca!se this was the n!rsery where the

seeds had to be watered which were to spring !p and form the f!t!re generation% (he tactical obective of the fight was the winning over of the child, and it was to the child that the first rallying cry was addressed0

H6erman yo!th, do not forget that yo! are a 6erman,H and H8emember, little girl, that one day yo! m!st be

a 6erman mother%H

(hose who &now something of the !venile spirit can !nderstand how yo!th will always lend a glad ear to

s!ch a rallying cry% Mnder many forms the yo!ng people led the str!ggle, fighting in their own way andwith their own weapons% (hey ref!sed to sing non-6erman songs% (he greater the efforts made to win them

away from their 6erman allegiance, the more they e3alted the glory of their 6erman heroes% (hey stinted

themselves in b!ying things to eat, so that they might spare their pennies to help the war chest of their elders% (hey were incredibly alert in the significance of what the non-6erman teachers said and they

contradicted in !nison% (hey wore the forbidden emblems of their own &insfol& and were happy when

penalised for doing so, or even physically p!nished% In miniat!re they were mirrors of loyalty from which

the older people might learn a lesson%And th!s it was that at a comparatively early age I too& part in the str!ggle which the nationalities were

waging against one another in the old A!stria% /hen meetings were held for the 'o!th ar& 6erman

Leag!e and the 'chool Leag!e we wore cornflowers and blac&-red-gold colo!rs to e3press o!r loyalty% /e

greeted one another with eilJ and instead of the A!strian anthem we sang o!r own ?e!tschland Dber Alles, despite warnings and penalties% (h!s the yo!th were ed!cated politically at a time when the citiens

of a so-called national 'tate for the most part &new little of their own nationality e3cept the lang!age% Of co!rse, I did not belong to the hedgers% /ithin a little while I had become an ardent 6erman *ational#,

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 1= years old I had come to

!nderstand the distinction between dynastic patriotism and nationalism based on the concept of fol&, or

people, my inclination being entirely in favo!r of the latter%

'!ch a preference may not perhaps be clearly intelligible to those who have never ta&en the tro!ble to st!dythe internal conditions that prevailed !nder the absb!rg onarchy%

Among historical st!dies !niversal history was the s!bect almost e3cl!sively ta!ght in the A!strian

schools, for of specific A!strian history there was only very little% (he fate of this 'tate was closely bo!nd

!p with the e3istence and development of 6ermany as a whole> so a division of history into 6erman historyand A!strian history wo!ld be practically inconceivable% And indeed it was only when the 6erman people

came to be divided between two 'tates that this division of 6erman history began to ta&e place%

(he insignia 4C of a former imperial sovereignty which were still preserved in :ienna appeared to act asmagical relics rather than as the visible g!arantee of an everlasting bond of !nion%/hen the absb!rg 'tate cr!mbled to pieces in 191; the A!strian 6ermans instinctively raised an o!tcry

for !nion with their 6erman fatherland% (hat was the voice of a !nanimo!s yearning in the hearts of the

whole people for a ret!rn to the !nforgotten home of their fathers% !t s!ch a general yearning co!ld not be

e3plained e3cept by attrib!ting the ca!se of it to the historical training thro!gh which the individ!alA!strian 6ermans had passed% (herein lay a spring that never dried !p% 7specially in times of distraction

and forgetf!lness its +!iet voice was a reminder of the past, bidding the people to loo& o!t beyond the mere

welfare of the moment to a new f!t!re%(he teaching of !niversal history in what are called the middle schools is still very !nsatisfactory% Few



teachers realie that the p!rpose of teaching history is not the memoriing of some dates and facts, that the

st!dent is not interested in &nowing the e3act date of a battle or the birthday of some marshal or other, and

not at all - or at least only very insignificantly - interested in &nowing when the crown of his fathers was

placed on the brow of some monarch% (hese are certainly not loo&ed !pon as important matters%(o st!dy history means to search for and discover the forces that are the ca!ses of those res!lts which

appear before o!r eyes as historical events% (he art of reading and st!dying consists in remembering the

essentials and forgetting what is not essential%

"robably my whole f!t!re life was determined by the fact that I had a professor of history who !nderstood,as few others !nderstand, how to ma&e this viewpoint prevail in teaching and in e3amining% (his teacher

was ?r% Leopold "oetsch, of the 8ealsch!le at Lin% e was the ideal personification of the +!alities

necessary to a teacher of history in the sense I have mentioned above% An elderly gentleman with a decisive

manner b!t a &indly heart, he was a very attractive spea&er and was able to inspire !s with his ownenth!siasm% 7ven to-day I cannot recall witho!t emotion that venerable personality whose enth!siastic

e3position of history so often made !s entirely forget the present and allow o!rselves to be transported as if

by magic into the past% e penetrated thro!gh the dim mist of tho!sands of years and transformed the

historical memory of the dead past into a living reality% /hen we listened to him we became afire withenth!siasm and we were sometimes moved even to tears%

It was still more fort!nate that this professor was able not only to ill!strate the past by e3amples from the

present b!t from the past he was also able to draw a lesson for the present% e !nderstood better than any

other the everyday problems that were then agitating o!r minds% (he national fervo!r which we felt in o!r

own small way was !tilied by him as an instr!ment of o!r ed!cation, inasm!ch as he often appealed to o!r national sense of hono!r> for in that way he maintained order and held o!r attention m!ch more easily than

he co!ld have done by any other means% It was beca!se I had s!ch a professor that history became my

favo!rite s!bect% As a nat!ral conse+!ence, b!t witho!t the conscio!s connivance of my professor, I thenand there became a yo!ng rebel% !t who co!ld have st!died 6erman history !nder s!ch a teacher and not

become an enemy of that 'tate whose r!lers e3ercised s!ch a disastro!s infl!ence on the destinies of the

6erman nation5 Finally, how co!ld one remain the faithf!l s!bect of the o!se of absb!rg, whose past

history and present cond!ct proved it to be ready ever and always to betray the interests of the 6erman people for the sa&e of paltry personal interests5 ?id not we as yo!ngsters f!lly realie that the o!se of

absb!rg did not, and co!ld not, have any love for !s 6ermans5

/hat history ta!ght !s abo!t the policy followed by the o!se of absb!rg was corroborated by o!r own

everyday e3periences% In the north and in the so!th the poison of foreign races was eating into the body of o!r people, and even :ienna was steadily becoming more and more a non-6erman city% (he Imperial

o!se# favo!red the $echs on every possible occasion% Indeed it was the hand of the goddess of eternal !stice and ine3orable retrib!tion that ca!sed the most deadly enemy of 6ermanism in A!stria, the

Archd!&e Fran Ferdinand, to fall by the very b!llets which he himself had helped to cast% /or&ing fromabove downwards, he was the chief patron of the movement to ma&e A!stria a 'lav 'tate%

(he b!rdens laid on the sho!lders of the 6erman people were enormo!s and the sacrifices of money and

blood which they had to ma&e were incredibly heavy%

Net anybody who was not +!ite blind m!st have seen that it was all in vain% /hat affected !s most bitterlywas the conscio!sness of the fact that this whole system was morally shielded by the alliance with

6ermany, whereby the slow e3tirpation of 6ermanism in the old A!strian onarchy seemed in some way

to be more or less sanctioned by 6ermany herself% absb!rg hypocrisy, which endeavo!red o!twardly to

ma&e the people believe that A!stria still remained a 6erman 'tate, increased the feeling of hatred againstthe Imperial o!se and at the same time aro!sed a spirit of rebellion and contempt%

!t in the 6erman 7mpire itself those who were then its r!lers saw nothing of what all this meant% As if

str!c& blind, they stood beside a corpse and in the very symptoms of decomposition they believed that theyrecognied the signs of a renewed vitality% In that !nhappy alliance between the yo!ng 6erman 7mpire andthe ill!sory A!strian 'tate lay the germ of the /orld /ar and also of the final collapse%

In the s!bse+!ent pages of this boo& I shall go to the root of the problem% '!ffice it to say here that in the

very early years of my yo!th I came to certain concl!sions which I have never abandoned% Indeed I became

more profo!ndly convinced of them as the years passed% (hey were0 (hat the dissol!tion of the A!strian7mpire is a preliminary condition for the defence of 6ermany> f!rther, that national feeling is by no means

identical with dynastic patriotism> finally, and above all, that the o!se of absb!rg was destined to bring

misfort!ne to the 6erman nation%As a logical conse+!ence of these convictions, there arose in me a feeling of intense love for my 6erman-



A!strian home and a profo!nd hatred for the A!strian 'tate%

(hat &ind of historical thin&ing which was developed in me thro!gh my st!dy of history at school never left

me afterwards% /orld history became more and more an ine3ha!stible so!rce for the !nderstanding of

contemporary historical events, which means politics% (herefore I will not HlearnH politics b!t let politicsteach me%

A precocio!s revol!tionary in politics I was no less a precocio!s revol!tionary in art% At that time the

provincial capital of Mpper A!stria had a theatre which, relatively spea&ing, was not bad% Almost

everything was played there% /hen I was twelve years old I saw /illiam (ell performed% (hat was my firste3perience of the theatre% 'ome months later I attended a performance of Lohengrin, the first opera I had

ever heard% I was fascinated at once% y yo!thf!l enth!siasm for the ayre!th aster &new no limits%

Again and again I was drawn to hear his operas> and to-day I consider it a great piece of l!c& that these

modest prod!ctions in the little provincial city prepared the way and made it possible for me to appreciatethe better prod!ctions later on%

!t all this helped to intensify my profo!nd aversion for the career that my father had chosen for me> and

this disli&e became especially strong as the ro!gh corners of yo!thf!l boorishness became worn off, a

process which in my case ca!sed a good deal of pain% I became more and more convinced that I sho!ldnever be happy as a 'tate official% And now that the 8ealsch!le had recognied and ac&nowledged my

aptit!de for drawing, my own resol!tion 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 co!ld force me to

become a civil servant% (he only pec!liar feat!re of the sit!ation now was that as I grew bigger I became

more and more interested in architect!re% I considered this fact as a nat!ral development of my flair for painting and I reoiced inwardly that the sphere of my artistic interests was th!s enlarged% I had no notion

that one day it wo!ld have to be otherwise%

(he +!estion of my career was decided m!ch sooner than I co!ld have e3pected%/hen I was in my thirteenth year my father was s!ddenly ta&en from !s% e was still in rob!st health when

a stro&e of apople3y painlessly ended his earthly wanderings and left !s all deeply bereaved% is most

ardent longing was to be able to help his son to advance in a career and th!s save me from the harsh ordeal

that he himself had to go thro!gh% !t it appeared to him then as if that longing were all in vain% And yet,tho!gh he himself was not conscio!s of it, he had sown the seeds of a f!t!re which neither of !s foresaw at

that time%

At first nothing changed o!twardly%

y mother felt it her d!ty to contin!e my ed!cation in accordance with my father#s wishes, which meantthat she wo!ld have me st!dy for the civil service% For my own part I was even more firmly determined

than ever before that !nder no circ!mstances wo!ld I become an official of the 'tate% (he c!rric!l!m andteaching methods followed in the middle school were so far removed from my ideals that I became

profo!ndly indifferent% Illness s!ddenly came to my assistance% /ithin a few wee&s it decided my f!t!reand p!t an end to the long-standing family conflict% y l!ngs became so serio!sly affected that the doctor

advised my mother very strongly not !nder any circ!mstances to allow me to ta&e !p a career which wo!ld

necessitate wor&ing in an office% e ordered that I sho!ld give !p attendance at the 8ealsch!le for a year at

least% /hat I had secretly desired for s!ch a long time, and had persistently fo!ght for, now became areality almost at one stro&e%

Infl!enced by my illness, my mother agreed that I sho!ld leave the 8ealsch!le and attend the Academy%

(hose were happy days, which appeared to me almost as a dream> b!t they were bo!nd to remain only a

dream% (wo years later my mother#s death p!t a br!tal end to all my fine proects% 'he s!cc!mbed to a longand painf!l illness which from the very beginning permitted little hope of recovery% (ho!gh e3pected, her

death came as a terrible blow to me% I respected my father, b!t I loved my mother%

"overty and stern reality forced me to decide promptly%(he meagre reso!rces of the family had been almost entirely !sed !p thro!gh my mother#s severe illness%(he allowance which came to me as an orphan was not eno!gh for the bare necessities of life% 'omehow or

other I wo!ld have to earn my own bread%

/ith my clothes and linen pac&ed in a valise and with an indomitable resol!tion in my heart, I left for

:ienna% I hoped to forestall fate, as my father had done fifty years before% I was determined to becomesomething# - b!t certainly not a civil servant%

$hapter (wo, HNears of '!ffering in :iennaH



/hen my mother died my fate had already been decided in one respect% ?!ring the last months of her

illness I went to :ienna to ta&e the entrance e3amination for the Academy of Fine Arts% Armed with a b!l&y

pac&et of s&etches, I felt convinced that I sho!ld pass the e3amination +!ite easily% At the 8ealsch!le I was

by far the best st!dent in the drawing class, and since that time I had made more than ordinary progress inthe practice of drawing% (herefore I was pleased with myself and was pro!d and happy at the prospect of

what I considered an ass!red s!ccess%

!t there was one misgiving0 It seemed to me that I was better +!alified for drawing than for painting,

especially in the vario!s branches of architect!ral drawing% At the same time my interest in architect!re wasconstantly increasing% And I advanced in this direction at a still more rapid pace after my first visit to

:ienna, which lasted two wee&s% I was not yet si3teen years old% I went to the of !se!m to st!dy the

paintings in the art gallery there> b!t the b!ilding itself capt!red almost all my interest, from early morning

!ntil late at night I spent all my time visiting the vario!s p!blic b!ildings% And it was the b!ildingsthemselves that were always the principal attraction for me% For ho!rs and ho!rs I co!ld stand in

wonderment before the Opera and the "arliament% (he whole 8ing 'trasse had a magic effect !pon me, as

if it were a scene from the (ho!sand-and-one-*ights%

And now I was here for the second time in this bea!tif!l city, impatiently waiting to hear the res!lt of theentrance e3amination b!t pro!dly confident that I had got thro!gh% I was so convinced of my s!ccess that

when the news that I had failed to pass was bro!ght to me it str!c& me li&e a bolt from the s&ies% Net the

fact was that I had failed% I went to see the 8ector and as&ed him to e3plain the reasons why they ref!sed to

accept me as a st!dent in the general 'chool of "ainting, which was part of the Academy% e said that the

s&etches which I had bro!ght with me !n+!estionably showed that painting was not what I was s!ited for b!t that the same s&etches gave clear indications of my aptit!de for architect!ral designing% (herefore the

'chool of "ainting did not come into +!estion for me b!t rather the 'chool of Architect!re, which also

formed part of the Academy% At first it was impossible to !nderstand how this co!ld be so, seeing that I hadnever been to a school for architect!re and had never received any instr!ction in architect!ral designing%

/hen I left the ansen "alace, on the 'chiller "lat, I was +!ite crestfallen% I felt o!t of sorts with myself

for the first time in my yo!ng life% For what I had heard abo!t my capabilities now appeared to me as a

lightning flash which clearly revealed a d!alism !nder which I had been s!ffering for a long time, b!thitherto I co!ld give no clear acco!nt whatsoever of the why and wherefore%

/ithin a few days I myself also &new that I o!ght to become an architect% !t of co!rse the way was very

diffic!lt% I was now forced bitterly to r!e my former cond!ct in neglecting and despising certain s!bects at

the 8ealsch!le% efore ta&ing !p the co!rses at the 'chool of Architect!re in the Academy it was necessaryto attend the (echnical !ilding 'chool> b!t a necessary +!alification for entrance into this school was a

Leaving $ertificate from the iddle 'chool% And this I simply did not have% According to the h!manmeas!re of things my dream of following an artistic calling seemed beyond the limits of possibility%

After the death of my mother I came to :ienna for the third time% (his visit was destined to last severalyears% 'ince I had been there before I had recovered my old calm and resol!teness% (he former self-

ass!rance had come bac&, and I had my eyes steadily fi3ed on the goal% I wo!ld be an architect% Obstacles

are placed across o!r path in life, not to be boggled at b!t to be s!rmo!nted% And I was f!lly determined to

s!rmo!nt these obstacles, having the pict!re of my father constantly before my mind, who had raisedhimself by his own efforts to the position of a civil servant tho!gh he was the poor son of a village

shoema&er% I had a better start, and the possibilities of str!ggling thro!gh were better% At that time my lot in

life seemed to me a harsh one> b!t to-day I see in it the wise wor&ings of "rovidence% (he 6oddess of Fate

cl!tched me in her hands and often threatened to smash me> b!t the will grew stronger as the obstaclesincreased, and finally the will tri!mphed%

I am than&f!l for that period of my life, beca!se it hardened me and enabled me to be as to!gh as I now am%

And I am even more than&f!l beca!se I appreciate the fact that I was th!s saved from the emptiness of alife of ease and that a mother#s darling was ta&en from tender arms and handed over to Adversity as to anew mother% (ho!gh I then rebelled against it as too hard a fate, I am gratef!l that I was thrown into a

world of misery and poverty and th!s came to &now the people for whom I was afterwards to fight%

It was d!ring this period that my eyes were opened to two perils, the names of which I scarcely &new

hitherto and had no notion whatsoever of their terrible significance for the e3istence of the 6erman people%(hese two perils were ar3ism and )!daism%

For many people the name of :ienna signifies innocent ollity, a festive place for happy mortals% For me,

alas, it is a living memory of the saddest period in my life% 7ven to-day the mention of that city aro!sesonly gloomy tho!ghts in my mind% Five years of poverty in that "haecian =C town% Five years in which, first



as a cas!al labo!rer and then as a painter of little trifles, I had to earn my daily bread% And a meagre morsel

indeed it was, not even s!fficient to still the h!nger which I constantly felt% (hat h!nger was the faithf!l

g!ardian which never left me b!t too& part in everything I did% 7very boo& that I bo!ght meant renewed

h!nger, and every visit I paid to the opera meant the intr!sion of that inalienabl companion d!ring thefollowing days% I was always str!ggling with my !nsympathic friend% And yet d!ring that time I learned

more than I had ever learned before% O!tside my architect!ral st!dies and rare visits to the opera, for which

I had to deny myself food, I had no other pleas!re in life e3cept my boo&s%

I read a great deal then, and I pondered deeply over what I read% All the free time after wor& was devotede3cl!sively to st!dy% (h!s within a few years I was able to ac+!ire a stoc& of &nowledge which I find !sef!l

even to-day%

!t more than that% ?!ring those years a view of life and a definite o!tloo& on the world too& shape in my

mind% (hese became the granite basis of my cond!ct at that time% 'ince then I have e3tended thatfo!ndation only very little, and I have changed nothing in it%

On the contrary0 I am firmly convinced to-day that, generally spea&ing, it is in yo!th that men lay the

essential gro!ndwor& of their creative tho!ght, wherever that creative tho!ght e3ists% I ma&e a distinction

between the wisdom of age - which can only arise from the greater prof!ndity and foresight that are basedon the e3periences of a long life - and the creative geni!s of yo!th, which blossoms o!t in tho!ght and

ideas with ine3ha!stible fertility, witho!t being able to p!t these into practice immediately, beca!se of their

very s!perab!ndance% (hese f!rnish the b!ilding materials and plans for the f!t!re> and it is from them that

age ta&es the stones and b!ilds the edifice, !nless the so-called wisdom of the years may have smothered

the creative geni!s of yo!th%(he life which I had hitherto led at home with my parents differed in little or nothing from that of all the

others% I loo&ed forward witho!t apprehension to the morrow, and there was no s!ch thing as a social

problem to be faced% (hose among whom I passed my yo!ng days belonged to the small bo!rgeois class%(herefore it was a world that had very little contact with the world of gen!ine man!al labo!rers% For,

tho!gh at first this may appear astonishing, the ditch which separates that class, which is by no means

economically well-off> from the man!al labo!ring class is often deeper than people thin&% (he reason for

this division, which we may almost call enmity, lies in the fear that dominates a social gro!p which hasonly !st risen above the level of the man!al labo!rer - a fear lest it may fall bac& into its old condition or at

least be classed with the labo!rers% oreover, there is something rep!lsive in remembering the c!lt!ral

indigence of that lower class and their ro!gh manners with one another> so that people who are only on the

first r!ng of the social ladder find it !nbearable to be forced to have any contact with the c!lt!ral level andstandard of living o!t of which they have passed%

And so it happens that very often those who belong to what can really be called the !pper classes find itm!ch easier than do the !pstarts to descend to and intermingle with their fellow beings on the lowest social

level% For by the word !pstart I mean everyone who has raised himself thro!gh his own efforts to a sociallevel higher than that to which he formerly belonged% In the case of s!ch a person the hard str!ggle thro!gh

which he passes often destroys his normal h!man sympathy% is own fight for e3istence &ills his sensibility

for the misery of those who have been left behind%

From this point of view fate had been &ind to me% $irc!mstances forced me to ret!rn to that world of poverty and economic insec!rity above which my father had raised himself in his early days> and th!s the

blin&ers of a narrow petit bo!rgeois ed!cation were torn from my eyes% *ow for the first time I learned to

&now men and I learned to disting!ish between empty appearances or br!tal manners and the real inner

nat!re of the people who o!twardly appeared th!s%At the beginning of the cent!ry :ienna had already ta&en ran& among those cities where social conditions

are ini+!ito!s% ?aling riches and loathsome destit!tion were intermingled in violent contrast% In the

centre and in the Inner $ity one felt the p!lse-beat of an 7mpire which had a pop!lation of fiity-twomillions, with all the perilo!s charm of a 'tate made !p of m!ltiple nationalities% (he daling splendo!r of the $o!rt acted li&e a magnet on the wealth and intelligence of the whole 7mpire% And this attraction was

f!rther strengthened by the dynastic policy of the absb!rg onarchy in centraliing everything in itself

and for itself%

(his centraliing policy was necessary in order to hold together that hotchpotch of heterogeneo!snationalities% !t the res!lt of it was an e3traordinary concentration of higher officials in the city, which

was at one and the same time the metropolis and imperial residence%

!t :ienna was not merely the political and intellect!al centre of the ?an!bian onarchy> it was also thecommercial centre% esides the horde of military officers of high ran&, 'tate officials, artists and scientists,



there was the still vaster horde of wor&ers% Abect poverty confronted the wealth of the aristocracy and the

merchant class face to face% (ho!sands of !nemployed loitered in front of the palaces on the 8ing 'trasse>

and below that :ia (ri!mphalis of the old A!stria the homeless h!ddled together in the m!r& and filth of

the canals%(here was hardly any other 6erman city in which the social problem co!ld be st!died better than in :ienna%

!t here I m!st !tter a warning against the ill!sion that this problem can be st!died# from above

downwards% (he man who has never been in the cl!tches of that cr!shing viper can never &now what its

poison is% An attempt to st!dy it in any other way will res!lt only in s!perficial tal& and sentimentaldel!sions% oth are harmf!l% (he first beca!se it can never go to the root of the +!estion, the second

beca!se it evades the +!estion entirely% I do not &now which is the more nefario!s0 to ignore social distress,

as do the maority of those who have been favo!red by fort!ne and those who have risen in the social scale

thro!gh their own ro!tine labo!r, or the e+!ally s!percilio!s and often tactless b!t always genteelcondescension displayed by people who ma&e a fad of being charitable and who pl!me themselves on

sympathising with the people%# Of co!rse s!ch persons sin more than they can imagine from lac& of

instinctive !nderstanding% And th!s they are astonished to find that the social conscience# on which they

pride themselves never prod!ces any res!lts, b!t often ca!ses their good intentions to be resented> and thenthey tal& of the ingratit!de of the people%

'!ch persons are slow to learn that here there is no place for merely social activities and that there can be

no e3pectation of gratit!de> for in this connection there is no +!estion at all of distrib!ting favo!rs b!t

essentially a matter of retrib!tive !stice% I was protected against the temptation to st!dy the social +!estion

in the way !st mentioned, for the simple reason that I was forced to live in the midst of poverty-stric&en people% (herefore it was not a +!estion of st!dying the problem obectively, b!t rather one of testing its

effects on myself% (ho!gh the rabbit came thro!gh the ordeal of the e3periment, this m!st not be ta&en as

evidence of its harmlessness%/hen I try to-day to recall the s!ccession of impressions received d!ring that time I find that I can do so

only with appro3imate completeness% ere 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 e3perience%At that time it was for the most part not very diffic!lt to find wor&, beca!se I had to see& wor& not as a

s&illed tradesman b!t as a so-called e3tra-hand ready to ta&e any ob that t!rned !p by chance, !st for the

sa&e of earning my daily bread%

(h!s I fo!nd myself in the same sit!ation as all those emigrants who sha&e the d!st of 7!rope from their feet, with the cast-iron determination to lay the fo!ndations of a new e3istence in the *ew /orld and

ac+!ire for themselves a new home% Liberated from all the paralysing pre!dices of class and calling,environment and tradition, they enter any service that opens its doors to them, accepting any wor& that

comes their way, filled more and more with the idea that honest wor& never disgraced anybody, no matter what &ind it may be% And so I was resolved to set both feet in what was for me a new world and p!sh

forward on my own road%

I soon fo!nd o!t that there was some &ind of wor& always to be got, b!t I also learned that it co!ld !st as

+!ic&ly and easily be lost% (he !ncertainty of being able to earn a reg!lar daily livelihood soon appeared tome as the gloomiest feat!re in this new life that I had entered%

Altho!gh the s&illed wor&er was not so fre+!ently thrown idle on the streets as the !ns&illed wor&er, yet the

former was by no means protected against the same fate> beca!se tho!gh he may not have to face h!nger as

a res!lt of !nemployment d!e to the lac& of demand in the labo!r mar&et, the loc&-o!t and the stri&edeprived the s&illed wor&er of the chance to earn his bread% ere the element of !ncertainty in steadily

earning one#s daily bread was the bitterest feat!re of the whole social-economic system itself%

(he co!ntry lad who migrates to the big city feels attracted by what has been described as easy wor& -which it may be in reality - and few wor&ing ho!rs% e is especially entranced by the magic glimmer spread over the big cities% Acc!stomed in the co!ntry to earn a steady wage, he has been ta!ght not to +!it

his former post !ntil a new one is at least in sight% As there is a great scarcity of agric!lt!ral labo!r, the

probability of long !nemployment in the co!ntry has been very small% It is a mista&e to pres!me that the lad

who leaves the co!ntryside for the town is not made of s!ch so!nd material as those who remain at home towor& on the land% On the contrary, e3perience shows that it is the more healthy and more vigoro!s that

emigrate, and not the reverse% Among these emigrants I incl!de not merely those who emigrate to America,

b!t also the servant boy in the co!ntry who decides to leave his native village and migrate to the big citywhere he will be a stranger% e is ready to ta&e the ris& of an !ncertain fate% In most cases he comes to town



with a little money in his poc&et and for the first few days he is not disco!raged if he sho!ld not have the

good fort!ne to find wor&% !t if he finds a ob and then loses it in a little while, the case is m!ch worse% (o

find wor& anew, especially in winter, is often diffic!lt and indeed sometimes impossible% For the first few

wee&s life is still bearable e receives his o!t-of-wor& money from his trade !nion and is th!s enabled tocarry on% !t when the last of his own money is gone and his trade !nion ceases to pay o!t beca!se of the

prolonged !nemployment, then comes the real distress% e now loiters abo!t and is h!ngry% Often he pawns

or sells the last of his belongings% is clothes begin to get shabby and with the increasing poverty of his

o!tward appearance he descends to a lower social level and mi3es !p with a class of h!man beings thro!ghwhom his mind is now poisoned, in addition to his physical misery% (hen 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 wor&% !t the old

story repeats itself% A second time the same thing happens% (hen a third time> and now it is probably m!ch

worse% Little by little he becomes indifferent to this everlasting insec!rity% Finally he grows !sed to therepetition% (h!s even a man who is normally of ind!strio!s habits grows careless in his whole attit!de

towards life and grad!ally becomes an instr!ment in the hands of !nscr!p!lo!s people who e3ploit him for

the sa&e of their own ignoble aims% e has been so often thrown o!t of employment thro!gh no fa!lt of his

own that he is now more or less indifferent whether the stri&e in which he ta&es part be for the p!rpose of sec!ring his economic rights or be aimed at the destr!ction of the 'tate, the whole social order and even

civiliation itself% (ho!gh the idea of going on stri&e may not be to his nat!ral li&ing, yet he oins in it o!t

of sheer indifference%

I saw this process e3emplified before my eyes in tho!sands of cases% And the longer I observed it the

greater became my disli&e for that mammoth city which greedily attracts men to its bosom, in order to brea& them mercilessly in the end% /hen they came they still felt themselves in comm!nion with their own

people at home> if they remained that tie was bro&en%

I was thrown abo!t so m!ch in the life of the metropolis that I e3perienced the wor&ings of this fate in myown person and felt the effects of it in my own so!l% One thing stood o!t clearly before my eyes0 It was the

s!dden changes from wor& to idleness and vice versa> so that the constant fl!ct!ations th!s ca!sed by

earnings and e3pendit!re finally destroyed the sense of thrift for many people and also the habit of

reg!lating e3pendit!re in an intelligent way% (he body appeared to grow acc!stomed to the vicissit!des of food and h!nger, eating heartily in good times and going h!ngry in bad% Indeed h!nger shatters all plans for

rationing e3pendit!re on a reg!lar scale in better times when employment is again fo!nd% (he reason for

this is that the deprivations which the !nemployed wor&er has to end!re m!st be compensated for

psychologically by a persistent mental mirage in which he imagines himself eating heartily once again% Andthis dream develops into s!ch a longing that it t!rns into a morbid imp!lse to cast off all self-restraint when

wor& and wages t!rn !p again% (herefore the moment wor& is fo!nd anew he forgets to reg!late thee3pendit!re of his earnings b!t spends them to the f!ll witho!t thin&ing of to-morrow% (his leads to

conf!sion in the little wee&ly ho!se&eeping b!dget, beca!se the e3pendit!re is not rationally planned%/hen the phenomenon which I have mentioned first happens, the earnings will last perhaps for five days

instead of seven> on s!bse+!ent occasions they will last only for three days> as the habit rec!rs, 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 bys!ch a way of living, especially if the h!sband 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% (hen the wee&#s earnings are spent in common

at home within two or three days% (he family eat and drin& together as long as the money lasts and at the

end of the wee& they h!nger together% (hen the wife wanders abo!t f!rtively in the neighbo!rhood, borrows a little, and r!ns !p small debts with the shop&eepers in an effort to p!ll thro!gh the lean days

towards the end of the wee&% (hey sit down together to the midday meal with only meagre fare on the table,

and often even nothing to eat% (hey wait for the coming payday, tal&ing of it and ma&ing plans> and whilethey are th!s h!ngry they dream of the plenty that is to come% And so the little children become ac+!aintedwith misery in their early years%

!t the evil c!lminates when the h!sband goes his own way from the beginning of the wee& and the wife

protests, simply o!t of love for the children% (hen there are +!arrels and bad feeling and the h!sband ta&es

to drin& according as he becomes estranged from his wife% e now becomes dr!n& every 'at!rday% Fightingfor her own e3istence and that of the children, the wife has to ho!nd him along the road from the factory to

the tavern in order to get a few shillings from him on payday% (hen when he finally comes home, maybe on

the '!nday or the onday, having parted with his last shillings and pence, pitiable scenes follow, scenesthat cry o!t for 6od#s mercy%



I have had act!al e3perience of all this in h!ndreds of cases% At first I was disg!sted and indignant> b!t later

on I came to recognie the whole tragedy of their misfort!ne and to !nderstand the profo!nd ca!ses of it%

(hey were the !nhappy victims of evil circ!mstances%

o!sing conditions were very bad at that time% (he :ienna man!al labo!rers lived in s!rro!ndings of appalling misery% I sh!dder even to-day when I thin& of the woef!l dens in which people dwelt, the night

shelters and the sl!ms, and all the tenebro!s spectacles of ord!re, loathsome filth and wic&edness%

/hat will happen one day when hordes of emancipated slaves come forth from these dens of misery to

swoop down on their !ns!specting fellow men5 For this other world does not thin& abo!t s!ch a possibility%(hey have allowed these things to go on witho!t caring and even witho!t s!specting - in their total lac& of

instinctive !nderstanding - that sooner or later destiny will ta&e its vengeance !nless it will have been

appeased in time%

(o-day I fervidly than& "rovidence for having sent me to s!ch a school% (here I co!ld not ref!se to ta&e aninterest in matters that did not please me% (his school soon ta!ght me a profo!nd lesson%

In order not to despair completely of the people among whom I then lived I had to set on one side the

o!tward appearances of their lives and on the other the reasons why they had developed in that way% (hen I

co!ld hear everything witho!t disco!ragement> for those who emerged from all this misfort!ne and misery,from this filth and o!tward degradation, were not h!man beings as s!ch b!t rather lamentable res!lts of

lamentable laws% In my own life similar hardships prevented me from giving way to a pitying

sentimentality at the sight of these degraded prod!cts which had finally res!lted from the press!re of

circ!mstances% *o, the sentimental attit!de wo!ld be the wrong one to adopt%

7ven in those days I already saw that there was a two-fold method by which alone it wo!ld be possible to bring abo!t an amelioration of these conditions% (his method is0 first, to create better f!ndamental

conditions of social development by establishing a profo!nd feeling for social responsibilities among the

p!blic> second, to combine this feeling for social responsibilities with a r!thless determination to pr!neaway all e3crescences which are incapable of being improved%

)!st as *at!re concentrates its greatest attention, not to the maintenance of what already e3ists b!t on the

selective breeding of offspring in order to carry on the species, so in h!man life also it is less a matter of

artificially improving the e3isting generation - which, owing to h!man characteristics, is impossible inninety-nine cases o!t of a h!ndred - and more a matter of sec!ring from the very start a better road for

f!t!re development%

?!ring my str!ggle for e3istence in :ienna I perceived very clearly that the aim of all social activity m!st

never be merely charitable relief, which is ridic!lo!s and !seless, b!t it m!st rather be a means to find away of eliminating the f!ndamental deficiencies in o!r economic and c!lt!ral life - deficiencies which

necessarily bring abo!t the degradation of the individ!al or at least lead him towards s!ch degradation% (hediffic!lty of employing every means, even the most drastic, to eradicate the hostility prevailing among the

wor&ing classes towards the 'tate is largely d!e to an attit!de of !ncertainty in deciding !pon the inner motives and ca!ses of this contemporary phenomenon% (he gro!nds of this !ncertainty are to be fo!nd

e3cl!sively in the sense of g!ilt which each individ!al feels for having permitted this tragedy of

degradation% For that feeling paralyses every effort at ma&ing a serio!s and firm decision to act% And th!s

beca!se the people whom it concerns are vacillating they are timid and half-hearted in p!tting into effecteven the meas!res which are indispensable for self-preservation% /hen the individ!al is no longer b!rdened

with his own conscio!sness of blame in this regard, then and only then will he have that inner tran+!illity

and o!ter force to c!t off drastically and r!thlessly all the parasite growth and root o!t the weeds%

!t beca!se the A!strian 'tate had almost no sense of social rights or social legislation its inability toabolish those evil e3crescences was manifest%

I do not &now what it was that appalled me most at that time0 the economic misery of those who were then

my companions, their cr!de c!stoms and morals, or the low level of their intellect!al c!lt!re%ow often o!r bo!rgeoisie rises !p in moral indignation on hearing from the mo!th of some pitiable trampthat it is all the same to him whether he be a 6erman or not and that he will find himself at home wherever

he can get eno!gh to &eep body and so!l together% (hey protest sternly against s!ch a lac& of national

pride# and strongly e3press their horror at s!ch sentiments%

!t how many people really as& themselves why it is that their own sentiments are better5 ow many of them !nderstand that their nat!ral pride in being members of so favo!red a nation arises from the

inn!merable s!ccession of instances they have enco!ntered which remind them of the greatness of the

Fatherland and the *ation in all spheres of artistic and c!lt!ral life5 ow many of them realie that pride inthe Fatherland is largely dependent on &nowledge of its greatness in all those spheres5 ?o o!r bo!rgeois



circles ever thin& what a ridic!lo!sly meagre share the people have in that &nowledge which is a necessary

prere+!isite for the feeling of pride in one#s fatherland5

It cannot be obected here that in other co!ntries similar conditions e3ist and that nevertheless the wor&ing

classes in those co!ntries have remained patriotic% 7ven if that were so, it wo!ld be no e3c!se for o!r negligent attit!de% !t it is not so% /hat we call cha!vinistic ed!cation - in the case of the French people,

for e3ample - is only the e3cessive e3altation of the greatness of France in all spheres of c!lt!re or, as the

French say, civiliation% (he French boy is not ed!cated on p!rely obective principles% /herever the

importance of the political and c!lt!ral greatness of his co!ntry is concerned he is ta!ght in the mosts!bective way that one can imagine%

(his ed!cation will always have to be confined to general ideas in a large perspective and these o!ght to be

deeply engraven, by constant repetition if necessary, on the memories and feelings of the people%

In o!r case, however, we are not merely g!ilty of negative sins of omission b!t also of positively pervertingthe little which some individ!als had the l!c& to learn at school% (he rats that poison o!r 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 pict!re the following0

(here is a lodging in a cellar and this lodging consists of two damp rooms% In these rooms a wor&man andhis family live - seven people in all% Let !s ass!me that one of the children is a boy of three years% (hat is

the age at which children first become conscio!s 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 !p to an

advanced age% *ow the narrowness and congestion of those living +!arters do not cond!ce to pleasant

inter-relations% (h!s +!arrels and fits of m!t!al anger arise% (hese people can hardly be said to live withone another, b!t rather down on top of one another% (he small mis!nderstandings which disappear of

themselves in a home where there is eno!gh space for people to go apart from one another for a while, here

become the so!rce of chronic disp!tes% As far as the children are concerned the sit!ation is tolerable fromthis point of view% In s!ch conditions they are constantly +!arrelling with one another, b!t the +!arrels are

+!ic&ly and entirely forgotten% !t when the parents fall o!t with one another these daily bic&erings often

descend to r!deness s!ch as cannot be ade+!ately imagined% (he res!lts of s!ch e3periences m!st become

apparent later on in the children% One m!st have practical e3perience of s!ch a milie! so as to be able to pict!re the state of affairs that arises from these m!t!al recriminations when the father physically assa!lts

the mother and maltreats her in a fit of dr!n&en rage% At the age of si3 the child can no longer ignore those

sordid details which even an ad!lt wo!ld find revolting% Infected with moral poison, bodily !nderno!rished,

and the poor little head filled with vermin, the yo!ng citien# goes to the primary school% /ith diffic!lty he barely learns to read and write% (here is no possibility of learning any lessons at home% !ite the contrary%

(he father and mother themselves tal& before the children in the most disparaging way abo!t the teacher and the school and they are m!ch more inclined to ins!lt the teachers than to p!t their offspring across the

&nee and &noc& so!nd reason into him% /hat the little fellow hears at home does not tend to increaserespect for his h!man s!rro!ndings% ere nothing good is said of h!man nat!re as a whole and every

instit!tion, from the school to the government, is reviled% /hether religion and morals are concerned or the

'tate and the social order, it is all the same> they are all scoffed at% /hen the yo!ng lad leaves school, at the

age of fo!rteen, it wo!ld be diffic!lt to say what are the most stri&ing feat!res of his character, incredibleignorance in so far as real &nowledge is concerned or cynical imp!dence combined with an attit!de towards

morality which is really startling at so yo!ng an age%

/hat station in life can s!ch a person fill, to whom nothing is sacred, who has never e3perienced anything

noble b!t, on the contrary, has been intimately ac+!ainted with the lowest &ind of h!man e3istence5 (hischild of three has got into the habit of reviling all a!thority by the time he is fifteen% e has been

ac+!ainted only with moral filth and vileness, everything being e3cl!ded that might stim!late his tho!ght

towards higher things% And now this yo!ng specimen of h!manity enters the school of life%e leads the same &ind of life which was e3emplified for him by his father d!ring his childhood% e loitersabo!t and comes home at all ho!rs% e now even blac&-g!ards that bro&en-hearted being who gave him

birth% e c!rses 6od and the world and finally ends !p in a o!se of $orrection for yo!ng people% (here he

gets the final polish%

And his bo!rgeois contemporaries are astonished at the lac& of patriotic enth!siasm# which this yo!ngcitien# manifests%

?ay after day the bo!rgeois world are witnesses to the phenomenon of spreading poison among the people

thro!gh the instr!mentality of the theatre and the cinema, g!tter o!rnalism and obscene boo&s> and yetthey are astonished at the deplorable moral standards# and national indifference# of the masses% As if the



cinema bilge and the g!tter press and s!chli&e co!ld inc!lcate &nowledge of the greatness of one#s co!ntry,

apart entirely from the earlier ed!cation of the individ!al%

I then came to !nderstand, +!ic&ly and thoro!ghly, what I had never been aware of before% It was the

following0(he +!estion of nationaliing# a people is first and foremost one of establishing healthy social conditions

which will f!rnish the gro!nds that are necessary for the ed!cation of the individ!al% For only when family

!pbringing and school ed!cation have inc!lcated in the individ!al a &nowledge of the c!lt!ral and

economic and, above all, the political greatness of his own co!ntry - then, and then only, will it be possiblefor him to feel pro!d of being a citien of s!ch a co!ntry% I can fight only for something that I love% I can

love only what I respect% And in order to respect a thing I m!st at least have some &nowledge of it%

As soon as my interest in social +!estions was once awa&ened I began to st!dy them in a f!ndamental way%

A new and hitherto !n&nown world was th!s revealed to me%In the years 19<9-1< I had so far improved my, position that I no longer had to earn my daily bread as a

man!al labo!rer% I was now wor&ing independently as dra!ghtsman, and painter in water colo!rs% (his

mtier was a poor one indeed as far as earnings were concerned> for these were only s!fficient to meet the

bare e3igencies of life% Net it had an interest for me in view of the profession to which I aspired% oreover,when I came home in the evenings I was now no longer dead-tired as formerly, when I !sed to be !nable to

loo& into a boo& witho!t falling asleep almost immediately% y present occ!pation therefore was in line

with the profession I aimed at for the f!t!re% oreover, I was master of my own time and co!ld distrib!te

my wor&ing-ho!rs now better than formerly% I painted in order to earn my bread, and I st!died beca!se I

li&ed it%(h!s I was able to ac+!ire that theoretical &nowledge of the social problem which was a necessary

complement to what I was learning thro!gh act!al e3perience% I st!died all the boo&s which I co!ld find

that dealt with this +!estion and I tho!ght deeply on what I read% I thin& that the milie! in which I thenlived considered me an eccentric person%

esides my interest in the social +!estion I nat!rally devoted myself with enth!siasm to the st!dy of

architect!re% 'ide by side with m!sic, I considered it +!een of the arts% (o st!dy it was for me not wor& b!t

pleas!re% I co!ld read or draw !ntil the small ho!rs of the morning witho!t ever getting tired% And I becamemore and more confident that my dream of a brilliant f!t!re wo!ld become tr!e, even tho!gh I sho!ld have

to wait long years for its f!lfilment% I was firmly convinced that one day I sho!ld ma&e a name for myself

as an architect%

(he fact that, side by side with my professional st!dies, I too& the greatest interest in everything that had todo with politics did not seem to me to signify anything of great importance% On the contrary0 I loo&ed !pon

this practical interest in politics merely as part of an elementary obligation that devolves on every thin&ingman% (hose who have no !nderstanding of the political world aro!nd them have no right to criticie or

complain% On political +!estions therefore I still contin!ed to read and st!dy a great deal% !t reading had probably a different significance for me from that which it has for the average r!n of o!r so-called

intellect!als#%

I &now people who read interminably, boo& after boo&, from page to page, and yet I sho!ld not call them

well-read people#% Of co!rse they &now# an immense amo!nt> b!t their brain seems incapable of assortingand classifying the material which they have gathered from boo&s% (hey have not the fac!lty of

disting!ishing between what is !sef!l and !seless in a boo&> so that they may retain the former in their

minds and if possible s&ip over the latter while reading it, if that be not possible, then - when once read -

throw it overboard as !seless ballast% 8eading is not an end in itself, b!t a means to an end% Its chief p!rpose is to help towards filling in the framewor& which is made !p of the talents and capabilities that

each individ!al possesses% (h!s each one proc!res for himself the implements and materials necessary for

the f!lfilment of his calling in life, no matter whether this be the elementary tas& of earning one#s daily bread or a calling that responds to higher h!man aspirations% '!ch is the first p!rpose of reading% And thesecond p!rpose is to give a general &nowledge of the world in which we live% In both cases, however, the

material which one has ac+!ired thro!gh reading m!st not be stored !p in the memory on a plan that

corresponds to the s!ccessive chapters of the boo&> b!t each little piece of &nowledge th!s gained m!st be

treated as if it were a little stone to be inserted into a mosaic, so that it finds its proper place among all theother pieces and particles that help to form a general world-pict!re in the brain of the reader% Otherwise

only a conf!sed !mble of chaotic notions will res!lt from all this reading% (hat !mble is not merely

!seless, b!t it also tends to ma&e the !nfort!nate possessor of it conceited% For he serio!sly considershimself a well-ed!cated person and thin&s that he !nderstands something of life% e believes that he has



ac+!ired &nowledge, whereas the tr!th is that every increase in s!ch &nowledge# draws him more and

more away from real life, !ntil he finally ends !p in some sanatori!m or ta&es to politics and becomes a

parliamentary dep!ty%

'!ch a person never s!cceeds in t!rning his &nowledge to practical acco!nt when the opport!ne momentarrives> for his mental e+!ipment is not ordered with a view to meeting the demands of everyday life% is

&nowledge is stored in his brain as a literal transcript of the boo&s he has read and the order of s!ccession

in which he has read them% And if Fate sho!ld one day call !pon him to !se some of his boo&-&nowledge

for certain practical ends in life that very call will have to name the boo& and give the n!mber of the page>for the poor noodle himself wo!ld never be able to find the spot where he gathered the information now

called for% !t if the page is not mentioned at the critical moment the widely-read intellect!al will find

himself in a state of hopeless embarrassment% In a high state of agitation he searches for analogo!s 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 e3plain the political achievements of o!r "arliamentary

heroes who hold the highest positions in the government of the co!ntry5 Otherwise we sho!ld have to

attrib!te the doings of s!ch political leaders, not to pathological conditions b!t simply to malice and

chicanery%On the other hand, one who has c!ltivated the art of reading will instantly discern, in a boo& or o!rnal or

pamphlet, what o!ght to be remembered beca!se it meets one#s personal needs or is of val!e as general

&nowledge% /hat he th!s learns is incorporated in his mental analog!e of this or that problem or thing,

f!rther correcting the mental pict!re or enlarging it so that it becomes more e3act and precise% 'ho!ld some

practical problem s!ddenly demand e3amination or sol!tion, memory will immediately select theopport!ne information from the mass that has been ac+!ired thro!gh years of reading and will place this

information at the service of one#s powers of !dgment so as to get a new and clearer view of the problem

in +!estion or prod!ce a definitive sol!tion%Only th!s can reading have any meaning or be worth while%

(he spea&er, for e3ample, who has not the so!rces of information ready to hand which are necessary to a

proper treatment of his s!bect is !nable to defend his opinions against an opponent, even tho!gh those

opinions be perfectly so!nd and tr!e% In every disc!ssion his memory will leave him shamef!lly in thel!rch% e cannot s!mmon !p arg!ments to s!pport his statements or to ref!te his opponent% 'o long as the

spea&er has only to defend himself on his own personal acco!nt, the sit!ation is not serio!s> b!t the evil

comes when $hance places at the head of p!blic affairs s!ch a soi-disant &now-it-all, who in reality &nows

nothing%From early yo!th I endeavo!red to read boo&s in the right way and I was fort!nate in having a good

memory and intelligence to assist me% From that point of view my soo!rn in :ienna was partic!larly !sef!land profitable% y e3periences of everyday life there were a constant stim!l!s to st!dy the most diverse

problems from new angles% Inasm!ch as I was in a position to p!t theory to the test of reality and reality tothe test of theory, I was safe from the danger of pedantic theoriing on the one hand and, on the other, from

being too impressed by the s!perficial aspects of reality%

(he e3perience of everyday life at that time determined me to ma&e a f!ndamental theoretical st!dy of two

most important +!estions o!tside of the social +!estion%It is impossible to say when I might have started to ma&e a thoro!gh st!dy of the doctrine and

characteristics of ar3ism were it not for the fact that I then literally ran head foremost into the problem%

/hat I &new of 'ocial ?emocracy in my yo!th was precio!s little and that little was for the most part

wrong% (he fact that it led the str!ggle for !niversal s!ffrage and the secret ballot gave me an inner satisfaction> for my reason then told me that this wo!ld wea&en the absb!rg regime, which I so

thoro!ghly detested% I was convinced that even if it sho!ld sacrifice the 6erman element the ?an!bian

'tate co!ld not contin!e to e3ist% 7ven at the price of a long and slow 'lavi-ation of the A!strian 6ermansthe 'tate wo!ld sec!re no g!arantee of a really d!rable 7mpire> beca!se it was very +!estionable if andhow far the 'lavs possessed the necessary capacity for constr!ctive politics% (herefore I welcomed every

movement that might lead towards the final disr!ption of that impossible 'tate which had decreed that it

wo!ld stamp o!t the 6erman character in ten millions of people% (he more this babel of tong!es wro!ght

discord and disr!ption, even in the "arliament, the nearer the ho!r approached for the dissol!tion of thisabylonian 7mpire% (hat wo!ld mean the liberation of my 6erman A!strian people, and only then wo!ld it

become possible for them to be re-!nited to the otherland%

Accordingly I had no feelings of antipathy towards the act!al policy of the 'ocial ?emocrats% (hat itsavowed p!rpose was to raise the level of the wor&ing classes - which in my ignorance I then foolishly



believed - was a f!rther reason why I sho!ld spea& in favo!r of 'ocial ?emocracy rather than against it%

!t the feat!res that contrib!ted most to estrange me from the 'ocial ?emocratic movement was its hostile

attit!de towards the str!ggle for the conservation of 6ermanism in A!stria, its lamentable cocotting with

the 'lav comrades#, who received these approaches favo!rably as long as any practical advantages wereforthcoming b!t otherwise maintained a ha!ghty reserve, th!s giving the import!nate mendicants the sort

of answer their behavio!r deserved%

And so at the age of seventeen the word ar3ism# was very little &nown to me, while I loo&ed on 'ocial

?emocracy# and 'ocialism# as synonymo!s e3pressions% It was only as the res!lt of a s!dden blow fromthe ro!gh hand of Fate that my eyes were opened to the nat!re of this !nparalleled system for d!ping the

p!blic%

itherto my ac+!aintance with the 'ocial ?emocratic "arty 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 s!dden I was bro!ght face to face with the prod!cts of their teaching and what they

called their Weltanschhauung % In this way a few months s!fficed for me to learn something which !nder

other circ!mstances might have necessitated decades of st!dy - namely, that !nder the cloa& of social virt!e

and love of one#s neighbo!r a veritable pestilence was spreading abroad and that if this pestilence be notstamped o!t of the world witho!t delay it may event!ally s!cceed in e3terminating the h!man race%

I first came into contact with the 'ocial ?emocrats while wor&ing in the b!ilding trade%

From the very time that I started wor& the sit!ation was not very pleasant for me% y clothes were still

rather decent% I was caref!l of my speech and I was reserved in manner% I was so occ!pied with thin&ing of

my own present lot and f!t!re possibilities that I did not ta&e m!ch of an interest in my immediates!rro!ndings% I had so!ght wor& so that I sho!ldn#t starve and at the same time so as to be able to ma&e

f!rther headway with my st!dies, tho!gh this headway might be slow% "ossibly I sho!ld not have bothered

to be interested in my companions were it not that on the third or fo!rth day an event occ!rred whichforced me to ta&e a definite stand% I was ordered to oin the trade !nion%

At that time I &new nothing abo!t the trades !nions% I had had no opport!nity of forming an opinion on

their !tility or in!tility, as the case might be% !t when I was told that I m!st oin the !nion I ref!sed% (he

gro!nds which I gave for my ref!sal were simply that I &new nothing abo!t the matter and that anyhow Iwo!ld not allow myself to be forced into anything% "robably the former reason saved me from being

thrown o!t right away% (hey probably tho!ght that within a few days I might be converted# and become

more docile% !t if they tho!ght that they were profo!ndly mista&en% After two wee&s I fo!nd it !tterly

impossible for me to ta&e s!ch a step, even if I had been willing to ta&e it at first% ?!ring those fo!rteendays I came to &now my fellow wor&men better, and no power in the world co!ld have moved me to oin

an organiation whose representatives had meanwhile shown themselves in a light which I fo!nd so!nfavo!rable%

?!ring the first days my resentment was aro!sed%At midday some of my fellow wor&ers !sed to ado!rn to the nearest tavern, while the others remained on

the b!ilding premises and there ate their midday meal, which in most cases was a very scanty one% (hese

were married men% (heir wives bro!ght them the midday so!p in dilapidated vessels% (owards the end of

the wee& there was a grad!al increase in the n!mber of those who remained to eat their midday meal on the b!ilding premises% I !nderstood the reason for this afterwards% (hey now tal&ed politics%

I dran& my bottle of mil& and ate my morsel of bread somewhere on the o!ts&irts, while I circ!mspectly

st!died my environment or else fell to meditating on my own harsh lot% Net I heard more than eno!gh% And

I often tho!ght that some of what they said was meant for my ears, in the hope of bringing me to a decision%!t all that I heard had the effect of aro!sing the strongest antagonism in me% 7verything was disparaged -

the nation, beca!se it was held to be an invention of the capitalist# class Bhow often I had to listen to that

phraseJC> the Fatherland, beca!se it was held to be an instr!ment in the hands of the bo!rgeoisie for thee3ploitation of# the wor&ing masses> the a!thority of the law, beca!se that was a means of holding down the proletariat> religion, as a means of doping the people, so as to e3ploit them afterwards> morality, as a badge

of st!pid and sheepish docility% (here was nothing that they did not drag in the m!d%

At first I remained silent> b!t that co!ld not last very long% (hen I began to ta&e part in the disc!ssion and

to reply to their statements% I had to recognie, however, that this was bo!nd to be entirely fr!itless, as longas I did not have at least a certain amo!nt of definite information abo!t the +!estions that were disc!ssed%

'o I decided to cons!lt the so!rce from which my interloc!tors claimed to have drawn their so-called

wisdom% I devo!red boo& after boo&, pamphlet after pamphlet%eanwhile, we arg!ed with one another on the b!ilding premises% From day to day I was becoming better



informed than my companions in the s!bects on which they claimed to be e3perts% (hen a day came when

the more redo!btable of my adversaries resorted to the most effective weapon they had to replace the force

of reason% (his was intimidation and physical force% 'ome of the leaders among my adversaries ordered me

to leave the b!ilding or else get fl!ng down from the scaffolding% As I was +!ite alone I co!ld not p!t !pany physical resistance> so I chose the first alternative and departed, richer however by an e3perience%

I went away f!ll of disg!st> b!t at the same time so deeply moved that it was +!ite impossible for me to

t!rn my bac& on the whole sit!ation and thin& no more abo!t it% /hen my anger began to calm down the

spirit of obstinacy got the !pper hand and I decided that at all costs I wo!ld get bac& to wor& again in the b!ilding trade% (his decision became all the stronger a few wee&s later, when my little savings had entirely

r!n o!t and h!nger cl!tched me once again in its merciless arms% *o alternative was left to me% I got wor&

again and had to leave it for the same reasons as before%

(hen I as&ed myself0 Are these men worthy of belonging to a great people5 (he +!estion was profo!ndlydist!rbing> for if the answer were Nes#, then the str!ggle to defend one#s nationality is no longer worth all

the tro!ble and sacrifice we demand of o!r best elements if it be in the interests of s!ch a rabble% On the

other hand, if the answer had to be *o - these men are not worthy of the nation#, then o!r nation is poor

indeed in men% ?!ring those days of mental ang!ish and deep meditation I saw before my mind the ever-increasing and menacing army of people who co!ld no longer be rec&oned as belonging to their own

nation%

It was with +!ite a different feeling, some days later, that I gaed on the interminable ran&s, fo!r abreast, of

:iennese wor&men parading at a mass demonstration% I stood d!mbfo!nded for almost two ho!rs, watching

that enormo!s h!man dragon which slowly !ncoiled itself there before me% /hen I finally left the s+!areand wandered in the direction of my lodgings I felt dismayed and depressed% On my way I noticed the

Arbeitereit!ng B(he /or&man#s )o!rnalC in a tobacco shop% (his was the chief press-organ of the old

A!strian 'ocial ?emocracy% In a cheap caf, where the common people !sed to foregather and where Ioften went to read the papers, the Arbeitereit!ng was also displayed% !t hitherto I co!ld not bring myself

to do more than glance at the wretched thing for a co!ple of min!tes0 for its whole tone was a sort of

mental vitriol to me% Mnder the depressing infl!ence of the demonstration I had witnessed, some interior

voice !rged me to b!y the paper in that tobacco shop and read it thro!gh% 'o I bro!ght it home with me andspent the whole evening reading it, despite the steadily mo!nting rage provo&ed by this ceaseless

o!tpo!ring of falsehoods%

I now fo!nd that in the social democratic daily papers I co!ld st!dy the inner character of this politico-

philosophic system m!ch better than in all their theoretical literat!re%For there was a stri&ing discrepancy between the two% In the literary eff!sions which dealt with the theory

of 'ocial ?emocracy there was a display of high-so!nding phraseology abo!t liberty and h!man dignityand bea!ty, all prom!lgated with an air of profo!nd wisdom and serene prophetic ass!rance> a

metic!lo!sly-woven glitter of words to dale and mislead the reader% On the other hand, the daily "ressinc!lcated this new doctrine of h!man redemption in the most br!tal fashion% *o means were too base,

provided they co!ld be e3ploited in the campaign of slander% (hese o!rnalists were real virt!osos in the art

of twisting facts and presenting them in a deceptive form% (he theoretical literat!re was intended for the

simpletons of the soi-disant intellect!als belonging to the middle and, nat!rally, the !pper classes% (henewspaper propaganda was intended for the masses%

(his probing into boo&s and newspapers and st!dying the teachings of 'ocial ?emocracy reawa&ened my

love for my own people% And th!s what at first seemed an impassable chasm became the occasion of a

closer affection%aving once !nderstood the wor&ing of the colossal system for poisoning the pop!lar mind, only a fool

co!ld blame the victims of it% ?!ring the years that followed I became more independent and, as I did so, I

became better able to !nderstand the inner ca!se of the s!ccess achieved by this 'ocial ?emocratic gospel%I now realied the meaning and p!rpose of those br!tal orders which prohibited the reading of all boo&sand newspapers that were not red# and at the same time demanded that only the red# meetings sho!ld be

attended% In the clear light of br!tal reality I was able to see what m!st have been the inevitable

conse+!ences of that intolerant teaching%

(he psyche of the broad masses is accessible only to what is strong and !ncompromising% Li&e a womanwhose inner sensibilities are not so m!ch !nder the sway of abstract reasoning b!t are always s!bect to the

infl!ence of a vag!e emotional longing for the strength that completes her being, and who wo!ld rather

bow to the strong man than dominate the wea&ling - in li&e manner the masses of the people prefer the r!ler to the s!ppliant and are filled with a stronger sense of mental sec!rity by a teaching that broo&s no rival



than by a teaching which offers them a liberal choice% (hey have very little idea of how to ma&e s!ch a

choice and th!s they are prone to feel that they have been abandoned% (hey feel very little shame at being

terroried intellect!ally and they are scarcely conscio!s of the fact that their freedom as h!man beings is

imp!dently ab!sed> and th!s they have not the slightest s!spicion of the intrinsic fallacy of the wholedoctrine% (hey see only the r!thless force and br!tality of its determined !tterances, to which they always

s!bmit%

If 'ocial ?emocracy sho!ld be opposed by a more tr!thf!l teaching, then even, tho!gh the str!ggle be of

the bitterest &ind, this tr!thf!l teaching will finally prevail provided it be enforced with e+!al r!thlessness%/ithin less than two years I had gained a clear !nderstanding of 'ocial ?emocracy, in its teaching and the

techni+!e of its operations%

I recognied the infamy of that techni+!e whereby the movement carried on a campaign of mental

terrorism against the bo!rgeoisie, who are neither morally nor spirit!ally e+!ipped to withstand s!chattac&s% (he tactics of 'ocial ?emocracy consisted in opening, at a given signal, a veritable dr!m-fire of

lies and cal!mnies against the man whom they believed to be the most redo!btable of their adversaries,

!ntil the nerves of the latter gave way and they sacrificed the man who was attac&ed, simply in the hope of

being allowed to live in peace% !t the hope proved always to be a foolish one, for they were never left in peace%

(he same tactics are repeated again and again, !ntil fear of these mad dogs e3ercises, thro!gh s!ggestion, a

paralysing effect on their :ictims%

(hro!gh its own e3perience 'ocial ?emocracy learned the val!e of strength, and for that reason it attac&s

mostly those in whom it scents st!ff of the more stalwart &ind, which is indeed a very rare possession% Onthe other hand it praises every wea&ling among its adversaries, more or less ca!tio!sly, according to the

meas!re of his mental +!alities &nown or pres!med% (hey have less fear of a man of geni!s who lac&s will-

power than of a vigoro!s character with mediocre intelligence and at the same time they highly commendthose who are devoid of intelligence and will-power%

(he 'ocial ?emocrats &now how to create the impression that they alone are the protectors of peace% In this

way, acting very circ!mspectly b!t never losing sight of their !ltimate goal, they con+!er one position after

another, at one time by methods of +!iet intimidation and at another time by sheer daylight robbery,employing these latter tactics at those moments when p!blic attention is t!rned towards other matters from

which it does not wish to be diverted, or when the p!blic considers an incident too trivial to create a scandal

abo!t it and th!s provo&e the anger of a malignant opponent%

(hese tactics are based on an acc!rate estimation of h!man frailties and m!st lead to s!ccess, with almostmathematical certainty, !nless the other side also learns how to fight poison gas with poison gas% (he

wea&er nat!res m!st be told that here it is a case of to be or not to be%I also came to !nderstand that physical intimidation has its significance for the mass as well as for the

individ!al% ere again the 'ocialists had calc!lated acc!rately on the psychological effect%Intimidation in wor&shops and in factories, in assembly halls and at mass demonstrations, will always meet

with s!ccess as long as it does not have to enco!nter the same &ind of terror in a stronger form%

(hen of co!rse the "arty will raise a horrified o!tcry, yelling bl!e m!rder and appealing to the a!thority of

the 'tate, which they have !st rep!diated% In doing this their aim generally is to add to the generalconf!sion, so that they may have a better opport!nity of reaching their own goal !nobserved% (heir idea is

to find among the higher government officials some bovine creat!re who, in the st!pid hope that he may

win the good graces of these awe-inspiring opponents so that they may remember him in case of f!t!re

event!alities, will help them now to brea& all those who may oppose this world pest%(he impression which s!ch s!ccessf!l tactics ma&e on the minds of the broad masses, whether they be

adherents or opponents, can be estimated only by one who &nows the pop!lar mind, not from boo&s b!t

from practical life% For the s!ccesses which are th!s obtained are ta&en by the adherents of 'ocial?emocracy as a tri!mphant symbol of the righteo!sness of their own ca!se> on the other hand the beatenopponent very often loses faith in the effectiveness of any f!rther resistance%

(he more I !nderstood the methods of physical intimidation that were employed, the more sympathy I had

for the m!ltit!de that had s!cc!mbed to it%

I am than&f!l now for the ordeal which I had to go thro!gh at that time> for it was the means of bringing meto thin& &indly again of my own people, inasm!ch as the e3perience enabled me to disting!ish between the

false leaders and the victims who have been led astray%

/e m!st loo& !pon the latter simply as victims% I have !st now tried to depict a few traits which e3pressthe mentality of those on the lowest r!ng of the social ladder> b!t my pict!re wo!ld be disproportionate if I



do not add that amid the social depths I still fo!nd light> for I e3perienced a rare spirit of self-sacrifice and

loyal comradeship among those men, who demanded little from life and were content amid their modest

s!rro!ndings% (his was tr!e especially of the older generation of wor&men% And altho!gh these +!alities

were disappearing more and more in the yo!nger generation, owing to the all-pervading infl!ence of the big city, yet among the yo!nger generation also there were many who were so!nd at the core and who were

able to maintain themselves !ncontaminated amid the sordid s!rro!ndings of their everyday e3istence% If

these men, who in many cases meant well and were !pright in themselves, gave the s!pport to the political

activities carried on by the common enemies of o!r people, that was beca!se those decent wor&people didnot and co!ld not grasp the downright infamy of the doctrine ta!ght by the socialist agitators% F!rthermore,

it was beca!se no other section of the comm!nity bothered itself abo!t the lot of the wor&ing classes%

Finally, the social conditions became s!ch that men who otherwise wo!ld have acted differently were

forced to s!bmit to them, even tho!gh !nwillingly at first% A day came when poverty gained the !pper handand drove those wor&men into the 'ocial ?emocratic ran&s%

On inn!merable occasions the bo!rgeoisie too& a definite stand against even the most legitimate h!man

demands of the wor&ing classes% (hat cond!ct was ill-!dged and indeed immoral and co!ld bring no gain

whatsoever to the bo!rgeois class% (he res!lt was that the honest wor&man abandoned the original conceptof the trades !nion organiation and was dragged into politics%

(here were millions and millions of wor&men who began by being hostile to the 'ocial ?emocratic "arty>

b!t their defences were repeatedly stormed and finally they had to s!rrender% Net this defeat was d!e to the

st!pidity of the bo!rgeois parties, who had opposed every social demand p!t forward by the wor&ing class%

(he short-sighted ref!sal to ma&e an effort towards improving labo!r conditions, the ref!sal to adoptmeas!res which wo!ld ins!re the wor&man in case of accidents in the factories, the ref!sal to forbid child

labo!r, the ref!sal to consider protective meas!res for female wor&ers, especially e3pectant mothers - all

this was of assistance to the 'ocial ?emocratic leaders, who were than&f!l for every opport!nity whichthey co!ld e3ploit for forcing the masses into their net% O!r bo!rgeois parties can never repair the damage

that res!lted from the mista&e they then made% For they sowed the seeds of hatred when they opposed all

efforts at social reform% And th!s they gave, at least, apparent gro!nds to !stify the claim p!t forward by

the 'ocial ?emocrats - namely, that they alone stand !p for the interests of the wor&ing class%And this became the principal gro!nd for the moral !stification of the act!al e3istence of the (rades

Mnions, so that the labo!r organiation became from that time onwards the chief political recr!iting gro!nd

to swell the ran&s of the 'ocial ?emocratic "arty%

/hile th!s st!dying the social conditions aro!nd me I was forced, whether I li&ed it or not, to decide on theattit!de I sho!ld ta&e towards the (rades Mnions% eca!se I loo&ed !pon them as inseparable from the

'ocial ?emocratic "arty, my decision was hasty - and mista&en% I rep!diated them as a matter of co!rse%!t on this essential +!estion also Fate intervened and gave me a lesson, with the res!lt that I changed the

opinion which I had first formed%/hen I was twenty years old I had learned to disting!ish between the (rades Mnion 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 (rades Mnion as a political instr!ment !sed by the "arty in the class str!ggle%

(he 'ocial ?emocrats !nderstood the enormo!s importance of the (rades Mnion movement% (heyappropriated it as an instr!ment and !sed it with s!ccess, while the bo!rgeois parties failed to !nderstand it

and th!s lost their political prestige% (hey tho!ght that their own arrogant :eto wo!ld arrest the logical

development of the movement and force it into an illogical position% !t it is abs!rd and also !ntr!e to say

that the (rades Mnion movement is in itself hostile to the nation% (he opposite is the more correct view% If the activities of the (rades Mnion are directed towards improving the condition of a class, and s!cceed in

doing so, s!ch activities are not against the Fatherland or the 'tate b!t are, in the tr!est sense of the word,

national% In that way the trades !nion organiation helps to create the social conditions which areindispensable in a general system of national ed!cation% It deserves high recognition when it destroys the psychological and physical germs of social disease and th!s fosters the general welfare of the nation%

It is s!perfl!o!s to as& whether the (rades Mnion is indispensable%

'o long as there are employers who attac& social !nderstanding and have wrong ideas of !stice and fair

play it is not only the right b!t also the d!ty of their employees - who are, after all, an integral part of o!r people - to protect the general interests against the greed and !nreason of the individ!al% For to safeg!ard

the loyalty and confidence of the people is as m!ch in the interests of the nation as to safeg!ard p!blic

health%oth are serio!sly menaced by dishono!rable employers who are not conscio!s of their d!ty as members of



the national comm!nity% (heir personal avidity or irresponsibility sows the seeds of f!t!re tro!ble% (o

eliminate the ca!ses of s!ch a development is an action that s!rely deserves well of the co!ntry%

It m!st not be answered here that the individ!al wor&man is free at any time to escape from the

conse+!ences of an in!stice which he has act!ally s!ffered at the hands of an employer, or which he thin&she has s!ffered - in other words, he can leave% *o% (hat arg!ment is only a r!se to detract attention from the

+!estion at iss!e% Is it, or is it not, in the interests of the nation to remove the ca!ses of social !nrest5 If it is,

then the fight m!st be carried on with the only weapons that promise s!ccess% !t the individ!al wor&man

is never in a position to stand !p against the might of the big employer> for the +!estion here is not one thatconcerns the tri!mph of right% If in s!ch a relation right had been recognied as the g!iding principle, then

the conflict co!ld not have arisen at all% !t here it is a +!estion of who is the stronger% If the case were

otherwise, the sentiment of !stice alone wo!ld solve the disp!te in an hono!rable way> or, to p!t the case

more correctly, matters wo!ld not have come to s!ch a disp!te at all% *o% If !nsocial and dishono!rable treatment of men provo&es resistance, then the stronger party can impose

its decision in the conflict !ntil the constit!tional legislative a!thorities do away with the evil thro!gh

legislation% (herefore it is evident that if the individ!al wor&man is to have any chance at all of winning

thro!gh in the str!ggle he m!st be gro!ped with his fellow wor&men and present a !nited front before theindivid!al employer, who incorporates in his own person the massed strength of the vested interests in the

ind!strial or commercial !nderta&ing which he cond!cts%

(h!s the trades !nions can hope to inc!lcate and strengthen a sense of social responsibility in wor&aday life

and open the road to practical res!lts% In doing this they tend to remove those ca!ses of friction which are a

contin!al so!rce of discontent and complaint%lame for the fact that the trades !nions do not f!lfil this m!ch-desired f!nction m!st be laid at the doors of

those who barred the road to legislative social reform, or rendered s!ch a reform ineffective by sabotaging

it thro!gh their political infl!ence%(he political bo!rgeoisie failed to !nderstand - or, rather, they did not wish to !nderstand - the importance

of the trades !nion movement% (he 'ocial ?emocrats accordingly seied the advantage offered them by this

mista&en policy and too& the labo!r movement !nder their e3cl!sive protection, witho!t any protest from

the other side% In this way they established for themselves a solid b!lwar& behind which they co!ld safelyretire whenever the str!ggle ass!med a critical aspect% (h!s the gen!ine p!rpose of the movement grad!ally

fell into oblivion, and was replaced by new obectives% For the 'ocial ?emocrats never tro!bled themselves

to respect and !phold the original p!rpose for which the trade !nionist movement was fo!nded% (hey

simply too& over the ovement, loc&, stoc& and barrel, to serve their own political ends%/ithin a few decades the (rades Mnion ovement was transformed, by the e3pert hand of 'ocial

?emocracy, from an instr!ment which had been originally fashioned for the defence of h!man rights intoan instr!ment for the destr!ction of the national economic str!ct!re% (he interests of the wor&ing class were

not allowed for a moment to cross the path of this p!rpose> for in politics the application of economic press!re is always possible if the one side be s!fficiently !nscr!p!lo!s and the other s!fficiently inert and

docile% In this case both conditions were f!lfilled%

y the beginning of the present cent!ry the (rades Mnionist ovement had already ceased to recognie the

p!rpose for which it had been fo!nded% From year to year it fell more and more !nder the political controlof the 'ocial ?emocrats, !ntil it finally came to be !sed as a battering-ram in the class str!ggle% (he plan

was to shatter, by means of constantly repeated blows, the economic edifice in the b!ilding of which so

m!ch time and care had been e3pended% Once this obective had been reached, the destr!ction of the 'tate

wo!ld become a matter of co!rse, beca!se the 'tate wo!ld already have been deprived of its economicfo!ndations% Attention to the real interests of the wor&ing-classes, on the part of the 'ocial ?emocrats,

steadily decreased !ntil the c!nning leaders saw that it wo!ld be in their immediate political interests if the

social and c!lt!ral demands of the broad masses remained !nheeded> for there was a danger that if thesemasses once felt content they co!ld no longer be employed as mere passive material in the politicalstr!ggle%

(he 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 m!ch an3iety among them

that they s!ppressed and opposed even the most elementary meas!res of social reform% And conditionswere s!ch that those leaders did not have to tro!ble abo!t attempting to !stify s!ch an illogical policy%

As the masses were ta!ght to increase and heighten their demands the possibility of satisfying them

dwindled and whatever ameliorative meas!res were ta&en became less and less significant> so that it was atthat time possible to pers!ade the masses that this ridic!lo!s meas!re in which the most sacred claims of



the wor&ing-classes were being granted represented a diabolical plan to wea&en their fighting power in this

easy way and, if possible, to paralyse it% One will not be astonished at the s!ccess of these allegations if one

remembers what a small meas!re of thin&ing power the broad masses possess%

In the bo!rgeois camp there was high indignation over the bad faith of the 'ocial ?emocratic tactics> b!tnothing was done to draw a practical concl!sion and organie a co!nter attac& from the bo!rgeois side% (he

fear of the 'ocial ?emocrats, to improve the miserable conditions of the wor&ing-classes o!ght to have

ind!ced the bo!rgeois parties to ma&e the most energetic efforts in this direction and th!s snatch from the

hands of the class-warfare leaders their most important weapon> b!t nothing of this &ind happened%Instead of attac&ing the position of their adversaries the bo!rgeoisie allowed itself to be pressed and

harried% Finally it adopted means that were so tardy and so insignificant that they were ineffective and were

rep!diated% 'o the whole sit!ation remained !st as it had been before the bo!rgeois intervention> b!t the

discontent had thereby become more serio!s%Li&e a threatening storm, the Free (rades Mnion# hovered above the political horion and above the life of

each individ!al% It was one of the most frightf!l instr!ments of terror that threatened the sec!rity and

independence of the national economic str!ct!re, the fo!ndations of the 'tate and the liberty of the

individ!al% Above all, it was the Free (rades Mnion# that t!rned democracy into a ridic!lo!s and scorned phrase, ins!lted the ideal of liberty and stigmatied that of fraternity with the slogan If yo! will not

become o!r comrade we shall crac& yo!r s&!ll#%

It was th!s that I then came to &now this friend of h!manity% ?!ring the years that followed my &nowledge

of it became wider and deeper> b!t I have never changed anything in that regard%

(he more I became ac+!ainted with the e3ternal forms of 'ocial ?emocracy, the greater became my desireto !nderstand the inner nat!re of its doctrines%

For this p!rpose the official literat!re of the "arty co!ld not help very m!ch% In disc!ssing economic

+!estions its statements were false and its proofs !nso!nd% In treating of political aims its attit!de wasinsincere% F!rthermore, its modern methods of chicanery in the presentation of its arg!ments were

profo!ndly rep!gnant to me% Its flamboyant sentences, its obsc!re and incomprehensible phrases, pretended

to contain great tho!ghts, b!t they were devoid of tho!ght, and meaningless% One wo!ld have to be a

decadent ohemian in one of o!r modern cities in order to feel at home in that labyrinth of mentalaberration, so that he might discover intimate e3periences# amid the stin&ing f!mes of this literary ?adism%

(hese writers were obvio!sly co!nting on the proverbial h!mility of a certain section of o!r people, who

believe that a person who is incomprehensible m!st be profo!ndly wise%

In confronting the theoretical falsity and abs!rdity of that doctrine with the reality of its e3ternalmanifestations, I grad!ally came to have a clear idea of the ends at which it aimed%

?!ring s!ch moments I had dar& presentiments and feared something evil% I had before me a teachinginspired by egoism and hatred, mathematically calc!lated to win its victory, b!t the tri!mph of which

wo!ld be a mortal blow to h!manity%eanwhile I had discovered the relations e3isting between this destr!ctive teaching and the specific

character of a people, who !p to that time had been to me almost !n&nown%

nowledge of the )ews is the only &ey whereby one may !nderstand the inner nat!re and therefore the real

aims of 'ocial ?emocracy%(he man who has come to &now this race has s!cceeded in removing from his eyes the veil thro!gh which

he had seen the aims and meaning of his "arty in a false light> and then, o!t of the m!r& and fog of social

phrases rises the grimacing fig!re of ar3ism%

(o-day it is hard and almost impossible for me to say when the word )ew# first began to raise any partic!lar tho!ght in my mind% I do not remember even having heard the word at home d!ring my father#s

lifetime% If this name were mentioned in a derogatory sense I thin& the old gentleman wo!ld !st have

considered those who !sed it in this way as being !ned!cated reactionaries% In the co!rse of his career hehad come to be more or less a cosmopolitan, with strong views on nationalism, which had its effect on meas well% In school, too, I fo!nd no reason to alter the pict!re of things I had formed at home%

At the 8ealsch!le I &new one )ewish boy% /e were all on o!r g!ard in o!r relations with him, b!t only

beca!se his reticence and certain actions of his warned !s to be discreet% eyond that my companions and

myself formed no partic!lar opinions in regard to him%It was not !ntil I was fo!rteen or fifteen years old that I fre+!ently ran !p against the word )ew#, partly in

connection with political controversies% (hese references aro!sed a slight aversion in me, and I co!ld not

avoid an !ncomfortable feeling which always came over me when I had to listen to religio!s disp!tes% !tat that time I had no other feelings abo!t the )ewish +!estion%



(here were very few )ews in Lin% In the co!rse of cent!ries the )ews who lived there had become

7!ropeanied in e3ternal appearance and were so m!ch li&e other h!man beings that I even loo&ed !pon

them as 6ermans% (he reason why I did not then perceive the abs!rdity of s!ch an ill!sion was that the only

e3ternal mar& which I recognied as disting!ishing them from !s was the practice of their strange religion%As I tho!ght that they were persec!ted on acco!nt of their Faith my aversion to hearing remar&s against

them grew almost into a feeling of abhorrence% I did not in the least s!spect that there co!ld be s!ch a thing

as a systematic anti-'emitism%

(hen I came to :ienna%$onf!sed by the mass of impressions I received from the architect!ral s!rro!ndings and depressed by my

own tro!bles, I did not at first disting!ish between the different social strata of which the pop!lation of that

mammoth city was composed% Altho!gh :ienna then had abo!t two h!ndred tho!sand )ews among its

pop!lation of two millions, I did not notice them% ?!ring the first wee&s of my soo!rn my eyes and mymind were !nable to cope with the onr!sh of new ideas and val!es% *ot !ntil I grad!ally settled down to my

s!rro!ndings, and the conf!sed pict!re began to grow clearer, did I ac+!ire a more discriminating view of

my new world% And with that I came !p against the )ewish problem%

I will not say that the manner in which I first became ac+!ainted with it was partic!larly !npleasant for me%In the )ew I still saw only a man who was of a different religion, and therefore, on gro!nds of h!man

tolerance, I was against the idea that he sho!ld be attac&ed beca!se he had a different faith% And so I

considered that the tone adopted by the anti-'emitic "ress in :ienna was !nworthy of the c!lt!ral traditions

of a great people% (he memory of certain events which happened in the middle ages came into my mind,

and I felt that I sho!ld not li&e to see them repeated% 6enerally spea&ing, these anti-'emitic newspapers didnot belong to the first ran& - b!t I did not then !nderstand the reason of this - and so I regarded them more

as the prod!cts of ealo!sy and envy rather than the e3pression of a sincere, tho!gh wrong-headed, feeling%

y own opinions were confirmed by what I considered to be the infinitely more dignified manner in whichthe really great "ress replied to those attac&s or simply ignored them, which latter seemed to me the most

respectable way%

I diligently read what was generally called the /orld "ress - *e!e Freie "resse, /iener (ageblatt, etc%- and

I was astonished by the ab!ndance of information they gave their readers and the impartial way in whichthey presented partic!lar problems% I appreciated their dignified tone> b!t sometimes the flamboyancy of

the style was !nconvincing, and I did not li&e it% !t I attrib!ted all this to the overpowering infl!ence of

the world metropolis%

'ince I considered :ienna at that time as s!ch a world metropolis, I tho!ght this constit!ted s!fficientgro!nds to e3c!se these shortcomings of the "ress% !t I was fre+!ently disg!sted by the grovelling way in

which the :ienna "ress played lac&ey to the $o!rt% 'carcely a move too& place at the ofb!rg which wasnot presented in glorified colo!rs to the readers% It was a foolish practice, which, especially when it had to

do with (he /isest onarch of all (imes#, reminded one almost of the dance which the mo!ntain coc& performs at pairing time to woo his mate% It was all empty nonsense% And I tho!ght that s!ch a policy was a

stain on the ideal of liberal democracy% I tho!ght that this way of c!rrying favo!r at the $o!rt was

!nworthy of the people% And that was the first blot that fell on my appreciation of the great :ienna "ress%

/hile in :ienna I contin!ed to follow with a vivid interest all the events that were ta&ing place in 6ermany,whether connected with political or c!lt!ral +!estion% I had a feeling of pride and admiration when I

compared the rise of the yo!ng 6erman 7mpire with the decline of the A!strian 'tate% !t, altho!gh the

foreign policy of that 7mpire was a so!rce of real pleas!re 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 onagainst /illiam II% I loo&ed !pon him not only as the 6erman 7mperor b!t, above all, as the creator of the

6erman *avy% (he fact that the 7mperor was prohibited from spea&ing in the 8eichstag made me very

angry, beca!se the prohibition came from a side which in my eyes had no a!thority to ma&e it% For at asingle sitting those same parliamentary ganders did more cac&ling together than the whole dynasty of 7mperors, comprising even the wea&est, had done in the co!rse of cent!ries%

It annoyed me to have to ac&nowledge that in a nation where any half-witted fellow co!ld claim for himself

the right to criticie and might even be let loose on the people as a Legislator# in the 8eichstag, the bearer

of the Imperial $rown co!ld be the s!bect of a reprimand# on the part of the most miserable assembly of drivellers that had ever e3isted%

I was even more disg!sted at the way in which this same :ienna "ress salaamed obse+!io!sly before the

meanest steed belonging to the absb!rg royal e+!ipage and went off into wild ecstacies of delight if thenag wagged its tail in response% And at the same time these newspapers too& !p an attit!de of an3iety in



matters that concerned the 6erman 7mperor, trying to cloa& their enmity by the serio!s air they gave

themselves% !t in my eyes that enmity appeared to be only poorly cloa&ed% *at!rally they protested that

they had no intention of mi3ing in 6ermany#s internal affairs - 6od forbidJ (hey pretended that by

to!ching a delicate spot in s!ch a friendly way they were f!lfilling a d!ty that devolved !pon them byreason of the m!t!al alliance between the two co!ntries and at the same time discharging their obligations

of o!rnalistic tr!thf!lness% aving th!s e3c!sed themselves abo!t tenderly to!ching a sore spot, they bored

with the finger r!thlessly into the wo!nd%

(hat sort of thing made my blood boil% And now I began to be more and more on my g!ard when readingthe great :ienna "ress%

I had to ac&nowledge, however, that on s!ch s!bects one of the anti-'emitic papers - the ?e!tsche

:ol&sblatt - acted more decently%

/hat got still more on my nerves was the rep!gnant manner in which the big newspapers c!ltivatedadmiration for France% One really had to feel ashamed of being a 6erman when confronted by those

mellifl!o!s hymns of praise for the great c!lt!re-nation#% (his wretched 6allomania more often than once

made me throw away one of those world newspapers#% I now often t!rned to the :ol&sblatt, which was

m!ch smaller in sie b!t which treated s!ch s!bects more decently% I was not in accord with its sharp anti-'emitic tone> b!t again and again I fo!nd that its arg!ments gave me gro!nds for serio!s tho!ght%

Anyhow, it was as a res!lt of s!ch reading that I came to &now the man and the movement which then

determined the fate of :ienna% (hese were ?r% arl L!eger and the $hristian 'ocialist ovement% At the

time I came to :ienna I felt opposed to both% I loo&ed on the man and the movement as reactionary#%

!t even an elementary sense of !stice enforced me to change my opinion when I had the opport!nity of &nowing the man and his wor&, and slowly that opinion grew into o!tspo&en admiration when I had better

gro!nds for forming a !dgment% (o-day, as well as then, I hold ?r% arl L!eger as the most eminent type of

6erman !rgermeister% ow many pre!dices were thrown over thro!gh s!ch a change in my attit!detowards the $hristian-'ocialist ovementJ

y ideas abo!t anti-'emitism changed also in the co!rse of time, b!t that was the change which I fo!nd

most diffic!lt% It cost me a greater internal conflict with myself, and it was only after a str!ggle between

reason and sentiment that victory began to be decided in favo!r of the former% (wo years later sentimentrallied to the side of reasons and became a faithf!l g!ardian and co!nsellor%

At the time of this bitter str!ggle, between calm reason and the sentiments in which I had been bro!ght !p,

the lessons that I learned on the streets of :ienna rendered me inval!able 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, b!t now with myeyes open not only to st!dy the b!ildings b!t also the h!man beings%

Once, when passing thro!gh the inner $ity, I s!ddenly enco!ntered a phenomenon in a long caftan andwearing blac& side-loc&s% y first tho!ght was0 Is this a )ew5 (hey certainly did not have this appearance

in Lin% I watched the man stealthily and ca!tio!sly> b!t the longer I gaed at the strange co!ntenance ande3amined it feat!re by feat!re, the more the +!estion shaped itself in my brain0 Is this a 6erman5

As was always my habit with s!ch e3periences, I t!rned to boo&s for help in removing my do!bts% For the

first time in my life I bo!ght myself some anti-'emitic pamphlets for a few pence% !t !nfort!nately they

all began with the ass!mption that in principle the reader had at least a certain degree of information on the)ewish +!estion or was even familiar with it% oreover, the tone of most of these pamphlets was s!ch that I

became do!btf!l again, beca!se the statements made were partly s!perficial and the proofs e3traordinarily

!nscientific% For wee&s, and indeed for months, I ret!rned to my old way of thin&ing% (he s!bect appeared

so enormo!s and the acc!sations were so far-reaching that I was afraid of dealing with it !n!stly and so I became again an3io!s and !ncertain%

*at!rally I co!ld no longer do!bt that here there was not a +!estion of 6ermans who happened to be of a

different religion b!t rather that there was +!estion of an entirely different people% For as soon as I began toinvestigate the matter and observe the )ews, then :ienna appeared to me in a different light% /herever Inow went I saw )ews, and the more I saw of them the more stri&ingly and clearly they stood o!t as a

different people from the other citiens% 7specially the Inner $ity and the district northwards from the

?an!be $anal swarmed with a people who, even in o!ter appearance, bore no similarity to the 6ermans%

!t any indecision which I may still have felt abo!t that point was finally removed by the activities of acertain section of the )ews themselves% A great movement, called Kionism, arose among them% Its aim was

to assert the national character of )!daism, and the movement was strongly represented in :ienna%

(o o!tward appearances it seemed as if only one gro!p of )ews championed this movement, while the greatmaority disapproved of it, or even rep!diated it% !t an investigation of the sit!ation showed that those



o!tward appearances were p!rposely misleading% (hese o!tward appearances emerged from a mist of

theories which had been prod!ced for reasons of e3pediency, if not for p!rposes of downright deception%

For that part of )ewry which was styled Liberal did not disown the Kionists as if they were not members of

their race b!t rather as brother )ews who p!blicly professed their faith in an !npractical way, so as to createa danger for )ewry itself%

(h!s there was no real rift in their internal solidarity%

(his fictitio!s conflict between the Kionists and the Liberal )ews soon disg!sted me> for it was false

thro!gh and thro!gh and in direct contradiction to the moral dignity and immac!late character on whichthat race had always prided itself%

$leanliness, whether moral or of another &ind, had its own pec!liar meaning for these people% (hat they

were water-shy was obvio!s on loo&ing at them and, !nfort!nately, very often also when not loo&ing at

them at all% (he odo!r of those people in caftans often !sed to ma&e me feel ill% eyond that there were the!n&empt clothes and the ignoble e3terior%

All these details were certainly not attractive> b!t the revolting feat!re was that beneath their !nclean

e3terior one s!ddenly perceived the moral mildew of the chosen race%

/hat soon gave me ca!se for very serio!s consideration were the activities of the )ews in certain branchesof life, into the mystery of which I penetrated little by little% /as there any shady !nderta&ing, any form of

fo!lness, especially in c!lt!ral life, in which at least one )ew did not participate5 On p!tting the probing

&nife caref!lly to that &ind of abscess one immediately discovered, li&e a maggot in a p!trescent body, a

little )ew who was often blinded by the s!dden light%

In my eyes the charge against )!daism became a grave one the moment I discovered the )ewish activities inthe "ress, in art, in literat!re and the theatre% All !nct!o!s protests were now more or less f!tile% One

needed only to loo& at the posters anno!ncing the hideo!s prod!ctions of the cinema and theatre, and st!dy

the names of the a!thors who were highly la!ded there in order to become permanently adamant on )ewish+!estions% ere was a pestilence, a moral pestilence, with which the p!blic was being infected% It was

worse than the lac& "lag!e of long ago% And in what mighty doses this poison was man!fact!red and

distrib!ted% *at!rally, the lower the moral and intellect!al level of s!ch an a!thor of artistic prod!cts the

more ine3ha!stible his fec!ndity% 'ometimes it went so far that one of these fellows, acting li&e a sewage p!mp, wo!ld shoot his filth directly in the face of other members of the h!man race% In this connection we

m!st remember there is no limit to the n!mber of s!ch people% One o!ght to realie that for one, 6oethe,

*at!re may bring into e3istence ten tho!sand s!ch despoilers who act as the worst &ind of germ-carriers in

poisoning h!man so!ls% It was a terrible tho!ght, and yet it co!ld not be avoided, that the greater n!mber of the )ews seemed specially destined by *at!re to play this shamef!l part%

And is it for this reason that they can be called the chosen people5I began then to investigate caref!lly the names of all the fabricators of these !nclean prod!cts in p!blic

c!lt!ral life% (he res!lt of that in+!iry was still more disfavo!rable to the attit!de which I had hitherto heldin regard to the )ews% (ho!gh my feelings might rebel a tho!sand time, reason now had to draw its own

concl!sions%

(he fact that nine-tenths of all the sm!tty literat!re, artistic tripe and theatrical banalities, had to be charged

to the acco!nt of people who formed scarcely one per cent% of the nation - that fact co!ld not be gainsaid% Itwas there, and had to be admitted% (hen I began to e3amine my favo!rite /orld "ress#, with that fact

before my mind%

(he deeper my so!ndings went the lesser grew my respect for that "ress which I formerly admired% Its style

became still more repellent and I was forced to reect its ideas as entirely shallow and s!perficial% (o claimthat in the presentation of facts and views its attit!de was impartial seemed to me to contain more falsehood

than tr!th% (he writers were - )ews%

(ho!sands of details that I had scarcely noticed before seemed to me now to deserve attention% I began tograsp and !nderstand things which I had formerly loo&ed at in a different light%I saw the Liberal policy of that "ress in another light% Its dignified tone in replying to the attac&s of its

adversaries and its dead silence in other cases now became clear to me as part of a c!nning and despicable

way of deceiving the readers% Its brilliant theatrical criticisms always praised the )ewish a!thors and its

adverse, criticism was reserved e3cl!sively for the 6ermans%(he light pin-pric&s against /illiam II showed the persistency of its policy, !st as did its systematic

commendation of French c!lt!re and civiliation% (he s!bect matter of the fe!illetons was trivial and often

pornographic% (he lang!age of this "ress as a whole had the accent of a foreign people% (he general tonewas openly derogatory to the 6ermans and this m!st have been definitely intentional%



/hat were the interests that !rged the :ienna "ress to adopt s!ch a policy5 Or did they do so merely by

chance5 In attempting to find an answer to those +!estions I grad!ally became more and more d!bio!s%

(hen something happened which helped me to come to an early decision% I began to see thro!gh the

meaning of a whole series of events that were ta&ing place in other branches of :iennese life% All thesewere inspired by a general concept of manners and morals which was openly p!t into practice by a large

section of the )ews and co!ld be established as attrib!table to them% ere, again, the life which I observed

on the streets ta!ght me what evil really is%

(he part which the )ews played in the social phenomenon of prostit!tion, and more especially in the whiteslave traffic, co!ld be st!died here better than in any other /est-7!ropean city, with the possible e3ception

of certain ports in 'o!thern France% /al&ing by night along the streets of the Leopoldstadt, almost at every

t!rn whether one wished it or not, one witnessed certain happenings of whose e3istence the 6ermans &new

nothing !ntil the /ar made it possible and indeed inevitable for the soldiers to see s!ch things on the7astern front%

A cold shiver ran down my spine when I first ascertained that it was the same &ind of cold-blooded, thic&-

s&inned and shameless )ew who showed his cons!mmate s&ill in cond!cting that revolting e3ploitation of

the dregs of the big city% (hen I became fired with wrath%I had now no more hesitation abo!t bringing the )ewish problem to light in all its details% *o% enceforth I

was determined to do so% !t as I learned to trac& down the )ew in all the different spheres of c!lt!ral and

artistic life, and in the vario!s manifestations of this life everywhere, I s!ddenly came !pon him in a

position where I had least e3pected to find him% I now realied that the )ews were the leaders of 'ocial

?emocracy% In face of that revelation the scales fell from my eyes% y long inner str!ggle was at an end%In my relations with my fellow wor&men I was often astonished to find how easily and often they changed

their opinions on the same +!estions, sometimes within a few days and sometimes even within the co!rse

of a few ho!rs% I fo!nd it diffic!lt to !nderstand how men who always had reasonable ideas when theyspo&e as individ!als with one another s!ddenly lost this reasonableness the moment they acted in the mass%

(hat phenomenon often tempted one almost to despair% I !sed to disp!te with them for ho!rs and when I

s!cceeded in bringing them to what I considered a reasonable way of thin&ing I reoiced at my s!ccess% !t

ne3t day I wo!ld find that it had been all in vain% It was saddening to thin& I had to begin it all over again%Li&e a pend!l!m in its eternal sway, they wo!ld fall bac& into their abs!rd opinions%

I was able to !nderstand their position f!lly% (hey were dissatisfied with their lot and c!rsed the fate which

had hit them so hard% (hey hated their employers, whom they loo&ed !pon as the heartless administrators of

their cr!el destiny% Often they !sed ab!sive lang!age against the p!blic officials, whom they acc!sed of having no sympathy with the sit!ation of the wor&ing people% (hey made p!blic protests against the cost of

living and paraded thro!gh the streets in defence of their claims% At least all this co!ld be e3plained onreasonable gro!nds% !t what was impossible to !nderstand was the bo!ndless hatred they e3pressed

against their own fellow citiens, how they disparaged their own nation, moc&ed at its greatness, reviled itshistory and dragged the names of its most ill!strio!s men in the g!tter%

(his hostility towards their own &ith and &in, their own native land and home was as irrational as it was

incomprehensible% It was against *at!re%

One co!ld c!re that malady temporarily, b!t only for some days or at least some wee&s% !t on meetingthose whom one believed to have been converted one fo!nd that they had become as they were before% (hat

malady against *at!re held them once again in its cl!tches%

I grad!ally discovered that the 'ocial ?emocratic "ress was predominantly controlled by )ews% !t I did

not attach special importance to this circ!mstance, for the same state of affairs e3isted also in other newspapers% !t there was one stri&ing fact in this connection% It was that there was not a single newspaper

with which )ews were connected that co!ld be spo&en of as *ational, in the meaning that my ed!cation and

convictions attached to that word%a&ing an effort to overcome my nat!ral rel!ctance, I tried to read articles of this nat!re p!blished in thear3ist "ress> b!t in doing so my aversion increased all the more% And then I set abo!t learning something

of the people who wrote and p!blished this mischievo!s st!ff% From the p!blisher downwards, all of them

were )ews% I recalled to mind the names of the p!blic leaders of ar3ism, and then I realied that most of

them belonged to the $hosen 8ace - the 'ocial ?emocratic representatives in the Imperial $abinet as wellas the secretaries of the (rades Mnions and the street agitators% 7verywhere the same sinister pict!re

presented itself% I shall never forget the row of names - A!sterlit, ?avid, Adler, 7llenbogen, and others%

One fact became +!ite evident to me% It was that this alien race held in its hands the leadership of that'ocial ?emocratic "arty with whose minor representatives I had been disp!ting for months past% I was



happy at last to &now for certain that the )ew is not a 6erman%

(h!s I finally discovered who were the evil spirits leading o!r people astray% (he soo!rn in :ienna for one

year had proved long eno!gh to convince me that no wor&er is so rooted in his preconceived notions that he

will not s!rrender them in face of better and clearer arg!ments and e3planations% 6rad!ally I became ane3pert in the doctrine of the ar3ists and !sed this &nowledge as an instr!ment to drive home my own firm

convictions% I was s!ccessf!l in nearly every case% (he great masses can be resc!ed, b!t a lot of time and a

large share of h!man patience m!st be devoted to s!ch wor&%

!t a )ew can never be resc!ed from his fi3ed notions%It was then simple eno!gh to attempt to show them the abs!rdity of their teaching% /ithin my small circle I

tal&ed to them !ntil my throat ached and my voice grew hoarse% I believed that I co!ld finally convince

them of the danger inherent in the ar3ist follies% !t I only achieved the contrary res!lt% It seemed to me

that immediately the disastro!s effects of the ar3ist (heory and its application in practice became evident,the stronger became their obstinacy%

(he more I debated with them the more familiar I became with their arg!mentative tactics% At the o!tset

they co!nted !pon the st!pidity of their opponents, b!t when they got so entangled that they co!ld not find

a way o!t they played the tric& of acting as innocent simpletons% 'ho!ld they fail, in spite of their tric&s of logic, they acted as if they co!ld not !nderstand the co!nter arg!ments and bolted away to another field of

disc!ssion% (hey wo!ld lay down tr!isms and platit!des> and, if yo! accepted these, then they were applied

to other problems and matters of an essentially different nat!re from the original theme% If yo! faced them

with this point they wo!ld escape again, and yo! co!ld not bring them to ma&e any precise statement%

/henever one tried to get a firm grip on any of these apostles one#s hand grasped only elly and slimewhich slipped thro!gh the fingers and combined again into a solid mass a moment afterwards% If yo!r

adversary felt forced to give in to yo!r arg!ment, on acco!nt of the observers present, and if yo! then

tho!ght that at last yo! had gained gro!nd, a s!rprise was in store for yo! on the following day% (he )ewwo!ld be !tterly oblivio!s to what had happened the day before, and he wo!ld start once again by repeating

his former abs!rdities, as if nothing had happened% 'ho!ld yo! become indignant and remind him of

yesterday#s defeat, he pretended astonishment and co!ld not remember anything, e3cept that on the

previo!s day he had proved that his statements were correct% 'ometimes I was d!mbfo!nded% I do not &nowwhat amaed me the more - the ab!ndance of their verbiage or the artf!l way in which they dressed !p their

falsehoods% I grad!ally came to hate them%

Net all this had its good side> beca!se the more I came to &now the individ!al leaders, or at least the

propagandists, of 'ocial ?emocracy, my love for my own people increased correspondingly% $onsideringthe 'atanic s&ill which these evil co!nsellors displayed, how co!ld their !nfort!nate victims be blamed5

Indeed, I fo!nd it e3tremely diffic!lt myself to be a match for the dialectical perfidy of that race% ow f!tileit was to try to win over s!ch people with arg!ment, seeing that their very mo!ths distorted the tr!th,

disowning the very words they had !st !sed and adopting them again a few moments afterwards to servetheir own ends in the arg!mentJ *o% (he more I came to &now the )ew, the easier it was to e3c!se the

wor&ers%

In my opinion the most c!lpable were not to be fo!nd among the wor&ers b!t rather among those who did

not thin& it worth while to ta&e the tro!ble to sympathie with their own &insfol& and give to the hard-wor&ing son of the national family what was his by the iron logic of !stice, while at the same time placing

his sed!cer and corr!pter against the wall%

Mrged by my own daily e3periences, I now began to investigate more thoro!ghly the so!rces of the ar3ist

teaching itself% Its effects were well &nown to me in detail% As a res!lt of caref!l observation, its daily progress had become obvio!s to me% And one needed only a little imagination in order to be able to forecast

the conse+!ences which m!st res!lt from it% (he only +!estion now was0 ?id the fo!nders foresee the

effects of their wor& in the form which those effects have shown themselves to-day, or were the fo!ndersthemselves the victims of an error5 (o my mind both alternatives were possible%If the second +!estion m!st be answered in the affirmative, then it was the d!ty of every thin&ing person to

oppose this sinister movement with a view to preventing it from prod!cing its worst res!lts% !t if the first

+!estion m!st be answered in the affirmative, then it m!st be admitted that the original a!thors of this evil

which has infected the nations were devils incarnate% For only in the brain of a monster, and not that of aman, co!ld the plan of this organiation ta&e shape whose wor&ings m!st finally bring abo!t the collapse of

h!man civiliation and t!rn this world into a desert waste%

'!ch being the case the only alternative left was to fight, and in that fight to employ all the weapons whichthe h!man spirit and intellect and will co!ld f!rnish leaving it to Fate to decide in whose favo!r the balance



sho!ld fall%

And so I began to gather information abo!t the a!thors of this teaching, with a view to st!dying the

principles of the movement% (he fact that I attained my obect sooner than I co!ld have anticipated was d!e

to the deeper insight into the )ewish +!estion which I then gained, my &nowledge of this +!estion beinghitherto rather s!perficial% (his newly ac+!ired &nowledge alone enabled me to ma&e a practical

comparison between the real content and the theoretical pretentio!sness of the teaching laid down by the

apostolic fo!nders of 'ocial ?emocracy> beca!se I now !nderstood the lang!age of the )ew% I realied that

the )ew !ses lang!age for the p!rpose of dissim!lating his tho!ght or at least veiling it, so that his real aimcannot be discovered by what he says b!t rather by reading between the lines% (his &nowledge was the

occasion of the greatest inner revol!tion that I had yet e3perienced% From being a soft-hearted cosmopolitan

I became an o!t-and-o!t anti-'emite%

Only on one f!rther occasion, and that for the last time, did I give way to oppressing tho!ghts which ca!sedme some moments of profo!nd an3iety%

As I critically reviewed the activities of the )ewish people thro!gho!t long periods of history I became

an3io!s and as&ed myself whether for some inscr!table reasons beyond the comprehension of poor mortals

s!ch as o!rselves, ?estiny may not have irrevocably decreed that the final victory m!st go to this smallnation5 ay it not be that this people which has lived only for the earth has been promised the earth as a

recompense5 is o!r right to str!ggle for o!r own self-preservation based on reality, or is it a merely

s!bective thing5 Fate answered the +!estion for me inasm!ch as it led me to ma&e a detached and

e3ha!stive in+!iry into the ar3ist teaching and the activities of the )ewish people in connection with it%

(he )ewish doctrine of ar3ism rep!diates the aristocratic principle of *at!re and s!bstit!tes for it theeternal privilege of force and energy, n!merical mass and its dead weight% (h!s it denies the individ!al

worth of the h!man personality, imp!gns the teaching that nationhood and race have a primary

significance, and by doing this it ta&es away the very fo!ndations of h!man e3istence and h!manciviliation% If the ar3ist teaching were to be accepted as the fo!ndation of the life of the !niverse, it

wo!ld lead to the disappearance of all order that is conceivable to the h!man mind% And th!s the adoption

of s!ch a law wo!ld provo&e chaos in the str!ct!re of the greatest organism that we &now, with the res!lt

that the inhabitants of this earthly planet wo!ld finally disappear%'ho!ld the )ew, with the aid of his ar3ist creed, tri!mph over the people of this world, his $rown will be

the f!neral wreath of man&ind, and this planet will once again follow its orbit thro!gh ether, witho!t any

h!man life on its s!rface, as it did millions of years ago%

And so I believe to-day that my cond!ct is in accordance with the will of the Almighty $reator% In standingg!ard against the )ew I am defending the handiwor& of the Lord%

$hapter (hree

6enerally spea&ing a man sho!ld not p!blicly ta&e part in politics before he has reached the age of thirty,tho!gh, of co!rse, e3ceptions m!st be made in the case of those who are nat!rally gifted with e3traordinary

political abilities% (hat at least is my opinion to-day% And the reason for it is that !ntil he reaches his

thirtieth year or thereabo!ts a man#s mental development will mostly consist in ac+!iring and sifting s!ch

&nowledge as is necessary for the gro!ndwor& of a general platform from which he can e3amine thedifferent political problems that arise from day to day and be able to adopt a definite attit!de towards each%

A man m!st first ac+!ire a f!nd of general ideas and fit them together so as to form an organic str!ct!re of

personal tho!ght or o!tloo& on life - a Weltanschhauung % (hen he will have that mental e+!ipment witho!t

which he cannot form his own !dgments on partic!lar +!estions of the day, and he will have ac+!iredthose +!alities that are necessary for consistency and steadfastness in the formation of political opinions%

'!ch a man is now +!alified, at least s!bectively, to ta&e his part in the political cond!ct of p!blic affairs%

If these pre-re+!isite conditions are not f!lfilled, and if a man sho!ld enter political life witho!t thise+!ipment, he will r!n a twofold ris&% In the first place, he may find d!ring the co!rse of events that thestand which he originally too& in regard to some essential +!estion was wrong% e will now have to

abandon his former position or else stic& to it against his better &nowledge and riper wisdom and after his

reason and convictions have already proved it !ntenable% If he adopt the former line of action he will find

himself in a diffic!lt personal sit!ation> beca!se in giving !p a position hitherto maintained he will appear inconsistent and will have no right to e3pect his followers to remain as loyal to his leadership as they were

before% And, as regards the followers themselves, they may easily loo& !pon their leader#s change of policy

as showing a lac& of !dgment inherent in his character% oreover, the change m!st ca!se in them a certainfeeling of discomfit!re vis-P-vis those whom the leader formerly opposed%



If he adopts the second alternative - which so very fre+!ently happens to-day - then p!blic prono!ncements

of the leader have no longer his personal pers!asion to s!pport them% And the more that is the case the

defence of his ca!se will be all the more hollow and s!perficial% e now descends to the adoption of v!lgar

means in his defence% /hile he himself no longer dreams serio!sly of standing by his political protestationsto the last - for no man will die in defence of something in which he does not believe - he ma&es increasing

demands on his followers% Indeed, the greater be the meas!re of his own insincerity, the more !nfort!nate

and inconsiderate become his claims on his party adherents% Finally, he throws aside the last vestiges of tr!e

leadership and begins to play politics% (his means that he becomes one of those whose only consistency istheir inconsistency, associated with overbearing insolence and oftentimes an artf!l mendacity developed to

a shamelessly high degree%

'ho!ld s!ch a person, to the misfort!ne of all decent people, s!cceed in becoming a parliamentary dep!ty it

will be clear from the o!tset that for him the essence of political activity consists in a heroic str!ggle to&eep permanent hold on this mil&-bottle as a so!rce of livelihood for himself and his family% (he more his

wife and children are dependent on him, the more st!bbornly will he fight to maintain for himself the

representation of his parliamentary constit!ency% 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 beginningof his own downfall% And everyone who is a better man than himself will appear to him in the light of a

menace%

I shall s!bse+!ently deal more f!lly with the problem to which this &ind of parliamentary vermin give rise%

/hen a man has reached his thirtieth year he has still a great deal to learn% (hat is obvio!s% !t

henceforward what he learns will principally be an amplification of his basic ideas> it will be fitted in withthem organically so as to fill !p the framewor& of the f!ndamental Weltanschhauung which he already

possesses% /hat he learns anew will not imply the abandonment of principles already held, b!t rather a

deeper &nowledge of those principles% And th!s his colleag!es will never have the discomforting feelingthat they have been hitherto falsely led by him% On the contrary, their confidence is increased when they

perceive that their leader#s +!alities are steadily developing along the lines of an organic growth which

res!lts from the constant assimilation of new ideas> so that the followers loo& !pon this process as

signifying an enrichment of the doctrines in which they themselves believe, in their eyes every s!chdevelopment 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 fo!nded on his general principles, beca!se he recognies the

fo!ndation as false, can act with hono!r only when he declares his readiness to accept the finalconse+!ences of his erroneo!s views% In s!ch a case he o!ght to refrain from ta&ing p!blic part in any

f!rther political activity% aving once gone astray on essential things he may possibly go astray a secondtime% !t, anyhow, he has no right whatsoever to e3pect or demand that his fellow citiens sho!ld contin!e

to give him their s!pport%ow little s!ch a line of cond!ct commends itself to o!r p!blic leaders nowadays is proved by the general

corr!ption 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 e+!ipped for this tas&%

Altho!gh in those days I !sed to give more time than most others to the consideration of political +!estion,yet I caref!lly refrained from ta&ing an open part in politics% Only to a small circle did I spea& of those

things which agitated my mind or were the ca!se of constant preocc!pation for me% (he habit of disc!ssing

matters within s!ch a restricted gro!p had many advantages in itself% 8ather than tal& at them, I learned to

feel my way into the modes of tho!ght and views of those men aro!nd me% Oftentimes s!ch ways of thin&ing and s!ch views were +!ite primitive% (h!s I too& every possible occasion to increase my

&nowledge of men%

*owhere among the 6erman people was the opport!nity for ma&ing s!ch a st!dy so favo!rable as in:ienna%In the old ?an!bian onarchy political tho!ght was wider in its range and had a richer variety of interests

than in the 6ermany of that epoch - e3cepting certain parts of "r!ssia, amb!rg and the districts bordering

on the *orth 'ea% /hen I spea& of A!stria here I mean that part of the great absb!rg 7mpire which, by

reason of its 6erman pop!lation, f!rnished not only the historic basis for the formation of this 'tate b!twhose pop!lation was for several cent!ries also the e3cl!sive so!rce of c!lt!ral life in that political system

whose str!ct!re was so artificial% As time went on the stability of the A!strian 'tate and the g!arantee of its

contin!ed e3istence depended more and more on the maintenance of this germ-cell of that absb!rg7mpire%



(he hereditary imperial provinces constit!ted the heart of the 7mpire% And it was this heart that constantly

sent the blood of life p!lsating thro!gh the whole political and c!lt!ral system% $orresponding to the heart

of the 7mpire, :ienna signified the brain and the will% At that time :ienna presented an appearance which

made one thin& of her as an enthroned +!een whose a!thoritative sway !nited the conglomeration of heterogeno!s nationalities that lived !nder the absb!rg sceptre% (he radiant bea!ty of the capital city

made one forget the sad symptoms of senile decay which the 'tate manifested as a whole%

(ho!gh the 7mpire was internally ric&ety beca!se of the terrific conflict going on between the vario!s

nationalities, the o!tside world - and 6ermany in partic!lar - saw only that lovely pict!re of the city% (heill!sion was all the greater beca!se at that time :ienna seemed to have risen to its highest pitch of

splendo!r% Mnder a ayor, who had the tr!e stamp of administrative geni!s, the venerable residential $ity

of the 7mperors of the old 7mpire seemed to have the glory of its yo!th renewed% (he last great 6erman

who sprang from the ran&s of the people that had colonied the 7ast ar& was not a statesman#, in theofficial sense% (his ?r% L!egar, however, in his rQle as ayor of the Imperial $apital and 8esidential $ity#,

had achieved so m!ch in almost all spheres of m!nicipal activity, whether economic or c!lt!ral, that the

heart of the whole 7mpire throbbed with renewed vigo!r% e th!s proved himself a m!ch greater statesman

than the so-called diplomats# of that period%(he fact that this political system of heterogeneo!s races called A!stria, finally bro&e down is no evidence

whatsoever of political incapacity on the part of the 6erman element in the old 7ast ar&% (he collapse

was the inevitable res!lt of an impossible sit!ation% (en million people cannot permanently hold together a

'tate of fifty millions, composed of different and convicting nationalities, !nless certain definite pre-

re+!isite conditions are at hand while there is still time to avail of them%(he 6erman-A!strian had very big ways of thin&ing% Acc!stomed to live in a great 7mpire, he had a &een

sense of the obligations inc!mbent on him in s!ch a sit!ation% e was the only member of the A!strian

'tate who loo&ed beyond the borders of the narrow lands belonging to the $rown and too& in all thefrontiers of the 7mpire in the sweep of his mind% Indeed when destiny severed him from the common

Fatherland he tried to master the tremendo!s tas& which was set before him as a conse+!ence% (his tas&

was to maintain for the 6erman-A!strians that patrimony which, thro!gh inn!merable str!ggles, their

ancestors had originally wrested from the 7ast% It m!st be remembered that the 6erman-A!strians co!ld not p!t their !ndivided strength into this effort, beca!se the hearts and minds of the best among them were

constantly t!rning bac& towards their &insfol& in the otherland, so that only a fraction of their energy

remained to be employed at home%

(he mental horion of the 6erman-A!strian was comparatively broad% is commercial interests comprisedalmost every section of the heterogeneo!s 7mpire% (he cond!ct of almost all important !nderta&ings was in

his hands% e provided the 'tate, for the most part, with its leading technical e3perts and civil servants% ewas responsible for carrying on the foreign trade of the co!ntry, as far as that sphere of activity was not

!nder )ewish control, (he 6erman-A!strian e3cl!sively represented the political cement that held the 'tatetogether% is military d!ties carried him far beyond the narrow frontiers of his homeland% (ho!gh the

recr!it might oin a regiment made !p of the 6erman element, the regiment itself might be stationed in

eregovina as well as in :ienna or 6alicia% (he officers in the absb!rg armies were still 6ermans and so

was the predominating element in the higher branches of the civil service% Art and science were in 6ermanhands% Apart from the new artistic trash, which might easily have been prod!ced by a negro tribe, all

gen!ine artistic inspiration came from the 6erman section of the pop!lation% In m!sic, architect!re,

sc!lpt!re and painting, :ienna ab!ndantly s!pplied the entire ?!al onarchy% And the so!rce never

seemed to show signs of a possible e3ha!stion% Finally, it was the 6erman element that determined thecond!ct of foreign policy, tho!gh a small n!mber of !ngarians were also active in that field%

All efforts, however, to save the !nity of the 'tate were doomed to end in fail!re, beca!se the essential pre-

re+!isites were missing%(here was only one possible way to control and hold in chec& the centrif!gal forces of the different anddiffering nationalities% (his way was0 to govern the A!strian 'tate and organie it internally on the principle

of centraliation% In no other way imaginable co!ld the e3istence of that 'tate be ass!red%

*ow and again there were l!cid intervals in the higher r!ling +!arters when this tr!th was recognied% !t

it was soon forgotten again, or else deliberately ignored, beca!se of the diffic!lties to be overcome in p!tting it into practice% 7very proect which aimed at giving the 7mpire a more federal shape was bo!nd to

be ineffective beca!se there was no strong central a!thority which co!ld e3ercise s!fficient power within

the 'tate to hold the federal elements together% It m!st be remembered in this connection that conditions inA!stria were +!ite different from those which characteried the 6erman 'tate as fo!nded by ismarc&%



6ermany was faced with only one diffic!lty, which was that of transforming the p!rely political traditions,

beca!se thro!gho!t the whole of ismarc&#s 6ermany there was a common c!lt!ral basis% (he 6erman

7mpire contained only members of one and the same racial or national stoc&, with the e3ception of a few

minor foreign fragments%?emographic conditions in A!stria were +!ite the reverse% /ith the e3ception of !ngary there was no

political tradition, coming down from a great past, in any of the vario!s affiliated co!ntries% If there had

been, time had either wiped o!t all traces of it, or at least, rendered them obsc!re% oreover, this was the

epoch when the principle of nationality began to be in ascendant> and that phenomenon awa&ened thenational instincts in the vario!s co!ntries affiliated !nder the absb!rg sceptre% It was diffic!lt to control

the action of these newly awa&ened national forces> beca!se, adacent to the frontiers of the ?!al

onarchy, new national 'tates were springing !p whose people were of the same or &indred racial stoc& as

the respective nationalities that constit!ted the absb!rg 7mpire% (hese new 'tates were able to e3ercise agreater infl!ence than the 6erman element%

7ven :ienna co!ld not hold o!t for a lengthy period in this conflict% /hen !dapest had developed into a

metropolis a rival had grown !p whose mission was, not to help in holding together the vario!s divergent

parts of the 7mpire, b!t rather to strengthen one part% /ithin a short time "rag!e followed the e3ample of !dapest> and later on came Lemberg, Laibach and others% y raising these places which had formerly

been provincial towns to the ran& of national cities, rallying centres were provided for an independent

c!lt!ral life% (hro!gh this the local national instincts ac+!ired a spirit!al fo!ndation and therewith gained a

more profo!nd hold on the people% (he time was bo!nd to come when the partic!larist interests of those

vario!s co!ntries wo!ld become stronger than their common imperial interests% Once that stage had beenreached, A!stria#s doom was sealed%

(he co!rse of this development was clearly perceptible since the death of )oseph II% Its rapidity depended

on a n!mber of factors, some of which had their so!rce in the onarchy itself> while others res!lted fromthe position which the 7mpire had ta&en in foreign politics%

It was impossible to ma&e anything li&e a s!ccessf!l effort for the permanent consolidation of the A!strian

'tate !nless a firm and persistent policy of centraliation were p!t into force% efore everything else the

principle sho!ld have been adopted that only one common lang!age co!ld be !sed as the official lang!ageof the 'tate% (h!s it wo!ld be possible to emphasie the formal !nity of that imperial commonwealth% And

th!s the administration wo!ld have in its hands a technical instr!ment witho!t which the 'tate co!ld not

end!re as a political !nity% In the same way the school and other forms of ed!cation sho!ld have been !sed

to inc!lcate a feeling of common citienship% '!ch an obective co!ld not be reached within ten or twentyyears% (he effort wo!ld have to be envisaged in terms of cent!ries> !st as in all problems of coloniation,

steady perseverance is a far more important element than the o!tp!t of energetic effort at the moment%It goes witho!t saying that in s!ch circ!mstances the co!ntry m!st be governed and administered by strictly

adhering to the principle of !niformity%For me it was +!ite instr!ctive to discover why this did not ta&e place, or rather why it was not done% (hose

who were g!ilty of the omission m!st be held responsible for the brea&-!p of the absb!rg 7mpire%

ore than any other 'tate, the e3istence of the old A!stria depended on a strong and capable 6overnment%

(he absb!rg 7mpire lac&ed ethnical !niformity, which constit!tes the f!ndamental basis of a national'tate and will preserve the e3istence of s!ch a 'tate even tho!gh the r!ling power sho!ld be grossly

inefficient% /hen a 'tate is composed of a homogeneo!s pop!lation, the nat!ral inertia of s!ch a pop!lation

will hold the 'tage together and maintain its e3istence thro!gh astonishingly long periods of

misgovernment and maladministration% It may often seem as if the principle of life had died o!t in s!ch a body-politic> b!t a time comes when the apparent corpse rises !p and displays before the world an

astonishing manifestation of its indestr!ctible vitality%

!t the sit!ation is !tterly different in a co!ntry where the pop!lation is not homogeneo!s, where there isno bond of common blood b!t only that of one r!ling hand% 'ho!ld the r!ling hand show signs of wea&nessin s!ch a 'tate the res!lt will not be to ca!se a &ind of hibernation of the 'tate b!t rather to awa&en the

individ!alist instincts which are sl!mbering in the ethnological gro!ps% (hese instincts do not ma&e

themselves felt as long as these gro!ps are dominated by a strong central will-to-govern% (he danger which

e3ists in these sl!mbering separatist instincts can be rendered more or less innoc!o!s only thro!ghcent!ries of common ed!cation, common traditions and common interests% (he yo!nger s!ch 'tates are, the

more their e3istence will depend on the ability and strength of the central government% If their fo!ndation

was d!e only to the wor& of a strong personality or a leader who is a man of geni!s, in many cases they will brea& !p as soon as the fo!nder disappears> beca!se, tho!gh great, he stood alone% !t even after cent!ries



of a common ed!cation and e3periences these separatist instincts I have spo&en of are not always

completely overcome% (hey may be only dormant and may s!ddenly awa&en when the central government

shows wea&ness and the force of a common ed!cation as well as the prestige of a common tradition prove

!nable to withstand the vital energies of separatist nationalities forging ahead towards the shaping of their own individ!al e3istence%

(he fail!re to see the tr!th of all this constit!ted what may be called the tragic crime of the absb!rg

r!lers%

Only before the eyes of one absb!rg r!ler, and that for the last time, did the hand of ?estiny hold aloft thetorch that threw light on the f!t!re of his co!ntry% !t the torch was then e3ting!ished for ever%

)oseph II, 8oman 7mperor of the 6erman nation, was filled with a growing an3iety when he realied the

fact that his o!se was removed to an o!tlying frontier of his 7mpire and that the time wo!ld soon be at

hand when it wo!ld be overt!rned and eng!lfed in the whirlpool ca!sed by that abylon of nationalities,!nless something was done at the eleventh ho!r to overcome the dire conse+!ences res!lting from the

negligence of his ancestors% /ith s!perh!man energy this Friend of an&ind# made every possible effort

to co!nteract the effects of the carelessness and tho!ghtlessness of his predecessors% /ithin one decade he

strove to repair the damage that had been done thro!gh cent!ries% If ?estiny had only granted him fortyyears for his labo!rs, and if only two generations had carried on the wor& which he had started, the miracle

might have been performed% !t when he died, bro&en in body and spirit after ten years of r!lership, his

wor& san& with him into the grave and rests with him there in the $ap!cin $rypt, sleeping its eternal sleep,

having never again showed signs of awa&ening%

is s!ccessors had neither the ability nor the will-power necessary for the tas& they had to face%/hen the first signs of a new revol!tionary epoch appeared in 7!rope they grad!ally scattered the fire

thro!gho!t A!stria% And when the fire began to glow steadily it was fed and fanned not by the social or

political conditions b!t by forces that had their origin in the nationalist yearnings of the vario!s ethnicgro!ps%

(he 7!ropean revol!tionary movement of 1;4; primarily too& the form of a class conflict in almost every

other co!ntry, b!t in A!stria it too& the form of a new racial str!ggle% In so far as the 6erman-A!strians

there forgot the origins of the movement, or perhaps had failed to recognie them at the start andconse+!ently too& part in the revol!tionary !prising, they sealed their own fate% For they th!s helped to

awa&en the spirit of /estern ?emocracy which, within a short while, shattered the fo!ndations of their own

e3istence%

(he setting !p of a representative parliamentary body, witho!t insisting on the preliminary that only onelang!age sho!ld be !sed in all p!blic interco!rse !nder the 'tate, was the first great blow to the

predominance of the 6erman element in the ?!al onarchy% From that moment the 'tate was also doomedto collapse sooner or later% All that followed was nothing b!t the historical li+!idation of an 7mpire%

(o watch that process of progressive disintegration was a tragic and at the same time an instr!ctivee3perience% (he e3ec!tion of history#s decree was carried o!t in tho!sands of details% (he fact that great

n!mbers of people went abo!t blindfolded amid the manifest signs of dissol!tion only proves that the gods

had decreed the destr!ction of A!stria%

I do not wish to dwell on details beca!se that wo!ld lie o!tside the scope of this boo&% I want to treat indetail only those events which are typical among the ca!ses that lead to the decline of nations and 'tates

and which are therefore of importance to o!r present age% oreover, the st!dy of these events helped to

f!rnish the basis of my own political o!tloo&%

Among the instit!tions which most clearly manifested !nmista&able signs of decay, even to the wea&-sighted "hilistine, was that which, of all the instit!tions of 'tate, o!ght to have been the most firmly

fo!nded - I mean the "arliament, or the 8eichsrat BImperial $o!ncilC as it was called in A!stria%

(he pattern for this corporate body was obvio!sly that which e3isted in 7ngland, the land of classicdemocracy% (he whole of that e3cellent organiation was bodily transferred to A!stria with as littlealteration as possible%

As the A!strian co!nterpart to the ritish two-chamber system a $hamber of ?ep!ties and a o!se of

Lords Berrenha!sC were established in :ienna% (he o!ses themselves, considered as b!ildings were

somewhat different% /hen arry b!ilt his palaces, or, as we say the o!ses of "arliament, on the shore of the (hames, he co!ld loo& to the history of the ritish 7mpire for the inspiration of his wor&% In that history

he fo!nd s!fficient material to fill and decorate the 1,2<< niches, brac&ets, and pillars of his magnificent

edifice% is stat!es and paintings made the o!se of Lords and the o!se of $ommons temples dedicatedto the glory of the nation%



(here it was that :ienna enco!ntered the first diffic!lty% /hen ansen, the ?anish architect, had completed

the last gable of the marble palace in which the new body of pop!lar representatives was to be ho!sed he

had to t!rn to the ancient classical world for s!bects to fill o!t his decorative plan% (his theatrical shrine of

/estern ?emocracy# was adorned with the stat!es and portraits of 6ree& and 8oman statesmen and philosophers% As if it were meant for a symbol of irony, the horses of the +!adriga that s!rmo!nts the two

o!ses are p!lling apart from one another towards all fo!r +!arters of the globe% (here co!ld be no better

symbol for the &ind of activity going on within the walls of that same b!ilding%

(he nationalities# were opposed to any &ind of glorification of A!strian history in the decoration of this b!ilding, insisting that s!ch wo!ld constit!te an offence to them and a provocation% !ch the same

happened in 6ermany, where the 8eich-stag, b!ilt by /allot, was not dedicated to the 6erman people !ntil

the cannons were th!ndering in the /orld /ar% And then it was dedicated by an inscription%

I was not yet twenty years of age when I first entered the "alace on the Franens-ring to watch and listen inthe $hamber of ?ep!ties% (hat first e3perience aro!sed in me a profo!nd feeling of rep!gnance%

I had always hated the "arliament, b!t not as an instit!tion in itself% !ite the contrary% As one who

cherished ideals of political freedom I co!ld not even imagine any other form of government% In the light of

my attit!de towards the o!se of absb!rg I sho!ld then have considered it a crime against liberty andreason to thin& of any &ind of dictatorship as a possible form of government%

A certain admiration which I had for the ritish "arliament contrib!ted towards the formation of this

opinion% I became imb!ed with that feeling of admiration almost witho!t my being conscio!s of the effect

of it thro!gh so m!ch reading of newspapers while I was yet +!ite yo!ng% I co!ld not discard that

admiration all in a moment% (he dignified way in which the ritish o!se of $ommons f!lfilled itsf!nction impressed me greatly, than&s largely to the glowing terms in which the A!strian "ress reported

these events% I !sed to as& myself whether there co!ld be any nobler form of government than self-

government by the people%!t these considerations f!rnished the very motives of my hostility to the A!strian "arliament% (he form in

which parliamentary government was here represented seemed !nworthy of its great prototype% (he

following considerations also infl!enced my attit!de0

(he fate of the 6erman element in the A!strian 'tate depended on its position in "arliament% Mp to the timethat !niversal s!ffrage by secret ballot was introd!ced the 6erman representatives had a maority in the

"arliament, tho!gh that maority was not a very s!bstantial one% (his sit!ation gave ca!se for an3iety

beca!se the 'ocial-?emocratic fraction of the 6erman element co!ld not be relied !pon when national

+!estions were at sta&e% In matters that were of critical concern for the 6erman element, the 'ocial-?emocrats always too& !p an anti-6erman stand beca!se they were afraid of losing their followers among

the other national gro!ps% Already at that time - before the introd!ction of !niversal s!ffrage - the 'ocial-?emocratic "arty co!ld no longer be considered as a 6erman "arty% (he introd!ction of !niversal s!ffrage

p!t an end even to the p!rely n!merical predominance of the 6erman element% (he way was now clear for the f!rther de-6ermaniation# of the A!strian 'tate%

(he national instinct of self-preservation made it impossible for me to welcome a representative system in

which the 6erman element was not really represented as s!ch, b!t always betrayed by the 'ocial-

?emocratic fraction% Net all these, and many others, were defects which co!ld not be attrib!ted to the parliamentary system as s!ch, b!t rather to the A!strian 'tate in partic!lar% I still believed that if the

6erman maority co!ld be restored in the representative body there wo!ld be no occasion to oppose s!ch a

system as long as the old A!strian 'tate contin!ed to e3ist%

'!ch was my general attit!de at the time when I first entered those sacred and contentio!s halls% For methey were sacred only beca!se of the radiant bea!ty of that maestic edifice% A 6ree& wonder on 6erman

soil%

!t I soon became enraged by the hideo!s spectacle that met my eyes% 'everal h!ndred representativeswere there to disc!ss a problem of great economical importance and each representative had the right tohave his say%

(hat e3perience of a day was eno!gh to s!pply me with food for tho!ght d!ring several wee&s afterwards%

(he intellect!al level of the debate was +!ite low% 'ome times the debaters did not ma&e themselves

intelligible at all% 'everal of those present did not spea& 6erman b!t only their 'lav vernac!lars or dialects%(h!s I had the opport!nity of hearing with my own ears what I had been hitherto ac+!ainted with only

thro!gh reading the newspapers% A t!rb!lent mass of people, all gestic!lating and bawling against one

another, with a pathetic old man sha&ing his bell and ma&ing frantic efforts to call the o!se to a sense of its dignity by friendly appeals, e3hortations, and grave warnings%



I co!ld not refrain from la!ghing%

'everal wee&s later I paid a second visit% (his time the o!se presented an entirely different pict!re, so

m!ch so that one co!ld hardly recognie it as the same place% (he hall was practically empty% (hey were

sleeping in the other rooms below% Only a few dep!ties were in their places, yawning in each other#s faces%One was speechifying% A dep!ty spea&er was in the chair% /hen he loo&ed ro!nd it was +!ite plain that he

felt bored%

(hen I began to reflect serio!sly on the whole thing% I went to the "arliament whenever I had any time to

spare and watched the spectacle silently b!t attentively% I listened to the debates, as far as they co!ld be!nderstood, and I st!died the more or less intelligent feat!res of those elect# representatives of the vario!s

nationalities which composed that motley 'tate% 6rad!ally I formed my own ideas abo!t what I saw%

A year of s!ch +!iet observation was s!fficient to transform or completely destroy my former convictions

as to the character of this parliamentary instit!tion% I no longer opposed merely the perverted form whichthe principle of parliamentary representation had ass!med in A!stria% *o% It had become impossible for me

to accept the system in itself% Mp to that time I had believed that the disastro!s deficiencies of the A!strian

"arliament were d!e to the lac& of a 6erman maority, b!t now I recognied that the instit!tion itself was

wrong in its very essence and form%A n!mber of problems presented themselves before my mind% I st!died more closely the democratic

principle of decision by the maority vote#, and I scr!tinied no less caref!lly the intellect!al and moral

worth of the gentlemen who, as the chosen representatives of the nation, were entr!sted with the tas& of

ma&ing this instit!tion f!nction%

(h!s it happened that at one and the same time I came to &now the instit!tion itself and those of whom itwas composed% And it was th!s that, within the co!rse of a few years, I came to form a clear and vivid

pict!re of the average type of that most lightly worshipped phenomenon of o!r time - the parliamentary

dep!ty% (he pict!re 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 obect-lessons ta&en from real life saved me from getting firmly entangled by a theory

which at first sight seems so all!ring to many people, tho!gh that theory itself is a symptom of h!man

decadence%?emocracy, as practised in /estern 7!rope to-day, is the fore-r!nner of ar3ism% In fact, the latter wo!ld

not be conceivable witho!t the former% ?emocracy is the breeding-gro!nd in which the bacilli of the

ar3ist world pest can grow and spread% y the introd!ction of parliamentarianism, democracy prod!ced

an abortion of filth and fire C, the creative fire of which, however, seems to have died o!t%I am more than gratef!l to Fate that this problem came to my notice when I was still in :ienna> for if I had

been in 6ermany at that time I might easily have fo!nd only a s!perficial sol!tion% If I had been in erlinwhen I first discovered what an illogical thing this instit!tion is which we call "arliament, I might easily

have gone to the other e3treme and believed - as many people believed, and apparently not witho!t goodreason - that the salvation of the people and the 7mpire co!ld be sec!red only by restrengthening the

principle of imperial a!thority% (hose who had this belief did not discern the tendencies of their time and

were blind to the aspirations of the people%

In A!stria one co!ld not be so easily misled% (here it was impossible to fall from one error into another% If the "arliament were worthless, the absb!rgs were worse> or at least not in the slightest degree better% (he

problem was not solved by reecting the parliamentary system% Immediately the +!estion arose0 /hat then5

(o rep!diate and abolish the :ienna "arliament wo!ld have res!lted in leaving all power in the hands of the

absb!rgs% For me, especially, that idea was impossible%'ince this problem was specially diffic!lt in regard to A!stria, I was forced while still +!ite yo!ng to go

into the essentials of the whole +!estion more thoro!ghly than I otherwise sho!ld have done%

(he aspect of the sit!ation that first made the most stri&ing impression on me and gave me gro!nds for serio!s reflection was the manifest lac& of any individ!al responsibility in the representative body%(he parliament passes some acts or decree which may have the most devastating conse+!ences, yet nobody

bears the responsibility for it% *obody can be called to acco!nt% For s!rely one cannot say that a $abinet

discharges its responsibility when it retires after having bro!ght abo!t a catastrophe% Or can we say that the

responsibility is f!lly discharged when a new coalition is formed or parliament dissolved5 $an the principleof responsibility mean anything else than the responsibility of a definite person5

Is it at all possible act!ally to call to acco!nt the leaders of a parliamentary government for any &ind of

action which originated in the wishes of the whole m!ltit!de of dep!ties and was carried o!t !nder their orders or sanction5 Instead of developing constr!ctive ideas and plans, does the b!siness of a statesman



consist in the art of ma&ing a whole pac& of bloc&heads !nderstand his proects5 Is it his b!siness to entreat

and coach them so that they will grant him their genero!s consent5

Is it an indispensable +!ality in a statesman that he sho!ld possess a gift of pers!asion commens!rate with

the statesman#s ability to conceive great political meas!res and carry them thro!gh into practice5?oes it really prove that a statesman is incompetent if he sho!ld fail to win over a maority of votes to

s!pport his policy in an assembly which has been called together as the chance res!lt of an electoral system

that is not always honestly administered%

as there ever been a case where s!ch an assembly has worthily appraised a great political concept beforethat concept was p!t into practice and its greatness openly demonstrated thro!gh its s!ccess5

In this world is not the creative act of the geni!s always a protest against the inertia of the mass5

/hat shall the statesman do if he does not s!cceed in coa3ing the parliamentary m!ltit!de to give its

consent to his policy5 'hall he p!rchase that consent for some sort of consideration5Or, when confronted with the obstinate st!pidity of his fellow citiens, sho!ld he then refrain from p!shing

forward the meas!res which he deems to be of vital necessity to the life of the nation5 'ho!ld he retire or

remain in power5

In s!ch circ!mstances does not a man of character find himself face to face with an insol!ble contradiction between his own political insight on the one hand and, on the other, his moral integrity, or, better still, his

sense of honesty5

/here can we draw the line between p!blic d!ty and personal hono!r5

!st not every gen!ine leader reno!nce the idea of degrading himself to the level of a political obber5

And, on the other hand, does not every obber feel the itch to play politics#, seeing that the finalresponsibility will never rest with him personally b!t with an anonymo!s mass which can never be called to

acco!nt for their deeds5

!st not o!r parliamentary principle of government by n!merical maority necessarily lead to thedestr!ction of the principle of leadership5

?oes anybody honestly believe that h!man progress originates in the composite brain of the maority and

not in the brain of the individ!al personality5

Or may it be pres!med that for the f!t!re h!man civiliation will be able to dispense with this as acondition of its e3istence5

!t may it not be that, to-day, more than ever before, the creative brain of the individ!al is indispensable5

(he parliamentary principle of vesting legislative power in the decision of the maority reects the a!thority

of the individ!al and p!ts a n!merical +!ota of anonymo!s heads in its place% In doing so it contradicts thearistrocratic principle, which is a f!ndamental law of nat!re> b!t, of co!rse, we m!st remember that in this

decadent era of o!rs the aristrocratic principle need not be tho!ght of as incorporated in the !pper tentho!sand%

(he devastating infl!ence of this parliamentary instit!tion might not easily be recognied by those whoread the )ewish "ress, !nless the reader has learned how to thin& independently and e3amine the facts for

himself% (his instit!tion is primarily responsible for the crowded inr!sh of mediocre people into the field of

politics% $onfronted with s!ch a phenomenon, a man who is endowed with real +!alities of leadership will

be tempted to refrain from ta&ing part in political life> beca!se !nder these circ!mstances the sit!ation doesnot call for a man who has a capacity for constr!ctive statesmanship b!t rather for a man who is capable of

bargaining for the favo!r of the maority% (h!s the sit!ation will appeal to small minds and will attract them

accordingly%

(he narrower the mental o!tloo& and the more meagre the amo!nt of &nowledge in a political obber, themore acc!rate is his estimate of his own political stoc&, and th!s he will be all the more inclined to

appreciate a system which does not demand creative geni!s or even high-class talent> b!t rather that crafty

&ind of sagacity which ma&es an efficient town cler&% Indeed, he val!es this &ind of small craftiness morethan the political geni!s of a "ericles% '!ch a mediocrity does not even have to worry abo!t responsibilityfor what he does% From the beginning he &nows that whatever be the res!lts of his statesmanship# his end

is already prescribed by the stars> he will one day have to clear o!t and ma&e room for another who is of

similar mental calibre% For it is another sign of o!r decadent times that the n!mber of eminent statesmen

grows according as the calibre of individ!al personality dwindles% (hat calibre will become smaller andsmaller the more the individ!al politician has to depend !pon parliamentary maorities% A man of real

political ability will ref!se to be the beadle for a bevy of footling cac&lers> and they in their t!rn, being the

representatives of the maority - which means the d!nder-headed m!ltit!de - hate nothing so m!ch as as!perior brain%



For footling dep!ties it is always +!ite a consolation to be led by a person whose intellect!al stat!re is on a

level with their own% (h!s each one may have the opport!nity to shine in debate among s!ch compeers and,

above all, each one feels that he may one day rise to the top% If "eter be boss to-day, then why not "a!l

tomorrow 5(his new invention of democracy is very closely connected with a pec!liar phenomenon which has recently

spread to a pernicio!s e3tent, namely the cowardice of a large section of o!r so-called political leaders%

/henever important decisions have to be made they always find themselves fort!nate in being able to hide

behind the bac&s of what they call the maority%In observing one of these political manip!lators one notices how he wheedles the maority in order to get

their sanction for whatever action he ta&es% e has to have accomplices in order to be able to shift

responsibility to other sho!lders whenever it is opport!ne to do so% (hat is the main reason why this &ind of

political activity is abhorrent to men of character and co!rage, while at the same time it attracts inferior types> for a person who is not willing to accept responsibility for his own actions, b!t is always see&ing to

be covered by something, m!st be classed among the &naves and the rascals% If a national leader sho!ld

come from that lower class of politicians the evil conse+!ences will soon manifest themselves% *obody will

then have the co!rage to ta&e a decisive step% (hey will s!bmit to ab!se and defamation rather than pl!c& !p co!rage to ta&e a definite stand% And th!s nobody is left who is willing to ris& his position and his

career, if needs be, in s!pport of a determined line of policy%

One tr!th which m!st always be borne in mind is that the maority can never replace the man% (he maority

represents not only ignorance b!t also cowardice% And !st as a h!ndred bloc&heads do not e+!al one man

of wisdom, so a h!ndred poltroons are incapable of any political line of action that re+!ires moral strengthand fortit!de%

(he lighter the b!rden of responsibility on each individ!al leader, the greater will be the n!mber of those

who, in spite of their sorry mediocrity, will feel the call to place their immortal energies at the disposal of the nation% (hey are so m!ch on the tip-toe of e3pectation that they find it hard to wait their t!rn% (hey

stand in a long +!e!e, painf!lly and sadly co!nting the n!mber of those ahead of them and calc!lating the

ho!rs !ntil they may event!ally come forward% (hey watch every change that ta&es place in the personnel

of the office towards which their hopes are directed, and they are gratef!l for every scandal which removesone of the aspirants waiting ahead of them in the +!e!e% If somebody stic&s too long to his office stool they

consider this as almost a breach of a sacred !nderstanding based on their m!t!al solidarity% (hey grow

f!rio!s and give no peace !ntil that inconsiderate person is finally driven o!t and forced to hand over his

cosy berth for p!blic disposal% After that he will have little chance of getting another opport!nity% Ms!allythose placemen who have been forced to give !p their posts p!sh themselves again into the waiting +!e!e

!nless they are ho!nded away by the protestations of the other aspirants%(he res!lt of all this is that, in s!ch a 'tate, the s!ccession of s!dden changes in p!blic positions and p!blic

offices has a very dis+!ieting effect in general, which may easily lead to disaster when an adverse crisisarises% It is not only the ignorant and the incompetent person who may fall victim to those parliamentary

conditions, for the gen!ine leader may be affected !st as m!ch as the others, if not more so, whenever Fate

has chanced to place a capable man in the position of leader% Let the s!perior +!ality of s!ch a leader be

once recognied and the res!lt will be that a oint front will be organied against him, partic!larly if thatleader, tho!gh not coming from their ran&s, sho!ld fall into the habit of intermingling with these ill!strio!s

nincompoops on their own level% (hey want to have only their own company and will +!ic&ly ta&e a hostile

attit!de towards any man who might show himself obvio!sly above and beyond them when he mingles in

their ran&s% (heir instinct, which is so blind in other directions, is very sharp in this partic!lar%(he inevitable res!lt is that the intellect!al level of the r!ling class sin&s steadily% One can easily forecast

how m!ch the nation and 'tate are bo!nd to s!ffer from s!ch a condition of affairs, provided one does not

belong to that same class of leaders#%(he parliamentary rgime in the old A!stria was the very archetype of the instit!tion as I have described it%(ho!gh the A!strian "rime inister was appointed by the ing-7mperor, this act of appointment merely

gave practical effect to the will of the parliament% (he h!c&stering and bargaining that went on in regard to

every ministerial position showed all the typical mar&s of /estern ?emocracy% (he res!lts that followed

were in &eeping with the principles applied% (he intervals between the replacement of one person byanother grad!ally became shorter, finally ending !p in a wild relay chase% /ith each change the +!ality of

the statesman# in +!estion deteriorated, !ntil finally only the petty type of political h!c&ster remained% In

s!ch people the +!alities of statesmanship were meas!red and val!ed according to the adroitness withwhich they pieced together one coalition after another> in other words, their craftiness in manip!lating the



pettiest political transactions, which is the only &ind of practical activity s!ited to the aptit!des of these

representatives%

In this sphere :ienna was the school which offered the most impressive e3amples%

Another feat!re that engaged my attention +!ite as m!ch as the feat!res I have already spo&en of was thecontrast between the talents and &nowledge of these representatives of the people on the one hand and, on

the other, the nat!re of the tas&s they had to face% /illingly or !nwillingly, one co!ld not help thin&ing

serio!sly of the narrow intellect!al o!tloo& of these chosen representatives of the vario!s constit!ent

nationalities, and one co!ld not avoid pondering on the methods thro!gh which these noble fig!res in o!r p!blic life were first discovered%

It was worth while to ma&e a thoro!gh st!dy and e3amination of the way in which the real talents of these

gentlemen were devoted to the service of their co!ntry> in other words, to analyse thoro!ghly the technical

proced!re of their activities%(he whole spectacle of parliamentary life became more and more desolate the more one penetrated into its

intimate str!ct!re and st!died the persons and principles of the system in a spirit of r!thless obectivity%

Indeed, it is very necessary to be strictly obective in the st!dy of the instit!tion whose sponsors tal& of

obectivity# in every other sentence as the only fair basis of e3amination and !dgment% If one st!died thesegentlemen and the laws of their stren!o!s e3istence the res!lts were s!rprising%

(here is no other principle which t!rns o!t to be +!ite so ill-conceived as the parliamentary principle, if we

e3amine it obectively%

In o!r e3amination of it we may pass over the methods according to which the election of the

representatives ta&es place, as well as the ways which bring them into office and bestow new titles on them%It is +!ite evident that only to a tiny degree are p!blic wishes or p!blic necessities satisfied by the manner

in which an election ta&es place> for everybody who properly estimates the political intelligence of the

masses can easily see that this is not s!fficiently developed to enable them to form general political !dgments on their own acco!nt, or to select the men who might be competent to carry o!t their ideas in

practice%

/hatever definition we may give of the term p!blic opinion#, only a very small part of it originates from

personal e3perience or individ!al insight% (he greater portion of it res!lts from the manner in which p!blicmatters have been presented to the people thro!gh an overwhelmingly impressive and persistent system of

information#%

In the religio!s sphere the profession of a denominational belief is largely the res!lt of ed!cation, while the

religio!s yearning itself sl!mbers in the so!l> so too the political opinions of the masses are the final res!ltof infl!ences systematically operating on h!man sentiment and intelligence in virt!e of a method which is

applied sometimes with almost-incredible thoro!ghness and perseverance%y far the most effective branch of political ed!cation, which in this connection is best e3pressed by the

word propaganda#, is carried on by the "ress% (he "ress is the chief means employed in the process of political enlightenment#% It represents a &ind of school for ad!lts% (his ed!cational activity, however, is not

in the hands of the 'tate b!t in the cl!tches of powers which are partly of a very inferior character% /hile

still a yo!ng man in :ienna I had e3cellent opport!nities for coming to &now the men who owned this

machine for mass instr!ction, as well as those who s!pplied it with the ideas it distrib!ted% At first I was+!ite s!rprised when I realied how little time was necessary for this dangero!s 6reat "ower within the

'tate to prod!ce a certain belief among the p!blic> and in doing so the gen!ine will and convictions of the

p!blic were often completely misconstr!ed% It too& the "ress only a few days to transform some

ridic!lo!sly trivial matter into an iss!e of national importance, while vital problems were completelyignored or filched and hidden away from p!blic attention%

(he "ress s!cceeded in the magical art of prod!cing names from nowhere within the co!rse of a few

wee&s% (hey made it appear that the great hopes of the masses were bo!nd !p with those names% And sothey made those names more pop!lar than any man of real ability co!ld ever hope to be in a long lifetime%All this was done, despite the fact that s!ch names were !tterly !n&nown and indeed had never been heard

of even !p to a month before the "ress p!blicly emblaoned them% At the same time old and tried fig!res in

the political and other spheres of life +!ic&ly faded from the p!blic memory and were forgotten as if they

were dead, tho!gh still healthy and in the enoyment of their f!ll vig!o!r% Or sometimes s!ch men were sovilely ab!sed that it loo&ed as if their names wo!ld soon stand as permanent symbols of the worst &ind of

baseness% In order to estimate properly the really pernicio!s infl!ence which the "ress can e3ercise one had

to st!dy this infamo!s )ewish method whereby hono!rable and decent people were besmirched with m!dand filth, in the form of low ab!se and slander, from h!ndreds and h!ndreds of +!arters sim!ltaneo!sly, as



if commanded by some magic form!la%

(hese highway robbers wo!ld grab at anything which might serve their evil ends%

(hey wo!ld po&e their noses into the most intimate family affairs and wo!ld not rest !ntil they had sniffed

o!t some petty item which co!ld be !sed to destroy the rep!tation of their victim% !t if the res!lt of all thissniffing sho!ld be that nothing derogatory was discovered in the private or p!blic life of the victim, they

contin!ed to h!rl ab!se at him, in the belief that some of their animadversions wo!ld stic& even tho!gh

ref!ted a tho!sand times% In most cases it finally t!rned o!t impossible for the victim to contin!e his

defence, beca!se the acc!ser wor&ed together with so many accomplices that his slanders were re-echoedinterminably% !t these slanderers wo!ld never own that they were acting from motives which infl!ence the

common r!n of h!manity or are !nderstood by them% Oh, no% (he sco!ndrel who defamed his

contemporaries in this villaino!s way wo!ld crown himself with a halo of heroic probity fashioned of

!nct!o!s phraseology and twaddle abo!t his d!ties as a o!rnalist# and other mo!ldy nonsense of that &ind%/hen these c!ttle-fishes gathered together in large shoals at meetings and congresses they wo!ld give o!t a

lot of slimy tal& abo!t a special &ind of hono!r which they called the professional hono!r of the o!rnalist%

(hen the assembled species wo!ld bow their respects to one another%

(hese are the &ind of beings that fabricate more than two-thirds of what is called p!blic opinion, from thefoam of which the parliamentary Aphrodite event!ally arises%

'everal vol!mes wo!ld be needed if one were to give an ade+!ate acco!nt of the whole proced!re and f!lly

describe all its hollow fallacies% !t if we pass over the details and loo& at the prod!ct itself while it is in

operation I thin& this alone will be s!fficient to open the eyes of even the most innocent and cred!lo!s

person, so that he may recognie the abs!rdity of this instit!tion by loo&ing at it obectively%In order to realie how this h!man aberration is as harmf!l as it is abs!rd, the test and easiest method is to

compare democratic parliamentarianism with a gen!ine 6erman democracy%

(he remar&able characteristic of the parliamentary form of democracy is the fact that a n!mber of persons,let !s say five h!ndred - incl!ding, in recent time, women also - are elected to parliament and invested with

a!thority to give final !dgment on anything and everything% In practice they alone are the governing body>

for altho!gh they may appoint a $abinet, which seems o!twardly to direct the affairs of state, this $abinet

has not a real e3istence of its own% In reality the so-called 6overnment cannot do anything against the willof the assembly% It can never be called to acco!nt for anything, since the right of decision is not vested in

the $abinet b!t in the parliamentary maority% (he $abinet always f!nctions only as the e3ec!tor of the will

of the maority% Its political ability can be !dged only according to how far it s!cceeds in ad!sting itself to

the will of the maority or in pers!ading the maority to agree to its proposals% !t this means that it m!stdescend from the level of a real governing power to that of a mendicant who has to beg the approval of a

maority that may be got together for the time being% Indeed, the chief preocc!pation of the $abinet m!st beto sec!re for itself, in the case of# each individ!al meas!re, the favo!r of the maority then in power or,

failing that, to form a new maority that will be more favo!rably disposed% If it sho!ld s!cceed in either of these efforts it may go on governing# for a little while% If it sho!ld fail to win or form a maority it m!st

retire% (he +!estion whether its policy as s!ch has been right or wrong does not matter at all%

(hereby all responsibility is abolished in practice% (o what conse+!ences s!ch a state of affairs can lead

may easily be !nderstood from the following simple considerations0(hose five h!ndred dep!ties who have been elected by the people come from vario!s dissimilar callings in

life and show very varying degrees of political capacity, with the res!lt that the whole combination is

disointed and sometimes presents +!ite a sorry pict!re% '!rely nobody believes that these chosen

representatives of the nation are the choice spirits or first-class intellects% *obody, I hope, is foolish eno!ghto pretend that h!ndreds of statesmen can emerge from papers placed in the ballot bo3 by electors who are

anything else b!t averagely intelligent% (he abs!rd notion that men of geni!s are born o!t of !niversal

s!ffrage cannot be too strongly rep!diated% In the first place, those times may be really called blessed whenone gen!ine statesman ma&es his appearance among a people% '!ch statesmen do not appear all at once inh!ndreds or more% 'econdly, among the broad masses there is instinctively a definite antipathy towards

every o!tstanding geni!s% (here is a better chance of seeing a camel pass thro!gh the eye of a needle than

of seeing a really great man discovered# thro!gh an election%

/hatever has happened in history above the level of the average of the broad p!blic has mostly been d!e tothe driving force of an individ!al personality%

!t here five h!ndred persons of less than modest intellect!al +!alities pass !dgment on the most

important problems affecting the nation% (hey form governments which in t!rn learn to win the approval of the ill!strio!s assembly for every legislative step that may be ta&en, which means that the policy to be



the obligations that rest with a parliamentary assembly of empty tal&ers%

(he parliamentary instit!tion attracts people of the badger type, who do not li&e the open light% *o !pright

man, who is ready to accept personal responsibility for his acts, will be attracted to s!ch an instit!tion%

(hat is the reason why this brand of democracy has become a tool in the hand of that race which, beca!seof the inner p!rposes it wishes to attain, m!st sh!n the open light, as it has always done and always will do%

Only a )ew can praise an instit!tion which is as corr!pt and false as himself%

As a contrast to this &ind of democracy we have the 6erman democracy, which is a tr!e democracy> for

here the leader is freely chosen and is obliged to accept f!ll responsibility for all his actions and omissions%(he problems to be dealt with are not p!t to the vote of the maority> b!t they are decided !pon by the

individ!al, and as a g!arantee of responsibility for those decisions he pledges all he has in the world and

even his life%

(he obection may be raised here that !nder s!ch conditions it wo!ld be very diffic!lt to find a man whowo!ld be ready to devote himself to so fatef!l a tas&% (he answer to that obection is as follows0

/e than& 6od that the inner spirit of o!r 6erman democracy will of itself prevent the chance careerist, who

may be intellect!ally worthless and a moral twister, from coming by devio!s ways to a position in which he

may govern his fellow-citiens% (he fear of !nderta&ing s!ch far-reaching responsibilities, !nder 6ermandemocracy, will scare off the ignorant and the fec&less%

!t sho!ld it happen that s!ch a person might creep in s!rreptitio!sly it will be easy eno!gh to identify him

and apostrophie him r!thlessly% somewhat th!s0 He off, yo! sco!ndrel% ?on#t soil these steps with yo!r

feet> beca!se these are the steps that lead to the portals of the "antheon of istory, and they are not meant

for place-h!nters b!t for men of noble character%H'!ch were the views I formed after two years of attendance at the sessions of the :iennese "arliament%

(hen I went there no more%

(he parliamentary regime became one of the ca!ses why the strength of the absb!rg 'tate steadilydeclined d!ring the last years of its e3istence% (he more the predominance of the 6erman element was

whittled away thro!gh parliamentary proced!re, the more prominent became the system of playing off one

of the vario!s constit!ent nationalities against the other% In the Imperial "arliament it was always the

6erman element that s!ffered thro!gh the system, which meant that the res!lts were detrimental to the7mpire as a whole> for at the close of the cent!ry even the most simple-minded people co!ld recognie that

the cohesive forces within the ?!al onarchy no longer s!fficed to co!nterbalance the separatist

tendencies of the provincial nationalities% On the contraryJ

(he meas!res which the 'tate adopted for its own maintenance became more and more mean spirited andin a li&e degree the general disrespect for the 'tate increased% *ot only !ngary b!t also the vario!s 'lav

provinces grad!ally ceased to identify themselves with the monarchy which embraced them all, andaccordingly they did not feel its wea&ness as in any way detrimental to themselves% (hey rather welcomed

those manifestations of senile decay% (hey loo&ed forward to the final dissol!tion of the 'tate, and not to itsrecovery%

(he complete collapse was still forestalled in "arliament by the h!miliating concessions that were made to

every &ind of import!nate demands, at the cost of the 6erman element% (hro!gho!t the co!ntry the defence

of the 'tate rested on playing off the vario!s nationalities against one another% !t the general trend of thisdevelopment was directed against the 6ermans% 7specially since the right of s!ccession to the throne

conferred certain infl!ence on the Archd!&e Fran Ferdinand, the policy of increasing the power of the

$echs was carried o!t systematically from the !pper grades of the administration down to the lower% /ith

all the means at his command the heir to the ?!al onarchy personally f!rthered the policy that aimed ateliminating the infl!ence of the 6erman element, or at least he acted as protector of that policy% y the !se

of 'tate officials as tools, p!rely 6erman districts were grad!ally b!t decisively bro!ght within the danger

one of the mi3ed lang!ages% 7ven in Lower A!stria this process began to ma&e headway with a constantlyincreasing tempo and :ienna was loo&ed !pon by the $echs as their biggest city%In the family circle of this new absb!rger the $ech lang!age was favo!red% (he wife of the Archd!&e

had formerly been a $ech $o!ntess and was wedded to the "rince by a morganatic marriage% 'he came

from an environment where hostility to the 6ermans had been traditional% (he leading idea in the mind of

the Archd!&e was to establish a 'lav 'tate in $entral 7!rope, which was to be constr!cted on a p!rely$atholic basis, so as to serve as a b!lwar& against Orthodo3 8!ssia%

As had happened often in absb!rg history, religion was th!s e3ploited to serve a p!rely political policy,

and in this case a fatal policy, at least as far as 6erman interests were concerned% (he res!lt was lamentablein many respects%



*either the o!se of absb!rg nor the $atholic $h!rch received the reward which they e3pected%

absb!rg lost the throne and the $h!rch lost a great 'tate% y employing religio!s motives in the service of

politics, a spirit was aro!sed which the instigators of that policy had never tho!ght possible%

From the attempt to e3terminate 6ermanism in the old monarchy by every available means arose the "an-6erman ovement in A!stria, as a response%

In the #eighties of the last cent!ry anchester Liberalism, which was )ewish in its f!ndamental ideas, had

reached the enith of its infl!ence in the ?!al onarchy, or had already passed that point% (he reaction

which set in did not arise from social b!t from nationalistic tendencies, as was always the case in the oldA!stria% (he instinct of self-preservation drove the 6erman element to defend itself energetically%

7conomic considerations only slowly began to gain an important infl!ence> b!t they were of secondary

concern% !t of the general political chaos two party organiations emerged% (he one was more of a

national, and the other more of a social, character> b!t both were highly interesting and instr!ctive for thef!t!re%

After the war of 1;, which had res!lted in the h!miliation of A!stria, the o!se of absb!rg

contemplated a revanche on the battlefield% Only the tragic end of the 7mperor a3imilian of e3ico

prevented a still closer collaboration with France% (he chief blame for a3imilian#s disastro!s e3peditionwas attrib!ted to *apoleon III and the fact that the Frenchman left him in the l!rch aro!sed a general

feeling of indignation% Net the absb!rgs were still lying in wait for their opport!nity% If the war of 1;G<-G1

had not been s!ch a sing!lar tri!mph, the :iennese $o!rt might have chanced the game of blood in order to

get its revenge for 'adowa% !t when the first reports arrived from the Franco-6erman battlefield, which,

tho!gh tr!e, seemed mirac!lo!s and almost incredible, the most wise# of all monarchs recognied that themoment was inopport!ne and tried to accept the !nfavo!rable sit!ation with as good a grace as possible%

(he heroic conflict of those two years B1;G<-G1C prod!ced a still greater miracle> for with the absb!rgs

the change of attit!de never came from an inner heartfelt !rge b!t only from the press!re of circ!mstances%(he 6erman people of the 7ast ar&, however, were entranced by the tri!mphant glory of the newly

established 6erman 7mpire and were profo!ndly moved when they saw the dream of their fathers res!rgent

in a magnificent reality%

For - let !s ma&e no mista&e abo!t it - the tr!e 6erman-A!strian realied from this time onward, thatRniggrEt was the tragic, tho!gh necessary, pre-condition for the re-establishment of an 7mpire which

sho!ld no longer be b!rdened with the palsy of the old alliance and which indeed had no share in that

morbid decay% Above all, the 6erman-A!strian had come to feel in the very depths of his own being that the

historical mission of the o!se of absb!rg had come to an end and that the new 7mpire co!ld chooseonly an 7mperor who was of heroic mo!ld and was therefore worthy to wear the $rown of the 8hine#% It

was right and !st that ?estiny sho!ld be praised for having chosen a scion of that o!se of whichFrederic& the 6reat had in past times given the nation an elevated and resplendent symbol for all time to

come%After the great war of 1;G<-G1 the o!se of absb!rg set to wor& with all its determination to e3terminate

the dangero!s 6erman element - abo!t whose inner feelings and attit!de there co!ld be no do!bt - slowly

b!t deliberately% I !se the word e3terminate, beca!se that alone e3presses what m!st have been the final

res!lt of the 'lavophile policy% (hen it was that the fire of rebellion blaed !p among the people whosee3termination had been decreed% (hat fire was s!ch as had never been witnessed in modern 6erman history%

For the first time nationalists and patriots were transformed into rebels%

*ot rebels against the nation or the 'tate as s!ch b!t rebels against that form of government which they

were convinced, wo!ld inevitably bring abo!t the r!in of their own people% For the first time in modernhistory the traditional dynastic patriotism and national love of fatherland and people were in open conflict%

It was to the merit of the "an-6erman movement in A!stria d!ring the closing decade of the last cent!ry

that it pointed o!t clearly and !ne+!ivocally that a 'tate is entitled to demand respect and protection for itsa!thority only when s!ch a!thority is administered in accordance with the interests of the nation, or at leastnot in a manner detrimental to those interests%

(he a!thority of the 'tate can never be an end in itself> for, if that were so, any &ind of tyranny wo!ld be

inviolable and sacred%

If a government !ses the instr!ments of power in its hands for the p!rpose of leading a people to r!in, thenrebellion is not only the right b!t also the d!ty of every individ!al citien%

(he +!estion of whether and when s!ch a sit!ation e3ists cannot be answered by theoretical dissertations

b!t only by the e3ercise of force, and it is s!ccess that decides the iss!e%7very government, even tho!gh it may be the worst possible and even tho!gh it may have betrayed the



nation#s tr!st in tho!sands of ways, will claim that its d!ty is to !phold the a!thority of the 'tate% Its

adversaries, who are fighting for national self-preservation, m!st !se the same weapons which the

government !ses if they are to prevail against s!ch a r!le and sec!re their own freedom and independence%

(herefore the conflict will be fo!ght o!t with legal# means as long as the power which is to be overthrown!ses them> b!t the ins!rgents will not hesitate to apply illegal means if the oppressor himself employs them%

6enerally spea&ing, we m!st not forget that the highest aim of h!man e3istence is not the maintenance of a

'tate of 6overnment b!t rather the conservation of the race%

If the race is in danger of being oppressed or even e3terminated the +!estion of legality is only of secondary importance% (he established power may in s!ch a case employ only those means which are

recognied as legal#% yet the instinct of self-preservation on the part of the oppressed will always !stify, to

the highest degree, the employment of all possible reso!rces%

Only on the recognition of this principle was it possible for those str!ggles to be carried thro!gh, of whichhistory f!rnishes magnificent e3amples in ab!ndance, against foreign bondage or oppression at home%

!man rights are above the rights of the 'tate% !t if a people be defeated in the str!ggle for its h!man

rights this means that its weight has proved too light in the scale of ?estiny to have the l!c& of being able

to end!re in this terrestrial world%(he world is not there to be possessed by the faint-hearted races%

A!stria affords a very clear and stri&ing e3ample of how easy it is for tyranny to hide its head !nder the

cloa& of what is called legality#%

(he legal e3ercise of power in the absb!rg 'tate was then based on the anti-6erman attit!de of the

parliament, with its non-6erman maorities, and on the dynastic o!se, which was also hostile to the6erman element% (he whole a!thority of the 'tate was incorporated in these two factors% (o attempt to alter

the lot of the 6erman element thro!gh these two factors wo!ld have been senseless% (hose who advised the

legal# way as the only possible way, and also obedience to the 'tate a!thority, co!ld offer no resistance> beca!se a policy of resistance co!ld not have been p!t into effect thro!gh legal meas!res% (o follow the

advice of the legalist co!nsellors wo!ld have meant the inevitable r!in of the 6erman element within the

onarchy, and this disaster wo!ld not have ta&en long to come% (he 6erman element has act!ally been

saved only beca!se the 'tate as s!ch collapsed%(he spectacled theorist wo!ld have given his life for his doctrine rather than for his people%

eca!se man has made laws he s!bse+!ently comes to thin& that he e3ists for the sa&e of the laws%

A great service rendered by the pan-6erman movement then was that it abolished all s!ch nonsense, tho!gh

the doctrinaire theorists and other fetish worshippers were shoc&ed%/hen the absb!rgs attempted to come to close +!arters with the 6erman element, by the employment of

all the means of attac& which they had at their command, the "an-6erman "arty hit o!t r!thlessly againstthe ill!strio!s# dynasty% (his "arty was the first to probe into and e3pose the corr!pt condition of the 'tate>

and in doing so they opened the eyes of h!ndreds of tho!sands% (o have liberated the high ideal of love for one#s co!ntry from the embrace of this deplorable dynasty was one of the great services rendered by the

"an-6erman movement%

/hen that "arty first made its appearance it sec!red a large following - indeed, the movement threatened to

become almost an avalanche% !t the first s!ccesses were not maintained% At the time I came to :ienna the pan-6erman "arty had been eclipsed by the $hristian-'ocialist "arty, which had come into power in the

meantime% Indeed, the "an-6erman "arty had s!n& to a level of almost complete insignificance%

(he rise and decline of the "an-6erman movement on the one hand and the marvello!s progress of the

$hristian-'ocialist "arty on the other, became a classic obect of st!dy for me, and as s!ch they played animportant part in the development of my own views%

/hen I came to :ienna all my sympathies were e3cl!sively with the "an-6erman ovement%

I was !st as m!ch impressed by the fact that they had the co!rage to sho!t eil ohenollern as I reoicedat their determination to consider themselves an integral part of the 6erman 7mpire, from which they wereseparated only provisionally% (hey never missed an opport!nity to e3plain their attit!de in p!blic, which

raised my enth!siasm and confidence% (o avow one#s principles p!blicly on every problem that concerned

6ermanism, and never to ma&e any compromises, seemed to me the only way of saving o!r people% /hat I

co!ld not !nderstand was how this movement bro&e down so soon after s!ch a magnificent start> and it wasno less incomprehensible that the $hristian-'ocialists sho!ld gain s!ch tremendo!s power within s!ch a

short time% (hey had !st reached the pinnacle of their pop!larity%

/hen I began to compare those two movements Fate placed before me the best means of !nderstanding theca!ses of this p!ling problem% (he action of Fate in this case was hastened by my own straitened



tried o!t e3cept that of entering "arliamcnt%

It wo!ld be a mista&e to thin& that this decision res!lted from a long series of internal hesitations of a moral

&ind, or that it was the o!tcome of caref!l calc!lation% *o% (hey did not even thin& of another sol!tion%

(hose who participated in this bl!nder were act!ated by general considerations and vag!e notions as towhat wo!ld be the significance and effect of ta&ing part in s!ch a special way in that instit!tion which they

had condemned on principle% In general they hoped that they wo!ld th!s have the means of e3po!nding

their ca!se to the great masses of the people, beca!se they wo!ld be able to spea& before the for!m of the

whole nation#% Also, it seemed reasonable to believe that by attac&ing the evil in the root they wo!ld bemore effective than if the attac& came from o!tside% (hey believed that, if protected by the imm!nity of

"arliament, the position of the individ!al protagonists wo!ld be strengthened and that th!s the force of their

attac&s wo!ld be enhanced%

In reality everything t!rned o!t +!ite otherwise%(he For!m before which the "an-6erman representatives spo&e had not grown greater, b!t had act!ally

become smaller> for each spo&e only to the circle that was ready to listen to him or co!ld read the report of

his speech in the newspapers%

!t the greater for!m of immediate listeners is not the parliamentary a!ditori!m0 it is the large p!blicmeeting% For here alone will there be tho!sands of men who have come simply to hear what a spea&er has

to say, whereas in the parliamentary sittings only a few h!ndred 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#%

(he most important consideration is that the same p!blic is always present and that this p!blic does notwish to learn anything new> beca!se, setting aside the +!estion of its intelligence, it lac&s even that modest

+!ant!m of will-power which is necessary for the effort of learning%

*ot one of the representatives of the people will pay homage to a s!perior tr!th and devote himself to itsservice% *o% *ot one of these gentry will act th!s, e3cept he has gro!nds for hoping that by s!ch a

conversion he may be able to retain the representation of his constit!ency in the coming legislat!re%

(herefore, only when it becomes +!ite clear that the old party is li&ely to have a bad time of it at the

forthcoming elections - only then will those models of manly virt!e set o!t in search of a new party or anew policy which may have better electoral prospects> b!t of co!rse this change of position will be

accompanied by a veritable del!ge of high moral motives to !stify it% And th!s it always happens that

when an e3isting "arty has inc!rred s!ch general disfavo!r among the p!blic that it is threatened with the

probability of a cr!shing defeat, then a great migration commences% (he parliamentary rats leave the "artyship%

All this happens not beca!se the individ!als in the case have become better informed on the +!estions atiss!e and have resolved to act accordingly% (hese 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 "arty bed%

(o spea& before s!ch a for!m signifies casting pearls before certain animals%

:erily it does not repay the pains ta&en> for the res!lt m!st always be negative%

And that is act!ally what happened% (he "an-6erman representatives might have tal&ed themselves hoarse, b!t to no effect whatsoever%

(he "ress either ignored them totally or so m!tilated their speeches that the logical consistency was

destroyed or the meaning twisted ro!nd in s!ch a way that the p!blic got only a very wrong impression

regarding the aims of the new movement% /hat the individ!al members said was not of importance% (heimportant matter was what people read as coming from them% (his consisted of mere e3tracts which had

been torn o!t of the conte3t of the speeches and gave an impression of incoherent nonsense, which indeed

was p!rposely meant% (h!s the only p!blic before which they really spo&e consisted merely of five h!ndred parliamentarians> and that says eno!gh%(he worst was the following0

(he "an-6erman ovement co!ld hope for s!ccess only if the leaders realied from the very first moment

that here there was no +!estion so m!ch of a new "arty as of a new Weltanschhauung % (his alone co!ld

aro!se the inner moral forces that were necessary for s!ch a gigantic str!ggle% And for this str!ggle theleaders m!st be men of first-class brains and indomitable co!rage% If the str!ggle on behalf of a

Weltanschhauung is not cond!cted 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 livesfor the ca!se% A man who fights only for his own e3istence has not m!ch left over for the service of the



comm!nity%

In order to sec!re the conditions that are necessary for s!ccess, everybody concerned m!st be made to

!nderstand that the new movement loo&s to posterity for its hono!r and glory b!t that it has no recompense

to offer to the present-day members% If a movement sho!ld offer a large n!mber of positions and officesthat are easily accessible the n!mber of !nworthy candidates admitted to membership will be constantly on

the increase and event!ally a day will come when there will be s!ch a preponderance of political profiteers

among the membership of a s!ccessf!l "arty that the combatants who bore the br!nt of the battle in the

earlier stages of the movement can now scarcely recognie their own "arty and may be eected by the later arrivals as !nwanted ballast% (herewith the movement will no longer have a mission to f!lfil%

Once the "an-6ermanists decided to collaborate with "arliament they were no longer leaders and

combatants in a pop!lar movement, b!t merely parliamentarians% (h!s the ovement san& to the common

political party level of the day and no longer had the strength to face a hostile fate and defy the ris& of martyrdom% Instead of fighting, the "an-6erman leaders fell into the habit of tal&ing and negotiating% (he

new parliamentarians soon fo!nd that it was a more satisfactory, beca!se less ris&y, way of f!lfilling their

tas& if they wo!ld defend the new Weltanschhauung with the spirit!al weapon of parliamentary rhetoric

rather than ta&e !p a fight in which they placed their lives in danger, the o!tcome of which also was!ncertain and even at the best co!ld offer no prospect of personal gain for themselves%

/hen they had ta&en their seats in "arliament their adherents o!tside hoped and waited for miracles to

happen% *at!rally no s!ch miracles happened or co!ld happen% /here!pon the adherents of the movement

soon grew impatient, beca!se reports they read abo!t their own dep!ties did not in the least come !p to

what had been e3pected when they voted for these dep!ties at the elections% (he reason for this was not far to see&% It was d!e to the fact that an !nfriendly "ress refrained from giving a tr!e acco!nt of what the "an-

6erman representatives of the people were act!ally doing%

According as the new dep!ties got to li&e this mild form of revol!tionary# str!ggle in "arliament and in the provincial diets they grad!ally became rel!ctant to res!me the more haardo!s wor& of e3po!nding the

principles of the movement before the broad masses of the people%

ass meetings in p!blic became more and more rare, tho!gh these are the only means of e3ercising a really

effective infl!ence on the people> beca!se here the infl!ence comes from direct personal contact and in thisway the s!pport of large sections of the people can be obtained%

/hen the tables on which the spea&ers !sed to stand in the great beer-halls, addressing an assembly of

tho!sands, were deserted for the parliamentary trib!ne and the speeches were no longer addressed to the

people directly b!t to the so-called chosen# representatives, the "an-6erman ovement lost its pop!lar character and in a little while degenerated to the level of a more or less serio!s cl!b where problems of the

day are disc!ssed academically%(he wrong impression created by the "ress was no longer corrected by personal contact with the people

thro!gh p!blic meetings, whereby the individ!al representatives might have given a tr!e acco!nt of their activities% (he final res!lt of this neglect was that the word "an-6erman# came to have an !npleasant

so!nd in the ears of the masses%

(he &nights of the pen and the literary snobs of to-day sho!ld be made to realie that the great

transformations which have ta&en place in this world were never cond!cted by a goose+!ill% *o% (he tas& of the pen m!st always be that of presenting the theoretical concepts which motivate s!ch changes% (he

force which has ever and always set in motion great historical avalanches of religio!s and political

movements is the magic power of the spo&en word%

(he broad masses of a pop!lation are more amenable to the appeal of rhetoric than to any other force% Allgreat movements are pop!lar movements% (hey are the volcanic er!ptions of h!man passions and emotions,

stirred into activity by the r!thless 6oddess of ?istress or by the torch of the spo&en word cast into the

midst of the people% In no case have great movements been set afoot by the syr!py eff!sions of Sstheticlittrate!rs and drawing-room heroes%(he doom of a nation can be averted only by a storm of glowing passion> b!t only those who are passionate

themselves can aro!se passion in others% It is only thro!gh the capacity for passionate feeling that chosen

leaders can wield the power of the word which, li&e hammer blows, will open the door to the hearts of the

people%e who is not capable of passionate feeling and speech was never chosen by "rovidence to be the herald of

its will% (herefore a writer sho!ld stic& to his in&-bottle and b!sy himself with theoretical +!estions if he

has the re+!isite ability and &nowledge% e has not been born or chosen to be a leader%A movement which has great ends to achieve m!st caref!lly g!ard against the danger of losing contact with



the masses of the people% 7very problem enco!ntered m!st be e3amined from this viewpoint first of all and

the decision to be made m!st always be in harmony with this principle%

(he movement m!st avoid everything which might lessen or wea&en its power of infl!encing the masses>

not from demagogical motives b!t beca!se of the simple fact that no great idea, no matter how s!blime ande3alted it may appear, can be realied in practice witho!t the effective power which resides in the pop!lar

masses% 'tern reality alone m!st mar& the way to the goal% (o be !nwilling to wal& the road of hardship

means, only too often in this world, the total ren!nciation of o!r aims and p!rposes, whether that

ren!nciation be conscio!sly willed or not%(he moment the "an-6erman leaders, in virt!e of their acceptance of the parliamentary principle, moved

the centre of their activities away from the people and into "arliament, in that moment they sacrificed the

f!t!re for the sa&e of a cheap momentary s!ccess% (hey chose the easier way in the str!ggle and in doing so

rendered themselves !nworthy of the final victory%/hile in :ienna I !sed to ponder serio!sly over these two +!estions, and I saw that the main reason for the

collapse of the "an-6erman ovement lay in the fact that these very +!estions were not rightly

appreciated% (o my mind at that time the ovement seemed chosen to ta&e in its hands the leadership of the

6erman element in A!stria%(hese first two bl!nders which led to the downfall of the "an-6erman ovement were very closely

connected with one another% Fa!lty recognition of the inner driving forces that !rge great movements

forward led to an inade+!ate appreciation of the part which the broad masses play in bringing abo!t s!ch

changes% (he res!lt was that too little attention was given to the social problem and that the attempts made

by the movement to capt!re the minds of the lower classes were too few and too wea&% Another res!lt wasthe 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 tremendo!s powers of end!rance always shown by themasses in revol!tionary movements a different attit!de towards the social problem wo!ld have been ta&en,

and also a different policy in the matter of propaganda% (hen the centre of gravity of the movement wo!ld

not have been transferred to the "arliament b!t wo!ld have remained in the wor&shops and in the streets%

(here was a third mista&e, which also had its roots in the fail!re to !nderstand the worth of the masses% (hemasses are first set in motion, along a definite direction, by men of s!perior talents> b!t then these masses

once in motion are li&e a flywheel inasm!ch as they s!stain the moment!m and steady balance of the

offensive%

(he policy of the "an-6erman leaders in deciding to carry thro!gh a diffic!lt fight against the $atholic$h!rch can be e3plained only by attrib!ting it to an inade+!ate !nderstanding of the spirit!al character of

the people%(he reasons why the new "arty engaged in a violent campaign against 8ome were as follows0

As soon as the o!se of absb!rg had definitely decided to transform A!stria into a 'lav 'tate all sorts of means were adopted which seemed in any way serviceable for that p!rpose% (he absb!rg r!lers had no

scr!ples of conscience abo!t e3ploiting even religio!s instit!tions in the service of this new 'tate Idea#%

One of the many methods th!s employed was the !se of $ech parishes and their clergy as instr!ments for

spreading 'lav hegemony thro!gho!t A!stria% (his proceeding was carried o!t as follows0"arish priests of $ech nationality were appointed in p!rely 6erman districts% 6rad!ally b!t steadily

p!shing forward the interests of the $ech people before those of the $h!rch, the parishes and their priests

became generative cells in the process of de-6ermaniation%

Mnfort!nately the 6erman-A!strian clergy completely failed to co!nter this proced!re% *ot only were theyincapable of ta&ing a similar initiative on the 6erman side, b!t they showed themselves !nable to meet the

$ech offensive with ade+!ate resistance% (he 6erman element was accordingly p!shed bac&wards, slowly

b!t steadily, thro!gh the perversion of religio!s belief for political ends on the one side, and the )ac& of proper resistance on the other side% '!ch were the tactics !sed in dealing with the smaller problems> b!tthose !sed in dealing with the larger problems were not very different%

(he anti-6erman aims p!rs!ed by the absb!rgs, especially thro!gh the instr!mentality of the higher

clergy, did not meet with any vigoro!s resistance, while the clerical representatives of the 6erman interests

withdrew completely to the rear% (he general impression created co!ld not be other than that the $atholicclergy as s!ch were grossly neglecting the rights of the 6erman pop!lation%

(herefore it loo&ed as if the $atholic $h!rch was not in sympathy with the 6erman people b!t that it

!n!stly s!pported their adversaries% (he root of the whole evil, especially according to 'chRnerer#sopinion, lay in the fact that the leadership of the $atholic $h!rch was not in 6ermany, and that this fact



alone was s!fficient reason for the hostile attit!de of the $h!rch towards the demands of o!r people%

(he so-called c!lt!ral problem receded almost completely into the bac&gro!nd, as was generally the case

everywhere thro!gho!t A!stria at that time% In ass!ming a hostile attit!de towards the $atholic $h!rch, the

"an-6erman leaders were infl!enced not so m!ch by the $h!rch#s position in +!estions of science b!t principally by the fact that the $h!rch did not defend 6erman rights, as it sho!ld have done, b!t always

s!pported those who encroached on these rights, especially then 'lavs%

6eorge 'chRnerer was not a man who did things by halves% e went into battle against the $h!rch beca!se

he was convinced that this was the only way in which the 6erman people co!ld be saved% (he Los-von-8om BAway from 8omeC ovement seemed the most formidable, b!t at the same time most diffic!lt,

method of attac&ing and destroying the adversary#s citadel% 'chRnerer believed that if this movement co!ld

be carried thro!gh s!ccessf!lly the !nfort!nate division between the two great religio!s denominations in

6ermany wo!ld be wiped o!t and that the inner forces of the 6erman 7mpire and *ation wo!ld beenormo!sly enhanced by s!ch a victory%

!t the premises as well as the concl!sions in this case were both erroneo!s%

It was !ndo!btedly tr!e that the national powers of resistance, in everything concerning 6ermanism as

s!ch, were m!ch wea&er among the 6erman $atholic clergy than among their non-6erman confrTres,especially the $echs% And only an ignorant person co!ld be !naware of the fact that it scarcely ever

entered the mind of the 6erman clergy to ta&e the offensive on behalf of 6erman interests%

!t at the same time everybody who is not blind to facts m!st admit that all this sho!ld be attrib!ted to a

characteristic !nder which we 6ermans have all been doomed to s!ffer% (his characteristic shows itself in

o!r obective way of regarding o!r own nationality, as if it were something that lay o!tside of !s%/hile the $ech priest adopted a s!bective attit!de towards his own people and only an obective attit!de

towards the $h!rch, the 6erman parish priest showed a s!bective devotion to his $h!rch and remained

obective in regard to his nation% It is a phenomenon which, !nfort!nately for !s, can be observed occ!rringin e3actly the same way in tho!sands of other cases%

It is by no means a pec!liar inheritance from $atholicism> b!t it is something in !s which does not ta&e

long to gnaw the vitals of almost every instit!tion, especially instit!tions of 'tate and those which have

ideal aims% (a&e, for e3ample, the attit!de of o!r 'tate officials in regard to the efforts made for bringingabo!t a national res!rgence and compare that attit!de with the stand which the p!blic officials of any other

nation wo!ld have ta&en in s!ch a case% Or is it to be believed that the military officers of any other co!ntry

in the world wo!ld ref!se to come forward on behalf of the national aspirations, b!t wo!ld rather hide

behind the phrase A!thority of the 'tate#, as has been the case in o!r co!ntry d!ring the last five years andhas even been deemed a meritorio!s attit!de5 Or let !s ta&e another e3ample% In regard to the )ewish

problem, do not the two $hristian denominations ta&e !p a standpoint to-day which does not respond to thenational e3igencies or even the interests of religion5 $onsider the attit!de of a )ewish 8abbi towards any

+!estion, even one of +!ite insignificant importance, concerning the )ews as a race, and compare hisattit!de with that of the maority of o!r clergy, whether $atholic or "rotestant%

/e observe the same phenomenon wherever it is a matter of standing !p for some abstract idea%

A!thority of the 'tate#, ?emocracy#, "acifism#, International 'olidarity#, etc%, all s!ch notions become

rigid, dogmatic concepts with !s> and the more vital the general necessities of the nation, the more will they be !dged e3cl!sively in the light of those concepts%

(his !nfort!nate habit of loo&ing at all national demands from the viewpoint of a pre-conceived notion

ma&es it impossible for !s to see the s!bective side of a thing which obectively contradicts one#s own

doctrine% It finally leads to a complete reversion in the relation of means to an end% Any attempt at anational revival will be opposed if the preliminary condition of s!ch a revival be that a bad and pernicio!s

regime m!st first of all be overthrown> beca!se s!ch an action will be considered as a violation of the

A!thority of the 'tate#% In the eyes of those who ta&e that standpoint, the A!thority of the 'tate# is not ameans which is there to serve an end b!t rather, to the mind of the dogmatic believer in obectivity, it is anend in itself> and he loo&s !pon that as s!fficient apology for his own miserable e3istence% '!ch people

wo!ld raise an o!tcry, if, for instance, anyone sho!ld attempt to set !p a dictatorship, even tho!gh the man

responsible for it were Frederic& the 6reat and even tho!gh the politicians for the time being, who

constit!ted the parliamentary maority, were small and incompetent men or maybe even on a lower grade of inferiority> beca!se to s!ch stic&lers 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 &ind of

tyranny, tho!gh it may be leading a people to r!in, beca!se it is the fleeting embodiment of the A!thorityof the 'tate#, and another will reect even a highly beneficent government if it sho!ld happen not to be in



accord with his notion of democracy#%

In the same way o!r 6erman pacifist will remain silent while the nation is groaning !nder an oppression

which is being e3ercised by a sang!inary military power, when this state of affairs gives rise to active

resistance> beca!se s!ch resistance means the employment of physical force, which is against the spirit of the pacifist associations% (he 6erman International 'ocialist may be roo&ed and pl!ndered by his comrades

in all the other co!ntries of the world in the name of solidarity#, b!t he responds with fraternal &indness

and never thin&s of trying to get his own bac&, or even of defending himself% And why5 eca!se he is a -

6erman%It may be !npleasant to dwell on s!ch tr!ths, b!t if something is to be changed we m!st start by diagnosing

the disease%

(he phenomenon which I have !st described also acco!nts for the feeble manner in which 6erman

interests are promoted and defended by a section of the clergy%'!ch cond!ct is not the manifestation of a malicio!s intent, nor is it the o!tcome of orders given from

above#, as we say> b!t s!ch a lac& of national grit and determination is d!e to defects in o!r ed!cational

system% For, instead of inc!lcating in the yo!th a lively sense of their 6erman nationality, the aim of the

ed!cational system is to ma&e the yo!th prostrate themselves in homage to the idea, as if the idea were anidol%

(he ed!cation which ma&es them the devotees of s!ch abstract notions as ?emocracy#, International

'ocialism#, "acifism#, etc%, is so hard-and-fast and e3cl!sive and, operating as it does from within

o!twards, is so p!rely s!bective that in forming their general pict!re of o!tside life as a whole they are

f!ndamentally infl!enced by these a priori notions% !t, on the other hand, the attit!de towards their own6erman nationality has been very obective from yo!th !pwards% (he "acifist - in so far as he is a 6erman -

who s!rrenders himself s!bectively, body and so!l, to the dictates of his dogmatic principles, will always

first consider the obective right or wrong of a sit!ation when danger threatens his own people, even tho!ghthat danger be grave and !n!stly wro!ght from o!tside% !t he will never ta&e his stand in the ran&s of his

own people and fight for and with them from the sheer instinct of self-preservation%

Another e3ample may f!rther ill!strate how far this applies to the different religio!s denominations% In so

far as its origin and tradition are based on 6erman ideals, "rotestantism of itself defends those ideals better%!t it fails the moment it is called !pon 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 reected by that sphere%

(herefore "rotestantism will always ta&e its part in promoting 6erman ideals as far as concerns moral

integrity or national ed!cation, when the 6erman spirit!al being or lang!age or spirit!al freedom are to bedefended0 beca!se these represent the principles on which "rotestantism itself is gro!nded% !t this same

"rotestantism violently opposes every attempt to resc!e the nation from the cl!tches of its mortal enemy> beca!se the "rotestant attit!de towards the )ews is more or less rigidly and dogmatically fi3ed% And yet this

is the first problem which has to be solved, !nless all attempts to bring abo!t a 6erman res!rgence or toraise the level of the nation#s standing are doomed to t!rn o!t nonsensical and impossible%

?!ring my soo!rn in :ienna I had ample leis!re and opport!nity to st!dy this problem witho!t allowing

any pre!dices to intervene> and in my daily interco!rse with people I was able to establish the correctness

of the opinion I formed by the test of tho!sands of instances%In this foc!s where the greatest varieties of nationality had converged it was +!ite clear and open to

everybody to see that the 6erman pacifist was always and e3cl!sively the one who tried to consider the

interests of his own nation obectively> b!t yo! co!ld never find a )ew who too& a similar attit!de towards

his own race% F!rthermore, I fo!nd that only the 6erman 'ocialist is international# in the sense that he feelshimself obliged not to demand !stice for his own people in any other manner than by whining and wailing

to his international comrades% *obody co!ld ever reproach $echs or "oles or other nations with s!ch

cond!ct% In short, even at that time, already I recognied that this evil is only partly a res!lt of the doctrinesta!ght by 'ocialism, "acifism, etc%, b!t mainly the res!lt of o!r totally inade+!ate system of ed!cation, thedefects of which are responsible for the lac& of devotion to o!r own national ideals%

(herefore the first theoretical arg!ment advanced by the "an-6erman leaders as the basis of their offensive

against $atholicism was +!ite entenable%

(he only way to remedy the evil I have been spea&ing of is to train the 6ermans from yo!th !pwards to anabsol!te recognition of the rights of their own people, instead of poisoning their minds, while they are still

only children, with the vir!s of this c!rbed obectivity#, even in matters concerning the very maintenance

of o!r own e3istence% (he res!lt of this wo!ld be that the $atholic in 6ermany, !st as in Ireland, "oland or France, will be a 6erman first and foremost% !t all this pres!pposes a radical change in the national



government%

(he strongest proof in s!pport of my contention is f!rnished by what too& place at that historical !nct!re

when o!r people were called for the last time before the trib!nal of istory to defend their own e3istence,

in a life-or-death str!ggle%As long as there was no lac& of leadership in the higher circles, the people f!lfilled their d!ty and

obligations to an overwhelming e3tent% /hether "rotestant pastor or $atholic priest, each did his very

!tmost in helping o!r powers of resistance to hold o!t, not only in the trenches b!t also, and even more so,

at home% ?!ring those years, and especially d!ring the first o!tb!rst of enth!siasm, in both religio!s campsthere was one !ndivided and sacred 6erman 7mpire for whose preservation and f!t!re e3istence they all

prayed to eaven%

(he "an-6erman ovement in A!stria o!ght to have as&ed itself this one +!estion0 Is the maintenance of

the 6erman element in A!stria possible or not, as long as that element remains within the fold of the$atholic Faith5 If that +!estion sho!ld have been answered in the affirmative, then the political "arty

sho!ld not have meddled in religio!s and denominational +!estions% !t if the +!estion had to be answered

in the negative, then a religio!s reformation sho!ld have been started and not a political party movement%

Anyone who believes that a religio!s reformation can be achieved thro!gh the agency of a politicalorganiation shows that he has no idea of the development of religio!s conceptions and doctrines of faith

and how these are given practical effect by the $h!rch%

*o man can serve two masters% And I hold that the fo!ndation or overthrow of a religion has far greater

conse+!ences than the fo!ndation or overthrow of a 'tate, to say nothing of a "arty%

It is no arg!ment to the contrary to say that the attac&s were only defensive meas!res against attac&s fromthe other side%

Mndo!btedly there have always been !nscr!p!lo!s rog!es who did not hesitate to degrade religion to the

base !ses of politics% *early always s!ch a people had nothing else in their minds e3cept to ma&e a b!siness of religions and politics% !t on the other hand it wo!ld be wrong to hold religion itself, or a

religio!s denomination, responsible for a n!mber of rascals who e3ploit the $h!rch for their own base

interests !st as they wo!ld e3ploit anything else in which they had a part%

*othing co!ld be more to the taste of one of these parliamentary lo!ngers and tric&sters than to be able tofind a scapegoat for his political sharp-practice - after the event, of co!rse% (he moment religion or a

religio!s denomination is attac&ed and made responsible for his personal misdeeds this shrewd fellow will

raise a row at once and call the world to witness how !stified he was in acting as he did, proclaiming that

he and his elo+!ence alone have saved religion and the $h!rch% (he p!blic, which is mostly st!pid and hasa very short memory, is not capable of recogniing the real instigator of the +!arrel in the midst of the

t!rmoil that has been raised% Fre+!ently it does not remember the beginning of the fight and so the rog!egets by with his st!nt%

A c!nning fellow of that sort is +!ite well aware that his misdeeds have nothing to do with religion% And sohe will la!gh !p his sleeve all the more heartily when his honest b!t artless adversary loses the game and,

one day losing all faith in h!manity, retires from the activities of p!blic life%

!t from another viewpoint also it wo!ld be wrong to ma&e religion, or the $h!rch as s!ch, responsible for

the misdeeds of individ!als% If one compares the magnit!de of the organiation, as it stands visible to everyeye, with the average wea&ness of h!man nat!re we shall have to admit that the proportion of good to bad

is more favo!rable here than anywhere else% Among the priests there may, of co!rse, be some who !se their

sacred calling to f!rther their political ambitions% (here are clergy who !nfort!nately forget that in the

political mUle they o!ght to be the paladins of the more s!blime tr!ths and not the abettors of falsehoodand slander% !t for each one of these !nworthy specimens we can find a tho!sand or more who f!lfil their

mission nobly as the tr!stworthy g!ardians of so!ls and who tower above the level of o!r corr!pt epoch, as

little islands above the seaswamp%I cannot condemn the $h!rch as s!ch, and I sho!ld feel +!ite as little !stified in doing so if some depraved person in the robe of a priest commits some offence against the moral law% *or sho!ld I for a moment thin&

of blaming the $h!rch if one of its inn!merable members betrays and besmirches his compatriots,

especially not in epochs when s!ch cond!ct is +!ite common% /e m!st not forget, partic!larly in o!r day,

that for one s!ch 7phialtes GC there are a tho!sand whose hearts bleed in sympathy with their people d!ringthese years of misfort!ne and who, together with the best of o!r nation, yearn for the ho!r when fort!ne

will smile on !s again%

If it be obected that here we are concerned not with the petty problems of everyday life b!t principallywith f!ndamental tr!ths and +!estions of dogma, the only way of answering that obection is to as& a



+!estion0

?o yo! feel that "rovidence has called yo! to proclaim the (r!th to the world5 If so, then go and do it% !t

yo! o!ght to have the co!rage to do it directly and not !se some political party as yo!r mo!thpiece> for in

this way yo! shir& yo!r vocation% In the place of something that now e3ists and is bad p!t something elsethat is better and will last into the f!t!re%

If yo! lac& the re+!isite co!rage or if yo! yo!rself do not &now clearly what yo!r better s!bstit!te o!ght to

be, leave the whole thing alone% !t, whatever happens, do not try to reach the goal by the ro!ndabo!t way

of a political party if yo! are not brave eno!gh to fight with yo!r visor lifted%"olitical parties have no right to meddle in religio!s +!estions e3cept when these relate to something that is

alien to the national well-being and th!s calc!lated to !ndermine racial c!stoms and morals%

If some ecclesiastical dignitaries sho!ld mis!se religio!s ceremonies or religio!s teaching to in!re their

own nation their opponents o!ght never to ta&e the same road and fight them with the same weapons%(o a political leader the religio!s teachings and practices of his people sho!ld be sacred and inviolable%

Otherwise he sho!ld not be a statesman b!t a reformer, if he has the necessary +!alities for s!ch a mission%

Any other line of cond!ct will lead to disaster, especially in 6ermany%

In st!dying the "an-6erman ovement and its conflict with 8ome I was then firmly pers!aded, andespecially in the co!rse of later years, that by their fail!re to !nderstand the importance of the social

problem the "an-6ermanists lost the s!pport of the broad masses, who are the indispensable combatants in

s!ch a movement% y entering "arliament the "an-6erman leaders deprived themselves of the great driving

force which resides in the masses and at the same time they laid on their own sho!lders all the defects of

the parliamentary instit!tion% (heir str!ggle against the $h!rch made their position impossible in n!mero!scircles of the lower and middle class, while at the same time it robbed them of inn!merable high-class

elements - some of the best indeed that the nation possessed% (he practical o!tcome of the A!strian

!lt!r&ampf was negative%Altho!gh they s!cceeded in winning 1<<,<<< members away from the $h!rch, that did not do m!ch harm

to the latter% (he $h!rch 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% (he difference between this new

reformation and the great 8eformation was that in the historic epoch of the great 8eformation some of the best members left the $h!rch beca!se of religio!s convictions, whereas in this new reformation only those

left who had been indifferent before and who were now infl!enced by political considerations% From the

political point of view alone the res!lt was as ridic!lo!s as it was deplorable%

Once again a political movement which had promised so m!ch for the 6erman nation collapsed, beca!se itwas not cond!cted in a spirit of !nflinching adherence to na&ed reality, b!t lost itself in fields where it was

bo!nd to get bro&en !p%(he "an-6erman ovement wo!ld never have made this mista&e if it had properly !nderstood the psyche

of the broad masses% If the leaders had &nown that, for psychological reasons alone, it is not e3pedient to place two or more sets of adversaries before the masses - since that leads to a complete splitting !p of their

fighting strength - they wo!ld have concentrated the f!ll and !ndivided force of their attac& against a single

adversary% *othing in the policy of a political party is so fra!ght with danger as to allow its decisions to be

directed by people who want to have their fingers in every pie tho!gh they do not &now how to coo& thesimplest dish%

!t even tho!gh there is m!ch that can really be said against the vario!s religio!s denominations, political

leaders m!st not forget that the e3perience of history teaches !s that no p!rely political party in similar

circ!mstances ever s!cceeded in bringing abo!t a religio!s reformation% One does not st!dy history for the p!rpose of forgetting or mistr!sting its lessons afterwards, when the time comes to apply these lessons in

practice% It wo!ld be a mista&e to believe that in this partic!lar case things were different, so that the eternal

tr!ths 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 +!ite as!perficial person or, as is mostly the case, a conceited simpleton whose good intentions cannot ma&e !p

for his incompetence in practical affairs%

(he art of leadership, as displayed by really great pop!lar leaders in all ages, consists in consolidating the

attention of the people against a single adversary and ta&ing care that nothing will split !p that attentioninto sections% (he more the militant energies of the people are directed towards one obective the more will

new recr!its oin the movement, attracted by the magnetism of its !nified action, and th!s the stri&ing

power will be all the more enhanced% (he leader of geni!s m!st have the ability to ma&e differentopponents appear as if they belonged to the one category> for wea& and wavering nat!res among a leader#s



following may easily begin to be d!bio!s abo!t the !stice of their own ca!se if they have to face different

enemies%

As soon as the vacillating masses find themselves facing an opposition that is made !p of different gro!ps

of enemies their sense of obectivity will be aro!sed and they will as& how is it that all the others can be inthe wrong and they themselves, and their movement, alone in the right%

'!ch a feeling wo!ld be the first step towards a paralysis of their fighting vigo!r% /here there are vario!s

enemies who are split !p into divergent gro!ps it will be necessary to bloc& them all together as forming

one solid front, so that the mass of followers in a pop!lar movement may see only one common enemyagainst whom they have to fight% '!ch !niformity intensifies their belief in the !stice of their own ca!se

and strengthens their feeling of hostility towards the opponent%

(he "an-6erman ovement was !ns!ccessf!l beca!se the leaders did not grasp the significance of that

tr!th% (hey saw the goal clearly and their intentions were right> b!t they too& the wrong road% (heir actionmay be compared to that of an Alpine climber who never loses sight of the pea& he wants to reach, who has

set o!t with the greatest determination and energy, b!t pays no attention to the road beneath his feet% /ith

his eye always fi3ed firmly on the goal he does not thin& over or notice the nat!re of the ascent and finally

he fails%(he manner in which the great rival of the "an-6erman "arty set o!t to attain its goal was +!ite different%

(he way it too& was well and shrewdly chosen> b!t it did not have a clear vision of the goal% In almost all

the +!estions where the "an-6erman ovement failed, the policy of the $hristian-'ocialist "arty was

correct and systematic%

(hey assessed the importance of the masses correctly, and th!s they gained the s!pport of large n!mbers of the pop!lar masses by emphasiing the social character of the ovement from the very start% y directing

their appeal especially to the lower middle class and the artisans, they gained adherents who were faithf!l,

persevering and self-sacrificing% (he $hristian-'ocialist leaders too& care to avoid all controversy with theinstit!tions of religion and th!s they sec!red the s!pport of that mighty organiation, the $atholic $h!rch%

(hose leaders recognied the val!e of propaganda on a large scale and they were veritable virt!osos in

wor&ing !p the spirit!al instincts of the broad masses of their adherents%

(he fail!re of this "arty to carry into effect the dream of saving A!stria from dissol!tion m!st be attrib!tedto two main defects in the means they employed and also the lac& of a clear perception of the ends they

wished to reach%

(he anti-'emitism of the $hristian-'ocialists was based on religio!s instead of racial principles% (he reason

for this mista&e gave rise to the second error also%(he fo!nders of the $hristian-'ocialist "arty were of the opinion that they co!ld not base their position on

the racial principle if they wished to save A!stria, beca!se they felt that a general disintegration of the 'tatemight +!ic&ly res!lt from the adoption of s!ch a policy% In the opinion of the "arty chiefs the sit!ation in

:ienna demanded that all factors which tended to estrange the nationalities from one another sho!ld becaref!lly avoided and that all factors ma&ing for !nity sho!ld be enco!raged%

At that time :ienna was so honeycombed with foreign elements, especially the $echs, that the greatest

amo!nt of tolerance was necessary if these elements were to be enlisted in the ran&s of any party that was

not anti-6erman on principle% If A!stria was to be saved those elements were indispensable% And soattempts were made to win the s!pport of the small traders, a great n!mber of whom were $echs, by

combating the liberalism of the anchester 'chool> and they believed that by adopting this attit!de they

had fo!nd a slogan against )ewry which, beca!se of its religio!s implications, wo!ld !nite all the different

nationalities which made !p the pop!lation of the old A!stria%It was obvio!s, however, that this &ind of anti-'emitism did not !pset the )ews very m!ch, simply beca!se

it had a p!rely religio!s fo!ndation% If the worst came to the worst a few drops of baptismal water wo!ld

settle the matter, here!pon the )ew co!ld still carry on his b!siness safely and at the same time retain his)ewish nationality%On s!ch s!perficial gro!nds it was impossible to deal with the whole problem in an earnest and rational

way% (he conse+!ence was that many people co!ld not !nderstand this &ind of anti-'emitism and therefore

ref!sed to ta&e part in it%

(he attractive force of the idea was th!s restricted e3cl!sively to narrow-minded circles, beca!se theleaders failed to go beyond the mere emotional appeal and did not gro!nd their position on a tr!ly rational

basis% (he intellect!als were opposed to s!ch a policy on principle% It loo&ed more and more as if the whole

movement was a new attempt to proselytie the )ews, or, on the other hand, as if it were merely organiedfrom the wish to compete with other contemporary movements% (h!s the str!ggle lost all traces of having



been organied for a spirit!al and s!blime mission% Indeed, it seemed to some people - and these were by

no means worthless elements - to be immoral and reprehensible% (he movement failed to awa&en a belief

that here there was a problem of vital importance for the whole of h!manity and on the sol!tion of which

the destiny of the whole 6entile world depended%(hro!gh this shilly-shally way of dealing with the problem the anti-'emitism of the $hristian-'ocialists

t!rned o!t to be +!ite ineffective%

It was anti-'emitic only in o!tward appearance% And this was worse than if it had made no pretences at all

to anti-'emitism> for the pretence gave rise to a false sense of sec!rity among people who believed that theenemy had been ta&en by the ears> b!t, as a matter of fact, the people themselves were being led by the

nose%

(he )ew readily ad!sted himself to this form of anti-'emitism and fo!nd its contin!ance more profitable to

him than its abolition wo!ld be%(his whole movement led to great sacrifices being made for the sa&e of that 'tate which was composed of

many heterogeneo!s nationalities> b!t m!ch greater sacrifices had to be made by the tr!stees of the 6erman

element%

One did not dare to be nationalist#, even in :ienna, lest the gro!nd sho!ld fall away from !nder one#s feet%It was hoped that the absb!rg 'tate might be saved by a silent evasion of the nationalist +!estion> b!t this

policy led that 'tate to r!in% (he same policy also led to the collapse of $hristian 'ocialism, for th!s the

ovement was deprived of the only so!rce of energy from which a political party can draw the necessary

driving force%

?!ring those years I caref!lly followed the two movements and observed how they developed, one beca!semy heart was with it and the other beca!se of my admiration for that remar&able man who then appeared to

me as a bitter symbol of the whole 6erman pop!lation in A!stria%

/hen the imposing f!neral cortTge of the dead !rgomaster wo!nd its way from the $ity all towards the8ing 'trasse I stood among the h!ndreds of tho!sands who watched the solemn procession pass by% As I

stood there I felt deeply moved, and my instinct clearly told me that the wor& of this man was all in vain,

beca!se a sinister Fate was ine3orably leading this 'tate to its downfall% If ?r% arl L!eger had lived in

6ermany he wo!ld have been ran&ed among the great leaders of o!r people% It was a misfort!ne for hiswor& and for himseif that he had to live in this impossible 'tate%

/hen he died the fire had already been en&indled in the al&ans and was spreading month by month% Fate

had been mercif!l in sparing him the sight of what, even to the last, he had hoped to prevent%

I endeavo!red to analyse the ca!se which rendered one of those movements f!tile and wrec&ed the progressof the other% (he res!lt of this investigation was the profo!nd conviction that, apart from the inherent

impossibility of consolidating the position of the 'tate in the old A!stria, the two parties made thefollowing fatal mista&e0

(he "an-6erman "arty was perfectly right in its f!ndamental ideas regarding the aim of the ovement,which was to bring abo!t a 6erman restoration, b!t it was !nfort!nate in its choice of means% It was

nationalist, b!t !nfort!nately it paid too little heed to the social problem, and th!s it failed to gain the

s!pport of the masses% Its anti-)ewish policy, however, was gro!nded on a correct perception of the

significance of the racial problem and not on religio!s principles% !t it was mista&en in its assessment of facts and adopted the wrong tactics when it made war against one of the religio!s denominations%

(he $hristian-'ocialist ovement had only a vag!e concept of a 6erman revival as part of its obect, b!t it

was intelligent and fort!nate in the choice of means to carry o!t its policy as a "arty% (he $hristian-

'ocialists grasped the significance of the social +!estion> b!t they adopted the wrong principles in their str!ggle against )ewry, and they !tterly failed to appreciate the val!e of the national idea as a so!rce of

political energy%

If the $hristian-'ocialist "arty, together with its shrewd !dgment in regard to the worth of the pop!lar masses, had only !dged rightly also on the importance of the racial problem - which was properly grasped by the "an-6erman ovement - and if this party had been really nationalist> or if the "an-6erman leaders,

on the other hand, in addition to their correct !dgment of the )ewish problem and of the national idea, had

adopted the practical wisdom of the $hristian-'ocialist "arty, and partic!larly their attit!de towards

'ocialism - then a movement wo!ld have developed which, in my opinion, might at that time haves!ccessf!lly altered the co!rse of 6erman destiny%

If things did not t!rn o!t th!s, the fa!lt lay for the most part in the inherent nat!re of the A!strian 'tate%

I did not find my own convictions !pheld by any party then in e3istence, and so I co!ld not bring myself toenlist as a member in any of the e3isting organiations or even lend a hand in their str!ggle% 7ven at that



time all those organiations seemed to me to be already aded in their energies and were therefore incapable

of bringing abo!t a national revival of the 6erman people in a really profo!nd way, not merely o!twardly%

y inner aversion to the absb!rg 'tate was increasing daily%

(he more I paid special attention to +!estions of foreign policy, the more the conviction grew !pon me thatthis phantom 'tate wo!ld s!rely bring misfort!ne on the 6ermans% I realied more and more that the

destiny of the 6erman nation co!ld not be decisively infl!enced from here b!t only in the 6erman 7mpire

itself% And this was tr!e not only in regard to general political +!estions b!t also - and in no less a degree -

in regard to the whole sphere of c!lt!ral life%ere, also, in all matters affecting the national c!lt!re and art, the A!strian 'tate showed all the signs of

senile decrepit!de, or at least it was ceasing to be of any conse+!ence to the 6erman nation, as far as these

matters were concerned% (his was especially tr!e of its architect!re% odern architect!re co!ld not prod!ce

any great res!lts in A!stria beca!se, since the b!ilding of the 8ing 'trasse - at least in :ienna - architect!ralactivities had become insignificant when compared with the progressive plans which were being tho!ght

o!t in 6ermany%

And so I came more and more to lead what may be called a twofold e3istence% 8eason and reality forced

me to contin!e my harsh apprenticeship in A!stria, tho!gh I m!st now say that this apprenticeship t!rnedo!t fort!nate in the end% !t my heart was elsewhere%

A feeling of discontent grew !pon me and made me depressed the more I came to realie the inside

hollowness of this 'tate and the impossibility of saving it from collapse% At the same time I felt perfectly

certain that it wo!ld bring all &inds of misfort!ne to the 6erman people%

I was convinced that the absb!rg 'tate wo!ld bal& and hinder every 6erman who might show signs of real greatness, while at the same time it wo!ld aid and abet every non-6erman activity%

(his conglomerate spectacle of heterogeneo!s races which the capital of the ?!al onarchy presented, this

motley of $echs, "oles, !ngarians, 8!thenians, 'erbs and $roats, etc%, and always that bacill!s which isthe solvent of h!man society, the )ew, here and there and everywhere - the whole spectacle was rep!gnant

to me% (he gigantic city seemed to be the incarnation of mongrel depravity%

(he 6erman lang!age, which I had spo&en from the time of my boyhood, was the vernac!lar idiom of

Lower avaria% I never forgot that partic!lar style of speech, and I co!ld never learn the :iennese dialect%(he longer I lived in that city the stronger became my hatred for the promisc!o!s swarm of foreign peoples

which had beg!n to batten on that old n!rsery gro!nd of 6erman c!lt!re% (he idea that this 'tate co!ld

maintain its f!rther e3istence for any considerable time was +!ite abs!rd%

A!stria was then li&e a piece of ancient mosaic in which the cohesive cement had dried !p and become oldand friable% As long as s!ch a wor& of art remains !nto!ched it may hold together and contin!e to e3ist> b!t

the moment some blow is str!c& on it then it brea&s !p into tho!sands of fragments% (herefore it was nowonly a +!estion of when the blow wo!ld come%

eca!se my heart was always with the 6erman 7mpire and not with the A!strian onarchy, the ho!r of A!stria#s dissol!tion as a 'tate appeared to me only as the first step towards the emancipation of the

6erman nation%

All these considerations intensified my yearning to depart for that co!ntry for which my heart had been

secretly longing since the days of my yo!th%I hoped that one day I might be able to ma&e my mar& as an architect and that I co!ld devote my talents to

the service of my co!ntry 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 wor&ed in that land from which the

movement sho!ld be la!nched, the obect of which wo!ld be the f!lfilment of what my heart had alwayslonged for, namely, the !nion of the co!ntry in which I was born with o!r common fatherland, the 6erman

7mpire%

(here are many who may not !nderstand how s!ch a yearning can be so strong> b!t I appeal especially totwo gro!ps of people% (he first incl!des all those who are still denied the happiness I have spo&en of, andthe second embraces those who once enoyed that happiness b!t had it torn from them by a harsh fate% I

t!rn to all those who have been torn from their motherland and who have to str!ggle for the preservation of

their most sacred patrimony, their native lang!age, persec!ted and harried beca!se of their loyalty and love

for the homeland, yearning sadly for the ho!r when they will be allowed to ret!rn to the bosom of their father#s ho!sehold% (o these I address my words, and I &now that they will !nderstand%

Only he who has e3perienced in his own inner life what it means to be 6erman and yet to be denied the

right of belonging to his fatherland can appreciate the profo!nd nostalgia which that enforced e3ile ca!ses%It is a perpet!al heartache, and there is no place for oy and contentment !ntil the doors of paternal home



are thrown open and all those thro!gh whose veins &indred blood is flowing will find peace and rest in their

common 8eich%

:ienna was a hard school for me> b!t it ta!ght me the most profo!nd 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 nat!re% In :ienna I ac+!ired the fo!ndations of a Weltanschhauung in general and developed a

fac!lty for analysing political +!estions in partic!lar% (hat Weltanschhauung and the political ideas then

formed have never been abandoned, tho!gh they were e3panded later on in some directions% It is only now

that I can f!lly appreciate how val!able those years of apprenticeship were for me%(hat is why I have given a detailed acco!nt of this period% (here, in :ienna, star& reality ta!ght me the

tr!ths that now form the f!ndamental principles of the "arty which within the co!rse of five years has

grown from modest beginnings to a great mass movement% I do not &now what my attit!de towards )ewry,

'ocial-?emocracy, or rather ar3ism in general, to the social problem, etc%, wo!ld be to-day if I had notac+!ired a stoc& of personal beliefs at s!ch an early age, by dint of hard st!dy and !nder the d!ress of Fate%

For, altho!gh the misfort!nes of the Fatherland may have stim!lated tho!sands and tho!sands to ponder

over the inner ca!ses of the collapse, that co!ld not lead to s!ch a thoro!gh &nowledge and deep insight as

a man may develop who has fo!ght a hard str!ggle for many years so that he might be master of his ownfate%

$hapter Fo!r

At last I came to !nich, in the spring of 1912%(he city itself was as familiar to me as if I had lived for years within its walls%

(his was beca!se my st!dies in architect!re had been constantly t!rning my attention to the metropolis of

6erman art% One m!st &now !nich if one wo!ld &now 6ermany, and it is impossible to ac+!ire a&nowledge of 6erman art witho!t seeing !nich%

All things considered, this pre-war soo!rn was by far the happiest and most contented time of my life% y

earnings were very slender> b!t after all I did not live for the sa&e of painting% I painted in order to get the

bare necessities of e3istence while I contin!ed my st!dies% I was firmly convinced that I sho!ld finallys!cceed in reaching the goal I had mar&ed o!t for myself% And this conviction alone was strong eno!gh to

enable me to bear the petty hardships of everyday life witho!t worrying very m!ch abo!t them%

oreover, almost from the very first moment of my soo!rn there I came to love that city more than any

other place &nown to me% A 6erman cityJ I said to myself% ow different to :ienna% It was with a feeling of disg!st that my imagination reverted to that abylon of races% Another pleasant feat!re here was the way

the people spo&e 6erman, which was m!ch nearer my own way of spea&ing than the :iennese idiom% (he!nich idiom recalled the days of my yo!th, especially when I spo&e with those who had come to !nich

from Lower avaria% (here were a tho!sand or more things which I inwardly loved or which I came to loved!ring the co!rse of my stay% !t what attracted me most was the marvello!s wedloc& of native fol&-energy

with the fine artistic spirit of the city, that !ni+!e harmony from the ofbrE!ha!s to the Odeon, from the

October Festival to the "ina&othe&, etc% (he reason why my heart#s strings are entwined aro!nd this city as

aro!nd no other spot in this world is probably beca!se !nich is and will remain inseparably connectedwith 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 attrib!ted to the charm of the marvello!s /ittelsbach $apital, which has

attracted probably everybody who is blessed with a feeling for bea!ty instead of commercial instincts%

Apart from my professional wor&, I was most interested in the st!dy of c!rrent political events, partic!larlythose which were connected with foreign relations% I approached these by way of the 6erman policy of

alliances which, ever since my A!strian days, I had considered to be an !tterly mista&en one% !t in :ienna

I had not yet seen +!ite clearly how far the 6erman 7mpire had gone in the process of# self-del!sion% In:ienna I was inclined to ass!me, or probably I pers!aded myself to do so in order to e3c!se the 6ermanmista&e, that possibly the a!thorities in erlin &new how wea& and !nreliable their ally wo!ld prove to be

when bro!ght face to face with realities, b!t that, for more or less mysterio!s reasons, they refrained from

allowing their opinions on this point to be &nown in p!blic% (heir idea was that they sho!ld s!pport the

policy of alliances which ismarc& had initiated and the s!dden discontin!ance of which might be!ndesirable, if for no other reason than that it might aro!se those foreign co!ntries which were lying in wait

for their chance or might alarm the "hilistines at home%

!t my contact with the people soon ta!ght me, to my horror, that my ass!mptions were wrong% I wasamaed to find everywhere, even in circles otherwise well informed, that nobody had the slightest



intimation of the real character of the absb!rg onarchy% Among the common people in partic!lar there

was a prevalent ill!sion that the A!strian ally was a "ower which wo!ld have to be serio!sly rec&oned with

and wo!ld rally its man-power in the ho!r of need% (he mass of the people contin!ed to loo& !pon the ?!al

onarchy as a 6erman 'tate# and believed that it co!ld be relied !pon% (hey ass!med that its strengthco!ld be meas!red by the millions of its s!bects, as was the case in 6ermany% First of all, they did not

realie that A!stria had ceased to be a 6erman 'tate and, secondly, that the conditions prevailing within the

A!strian 7mpire were steadily p!shing it headlong to the brin& of disaster%

At that time I &new the condition of affairs in the A!strian 'tate better than the professional diplomats%lindfolded, as nearly always, these diplomats st!mbled along on their way to disaster% (he opinions

prevailing among the b!l& of the people reflected only what had been dr!mmed into them from official

+!arters above% And these higher a!thorities grovelled before the Ally#, as the people of old bowed down

before the 6olden $alf% (hey probably tho!ght that by being polite and amiable they might balance the lac& of honesty on the other side% (h!s they too& every declaration at its f!ll face val!e%

7ven while in :ienna I !sed to be annoyed again and again by the discrepancy between the speeches of the

official statesmen and the contents of the :iennese "ress% And yet :ienna was still a 6erman city, at least as

far as appearances went% !t one enco!ntered an !tterly different state of things on leaving :ienna, or rather 6erman-A!stria, and coming into the 'lav provinces% It needed only a glance at the "rag!e

newspapers in order to see how the whole e3alted hoc!s-poc!s of the (riple Alliance was !dged from

there% In "rag!e there was nothing b!t gibes and sneers for that masterpiece of statesmanship% 7ven in the

piping times of peace, when the two emperors &issed each other on the brow in to&en of friendship, those

papers did not cloa& their belief that the alliance wo!ld be li+!idated the moment a first attempt was madeto bring it down from the shimmering glory of a *ibel!ngen ideal to the plane of practical affairs%

6reat indignation was aro!sed a few years later, when the alliances were p!t to the first practical test% Italy

not only withdrew from the (riple Alliance, leaving the other two members to march by themselves% b!t sheeven oined their enemies% (hat anybody sho!ld believe even for a moment in the possibility of s!ch a

miracle as that of Italy fighting on the same side as A!stria wo!ld be simply incredible to anyone who did

not s!ffer from the blindness of official diplomacy% And that was !st how people felt in A!stria also%

In A!stria only the absb!rgs and the 6erman-A!strians s!pported the alliance% (he absb!rgs did sofrom shrewd calc!lation of their own interests and from necessity% (he 6ermans did it o!t of good faith and

political ignorance% (hey acted in good faith inasm!ch as they believed that by establishing the (riple

Alliance they were doing a great service to the 6erman 7mpire and were th!s helping to strengthen it and

consolidate its defence% (hey showed their political ignorance, however, in holding s!ch ideas, beca!se,instead of helping the 6erman 7mpire they really chained it to a morib!nd 'tate 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 absb!rg policy of de-6ermaniation% For the alliance gave the absb!rgs good gro!nds for

believing that the 6erman 7mpire wo!ld not interfere in their domestic affairs and th!s they were in a position to carry into effect, with more ease and less ris&, their domestic policy of grad!ally eliminating the

6erman element% *ot only co!ld the obectiveness# of the 6erman 6overnment be co!nted !pon, and th!s

there need be no fear of protest from that +!arter, b!t one co!ld always remind the 6erman-A!strians of the

alliance and th!s silence them in case they sho!ld ever obect to the reprehensible means that were beingemployed to establish a 'lav hegemony in the ?!al onarchy%

/hat co!ld the 6erman-A!strians do, when the people of the 6erman 7mpire itself had openly proclaimed

their tr!st and confidence in the absb!rg rgime5

'ho!ld they resist, and th!s be branded openly before their &insfol& in the 8eich as traitors to their ownnational interests5 (hey, who for so many decades had sacrificed so m!ch for the sa&e of their 6erman

traditionJ

Once the infl!ence of the 6ermans in A!stria had been wiped o!t, what then wo!ld be the val!e of thealliance5 If the (riple Alliance were to be advantageo!s to 6ermany, was it not a necessary condition thatthe predominance of the 6erman element in A!stria sho!ld be maintained5 Or did anyone really believe

that 6ermany co!ld contin!e to be the ally of a absb!rg 7mpire !nder the hegemony of the 'lavs5

(he official attit!de of 6erman diplomacy, as well as that of the general p!blic towards internal problems

affecting the A!strian nationalities was not merely st!pid, it was insane% On the alliance, as on a solidfo!ndation, they gro!nded the sec!rity and f!t!re e3istence of a nation of seventy millions, while at the

same time they allowed their partner to contin!e his policy of !ndermining the sole fo!ndation of that

alliance methodically and resol!tely, from year to year% A day m!st come when nothing b!t a formalcontract with :iennese diplomats wo!ld be left% (he alliance itself, as an effective s!pport, wo!ld be lost to



6ermany%

As far as concerned Italy, s!ch had been the case from the o!tset%

If people in 6ermany had st!died history and the psychology of nations a little more caref!lly not one of

them co!ld have believed for a single ho!r that the !irinal and the :iennese ofb!rg co!ld ever standsho!lder to sho!lder on a common battle front% Italy wo!ld have e3ploded li&e a volcano if any Italian

government had dared to send a single Italian soldier to fight for the absb!rg 'tate% 'o fanatically hated

was this 'tate that the Italians co!ld stand in no other relation to it on a battle front e3cept as enemies%

ore than once in :ienna I have witnessed e3plosions of the contempt and profo!nd hatred which allied#the Italian to the A!strian 'tate% (he crimes which the o!se of absb!rg committed against Italian

freedom and independence d!ring several cent!ries were too grave to be forgiven, even with the best of

goodwill% !t this goodwill did not e3ist, either among the ran& and file of the pop!lation or in the

government% (herefore for Italy there were only two ways of co-e3isting with A!stria - alliance or war% ychoosing the first it was possible to prepare leis!rely for the second%

7specially since relations between 8!ssia and A!stria tended more and more towards the arbitrament of

war, the 6erman policy of alliances was as senseless as it was dangero!s% ere was a classical instance

which demonstrated the lac& of any broad or logical lines of tho!ght%!t what was the reason for forming the alliance at all5 It co!ld not have been other than the wish to sec!re

the f!t!re of the 8eich better than if it were to depend e3cl!sively on its own reso!rces% !t the f!t!re of

the 8eich co!ld not have meant anything else than the problem of sec!ring the means of e3istence for the

6erman people%

(he only +!estions therefore were the following0 /hat form shall the life of the nation ass!me in the near f!t!re - that is to say within s!ch a period as we can forecast5 And by what means can the necessary

fo!ndation and sec!rity be g!aranteed for this development within the framewor& of the general

distrib!tion of power among the 7!ropean nations5 A clear analysis of the principles on which the foreign policy of 6erman statecraft were to be based sho!ld have led to the following concl!sions0

(he ann!al increase of pop!lation in 6ermany amo!nts to almost 9<<,<<< so!ls% (he diffic!lties of

providing for this army of new citiens m!st grow from year to year and m!st finally lead to a catastrophe,

!nless ways and means are fo!nd which will forestall the danger of misery and h!nger% (here were fo!r ways of providing against this terrible calamity0

B1C It was possible to adopt the French e3ample and artificially restrict the n!mber of births, th!s avoiding

an e3cess of pop!lation%

Mnder certain circ!mstances, in periods of distress or !nder bad climatic condition, or if the soil yields too poor a ret!rn, *at!re herself tends to chec& the increase of pop!lation in some co!ntries and among some

races, b!t by a method which is +!ite as r!thless as it is wise% It does not impede the procreative fac!lty ass!ch> b!t it does impede the f!rther e3istence of the offspring by s!bmitting it to s!ch tests and privations

that everything which is less strong or less healthy is forced to retreat into the bosom of tile !n&nown%/hatever s!rvives these hardships of e3istence has been tested and tried a tho!sandfold, hardened and

renders fit to contin!e the process of procreation> so that the same thoro!gh selection will begin all over

again% y th!s dealing br!tally with the individ!al and recalling him the very moment he shows that he is

not fitted for the trials of life, *at!re preserves the strength of the race and the species and raises it to thehighest degree of efficiency%

(he decrease in n!mbers therefore implies an increase of strength, as far as the individ!al is concerned, and

this finally means the invigoration of the species%

!t the case is different when man himself starts the process of n!merical restriction% an is not carvedfrom *at!re#s wood% e is made of h!man# material% e &nows more than the r!thless !een of /isdom%

e does not impede the preservation of the individ!al b!t prevents procreation itself% (o the individ!al,

who always sees only himself and not the race, this line of action seems more h!mane and !st than theopposite way% !t, !nfort!nately, the conse+!ences are also the opposite%y leaving the process of procreation !nchec&ed and by s!bmitting the individ!al to the hardest

preparatory tests in life, *at!re selects the best from an ab!ndance of single elements and stamps them as

fit to live and carry on the conservation of the species% !t man restricts the procreative fac!lty and strives

obstinately to &eep alive at any cost whatever has once been born% (his correction of the ?ivine /ill seemsto him to be wise and h!mane, and he reoices at having tr!mped *at!re#s card in one game at least and

th!s proved that she is not entirely reliable% (he dear little ape of an all-mighty father is delighted to see and

hear that he has s!cceeded in effecting a n!merical restriction> b!t he wo!ld be very displeased if told thatthis, his system, brings abo!t a degeneration in personal +!ality%



For as soon as the procreative fac!lty is thwarted and the n!mber of births diminished, the nat!ral str!ggle

for e3istence which allows only healthy and strong individ!als to s!rvive is replaced by a sheer crae to

save# feeble and even diseased creat!res at any cost% And th!s the seeds are sown for a h!man progeny

which will become more and more miserable from one generation to another, as long as *at!re#s will isscorned%

!t if that policy be carried o!t the final res!lts m!st be that s!ch a nation will event!ally terminate its own

e3istence on this earth> for tho!gh man may defy the eternal laws of procreation d!ring a certain period,

vengeance will follow sooner or later% A stronger race will o!st that which has grown wea&> for the vital!rge, in its !ltimate form, will b!rst as!nder all the abs!rd chains of this so-called h!mane consideration for

the individ!al and will replace it with the h!manity of *at!re, which wipes o!t what is wea& in order to

give place to the strong%

Any policy which aims at sec!ring the e3istence of a nation by restricting the birth-rate robs that nation of its f!t!re%

B2C A second sol!tion is that of internal coloniation% (his is a proposal which is fre+!ently made in o!r

own time and one hears it la!ded a good deal% It is a s!ggestion that is well-meant b!t it is mis!nderstood

by most people, so that it is the so!rce of more mischief than can be imagined%It is certainly tr!e that the prod!ctivity of the soil can be increased within certain limits> b!t only within

defined limits and not indefinitely% y increasing the prod!ctive powers of the soil it will be possible to

balance the effect of a s!rpl!s birth-rate in 6ermany for a certain period of time, witho!t r!nning any

danger of h!nger% !t we have to face the fact that the general standard of living is rising more +!ic&ly than

even the birth rate% (he re+!irements of food and clothing are becoming greater from year to year and areo!t of proportion to those of o!r ancestors of, let !s say, a h!ndred years ago% It wo!ld, therefore, be a

mista&en view that every increase in the prod!ctive powers of the soil will s!pply the re+!isite conditions

for an increase in the pop!lation% *o% (hat is tr!e !p to a certain point only, for at least a portion of theincreased prod!ce of the soil will be cons!med by the margin of increased demands ca!sed by the steady

rise in the standard of living% !t even if these demands were to be c!rtailed to the narrowest limits

possible and if at the same time we were to !se all o!r available energies in the intenser c!ltivation, we

sho!ld here reach a definite limit which is conditioned by the inherent nat!re of the soil itself% *o matter how ind!strio!sly we may labo!r we cannot increase agric!lt!ral prod!ction beyond this limit% (herefore,

tho!gh we may postpone the evil ho!r of distress for a certain time, it will arrive at last% (he first

phenomenon will be the rec!rrence of famine periods from time to time, after bad harvests, etc% (he

intervals between these famines will become shorter and shorter the more the pop!lation increases> and,finally, the famine times will disappear only in those rare years of plenty when the granaries are f!ll% And a

time will !ltimately come when even in those years of plenty there will not be eno!gh to go ro!nd> so thath!nger will dog the footsteps of the nation% *at!re m!st now step in once more and select those who are to

s!rvive, or else man will help himself by artificially preventing his own increase, with all the fatalconse+!ences for the race and the species which have been already mentioned%

It may be obected here that, in one form or another, this f!t!re is in store for all man&ind and that the

individ!al nation or race cannot escape the general fate%

At first glance, that obection seems logical eno!gh> b!t we have to ta&e the following into acco!nt0(he day will certainly come when the whole of man&ind will be forced to chec& the a!gmentation of the

h!man species, beca!se there will be no f!rther possibility of ad!sting the prod!ctivity of the soil to the

perpet!al increase in the pop!lation% *at!re m!st then be allowed to !se her own methods or man may

possibly ta&e the tas& of reg!lation into his own hands and establish the necessary e+!ilibri!m by theapplication of better means than we have at o!r disposal to-day% !t then it will be a problem for man&ind

as a whole, whereas now only those races have to s!ffer from want which no longer have the strength and

daring to ac+!ire s!fficient soil to f!lfil their needs% For, as things stand to-day, vast spaces still lie!nc!ltivated all over the s!rface of the globe% (hose spaces are only waiting for the plo!ghshare% And it is+!ite certain that *at!re did not set those territories apart as the e3cl!sive past!res of any one nation or race

to be held !n!tilied in reserve for the f!t!re% '!ch land awaits the people who have the strength to ac+!ire

it and the diligence to c!ltivate it%

*at!re &nows no political frontiers% 'he begins by establishing life on this globe and then watches the free play of forces% (hose who show the greatest co!rage and ind!stry are the children nearest to her heart and

they will be granted the sovereign right of e3istence%

If a nation confines itself to internal coloniation# while other races are perpet!ally increasing their territorial anne3ations all over the globe, that nation will be forced to restrict the n!merical growth of its



pop!lation at a time when the other nations are increasing theirs% (his sit!ation m!st event!ally arrive% It

will arrive soon if the territory which the nation has at its disposal be small% *ow it is !nfort!nately tr!e

that only too often the best nations - or, to spea& more e3actly, the only really c!lt!red nations, who at the

same time are the chief bearers of h!man progress - have decided, in their blind pacifism, to refrain fromthe ac+!isition of new territory and to be content with internal coloniation%# !t at the same time nations

of inferior +!ality s!cceed in getting hold of large spaces for coloniation all over the globe% (he state of

affairs which m!st res!lt from this contrast is the following0

8aces which are c!lt!rally s!perior b!t less r!thless wo!ld be forced to restrict their increase, beca!se of ins!fficient territory to s!pport the pop!lation, while less civilied races co!ld increase indefinitely, owing

to the vast territories at their disposal% In other words0 sho!ld that state of affairs contin!e, then the world

will one day be possessed by that portion of man&ind which is c!lt!rally inferior b!t more active and

energetic%A time will come, even tho!gh in the distant f!t!re, when there can be only two alternatives0 7ither the

world will be r!led according to o!r modern concept of democracy, and then every decision will be in

favo!r of the n!merically stronger races> or the world will be governed by the law of nat!ral distrib!tion of

power, and then those nations will be victorio!s who are of more br!tal will and are not the nations whohave practised self-denial%

*obody can do!bt that this world will one day be the scene of dreadf!l str!ggles for e3istence on the part

of man&ind% In the end the instinct of self-preservation alone will tri!mph% efore its cons!ming fire this

so-called h!manitarianism, which connotes only a mi3t!re of fat!o!s timidity and self-conceit, will melt

away as !nder the arch s!nshine% an has become great thro!gh perpet!al str!ggle% In perpet!al peacehis greatness m!st decline%

For !s 6ermans, the slogan of internal coloniation# is fatal, beca!se it enco!rages the belief that we have

discovered a means which is in accordance with o!r innate pacifism and which will enable !s to wor& for o!r livelihood in a half sl!mbering e3istence% '!ch a teaching, once it were ta&en serio!sly by o!r people,

wo!ld mean the end of all effort to ac+!ire for o!rselves that place in the world which we deserve% If% the

average 6erman were once convinced that by this meas!re he has the chance of ens!ring his livelihood and

g!aranteeing his f!t!re, any attempt to ta&e an active and profitable part in s!staining the vital demands of his co!ntry wo!ld be o!t of the +!estion% 'ho!ld the nation agree to s!ch an attit!de then any really !sef!l

foreign policy might be loo&ed !pon as dead and b!ried, together with all hope for the f!t!re of the 6erman

people%

Once we &now what the conse+!ences of this internal coloniation# theory wo!ld be we can no longer consider as a mere accident the fact that among those who inc!lcate this +!ite pernicio!s mentality among

o!r people the )ew is always in the first line% e &nows his softies only too well not to &now that they areready to be the gratef!l victims of every swindle which promises them a gold-bloc& in the shape of a

discovery that will enable them to o!twit *at!re and th!s render s!perfl!o!s the hard and ine3orablestr!ggle for e3istence> so that finally they may become lords of the planet partly by sheer dolce far niente

and partly by wor&ing when a pleasing opport!nity arises%

It cannot be too strongly emphasised that any 6erman internal coloniation# m!st first of all be considered

as s!ited only for the relief of social grievances% (o carry o!t a system of internal coloniation, the mostimportant preliminary meas!re wo!ld be to free the soil from the grip of the spec!lator and ass!re that

freedom% !t s!ch a system co!ld never s!ffice to ass!re the f!t!re of the nation witho!t the ac+!isition of

new territory%

If we adopt a different plan we shall soon reach a point beyond which the reso!rces of o!r soil can nolonger be e3ploited, and at the same time we shall reach a point beyond which o!r man-power cannot

develop%

In concl!sion, the following m!st be said0(he fact that only !p to a limited e3tent can internal coloniation be practised in a national territory whichis of definitely small area and the restriction of the procreative fac!lty which follows as a res!lt of s!ch

conditions - these two factors have a very !nfavo!rable effect on the military and political standing of a

nation%

(he e3tent of the national territory is a determining factor in the e3ternal sec!rity of the nation% (he larger the territory which a people has at its disposal the stronger are the national defences of that people% ilitary

decisions are more +!ic&ly, more easily, more completely and more effectively gained against a people

occ!pying a national territory which is restricted in area, than against 'tates which have e3tensiveterritories% oreover, the magnit!de of a national territory is in itself a certain ass!rance that an o!tside



"ower will not hastily ris& the advent!re of an invasion> for in that case the str!ggle wo!ld have to be long

and e3ha!sting before victory co!ld be hoped for% (he ris& being so great% there wo!ld have to be

e3traordinary reasons for s!ch an aggressive advent!re% ence it is that the territorial magnit!de of a 'tate

f!rnishes a basis whereon national liberty and independence can be maintained with relative ease> while, onthe contrary, a 'tate whose territory is small offers a nat!ral temptation to the invader%

As a matter of fact, so-called national circles in the 6erman 8eich reected those first two possibilities of

establishing a balance between the constant n!merical increase in the pop!lation and a national territory

which co!ld not e3pand proportionately% !t the reasons given for that reection were different from thosewhich I have !st e3po!nded% It was mainly on the basis of certain moral sentiments that restriction of the

birth-rate was obected to% "roposals for internal coloniation were reected indignantly beca!se it was

s!spected that s!ch a policy might mean an attac& on the big landowners, and that this attac& might be the

forer!nner of a general assa!lt against the principle of private property as a whole% (he form in which thelatter sol!tion - internal coloniation - was recommended !stified the misgivings of the big landowners%

!t the form in which the coloniation proposal was reected was not very clever, as regards the impression

which s!ch reection might be calc!lated to ma&e on the mass of the people, and anyhow it did not go to

the root of the problem at all%Only two f!rther ways were left open in which wor& and bread co!ld be sec!red for the increasing

pop!lation%

B.C It was possible to thin& of ac+!iring new territory on which a certain portion of# the increasing

pop!lation co!ld be settled each year> or else

B4C O!r ind!stry and commerce had to be organied in s!ch a manner as to sec!re an increase in the e3portsand th!s be able to s!pport o!r people by the increased p!rchasing power accr!ing from the profits made

on foreign mar&ets%

(herefore the problem was0 A policy of territorial e3pansion or a colonial and commercial policy% oth policies were ta&en into consideration, e3amined, recommended and reected, from vario!s standpoints,

with the res!lt that the second alternative was finally adopted% (he so!nder alternative, however, was

!ndo!btedly the first%

(he principle of ac+!iring new territory, on which the s!rpl!s pop!lation co!ld be settled, has manyadvantages to recommend it, especially if we ta&e the f!t!re as well as the present into acco!nt%

In the first place, too m!ch importance cannot be placed on the necessity for adopting a policy which will

ma&e it possible to maintain a healthy peasant class as the basis of the national comm!nity% any of o!r

present evils have their origin e3cl!sively in the disproportion between the !rban and r!ral portions of the pop!lation% A solid stoc& of small and medi!m farmers has at all times been the best protection which a

nation co!ld have against the social diseases that are prevalent to-day% oreover, that is the only sol!tionwhich g!arantees the daily bread of a nation within the framewor& of its domestic national economy% /ith

this condition once g!aranteed, ind!stry and commerce wo!ld retire from the !nhealthy position of foremost importance which they hold to-day and wo!ld ta&e their d!e place within the general scheme of

national economy, ad!sting the balance between demand and s!pply% (h!s ind!stry and commerce wo!ld

no longer constit!te the basis of the national s!bsistence, b!t wo!ld be a!3iliary instit!tions% y f!lfilling

their proper f!nction, which is to ad!st the balance between national prod!ction and national cons!mption,they render the national s!bsistence more or less independent of foreign co!ntries and th!s ass!re the

freedom and independence of the nation, especially at critical !nct!res in its history%

'!ch a territorial policy, however, cannot find its f!lfilment in the $ameroons b!t almost e3cl!sively here

in 7!rope% One m!st calmly and s+!arely face the tr!th that it certainly cannot be part of the dispensationof ?ivine "rovidence 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 m!st not allow e3isting political frontiers to distract attention

from what o!ght to e3ist on principles of strict !stice% If this earth has s!fficient room for all, then weo!ght to have that share of the soil which is absol!tely necessary for o!r e3istence%Of co!rse people will not vol!ntarily ma&e that accommodation% At this point the right of self-preservation

comes into effect% And when attempts to settle the diffic!lty in an amicable way are reected the clenched

hand m!st ta&e by force that which was ref!sed to the open hand of friendship% If in the past o!r ancestors

had based their political decisions on similar pacifist nonsense as o!r present generation does, we sho!ldnot possess more than one-third of the national territory that we possess to-day and probably there wo!ld be

no 6erman nation to worry abo!t its f!t!re in 7!rope% *o% /e owe the two 7astern ar&s ;C of the 7mpire

to the nat!ral determination of o!r forefathers in their str!ggle for e3istence, and th!s it is to the samedetermined policy that we owe the inner strength which is based on the e3tent of o!r political and racial



territories and which alone has made it possible for !s to e3ist !p to now%

And there is still another reason why that sol!tion wo!ld have been the correct one0

any contemporary 7!ropean 'tates are li&e pyramids standing on their ape3es% (he 7!ropean territory

which these 'tates possess is ridic!lo!sly small when compared with the enormo!s overhead weight of their colonies, foreign trade, etc% It may be said that they have the ape3 in 7!rope and the base of the

pyramid all over the world> +!ite different from the Mnited 'tates of America, which has its base on the

American $ontinent and is in contact with the rest of the world only thro!gh its ape3% O!t of that sit!ation

arises the incomparable inner strength of the M%'%A% and the contrary sit!ation is responsible for thewea&ness of most of the colonial 7!ropean "owers%

7ngland cannot be s!ggested as an arg!ment against this assertion, tho!gh in glancing cas!ally over the

map of the ritish 7mpire one is inclined easily to overloo& the e3istence of a whole Anglo-'a3on world%

7ngland#s position cannot be compared with that of any other 'tate in 7!rope, since it forms a vastcomm!nity of lang!age and c!lt!re together with the M%'%A%

(herefore the only possibility which 6ermany had of carrying a so!nd territorial policy into effect was that

of ac+!iring new territory in 7!rope itself% $olonies cannot serve this p!rpose as long as they are not s!ited

for settlement by 7!ropeans on a large scale% In the nineteenth cent!ry it was no longer possible to ac+!ires!ch colonies by peacef!l means% (herefore any attempt at s!ch a colonial e3pansion wo!ld have meant an

enormo!s military str!ggle% $onse+!ently it wo!ld have been more practical to !nderta&e that military

str!ggle for new territory in 7!rope rather than to wage war for the ac+!isition of possessions abroad%

'!ch a decision nat!rally demanded that the nation#s !ndivided energies sho!ld be devoted to it% A policy of

that &ind which re+!ires for its f!lfilment every o!nce of available energy on the part of everybodyconcerned, cannot be carried into effect by half-meas!res or in a hesitating manner% (he political leadership

of the 6erman 7mpire sho!ld then have been directed e3cl!sively to this goal% *o political step sho!ld

have been ta&en in response to other considerations than this tas& and the means of accomplishing it%6ermany sho!ld have been alive to the fact that s!ch a goal co!ld have been reached only by war, and the

prospect of war sho!ld have been faced with calm and collected determination%

(he whole system of alliances sho!ld have been envisaged and val!ed from that standpoint% If new territory

were to be ac+!ired in 7!rope it m!st have been mainly at 8!ssia#s cost, and once again the new 6erman7mpire sho!ld have set o!t on its march along the same road as was formerly trodden by the (e!tonic

nights, this time to ac+!ire soil for the 6erman plo!gh by means of the 6erman sword and th!s provide

the nation with its daily bread%

For s!ch a policy, however, there was only one possible ally in 7!rope% (hat was 7ngland%Only by alliance with 7ngland was it possible to safeg!ard the rear of the new 6erman cr!sade% (he

!stification for !nderta&ing s!ch an e3pedition was stronger than the !stification which o!r forefathershad for setting o!t on theirs% *ot one of o!r pacifists ref!ses to eat the bread made from the grain grown in

the 7ast> and yet the first plo!gh here was that called the 'word#% *o sacrifice sho!ld have been considered too great if it was a necessary means of gaining 7ngland#s

friendship% $olonial and naval ambitions sho!ld have been abandoned and attempts sho!ld not have been

made to compete against ritish ind!stries%

Only a clear and definite policy co!ld lead to s!ch an achievement% '!ch a policy wo!ld have demanded aren!nciation of the endeavo!r to con+!er the world#s mar&ets, also a ren!nciation of colonial intentions and

naval power% All the means of power at the disposal of the 'tate sho!ld have been concentrated in the

military forces on land% (his policy wo!ld have involved a period of temporary self-denial, for the sa&e of a

great and powerf!l f!t!re%(here was a time when 7ngland might have entered into negotiations with !s, on the gro!nds of that

proposal% For 7ngland wo!ld have well !nderstood that the problems arising from the steady increase in

pop!lation were forcing 6ermany to loo& for a sol!tion either in 7!rope with the help of 7ngland or,witho!t 7ngland, in some other part of the world%(his o!tloo& was probably the chief reason why London tried to draw nearer to 6ermany abo!t the t!rn of

the cent!ry% For the first time in 6ermany an attit!de was then manifested which afterwards displayed itself

in a most tragic way% "eople then gave e3pression to an !npleasant feeling that we might th!s find

o!rselves obliged to p!ll 7ngland#s chestn!ts o!t of the fire% As if an alliance co!ld be based on anythingelse than m!t!al give-and-ta&eJ And 7ngland wo!ld have become a party to s!ch a m!t!al bargain% ritish

diplomats were still wise eno!gh to &now that an e+!ivalent m!st be forthcoming as a consideration for any

services rendered%Let !s s!ppose that in 19<4 o!r 6erman foreign policy was managed ast!tely eno!gh to enable !s to ta&e



the part which )apan played% It is not easy to meas!re the greatness of the res!lts that might have accr!ed to

6ermany from s!ch a policy%

(here wo!ld have been no world war% (he blood which wo!ld have been shed in 19<4 wo!ld not have been

a tenth of that shed from 1914 to 191;% And what a position 6ermany wo!ld hold in the world to-day5In any case the alliance with A!stria was then an abs!rdity%

For this m!mmy of a 'tate did not attach itself to 6ermany for the p!rpose of carrying thro!gh a war, b!t

rather to maintain a perpet!al state of peace which was meant to be e3ploited for the p!rpose of slowly b!t

persistently e3terminating the 6erman element in the ?!al onarchy%Another reason for the impossible character of this alliance was that nobody co!ld e3pect s!ch a 'tate to

ta&e an active part in defending 6erman national interests, seeing that it did not have s!fficient strength and

determination to p!t an end to the policy of de-6ermaniation within its own frontiers% If 6ermany herself

was not moved by a s!fficiently powerf!l national sentiment and was not s!fficiently r!thless to ta&e awayfrom that abs!rd absb!rg 'tate the right to decide the destinies of ten million inhabitants who were of the

same nationality as the 6ermans themselves, s!rely it was o!t of the +!estion to e3pect the absb!rg 'tate

to be a collaborating party in any great and co!rageo!s 6erman !nderta&ing% (he attit!de of the old 8eich

towards the A!strian +!estion might have been ta&en as a test of its stamina for the str!ggle where thedestinies of the whole nation were at sta&e%

In any case, the policy of oppression against the 6erman pop!lation in A!stria sho!ld not have been

allowed to be carried on and to grow stronger from year to year> for the val!e of A!stria as an ally co!ld be

ass!red only by !pholding the 6erman element there% !t that co!rse was not followed%

*othing was dreaded so m!ch as the possibility of an armed conflict> b!t finally, and at a most!nfavo!rable moment, the conflict had to be faced and accepted% (hey tho!ght to c!t loose from the cords

of destiny, b!t destiny held them fast%

(hey dreamt of maintaining a world peace and wo&e !p 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

f!t!re development of 6ermany was not even ta&en into consideration% (he fact was recognied that new

territory co!ld be gained only in the 7ast> b!t this meant that there wo!ld be fighting ahead, whereas they

wanted peace at any cost% (he slogan of 6erman foreign policy at one time !sed to be0 (he !se of all possible means for the maintenance of the 6erman nation% *ow it was changed to0 aintenance of world

peace by all possible means% /e &now what the res!lt was% I shall res!me the disc!ssion of this point in

detail later on%

(here remained still another alternative, which we may call the fo!rth% (his was0 Ind!stry and world trade,naval power and colonies%

'!ch a development might certainly have been attained more easily and more rapidly% (o colonie aterritory is a slow process, often e3tending over cent!ries% Net this fact is the so!rce of its inner strength, for

it is not thro!gh a s!dden b!rst of enth!siasm that it can be p!t into effect, b!t rather thro!gh a grad!al andend!ring process of growth +!ite different from ind!strial progress, which can be !rged on by

advertisement within a few years% (he res!lt th!s achieved, however, is not of lasting +!ality b!t something

frail, li&e a soap-b!bble% It is m!ch easier to b!ild +!ic&ly than to carry thro!gh the to!gh tas& of settling a

territory with farmers and establishing farmsteads% !t the former is more +!ic&ly destroyed than the latter%In adopting s!ch a co!rse 6ermany m!st have &nown that to follow it o!t wo!ld necessarily mean war

sooner or later% Only children co!ld believe that sweet and !nct!o!s e3pressions of goodness and persistent

avowals of peacef!l intentions co!ld get them their bananas thro!gh this friendly competition between the

nations#, with the prospect of never having to fight for them% *o% Once we had ta&en this road, 7ngland was bo!nd to be o!r enemy at some time or other to come% Of

co!rse it fitted in nicely with o!r innocent ass!mptions, b!t still it was abs!rd to grow indignant at the fact

that a day came when the 7nglish too& the liberty of opposing o!r peacef!l penetration with the br!tality of violent egoists% *at!rally, we on o!r side wo!ld never have done s!ch a thing%

If a 7!ropean territorial policy against 8!ssia co!ld have been p!t into practice only in case we had

7ngland as o!r ally, on the other hand a colonial and world-trade policy co!ld have been carried into effect

only against 7nglish interests and with the s!pport of 8!ssia% !t then this policy sho!ld have been adoptedin f!ll conscio!sness of all the conse+!ences it involved and, above all things, A!stria sho!ld have been

discarded as +!ic&ly as possible%

At the t!rn of the cent!ry the alliance with A!stria had become a veritable abs!rdity from all points of view%



!t nobody tho!ght of forming an alliance with 8!ssia against 7ngland, !st as nobody tho!ght of ma&ing

7ngland an ally against 8!ssia> for in either case the final res!lt wo!ld inevitably have meant war% And to

avoid war was the very reason why a commercial and ind!strial policy was decided !pon% It was believed

that the peacef!l con+!est of the world by commercial means provided a method which wo!ld permanentlys!pplant the policy of force% Occasionally, however, there were do!bts abo!t the efficiency of this principle,

especially when some +!ite incomprehensible warnings came from 7ngland now and again% (hat was the

reason why the fleet was b!ilt% It was not for the p!rpose of attac&ing or annihilating 7ngland b!t merely to

defend the concept of world-peace, mentioned above, and also to protect the principle of con+!ering theworld by peacef!l# means% (herefore this fleet was &ept within modest limits, not only as regards the

n!mber and tonnage of the vessels b!t also in regard to their armament, the idea being to f!rnish new

proofs of peacef!l intentions%

(he chatter abo!t the peacef!l con+!est of the world by commercial means was probably the mostcompletely nonsensical st!ff ever raised to the dignity of a g!iding principle in the policy of a 'tate, (his

nonsense became even more foolish when 7ngland was pointed o!t as a typical e3ample to prove how the

thing co!ld be p!t into practice% O!r doctrinal way of regarding history and o!r professorial ideas in that

domain have done irreparable harm and offer a stri&ing proof# of how people learn# history witho!t!nderstanding anything of it% As a matter of fact, 7ngland o!ght to have been loo&ed !pon as a convincing

arg!ment against the theory of the pacific con+!est of the world by commercial means% *o nation prepared

the way for its commercial con+!ests more br!tally than 7ngland did by means of the sword, and no other

nation has defended s!ch con+!ests more r!thlessly% Is it not a characteristic +!ality of ritish statecraft

that it &nows how to !se political power in order to gain economic advantages and, inversely, to t!rneconomic con+!ests into political power5 /hat an asto!nding error it was to believe that 7ngland wo!ld

not have the co!rage to give its own blood for the p!rposes of its own economic e3pansionJ (he fact that

7ngland did not possess a national army proved nothing> for it is not the act!al military str!ct!re of themoment that matters b!t rather the will and determination to !se whatever military strength is available%

7ngland has always had the armament which she needed% 'he always fo!ght with those weapons which

were necessary for s!ccess% 'he sent mercenary troops, to fight as long as mercenaries s!fficed> b!t she

never hesitated to draw heavily and deeply from the best blood of the whole nation when victory co!ld beobtained only by s!ch a sacrifice% And in every case the fighting spirit, dogged determination, and !se of

br!tal means in cond!cting military operations have always remained the same%

!t in 6ermany, thro!gh the medi!m of the schools, the "ress and the comic papers, an idea of the

7nglishman was grad!ally formed which was bo!nd event!ally to lead to the worst &ind of self-deception%(his abs!rdity slowly b!t persistently spread into every +!arter of 6erman life% (he res!lt was an

!nderval!ation for which we have had to pay a heavy penalty% (he del!sion was so profo!nd that the7nglishman was loo&ed !pon as a shrewd b!siness man, b!t personally a coward even to an incredible

degree% Mnfort!nately o!r lofty teachers of professorial history did not bring home to the minds of their p!pils the tr!th that it is not possible to b!ild !p s!ch a mighty organiation as the ritish 7mpire by mere

swindle and fra!d% (he few who called attention to that tr!th were either ignored or silenced% I can vividly

recall to mind the astonished loo&s of my comrades when they fo!nd themselves personally face to face for

the first time with the (ommies in Flanders% After a few days of fighting the conscio!sness slowly dawnedon o!r soldiers that those 'cotsmen were not li&e the ones we had seen described and caricat!red in the

comic papers and mentioned in the comm!ni+!s%

It was then that I formed my first ideas of the efficiency of vario!s forms of propaganda%

'!ch a falsification, however, served the p!rpose of those who had fabricated it% (his caricat!re of the7nglishman, tho!gh false, co!ld be !sed to prove the possibility of con+!ering the world peacef!lly by

commercial means% /here the 7nglishman s!cceeded we sho!ld also s!cceed% O!r far greater honesty and

o!r freedom from that specifically 7nglish perfidy# wo!ld be assets on o!r side% (hereby it was hoped thatthe sympathy of the smaller nations and the confidence of the greater nations co!ld be gained more easily%/e did not realie that o!r honesty was an obect of profo!nd aversion for other people beca!se we

o!rselves believed in it% (he rest of the world loo&ed on o!r behavio!r as the manifestation of a shrewd

deceitf!lness> b!t when the revol!tion came, then they were amaed at the deeper insight it gave them into

o!r mentality, sincere even beyond the limits of st!pidity%Once we !nderstand the part played by that abs!rd notion of con+!ering the world by peacef!l commercial

means we can clearly !nderstand how that other abs!rdity, the (riple Alliance, came to e3ist% /ith what

'tate then co!ld an alliance have been made5 In alliance with A!stria we co!ld not ac+!ire new territory bymilitary means, even in 7!rope% And this very fact was the real reason for the inner wea&ness of the (riple



Alliance% A ismarc& co!ld permit himself s!ch a ma&eshift for the necessities of the moment, b!t certainly

not any of his b!ngling s!ccessors, and least of all when the fo!ndations no longer e3isted on which

ismarc& had formed the (riple Alliance% In ismarc&#s time A!stria co!ld still be loo&ed !pon as a

6erman 'tate> b!t the grad!al introd!ction of !niversal s!ffrage t!rned the co!ntry into a parliamentaryabel, in which the 6erman voice was scarcely a!dible%

From the viewpoint of racial policy, this alliance with A!stria was simply disastro!s% A new 'lavic 6reat

"ower was allowed to grow !p close to the frontiers of the 6erman 7mpire% Later on this "ower was bo!nd

to adopt towards 6ermany an attit!de different from that of 8!ssia, for e3ample% (he Alliance was th!s bo!nd to become more empty and more feeble, beca!se the only s!pporters of it were losing their infl!ence

and were being systematically p!shed o!t of the more important p!blic offices%

Abo!t the year 19<< the Alliance with A!stria had already entered the same phase as the Alliance between

A!stria and Italy%ere also only one alternative was possible0 7ither to ta&e the side of the absb!rg onarchy or to raise a

protest against the oppression of the 6erman element in A!stria% !t, generally spea&ing, when one ta&es

s!ch a co!rse it is bo!nd event!ally to lead to open conflict%

From the psychological point of view also, the (riple decreases according as s!ch an alliance limits itsobect to the defence of the stat!s +!o% !t, on the other hand, an alliance will increase its cohesive strength

the more the parties concerned in it may hope to !se it as a means of reaching some practical goal of

e3pansion% ere, as everywhere else, strength does not lie in defence b!t in attac&%

(his tr!th was recognied in vario!s +!arters b!t, !nfort!nately, not by the so-called elected representatives

of the people% As early as 1912 L!dendorff, who was then $olonel and an Officer of the 6eneral 'taff, pointed o!t these wea& feat!res of the Alliance in a memorand!m which he then drew !p% !t of co!rse the

statesmen# did not attach any importance or val!e to that doc!ment% In general it wo!ld seem as if reason

were a fac!lty that is active only in the case of ordinary mortals b!t that it is entirely absent when we cometo deal with that branch of the species &nown as diplomats#%

It was l!c&y for 6ermany that the war of 1914 bro&e o!t with A!stria as its direct ca!se, for th!s the

absb!rgs were compelled to participate% ad the origin of the /ar been otherwise, 6ermany wo!ld have

been left to her own reso!rces% (he absb!rg 'tate wo!ld never have been ready or willing to ta&e part in awar for the origin of which 6ermany was responsible% /hat was the obect of so m!ch oblo+!y later in the

case of Italy#s decision wo!ld have ta&en place, only earlier, in the case of A!stria% In other words, if

6ermany had been forced to go to war for some reason of its own, A!stria wo!ld have remained ne!tral# in

order to safeg!ard the 'tate against a revol!tion which might begin immediately after the war had started%(he 'lav element wo!ld have preferred to smash !p the ?!al onarchy in 1914 rather than permit it to

come to the assistance of 6ermany% !t at that time there were only a few who !nderstood all the dangersand aggravations which res!lted from the alliance with the ?an!bian onarchy%

In the first place, A!stria had too many enemies who were eagerly loo&ing forward to obtain the heritage of that decrepit 'tate, so that these people grad!ally developed a certain animosity against 6ermany, beca!se

6ermany was an obstacle to their desires inasm!ch as it &ept the ?!al onarchy from falling to pieces, a

cons!mmation that was hoped for and yearned for on all sides% (he conviction developed that :ienna co!ld

be reached only by passing thro!gh erlin%In the second place, by adopting this policy 6ermany 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 8!ssia

and even with Italy% And this in spite of the fact that the general attit!de in 8ome was !st as favo!rable to

6ermany as it was hostile to A!stria, a hostility which lay dormant in the individ!al Italian and bro&e o!tviolently on occasion%

'ince a commercial and ind!strial policy had been adopted, no motive was left for waging war against

8!ssia% Only the enemies of the two co!ntries, 6ermany and 8!ssia, co!ld have an active interest in s!ch awar !nder these circ!mstances% As a matter of fact, it was only the )ews and the ar3ists who tried to stir !p bad blood between the two 'tates%

In the third place, the Alliance constit!ted a permanent danger to 6erman sec!rity> for any great "ower that

was hostile to ismarc&#s 7mpire co!ld mobilie a whole lot of other 'tates in a war against 6ermany by

promising them tempting spoils at the e3pense of the A!strian ally%It was possible to aro!se the whole of 7astern 7!rope against A!stria, especially 8!ssia, and Italy also% (he

world coalition which had developed !nder the leadership of ing 7dward co!ld never have become a

reality if 6ermany#s ally, A!stria, had not offered s!ch an all!ring prospect of booty% It was this fact alonewhich made it possible to combine so many heterogeneo!s 'tates with divergent interests into one common



phalan3 of attac&% 7very member co!ld hope to enrich himself at the e3pense of A!stria if he oined in the

general attac& against 6ermany% (he fact that (!r&ey was also a tacit party to the !nfort!nate alliance with

A!stria a!gmented 6ermany#s peril to an e3traordinary degree%

)ewish international finance needed this bait of the A!strian heritage in order to carry o!t its plans of r!ining 6ermany> for 6ermany had not yet s!rrendered to the general control which the international

captains of finance and trade e3ercised over the other 'tates% (h!s it was possible to consolidate that

coalition and ma&e it strong eno!gh and brave eno!gh, thro!gh the sheer weight of n!mbers, to oin in

bodily conflict with the horned# 'iegfried%9C(he alliance with the absb!rg onarchy, which I loathed while still in A!stria, was the s!bect of grave

concern on my part and ca!sed me to meditate on it so persistently that finally I came to the concl!sions

which I have mentioned above%

In the small circles which I fre+!ented at that time I did not conceal my conviction that this sinister agreement with a 'tate doomed to collapse wo!ld also bring catastrophe to 6ermany 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

/orld /ar seemed to have made shipwrec& of the reasoning fac!lty itself and had p!t blind enth!siasm in

its place, even among those circles where the coolest and hardest obective thin&ing o!ght to have heldsway% In the trenches I voiced and !pheld my own opinion whenever these problems came !nder

disc!ssion% I held that to abandon the absb!rg onarchy wo!ld involve no sacrifice if 6ermany co!ld

thereby red!ce the n!mber of her own enemies> for the millions of 6ermans who had donned the steel

helmet had done so not to fight for the maintenance of a corr!pt dynasty b!t rather for the salvation of the

6erman people%efore the /ar there were occasions on which it seemed that at least one section of the 6erman p!blic had

some slight misgivings abo!t the political wisdom of the alliance with A!stria% From time to time 6erman

conservative circles iss!ed warnings against being over-confident abo!t the worth of that alliance> b!t, li&eevery other reasonable s!ggestion made at that time, it was thrown to the winds% (he general conviction

was that the right meas!res had been adopted to con+!er# the world, that the s!ccess of these meas!res

wo!ld be enormo!s and the sacrifices negligible%

Once again the !ninitiated# layman co!ld do nothing b!t observe how the elect# were marching straightahead towards disaster and enticing their beloved people to follow them, as the rats followed the "ied "iper

of amelin%

If we wo!ld loo& for the deeper gro!nds which made it possible to foist on the people this abs!rd notion of

peacef!lly con+!ering the world thro!gh commercial penetration, and how it was possible to p!t forwardthe maintenance of world-peace as a national aim, we shall find that these gro!nds lay in a general morbid

condition that had pervaded the whole body of 6erman political tho!ght%(he tri!mphant progress of technical science in 6ermany and the marvello!s development of 6erman

ind!stries and commerce led !s to forget that a powerf!l 'tate had been the necessary pre-re+!isite of thats!ccess% On the contrary, certain circles went even so far as to give vent to the theory that the 'tate owed its

very e3istence to these phenomena> that it was, above all, an economic instit!tion and sho!ld be constit!ted

in accordance with economic interests% (herefore, it was held, the 'tate was dependent on the economic

str!ct!re% (his condition of things was loo&ed !pon and glorified as the so!ndest and most normalarrangement%

*ow, the tr!th is that the 'tate 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 p!rpose of serving economic ends% (he 'tate is a comm!nity of living beings who have &indred physical and spirit!al nat!res, organied for the p!rpose of ass!ring the

conservation of their own &ind and to help towards f!lfilling those ends which "rovidence has assigned to

that partic!lar race or racial branch% (herein, and therein alone, lie the p!rpose and meaning of a 'tate%7conomic activity is one of the many a!3iliary means which are necessary for the attainment of those aims%!t economic activity is never the origin or p!rpose of a 'tate, e3cept where a 'tate has been originally

fo!nded on a false and !nnat!ral basis% And this alone e3plains why a 'tate as s!ch does not necessarily

need a certain delimited territory as a condition of its establishment% (his condition becomes a necessary

pre-re+!isite only among those people who wo!ld provide and ass!re s!bsistence for their &insfol& thro!ghtheir own ind!stry, which means that they are ready to carry on the str!ggle for e3istence by means of their

own wor&% "eople who can snea& their way, li&e parasites, into the h!man body politic and ma&e others

wor& for them !nder vario!s pretences can form a 'tate witho!t possessing any definite delimited territory%(his is chiefly applicable to that parasitic nation which, partic!larly at the present time preys !pon the



honest portion of man&ind> I mean the )ews%

(he )ewish 'tate has never been delimited in space% It has been spread all over the world, witho!t any

frontiers whatsoever, and has always been constit!ted from the membership of one race e3cl!sively% (hat is

why the )ews have always formed a 'tate within the 'tate% One of the most ingenio!s tric&s ever devisedhas been that of sailing the )ewish ship-of-state !nder the flag of 8eligion and th!s sec!ring that tolerance

which Aryans are always ready to grant to different religio!s faiths% !t the osaic Law is really nothing

else than the doctrine of the preservation of the )ewish race% (herefore this Law ta&es in all spheres of

sociological, political and economic science which have a bearing on the main end in view%(he instinct for the preservation of one#s own species is the primary ca!se that leads to the formation of

h!man comm!nities% ence the 'tate is a racial organism, and not an economic organiation% (he

difference between the two is so great as to be incomprehensible to o!r contemporary so-called statesmen#%

(hat is why they li&e to believe that the 'tate may be constit!ted as an economic str!ct!re, whereas thetr!th is that it has always res!lted from the e3ercise of those +!alities which are part of the will to preserve

the species and the race% !t these +!alities always e3ist and operate thro!gh the heroic virt!es and have

nothing to do with commercial egoism> for the conservation of the species always pres!pposes that the

individ!al is ready to sacrifice himself% '!ch is the meaning of the poet#s lines0nd set!et ihr nicht das "e#en ein$

%ie wird euch das "e#en gewonnen sein&

B 'nd if (ou do not stake (our life$

)ou will never win life for (ourself %C 1<C

(he sacrifice of the individ!al e3istence is necessary in order to ass!re the conservation of the race% enceit is that the most essential condition for the establishment and maintenance of a 'tate is a certain feeling of

solidarity, wo!nded in an identity of character and race and in a resol!te readiness to defend these at all

costs% /ith people who live on their own territory this will res!lt in a development of the heroic virt!es>with a parasitic people it will develop the arts of s!bterf!ge and gross perfidy !nless we admit that these

characteristics are innate and that the varying political forms thro!gh which the parasitic race e3presses

itself are only the o!tward manifestations of innate characteristics% At least in the beginning, the formation

of a 'tate can res!lt only from a manifestation of the heroic +!alities I have spo&en of% And the people whofail in the str!ggle for e3istence, 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 virt!es in the str!ggle, or those

who fall victims to the perfidy of the parasites% And even in this latter case the fail!re is not so m!ch d!e to

lac& of intellect!al powers, b!t rather to a lac& of co!rage and determination% An attempt is made to concealthe real nat!re of this failing by saying that it is the h!mane feeling%

(he +!alities which are employed for the fo!ndation and preservation of a 'tate have accordingly little or nothing to do with the economic sit!ation% And this is conspic!o!sly demonstrated by the fact that the inner

strength of a 'tate only very rarely coincides with what is called its economic e3pansion% On the contrary,there are n!mero!s e3amples to show that a period of economic prosperity indicates the approaching

decline of a 'tate% If it were correct to attrib!te the fo!ndation of h!man comm!nities to economic forces,

then the power of the 'tate as s!ch wo!ld be at its highest pitch d!ring periods of economic prosperity, and

not vice versa%It is specially diffic!lt to !nderstand how the belief that the 'tate is bro!ght into being and preserved by

economic forces co!ld gain c!rrency in a co!ntry which has given proof of the opposite in every phase of

its history% (he history of "r!ssia shows in a manner partic!larly clear and distinct, that it is o!t of the

moral virt!es of the people and not from their economic circ!mstances that a 'tate is formed% It is only!nder the protection of those virt!es that economic activities can be developed and the latter will contin!e

to flo!rish !ntil a time comes when the creative political capacity declines% (herewith the economic

str!ct!re will also brea& down, a phenomenon which is now happening in an alarming manner before o!r eyes% (he material interest of man&ind can prosper only in the shade of the heroic virt!es% (he moment they become the primary considerations of life they wrec& the basis of their own e3istence%

/henever the political power of 6ermany was specially strong the economic sit!ation also improved% !t

whenever economic interests alone occ!pied the foremost place in the life of the people, and thr!st

transcendent ideals into the bac&%-gro!nd, the 'tate collapsed and economic r!in followed readily%If we consider the +!estion of what those forces act!ally are which are necessary to the creation and

preservation of a 'tate, we shall find that they are0 (he capacity and readiness to sacrifice the individ!al to

the common welfare% (hat these +!alities have nothing at all to do with economics can be proved byreferring to the simple fact that man does not sacrifice himself for material interests% In other words, he will



die for an ideal b!t not for a b!siness% (he marvello!s gift for p!blic psychology which the 7nglish have

was never shown better than the way in which they presented their case in the /orld /ar% /e were fighting

for o!r bread> b!t the 7nglish declared that they were fighting for freedom#, and not at all for their own

freedom% Oh, no, b!t for the freedom of the small nations% 6erman people la!ghed at that effrontery andwere angered by it> b!t in doing so they showed how political tho!ght had declined among o!r so-called

diplomats in 6ermany even before the /ar% (hese diplomatists did not have the slightest notion of what

that force was which bro!ght men to face death of their own free will and determination%

As long as the 6erman people, in the /ar of 1914, contin!ed to believe that they were fighting for idealsthey stood firm% As soon as they were told that they were fighting only for their daily bread they began to

give !p the str!ggle%

O!r clever statesmen# were greatly amaed at this change of feeling% (hey never !nderstood that as soon as

man is called !pon to str!ggle for p!rely material ca!ses he will avoid death as best he can> for death andthe enoyment of the material fr!its of a victory are +!ite incompatible concepts% (he frailest woman will

become a heroine when the life of her own child is at sta&e% And only the will to save the race and native

land or the 'tate, which offers protection to the race, has in all ages been the !rge which has forced men to

face the weapons of their enemies%(he following may be proclaimed as a tr!th that always holds good0

A 'tate has never arisen from commercial ca!ses for the p!rpose of peacef!lly serving commercial ends>

b!t 'tates have always arisen from the instinct to maintain the racial gro!p, whether this instinct manifest

itself in the heroic sphere or in the sphere of c!nning and chicanery% In the first case we have the Aryan

'tates, based on the principles of wor& and c!lt!ral development% In the second case we have the )ewish parasitic colonies% !t as soon as economic interests begin to predominate over the racial and c!lt!ral

instincts in a people or a 'tate, these economic interests !nloose the ca!ses that lead to s!b!gation and

oppression%(he belief, which prevailed in 6ermany before the /ar, that the world co!ld be opened !p and even

con+!ered for 6ermany thro!gh a system of peacef!l commercial penetration and a colonial policy was a

typical symptom which indicated the decline of those real +!alities whereby 'tates are created and

preserved, and indicated also the decline of that insight, will-power and practical determination which belong to those +!alities% (he /orld /ar with its conse+!ences, was the nat!ral li+!idation of that decline%

(o anyone who had not tho!ght over the matter deeply, this attit!de of the 6erman people - which was

+!ite general - m!st have seemed an insol!ble enigma% After all, 6ermany herself was a magnificent

e3ample of an empire that had been b!ilt !p p!rely by a policy of power% "r!ssia, which was the generativecell of the 6erman 7mpire, had been created by brilliant heroic deeds and not by a financial or commercial

compact% And the 7mpire itself was b!t the magnificent recompense for a leadership that had beencond!cted on a policy of power and military valo!r%

ow then did it happen that the political instincts of this very same 6erman people became so degenerate5For it was not merely one isolated phenomenon which pointed to this decadence, b!t morbid symptoms

which appeared in alarming n!mbers, now all over the body politic, or eating into the body of the nation

li&e a gangreno!s !lcer% It seemed as if some all-pervading poisono!s fl!id had been inected by some

mysterio!s hand into the bloodstream of this once heroic body, bringing abo!t a creeping paralysis thataffected the reason and the elementary instinct of self-preservation%

?!ring the years 1912-1914 I !sed to ponder perpet!ally on those problems which related to the policy of

the (riple Alliance and the economic policy then being p!rs!ed by the 6erman 7mpire% Once again I came

to the concl!sion that the only e3planation of this enigma lay in the operation of that force which I hadalready become ac+!ainted with in :ienna, tho!gh from a different angle of vision% (he force to which I

refer was the ar3ist teaching and Weltanschhauung and its organied action thro!gho!t the nation%

For the second time in my life I pl!nged deep into the st!dy of that destr!ctive teaching% (his time,however, I was not !rged by the st!dy of the +!estion by the impressions and infl!ences of my dailyenvironment, b!t directed rather by the observation of general phenomena in the political life of 6ermany%

In delving again into the theoretical literat!re of this new world and endeavo!ring to get a clear view of the

possible conse+!ences of its teaching, I compared the theoretical principles of ar3ism with the

phenomena and happenings bro!ght abo!t by its activities in the political, c!lt!ral, and economic spheres%For the first time in my life I now t!rned my attention to the efforts that were being made to s!bd!e this

!niversal pest%

I st!died ismarc&#s e3ceptional legislation in its original concept, its operation and its res!lts% 6rad!ally Iformed a basis for my own opinions, which has proved as solid as a roc&, so that never since have I had to



change my attit!de towards the general problem% I also made a f!rther and more thoro!gh analysis of the

relations between ar3ism and )ewry%

?!ring my soo!rn in :ienna I !sed to loo& !pon 6ermany as an impert!rbable coloss!s> b!t even then

serio!s do!bts and misgivings wo!ld often dist!rb me% In my own mind and in my conversation with mysmall circle of ac+!aintances I !sed to criticie 6ermany#s foreign policy and the incredibly s!perficial

way, according to my thin&ing, in which ar3ism was dealt with, tho!gh it was then the most important

problem in 6ermany% I co!ld not !nderstand how they co!ld st!mble blindfolded into the midst of this

peril, the effects of which wo!ld be momento!s if the openly declared aims of ar3ism co!ld be p!t into practice% 7ven as early as that time I warned people aro!nd me, !st as I am warning a wider a!dience now,

against that soothing slogan of all indolent and fec&less nat!re0 *othing can happen to !s% A similar mental

contagion had already destroyed a mighty empire% $an 6ermany escape the operation of those laws to

which all other h!man comm!nities are s!bect5In the years 191. and 1914 I e3pressed my opinion for the first time in vario!s circles, some of which are

now members of the *ational 'ocialist ovement, that the problem of how the f!t!re of the 6erman nation

can be sec!red is the problem of how ar3ism can be e3terminated%

I considered the disastro!s policy of the (riple Alliance as one of the conse+!ences res!lting from thedisintegrating effects of the ar3ist teaching> for the alarming feat!re was that this teaching was invisibly

corr!pting the fo!ndations of a healthy political and economic o!tloo&% (hose who had been themselves

contaminated fre+!ently did not realise that their aims and actions sprang from this Weltanschhauung ,

which they otherwise openly rep!diated%

Long before then the spirit!al and moral decline of the 6erman people had set in, tho!gh those who wereaffected by the morbid decadence were fre+!ently !naware - as often happens - of the forces which were

brea&ing !p their very e3istence% 'ometimes they tried to c!re the disease by doctoring the symptoms,

which were ta&en as the ca!se% !t since nobody recognied, or wanted to recognie, the real ca!se of thedisease this way of combating ar3ism was no more effective than the application of some +!ac&#s

ointment%

$hapter Five0

?!ring the boistero!s years of my yo!th nothing !sed to damp my wild spirits so m!ch as to thin& that I

was born at a time when the world had manifestly decided not to erect any more temples of fame e3cept in

hono!r of b!siness people and 'tate officials% (he tempest of historical achievements seemed to have permanently s!bsided, so m!ch so that the f!t!re appeared to be irrevocably delivered over to what was

called peacef!l competition between the nations% (his simply meant a system of m!t!al e3ploitation byfra!d!lent means, the principle of resorting to the !se of force in self-defence being formally e3cl!ded%

Individ!al co!ntries increasingly ass!med the appearance of commercial !nderta&ings, grabbing territoryand clients and concessions from each other !nder any and every &ind of prete3t% And it was all staged to an

accompaniment of lo!d b!t innoc!o!s sho!ting% (his trend of affairs seemed destined to develop steadily

and permanently% aving the s!pport of p!blic approbation, it seemed bo!nd event!ally to transform the

world into a mammoth department store% In the vestib!le of this empori!m there wo!ld be rows of mon!mental b!sts which wo!ld confer immortality on those profiteers who had proved themselves the

shrewdest at their trade and those administrative officials who had shown themselves the most innoc!o!s%

(he salesmen co!ld be represented by the 7nglish and the administrative f!nctionaries by the 6ermans>

whereas the )ews wo!ld be sacrificed to the !nprofitable calling of proprietorship, for they are constantlyavowing that they ma&e no profits and are always being called !pon to pay o!t#% oreover they have the

advantage of being versed in the foreign lang!ages%

/hy co!ld I not have been born a h!ndred years ago5 I !sed to as& myself% 'omewhere abo!t the time of the /ars of Liberation, when a man was still of some val!e even tho!gh he had no b!siness#%(h!s I !sed to thin& it an ill-deserved stro&e of bad l!c& that I had arrived too late on this terrestrial globe,

and I felt chagrined at the idea that my life wo!ld have to r!n its co!rse along peacef!l and orderly lines%

As a boy I was anything b!t a pacifist and all attempts to ma&e me so t!rned o!t f!tile%

(hen the oer /ar came, li&e a glow of lightning on the far horion% ?ay after day I !sed to gae intentlyat the newspapers and I almost devo!red# the telegrams and comm!ni+!es, overoyed to thin& that I co!ld

witness that heroic str!ggle, even tho!gh from so great a distance%

/hen the 8!sso-)apanese /ar came I was older and better able to !dge for myself% For national reasons Ithen too& the side of the )apanese in o!r disc!ssions% I loo&ed !pon the defeat of the 8!ssians as a blow to



A!strian 'lavism%

any years had passed between that time and my arrival in !nich% I now realied that what I formerly

believed to be a morbid decadence was only the l!ll before the storm% ?!ring my :ienna days the al&ans

were already in the grip of that s!ltry pa!se which presages the violent storm% ere and there a flash of lightning co!ld be occasionally seen> b!t it rapidly disappeared in sinister gloom% (hen the al&an /ar

bro&e o!t> and therewith the first g!sts of the forthcoming tornado swept across a highly-str!ng 7!rope% In

the s!pervening calm men felt the atmosphere oppressive and foreboding, so m!ch so that the sense of an

impending catastrophe became transformed into a feeling of impatient e3pectance% (hey wished thateaven wo!ld give free rein to the fate which co!ld now no longer be c!rbed% (hen the first great bolt of

lightning str!c& the earth% (he storm bro&e and the th!nder of the heavens intermingled with the roar of the

cannons in the /orld /ar%

/hen the news came to !nich that the Archd!&e Fran Ferdinand had been m!rdered, I had been at homeall day and did not get the partic!lars of how it happened% At first I feared that the shots may have been

fired by some 6erman-A!strian st!dents who had been aro!sed to a state of f!rio!s indignation by the

persistent pro-'lav activities of the eir to the absb!rg (hrone and therefore wished to liberate the

6erman pop!lation from this internal enemy% It was +!ite easy to imagine what the res!lt of s!ch a mista&ewo!ld have been% It wo!ld have bro!ght on a new wave of persec!tion, the motives of which wo!ld have

been !stified# before the whole world% !t soon afterwards I heard the names of the pres!med assassins

and also that they were &nown to be 'erbs% I felt somewhat d!mbfo!nded in face of the ine3orable

vengeance which ?estiny had wro!ght% (he greatest friend of the 'lavs had fallen a victim to the b!llets of

'lav patriots%It is !n!st to the :ienna government of that time to blame it now for the form and tenor of the !ltimat!m

which was then presented% In a similar position and !nder similar circ!mstances, no other "ower in the

world wo!ld have acted otherwise% On her so!thern frontiers A!stria had a relentless mortal foe whoind!lged in acts of provocation against the ?!al onarchy at intervals which were becoming more and

more fre+!ent% (his persistent line of cond!ct wo!ld not have been rela3ed !ntil the arrival of the

opport!ne moment for the destr!ction of the 7mpire% In A!stria there was good reason to fear that, at the

latest, this moment wo!ld come with the death of the old 7mperor% Once that had ta&en place, it was +!ite possible that the onarchy wo!ld not be able to offer any serio!s resistance% For some years past the 'tate

had been so completely identified with the personality of Francis )oseph that, in the eyes of the great mass

of the people, the death of this venerable personification of the 7mpire wo!ld be tantamo!nt to the death of

the 7mpire itself% Indeed it was one of the clever artifices of 'lav policy to foster the impression that theA!strian 'tate owed its very e3istence e3cl!sively to the prodigies and rare talents of that monarch% (his

&ind of flattery was partic!larly welcomed at the ofb!rg, all the more beca!se it had no relationwhatsoever to the services act!ally rendered by the 7mperor% *o effort whatsoever was made to locate the

caref!lly prepared sting which lay hidden in this glorifying praise% One fact which was entirely overloo&ed, perhaps intentionally, was that the more the 7mpire remained dependent on the so-called administrative

talents of the wisest onarch of all times#, the more catastrophic wo!ld be the sit!ation when Fate came to

&noc& at the door and demand its trib!te%

/as it possible even to imagine the A!strian 7mpire witho!t its venerable r!ler5 /o!ld not the tragedywhich befell aria (heresa be repeated at once5

It is really !n!st to the :ienna governmental circles to reproach them with having instigated a war which

might have been prevented% (he war was bo!nd to come% "erhaps it might have been postponed for a year

or two at the most% !t it had always been the misfort!ne of 6erman, as well as A!strian, diplomats thatthey endeavo!red to p!t off the inevitable day of rec&oning, with the res!lt that they were finally compelled

to deliver their blow at a most inopport!ne moment%

*o% (hose who did not wish this war o!ght to have had the co!rage to ta&e the conse+!ences of the ref!sal!pon themselves% (hose conse+!ences m!st necessarily have meant the sacrifice of A!stria% And even thenwar wo!ld have come, not as a war in which all the nations wo!ld have been banded against !s b!t in the

form of a dismemberment of the absb!rg onarchy% In that case we sho!ld have had to decide whether

we sho!ld come to the assistance of the absb!rg or stand aside as spectators, with o!r arms folded, and

th!s allow Fate to r!n its co!rse%)!st those who are lo!dest in their imprecations to-day and ma&e a great parade of wisdom in !dging the

ca!ses of the war are the very same people whose collaboration was the most fatal factor in steering

towards the war%For several decades previo!sly the 6erman 'ocial-?emocrats had been agitating in an !nderhand and



&navish way for war against 8!ssia> whereas the 6erman $entre "arty, with religio!s ends in view, had

wor&ed to ma&e the A!strian 'tate the chief centre and t!rning-point of 6erman policy% (he conse+!ences

of this folly had now to be borne% /hat came was bo!nd to come and !nder no circ!mstances co!ld it have

been avoided% (he fa!lt of the 6erman 6overnment lay in the fact that, merely for the sa&e of preserving peace at all costs, it contin!ed to miss the occasions that were favo!rable for action, got entangled in an

alliance for the p!rpose of preserving the peace of the world, and th!s finally became the victim of a world

coalition which opposed the 6erman effort for the maintenance of peace and was determined to bring abo!t

the world war%ad the :ienna 6overnment of that time form!lated its !ltimat!m in less drastic terms, that wo!ld not have

altered the sit!ation at all0 b!t s!ch a co!rse might have aro!sed p!blic indignation% For, in the eyes of the

great masses, the !ltimat!m was too moderate and certainly not e3cessive or br!tal% (hose who wo!ld deny

this to-day are either simpletons with feeble memories or else deliberate falsehood-mongers%(he /ar of 1914 was certainly not forced on the masses> it was even desired by the whole people%

(here was a desire to bring the general feeling of !ncertainty to an end once and for all% And it is only in

the light of this fact that we can !nderstand how more than two million 6erman men and yo!ths vol!ntarily

oined the colo!rs, ready to shed the last drop of their blood for the ca!se%For me these ho!rs came as a deliverance from the distress that had weighed !pon me d!ring the days of

my yo!th% I am not ashamed to ac&nowledge to-day that I was carried away by the enth!siasm of the

moment and that I san& down !pon my &nees and than&ed eaven o!t of the f!llness of my heart for the

favo!r of having been permitted to live in s!ch a time%

(he fight for freedom had bro&en o!t on an !nparalleled scale in the history of the world% From the momentthat Fate too& the helm in hand the conviction grew among the mass of the people that now it was not a

+!estion of deciding the destinies of A!stria or 'erbia b!t that the very e3istence of the 6erman nation

itself was at sta&e%At last, after many years of blindness, the people saw clearly into the f!t!re% (herefore, almost immediately

after the gigantic str!ggle had beg!n, an e3cessive enth!siasm was replaced by a more earnest and more

fitting !ndertone, beca!se the e3altation of the pop!lar spirit was not a mere passing freny% It was only too

necessary that the gravity of the sit!ation sho!ld be recognied% At that time there was, generally spea&ing,not the slightest presentiment or conception of how long the war might last% "eople dreamed of the soldiers

being home by $hristmas and that then they wo!ld res!me their daily wor& in peace%

/hatever man&ind desires, that it will hope for and believe in% (he overwhelming maority of the people

had long since grown weary of the perpet!al insec!rity in the general condition of p!blic affairs% ence itwas only nat!ral that no one believed that the A!stro-'erbian conflict co!ld be shelved% (herefore they

loo&ed forward to a radical settlement of acco!nts% I also belonged to the millions that desired this%(he moment the news of the 'araevo o!trage reached !nich two ideas came into my mind0 First, that

war was absol!tely inevitable and, second, that the absb!rg 'tate wo!ld now be forced to hono!r itssignat!re to the alliance% For what I had feared most was that one day 6ermany herself, perhaps as a res!lt

of the Alliance, wo!ld become involved in a conflict the first direct ca!se of which did not affect A!stria% In

s!ch a contingency, I feared that the A!strian 'tate, for domestic political reasons, wo!ld find itself !nable

to decide in favo!r of its ally% !t now this danger was removed% (he old 'tate was compelled to fight,whether it wished to do so or not%

y own attit!de towards the conflict was e+!ally simple and clear% I believed that it was not a case of

A!stria fighting to get satisfaction from 'erbia b!t rather a case of 6ermany fighting for her own e3istence

- the 6erman nation for its own to-be-or-not-to-be, for its freedom and for its f!t!re% (he wor& of ismarc& m!st now be carried on% No!ng 6ermany m!st show itself worthy of the blood shed by o!r fathers on so

many heroic fields of battle, from /eissenb!rg to 'edan and "aris% And if this str!ggle sho!ld bring !s

victory o!r people will again ran& foremost among the great nations% Only then co!ld the 6erman 7mpireassert itself as the mighty champion of peace, witho!t the necessity of restricting the daily bread of itschildren for the sa&e of maintaining the peace%

As a boy and as a yo!ng man, I often longed for the occasion to prove that my national enth!siasm was not

mere vapo!ring% !rrahing sometimes seemed to me to be a &ind of sinf!l ind!lgence, tho!gh I co!ld not

give any !stification for that feeling> for, after all, who has the right to sho!t that tri!mphant word if he hasnot won the right to it there where there is no play-acting and where the hand of the 6oddess of ?estiny

p!ts the tr!th and sincerity of nations and men thro!gh her ine3orable test5 )!st as millions of others, I felt

a pro!d oy in being permitted to go thro!gh this test% I had so often s!ng ?e!tschland Dber Alles and sooften roared eil# that I now tho!ght it was as a &ind of retro-active grace that I was granted the right of



appearing before the $o!rt of 7ternal )!stice to testify to the tr!th 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 boo&s wo!ld have to be thrown aside forthwith% I also realied that my place wo!ld have to

be there where the inner voice of conscience called me%I had left A!stria principally for political reasons% /hat therefore co!ld be more rational than that I sho!ld

p!t into practice the logical conse+!ences of my political opinions, now that the war had beg!n% I had no

desire to fight for the absb!rg ca!se, b!t I was prepared to die at any time for my own &insfol& and the

7mpire to which they really belonged%On A!g!st .rd, 1914, I presented an !rgent petition to is aesty, ing L!dwig III, re+!esting to be

allowed to serve in a avarian regiment% In those days the $hancellery had its hands +!ite f!ll and therefore

I was all the more pleased when I received the answer a day later, that my re+!est had been granted% I

opened the doc!ment with trembling hands> and no words of mine co!ld now describe the satisfaction I felton reading that I was instr!cted to report to a avarian regiment% /ithin a few days I was wearing that

!niform which I was not to p!t oft again for nearly si3 years%

For me, as for every 6erman, the most memorable period of my life now began% Face to face with that

mighty str!ggle, all the past fell away into oblivion% /ith a wistf!l pride I loo& bac& on those days,especially beca!se we are now approaching the tenth anniversary of that memorable happening% I recall

those early wee&s of war when &ind fort!ne permitted me to ta&e my place in that heroic str!ggle among

the nations%

As the scene !nfolds itself before my mind, it seems only li&e yesterday% I see myself among my yo!ng

comrades on o!r first parade drill, and so on !ntil at last the day came on which we were to leave for thefront%

In common with the others, I had one worry d!ring those days% (his was a fear that we might arrive too late

for the fighting at the front% (ime and again that tho!ght dist!rbed me and every anno!ncement of avictorio!s engagement left a bitter taste, which increased as the news of f!rther victories arrived%

At long last the day came when we left !nich on war service% For the first time in my life I saw the 8hine,

as we o!rneyed westwards to stand g!ard before that historic 6erman river against its traditional and

grasping enemy% As the first soft rays of the morning s!n bro&e thro!gh the light mist and disclosed to !sthe *iederwald 'tat!e, with one accord the whole troop train bro&e into the strains of ?ie /acht am 8hein%

I then felt as if my heart co!ld not contain its spirit%

And then followed a damp, cold night in Flanders% /e marched in silence thro!gho!t the night and as the

morning s!n came thro!gh the mist an iron greeting s!ddenly b!rst above o!r heads% 'hrapnel e3ploded ino!r midst and spl!ttered in the damp gro!nd% !t before the smo&e of the e3plosion disappeared a wild

!rrah# was sho!ted from two h!ndred throats, in response to this first greeting of ?eath% (hen began thewhistling of b!llets and the booming of cannons, the sho!ting and singing of the combatants% /ith eyes

straining feverishly, we pressed forward, +!ic&er and +!ic&er, !ntil we finally came to close-+!arter fighting, there beyond the beet-fields and the meadows% 'oon the strains of a song reached !s from afar%

*earer and nearer, from company to company, it came% And while ?eath began to ma&e havoc in o!r ran&s

we passed the song on to those beside !s0 ?e!tschland, ?e!tschland Dber Alles, Dber Alles in der /elt%

After fo!r days in the trenches we came bac&% 7ven o!r step was no longer what it had been% oys of seventeen loo&ed now li&e grown men% (he ran& and file of the List 8egiment 11C had not been properly

trained in the art of warfare, b!t they &new how to die li&e old soldiers%

(hat was the beginning% And th!s we carried on from year to year% A feeling of horror replaced the romantic

fighting spirit% 7nth!siasm cooled down grad!ally and e3!berant spirits were +!elled by the fear of theever-present ?eath% A time came when there arose within each one of !s a conflict between the !rge to self-

preservation and the call of d!ty% And I had to go thro!gh that conflict too% As ?eath so!ght its prey

everywhere and !nrelentingly a nameless 'omething rebelled within the wea& body and tried to introd!ceitself !nder the name of $ommon 'ense> b!t in reality it was Fear, which had ta&en on this cloa& in order toimpose itself on the individ!al% !t the more the voice which advised pr!dence increased its efforts and the

more clear and pers!asive became its appeal, resistance became all the stronger> !ntil finally the internal

strife was over and the call of d!ty was tri!mphant% Already in the winter of 191=-1 I had come thro!gh

that inner str!ggle% (he will had asserted its incontestable mastery% /hereas in the early days I went intothe fight with a cheer and a la!gh, I was now habit!ally calm and resol!te% And that frame of mind end!red%

Fate might now p!t me thro!gh the final test witho!t my nerves or reason giving way% (he yo!ng vol!nteer

had become an old soldier%(his same transformation too& place thro!gho!t the whole army% $onstant fighting had aged and to!ghened



it and hardened it, so that it stood firm and da!ntless against every assa!lt%

Only now was it possible to !dge that army% After two and three years of contin!o!s fighting, having been

thrown into one battle after another, standing !p sto!tly against s!perior n!mbers and s!perior armament,

s!ffering h!nger and privation, the time had come when one co!ld assess the val!e of that sing!lar fightingforce%

For a tho!sand years to come nobody will dare to spea& of heroism witho!t recalling the 6erman Army of

the /orld /ar% And then from the dim past will emerge the immortal vision of those solid ran&s of steel

helmets that never flinched and never faltered% And as long as 6ermans live they will be pro!d 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 beca!se the time was

inopport!ne% I still believe that the most modest stable-boy of those days served his co!ntry better than the

best of, let !s say, the parliamentary dep!ties#% y hatred for those footlers was never greater than in thosedays when all decent men who had anything to say said it point-blan& in the enemy#s face> or, failing this,

&ept their mo!ths sh!t and did their d!ty elsewhere% I despised those political fellows and if I had had my

way I wo!ld have formed them into a Labo!r attalion and given them the opport!nity of babbling

amongst themselves to their hearts# content, witho!t offence or harm to decent people%In those days I cared nothing for politics> b!t I co!ld not help forming an opinion on certain manifestations

which affected not only the whole nation b!t also !s soldiers in partic!lar% (here were two things which

ca!sed me the greatest an3iety at that time and which I had come to regard as detrimental to o!r interests%

'hortly after o!r first series of victories a certain section of the "ress already began to throw cold water,

drip by drip, on the enth!siasm of the p!blic% At first this was not obvio!s to many people% It was done!nder the mas& of good intentions and a spirit of an3io!s care% (he p!blic was told that big celebrations of

victories were somewhat o!t of place and were not worthy e3pressions of the spirit of a great nation% (he

fortit!de and valo!r of 6erman soldiers were accepted facts which did not necessarily call for o!tb!rsts of celebration% F!rthermore, it was as&ed, what wo!ld foreign opinion have to say abo!t these manifestations5

/o!ld not foreign opinion react more favo!rably to a +!iet and sober form of celebration rather than to all

this wild !bilation5 '!rely the time had come - so the "ress declared - for !s 6ermans to remember that

this war was not o!r wor& and that hence there need be no feeling of shame in declaring o!r willingness todo o!r share towards effecting an !nderstanding among the nations% For this reason it wo!ld not be wise to

s!lly the radiant deeds of o!r army with !nbecoming !bilation> for the rest of the world wo!ld never

!nderstand this% F!rthermore, nothing is more appreciated than the modesty with which a tr!e hero +!ietly

and !nass!mingly carries on and forgets% '!ch 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

aro!nd their nec&s, so that the victorio!s enth!siasm of the nation sho!ld no longer offend the aestheticsensibilities of these &nights of the pen, a general "ress campaign was now allowed to go on against what

was called !nbecoming# and !ndignified# forms of victorio!s celebration% *o one seemed to have the faintest idea that when p!blic enth!siasm is once damped, nothing can en&indle

it again, when the necessity arises% (his enth!siasm is an into3ication and m!st be &ept !p in that form%

/itho!t the s!pport of this enth!siastic spirit how wo!ld it be possible to end!re in a str!ggle which,

according to h!man standards, made s!ch immense demands on the spirit!al stamina of the nation5I was only too well ac+!ainted with the psychology of the broad masses not to &now that in s!ch cases a

magnamino!s aestheticism# cannot fan the fire which is needed to &eep the iron hot% In my eyes it was

even a mista&e not to have tried to raise the pitch of p!blic enth!siasm still higher% (herefore I co!ld not at

all !nderstand why the contrary policy was adopted, that is to say, the policy of damping the p!blic spirit%Another thing which irritated me was the manner in which ar3ism was regarded and accepted% I tho!ght

that all this proved how little they &new abo!t the ar3ist plag!e% It was believed in all serio!sness that the

abolition of party distinctions d!ring the /ar had made ar3ism a mild and moderate thing%!t here there was no +!estion of party% (here was +!estion of a doctrine which was being e3po!nded for the e3press p!rpose of leading h!manity to its destr!ction% (he p!rport of this doctrine was not !nderstood

beca!se nothing was said abo!t that side of the +!estion in o!r )ew-ridden !niversities and beca!se o!r

s!percilio!s b!rea!cratic officials did not thin& it worth while to read !p a s!bect which had not been

prescribed in their !niversity co!rse% (his mighty revol!tionary trend was going on beside them> b!t thoseintellect!als# wo!ld not deign to give it their attention% (hat is why 'tate enterprise nearly always lags

behind private enterprise% Of these gentry once can tr!ly say that their ma3im is0 /hat we don#t &now

won#t bother !s% In the A!g!st of 1914 the 6erman wor&er was loo&ed !pon as an adherent of ar3istsocialism% (hat was a gross error% /hen those fatef!l ho!rs dawned the 6erman wor&er shoo& off the



poisono!s cl!tches of that plag!e> otherwise he wo!ld not have been so willing and ready to fight% And

people were st!pid eno!gh to imagine that ar3ism had now become national#, another apt ill!stration of

the fact that those in a!thority had never ta&en the tro!ble to st!dy the real tenor of the ar3ist teaching% If

they had done so, s!ch foolish errors wo!ld not have been committed%ar3ism, whose final obective was and is and will contin!e to be the destr!ction of all non-)ewish

national 'tates, had to witness in those days of )!ly 1914 how the 6erman wor&ing classes, which it had

been inveigling, were aro!sed by the national spirit and rapidly ranged themselves on the side of the

Fatherland% /ithin a few days the deceptive smo&e-screen of that infamo!s national betrayal had vanishedinto thin air and the )ewish bosses s!ddenly fo!nd 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 6erman people had been inoc!lated

for si3ty years% (hat was indeed an evil day for the betrayers of 6erman Labo!r% (he moment, however,

that the leaders realied the danger which threatened them they p!lled the magic cap of deceit over their ears and, witho!t being identified, played the part of mimes in the national reawa&ening%

(he time seemed to have arrived for proceeding against the whole )ewish gang of p!blic pests% (hen it was

that action sho!ld have been ta&en regardless of any conse+!ent whining or protestation% At one stro&e, in

the A!g!st of 1914, all the empty nonsense abo!t international solidarity was &noc&ed o!t of the heads of the 6erman wor&ing classes% A few wee&s later, instead of this st!pid tal& so!nding in their ears, they heard

the noise of American-man!fact!red shrapnel b!rsting above the heads of the marching col!mns, as a

symbol of international comradeship% *ow that the 6erman wor&er had rediscovered the road to

nationhood, it o!ght to have been the d!ty of any 6overnment which had the care of the people in its

&eeping, to ta&e this opport!nity of mercilessly rooting o!t everything that was opposed to the nationalspirit%

/hile the flower of the nation#s manhood was dying at the front, there was time eno!gh at home at least to

e3terminate this vermin% !t, instead of doing so, is aesty the aiser held o!t his hand to these hoarycriminals, th!s ass!ring them his protection and allowing them to regain their mental compos!re%

And so the viper co!ld begin his wor& again% (his time, however, more caref!lly than before, b!t still more

destr!ctively% /hile honest people dreamt of reconciliation these per!red criminals were ma&ing

preparations for a revol!tion% *at!rally I was distressed at the half-meas!res which were adopted at that time> b!t I never tho!ght it

possible that the final conse+!ences co!ld have been so disastro!s5

!t what sho!ld have been done then5 (hrow the ringleaders into gaol, prosec!te them and rid the nation

of them5 Mncompromising military meas!res sho!ld have been adopted to root o!t the evil% "arties sho!ldhave been abolished and the 8eichstag bro!ght to its senses at the point of the bayonet, if necessary% It

wo!ld have been still better if the 8eichstag had been dissolved immediately% )!st as the 8ep!blic to-daydissolves the parties when it wants to, so in those days there was even more !stification for applying that

meas!re, seeing that the very e3istence of the nation was at sta&e% Of co!rse this s!ggestion wo!ld give riseto the +!estion0 Is it possible to eradicate ideas by force of arms5 $o!ld a Weltanschhauung be attac&ed by

means of physical force5

At that time I t!rned these +!estions over and over again in my mind% y st!dying analogo!s cases,

e3emplified in history, partic!larly those which had arisen from religio!s circ!mstances, I came to thefollowing f!ndamental concl!sion0

Ideas and philosophical systems as well as movements gro!nded on a definite spirit!al fo!ndation, whether

tr!e or not, can never be bro&en by the !se of force after a certain stage, e3cept on one condition0 namely,

that this !se of force is in the service of a new idea or Weltanschhauung which b!rns with a new flame%(he application of force alone, witho!t moral s!pport based on a spirit!al concept, can never bring abo!t

the destr!ction of an idea or arrest the propagation of it, !nless one is ready and able r!thlessly to

e3terminate the last !pholders of that idea even to a man, and also wipe o!t any tradition which it may tendto leave behind% *ow in the maority of cases the res!lt of s!ch a co!rse has been to e3cl!de s!ch a 'tate,either temporarily or for ever, from the comity of 'tates that are of political significance> b!t e3perience has

also shown that s!ch a sang!inary method of e3tirpation aro!ses the better section of the pop!lation !nder

the persec!ting power% As a matter of fact, every persec!tion which has no spirit!al motives to s!pport it is

morally !n!st and raises opposition among the best elements of the pop!lation> so m!ch so that these aredriven more and more to champion the ideas that are !n!stly persec!ted% /ith many individ!als this arises

from the sheer spirit of opposition to every attempt at s!ppressing spirit!al things by br!te force%

In this way the n!mber of convinced adherents of the persec!ted doctrine increases as the persec!tion progresses% ence the total destr!ction of a new doctrine can be accomplished only by a vast plan of



e3termination> b!t this, in the final analysis, means the loss of some of the best blood in a nation or 'tate%

And that blood is then avenged, beca!se s!ch an internal and total clean-!p brings abo!t the collapse of the

nation#s strength% And s!ch a proced!re is always condemned to f!tility from the very start if the attac&ed

doctrine sho!ld happen to have spread beyond a small circle%(hat is why in this case, as with all other growths, the doctrine can be e3terminated in its earliest stages% As

time goes on its powers of resistance increase, !ntil at the approach of age it gives way to yo!nger

elements, b!t !nder another form and from other motives%

(he fact remains that nearly all attempts to e3terminate a doctrine, witho!t having some spirit!al basis of attac& against it, and also to wipe o!t all the organiations it has created, have led in many cases to the very

opposite being achieved> and that for the following reasons0

/hen sheer force is !sed to combat the spread of a doctrine, then that force m!st be employed

systematically and persistently% (his means that the chances of s!ccess in the s!ppression of a doctrine lieonly in the persistent and !niform application of the methods chosen% (he moment hesitation is shown, and

periods of tolerance alternate with the application of force, the doctrine against which these meas!res are

directed will not only recover strength b!t every s!ccessive persec!tion will bring to its s!pport new

adherents who have been shoc&ed by the oppressive methods employed% (he old adherents will becomemore embittered and their allegiance will thereby be strengthened% (herefore when force is employed

s!ccess is dependent on the consistent manner in which it is !sed% (his persistence, however, is nothing less

than the prod!ct of definite spirit!al convictions% 7very form of force that is not s!pported by a spirit!al

bac&ing will be always indecisive and !ncertain% '!ch a force lac&s the stability that can be fo!nd only in a

Weltanschhauung which has devoted champions% '!ch a force is the e3pression of the individ!al 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%

!t there is something else to be said0 7very Weltanschhauung , whether religio!s or political - and it issometimes diffic!lt to say where the one ends and the other begins - fights not so m!ch for the negative

destr!ction of the opposing world of ideas as for the positive realiation of its own ideas% (h!s its str!ggle

lies in attac& rather than in defence% It has the advantage of &nowing where its obective lies, as this

obective represents the realiation of its own ideas% Inversely, it is diffic!lt to say when the negative aimfor the destr!ction of a hostile doctrine is reached and sec!red% For this reason alone a Weltanschhauung

which is of an aggressive character is more definite in plan and more powerf!l and decisive in action than a

Weltanschhauung which ta&es !p a merely defensive attit!de% If force be !sed to combat a spirit!al power,

that force remains a defensive meas!re only so long as the wielders of it are not the standard-bearers andapostles of a new spirit!al doctrine%

(o s!m !p, the following m!st be borne in mind0 (hat every attempt to combat a Weltanschhauung bymeans of force will t!rn o!t f!tile in the end if the str!ggle fails to ta&e the form of an offensive for the

establishment of an entirely new spirit!al order of# things% It is only in the str!ggle between two /eltan-scha!!ngen that physical force, consistently and r!thlessly applied, will event!ally t!rn the scales in its

own favo!r% It was here that the fight against ar3ism had hitherto failed%

(his was also the reason why ismarc&#s anti-socialist legislation failed and was bo!nd to fail in the long

r!n, despite everything% It lac&ed the basis of a new Weltanschhauung for whose development ande3tension the str!ggle might have been ta&en !p% (o say that the serving !p of drivel abo!t a so-called

'tate-A!thority# or Law-and-Order# was an ade+!ate fo!ndation for the spirit!al driving force in a life-or-

death str!ggle is only what one wo!ld e3pect to hear from the wiseacres in high official positions%

It was beca!se there were no ade+!ate spirit!al motives bac& of this offensive that ismarc& was compelledto hand over the administration of his socialist legislative meas!res to the !dgment and approval of those

circles which were themselves the prod!ct of the ar3ist teaching% (h!s a very l!dicro!s state of affairs

prevailed when the Iron $hancellor s!rrendered the fate of his str!ggle against ar3ism to the goodwill of the bo!rgeois democracy% e left the goat to ta&e care of the garden% !t this was only the necessary res!ltof the fail!re to find a f!ndamentally new Weltanschhauung which wo!ld attract devoted champions to its

ca!se and co!ld be established on the gro!nd from which ar3ism had been driven o!t% And th!s the res!lt

of the ismarc&ian campaign was deplorable%

?!ring the /orld /ar, or at the beginning of it, were the conditions any different5 Mnfort!nately, they werenot%

(he more I then pondered over the necessity for a change in the attit!de of the e3ec!tive government

towards 'ocial-?emocracy, as the incorporation of contemporary ar3ism, the more I realied the want of a practical s!bstit!te for this doctrine% '!pposing 'ocial-?emocracy were overthrown, what had one to



offer the masses in its stead5 *ot a single movement e3isted which promised any s!ccess in attracting vast

n!mbers of wor&ers who wo!ld be now more or less witho!t leaders, and holding these wor&ers in its train%

It is nonsensical to imagine that the international fanatic who has !st severed his connection with a class

party wo!ld forthwith oin a bo!rgeois party, or, in other words, another class organiation% For however !nsatisfactory these vario!s organiations may appear to be, it cannot be denied that bo!rgeois politicians

loo& on the distinction between classes as a very important factor in social life, provided it does not t!rn o!t

politically disadvantageo!s to them% If they deny this fact they show themselves not only imp!dent b!t also

mendacio!s%6enerally spea&ing, one sho!ld g!ard against considering the broad masses more st!pid than they really

are% In political matters it fre+!ently happens that feeling !dges more correctly than intellect% !t the

opinion that this feeling on the part of the masses is s!fficient proof of their st!pid international attit!de can

be immediately and definitely ref!ted by the simple fact that pacifist democracy is no less fat!o!s, tho!ghit draws its s!pporters almost e3cl!sively from bo!rgeois circles% As long as millions of citiens daily g!lp

down what the social-democratic "ress tells them, it ill becomes the asters# to o&e at the e3pense of the

$omrades#> for in the long r!n they all swallow the same hash, even tho!gh it be dished !p with different

spices% In both cases the coo& is one and the same - the )ew%One sho!ld be caref!l abo!t contradicting established facts% It is an !ndeniable fact that the class +!estion

has nothing to do with +!estions concerning ideals, tho!gh that dope is administered at election time% $lass

arrogance among a large section of o!r people, as well as a prevailing tendency to loo& down on the man!al

labo!rer, are obvio!s facts and not the fancies of some day-dreamer% *evertheless it only ill!strates the

mentality of o!r so-called intellect!al circles, that they have not yet grasped the fact that circ!mstanceswhich are incapable of preventing the growth of s!ch a plag!e as ar3ism are certainly not capable of

restoring what has been lost%

(he bo!rgeois# parties - a name coined by themselves - will never again be able to win over and hold the proletarian masses in their train% (hat is beca!se two worlds stand opposed to one another here, in part

nat!rally and in part artificially divided% (hese two camps have one leading tho!ght, and that is that they

m!st fight one another% !t in s!ch a fight the yo!nger will come off victorio!s> and that is ar3ism%

In 1914 a fight against 'ocial-?emocracy was indeed +!ite conceivable% !t the lac& of any practicals!bstit!te made it do!btf!l how long the fight co!ld be &ept !p% In this respect there was a gaping void%

Long before the /ar I was of the same opinion and that was the reason why I co!ld not decide to oin any

of the parties then e3isting% ?!ring the co!rse of the /orld /ar my conviction was still f!rther confirmed

by the manifest impossibility of fighting 'ocial-?emocracy in anything li&e a thoro!gh way0 beca!se for that p!rpose there sho!ld have been a movement that was something more than a mere parliamentary#

party, and there was none s!ch%I fre+!ently disc!ssed that want with my intimate comrades% And it was then that I first conceived the idea

of ta&ing !p political wor& later on% As I have often ass!red my friends, it was !st this that ind!ced me to become active on the p!blic h!stings after the /ar, in addition to my professional wor&% And I am s!re that

this decision was arrived at after m!ch earnest tho!ght%

$hapter 'i30

In watching the co!rse of political events I was always str!c& by the active part which propaganda played

in them% I saw that it was an instr!ment, which the ar3ist 'ocialists &new how to handle in a masterly

way and how to p!t it to practical !ses% (h!s I soon came to realie that the right !se of propaganda was anart in itself and that this art was practically !n&nown to o!r bo!rgeois parties% (he $hristian-'ocialist "arty

alone, especially in L!eger#s time, showed a certain efficiency in the employment of this instr!ment and

owed m!ch of their s!ccess to it%It was d!ring the /ar, however, that we had the best chance of estimating the tremendo!s res!lts whichco!ld be obtained by a propagandist system properly carried o!t% ere again, !nfort!nately, everything was

left to the other side, the wor& done on o!r side being worse than insignificant% It was the total fail!re of the

whole 6erman system of information - a fail!re which was perfectly obvio!s to every soldier - that !rged

me to consider the problem of propaganda in a comprehensive way% I had ample opport!nity to learn a practical lesson in this matter> for !nfort!nately it was only too well ta!ght !s by the enemy% (he lac& on

o!r side was e3ploited by the enemy in s!ch an efficient manner that one co!ld say it showed itself as a real

wor& of geni!s% In that propaganda carried on by the enemy I fo!nd admirable so!rces of instr!ction% (helesson to be learned from this had !nfort!nately no attraction for the geni!ses on o!r own side% (hey were



simply above all s!ch things, too clever to accept any teaching% Anyhow they did not honestly wish to learn

anything%

ad we any propaganda at all5 Alas, I can reply only in the negative% All that was !nderta&en in this

direction was so !tterly inade+!ate and misconceived from the very beginning that not only did it prove!seless b!t at times harmf!l% In s!bstance it was ins!fficient% "sychologically it was all wrong% Anybody

who had caref!lly investigated the 6erman propaganda m!st have formed that !dgment of it% O!r people

did not seem to be clear even abo!t the primary +!estion itself0 /hether propaganda is a means or an end5

"ropaganda is a means and m!st, therefore, be !dged in relation to the end it is intended to serve% It m!st be organied in s!ch a way as to be capable of attaining its obective% And, as it is +!ite clear that the

importance of the obective may vary from the standpoint of general necessity, the essential internal

character of the propaganda m!st vary accordingly% (he ca!se for which we fo!ght d!ring the /ar was the

noblest and highest that man co!ld strive for% /e were fighting for the freedom and independence of o!r co!ntry, for the sec!rity of o!r f!t!re welfare and the hono!r of the nation% ?espite all views to the

contrary, this hono!r does act!ally e3ist, or rather it will have to e3ist> for a nation witho!t hono!r will

sooner or later lose its freedom and independence% (his is in accordance with the r!ling of a higher !stice,

for a generation of poltroons is not entitled to freedom% e who wo!ld be a slave cannot have hono!r> for s!ch hono!r wo!ld soon become an obect of general scorn%

6ermany was waging war for its very e3istence% (he p!rpose of its war propaganda sho!ld have been to

strengthen the fighting spirit in that str!ggle and help it to victory%

!t when nations are fighting for their e3istence on this earth, when the +!estion of to be or not to be# has

to be answered, then all h!mane and Ssthetic considerations m!st be set aside> for these ideals do not e3istof themselves somewhere in the air b!t are the prod!ct of man#s creative imagination and disappear when

he disappears% *at!re &nows nothing of them% oreover, they are characteristic of only a small n!mber of

nations, or rather of races, and their val!e depends on the meas!re in which they spring from the racialfeeling of the latter% !mane and Ssthetic ideals will disappear from the inhabited earth when those races

disappear which are the creators and standard-bearers of them%

All s!ch ideals are only of secondary importance when a nation is str!ggling for its e3istence% (hey m!st be

prevented from entering into the str!ggle the moment they threaten to wea&en the stamina of the nation thatis waging war% (hat is always the only visible effect whereby their place in the str!ggle is to be !dged%

In regard to the part played by h!mane feeling, olt&e stated that in time of war the essential thing is to get

a decision as +!ic&ly as possible and that the most r!thless methods of fighting are at the same time the

most h!mane% /hen people attempt to answer this reasoning by highfal!tin tal& abo!t Ssthetics, etc%, onlyone answer can be given% It is that the vital +!estions involved in the str!ggle of a nation for its e3istence

m!st not be s!bordinated to any Ssthetic considerations% (he yo&e of slavery is and always will remain themost !npleasant e3perience that man&ind can end!re% ?o the 'chwabing 12C decadents loo& !pon

6ermany#s lot to-day as aesthetic#5 Of co!rse, one doesn#t disc!ss s!ch a +!estion with the )ews, beca!sethey are the modern inventors of this c!lt!ral perf!me% (heir very e3istence is an incarnate denial of the

bea!ty of 6od#s image in is creation%

'ince these ideas of what is bea!tif!l and h!mane have no place in warfare, they are not to be !sed as

standards of war propaganda%?!ring the /ar, propaganda was a means to an end% And this end was the str!ggle for e3istence of the

6erman nation% "ropaganda, therefore, sho!ld have been regarded from the standpoint of its !tility for that

p!rpose% (he most cr!el weapons were then the most h!mane, provided they helped towards a speedier

decision> and only those methods were good and bea!tif!l which helped towards sec!ring the dignity andfreedom of the nation% '!ch was the only possible attit!de to adopt towards war propaganda in the life-or-

death str!ggle%

If those in what are called positions of a!thority had realied this there wo!ld have been no !ncertaintyabo!t the form and employment of war propaganda as a weapon> for it is nothing b!t a weapon, and indeeda most terrifying weapon in the hands of those who &now how to !se it%

(he second +!estion of decisive importance is this0 (o whom sho!ld propaganda be made to appeal5 (o the

ed!cated intellect!al classes5 Or to the less intellect!al5

"ropaganda m!st always address itself to the broad masses of the people% For the intellect!al classes, or what are called the intellect!al classes to-day, propaganda is not s!ited, b!t only scientific e3position%

"ropaganda 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% (he art of the advertisement poster consists in the ability of thedesigner to attract the attention of the crowd thro!gh the form and colo!rs he chooses% (he advertisement



poster anno!ncing an e3hibition of art has no other aim than to convince the p!blic of the importance of the

e3hibition% (he better it does that, the better is the art of the poster as s!ch% eing meant accordingly to

impress !pon the p!blic the meaning of the e3position, the poster can never ta&e the place of the artistic

obects displayed in the e3position hall% (hey are something entirely different% (herefore% those who wish tost!dy the artistic display m!st st!dy something that is +!ite different from the poster> indeed for that

p!rpose a mere wandering thro!gh the e3hibition galleries is of no !se% (he st!dent of art m!st caref!lly

and thoro!ghly st!dy each e3hibit in order slowly to form a !dicio!s opinion abo!t it%

(he sit!ation is the same in regard to what we !nderstand by the word, propaganda% (he p!rpose of propaganda is not the personal instr!ction of the individ!al, b!t rather to attract p!blic attention to certain

things, the importance of which can be bro!ght home to the masses only by this means%

ere the art of propaganda consists in p!tting 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 thingsand the !st character of something that is essential% !t as this art is not an end in itself and beca!se its

p!rpose m!st be e3actly that of the advertisement poster, to attract the attention of the masses and not by

any means to dispense individ!al instr!ctions to those who already have an ed!cated opinion on things or

who wish to form s!ch an opinion on gro!nds of obective st!dy - beca!se that is not the p!rpose of propaganda, it m!st appeal to the feelings of the p!blic rather than to their reasoning powers%

All propaganda m!st be presented in a pop!lar form and m!st fi3 its intellect!al level so as not to be above

the heads of the least intellect!al of those to whom it is directed% (h!s its p!rely intellect!al level will have

to be that of the lowest mental common denominator among the p!blic it is desired to reach% /hen there is

+!estion of bringing a whole nation within the circle of its infl!ence, as happens in the case of war propaganda, then too m!ch attention cannot be paid to the necessity of avoiding a high level, which

pres!pposes a relatively high degree of intelligence among the p!blic%

(he more modest the scientific tenor of this propaganda and the more it is addressed e3cl!sively to p!blicsentiment, the more decisive will be its s!ccess% (his is the best test of the val!e of a propaganda, and not

the approbation of a small gro!p of intellect!als or artistic people%

(he art of propaganda consists precisely in being able to awa&en the imagination of the p!blic thro!gh an

appeal to their feelings, in finding the appropriate psychological form that will arrest the attention andappeal to the hearts of the national masses% (hat this is not !nderstood by those among !s whose wits are

s!pposed to have been sharpened to the highest pitch is only another proof of their vanity or mental inertia%

Once we have !nderstood how necessary it is to concentrate the pers!asive forces of propaganda on the

broad masses of the people, the following lessons res!lt therefrom0(hat it is a mista&e to organie the direct propaganda as if it were a manifold system of scientific

instr!ction%(he receptive powers of the masses are very restricted, and their !nderstanding is feeble% On the other

hand, they +!ic&ly forget% '!ch being the case, all effective propaganda m!st be confined to a few bareessentials and those m!st be e3pressed as far as possible in stereotyped form!las% (hese slogans sho!ld be

persistently repeated !ntil the very last individ!al has come to grasp the idea that has been p!t forward% If

this principle be forgotten and if an attempt be made to be abstract and general, the propaganda will t!rn

o!t ineffective> for the p!blic will not be able to digest or retain what is offered to them in this way%(herefore, 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 e3ample, a f!ndamental mista&e to ridic!le the worth of the enemy as the A!strian and 6erman

comic papers made a chief point of doing in their propaganda% (he very principle here is a mista&en one>for, when they came face to face with the enemy, o!r soldiers had +!ite a different impression% (herefore,

the mista&e had disastro!s res!lts% Once the 6erman soldier realised what a to!gh enemy he had to fight he

felt that he had been deceived by the man!fact!rers of the information which had been given him%(herefore, instead of strengthening and stim!lating his fighting spirit, this information had +!ite thecontrary effect% Finally he lost heart%

On the other hand, ritish and American war propaganda was psychologically efficient% y pict!ring the

6ermans to their own people as arbarians and !ns, they were preparing their soldiers for the horrors of

war and safeg!arding them against ill!sions% (he most terrific weapons which those soldiers enco!ntered inthe field merely confirmed the information that they had already received and their belief in the tr!th of the

assertions made by their respective governments was accordingly reinforced% (h!s their rage and hatred

against the infamo!s foe was increased% (he terrible havoc ca!sed by the 6erman weapons of war was onlyanother ill!stration of the !nnish br!tality of those barbarians> whereas on the side of the 7ntente no time



was left the soldiers to meditate on the similar havoc which their own weapons were capable of% (h!s the

ritish soldier was never allowed to feel that the information which he received at home was !ntr!e%

Mnfort!nately the opposite was the case with the 6ermans, who finally wo!nd !p by reecting everything

from home as p!re swindle and h!mb!g% (his res!lt was made possible beca!se at home they tho!ght thatthe wor& of propaganda co!ld be entr!sted 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 s&illed brains that can be

fo!nd%

(h!s the 6erman war propaganda afforded !s an incomparable e3ample of how the wor& of enlightenment# sho!ld not be done and how s!ch an e3ample was the res!lt of an entire fail!re to ta&e any

psychological considerations whatsoever into acco!nt%

From the enemy, however, a f!nd of val!able &nowledge co!ld be gained by those who &ept their eyes

open, whose powers of perception had not yet become sclerotic, and who d!ring fo!r-and-a-half years hadto e3perience the perpet!al flood of enemy propaganda%

(he worst of all was that o!r people did not !nderstand the very first condition which has to be f!lfilled in

every &ind of propaganda> namely, a systematically one-sided attit!de 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 itwas !stifiable to do!bt whether so m!ch folly co!ld be attrib!ted solely to the st!pidity of people in higher

+!arters%

/hat, for e3ample, sho!ld we say of a poster which p!rported to advertise some new brand of soap by

insisting on the e3cellent +!alities of the competitive brands5 /e sho!ld nat!rally sha&e o!r heads% And it

o!ght to be !st the same in a similar &ind of political advertisement% (he aim of propaganda is not to try to pass !dgment on conflicting rights, giving each its d!e, b!t e3cl!sively to emphasie the right which we

are asserting% "ropaganda m!st not investigate the tr!th obectively and, in so far as it is favo!rable to the

other side, present it according to the theoretical r!les of !stice> yet it m!st present only that aspect of thetr!th which is favo!rable to its own side%

It was a f!ndamental mista&e to disc!ss the +!estion of who was responsible for the o!tbrea& of the war

and declare that the sole responsibility co!ld not be attrib!ted to 6ermany% (he sole responsibility sho!ld

have been laid on the sho!lders of the enemy, witho!t any disc!ssion whatsoever%And what was the conse+!ence of these half-meas!res5 (he broad masses of the people are not made !p of

diplomats or professors of p!blic !rispr!dence nor simply of persons who are able to form reasoned

!dgment in given cases, b!t a vacillating crowd of h!man children who are constantly wavering between

one idea and another% As soon as o!r own propaganda made the slightest s!ggestion that the enemy had acertain amo!nt of !stice on his side, then we laid down the basis on which the !stice of o!r own ca!se

co!ld be +!estioned% (he masses are not in a position to discern where the enemy#s fa!lt ends and whereo!r own begins% In s!ch a case they become hesitant and distr!stf!l, especially when the enemy does not

ma&e the same mista&e b!t heaps all the blame on his adversary% $o!ld there be any clearer proof of thisthan the fact that finally o!r own people believed what was said by the enemy#s propaganda, which was

!niform and consistent in its assertions, rather than what o!r own propaganda said5 And that, of co!rse,

was increased by the mania for obectivity which addicts o!r people% 7verybody began to be caref!l abo!t

doing an in!stice to the enemy, even at the cost of serio!sly in!ring, and even r!ining his own people and'tate%

*at!rally the masses were not conscio!s of the fact that those in a!thority had failed to st!dy the s!bect

from this angle%

(he great maority of a nation is so feminine in its character and o!tloo& that its tho!ght and cond!ct arer!led by sentiment rather than by sober reasoning% (his sentiment, however, is not comple3, b!t simple and

consistent% It is not highly differentiated, b!t has only the negative and positive notions of love and hatred,

right and wrong, tr!th and falsehood% Its notions are never partly this and partly that% 7nglish propagandaespecially !nderstood this in a marvello!s way and p!t what they !nderstood into practice% (hey allowedno half-meas!res which might have given rise to some do!bt%

"roof of how brilliantly they !nderstood that the feeling of the masses is something primitive was shown in

their policy of p!blishing tales of horror and o!trages which fitted in with the real horrors of the time,

thereby cleverly and r!thlessly preparing the gro!nd for moral solidarity at the front, even in times of greatdefeats% F!rther, the way in which they pilloried the 6erman enemy as solely responsible for the war -

which was a br!tal and absol!te falsehood - and the way in which they proclaimed his g!ilt was e3cellently

calc!lated to reach the masses, realiing that these are always e3tremist in their feelings% And th!s it wasthat this atrocio!s lie was positively believed%



(he effectiveness of this &ind of propaganda is well ill!strated by the fact that after fo!r-and-a-half years,

not only was the enemy still carrying on his propagandist wor&, b!t it was already !ndermining the stamina

of o!r people at home%

(hat o!r propaganda did not achieve similar res!lts is not to be wondered at, beca!se it had the germs of inefficiency lodged in its very being by reason of its ambig!ity% And beca!se of the very nat!re of its

content one co!ld not e3pect it to ma&e the necessary impression on the masses% Only o!r fec&less

statesmen# co!ld have imagined that on pacifists slops of s!ch a &ind the enth!siasm co!ld be no!rished

which is necessary to en&indle that spirit which leads men to die for their co!ntry%And so this prod!ct of o!rs was not only worthless b!t detrimental%

*o matter what an amo!nt of talent employed in the organiation of propaganda, it will have no res!lt if

d!e acco!nt is not ta&en of these f!ndamental principles% "ropaganda m!st be limited to a few simple

themes and these m!st be represented again and again% ere, as in inn!merable other cases, perseverance isthe first and most important condition of s!ccess%

"artic!larly in the field of propaganda, placid Ssthetes and blase intellect!als sho!ld never be allowed to

ta&e the lead% (he former wo!ld readily transform the impressive character of real propaganda into

something s!itable only for literary tea parties% As to the second class of people, one m!st always beware of this pest> for, in conse+!ence of their insensibility to normal impressions, they are constantly see&ing new

e3citements%

'!ch people grow sic& and tired of everything% (hey always long for change and will always be incapable

of p!tting themselves in the position of pict!ring the wants of their less callo!s fellow-creat!res in their

immediate neighbo!rhood, let alone trying to !nderstand them% (he blase intellect!als are always the firstto criticie propaganda, or rather its message, beca!se this appears to them to be o!tmoded and trivial% (hey

are always loo&ing for something new, always yearning for change> and th!s they become the mortal

enemies of every effort that may be made to infl!ence the masses in an effective way% (he moment theorganiation and message of a propagandist movement begins to be orientated according to their tastes it

becomes incoherent and scattered%

It is not the p!rpose of propaganda to create a series of alterations in sentiment with a view to pleasing

these blase gentry% Its chief f!nction is to convince the masses, whose slowness of !nderstanding needs to be given time in order that they may absorb information> and only constant repetition will finally s!cceed in

imprinting an idea on the memory of the crowd%

7very change that is made in the s!bect of a propagandist message m!st always emphasie the same

concl!sion% (he leading slogan m!st of co!rse be ill!strated in many ways and from several angles, b!t inthe end one m!st always ret!rn to the assertion of the same form!la% In this way alone can propaganda be

consistent and dynamic in its effects%Only by following these general lines and stic&ing to them steadfastly, with !niform and concise emphasis,

can final s!ccess be reached% (hen one will be rewarded by the s!rprising and almost incredible res!lts thats!ch a persistent policy sec!res%

(he s!ccess of any advertisement, whether of a b!siness or political nat!re, depends on the consistency and

perseverance with which it is employed%

In this respect also the propaganda organied by o!r enemies set !s an e3cellent e3ample% It confined itself to a few themes, which were meant e3cl!sively for mass cons!mption, and it repeated these themes with

!ntiring perseverance% Once these f!ndamental themes and the manner of placing them before the world

were recognied as effective, they adhered to them witho!t the slightest alteration for the whole d!ration of

the /ar% At first all of it appeared to be idiotic in its imp!dent assertiveness% Later on it was loo&ed !pon asdist!rbing, b!t finally it was believed%

!t in 7ngland they came to !nderstand something f!rther0 namely, that the possibility of s!ccess in the !se

of this spirit!al weapon consists in the mass employment of it, and that when employed in this way it brings f!ll ret!rns for the large e3penses inc!rred%In 7ngland propaganda was regarded as a weapon of the first order, whereas with !s it represented the last

hope of a livelihood for o!r !nemployed politicians and a sn!g ob for shir&ers of the modest hero type%

(a&en all in all, its res!lts were negative%

$hapter 'even0

In 191= the enemy started his propaganda among o!r soldiers% From 191 onwards it steadily became moreintensive, and at the beginning of 191; it had swollen into a storm flood% One co!ld now !dge the effects



of this proselytiing movement step by step% 6rad!ally o!r soldiers began to thin& !st in the way the

enemy wished them to thin&% On the 6erman side there was no co!nter-propaganda%

At that time the army a!thorities, !nder o!r able and resol!te $ommander, were willing and ready to ta&e

!p the fight in the propaganda domain also, b!t !nfort!nately they did not have the necessary means tocarry that intention into effect% oreover, the army a!thorities wo!ld have made a psychological mista&e

had they !nderta&en this tas& of mental training% (o be efficacio!s it had come from the home front% For

only th!s co!ld it be s!ccessf!l among men who for nearly fo!r years now had been performing immortal

deeds of heroism and !ndergoing all sorts of privations for the sa&e of that home% !t what were the peopleat home doing5 /as their fail!re to act merely d!e to !nintelligence or bad faith5

In the mids!mmer of 191;, after the evac!ation of the so!thern ban& of the hearne, the 6erman "ress

adopted a policy which was so woef!lly inopport!ne, and even criminally st!pid, that I !sed to as& myself

a +!estion which made me more and more f!rio!s day after day0 Is it really tr!e that we have nobody whowill dare to p!t an end to this process of spirit!al sabotage which is being carried on among o!r heroic

troops5

/hat happened in France d!ring those days of 1914, when o!r armies invaded that co!ntry and were

marching in tri!mph from one victory to another5 /hat happened in Italy when their armies collapsed onthe Isono front5 /hat happened in France again d!ring the spring of 191;, when 6erman divisions too&

the main French positions by storm and heavy long-distance artillery bombarded "aris5

ow they whipped !p the flagging co!rage of those troops who were retreating and fanned the fires of

national enth!siasm among themJ ow their propaganda and their marvello!s aptit!de in the e3ercise of

mass-infl!ence reawa&ened the fighting spirit in that bro&en front and hammered into the heads of thesoldiers a, firm belief in final victoryJ

eanwhile, what were o!r people doing in this sphere5 *othing, or even worse than nothing% Again and

again I !sed to become enraged and indignant as I read the latest papers and realied the nat!re of the mass-m!rder they were committing0 thro!gh their infl!ence on the minds of the people and the soldiers% ore

than once I was tormented by the tho!ght that if "rovidence had p!t the cond!ct of 6erman propaganda

into my hands, instead of into the hands of those incompetent and even criminal ignoram!ses and

wea&lings, the o!tcome of the str!ggle might have been different%?!ring those months I felt for the first time that Fate was dealing adversely with me in &eeping me on the

fighting front and in a position where any chance b!llet from some nigger or other might finish me,

whereas I co!ld have done the Fatherland a real service in another sphere% For I was then pres!mpt!o!s

eno!gh to believe that I wo!ld have been s!ccessf!l in managing the propaganda b!siness%!t I was a being witho!t a name, one among eight millions% ence it was better for me to &eep my mo!th

sh!t and do my d!ty as well as I co!ld in the position to which I had been assigned%In the s!mmer of 191= the first enemy leaflets were dropped on o!r trenches% (hey all told more or less the

same story, with some variations in the form of it% (he story was that distress was steadily on the increase in6ermany> that the /ar wo!ld last indefinitely> that the prospect of victory for !s was becoming fainter day

after day> that the people at home were yearning for peace, b!t that ilitarism# and the aiser# wo!ld not

permit it> that the world - which &new this very well - was not waging war against the 6erman people b!t

only against the man who was e3cl!sively responsible, the aiser> that !ntil this enemy of world-peace wasremoved there co!ld be no end to the conflict> b!t that when the /ar was over the liberal and democratic

nations wo!ld receive the 6ermans as colleag!es in the Leag!e for /orld "eace% (his wo!ld be done the

moment "r!ssian ilitarism# had been finally destroyed%

(o ill!strate and s!bstantiate all these statements, the leaflets very often contained Letters from ome#, thecontents of which appeared to confirm the enemy#s propagandist message%

6enerally spea&ing, we only la!ghed at all these efforts% (he leaflets were read, sent to base head+!arters,

then forgotten !ntil a favo!rable wind once again blew a fresh contingent into the trenches% (hese weremostly dropped from Sroplanes which were !sed specially for that p!rpose%One feat!re of this propaganda was very stri&ing% It was that in sections where avarian troops were

stationed every effort was made by the enemy propagandists to stir !p feeling against the "r!ssians,

ass!ring the soldiers that "r!ssia and "r!ssia alone was the g!ilty party who was responsible for bringing

on and contin!ing the /ar, and that there was no hostility whatsoever towards the avarians> b!t that thereco!ld be no possibility of coming to their assistance so long as they contin!ed to serve "r!ssian interests

and helped to p!ll the "r!ssian chestn!ts o!t of the fire%

(his persistent propaganda began to have a real infl!ence on o!r soldiers in 191=% (he feeling against"r!ssia grew +!ite noticeable among the avarian troops, b!t those in a!thority did nothing to co!nteract it%



(his was something more than a mere crime of omission> for sooner or later not only the "r!ssians were

bo!nd to have to atone severely for it b!t the whole 6erman nation and conse+!ently the avarians

themselves also%

In this direction the enemy propaganda began to achieve !ndo!bted s!ccess from 191 onwards%In a similar way letters coming directly from home had long since been e3ercising their effect% (here was

now no f!rther necessity for the enemy to broadcast s!ch letters in leaflet form% And also against this

infl!ence from home nothing was done e3cept a few s!premely st!pid warnings# !ttered by the e3ec!tive

government% (he whole front was drenched in this poison which tho!ghtless women at home sent o!t,witho!t s!specting for a moment that the enemy#s chances of final victory were th!s strengthened or that

the s!fferings of their own men at the front were th!s being prolonged and rendered more severe% (hese

st!pid letters written by 6erman women event!ally cost the lives of h!ndreds of tho!sands of o!r men%

(h!s in 191 several distressing phenomena were already manifest% (he whole front was complaining andgro!sing, discontented over many things and often !stifiably so% /hile they were h!ngry and yet patient,

and their relatives at home were in distress, in other +!arters there was feasting and revelry% Nes> even on

the front itself everything was not as it o!ght to have been in this regard%

7ven in the early stages of the war the soldiers were sometimes prone to complain> b!t s!ch criticism wasconfined to internal affairs#% (he man who at one moment gro!sed and gr!mbled ceased his m!rm!r after

a few moments and went abo!t his d!ty silently, as if everything were in order% (he company which had

given signs of discontent a moment earlier h!ng on now to its bit of trench, defending it tooth and nail, as if

6ermany#s fate depended on these few h!ndred yards of m!d and shell-holes% (he glorio!s old army was

still at its post% A s!dden change in my own fort!nes soon placed me in a position where I had first-hande3perience of the contrast between this old army and the home front% At the end of 'eptember 191 my

division was sent into the attle of the 'omme% For !s this was the first of a series of heavy engagements,

and the impression created was that of a veritable inferno, rather than war% (hro!gh wee&s of incessantartillery bombardment we stood firm, at times ceding a little gro!nd b!t then ta&ing it bac& again, and

never giving way% On October Gth, 191, I was wo!nded b!t had the l!c& of being able to get bac& to o!r

lines and was then ordered to be sent by amb!lance train to 6ermany%

(wo years had passed since I had left home, an almost endless period in s!ch circ!mstances% I co!ld hardlyimagine what 6ermans loo&ed li&e witho!t !niforms% In the clearing hospital at ermies I was startled

when I s!ddenly heard the voice of a 6erman woman who was acting as n!rsing sister and tal&ing with one

of the wo!nded men lying near me% (wo yearsJ And then this voice for the first timeJ

(he nearer o!r amb!lance train approached the 6erman frontier the more restless each one of !s became%7n ro!te we recognised all these places thro!gh which we passed two years before as yo!ng vol!nteers -

r!ssels, Lo!vain, LiTge - and finally we tho!ght we recognied the first 6erman homestead, with itsfamiliar high gables and pict!res+!e window-sh!tters% omeJ

/hat a changeJ From the m!d of the 'omme battlefields to the spotless white beds in this wonderf!l b!ilding% One hesitated at first before entering them% It was only by slow stages that one co!ld grow

acc!stomed to this new world again% !t !nfort!nately there were certain other aspects also in which this

new world was different%

(he spirit of the army at the front appeared to be o!t of place here% For the first time I enco!nteredsomething which !p to then was !n&nown at the front0 namely, boasting of one#s own cowardice% For,

tho!gh we certainly heard complaining and gro!sing at the front, this was never in the spirit of any

agitation to ins!bordination and certainly not an attempt to glorify one#s fear% *o> there at the front a

coward was a coward and nothing else, And the contempt which his wea&ness aro!sed in the others was+!ite general, !st as the real hero was admired all ro!nd% !t here in hospital the spirit was +!ite different

in some respects% Lo!dmo!thed agitators were b!sy here in heaping ridic!le on the good soldier and

painting the wea&-&need poltroon in glorio!s colo!rs% A co!ple of miserable h!man specimens were theringleaders in this process of defamation% One of them boasted of having intentionally in!red his hand in barbed-wire entanglements in order to get sent to hospital% Altho!gh his wo!nd was only a slight one, it

appeared that he had been here for a very long time and wo!ld be here interminably% 'ome arrangement for

him seemed to be wor&ed by some sort of swindle, !st as he got sent here in the amb!lance train thro!gh a

swindle% (his pestilential specimen act!ally had the a!dacity to parade his &navery as the manifestation of aco!rage which was s!perior to that of the brave soldier who dies a hero#s death% (here were many who

heard this tal& in silence> b!t there were others who e3pressed their assent to what the fellow said%

"ersonally I was disg!sted at the tho!ght that a seditio!s agitator of this &ind sho!ld be allowed to remainin s!ch an instit!tion% /hat co!ld be done5 (he hospital a!thorities here m!st have &nown who and what



he was> and act!ally they did &now% !t still they did nothing abo!t it%

As soon as I was able to wal& once again I obtained leave to visit erlin%

itter want was in evidence everywhere% (he metropolis, with its teeming millions, was s!ffering from

h!nger% (he tal& that was c!rrent in the vario!s places of refreshment and hospices visited by the soldierswas m!ch the same as that in o!r hospital% (he impression given was that these agitators p!rposely singled

o!t s!ch places in order to spread their views%

!t in !nich 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 onewent% (o a certain e3tent this was d!e to the infinitely maladroit manner in which the soldiers who had

ret!rned from the front were treated by the non-commissioned officers who had never seen a day#s active

service and who on that acco!nt were partly incapable of adopting the proper attit!de towards the old

soldiers% *at!rally those old soldiers displayed certain characteristics which had been developed from thee3periences in the trenches% (he officers of the reserve !nits co!ld not !nderstand these pec!liarities,

whereas the officer home from active service was at least in a position to !nderstand them for himself% As a

res!lt he received more respect from the men than officers at the home head+!arters% !t, apart from all

this, the general spirit was deplorable% (he art of shir&ing was loo&ed !pon as almost a proof of higher intelligence, and devotion to d!ty was considered a sign of wea&ness or bigotry% 6overnment offices were

staffed by )ews% Almost every cler& was a )ew and every )ew was a cler&% I was amaed at this m!ltit!de of

combatants who belonged to the chosen people and co!ld not help comparing it with their slender n!mbers

in the fighting lines%

In the b!siness world the sit!ation was even worse% ere the )ews had act!ally become indispensable#%Li&e leeches, they were slowly s!c&ing the blood from the pores of the national body% y means of newly

floated /ar $ompanies an instr!ment had been discovered whereby all national trade was throttled so that

no b!siness co!ld be carried on freely'pecial emphasis was laid on the necessity for !nhampered centraliation% ence as early as 191-1G

practically all prod!ction was !nder the control of )ewish finance%

!t against whom was the anger of the people directed5 It was then that I already saw the fatef!l day

approaching which m!st finally bring the debacle, !nless timely preventive meas!res were ta&en%/hile )ewry was b!sy despoiling the nation and tightening the screws of its despotism, the wor& of inciting

the people against the "r!ssians increased% And !st as nothing was done at the front to p!t a stop to the

venomo!s propaganda, so here at home no official steps were ta&en against it% *obody seemed capable of

!nderstanding that the collapse of "r!ssia co!ld never bring abo!t the rise of avaria% On the contrary, thecollapse of the one m!st necessarily drag the other down with it%

(his &ind of behavio!r affected me very deeply% In it I co!ld see only a clever )ewish tric& for diverting p!blic attention from themselves to others% /hile "r!ssians and avarians were s+!abbling, the )ews were

ta&ing away the s!stenance of both from !nder their very noses% /hile "r!ssians were being ab!sed inavaria the )ews organied the revol!tion and with one stro&e smashed both "r!ssia and avaria%

I co!ld not tolerate this e3ecrable s+!abbling among people of the same 6erman stoc& and preferred to be

at the front once again% (herefore, !st after my arrival in !nich I reported myself for service again% At the

beginning of arch 191G I reoined my old regiment at the front%(owards the end of 191G it seemed as if we had got over the worst phases of moral depression at the front%

After the 8!ssian collapse the whole army recovered its co!rage and hope, and all were grad!ally

becoming more and more convinced that the str!ggle wo!ld end in o!r favo!r% /e co!ld sing once again%

(he ravens were ceasing to croa&% Faith in the f!t!re of the Fatherland was once more in the ascendant%(he Italian collapse in the a!t!mn of 191G had a wonderf!l effect> for this victory proved that it was

possible to brea& thro!gh another front besides the 8!ssian% (his inspiring tho!ght now became dominant

in the minds of millions at the front and enco!raged them to loo& forward with confidence to the spring of 191;% It was +!ite obvio!s that the enemy was in a state of depression% ?!ring this winter the front wassomewhat +!ieter than !s!al% !t that was the calm before the storm%

)!st when preparations were being made to la!nch a final offensive which wo!ld bring this seemingly

eternal str!ggle to an end, while endless col!mns of transports were bringing men and m!nitions to the

front, and while the men were being trained for that final onsla!ght, then it was that the greatest act of treachery d!ring the whole /ar was accomplished in 6ermany%

6ermany m!st not win the /ar% At that moment when victory seemed ready to alight on the 6erman

standards, a conspiracy was arranged for the p!rpose of stri&ing at the heart of the 6erman spring offensivewith one blow from the rear and th!s ma&ing victory impossible% A general stri&e in the m!nition factories



was organied%

If this conspiracy co!ld achieve its p!rpose the 6erman front wo!ld have collapsed and the wishes of the

:orwErts Bthe organ of the 'ocial-?emocratic "artyC that this time victory sho!ld not ta&e the side of the

6erman banners, wo!ld have been f!lfilled% For want of m!nitions the front wo!ld be bro&en thro!ghwithin a few wee&s, the offensive wo!ld be effectively stopped and the 7ntente saved% (hen International

Finance wo!ld ass!me control over 6ermany and the internal obective of the ar3ist national betrayal

wo!ld be achieved% (hat obective was the destr!ction of the national economic system and the

establishment of international capitalistic domination in its stead% And this goal has really been reached,than&s to the st!pid cred!lity of the one side and the !nspea&able treachery of the other%

(he m!nition stri&e, however, did not bring the final s!ccess that had been hoped for0 namely, to starve the

front of amm!nition% It lasted too short a time for the lac& of amm!nitions as s!ch to bring disaster to the

army, as was originally planned% !t the moral damage was m!ch more terrible%In the first place% what was the army fighting for if the people at home did not wish it to be victorio!s5 For

whom then were these enormo!s sacrifices and privations being made and end!red5 !st the soldiers fight

for victory while the home front goes on stri&e against it5

In the second place, what effect did this move have on the enemy5In the winter of 191G-1; dar& clo!ds hovered in the firmament of the 7ntente% For nearly fo!r years

onsla!ght after onsla!ght has been made against the 6erman giant, b!t they failed to bring him to the

gro!nd% e had to &eep them at bay with one arm that held the defensive shield beca!se his other arm had

to be free to wield the sword against his enemies, now in the 7ast and now in the 'o!th% !t at last these

enemies were overcome and his rear was now free for the conflict in the /est% 8ivers of blood had beenshed for the accomplishment of that tas&> b!t now the sword was free to combine in battle with the shield

on the /estern Front% And since the enemy had hitherto failed to brea& the 6erman defence here, the

6ermans themselves had now to la!nch the attac&% (he enemy feared and trembled before the prospect of this 6erman victory%

At "aris and London conferences followed one another in !nending series% 7ven the enemy propaganda

enco!ntered diffic!lties% It was no longer so easy to demonstrate that the prospect of a 6erman victory was

hopeless% A pr!dent silence reigned at the front, even among the troops of the 7ntente% (he insolence of their masters had s!ddenly s!bsided% A dist!rbing tr!th began to dawn on them% (heir opinion of the

6erman soldier had changed% itherto they were able to pict!re him as a &ind of fool whose end wo!ld be

destr!ction> b!t now they fo!nd themselves face to face with the soldier who had overcome their 8!ssian

ally% (he policy of restricting the offensive to the 7ast, which had been imposed on the 6erman militarya!thorities by the necessities of the sit!ation, now seemed to the 7ntente as a tactical stro&e of geni!s% For

three years these 6ermans had been battering away at the 8!ssian front witho!t any apparent s!ccess atfirst% (hose fr!itless efforts were almost sneered at> for it was tho!ght that in the long r!n the 8!ssian giant

wo!ld tri!mph thro!gh sheer force of n!mbers% 6ermany wo!ld be worn o!t thro!gh shedding so m!ch blood% And facts appeared to confirm this hope%

'ince the 'eptember days of 1914, when for the first time interminable col!mns of 8!ssian war prisoners

po!red into 6ermany after the attle of (annenberg, it seemed as if the stream wo!ld never end b!t that as

soon as one army was defeated and ro!ted another wo!ld ta&e its place% (he s!pply of soldiers which thegigantic 7mpire placed at the disposal of the $ar seemed ine3ha!stible> new victims were always at hand

for the holoca!st of war% ow long co!ld 6ermany hold o!t in this competition5 /o!ld not the day finally

have to come when, after the last victory which the 6ermans wo!ld achieve, there wo!ld still remain

reserve armies in 8!ssia to be m!stered for the final battle5 And what then5 According to h!man standardsa 8!ssian victory over 6ermany might be delayed b!t it wo!ld have to come in the long r!n%

All the hopes that had been based on 8!ssia were now lost% (he Ally who had sacrificed the most blood on

the altar of their m!t!al interests had come to the end of his reso!rces and lay prostrate before his!nrelenting foe% A feeling of terror and dismay came over the 7ntente soldiers who had hitherto been b!oyed !p by blind faith% (hey feared the coming spring% For, seeing that hitherto they had failed to brea&

the 6ermans when the latter co!ld concentrate only part of the fighting strength on the /estern Front, how

co!ld they co!nt on victory now that the !ndivided forces of that amaing land of heroes appeared to be

gathered for a massed attac& in the /est5(he shadow of the events which had ta&en place in 'o!th (yrol, the spectre of 6eneral $adorna#s defeated

armies, were reflected in the gloomy faces of the 7ntente troops in Flanders% Faith in victory gave way to

fear of defeat to come%(hen, on those cold nights, when one almost heard the tread of the 6erman armies advancing to the great



assa!lt, and the decision was being awaited in fear and trembling, s!ddenly a l!rid light was set aglow in

6ermany and sent its rays into the last shell-hole on the enemy#s front% At the very moment when the

6erman divisions were receiving their final orders for the great offensive a general stri&e bro&e o!t in

6ermany%At first the world was d!mbfo!nded% (hen the enemy propaganda began activities once again and po!nced

on this theme at the eleventh ho!r% All of a s!dden a means had come which co!ld be !tilied to revive the

sin&ing confidence of the 7ntente soldiers% (he probabilities of victory co!ld now be presented as certain,

and the an3io!s foreboding in regard to coming events co!ld now be transformed into a feeling of resol!teass!rance% (he regiments that had to bear the br!nt of the 6reatest 6erman onsla!ght in history co!ld now

be inspired with the conviction that the final decision in this war wo!ld not be won by the a!dacity of the

6erman assa!lt b!t rather by the powers of end!rance on the side of the defence% Let the 6ermans now

have whatever victories they li&ed, the revol!tion and not the victorio!s army was welcomed in theFatherland%

ritish, French and American newspapers began to spread this belief among their readers while a very ably

managed propaganda enco!raged the morale of their troops at the front%

6ermany Facing 8evol!tionJ An Allied :ictory InevitableJ# (hat was the best medicine to set thestaggering "oil! and (ommy on their feet once again% O!r rifles and machine-g!ns co!ld now open fire

once again> b!t instead of effecting a panic-stric&en retreat they were now met with a determined resistance

that was f!ll of confidence%

(hat was the res!lt of the stri&e in the m!nitions factories% (hro!gho!t the enemy co!ntries faith in victory

was th!s revived and strengthened, and that paralysing feeling of despair which had hitherto made itself felton the 7ntente front was banished% $onse+!ently the stri&e cost the lives of tho!sands of 6erman soldiers%

!t the despicable instigators of that dastardly stri&e were candidates for the highest p!blic positions in the

6ermany of the 8evol!tion%At first it was apparently possible to overcome the reperc!ssion of these events on the 6erman soldiers, b!t

on the enemy#s side they had a lasting effect% ere the resistance had lost all the character of an army

fighting for a lost ca!se% In its place there was now a grim determination to str!ggle thro!gh to victory% For,

according to all h!man r!les of !dgment, victory wo!ld now be ass!red if the /estern front co!ld hold o!tagainst the 6erman offensive even for only a few months% (he Allied parliaments recognied the

possibilities of a better f!t!re and voted h!ge s!ms of money for the contin!ation of the propaganda which

was employed for the p!rpose of brea&ing !p the internal cohesion of 6ermany%

It was my l!c& that I was able to ta&e part in the first two offensives and in the final offensive% (hese haveleft on me the most st!pendo!s impressions of my life - st!pendo!s, beca!se now for the last time the

str!ggle lost its defensive character and ass!med the character of an offensive, !st as it was in 1914% A sighof relief went !p from the 6erman trenches and d!g-o!ts when finally, after three years of end!rance in that

inferno, the day for the settling of acco!nts had come% Once again the l!sty cheering of victorio!s battalionswas heard, as they h!ng the last crowns of the immortal la!rel on the standards which they consecrated to

:ictory% Once again the strains of patriotic songs soared !pwards to the heavens above the endless col!mns

of marching troops, and for the last time the Lord smiled on his !ngratef!l children%

In the mids!mmer of 191; a feeling of s!ltry oppression h!ng over the front% At home they were+!arrelling% Abo!t what5 /e heard a great deal among vario!s !nits at the front% (he /ar was now a

hopeless affair, and only the foolhardy co!ld thin& of victory% It was not the people b!t the capitalists and

the onarchy who were interested in carrying on% '!ch were the ideas that came from home and were

disc!ssed at the front%At first this gave rise to only very slight reaction% /hat did !niversal s!ffrage matter to !s5 Is this what we

had been fighting for d!ring fo!r years5 It was a dastardly piece of robbery th!s to filch from the graves of

o!r heroes the ideals for which they had fallen% It was not to the slogan, Long Live Mniversal '!ffrage,#that o!r troops in Flanders once faced certain death b!t with the cry, ?e!tschland Dber Alles in der /elt#%A small b!t by no means an !nimportant difference% And the maority of those who were sho!ting for this

s!ffrage were absent when it came to fighting for it% All this political rabble were strangers to !s at the

front% ?!ring those days only a fraction of these parliamentarian gentry were to be seen where honest

6ermans foregathered%(he old soldiers who had fo!ght at the front had little li&ing for those new war aims of essrs% 7bert,

'cheidemann, arth, Lieb&necht and others% /e co!ld not !nderstand why, all of a s!dden, the shir&ers

sho!ld abrogate all e3ec!tive powers to themselves, witho!t 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 realied that the interests of the

nation played only a very small part with this disrep!table crew and that what co!nted with them was the

possibility of filling their own empty poc&ets% y opinion was that those people thoro!ghly deserved to be

hanged, beca!se they were ready to sacrifice the peace and if necessary allow 6ermany to be defeated !stto serve their own ends% (o consider their wishes wo!ld mean to sacrifice the interests of the wor&ing

classes for the benefit of a gang of thieves% (o meet their wishes meant that one sho!ld agree to sacrifice

6ermany%

'!ch, too, was the opinion still held by the maority of the army% !t the reinforcements which came fromhome were fast becoming worse and worse> so m!ch so that their arrival was a so!rce of wea&ness rather

than of strength to o!r fighting forces% (he yo!ng recr!its in partic!lar were for the most part !seless%

'ometimes it was hard to believe that they were sons of the same nation that sent its yo!th into the battles

that were fo!ght ro!nd Npres%In A!g!st and 'eptember the symptoms of moral disintegration increased more and more rapidly, altho!gh

the enemy#s offensive was not at all comparable to the frightf!lness of o!r own former defensive battles% In

comparison with this offensive the battles fo!ght on the 'omme and in Flanders remained in o!r memories

as the most terrible of all horrors%At the end of 'eptember my division occ!pied, for the third time, those positions which we had once ta&en

by storm as yo!ng vol!nteers% /hat a memoryJ

ere we had received o!r baptism of fire, in October and *ovember 1914% /ith a b!rning love of the

homeland in their hearts and a song on their lips, o!r yo!ng regiment went into action as if going to a

dance% (he dearest blood was given freely here in the belief that it was shed to protect the freedom andindependence of the Fatherland%

In )!ly 191G we set foot for the second time on what we regarded as sacred soil% /ere not o!r best

comrades at rest here, some of them little more than boys - the soldiers who had r!shed into death for their co!ntry#s sa&e, their eyes glowing with enth!siastic love%

(he older ones among !s, 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 ?!ty !nto ?eath#% (hree years ago the regiment

had ta&en this position by storm> now it was called !pon to defend it in a gr!elling str!ggle%/ith an artillery bombardment that lasted three wee&s the 7nglish prepared for their great offensive in

Flanders% (here the spirits of the dead seemed to live again% (he regiment d!g itself into the m!d, cl!ng to

its shell-holes and craters, neither flinching nor wavering, b!t growing smaller in n!mbers day after day%

Finally the ritish la!nched their attac& on )!ly .1st, 191G%/e were relieved in the beginning of A!g!st% (he regiment had dwindled down to a few companies, who

staggered bac&, m!d-cr!sted, more li&e phantoms than h!man beings% esides a few h!ndred yards of shell-holes, death was the only reward which the 7nglish gained%

*ow in the a!t!mn of 191; we stood for the third time on the gro!nd we had stormed in 1914% (he villageof $omines, which formerly had served !s as a base, was now within the fighting one% Altho!gh little had

changed in the s!rro!nding district itself, yet the men had become different, somehow or other% (hey now

tal&ed politics% Li&e everywhere else, the poison from home was having its effect here also% (he yo!ng

drafts s!cc!mbed to it completely% (hey had come directly from home%?!ring the night of October 1.th-14th, the ritish opened an attac& with gas on the front so!th of Npres%

(hey !sed the yellow gas whose effect was !n&nown to !s, at least from personal e3perience% I was

destined to e3perience it that very night% On a hill so!th of /erwic&, in the evening of October 1.th, we

were s!bected for several ho!rs to a heavy bombardment with gas bombs, which contin!ed thro!gho!t thenight with more or less intensity% Abo!t midnight a n!mber of !s were p!t o!t of action, some for ever%

(owards morning I also began to feel pain% It increased with every +!arter of an ho!r> and abo!t seven

o#cloc& my eyes were scorching as I staggered bac& and delivered the last dispatch I was destined to carryin this war% A few ho!rs later my eyes were li&e glowing coals and all was dar&ness aro!nd me%I was sent into hospital at "asewal& in "omerania, and there it was that I had to hear of the 8evol!tion%

For a long time there had been something in the air which was indefinable and rep!lsive% "eople were

saying that something was bo!nd to happen within the ne3t few wee&s, altho!gh I co!ld not imagine what

this meant% In the first instance I tho!ght of a stri&e similar to the one which had ta&en place in spring%Mnfavo!rable r!mo!rs were constantly coming from the *avy, which was said to be in a state of ferment%

!t this seemed to be a fancif!l creation of a few isolated yo!ng people% It is tr!e that at the hospital they

were all tal&ing ab!t the end of the war and hoping that this was not far off, b!t nobody tho!ght that thedecision wo!ld come immediately% I was not able to read the newspapers%



In *ovember the general tension increased% (hen one day disaster bro&e in !pon !s s!ddenly and witho!t

warning% 'ailors came in motor-lorries and called on !s to rise in revolt% A few )ew-boys were the leaders in

that combat for the Liberty, ea!ty, and ?ignity# of o!r *ational eing% *ot one of them had seen active

service at the front% (hro!gh the medi!m of a hospital for venereal diseases these three Orientals had beensent bac& home% *ow their red rags were being hoisted here%

?!ring the last few days I had beg!n to feel somewhat better% (he b!rning pain in the eye-soc&ets had

become less severe% 6rad!ally I was able to disting!ish the general o!tlines of my immediate s!rro!ndings%

And it was permissible to hope that at least I wo!ld recover my sight s!fficiently to be able to ta&e !p some profession later on% (hat I wo!ld ever be able to draw or design once again was nat!rally o!t of the

+!estion% (h!s I was on the way to recovery when the frightf!l ho!r came%

y first tho!ght was that this o!tbrea& of high treason was only a local affair% I tried to enforce this belief

among my comrades% y avarian hospital mates, in partic!lar, were readily responsive% (heir inclinationswere anything b!t revol!tionary% I co!ld not imagine this madness brea&ing o!t in !nich> for it seemed to

me that loyalty to the o!se of /ittelsbach was, after all, stronger than the will of a few )ews% And so I

co!ld not help believing that this was merely a revolt in the *avy and that it wo!ld be s!ppressed within

the ne3t few days%/ith the ne3t few days came the most asto!nding information of my life% (he r!mo!rs grew more and

more persistent% I was told that what I had considered to be a local affair was in reality a general revol!tion%

In addition to this, from the front came the shamef!l news that they wished to capit!lateJ /hatJ /as s!ch a

thing possible5

On *ovember 1<th the local pastor visited the hospital for the p!rpose of delivering a short address% Andthat was how we came to &now the whole story%

I was in a fever of e3citement as I listened to the address% (he reverend old gentleman seemed to be

trembling when he informed !s that the o!se of ohen-ollern sho!ld no longer wear the Imperial $rown,that the Fatherland had become a 8ep!blic#, that we sho!ld pray to the Almighty not to withhold is

blessing from the new order of things and not to abandon o!r people in the days to come% In delivering this

message he co!ld not do more than briefly e3press appreciation of the 8oyal o!se, its services to

"omerania, to "r!ssia, indeed, to the whole of the 6erman Fatherland, and - here he began to weep% Afeeling of profo!nd dismay fell on the people in that assembly, and I do not thin& there was a single eye

that withheld its tears% As for myself, I bro&e down completely when the old gentleman tried to res!me his

story by informing !s that we m!st now end this long war, beca!se the war was lost, he said, and we were

at the mercy of the victor% (he Fatherland wo!ld have to bear heavy b!rdens in the f!t!re% /e were toaccept the terms of the Armistice and tr!st to the magnanimity of o!r former enemies% It was impossible for

me to stay and listen any longer% ?ar&ness s!rro!nded me as I staggered and st!mbled bac& to my ward and b!ried my aching head between the blan&ets and pillow%

I had not cried since the day that I stood beside my mother#s grave% /henever Fate dealt cr!elly with me inmy yo!ng days the spirit of determination within me grew stronger and stronger% ?!ring all those long

years of war, when ?eath claimed many a tr!e friend and comrade from o!r ran&s, to me it wo!ld have

appeared sinf!l to have !ttered a word of complaint% ?id they not die for 6ermany5 And, finally, almost in

the last few days of that titanic str!ggle, when the waves of poison gas enveloped me and began to penetrate my eyes, the tho!ght of becoming permanently blind !nnerved me> b!t the voice of conscience

cried o!t immediately0 "oor miserable fellow, will yo! start howling when there are tho!sands of others

whose lot is a h!ndred times worse than yo!rs5 And so I accepted my misfort!ne in silence, realiing that

this was the only thing to be done and that personal s!ffering was nothing when compared with themisfort!ne of one#s co!ntry%

'o all had been in vain% In vain all the sacrifices and privations, in vain the h!nger and thirst for endless

months, in vain those ho!rs that we st!c& to o!r posts tho!gh the fear of death gripped o!r so!ls, and invain the deaths of two millions who fell in discharging this d!ty% (hin& of those h!ndreds of tho!sands whoset o!t with hearts f!ll of faith in their fatherland, and never ret!rned> o!ght not their graves to open, so that

the spirits of those heroes bespattered with m!d and blood sho!ld come home and ta&e vengeance on those

who had so despicably betrayed the greatest sacrifice which a h!man being can ma&e for his co!ntry5 /as

it for this that the soldiers died in A!g!st and 'eptember 1914, for this that the vol!nteer regimentsfollowed the old comrades in the a!t!mn of the same year5 /as it for this that those boys of seventeen

years of age were mingled with the earth of Flanders5 /as this meant to be the fr!its of the sacrifice which

6erman mothers made for their Fatherland when, with heavy hearts, they said good-bye to their sons whonever ret!rned5 as all this been done in order to enable a gang of despicable criminals to lay hands on the



Fatherland5

/as this then what the 6erman soldier str!ggled for thro!gh sweltering heat and blinding snowstorm,

end!ring h!nger and thirst and cold, fatig!ed from sleepless nights and endless marches5 /as it for this

that he lived thro!gh an inferno of artillery bombardments, lay gasping and cho&ing d!ring gas attac&s,neither flinching nor faltering, b!t remaining sta!nch to the tho!ght of defending the Fatherland against the

enemy5 $ertainly these heroes also deserved the epitaph0 (raveller, when yo! come to 6ermany, tell the

omeland that we lie here, tr!e to the Fatherland and faithf!l to o!r d!ty%

And at ome5 !t - was this the only sacrifice that we had to consider5 /as the 6ermany of the past aco!ntry of little worth5 ?id she not owe a certain d!ty to her own history5 /ere we still worthy to parta&e

in the glory of the past5 ow co!ld we !stify this act to f!t!re generations5

/hat a gang of despicable and depraved criminalsJ

(he more I tried then to glean some definite information of the terrible events that had happened the moremy head became afire with rage and shame% /hat was all the pain I s!ffered in my eyes compared with this

tragedy5

(he following days were terrible to bear, and the nights still worse% (o depend on the mercy of the enemy

was a precept which only fools or criminal liars co!ld recommend% ?!ring those nights my hatred increased- hatred for the orignators of this dastardly crime%

?!ring the following days my own fate became clear to me% I was forced now to scoff at the tho!ght of my

personal f!t!re, which hitherto had been the ca!se of so m!ch worry to me% /as it not l!dicro!s to thin& of

b!ilding !p anything on s!ch a fo!ndation5 Finally, it also became clear to me that it was the inevitable that

had happened, something which I had feared for a long time, tho!gh I really did not have the heart to believe it%

7mperor /illiam II was the first 6erman 7mperor to offer the hand of friendship to the ar3ist leaders,

not s!specting that they were sco!ndrels witho!t any sense of hono!r% /hile they held the imperial hand intheirs, the other hand was already feeling for the dagger%

(here is no s!ch thing as coming to an !nderstanding with the )ews% It m!st be the hard-and-fast 7ither-

Or%#

For my part I then decided that I wo!ld ta&e !p political wor&%

$hapter 7ight0

(owards the end of *ovember I ret!rned to !nich% I went to the depot of my regiment, which was now inthe hands of the 'oldiers# $o!ncils#% As the whole administration was +!ite rep!lsive to me, I decided to

leave it as soon as I possibly co!ld% /ith my faithf!l war-comrade, 7rnst-'chmidt, I came to (ra!nstein andremained there !ntil the camp was bro&en !p% In arch 1919 we were bac& again in !nich%

(he sit!ation there co!ld not last as it was% It tended irresistibly to a f!rther e3tension of the 8evol!tion%7isner#s death served only to hasten this development and finally led to the dictatorship of the $o!ncils -

or, to p!t it more correctly, to a )ewish hegemony, which t!rned o!t to be transitory b!t which was the

original aim of those who had contrived the 8evol!tion%

At that !nct!re inn!merable plans too& shape in my mind% I spent whole days pondering on the problem of what co!ld be done, b!t !nfort!nately every proect had to give way before the hard fact that I was +!ite

!n&nown and therefore did not have even the first pre-re+!isite necessary for effective action% Later on I

shall e3plain the reasons why I co!ld not decide to oin any of the parties then in e3istence%

As the new 'oviet 8evol!tion began to r!n its co!rse in !nich my first activities drew !pon me the ill-will of the $entral $o!ncil% In the early morning of April 2Gth, 1919, I was to have been arrested> b!t the

three fellows who came to arrest me did not have the co!rage to face my rifle and withdrew !st as they had

arrived%A few days after the liberation of !nich I was ordered to appear before the In+!iry $ommission whichhad been set !p in the 2nd Infantry 8egiment for the p!rpose of watching revol!tionary activities% (hat was

my first inc!rsion into the more or less political field%

After another few wee&s I received orders to attend a co!rse of lect!res which were being given to

members of the army% (his co!rse was meant to inc!lcate certain f!ndamental principles on which thesoldier co!ld base his political ideas% For me the advantage of this organiation was that it gave me a

chance of meeting fellow soldiers who were of the same way of thin&ing and with whom I co!ld disc!ss

the act!al sit!ation% /e were all more or less firmly convinced that 6ermany co!ld not be saved fromimminent disaster by those who had participated in the *ovember treachery - that is to say, the $entre and



the 'ocial-?emocrats> and also that the so-called o!rgeois-*ational gro!p co!ld not ma&e good the

damage that had been done, even if they had the best intentions% (hey lac&ed a n!mber of re+!isites witho!t

which s!ch a tas& co!ld never be s!ccessf!lly !nderta&en% (he years that followed have !stified the

opinions which we held at that time%In o!r small circle we disc!ssed the proect of forming a new party% (he leading ideas which we then

proposed were the same as those which were carried into effect afterwards, when the 6erman Labo!r "arty

was fo!nded% (he name of the new movement which was to be fo!nded sho!ld be s!ch that of itself, it

wo!ld appeal to the mass of the people> for all o!r efforts wo!ld t!rn o!t vain and !seless if this conditionwere lac&ing% And that was the reason why we chose the name 'ocial-8evol!tionary "arty#, partic!larly

beca!se the social principles of o!r new organiation were indeed revol!tionary%

!t there was also a more f!ndamental reason% (he attention which I had given to economic problems

d!ring my earlier years was more or less confined to considerations arising directly o!t of the social problem% '!bse+!ently this o!tloo& broadened as I came to st!dy the 6erman policy of the (riple Alliance%

(his policy was very largely the res!lt of an erroneo!s val!ation of the economic sit!ation, together with a

conf!sed notion as to the basis on which the f!t!re s!bsistence of the 6erman people co!ld be g!aranteed%

All these ideas were based on the principle that capital is e3cl!sively the prod!ct of labo!r and that, !stli&e labo!r, it was s!bect to all the factors which can hinder or promote h!man activity% ence, from the

national standpoint, the significance of capital depended on the greatness and freedom and power of the

'tate, that is to say, of the nation, and that it is this dependence alone which leads capital to promote the

interests of the 'tate and the nation, from the instinct of self-preservation and for the sa&e of its own

development%On s!ch principles the attit!de of the 'tate towards capital wo!ld be comparatively simple and clear% Its

only obect wo!ld be to ma&e s!re that capital remained s!bservient to the 'tate and did not allocate to

itself the right to dominate national interests% (h!s it co!ld confine its activities within the two followinglimits0 on the one side, to ass!re a vital and independent system of national economy and, on the other, to

safeg!ard the social rights of the wor&ers%

"revio!sly I did not recognie with ade+!ate clearness the difference between capital which is p!rely the

prod!ct of creative labo!r and the e3istence and nat!re of capital which is e3cl!sively the res!lt of financialspec!lation% ere I needed an imp!lse to set my mind thin&ing in this direction> b!t that imp!lse had

hitherto been lac&ing%

(he re+!isite imp!lse now came from one of the men who delivered lect!res in the co!rse I have already

mentioned% (his was 6ottfried Feder%For the first time in my life I heard a disc!ssion which dealt with the principles of stoc&-e3change capital

and capital which was !sed for loan activities% After hearing the first lect!re delivered by Feder, the ideaimmediately came into my head that I had now fo!nd a way to one of the most essential pre-re+!isites for

the fo!nding of a new party%(o my mind, Feder#s merit consisted in the r!thless and trenchant way in which he described the do!ble

character of the capital engaged in stoc&-e3change and loan transaction, laying bare the fact that this capital

is ever and always dependent on the payment of interest% In f!ndamental +!estions his statements were so

f!ll of common sense that those who criticied him did not deny that a! fond his ideas were so!nd b!t theydo!bted whether it be possible to p!t these ideas into practice% (o me this seemed the strongest point in

Feder#s teaching, tho!gh others considered it a wea& point%

It is not the b!siness of him who lays down a theoretical programme to e3plain the vario!s ways in which

something can be p!t into practice% is tas& is to deal with the problem as s!ch> and, therefore, he has toloo& to the end rather than the means% (he important +!estion is whether an idea is f!ndamentally right or

not% (he +!estion of whether or not it may be diffic!lt to carry it o!t in practice is +!ite another matter%

/hen a man whose tas& it is to lay down the principles of a programme or policy begins to b!sy himself with the +!estion as to whether it is e3pedient and practical, instead of confining himself to the statement of the absol!te tr!th, his wor& will cease to be a g!iding star to those who are loo&ing abo!t for light and

leading and will become merely a recipe for every-day iife% (he man who lays down the programme of a

movement m!st consider only the goal% It is for the political leader to point o!t the way in which that goal

may be reached% (he tho!ght of the former will, therefore, be determined by those tr!ths that areeverlasting, whereas the activity of the latter m!st always be g!ided by ta&ing practical acco!nt of the

circ!mstances !nder which those tr!ths have to be carried into effect%

(he greatness of the one will depend on the absol!te tr!th of his idea, considered in the abstract> whereasthat of the other will depend on whether or not he correctly !dges the given realities and how they may be



!tilied !nder the g!idance of the tr!ths established by the former% (he test of greatness as applied to a

political leader is the s!ccess of his plans and his enterprises, which means his ability to reach the goal for

which he sets o!t> whereas the final goal set !p by the political philosopher can never be reached> for

h!man tho!ght may grasp tr!ths and pict!re ends which it sees li&e clear crystal, tho!gh s!ch ends cannever be completely f!lfilled beca!se h!man nat!re is wea& and imperfect% (he more an idea is correct in

the abstract, and, therefore, all the more powerf!l, the smaller is the possibility of p!tting it into practice, at

least as far as this latter depends on h!man beings% (he significance of a political philosopher does not

depend on the practical s!ccess of the plans he lays down b!t rather on their absol!te tr!th and theinfl!ence they e3ert on the progress of man&ind% If it were otherwise, the fo!nders of religions co!ld not be

considered as the greatest men who have ever lived, beca!se their moral aims will never be completely or

even appro3imately carried o!t in practice% 7ven that religion which is called the 8eligion of Love is really

no more than a faint refle3 of the will of its s!blime Fo!nder% !t its significance lies in the orientationwhich it endeavo!red to give to h!man civiliation, and h!man virt!e and morals%

(his very wide difference between the f!nctions of a political philosopher and a practical political leader is

the reason why the +!alifications necessary for both f!nctions are scarcely ever fo!nd associated in the

same person% (his applies especially to the so-called s!ccessf!l politician of the smaller &ind, whoseactivity is indeed hardly more than practising the art of doing the possible, as ismarc& modestly defined

the art of politics in general% If s!ch a politician resol!tely avoids great ideas his s!ccess will be all the

easier to attain> it will be attained more e3peditely and fre+!ently will be more tangible% y reason of this

very fact, however, s!ch s!ccess is doomed to f!tility and sometimes does not even s!rvive the death of its

a!thor% 6enerally spea&ing, the wor& of politicians is witho!t significance for the following generation, beca!se their temporary s!ccess was based on the e3pediency of avoiding all really great decisive problems

and ideas which wo!ld be valid also for f!t!re generations%

(o p!rs!e ideals which will still be of val!e and significance for the f!t!re is generally not a very profitable!nderta&ing and he who follows s!ch a co!rse is only very rarely !nderstood by the mass of the people,

who find beer and mil& a more pers!asive inde3 of political val!es than far-sighted plans for the f!t!re, the

realiation of which can only ta&e place later on and the advantages of which can be reaped only by

posterity%eca!se of a certain vanity, which is always one of the blood-relations of !nintelligence, the general r!n of

politicians will always eschew those schemes for the f!t!re which are really diffic!lt to p!t into practice>

and they will practise this avoidance so that they may not lose the immediate favo!r of the mob% (he

importance and the s!ccess of s!ch politicians belong e3cl!sively to the present and will be of noconse+!ence for the f!t!re% !t that does not worry small-minded people> they are +!ite content with

momentary res!lts%(he position of the constr!ctive political philosopher is +!ite different% (he importance of his wor& m!st

always be !dged from the standpoint of the f!t!re> and he is fre+!ently described by the word /eltfremd,or dreamer% /hile the ability of the politician consists in mastering the art of the possible, the fo!nder of a

political system belongs to those who are said to please the gods only beca!se they wish for and demand

the impossible% (hey will always have to reno!nce contemporary fame> b!t if their ideas be immortal,

posterity will grant them its ac&nowledgment%/ithin long spans of h!man progress it may occasionally happen that the practical politician and political

philosopher are one% (he more intimate this !nion is, the greater will be the obstacles which the activity of

the politician will have to enco!nter% '!ch a man does not labo!r for the p!rpose of satisfying demands that

are obvio!s to every philistine, b!t he reaches o!t towards ends which can be !nderstood only by the few%is life is torn as!nder by hatred and love% (he protest of his contemporaries, who do not !nderstand the

man, is in conflict with the recognition of posterity, for whom he also wor&s%

For the greater the wor& which a man does for the f!t!re, the less will he be appreciated by hiscontemporaries% is str!ggle will accordingly be all the more severe, and his s!ccess all the rarer% /hen, inthe co!rse of cent!ries, s!ch a man appears who is blessed with s!ccess then, towards the end of his days,

he may have a faint prevision of his f!t!re fame% !t s!ch great men are only the arathon r!nners of

history% (he la!rels of contemporary fame are only for the brow of the dying hero%

(he great protagonists are those who fight for their ideas and ideals despite the fact that they receive norecognition at the hands of their contemporaries% (hey are the men whose memories will be enshrined in

the hearts of the f!t!re generations% It seems then as if each individ!al felt it his d!ty to ma&e retroactive

atonement for the wrong which great men have s!ffered at the hands of their contemporaries% (heir livesand their wor& are then st!died with to!ching and gratef!l admiration% 7specially in dar& days of distress,



s!ch men have the power of healing bro&en hearts and elevating the despairing spirit of a people%

(o this gro!p belong not only the gen!inely great statesmen b!t all the great reformers as well% eside

Frederic& the 6reat we have s!ch men as artin L!ther and 8ichard /agner%

/hen I heard 6ottfried Feder#s first lect!re on (he Abolition of the Interest-'ervit!de#, I !nderstoodimmediately that here was a tr!th of transcendental importance for the f!t!re of the 6erman people% (he

absol!te separation of stoc&-e3change capital from the economic life of the nation wo!ld ma&e it possible

to oppose the process of internationaliation in 6erman b!siness witho!t at the same time attac&ing capital

as s!ch, for to do this wo!ld eopardie the fo!ndations of o!r national independence% I clearly saw whatwas developing in 6ermany and I realied then that the stiffest fight we wo!ld have to wage wo!ld not be

against the enemy nations b!t against international capital% In Feder#s speech I fo!nd an effective rallying-

cry for o!r coming str!ggle%

ere, again, later events proved how correct was the impression we then had% (he fools among o!r bo!rgeois politicians do not moc& at !s on this point any more> for even those politicians now see - if they

wo!ld spea& the tr!th - that international stoc&-e3change capital was not only the chief instigating factor in

bringing on the /ar b!t that now when the /ar is over it t!rns the peace into a hell%

(he str!ggle against international finance capital and loan-capital has become one of the most important points in the programme on which the 6erman nation has based its fight for economic freedom and

independence%

8egarding the obections raised by so-called practical people, the following answer m!st s!ffice0 All

apprehensions concerning the fearf!l economic conse+!ences that wo!ld follow the abolition of the

servit!de that res!lts from interest-capital are ill-timed> for, in the first place, the economic principleshitherto followed have proved +!ite fatal to the interests of the 6erman people% (he attit!de adopted when

the +!estion of maintaining o!r national e3istence arose vividly recalls similar advice once given by e3perts

- the avarian edical $ollege, for e3ample - on the +!estion of introd!cing railroads% (he fears e3pressed by that a!g!st body of e3perts were not realied% (hose who travelled in the coaches of the new 'team-

horse# did not s!ffer from vertigo% (hose who loo&ed on did not become ill and the hoardings which had

been erected to conceal the new invention were event!ally ta&en down% Only those blinds which obsc!re

the vision of the wo!ld-be e3perts#, have remained% And that will be always so%In the second place, the following m!st be borne in mind0 Any idea may be a so!rce of danger if it be

loo&ed !pon as an end in itself, when really it is only the means to an end% For me and for all gen!ine

*ational-'ocialists there is only one doctrine% "eople and Fatherland%-hat 7e ha3e to fiht for i& the nece&&ary &ecurity for the exi&tence an% increa&e of our race an%

0eo0le, the &ub&i&tence of it& chil%ren an% the 'aintenance of our racial &toc( un'ixe%, the free%o'

an% in%e0en%ence of the Fatherlan% &o that our 0eo0le 'ay be enable% to fulfil the 'i&&ion a&&ine%to it by the Creator9

All ideas and ideals, all teaching and all &nowledge, m!st serve these ends% It is from this standpoint thateverything m!st be e3amined and t!rned to practical !ses or else discarded% (h!s a theory can never

become a mere dead dogma since everything will have to serve the practical ends of everyday life%

(h!s the !dgment arrived at by 6ottfried Feder determined me to ma&e a f!ndamental st!dy of a +!estion

with which I had hitherto not been very familiar%I began to st!dy again and th!s it was that I first came to !nderstand perfectly what was the s!bstance and

p!rpose of the life-wor& of the )ew, arl ar3% is $apital became intelligible to me now for the first time%

And in the light of it I now e3actly !nderstood the fight of the 'ocial-?emocrats against national

economics, a fight which was to prepare the gro!nd for the hegemony of a real international and stoc&-e3change capital%

In another direction also this co!rse of lect!res had important conse+!ences for me%

One day I p!t my name down as wishing to ta&e part in the disc!ssion% Another of the participants tho!ghtthat he wo!ld brea& a lance for the )ews and entered into a lengthy defence of them% (his aro!sed myopposition% An overwhelming n!mber of those who attended the lect!re co!rse s!pported my views% (he

conse+!ence of it all was that, a few days later, I was assigned to a regiment then stationed at !nich and

given a position there as instr!ction officer#%

At that time the spirit of discipline was rather wea& among those troops% It was still s!ffering from the after-effects of the period when the 'oldiers# $o!ncils were in control% Only grad!ally and caref!lly co!ld a new

spirit of military discipline and obedience be introd!ced in place of vol!ntary obedience#, a term which

had been !sed to e3press the ideal of military discipline !nder !rt 7isner#s higgledy-piggledy regime% (hesoldiers had to be ta!ght to thin& and feel in a national and patriotic way% In these two directions lay my



f!t!re line of action%

I too& !p my wor& with the greatest delight and devotion% ere I was presented with an opport!nity of

spea&ing before +!ite a large a!dience% I was now able to confirm what I had hitherto merely felt, namely,

that I had a talent for p!blic spea&ing% y voice had become so m!ch better that I co!ld be well!nderstood, at least in all parts of the small hall where the soldiers assembled%

*o tas& co!ld have been more pleasing to me than this one> for now, before being demobilied, I was in a

position to render !sef!l service to an instit!tion which had been infinitely dear to my heart0 namely, the

army%I am able to state that my tal&s were s!ccessf!l% ?!ring the co!rse of my lect!res I have led bac& h!ndreds

and even tho!sands of my fellow co!ntrymen to their people and their fatherland% I nationalied# these

troops and by so doing I helped to restore general discipline%

ere again I made the ac+!aintance of several comrades whose tho!ght ran along the same lines as my ownand who later became members of the first gro!p o!t of which the new movement developed%

$hapter *ine0

One day I received an order from my s!periors to investigate the nat!re of an association which was

apparently political% It called itself (he 6erman Labo!r "arty# and was soon to hold a meeting at which

6ottfried Feder wo!ld spea&% I was ordered to attend this meeting and report on the sit!ation%

(he spirit of c!riosity in which the army a!thorities then regarded political parties can be very well

!nderstood% (he 8evol!tion had granted the soldiers the right to ta&e an active part in politics and it was partic!larly those with the smallest e3perience who had availed themselves of this right% !t not !ntil the

$entre and the 'ocial-?emocratic parties were rel!ctantly forced to recognie that the sympathies of the

soldiers had t!rned away from the revol!tionary parties towards the national movement and the nationalreawa&ening, did they feel obliged to withdraw from the army the right to vote and to forbid it all political

activity%

(he fact that the $entre and ar3ism had adopted this policy was instr!ctive, beca!se if they had not th!s

c!rtailed the rights of the citien# - as they described the political rights of the soldiers after the 8evol!tion- the government which had been established in *ovember 191; wo!ld have been overthrown within a few

years and the dishono!r and disgrace of the nation wo!ld not have been f!rther prolonged% At that time the

soldiers were on the point of ta&ing the best way to rid the nation of the vampires and valets who served the

ca!se of the 7ntente in the interior of the co!ntry% !t the fact that the so-called national# parties votedenth!siastically for the doctrinaire policy of the criminals who organied the 8evol!tion in *ovember

B191;C helped also to render the army ineffective as an instr!ment of national restoration and th!s showedonce again where men might be led by the p!rely abstract notions accepted by these most g!llible people%

(he minds of the bo!rgeois middle classes had become so fossilied that they sincerely believed the armyco!ld once again become what it had previo!sly been, namely, a rampart of 6erman valo!r> while the

$entre "arty and the ar3ists intended only to e3tract the poisono!s tooth of nationalism, witho!t which an

army m!st always remain !st a police force b!t can never be in the position of a military organiation

capable of fighting against the o!tside enemy% (his tr!th was s!fficiently proved by s!bse+!ent events%Or did o!r national# politicians believe, after all, that the development of o!r army co!ld be other than

national5 (his belief might be possible and co!ld be e3plained by the fact that d!ring the /ar they were not

soldiers b!t merely tal&ers% In other words, they were parliamentarians, and, as s!ch, 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 "arty, which had hitherto been entirely !n&nown to me% /hen I

arrived that evening in the g!est room of the former 'ternec&er rewery - which has now become a placeof historical significance for !s - I fo!nd appro3imately 2<-2= persons present, most of them belonging tothe lower classes%

(he theme of Feder#s lect!re was already familiar to me> for I had heard it in the lect!re co!rse I have

spo&en of% (herefore, I co!ld concentrate my attention on st!dying the society itself%

(he impression it made !pon me was neither good nor bad% I felt that here was !st another one of thesemany new societies which were being formed at that time% In those days everybody felt called !pon to

fo!nd a new "arty whenever he felt displeased with the co!rse of events and had lost confidence in all the

parties already e3isting% (h!s it was that new associations spro!ted !p all ro!nd, to disappear !st as+!ic&ly, witho!t e3ercising any effect or ma&ing any noise whatsoever% 6enerally spea&ing, the fo!nders of



s!ch associations did not have the slightest idea of what it means to bring together a n!mber of people for

the fo!ndations of a party or a movement% (herefore these associations disappeared beca!se of their woef!l

lac& of anything li&e an ade+!ate grasp of the necessities of the sit!ation%

y opinion of the 6erman Labo!r "arty# was not very different after I had listened to their proceedings for abo!t two ho!rs% I was glad when Feder finally came to a close% I had observed eno!gh and was !st abo!t

to leave when it was anno!nced that anybody who wished was free to open a disc!ssion% (here!pon, I

decided to remain% !t the disc!ssion seemed to proceed witho!t anything of vital importance being

mentioned, when s!ddenly a professor# commenced to spea&% e opened by throwing do!bt on theacc!racy of what Feder had said, and then% after Feder had replied very effectively, the professor s!ddenly

too& !p his position on what he called the basis of facts,# b!t before this he recommended the yo!ng party

most !rgently to introd!ce the secession of avaria from "r!ssia as one of the leading proposals in its

programme% In the most self-ass!red way, this man &ept on insisting that 6erman-A!stria wo!ld oinavaria and that the peace wo!ld then f!nction m!ch better% e made other similarly e3travagant

statements% At this !nct!re I felt bo!nd to as& for permission to spea& and to tell the learned gentleman

what I tho!ght% (he res!lt was that the hono!rable gentleman who had last spo&en slipped o!t of his place,

li&e a whipped c!r, witho!t !ttering a so!nd% /hile I was spea&ing the a!dience listened with an e3pressionof s!rprise on their faces% /hen I was !st abo!t to say good-night to the assembly and to leave, a man

came after me +!ic&ly and introd!ced himself% I did not grasp the name correctly> b!t he placed a little

boo& in my hand, which was obvio!sly a political pamphlet, and as&ed me very earnestly to read it%

I was +!ite pleased> beca!se in this way, I co!ld come to &now abo!t this association witho!t having to

attend its tiresome meetings% oreover, this man, who had the appearance of a wor&man, made a goodimpression on me% (here!pon, I left the hall%

At that time I was living in one of the barrac&s of the 2nd Infantry 8egiment% I had a little room which still

bore the !nmista&able traces of the 8evol!tion% ?!ring the day I was mostly o!t, at the +!arters of LightInfantry *o% 41 or else attending meetings or lect!res, held at some other branch of the army% I spent only

the night at the +!arters where I lodged% 'ince I !s!ally wo&e !p abo!t five o#cloc& every morning I got

into the habit of am!sing myself with watching little mice which played aro!nd in my small room% I !sed to

place a few pieces of hard bread or cr!st on the floor and watch the f!nny little beasts playing aro!nd andenoying themselves with these delicacies% I had s!ffered so many privations in my own life that I well

&new what h!nger was and co!ld only too well pict!re to myself the pleas!re these little creat!res were

e3periencing%

'o on the morning after the meeting I have mentioned, it happened that abo!t five o#cloc& I lay f!lly awa&ein bed, watching the mice playing and vying with each other% As I was not able to go to sleep again, I

s!ddenly remembered the pamphlet that one of the wor&ers had given me at the meeting% It was a small pamphlet of which this wor&er was the a!thor% In his little boo& he described how his mind had thrown off

the shac&les of the ar3ist and trades-!nion phraseology, and that he had come bac& to the nationalistideals% (hat was the reason why he had entitled his little boo&0 Hy "olitical Awa&eningH% (he pamphlet

sec!red my attention the moment I began to read, and I read it with interest to the end% (he process here

described was similar to that which I had e3perienced in my own case ten years previo!sly% Mnconscio!sly

my own e3periences began to stir again in my mind% ?!ring that day my tho!ghts ret!rned several times towhat I had read> b!t I finally decided to give the matter no f!rther attention% A wee& or so later, however, I

received a postcard which informed me, to my astonishment, that I had been admitted into the 6erman

Labo!r "arty% I was as&ed to answer this comm!nication and to attend a meeting of the "arty $ommittee on

/ednesday ne3t%(his manner of getting members rather amaed me, and I did not &now whether to be angry or la!gh at it%

itherto I had not any idea of entering a party already in e3istence b!t wanted to fo!nd one of my own%

'!ch an invitation as I now had received I loo&ed !pon as entirely o!t of the +!estion for me%I was abo!t to send a written reply when my c!riosity got the better of me, and I decided to attend thegathering at the date assigned, so that I might e3po!nd my principles to these gentlemen in person%

/ednesday came% (he tavern in which the meeting was to ta&e place was the Alte 8osenbad# in the

errnstrasse, into which apparently only an occasional g!est wandered% (his was not very s!rprising in the

year 1919, when the bills of fare even at the larger resta!rants were only very modest and scanty in their pretensions and th!s not very attractive to clients% !t I had never before heard of this resta!rant%

I went thro!gh the badly-lighted g!est-room, where not a single g!est was to be seen, and searched for the

door which led to the side room> and there I was face-to-face with the $ongress#% Mnder the dim light shed by a grimy gas-lamp I co!ld see fo!r yo!ng people sitting aro!nd a table, one of them the a!thor of the



pamphlet% e greeted me cordially and welcomed me as a new member of the 6erman Labo!r "arty%

I was ta&en somewhat abac& on being informed that act!ally the *ational "resident of the "arty had not yet

come> so I decided that I wo!ld &eep bac& my own e3position for the time being% Finally the "resident

appeared% e was the man who had been chairman of the meeting held in the 'ternec&er rewery, whenFeder spo&e%

y c!riosity was stim!lated anew and I sat waiting for what was going to happen% *ow I got at least as far

as learning the names of the gentlemen who had been parties to the whole affair% (he 8eich *ational

"resident of the Association was a certain err arrer and the "resident for the !nich district was Anton?re3ler%

(he min!tes of the previo!s meeting were read o!t and a vote of confidence in the secretary was passed%

(hen came the treas!rer#s report% (he 'ociety possessed a total f!nd of seven mar&s and fifty pfennigs Ba

s!m corresponding to Gs% d% in 7nglish money at parC, where!pon the treas!rer was ass!red that he had theconfidence of the members% (his was now inserted in the min!tes% (hen letters of reply which had been

written by the $hairman were read> first, to a letter received from iel, then to one from ?Dsseldorf and

finally to one from erlin% All three replies received the approval of all present% (hen the incoming letters

were read - one from erlin, one from ?Dsseldorf and one from iel% (he reception of these letters seemedto ca!se great satisfaction% (his increasing b!l& of correspondence was ta&en as the best and most obvio!s

sign of the growing importance of the 6erman Labo!r "arty% And then5 /ell, there followed a long

disc!ssion of the replies which wo!ld be given to these newly-received letters%

It was all very awf!l% (his was the worst &ind of parish-p!mp cl!bbism% And was I s!pposed to become a

member of s!ch a cl!b5(he +!estion of new members was ne3t disc!ssed - that is to say, the +!estion of catching myself in the

trap%

I now began to as& +!estions% !t I fo!nd 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

b!t obvio!s good faith and good intentions%

I no longer felt inclined to la!gh> for what else was all this b!t a typical sign of the most complete

perple3ity and deepest despair in regard to all political parties, their programmes and views and activities5(he feeling which had ind!ced those few yo!ng people to oin in what seemed s!ch a ridic!lo!s enterprise

was nothing b!t the call of the inner voice which told them - tho!gh more int!itively than conscio!sly - that

the whole party system as it had hitherto e3isted was not the &ind of force that co!ld restore the 6erman

nation or repair the damages that had been done to the 6erman people by those who hitherto controlled theinternal affairs of the nation% I +!ic&ly read thro!gh the list of principles that formed the platform of the

party% (hese principles were stated on typewritten sheets% ere again I fo!nd evidence of the spirit of longing and searching, b!t no sign whatever of a &nowledge of the conflict that had to be fo!ght% I myself

had e3perienced the feelings which inspired those people% It was the longing for a movement which sho!ld be more than a party, in the hitherto accepted meaning of that word%

/hen I ret!rned to my room in the barrac&s that evening I had formed a definite opinion on this association

and I was facing the most diffic!lt problem of my life% 'ho!ld I oin this party or ref!se5

From the side of the intellect alone, every consideration !rged me to ref!se> b!t my feelings tro!bled me%(he more I tried to prove to myself how senseless this cl!b was, on the whole, the more did my feelings

incline me to favo!r it% ?!ring the following days I was restless%

I began to consider all the pros and cons% I had long ago decided to ta&e an active part in politics% (he fact

that I co!ld do so only thro!gh a new movement was +!ite clear to me> b!t I had hitherto lac&ed theimp!lse to ta&e concrete action% I am not one of those people who will begin something to-day and !st give

it !p the ne3t day for the sa&e of something new% (hat was the main reason which made it so diffic!lt for

me to decide in oining something newly fo!nded> for this m!st become the real f!lfilment of everything Idreamt, or else it had better not be started at all% I &new that s!ch a decision sho!ld bind me for ever andthat there co!ld be no t!rning bac&% For me there co!ld be no idle dallying b!t only a ca!se to be

championed ardently% I had already an instinctive feeling against people who too& !p everything, b!t never

carried anything thro!gh to the end% I loathed these )ac&s-of-all-(rades, and considered the activities of

s!ch people to be worse than if they were to remain entirely +!iescent%Fate herself now seemed to s!pply the finger-post that pointed o!t the way% I sho!ld never have entered one

of the big parties already in e3istence and shall e3plain my reasons for this later on% (his l!dicro!s little

formation, with its handf!l of members, seemed to have the !ni+!e advantage of not yet being fossiliedinto an organiation# and still offered a chance for real personal activity on the part of the individ!al% ere



it might still be possible to do some effective wor&> and, as the movement was still small, one co!ld all the

easier give it the re+!ired shape% ere it was still possible to determine the character of the movement, the

aims to be achieved and the road to be ta&en, which wo!ld have been impossible in the case of the big

parties already e3isting%(he longer I reflected on the problem, the more my opinion developed that !st s!ch a small movement

wo!ld best serve as an instr!ment to prepare the way for the national res!rgence, b!t that this co!ld never

be done by the political parliamentary parties which were too firmly attached to obsolete ideas or had an

interest in s!pporting the new regime% /hat had to be proclaimed here was a new Weltanschhauung and nota new election cry%

It was, however, infinitely diffic!lt to decide on p!tting the intention into practice% /hat were the

+!alifications which I co!ld bring to the accomplishment of s!ch a tas&5

(he fact that I was poor and witho!t reso!rces co!ld, in my opinion, be the easiest to bear% !t the fact thatI was !tterly !n&nown raised a more diffic!lt problem% I was only one of the millions which $hance allows

to e3ist or cease to e3ist, whom even their ne3t-door neighbo!rs will not consent to &now% Another

diffic!lty arose from the fact that I had not gone thro!gh the reg!lar school c!rric!l!m%

(he so-called intellect!als# still loo& down with infinite s!percilio!sness on anyone who has not beenthro!gh the prescribed schools and allowed them to p!mp the necessary &nowledge into him% (he +!estion

of what a man can do is never as&ed b!t rather, what has he learned5 7d!cated# people loo& !pon any

imbecile who is plastered with a n!mber of academic certificates as s!perior to the ablest yo!ng fellow who

lac&s these precio!s doc!ments% I co!ld therefore easily imagine how this ed!cated# world wo!ld 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% eca!se of their being as they are, the few e3ceptions stand o!t all the more

conspic!o!sly% I learned more and more to disting!ish between those who will always be at school and

those who will one day come to &now something in reality%After two days of caref!l brooding and reflection I became convinced that I m!st ta&e the contemplated

step%

It was the most fatef!l decision of my life% *o retreat was possible%

(h!s I declared myself ready to accept the membership tendered me by the 6erman Labo!r "arty andreceived a provisional certificate of membership% I was n!mbered seven%

$hapter (en0

(he depth of a fall is always meas!red by the difference between the level of the original position from

which a body has fallen and that in which it is now fo!nd% (he same holds good for *ations and 'tates% (hematter 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 profo!nd decline or collapse of that which was capable of reaching e3traordinary heights can

ma&e a stri&ing impression on the eye of the beholder% (he collapse of the 'econd 8eich was all the more

bewildering for those who co!ld ponder over it and feel the effect of it in their hearts, beca!se the 8eich

had fallen from a height which can hardly be imagined in these days of misery and h!miliation%(he 'econd 8eich was fo!nded in circ!mstances of s!ch daling splendo!r that the whole nation had

become entranced and e3alted by it% Following an !nparalleled series of victories, that 7mpire was handed

over as the g!erdon of immortal heroism to the children and grandchildren of the heroes% /hether they

were f!lly conscio!s of it or not does not matter> anyhow, the 6ermans felt that this 7mpire had not been bro!ght into e3istence by a series of able political negotiations thro!gh parliamentary channels, b!t that it

was different from political instit!tions fo!nded elsewhere by reason of the nobler circ!mstances that had

accompanied its establishment% /hen its fo!ndations were laid the accompanying m!sic was not the chatter of parliamentary debates b!t the th!nder and boom of war along the battle front that encircled "aris% It wasth!s that an act of statesmanship was accomplished whereby the 6ermans, princes as well as people,

established the f!t!re 8eich and restored the symbol of the Imperial $rown% ismarc&#s 'tate was not

fo!nded on treason and assassination by deserters and shir&ers b!t by the regiments that had fo!ght at the

front% (his !ni+!e birth and baptism of fire s!fficed of themselves to s!rro!nd the 'econd 7mpire with ana!reole of historical splendo!r s!ch as few of the older 'tates co!ld lay claim to%

And what an ascension then beganJ A position of independence in regard to the o!tside world g!aranteed

the means of livelihood at home% (he nation increased in n!mbers and in worldly wealth% (he hono!r of the'tate and therewith the hono!r of the people as a whole were sec!red and protected by an army which was



the most stri&ing witness of the difference between this new 8eich and the old 6erman $onfederation%

!t the downfall of the 'econd 7mpire and the 6erman people has been so profo!nd that they all seem to

have been str!c& d!mbfo!nded and rendered incapable of feeling the significance of this downfall or

reflecting on it% It seems as if people were !tterly !nable to pict!re in their minds the heights to which the7mpire formerly attained, so visionary and !nreal appears the greatness and splendo!r of those days in

contrast to the misery of the present% earing this in mind we can !nderstand why and how people become

so daed when they try to loo& bac& to the s!blime past that they forget to loo& for the symptoms of the

great collapse which m!st certainly have been present in some form or other% *at!rally this applies only tothose for whom 6ermany was more than merely a place of abode and a so!rce of livelihood% (hese are the

only people who have been able to feel the present conditions as really catastrophic, whereas others have

considered these conditions as the f!lfilment of what they had loo&ed forward to and hitherto silently

wished%(he symptoms of f!t!re collapse were definitely to be perceived in those earlier days, altho!gh very few

made any attempt to draw a practical lesson from their significance% !t this is now a greater necessity than

it ever was before% For !st as bodily ailments can be c!red only when their origin has been diagnosed, so

also political disease can be treated only when it has been diagnosed% It is obvio!s of co!rse that thee3ternal symptoms of any disease can be more readily detected than its internal ca!ses, for these symptoms

stri&e the eye more easily% (his is also the reason why so many people recognie only e3ternal effects and

mista&e them for ca!ses% Indeed they will sometimes try to deny the e3istence of s!ch ca!ses% And that is

why the maority of people among !s recognie the 6erman collapse only in the prevailing economic

distress and the res!lts that have followed therefrom% Almost everyone has to carry his share of this b!rden,and that is why each one loo&s on the economic catastrophe as the ca!se of the present deplorable state of

affairs% (he broad masses of the people see little of the c!lt!ral, political, and moral bac&gro!nd of this

collapse% any of them completely lac& both the necessary feeling and powers of !nderstanding for it%(hat the masses of the people sho!ld th!s estimate the ca!ses of 6ermany#s downfall is +!ite

!nderstandable% !t the fact that intelligent sections of the comm!nity regard the 6erman collapse

primarily as an economic catastrophe, and conse+!ently thin& that a c!re for it may be fo!nd in an

economic sol!tion, seems to me to be the reason why hitherto no improvement has been bro!ght abo!t% *oimprovement can be bro!ght abo!t !ntil it be !nderstood 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 !nderstood will it be

possible to !nderstand the ca!ses of the present evil and conse+!ently to find the ways and means of

remedying them%(herefore the +!estion of why 6ermany really collapsed is one of the most !rgent significance, especially

for a political movement which aims at overcoming this disaster%In scr!tiniing the past with a view to discovering the ca!ses of the 6erman brea&-!p, it is necessary to be

caref!l lest we may be !nd!ly impressed by e3ternal res!lts that readily stri&e the eye and th!s ignore theless manifest ca!ses of these res!lts%

(he most facile, and therefore the most generally accepted, way of acco!nting for the present misfort!ne is

to say that it is the res!lt of a lost war, and that this is the real ca!se of the present misfort!ne% "robably

there are many who honestly believe in this abs!rd e3planation b!t there are many more in whose mo!ths itis a deliberate and conscio!s falsehood% (his applies to all those who are now feeding at the 6overnment

tro!ghs% For the prophets of the 8evol!tion again and again declared to the people that it wo!ld be

immaterial to the great masses what the res!lt of the /ar might be% On the contrary, they solemnly ass!red

the p!blic that it was igh Finance which was principally interested in a victorio!s o!tcome of this giganticstr!ggle among the nations b!t that the 6erman people and the 6erman wor&ers had no interest whatsoever

in s!ch an o!tcome% Indeed the apostles of world conciliation habit!ally asserted that, far from any 6erman

downfall, the opposite was bo!nd to ta&e place - namely, the res!rgence of the 6erman people - oncemilitarism# had been cr!shed% ?id not these self-same circles sing the praises of the 7ntente and did theynot also lay the whole blame for the sang!inary str!ggle on the sho!lders of 6ermany5 /itho!t this

e3planation, wo!ld they have been able to p!t forward the theory that a military defeat wo!ld have no

political conse+!ences for the 6erman people5 /as not the whole 8evol!tion dressed !p in gala colo!rs as

bloc&ing the victorio!s advance of the 6erman banners and that th!s the 6erman people wo!ld be ass!redits liberty both at home and abroad5

Is not that so, yo! miserable, lying rascals5

(hat &ind of imp!dence which is typical of the )ews was necessary in order to proclaim the defeat of thearmy as the ca!se of the 6erman collapse% Indeed the erlin :orwErts, that organ and mo!thpiece of



once !nderta&en and carried thro!gh with rigid determination%

!t even in s!ch a case the essential preliminary condition is always the recognition of the internal ca!ses

which have given rise to the disease in +!estion%

(he important +!estion here is the differentiation of the root ca!ses from the circ!mstances developing o!tof them% (his becomes all the more diffic!lt 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 diffic!lt to recognie certain definite vir!lent poisons as s!ch that they are accepted as

belonging to the national being> or they are merely tolerated as a necessary evil, so that drastic attempts tolocate those alien germs are not held to be necessary%

?!ring the long period of peace prior to the last war certain evils were apparent here and there altho!gh,

with one or two e3ceptions, very little effort was made to discover their origin% ere again these e3ceptions

were first and foremost those phenomena in the economic life of the nation which were more apparent tothe individ!al than the evil conditions e3isting in a good many other spheres%

(here were many signs of decay which o!ght to have been given serio!s tho!ght% As far as economics were

concerned, the following may be said0 -

(he amaing increase of pop!lation in 6ermany before the war bro!ght the +!estion of providing daily bread into a more and more prominent position in all spheres of political and economic tho!ght and action%

!t !nfort!nately those responsible co!ld not ma&e !p their minds to arrive at the only correct sol!tion and

preferred to reach their obective by cheaper methods% 8ep!diation of the idea of ac+!iring fresh territory

and the s!bstit!tion for it of the mad desire for the commercial con+!est of the world was bo!nd to lead

event!ally to !nlimited and in!rio!s ind!strialiation%(he first and most fatal res!lt bro!ght abo!t in this way was the wea&ening of the agric!lt!ral classes,

whose decline was proportionate to the increase in the proletariat of the !rban areas, !ntil finally the

e+!ilibri!m was completely !pset%(he big barrier dividing rich and poor now became apparent% L!3!ry and poverty lived so close to each

other that the conse+!ences were bo!nd to be deplorable% /ant and fre+!ent !nemployment began to play

havoc with the people and left discontent and embitterment behind them% (he res!lt of this was to divide

the pop!lation into political classes% ?iscontent increased in spite of commercial prosperity% atters finallyreached that stage which bro!ght abo!t the general conviction that things cannot go on as they are#,

altho!gh no one seemed able to vis!alie what was really going to happen%

(hese were typical and visible signs of the depths which the prevailing discontent had reached% Far worse

than these, however, were other conse+!ences which became apparent as a res!lt of the ind!strialiation of the nation%

In proportion to the e3tent that commerce ass!med definite control of the 'tate, money became more andmore of a 6od whom all had to serve and bow down to% eavenly 6ods became more and more old-

fashioned and were laid away in the corners to ma&e room for the worship of mammon% And th!s began a period of !tter degeneration which became specially pernicio!s beca!se it set in at a time when the nation

was more than ever in need of an e3alted idea, for a critical ho!r was threatening% 6ermany sho!ld have

been prepared to protect with the sword her efforts to win her own daily bread in a peacef!l way%

Mnfort!nately, the predominance of money received s!pport and sanction in the very +!arter which o!ghtto have been opposed to it% is aesty, the aiser, made a mista&e when he raised representatives of the

new finance capital to the ran&s of the nobility% Admittedly, it may be offered as an e3c!se that even

ismarc& failed to realie the threatening danger in this respect% In practice, however, all ideal virt!es

became secondary considerations to those of money, for it was clear that having once ta&en this road, thenobility of the sword wo!ld very soon ran& second to that of finance%

Financial operations s!cceed easier than war operations% ence it was no longer any great attraction for a

tr!e hero or even a statesman to be bro!ght into to!ch with the nearest )ew ban&er% 8eal merit was notinterested in receiving cheap decorations and therefore declined them with than&s% !t from the standpointof good breeding s!ch a development was deeply regrettable% (he nobility began to lose more and more of

the racial +!alities that were a condition of its very e3istence, with the res!lt that in many cases the term

plebeian# wo!ld have been more appropriate%

A serio!s state of economic disr!ption was being bro!ght abo!t by the slow elimination of the personalcontrol of vested interests and the grad!al transference of the whole economic str!ct!re into the hands of

oint stoc& companies%

In this way labo!r became degraded into an obect of spec!lation in the hands of !nscr!p!lo!s e3ploiters%(he de-personaliation of property ownership increased on a vast scale% Financial e3change circles began to



tri!mph and made slow b!t s!re progress in ass!ming control of the whole of national life%

efore the /ar the internationaliation of the 6erman economic str!ct!re had already beg!n by the

ro!ndabo!t way of share iss!es% It is tr!e that a section of the 6erman ind!strialists made a determined

attempt to avert the danger, b!t in the end they gave way before the !nited attac&s of money-grabbingcapitalism, which was assisted in this fight by its faithf!l henchmen in the ar3ist movement%

(he persistent war against 6erman heavy ind!stries# was the visible start of the internationaliation of

6erman economic life as envisaged by the ar3ists% (his, however, co!ld only be bro!ght to a s!ccessf!l

concl!sion by the victory which ar3ism was able to gain in the 8evol!tion% As I write these words,s!ccess is attending the general attac& on the 6erman 'tate 8ailways which are now to be t!rned over to

international capitalists% (h!s International 'ocial-?emocracy# has once again attained one of its main

obectives%

(he best evidence of how far this commercialiation# of the 6erman nation was able to go can be plainlyseen in the fact that when the /ar was over one of the leading captains of 6erman ind!stry and commerce

gave it as his opinion that commerce as s!ch was the only force which co!ld p!t 6ermany on its feet again%

(his sort of nonsense was !ttered !st at the time when France was restoring p!blic ed!cation on a

h!manitarian basis, th!s doing away with the idea that national life is dependent on commerce rather thanideal val!es% (he statement which 'tinnes broadcasted to the world at that time ca!sed incredible

conf!sion% It was immediately ta&en !p and has become the leading motto of all those h!mb!gs and

babblers - the statesmen# whom Fate let loose on 6ermany after the 8evol!tion%

One of the worst evidences of decadence in 6ermany before the /ar was the ever increasing habit of doing

things by halves% (his was one of the conse+!ences of the insec!rity that was felt all ro!nd% And it is to beattrib!ted also to a certain timidity which res!lted from one ca!se or another% And the latter malady was

aggravated by the ed!cational system%

6erman ed!cation in pre-/ar times had an e3traordinary n!mber of wea& feat!res% It was simply ande3cl!sively limited to the prod!ction of p!re &nowledge and paid little attention to the development of

practical ability% 'till less attention was given to the development of individ!al 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% (he res!lt of this method was to prod!ce er!dite peoplewho had a passion for &nowing everything% efore the /ar we 6ermans were accepted and estimated

accordingly% (he 6erman was li&ed beca!se good !se co!ld be made of him> b!t there was little esteem for

him personally, on acco!nt of this wea&ness of character% For those who can read its significance aright,

there is m!ch instr!ction in the fact that among all nationalities 6ermans were the first to part with their national citienship when they fo!nd themselves in a foreign co!ntry% And there is a world of meaning in

the saying that was then prevalent0 /ith the hat in the hand one can go thro!gh the whole co!ntry#%(his &ind of social eti+!ette t!rned o!t disastro!s when it prescribed the e3cl!sive forms that had to be

observed in the presence of is aesty% (hese forms insisted that there sho!ld be no contradictionwhatsoever, b!t that everything sho!ld be praised which is aesty condescended to li&e%

It was !st here that the fran& e3pression of manly dignity, and not s!bservience, was most needed%

'ervility in the presence of monarchs may be good eno!gh for the professional lac&ey and place-h!nter, in

fact for all those decadent beings who are more pleased to be fo!nd moving in the high circles of royaltythan among honest citiens% (hese e3ceedingly h!mble# creat!res however, tho!gh they grovel before their

lord and bread-giver, invariably p!t on airs of bo!ndless s!percilio!sness towards other mortals, which was

partic!larly imp!dent when they posed as the only people who had the right to be called monarchists#%

(his was a gross piece of impertinence s!ch as only despicable specimens among the newly-ennobled or yet-to-be-ennobled co!ld be capable of%

And these have always been !st the people who have prepared the way for the downfall of monarchy and

the monarchical principle% It co!ld not be otherwise% For when a man is prepared to stand !p for a ca!se,come what may, he never grovels before its representative% A man who is serio!s abo!t the maintenanceand welfare of an instit!tion will not allow himself to be disco!raged when the representatives of that

instit!tion show certain fa!lts and failings% And he certainly will not r!n aro!nd to tell the world abo!t it, as

certain false democratic friends# of the monarchy have done> b!t he will approach is aesty, the bearer

of the $rown himself, to warn him of the serio!sness of a sit!ation and pers!ade the monarch to act%F!rthermore, he will not ta&e !p the standpoint that it m!st be left to is aesty to act as the latter thin&s

fit, even tho!gh the co!rse which he wo!ld ta&e m!st plainly lead to disaster% !t the man I am thin&ing of

will deem it his d!ty to protect the monarchy against the monarch himself, no matter what personal ris& hemay r!n in doing so% If the worth of the monarchical instit!tion be dependent on the person of the monarch



himself, then it wo!ld be the worst instit!tion imaginable> for only in rare cases are &ings fo!nd to be

models of wisdom and !nderstanding, and integrity of character, tho!gh we might li&e to thin& otherwise%

!t this fact is !npalatable to the professional &naves and lac&eys% Net all !pright men, and they are the

bac&bone of the nation, rep!diate the nonsensical fiction that all monarchs are wise, etc% For s!ch menhistory is history and tr!th is tr!th, even where monarchs are concerned% !t if a nation sho!ld have the

good l!c& to possess a great &ing or a great man it o!ght to consider itself as specially favo!red above all

the other nations, and these may be than&f!l if an adverse fort!ne 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 themonarch alone, !nless eaven decrees that the crown sho!ld be set on the head of a brilliant hero li&e

Frederic& the 6reat, or a sagacio!s person li&e /illiam I% (his may happen once in several cent!ries, b!t

hardly oftener than that% (he ideal of the monarchy ta&es precedence of the person of the monarch,

inasm!ch as the meaning of the instit!tion m!st lie in the instit!tion it self% (h!s the monarchy may berec&oned in the category of those whose d!ty it is to serve% e, too, is b!t a wheel in this machine and as

s!ch he is obliged to do his d!ty towards it% e has to adapt himself for the f!lfilment of high aims% If,

therefore , there were no significance attached to the idea itself and everything merely centred aro!nd the

sacred# person, then it wo!ld never be possible to depose a r!ler who has shown himself to be an imbecile%It is essential to insist !pon this tr!th at the present time, beca!se recently those phenomena have appeared

again and were in no small meas!re responsible for the collapse of the monarchy% /ith a certain amo!nt of

native imp!dence these persons once again tal& abo!t their ing# - that is to say, the man whom they

shamef!lly deserted a few years ago at a most critical ho!r% (hose who refrain from participating in this

chor!s of lies are s!mmarily classified as bad 6ermans#% (hey who ma&e the charge are the same class of +!itters who ran away in 191; and too& to wearing red badges% (hey tho!ght that discretion was the better

part of valo!r% (hey were indifferent abo!t what happened to the aiser% (hey camo!flaged themselves as

peacef!l citiens# b!t more often than not they vanished altogether% All of a s!dden these champions of royalty were nowhere to be fo!nd at that time% $irc!mspectly, one by one, these servants and co!nsellors#

of the $rown reappeared, to res!me their lip-service to royalty b!t only after others had borne the br!nt of

the anti-royalist attac& and s!ppressed the 8evol!tion for them% Once again they were all there%

remembering wistf!lly the flesh-pots of 7gypt and almost b!rsting with devotion for the royal ca!se% (hiswent on !ntil the day came when red badges were again in the ascendant% (hen this whole ramshac&le

assembly of royal worshippers sc!ttled anew li&e mice from the cats%

If monarchs were not themselves responsible for s!ch things one co!ld not help sympathiing with them%

!t they m!st realie that with s!ch champions thrones can be lost b!t certainly never gained%All this devotion was a mista&e and was the res!lt of o!r whole system of ed!cation, which in this case

bro!ght abo!t a partic!larly severe retrib!tion% '!ch lamentable tr!mpery was &ept !p at the vario!s co!rtsthat the monarchy was slowly becoming !nder mined% /hen finally it did begin to totter, everything was

swept away% *at!rally, grovellers and lic&-spittles are never willing to die for their masters% (hat monarchsnever realie this, and almost on principle never really ta&e the tro!ble to learn it, has always been their

!ndoing%

One visible res!lt of wrong ed!cational system was the fear of sho!ldering responsibility and the res!ltant

wea&ness in dealing with obvio!s vital problems of e3istence%(he starting point of this epidemic, however, was in o!r parliamentary instit!tion where the shir&ing of

responsibility is partic!larly fostered% Mnfort!nately the disease slowly spread to all branches of everyday

life b!t partic!larly affected the sphere of p!blic affairs% 8esponsibility was being shir&ed everywhere and

this led to ins!fficient or half-hearted meas!res being ta&en, personal responsibility for each act beingred!ced to a minim!m%

If we consider the attit!de of vario!s 6overnments towards a whole series of really pernicio!s phenomena

in p!blic life, we shall at once recognie the fearf!l significance of this policy of half-meas!res and the lac& of co!rage to !nderta&e responsibilities% I shall single o!t only a few from the large n!mbers of instances&nown to me%

In o!rnalistic circles it is a pleasing c!stom to spea& of the "ress as a 6reat "ower# within the 'tate% As a

matter of fact its importance is immense% One cannot easily overestimate it, for the "ress contin!es the

wor& of ed!cation even in ad!lt life% 6enerally, readers of the "ress can be classified into three gro!ps0First, those who believe everything they read>

'econd, those who no longer believe anything>

(hird, those who critically e3amine what they read and form their !dgments accordingly% *!merically, the first gro!p is by far the strongest, being composed of the broad masses of the people%



Intellect!ally, it forms the simplest portion of the nation% It cannot be classified according to occ!pation b!t

only into grades of intelligence% Mnder this category come all those who have not been born to thin& for

themselves or who have not learnt to do so and who, partly thro!gh incompetence and partly thro!gh

ignorance, believe everything that is set before them in print% (o these we m!st add that type of layindivid!al who, altho!gh capable of thin&ing for himself o!t of sheer lainess gratef!lly absorbs everything

that others had tho!ght over, modestly believing this to have been thoro!ghly done% (he infl!ence which

the "ress has on all these people is therefore enormo!s> for after all they constit!te the broad masses of a

nation% !t, somehow they are not in a position or are not willing personally to sift what is being served !pto them> so that their whole attit!de towards daily problems is almost solely the res!lt of e3traneo!s

infl!ence% All this can be advantageo!s where p!blic enlightenment is of a serio!s and tr!thf!l character,

b!t great harm is done when sco!ndrels and liars ta&e a hand at this wor&%

(he second gro!p is n!merically smaller, being partly composed of those who were formerly in the firstgro!p and after a series of bitter disappointments are now prepared to believe nothing of what they see in

print% (hey hate all newspapers% 7ither they do not read them at all or they become e3ceptionally annoyed

at their contents, which they hold to be nothing b!t a congeries of lies and misstatements% (hese people are

diffic!lt to handle> for they will always be sceptical of the tr!th% $onse+!ently, they are !seless for anyform of positive wor&%

(he third gro!p is easily the smallest, being composed of real intellect!als whom nat!ral aptit!de and

ed!cation have ta!ght to thin& for themselves and who in all things try to form their own !dgments, while

at the same time caref!lly sifting what they read% (hey will not read any newspaper witho!t !sing their own

intelligence to collaborate with that of the writer and nat!rally this does not set writers an easy tas&%)o!rnalists appreciate this type of reader only with a certain amo!nt of reservation%

ence the trash that newspapers are capable of serving !p is of little danger - m!ch less of importance - to

the members of the third gro!p of readers% In the maority of cases these readers have learnt to regard every o!rnalist as f!ndamentally a rog!e who sometimes spea&s the tr!th% ost !nfort!nately, the val!e of these

readers lies in their intelligence and not in their n!merical strength, an !nhappy state of affairs in a period

where wisdom co!nts for nothing and maorities for everything% *owadays when the voting papers of the

masses are the deciding factor> the decision lies in the hands of the n!merically strongest gro!p> that is tosay the first gro!p, the crowd of simpletons and the cred!lo!s%

It is an all-important interest of the 'tate and a national d!ty to prevent these people from falling into the

hands of false, ignorant or even evil-minded teachers% (herefore it is the d!ty of the 'tate to s!pervise their

ed!cation and prevent every form of offence in this respect% "artic!lar attention sho!ld be paid to the "ress>for its infl!ence on these people is by far the strongest and most penetrating of all> since its effect is not

transitory b!t contin!al% Its immense significance lies in the !niform and persistent repetition of itsteaching% ere, if anywhere, the 'tate sho!ld never forget that all means sho!ld converge towards the same

end% It m!st not be led astray by the will-o#-the-wisp of so-called freedom of the "ress#, or be tal&ed intoneglecting its d!ty, and withholding from the nation that which is good and which does good% /ith r!thless

determination the 'tate m!st &eep control of this instr!ment of pop!lar ed!cation and place it at the service

of the 'tate and the *ation%

!t what sort of pab!l!m was it that the 6erman "ress served !p for the cons!mption of its readers in pre-/ar days5 /as it not the worst vir!lent poison imaginable5 /as not pacifism in its worst form inoc!lated

into o!r people at a time when others were preparing slowly b!t s!rely to po!nce !pon 6ermany5 ?id not

this self-same "ress of o!rs in peace time already instil into the p!blic mind a do!bt as to the sovereign

rights of the 'tate itself, thereby already handicapping the 'tate in choosing its means of defence5 /as itnot the 6erman "ress that !nder stood how to ma&e all the nonsensical tal& abo!t /estern democracy#

palatable to o!r people, !ntil an e3!berant p!blic was event!ally prepared to entr!st its f!t!re to the Leag!e

of *ations5 /as not this "ress instr!mental in bringing in a state of moral degradation among o!r people5/ere not morals and p!blic decency made to loo& ridic!lo!s and classed as o!t-of-date and banal, !ntilfinally o!r people also became modernied5 y means of persistent attac&s, did not the "ress &eep on

!ndermining the a!thority of the 'tate, !ntil one blow s!fficed to bring this instit!tion tottering to the

gro!nd5 ?id not the "ress oppose with all its might every movement to give the 'tate that which belongs to

the 'tate, and by means of constant criticism, in!re the rep!tation of the army, sabotage generalconscription and demand ref!sal of military credits, etc% - !ntil the s!ccess of this campaign was ass!red5

(he f!nction of the so-called liberal "ress was to dig the grave for the 6erman people and 8eich% *o

mention need be made of the lying ar3ist "ress% (o them the spreading of falsehood is as m!ch a vitalnecessity as the mo!se is to a cat% (heir sole tas& is to brea& the national bac&bone of the people, th!s



preparing the nation to become the slaves of international finance and its masters, the )ews%

And what meas!res did the 'tate ta&e to co!nteract this wholesale poisoning of the p!blic mind5 *one,

absol!tely nothing at all% y this policy it was hoped to win the favo!r of this pest - by means of flattery, by

a recognition of the val!e# of the "ress, its importance#, its ed!cative mission# and similar nonsense% (he)ews ac&nowledged all this with a &nowing smile and ret!rned than&s%

(he reason for this ignominio!s fail!re on the part of the 'tate lay not so m!ch in its ref!sal to realie the

danger as in the o!t-and-o!t cowardly way of meeting the sit!ation by the adoption of fa!lty and ineffective

meas!res% *o one had the co!rage to employ any energetic and radical methods% 7veryone temporised insome way or other> and instead of stri&ing at its heart, the viper was only f!rther irritated% (he res!lt was

that not only did everything remain as it was, b!t the power of this instit!tion which sho!ld have been

combated grew greater from year to year%

(he defence p!t !p by the 6overnment in those days against a mainly )ew-controlled "ress that was slowlycorr!pting the nation, followed no definite line of action, it had no determination behind it and above all, no

fi3ed obective whatsoever in view% (his is where official !nderstanding of the sit!ation completely failed

both in estimating the importance of the str!ggle, choosing the means and deciding on a definite plan% (hey

merely tin&ered with the problem% Occasionally, when bitten, they imprisoned one or another o!rnalisticviper for a few wee&s or months, b!t the whole poisono!s brood was allowed to carry on in peace%

It m!st be admitted that all this was partly the res!lt of e3traordinary crafty tactics on the part of )ewry on

the one hand, and obvio!s official st!pidity or naVvet on the other hand% (he )ews were too clever to allow

a sim!ltaneo!s attac& to be made on the whole of their "ress% *o one section f!nctioned as cover for the

other% /hile the ar3ist newspaper, in the most despicable manner possible, reviled everything that wassacred, f!rio!sly attac&ed the 'tate and 6overnment and incited certain classes of the comm!nity against

each other, the bo!rgeois-democratic papers, also in )ewish hands, &new how to camo!flage themselves as

model e3amples of obectivity% (hey st!dio!sly avoided harsh lang!age, &nowing well that bloc&-heads arecapable of !dging only by e3ternal appearances and never able to penetrate to the real depth and meaning

of anything% (hey meas!re the worth of an obect by its e3terior and not by its content% (his form of h!man

frailty was caref!lly st!died and !nderstood by the "ress%

For this class of bloc&heads the Fran&f!rter Keit!ng wo!ld be ac&nowledged as the essence of respectability% It always caref!lly avoided calling a spade a spade% It deprecated the !se of every form of

physical force and persistently appealed to the nobility of fighting with intellect!al# weapons% !t this

fight, c!rio!sly eno!gh, was most pop!lar with the least intellect!al classes% (hat is one of the res!lts of o!r

defective ed!cation, which t!rns the yo!th away from the instinctive dictates of *at!re, p!mps into them acertain amo!nt of &nowledge witho!t however being able to bring them to what is the s!preme act of

&nowing% (o this end diligence and goodwill are of no avail, if innate !nderstanding fail% (his final&nowledge at which man m!st aim is the !nderstanding of ca!ses which are instinctively perceived%

Let me e3plain0 an m!st not fall into the error of thin&ing that he was ever meant to become lord andmaster of *at!re% A lopsided ed!cation has helped to enco!rage that ill!sion% an m!st realie that a

f!ndamental law of necessity reigns thro!gho!t the whole realm of *at!re and that his e3istence is s!bect

to the law of eternal str!ggle and strife% e will then feel that there cannot be a separate law for man&ind in

a world in which planets and s!ns follow their orbits, where moons and planets trace their destined paths,where the strong are always the masters of the wea& and where those s!bect to s!ch laws m!st obey them

or be destroyed% an m!st also s!bmit to the eternal principles of this s!preme wisdom% e may try to

!nderstand them b!t he can never free himself from their sway%

It is !st for intellect!al demi-monde that the )ew writes those papers which he calls his intellect!al# "ress%For them the Fran&f!rter Keit!ng and erliner (ageblatt are written, the tone being adapted to them, and it

is over these people that s!ch papers have an infl!ence% /hile st!dio!sly avoiding all forms of e3pression

that might stri&e the reader as cr!de, the poison is inected from other vials into the hearts of the clientele%(he effervescent tone and the fine phraseology l!g the readers into believing that a love for &nowledge andmoral principle is the sole driving force that determines the policy of s!ch papers, whereas in reality these

feat!res represent a c!nning way of disarming any opposition that might be directed against the )ews and

their "ress%

(hey ma&e s!ch a parade of respectability that the imbecile readers are all the more ready to believe thatthe e3cesses which other papers ind!lge in are only of a mild nat!re and not s!ch as to warrant legal action

being ta&en against them% Indeed s!ch action might trespass on the freedom of the "ress, that e3pression

being a e!phemism !nder which s!ch papers escape legal p!nishment for deceiving the p!blic and poisoning the p!blic mind% ence the a!thorities are very slow indeed to ta&e any steps against these



o!rnalistic bandits for fear of immediately alienating the sympathy of the so-called respectable "ress% A

fear that is only too well fo!nded, for the moment any attempt is made to proceed against any member of

the g!tter press all the others r!sh to its assistance at once, not indeed to s!pport its policy b!t simply and

solely to defend the principle of freedom of the "ress and liberty of p!blic opinion% (his o!tcry wills!cceed in cowering the most stalwart> for it comes from the mo!th of what is called decent o!rnalism%

And so this poison was allowed to enter the national bloodstream and infect p!blic life witho!t the

6overnment ta&ing any effect!al meas!res to master the co!rse of the disease% (he ridic!lo!s half-

meas!res that were ta&en were in themselves an indication of the process of disintegration that was alreadythreatening to brea& !p the 7mpire% For an instit!tion practically s!rrenders its e3istence when it is no

longer determined to defend itself with all the weapons at its command% 7very half-meas!re is the o!tward

e3pression of an internal process of decay which m!st lead to an e3ternal collapse sooner or later%

I believe that o!r present generation wo!ld easily master this danger if they were rightly led% For thisgeneration has gone thro!gh certain e3periences which m!st have strengthened the nerves of all those who

did not become nervo!sly bro&en by them% $ertainly in days to come the )ews will raise a tremendo!s cry

thro!gho!t their newspapers once a hand is laid on their favo!rite nest, once a move is made to p!t an end

to this scandalo!s "ress and once this instr!ment which shapes p!blic opinion is bro!ght !nder 'tatecontrol and no longer left in the hands of aliens and enemies of the people% I am certain that this will be

easier for !s than it was for o!r fathers% (he scream of the twelve-inch shrapnel is more penetrating than the

hiss from a tho!sand )ewish newspaper vipers% (herefore let them go on with their hissing%

A f!rther e3ample of the wea& and hesitating way in which vital national problems were dealt with in pre-

/ar 6ermany is the following0 and in hand with the political and moral process of infecting the nation,for many years an e+!ally vir!lent process of infection had been attac&ing the p!blic health of the people%

In large cities, partic!larly, syphilis steadily increased and t!berc!losis &ept pace with it in reaping its

harvest of death almost in every part of the co!ntry%Altho!gh in both cases the effect on the nation was alarming, it seemed as if nobody was in a position to

!nderta&e any decisive meas!res against these sco!rges%

In the case of syphilis especially the attit!de of the 'tate and p!blic bodies was one of absol!te capit!lation%

(o combat this state of affairs something of far wider sweep sho!ld have been !nderta&en than was reallydone% (he discovery of a remedy which is of a +!estionable nat!re and the e3cellent way in which it was

placed on the mar&et were only of little assistance in fighting s!ch a sco!rge% ere again the only co!rse to

adopt is to attac& the disease in its ca!ses rather than in its symptoms% !t in this case the primary ca!se is

to be fo!nd in the manner in which love has been prostit!ted% 7ven tho!gh this did not directly bring abo!tthe fearf!l disease itself, the nation m!st still s!ffer serio!s damage thereby, for the moral havoc res!lting

from this prostit!tion wo!ld be s!fficient to bring abo!t the destr!ction of the nation, slowly b!t s!rely%(his )!daiing of o!r spirit!al life and mammoniing of o!r nat!ral instinct for procreation will sooner or

later wor& havoc with o!r whole posterity% For instead of strong, healthy children, blessed with nat!ralfeelings, we shall see miserable specimens of h!manity res!lting from economic calc!lation% For economic

considerations are becoming more and more the fo!ndations of marriage and the sole preliminary condition

of it% And love loo&s for an o!tlet elsewhere%

ere, as elsewhere, one may defy *at!re for a certain period of time> b!t sooner or later she will ta&e her ine3orable revenge% And when man realies this tr!th it is often too late%

O!r own nobility f!rnishes an e3ample of the devastating conse+!ences that follow from a persistent

ref!sal to recognie the primary conditions necessary for normal wedloc&% ere we are openly bro!ght face

to face with the res!lts of those reprod!ctive habits which on the one hand are determined by social press!re and, on the other, by financial considerations% (he one leads to inherited debility and the other to

ad!lteration of the blood-strain> for all the )ewish da!ghters of the department store proprietors are loo&ed

!pon as eligible mates to co-operate in propagating is Lordship#s stoc&% And the stoc& certainly loo&s it%All this leads to absol!te degeneration% *owadays o!r bo!rgeoise are ma&ing efforts to follow in the same path, (hey will come to the same o!rney#s end%

(hese !npleasant tr!ths are hastily and nonchalantly br!shed aside, as if by so doing the real state of affairs

co!ld also be abolished% !t no% It cannot be denied that the pop!lation of o!r great towns and cities is

tending more and more to avail of prostit!tion in the e3ercise of its amoro!s instincts and is th!s becomingmore and more contaminated by the sco!rge of venereal disease% On the one hand, the visible effects of this

mass-infection can be observed in o!r insane asyl!ms and, on the other hand, alasJ among the children at

home% (hese are the dolef!l and tragic witnesses to the steadily increasing sco!rge that is poisoning o!r se3!al life% (heir s!fferings are the visible res!lts of parental vice%



(here are many ways of becoming resigned to this !npleasant and terrible fact% any people go abo!t

seeing nothing or, to be more correct, not wanting to see anything% (his is by far the simplest and cheapest

attit!de to adopt% Others cover themselves in the sacred mantle of pr!dery, as ridic!lo!s as it is false% (hey

describe the whole condition of affairs as sinf!l and are profo!ndly indignant when bro!ght face to facewith a victim% (hey close their eyes in reverend abhorrence to this godless sco!rge and pray to the

Almighty that e - if possible after their own death - may rain down fire and brimstone as on 'odom and

6omorrah and so once again ma&e an o!t standing e3ample of this shameless section of h!manity% Finally,

there are those who are well aware of the terrible res!lts which this sco!rge will and m!st bring abo!t, b!tthey merely shr!g their sho!lders, f!lly convinced of their inability to !nderta&e anything against this peril%

ence matters are allowed to ta&e their own co!rse%

Mndo!btedly all this is very convenient and simple, only it m!st not be overloo&ed that this convenient way

of approaching things can have fatal conse+!ences for o!r national life% (he e3c!se that other nations arealso not faring any better does not alter the fact of o!r own deterioration, e3cept that the feeling of

sympathy for other stric&en nations ma&es o!r own s!ffering easier to bear% !t the important +!estion that

arises here is0 /hich nation will be the first to ta&e the initiative in mastering this sco!rge, and which

nations will s!cc!mb to it5 (his will be the final !pshot of the whole sit!ation% (he present is a period of probation for racial val!es% (he race that fails to come thro!gh the test will simply die o!t and its place will

be ta&en by the healthier and stronger races, which will be able to end!re greater hardships% As this problem

primarily concerns posterity, it belongs to that category of which it is said with terrible !stification that the

sins of the fathers are visited on their offspring !nto the tenth generation% (his is a conse+!ence which

follows on an infringement of the laws of blood and race%(he sin against blood and race is the hereditary sin in this world and it brings disaster on every nation that

commits it%

(he attit!de towards this one vital problem in pre-/ar 6ermany was most regrettable% /hat meas!res were!nderta&en to arrest the infection of o!r yo!th in the large cities5 /hat was done to p!t an end to the

contamination and mammoniation of se3!al life among !s5 /hat was done to fight the res!ltant spreading

of syphilis thro!gho!t the whole of o!r national life5 (he reply to this +!estion can best be ill!strated by

showing what sho!ld have been done%Instead of tac&ling this problem in a haphaard way, the a!thorities sho!ld have realied that the fort!nes or

misfort!nes of f!t!re generations depended on its sol!tion% !t to admit this wo!ld have demanded that

active meas!res be carried o!t in a r!thless manner% (he primary condition wo!ld have been that the

enlightened attention of the whole co!ntry sho!ld be concentrated on this terrible danger, so that everyindivid!al wo!ld realie the importance of fighting against it% It wo!ld be f!tile to impose obligations of a

definite character - which are often diffic!lt to bear - and e3pect them to become generally effective, !nlessthe p!blic be thoro!ghly instr!cted on the necessity of imposing and accepting s!ch obligations% (his

demands a widespread and systematic method of enlightenment and all other daily problems that mightdistract p!blic attention from this great central problem sho!ld be relegated to the bac&gro!nd%

In every case where there are e3igencies or tas&s that seem impossible to deal with s!ccessf!lly p!blic

opinion m!st be concentrated on the one problem, !nder the conviction that the sol!tion of this problem

alone is a matter of life or death% Only in this way can p!blic interest be aro!sed to s!ch a pitch as will !rge people to combine in a great vol!ntary effort and achieve important res!lts%

(his f!ndamental tr!th applies also to the individ!al, provided he is desiro!s of attaining some great end%

e m!st always concentrate his efforts to one definitely limited stage of his progress which has to be

completed before the ne3t step be attempted% (hose who do not endeavo!r to realie their aims step by stepand who do not concentrate their energy in reaching the individ!al stages, will never attain the final

obective% At some stage or other they will falter and fail% (his systematic way of approaching an obective

is an art in itself, and always calls for the e3pendit!re of every o!nce of energy in order to con+!er stepafter step of the road%(herefore the most essential preliminary condition necessary for an attac& on s!ch a diffic!lt stage of the

h!man road is that the a!thorities sho!ld s!cceed in convincing the masses that the immediate obective

which is now being fo!ght for is the only one that deserves to be considered and the only one on which

everything depends% (he broad masses are never able clearly to see the whole stretch of the road lying infront of them witho!t becoming tired and th!s losing faith in their ability to complete the tas&% (o a certain

e3tent they will &eep the obective in mind, b!t they are only able to s!rvey the whole road in small stages,

as in the case of the traveller who &nows where his o!rney is going to end b!t who masters the endlessstretch far better by attac&ing it in degrees% Only in this way can he &eep !p his determination to reach the



final obective%

It is in this way, with the assistance of every form of propaganda, that the problem of fighting venereal

disease sho!ld be placed before the p!blic - not as a tas& for the nation b!t as the main tas&% 7very possible

means sho!ld be employed to bring the tr!th abo!t this sco!rge home to the minds of the people, !ntil thewhole nation has been convinced that everything depends on the sol!tion of this problem> that is to say, a

healthy f!t!re or national decay%

Only after s!ch preparatory meas!res - if necessary spread over a period of many years - will p!blic

attention and p!blic resol!tion be f!lly aro!sed, and only then can serio!s and definite meas!res be!nderta&en witho!t r!nning the ris& of not being f!lly !nderstood or of being s!ddenly faced with a

slac&ening of the p!blic will% It m!st be made clear to all that a serio!s fight against this sco!rge calls for

vast sacrifices and an enormo!s amo!nt of wor&%

(o wage war against syphilis means fighting against prostit!tion, against pre!dice, against old-establishedc!stoms, against c!rrent fashion, p!blic opinion, and, last b!t not least, against false pr!dery in certain

circles%

(he first preliminary condition to be f!lfilled before the 'tate can claim a moral right to fight against all

these things is that the yo!ng generation sho!ld be afforded facilities for contracting early marriages% Latemarriages have the sanction of a c!stom which, from whatever angle we view it, is and will remain a

disgrace to h!manity%

"rostit!tion is a disgrace to h!manity and cannot be removed simply by charitable or academic methods% Its

restriction and final e3termination pres!pposes the removal of a whole series of contrib!tory

circ!mstances% (he first remedy m!st always be to establish s!ch conditions as will ma&e early marriages possible, especially for yo!ng men - for women are, after all, only passive s!bects in this matter%

An ill!stration of the e3tent to which people have so often been led astray nowadays is afforded by the fact

that not infre+!ently one hears mothers in so-called better# circles openly e3pressing their satisfaction athaving fo!nd as a h!sband for their da!ghter a man who has already sown his wild oats, etc% As there is

!s!ally so little shortage in men of this type, the poor girl finds no diffic!lty in getting a mate of this

description, and the children of this marriage are a visible res!lt of s!ch s!pposedly sensible !nions%

/hen one realies, apart from this, that every possible effort is being made to hinder the process of procreation and that *at!re is being wilf!lly cheated of her rights, there remains really only one +!estion0

/hy is s!ch an instit!tion as marriage still in e3istence, and what are its f!nctions5 Is it really nothing

better than prostit!tion5 ?oes o!r d!ty to posterity no longer play any part5 Or do people not realie the

nat!re of the c!rse they are inflicting on themselves and their offspring by s!ch criminally foolish neglectof one of the primary laws of *at!re5 (his is how civilied nations degenerate and grad!ally perish%

arriage is not an end in itself b!t m!st serve the greater end, which is that of increasing and maintainingthe h!man species and the race% (his is its only meaning and p!rpose%

(his being admitted, then it is clear that the instit!tion of marriage m!st be !dged by the manner in whichits allotted f!nction is f!lfilled% (herefore early marriages sho!ld be the r!le, beca!se th!s the yo!ng co!ple

will still have that pristine force which is the fo!ntain head of a healthy posterity with !nimpaired powers

of resistance% Of co!rse early marriages cannot be made the r!le !nless a whole series of social meas!res

are first !nderta&en witho!t which early marriages cannot be even tho!ght of % In other words, a sol!tion of this +!estion, which seems a small problem in itself, cannot be bro!ght abo!t witho!t adopting radical

meas!res to alter the social bac&gro!nd% (he importance of s!ch meas!res o!ght to be st!died and properly

estimated, especially at a time when the so-called social# 8ep!blic has shown itself !nable to solve the

ho!sing problem and th!s has made it impossible for inn!merable co!ples to get married% (hat sort of policy prepares the way for the f!rther advance of prostit!tion%

Another reason why early marriages are impossible is o!r nonsensical method of reg!lating the scale of

salaries, which pays far too little attention to the problem of family s!pport% "rostit!tion, therefore, canonly be really serio!sly tac&led if, by means of a radical social reform, early marriage is made easier thanhitherto% (his is the first preliminary necessity for the sol!tion of this problem%

'econdly, a whole series of false notions m!st be eradicated from o!r system of bringing !p and ed!cating

children - things which hitherto no one seems to have worried abo!t% In o!r present ed!cational system a

balance will have to be established, first and foremost, between mental instr!ction and physical training%/hat is &nown as 6ymnasi!m B6rammar 'choolC to-day is a positive ins!lt to the 6ree& instit!tion% O!r

system of ed!cation entirely loses sight of the fact that in the long r!n a healthy mind can e3ist only in a

healthy body% (his statement, with few e3ceptions, applies partic!larly to the broad masses of the nation%In the pre-/ar 6ermany there was a time when no one too& the tro!ble to thin& over this tr!th% (raining of



the body was criminally neglected, the one-sided training of the mind being regarded as a s!fficient

g!arantee for the nation#s greatness% (his mista&e was destined to show its effects sooner than had been

anticipated% It is not p!re chance that the olshevic teaching flo!rishes in those regions whose degenerate

pop!lation has been bro!ght to the verge of starvation, as, for e3ample, in the case of $entral 6ermany,'a3ony, and the 8!hr :alley% In all these districts there is a mar&ed absence of any serio!s resistance, even

by the so-called intellect!al classes, against this )ewish contagion% And the simple reason is that the

intellect!al classes are themselves physically degenerate, not thro!gh privation b!t thro!gh ed!cation% (he

e3cl!sive intellect!alism of the ed!cation in vog!e among o!r !pper classes ma&es them !nfit for life#sstr!ggle at an epoch in which physical force and not mind is the dominating factor% (h!s they are neither

capable of maintaining themselves nor of ma&ing their way in life% In nearly every case physical disability

is the forer!nner of personal cowardice%

(he e3travagant emphasis laid on p!rely intellect!al ed!cation and the conse+!ent neglect of physicaltraining m!st necessarily lead to se3!al tho!ghts in early yo!th% (hose boys whose constit!tions have been

trained and hardened by sports and gymnastics are less prone to se3!al ind!lgence than those stay-at-homes

who have been fed e3cl!sively with mental pab!l!m% 'o!nd methods of ed!cation cannot, however, afford

to disregard this, and we m!st not forget that the e3pectations of a healthy yo!ng man from a woman willdiffer from those of a wea&ling who has been premat!rely corr!pted%

(h!s in every branch of o!r ed!cation the day#s c!rric!l!m m!st be arranged so as to occ!py a boy#s free

time in profitable development of his physical powers% e has no right in those years to loaf abo!t,

becoming a n!isance in p!blic streets and in cinemas> b!t when his day#s wor& is done he o!ght to harden

his yo!ng body so that his strength may not be fo!nd wanting when the occasion arises% (o prepare for thisand to carry it o!t sho!ld be the f!nction of o!r ed!cational system and not e3cl!sively to p!mp in

&nowledge or wisdom% O!r school system m!st also rid itself of the notion that the training of the body is a

tas& that sho!ld be left to the individ!al himself% (here is no s!ch thing as allowing freedom of choice tosin against posterity and th!s against the race%

(he fight against poll!tion of the mind m!st be waged sim!ltaneo!sly with the training of the body% (o-day

the whole of o!r p!blic life may be compared to a hot-ho!se for the forced growth of se3!al notions and

incitements% A glance at the bill-of-fare provided by o!r cinemas, playho!ses, and theatres s!ffices to provethat this is not the right food, especially for o!r yo!ng people% oardings and advertisements &ios&s

combine to attract the p!blic in the most v!lgar manner% Anyone who has not altogether lost contact with

adolescent yearnings will realie that all this m!st have very grave conse+!ences% (his sed!ctive and

sens!o!s atmosphere p!ts notions into the heads of o!r yo!th which, at their age, o!ght still to be !n&nownto them% Mnfort!nately, the res!lts of this &ind of ed!cation can best be seen in o!r contemporary yo!th

who are premat!rely grown !p and therefore old before their time% (he law co!rts from time to time throwa distressing light on the spirit!al life of o!r 14- and 1=-year old children% /ho, therefore, will be s!rprised

to learn that venereal disease claims its victims at this age5 And is it not a frightf!l shame to see the n!mber of physically wea& and intellect!ally spoiled yo!ng men who have been introd!ced to the mysteries of

marriage by the whores of the big cities5

*o> those who want serio!sly to combat prostit!tion m!st first of all assist in removing the spirit!al

conditions on which it thrives% (hey will have to clean !p the moral poll!tion of o!r city c!lt!re# fearlesslyand witho!t regard for the o!tcry that will follow% If we do not drag o!r yo!th o!t of the morass of their

present environment they will be eng!lfed by it% (hose people who do not want to see these things are

deliberately enco!raging them and are g!ilty of spreading the effects of prostit!tion to the f!t!re - for the

f!t!re belongs to o!r yo!ng generation% (his process of cleansing o!r !lt!r# will have to be applied in practically all spheres% (he stage, art, literat!re, the cinema, the "ress and advertisement posters, all m!st

have the stains of poll!tion removed and be placed in the service of a national and c!lt!ral idea% (he life of

the people m!st be freed from the asphy3iating perf!me of o!r modern eroticism and also from every!nmanly and pr!dish form of insincerity% In all these things the aim and the method m!st be determined bytho!ghtf!l consideration for the preservation of o!r national well-being in body and so!l% (he right to

personal freedom comes second in importance to the d!ty of maintaining the race%

Only after s!ch meas!res have been p!t into practice can a medical campaign against this sco!rge begin

with some hope of s!ccess% !t, here again, half-meas!res will be val!eless% Far-reaching and importantdecisions will have to be made% It wo!ld be doing things by halves if inc!rables were given the opport!nity

of infecting one healthy person after another% (his wo!ld be that &ind of h!manitarianism which wo!ld

allow h!ndreds to perish in order to save the s!ffering of one individ!al% (he demand that it sho!ld bemade impossible for defective people to contin!e to propagate defective offspring is a demand that is based



on most reasonable gro!nds, and its proper f!lfilment is the most h!mane tas& that man&ind has to face%

Mnhappy and !ndeserved s!ffering in millions of cases will be spared, with the res!lt that there will be a

grad!al improvement in national health% A determined decision to act in this manner will at the same time

provide an obstacle against the f!rther spread of venereal disease% It wo!ld then be a case, where necessary,of mercilessly isolating all inc!rables - perhaps a barbaric meas!re for those !nfort!nates - b!t a blessing

for the present generation and for posterity% (he temporary pain th!s e3perienced in this cent!ry can and

will spare f!t!re tho!sands of generations from s!ffering%

(he fight against syphilis and its pace-ma&er, prostit!tion, is one of the gigantic tas&s of man&ind> gigantic, beca!se it is not merely a case of solving a single problem b!t the removal of a whole series of evils which

are the contrib!tory ca!ses of this sco!rge% ?isease of the body in this case is merely the res!lt of a

diseased condition of the moral, social, and racial instincts%

!t if for reasons of indolence or cowardice this fight is not fo!ght to a finish we may imagine whatconditions will be li&e =<< years hence% Little of 6od#s image will be left in h!man nat!re, e3cept to moc&

the $reator%

!t what has been done in 6ermany to co!nteract this sco!rge5 If we thin& calmly over the answer we

shall find it distressing% It is tr!e that in governmental circles the terrible and in!rio!s effects of thisdisease were well &nown, b!t the co!nter-meas!res which were officially adopted were ineffective and a

hopeless fail!re% (hey tin&ered with c!res for the symptoms, wholly regardless of the ca!se of the disease%

"rostit!tes were medically e3amined and controlled as far as possible, and when signs of infection were

apparent they were sent to hospital % /hen o!twardly c!red, they were once more let loose on h!manity%

It is tr!e that protective legislation# was introd!ced which made se3!al interco!rse a p!nishable offencefor all those not completely c!red, or those s!ffering from venereal disease% (his legislation was correct in

theory, b!t in practice it failed completely% In the first place, in the maority of cases women will decline to

appear in co!rt as witnesses against men who have robbed them of their health% /omen wo!ld be e3posedfar more than men to !ncharitable remar&s in s!ch cases, and one can imagine what their position wo!ld be

if they had been infected by their own h!sbands% 'ho!ld women in that case lay a charge5 Or what sho!ld

they do5

In the case of the man there is the additional fact that he fre+!ently is !nfort!nate eno!gh to r!n !p againstthis danger when he is !nder the infl!ence of alcohol% is condition ma&es it impossible for him to assess

the +!alities of his amoro!s bea!ty,# a fact which is well &nown to every diseased prostit!te and ma&es

them single o!t men in this ideal condition for preference% (he res!lt is that the !nfort!nate man is not able

to recollect later on who his compassionate benefactress was, which is not s!rprising in cities li&e erlinand !nich% any of s!ch cases are visitors from the provinces who, held speechless and enthralled by the

magic charm of city life, become an easy prey for prostit!tes%In the final analysis who is able to say whether he has been infected or not5

Are there not inn!merable cases on record where an apparently c!red person has a relapse and does !ntoldharm witho!t &nowing it5

(herefore in practice the res!lts of these legislative meas!res are negative% (he same applies to the control

of prostit!tion, and, finally, even medical treatment and c!re are nowadays !nsafe and do!btf!l% One thing

only is certain% (he sco!rge has spread f!rther and f!rther in spite of all meas!res, and this alone s!fficesdefinitely to stamp and s!bstantiate their inefficiency%

7verything else that was !nderta&en was !st as inefficient as it was abs!rd% (he spirit!al prostit!tion of the

people was neither arrested nor was anything whatsoever !nderta&en in this direction%

(hose, however, who do not regard this s!bect as a serio!s one wo!ld do well to e3amine the statisticaldata of the spread of this disease, st!dy its growth in the last cent!ry and contemplate the possibilities of its

f!rther development% (he ordinary observer, !nless he were partic!larly st!pid, wo!ld e3perience a cold

sh!dder if the position were made clear to him%(he half-hearted and wavering attit!de adopted in pre-/ar 6ermany towards this ini+!ito!s condition canass!redly be ta&en as a visible sign of national decay% /hen the co!rage to fight for one#s own health is no

longer in evidence, then the right to live in this world of str!ggle also ceases%

One of the visible signs of decay in the old 8eich was the slow setbac& which the general c!lt!ral level

e3perienced% !t by !lt!r# I do not mean that which we nowadays style as civiliation, which on thecontrary may rather be regarded as inimical to the spirit!al elevation of life%

At the t!rn of the last cent!ry a new element began to ma&e its appearance in o!r world% It was an element

which had been hitherto absol!tely !n&nown and foreign to !s% In former times there had certainly beenoffences against good taste> b!t these were mostly depart!res from the orthodo3 canons of art, and posterity



co!ld recognie a certain historical val!e in them% !t the new prod!cts showed signs, not only of artistic

aberration b!t of spirit!al degeneration% ere, in the c!lt!ral sphere, the signs of the coming collapse first

became manifest%

(he olsheviation of art is the only c!lt!ral form of life and the only spirit!al manifestation of whicholshevism is capable%

Anyone to whom this statement may appear strange need only ta&e a glance at those l!c&y 'tates which

have become olshevied and, to his horror, he will there recognie those morbid monstrosities which have

been prod!ced by insane and degenerate people% All those artistic aberrations which are classified !nder thenames of c!bism and dadism, since the opening of the present cent!ry, are manifestations of art which have

come to be officially recognied by the 'tate itself% (his phenomenon made its appearance even d!ring the

short-lived period of the 'oviet 8ep!blic in avaria% At that time one might easily have recognied how all

the official posters, propagandist pict!res and newspapers, etc%, showed signs not only of political b!t alsoof c!lt!ral decadence%

Abo!t si3ty years ago a political collapse s!ch as we are e3periencing to-day wo!ld have been !st as

inconceivable as the c!lt!ral decline which has been manifested in c!bist and f!t!rist pict!res ever since

19<<% 'i3ty years ago an e3hibition of so-called dadistic e3periences# wo!ld have been an absol!tely prepostero!s idea% (he organiers of s!ch an e3hibition wo!ld then have been certified for the l!natic

asyl!m, whereas, to-day they are appointed presidents of art societies% At that time s!ch an epidemic wo!ld

never have been allowed to spread% "!blic opinion wo!ld not have tolerated it, and the 6overnment wo!ld

not have remained silent> for it is the d!ty of a 6overnment to save its people from being stampeded into

s!ch intellect!al madness% !t intellect!al madness wo!ld have res!lted from a development that followedthe acceptance of this &ind of art% It wo!ld have mar&ed one of the worst changes in h!man history> for it

wo!ld have meant that a retrogressive process had beg!n to ta&e place in the h!man brain, the final stages

of which wo!ld be !nthin&able%If we st!dy the co!rse of o!r c!lt!ral life d!ring the last twenty-five years we shall be astonished to note

how far we have already gone in this process of retrogression% 7verywhere we find the presence of those

germs which give rise to prot!berant growths that m!st sooner or later bring abo!t the r!in of o!r c!lt!re%

ere we find !ndo!bted symptoms of slow corr!ption> and woe to the nations that are no longer able to bring that morbid process to a halt%

In almost all the vario!s fields of 6erman art and c!lt!re those morbid phenomena may be observed% ere

everything seems to have passed the c!lminating point of its e3cellence and to have entered the c!rve of a

hasty decline% At the beginning of the cent!ry the theatres seemed already degenerating and ceasing to bec!lt!ral factors, e3cept the $o!rt theatres, which opposed this prostit!tion of the national art% /ith these

e3ceptions, and also a few other decent instit!tions, the plays prod!ced on the stage were of s!ch a nat!rethat the people wo!ld 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 doors0 For Ad!lts Only%Let it be borne in mind that these preca!tions had to be ta&en in regard to instit!tions whose main p!rpose

sho!ld have been to promote the ed!cation of the yo!th and not merely to provide am!sement for

sophisticated ad!lts% /hat wo!ld the great dramatists of other times have said of s!ch meas!res and, above

all, of the conditions which made these meas!res necessary5 ow e3asperated 'chiller wo!ld have been,and how 6oethe wo!ld have t!rned away in disg!stJ

!t what are 'chiller, 6oethe and 'ha&espeare when confronted with the heroes of o!r modern 6erman

literat!re5 Old and frowsy and o!tmoded and finished% For it was typical of this epoch that not only were

its own prod!cts bad b!t that the a!thors of s!ch prod!cts and their bac&ers reviled everything that hadreally been great in the past% (his is a phenomenon that is very characteristic of s!ch epochs% (he more vile

and miserable are the men and prod!cts of an epoch, the more they will hate and denigrate the ideal

achievements of former generations% /hat these people wo!ld li&e best wo!ld be completely to destroyevery vestige of the past, in order to do away with that sole standard of comparison which prevents their own da!bs from being loo&ed !pon as art% (herefore the more lamentable and wretched are the prod!cts of

each new era, the more it will try to obliterate all the memorials of the past% !t any real innovation that is

for the benefit of man&ind can always face comparison with the best of what has gone before> and

fre+!ently it happens that those mon!ments of the past g!arantee the acceptance of those modern prod!ctions% (here is no fear that modern prod!ctions of real worth will loo& pale and worthless beside the

mon!ments of the past% /hat is contrib!ted to the general treas!ry of h!man c!lt!re often f!lfils a part that

is necessary in order to &eep the memory of old achievements alive, beca!se this memory alone is thestandard whereby o!r own wor&s are properly appreciated% Only those who have nothing of val!e to give to



the world will oppose everything that already e3ists and wo!ld have it destroyed at all costs%

And this holds good not only for new phenomena in the c!lt!ral domain b!t also in politics% (he more

inferior new revol!tionary movements are, the more will they try to denigrate the old forms% ere again the

desire to pawn off their shoddy prod!cts as great and original achievements leads them into a blind hatredagainst everything which belongs to the past and which is s!perior to their own wor&% As long as the

historical memory of Frederic& the 6reat, for instance, still lives, Frederic& 7bert can aro!se only a

problematic admiration% (he relation of the hero of 'ans 'o!ci to the former rep!blican of remen may be

compared to that of the s!n to the moon> for the moon can shine only after the direct rays of the s!n haveleft the earth% (h!s we can readily !nderstand why it is that all the new moons in h!man history have hated

the fi3ed stars% In the field of politics, if Fate sho!ld happen temporarily to place the r!ling power in the

hands of those nonentities they are not only eager to defile and revile the past b!t at the same time they will

!se all means to evade criticism of their own acts% (he Law for the "rotection of the 8ep!blic, which thenew 6erman 'tate enacted, may be ta&en as one e3ample of this tr!th%

One has good gro!nds to be s!spicio!s 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 prod!ced or to present it

as inferior and worthless% Any renovation which is really beneficial to h!man progress will always have to begin its constr!ctive wor& at the level where the last stones of the str!ct!re have been laid% It need not

bl!sh to !tilie those tr!ths which have already been established> for all h!man c!lt!re, as well as man

himself, is only the res!lt of one long line of development, where each generation has contrib!ted b!t one

stone to the b!ilding of the whole str!ct!re% (he meaning and p!rpose of revol!tions cannot be to tear

down the whole b!ilding b!t to ta&e away what has not been well fitted into it or is !ns!itable, and toreb!ild the free space th!s ca!sed, after which the main constr!ction of the b!ilding will be carried on%

(h!s alone will it be possible to tal& of h!man progress> for otherwise the world wo!ld never be free of

chaos, since each generation wo!ld feel entitled to reect the past and to destroy all the wor& of the past, asthe necessary preliminary to any new wor& of its own%

(he saddest feat!re of the condition in which o!r whole civiliation fo!nd itself before the /ar was the fact

that it was not only barren of any creative force to prod!ce its own wor&s of art and civiliation b!t that it

hated, defiled and tried to efface the memory of the s!perior wor&s prod!ced in the past% Abo!t the end of the last cent!ry people were less interested in prod!cing new significant wor&s of their own - partic!larly in

the fields of dramatic art and literat!re - than in defaming the best wor&s of the past and in presenting them

as inferior and anti+!ated% As if this period of disgracef!l decadence had the slightest capacity to prod!ce

anything of s!perior +!alityJ (he efforts made to conceal the past from the eyes of the present affordedclear evidence of the fact that these apostles of the f!t!re acted from an evil intent% (hese symptoms sho!ld

have made it clear to all that it was not a +!estion of new, tho!gh wrong, c!lt!ral ideas b!t of a processwhich was !ndermining the very fo!ndations of civiliation% It threw the artistic feeling which had hitherto

been +!ite sane into !tter conf!sion, th!s spirit!ally preparing the way for political olshevism% If thecreative spirit of the "ericlean age be manifested in the "arthenon, then the olshevist era is manifested

thro!gh its c!bist grimace%

In this connection attention m!st be drawn once again to the want of co!rage displayed by one section of

o!r people, namely, by those who, in virt!e of their ed!cation and position, o!ght to have felt themselvesobliged to ta&e !p a firm stand against this o!trage on o!r c!lt!re% !t they refrained from offering serio!s

resistance and s!rrendered to what they considered the inevitable% (his abdication of theirs was d!e,

however, to sheer f!n& lest the apostles of olshevist art might raise a r!mp!s> for those apostles always

violently attac&ed everyone who was not ready to recognie them as the choice spirits of artistic creation,and they tried to strangle all opposition by saying that it was the prod!ct of philistine and bac&water minds%

"eople trembled in fear lest they might be acc!sed by these yahoos and swindlers of lac&ing artistic

appreciation, as if it wo!ld have been a disgrace not to be able to !nderstand and appreciate the eff!sions of those mental degenerates or arrant rog!es% (hose c!lt!ral disciples, however, had a very simple way of presenting their own eff!sions as wor&s of the highest +!ality% (hey offered incomprehensible and

manifestly cray prod!ctions to their amaed contemporaries as what they called an inner e3perience#%

(h!s they forestalled all adverse criticism at very little cost indeed% Of co!rse nobody ever do!bted that

there co!ld have been inner e3periences li&e that, b!t some do!bt o!ght to have arisen as to whether or notthere was any !stification for e3posing these hall!cinations of psychopaths or criminals to the sane portion

of h!man society% (he wor&s prod!ced by a orit von 'chwind or a Rc&lin were also e3ternaliations of

an inner e3perience, b!t these were the e3periences of divinely gifted artists and not of b!ffoons%(his sit!ation afforded a good opport!nity of st!dying the miserable cowardliness of o!r so-called



intellect!als who shir&ed the d!ty of offering serio!s resistance to the poisoning of the so!nd instincts of

o!r people% (hey left it to the people themselves to form!late their own attit!de towards his imp!dent

nonsense% Lest they might be considered as !nderstanding nothing of art, they accepted every caricat!re of

art, !ntil they finally lost the power of !dging what is really good or bad%(a&en all in all, there were s!perab!ndant symptoms to show that a diseased epoch had beg!n%

'till another critical symptom has to be considered% In the co!rse of the nineteenth cent!ry o!r towns and

cities began more and more to lose their character as centres of civiliation and became more and more

centres of habitation% In o!r great modern cities the proletariat does not show m!ch attachment to the placewhere it lives% (his feeling res!lts from the fact that their dwelling-place is nothing b!t an accidental abode,

and that feeling is also partly d!e to the fre+!ent change of residence which is forced !pon them by social

conditions% (here is no time for the growth of any attachment to the town in which they live% !t another

reason lies in the c!lt!ral barrenness and s!perficiality of o!r modern cities% At the time of the 6erman/ars of Liberation o!r 6erman towns and cities were not only small in n!mber b!t also very modest in

sie% (he few that co!ld really be called great cities were mostly the residential cities of princes> as s!ch

they had almost always a definite c!lt!ral val!e and also a definite c!lt!ral aspect% (hose few towns which

had more than fifty tho!sand inhabitants were, in comparison with modern cities of the same sie, rich inscientific and artistic treas!res% At the time when !nich had not more than si3ty tho!sand so!ls it was

already well on the way to become one of the first 6erman centres of art% *owadays almost every ind!strial

town has a pop!lation at least as large as that, witho!t having anything of real val!e to call its own% (hey

are agglomerations of tenement ho!ses and congested dwelling barrac&s, and nothing else% It wo!ld be a

miracle if anybody sho!ld grow sentimentally attached to s!ch a meaningless place% *obody can growattached to a place which offers only !st as m!ch or as little as any other place wo!ld offer, which has no

character of its own and where obvio!sly pains have been ta&en to avoid everything that might have any

resemblance to an artistic appearance%!t this is not all% 7ven the great cities become more barren of real wor&s of art the more they increase in

pop!lation% (hey ass!me more and more a ne!tral atmosphere and present the same aspect, tho!gh on a

larger scale, as the wretched little factory towns% 7verything that o!r modern age has contrib!ted to the

civiliation of o!r great cities is absol!tely deficient% All o!r towns are living on the glory and the treas!resof the past% If we ta&e away from the !nich of to-day everything that was created !nder L!dwig II we

sho!ld be horror-stric&en to see how meagre has been the o!tp!t of important artistic creations since that

time% One might say m!ch the same of erlin and most of o!r other great towns%

!t the following is the essential thing to be noticed0 O!r great modern cities have no o!tstandingmon!ments that dominate the general aspect of the city and co!ld be pointed to as the symbols of a whole

epoch% Net almost every ancient town had a mon!ment erected to its glory% It was not in private dwellingsthat the characteristic art of ancient cities was displayed b!t in the p!blic mon!ments, which were not

meant to have a transitory interest b!t an end!ring one% And this was beca!se they did not represent thewealth of some individ!al citien b!t the greatness and importance of the comm!nity% It was !nder this

inspiration that those mon!ments arose which bo!nd the individ!al inhabitants to their own town in a

manner that is often almost incomprehensible to !s to-day% /hat str!c& the eye of the individ!al citien was

not a n!mber of mediocre private b!ildings, b!t imposing str!ct!res that belonged to the whole comm!nity%In contradistinction to these, private dwellings were of only very secondary importance indeed%

/hen we compare the sie of those ancient p!blic b!ildings with that of the private dwellings belonging to

the same epoch then we can !nderstand the great importance which was given to the principle that those

wor&s which reflected and affected the life of the comm!nity sho!ld ta&e precedence of all others%Among the bro&en arches and vast spaces that are covered with r!ins from the ancient world the colossal

riches that still aro!se o!r wonder have not been left to !s from the commercial palaces of these days b!t

from the temples of the 6ods and the p!blic edifices that belonged to the 'tate% (he comm!nity itself wasthe owner of those great edifices% 7ven in the pomp of 8ome d!ring the decadence it was not the villas and palaces of some citiens that filled the most prominent place b!t rather the temples and the baths, the

stadia, the circ!ses, the a+!ed!cts, the basilicas, etc%, which belonged to the 'tate and therefore to the

people as a whole%

In medieval 6ermany also the same principle held sway, altho!gh the artistic o!tloo& was +!ite different% Inancient times the theme that fo!nd its e3pression in the Acropolis or the "antheon was now clothed in the

forms of the 6othic $athedral% In the medieval cities these mon!mental str!ct!res towered gigantically

above the swarm of smaller b!ildings with their framewor& walls of wood and bric&% And they remain thedominant feat!re of these cities even to o!r own day, altho!gh they are becoming more and more obsc!red



by the apartment barrac&s% (hey determine the character and appearance of the locality% $athedrals, city-

halls, corn e3changes, defence towers, are the o!tward e3pression of an idea which has its co!nterpart only

in the ancient world%

(he dimensions and +!ality of o!r p!blic b!ildings to-day are in deplorable contrast to the edifices thatrepresent private interests% If a similar fate sho!ld befall erlin as befell 8ome f!t!re generations might

gae !pon the r!ins of some )ewish department stores or oint-stoc& hotels and thin& that these were the

characteristic e3pressions of the c!lt!re of o!r time% In erlin itself, compare the shamef!l disproportion

between the b!ildings which belong to the 8eich and those which have been erected for theaccommodation of trade and finance%

(he credits that are voted for p!blic b!ildings are in most cases inade+!ate and really ridic!lo!s% (hey are

not b!ilt as str!ct!res that were meant to last b!t mostly for the p!rpose of answering the need of the

moment% *o higher idea infl!enced those who commissioned s!ch b!ildings% At the time the erlin 'chlosswas b!ilt it had a +!ite different significance from what the new library has for o!r time, seeing that one

battleship alone represents an e3pendit!re of abo!t si3ty million mar&s, whereas less than half that s!m was

allotted for the b!ilding of the 8eichstag, which is the most imposing str!ct!re erected for the 8eich and

which sho!ld have been b!ilt to last for ages% Net, in deciding the +!estion of internal decoration, the Mpper o!se voted against the !se of stone and ordered that the walls sho!ld be covered with st!cco% For once,

however, the parliamentarians made an appropriate decision on that occasion> for plaster heads wo!ld be

o!t of place between stone walls%

(he comm!nity as s!ch is not the dominant characteristic of o!r contemporary cities, and therefore it is not

to be wondered at if the comm!nity does not find itself architect!rally represented% (h!s we m!stevent!ally arrive at a veritable civic desert which will at last be reflected in the total indifference of the

individ!al citien towards his own co!ntry%

(his is also a sign of o!r c!lt!ral decay and general brea&-!p% O!r era is entirely preocc!pied with littlethings which are to no p!rpose, or rather it is entirely preocc!pied in the service of money% (herefore it is

not to be wondered at if, with the worship of s!ch an idol, the sense of heroism sho!ld entirely disappear%

!t the present is only reaping what the past has sown%

All these symptoms which preceded the final collapse of the 'econd 7mpire m!st be attrib!ted to the lac& of a definite and !niformly accepted Weltanschhauung and the general !ncertainty of o!tloo& conse+!ent

on that lac&% (his !ncertainty showed itself when the great +!estions of the time had to be considered one

after another and a decisive policy adopted towards them% (his lac& is also acco!ntable for the habit of

doing everything by halves, beginning with the ed!cational system, the shilly-shally, the rel!ctance to!nderta&e responsibilites and, finally, the cowardly tolerance of evils that were even admitted to be

destr!ctive% :isionary h!manitarianisms became the fashion% In wea&ly s!bmitting to these aberrations andsparing the feelings of the individ!al, the f!t!re of millions of h!man beings was sacrificed%

An e3amination of the religio!s sit!ation before the /ar shows that the general process of disr!ption hade3tended to this sphere also% A great part of the nation itself had for a long time already ceased to have any

convictions of a !niform and practical character in their ideological o!tloo& on life% In this matter the point

of primary importance was by no means the n!mber of people who reno!nced their ch!rch membership b!t

rather the widespread indifference% /hile the two $hristian denominations maintained missions in Asia andAfrica, for the p!rpose of sec!ring new adherents to the Faith, these same denominations were losing

millions and millions of their adherents at home in 7!rope% (hese former adherents either gave !p religion

wholly as a directive force in their lives or they adopted their own interpretation of it% (he conse+!ences of

this were specially felt in the moral life of the co!ntry% In parenthesis it may be remar&ed that the progressmade by the missions in spreading the $hristian Faith abroad was only +!ite modest in comparison with the

spread of ohammedanism%

It m!st be noted too that the attac& on the dogmatic principles !nderlying ecclesiastical teaching increasedsteadily in violence% And yet this h!man world of o!rs wo!ld be inconceivable witho!t the practicale3istence of a religio!s belief% (he great masses of a nation are not composed of philosophers% For the

masses of the people, especially faith is absol!tely the only basis of a moral o!tloo& on life% (he vario!s

s!bstit!tes that have been offered have not shown any res!lts that might warrant !s in thin&ing that they

might !sef!lly replace the e3isting denominations% !t if religio!s teaching and religio!s faith were onceaccepted by the broad masses as active forces in their lives, then the absol!te a!thority of the doctrines of

faith wo!ld be the fo!ndation of all practical effort% (here may be a few h!ndreds of tho!sands of s!perior

men who can live wisely and intelligently witho!t depending on the general standards that prevail ineveryday life, b!t the millions of others cannot do so% *ow the place which general c!stom fills in everyday



life corresponds to that of general laws in the 'tate and dogma in religion% (he p!rely spirit!al idea is of

itself a changeable thing that may be s!bected to endless interpretations% It is only thro!gh dogma that it is

given a precise and concrete form witho!t which it co!ld not become a living faith% Otherwise the spirit!al

idea wo!ld never become anything more than a mere metaphysical concept, or rather a philosophicalopinion% Accordingly the attac& against dogma is comparable to an attac& against the general laws on which

the 'tate is fo!nded% And so this attac& wo!ld finally lead to complete political anarchy if it were

s!ccessf!l, !st as the attac& on religion wo!ld lead to a worthless religio!s nihilism%

(he political leader sho!ld not estimate the worth of a religion by ta&ing some of its shortcomings intoacco!nt, b!t he sho!ld as& himself whether there be any practical s!bstit!te in a view which is

demonstrably better% Mntil s!ch a s!bstit!te be available only fools and criminals wo!ld thin& of abolishing

the e3isting religion%

Mndo!btedly no small amo!nt of blame for the present !nsatisfactory religio!s sit!ation m!st be attrib!tedto those who have enc!mbered the ideal of religion with p!rely material accessories and have th!s given

rise to an !tterly f!tile conflict between religion and science% In this conflict victory will nearly always be

on the side of science, even tho!gh after a bitter str!ggle, while religion will s!ffer heavily in the eyes of

those who cannot penetrate beneath the mere s!perficial aspects of science%!t the greatest damage of all has come from the practice of debasing religion as a means that can be

e3ploited to serve political interests, or rather commercial interests% (he imp!dent and lo!d-mo!thed liars

who do this ma&e 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 b!t rather that they may live all the

better% (hey are ready to sell their faith for any political +!id pro +!o% For ten parliamentary mandates theywo!ld ally themselves with the ar3ists, who are the mortal foes of all religion% And for a seat in the

$abinet they wo!ld go the length of wedloc& with the devil, if the latter had not still retained some traces of

decency%If religio!s life in pre-war 6ermany had a disagreeable savo!r for the mo!ths of many people this was

beca!se $hristianity had been lowered to base !ses by political parties that called themselves $hristian and

beca!se of the shamef!l way in which they tried to identify the $atholic Faith with a political party%

(his s!bstit!tion was fatal% It proc!red some worthless parliamentary mandates for the party in +!estion, b!t the $h!rch s!ffered damage thereby%

(he conse+!ences of that sit!ation had to be borne by the whole nation> for the la3ity that res!lted in

religio!s life set in at a !nct!re when everything was beginning to lose hold and vacillate and the

traditional fo!ndations of c!stom and of morality were threatening to fall as!nder%Net all those crac&s and clefts in the social organism might not have been dangero!s if no grave b!rdens

had been laid !pon it> b!t they became disastro!s when the internal solidarity of the nation was the mostimportant factor in withstanding the storm of big events%

In the political field also observant eyes might have noticed certain anomalies of the 8eich which foretolddisaster !nless some alteration and correction too& place in time% (he lac& of orientation in 6erman policy,

both domestic and foreign, was obvio!s to everyone who was not p!rposely blind% (he best thing that co!ld

be said abo!t the practice of ma&ing compromises is that it seemed o!twardly to be in harmony with

ismarc&#s a3iom that politics is the art of the possible#% !t ismarc& was a slightly different man fromthe $hancellors who followed him% (his difference allowed the former to apply that form!la to the very

essence of his policy, while in the mo!ths of the others it too& on an !tterly different significance% /hen he

!ttered that phrase ismarc& meant to say that in order to attain a definite political end all possible means

sho!ld be employed or at least that all possibilities sho!ld be tried% !t his s!ccessors see in that phraseonly a solemn declaration that one is not necessarily bo!nd to have political principles or any definite

political aims at all% And the political leaders of the 8eich at that time had no far-seeing policy% ere, again,

the necessary fo!ndation was lac&ing, namely, a definite Weltanschhauung , and these leaders also lac&edthat clear insight into the laws of political evol!tion which is a necessary +!ality in political leadership%any people who too& a gloomy view of things at that time condemned the lac& of ideas and lac& of

orientation which were evident in directing the policy of the 8eich% (hey recognied the inner wea&ness

and f!tility of this policy% !t s!ch people played only a secondary role in politics% (hose who had the

6overnment of the co!ntry in their hands were +!ite as indifferent to principles of civil wisdom laid down by thin&ers li&e o!ston 'tewart $hamberlain as o!r political leaders now are% (hese people are too st!pid

to thin& for themselves, and they have too m!ch self-conceit to ta&e from others the instr!ction which they

need% O3enstierna 14C gave e3pression to a tr!th which has lasted since time immemorial, when he said thatthe world is governed by only a particle of wisdom% Almost every civil servant of co!ncillor ran& might



nat!rally be s!pposed to possess only an atom or so belonging to this particle% !t since 6ermany became a

8ep!blic even this modic!m is wanting% And that is why they had to prom!lgate the Law for the ?efence

of the 8ep!blic, which prohibits the holding of s!ch views or e3pressing them% It was fort!nate for

O3enstierna that he lived at that time and not in this wise 8ep!blic of o!r time%Already before the /ar that instit!tion which sho!ld have represented the strength of the 8eich - the

"arliament, the 8eichstag - was widely recognied as its wea&est feat!re% $owardliness and fear of

sho!ldering responsibilities were associated together there in a perfect fashion%

One of the silliest notions that one hears e3pressed to-day is that in 6ermany the parliamentary instit!tionhas ceased to f!nction since the 8evol!tion% (his might easily be ta&en to imply that the case was different

before the 8evol!tion% !t in reality the parliamentary instit!tion never f!nctioned e3cept to the detriment

of the co!ntry% And it f!nctioned th!s in those days when people saw nothing or did not wish to see

anything% (he 6erman downfall is to be attrib!ted in no small degree to this instit!tion% !t that thecatastrophe did not ta&e place sooner is not to be credited to the "arliament b!t rather to those who opposed

the infl!ence of this instit!tion which, d!ring peace times, was digging the grave of the 6erman *ation and

the 6erman 8eich%

From the immense mass of devastating evils that were d!e either directly or indirectly to the "arliament Ishall select one the most intimately typical of this instit!tion which was the most irresponsible of all time%

(he evil I spea& of was seen in the appalling shilly-shally and wea&ness in cond!cting the internal and

e3ternal affairs of the 8eich% It was attrib!table in the first place to the action of the 8eichstag and was one

of the principal ca!ses of the political collapse%

7verything s!bect to the infl!ence of "arliament was done by halves, no matter from what aspect yo! mayregard it%

(he foreign policy of the 8eich in the matter of alliances was an e3ample of shilly-shally% (hey wished to

maintain peace, b!t in doing so they steered straight% into war%(heir "olish policy was also carried o!t by half-meas!res% It res!lted neither in a 6erman tri!mph nor

"olish conciliation, and it made enemies of the 8!ssians%

(hey tried to solve the Alsace-Lorraine +!estion thro!gh half-meas!res% Instead of cr!shing the head of the

French hydra once and for all with the mailed fist and granting Alsace-Lorraine e+!al rights with the other 6erman 'tates, they did neither the one nor the other% Anyhow, it was impossible for them to do otherwise,

for they had among their ran&s the greatest traitors to the co!ntry, s!ch as err /etterl of the $entre "arty%

!t still the co!ntry might have been able to bear with all this provided the half-meas!re policy had not

victimied that force in which, as the last resort, the e3istence of the 7mpire depended0 namely, the Army%(he crime committed by the so-called 6erman 8eichstag in this regard was s!fficient of itself to draw

down !pon it the c!rses of the 6erman *ation for all time% On the most miserable of prete3ts these parliamentary party henchmen filched from the hands of the nation and threw away the weapons which

were needed to maintain its e3istence and therewith defend the liberty and independence of o!r people% If the graves on the plains of Flanders were to open to-day the bloodstained acc!sers wo!ld arise, h!ndreds of

tho!sands of o!r best 6erman yo!th who were driven into the arms of death by those conscienceless

parliamentary r!ffians who were either wrongly ed!cated for their tas& or only half-ed!cated% (hose

yo!ths, and other millions of the &illed and m!tilated, were lost to the Fatherland simply and solely in order that a few h!ndred deceivers of the people might carry o!t their political manoe!vres and their e3actions or

even treasonably p!rs!e their doctrinaire theories%

y means of the ar3ist and democratic "ress, the )ews spread the colossal falsehood abo!t 6erman

ilitarism# thro!gho!t the world and tried to inc!lpate 6ermany by every possible means, while at thesame time the ar3ist and democratic parties ref!sed to assent to the meas!res that were necessary for the

ade+!ate training of o!r national defence forces% (he appalling crime th!s committed by these people o!ght

to have been obvio!s to everybody who foresaw that in case of war the whole nation wo!ld have to becalled to arms and that, beca!se of the mean h!c&stering of these noble representatives of the people#, asthey called themselves, millions of 6ermans wo!ld have to face the enemy ill-e+!ipped and ins!fficiently

trained% !t even apart from the conse+!ences of the cr!de and br!tal lac& of conscience which these

parliamentarian rascals displayed, it was +!ite clear that the lac& of properly trained soldiers at the

beginning of a war wo!ld most probably lead to the loss of s!ch a war> and this probability was confirmedin a most terrible way d!ring the co!rse of the world war%

(herefore the 6erman people lost the str!ggle for the freedom and independence of their co!ntry beca!se

of the half-hearted and defective policy employed d!ring times of peace in the organiation and training of the defensive strength of the nation%



(he n!mber of recr!its trained for the land forces was too small> b!t the same half-heartedness was shown

in regard to the navy and made this weapon of national self-preservation more or less ineffective%

Mnfort!nately, even the naval a!thorities themselves were contaminated with this spirit of half-heartedness%

(he tendency to b!ild the ship on the stoc&s somewhat smaller than that !st la!nched by the ritish did notshow m!ch foresight and less geni!s% A fleet which cannot be bro!ght to the same n!merical strength as

that of the probable enemy o!ght to compensate for this inferiority by the s!perior fighting power of the

individ!al ship% It is the weight of the fighting power that co!nts and not any sort of traditional +!ality% As a

matter of fact, modern technical development is so advanced and so well proportioned among the vario!scivilied 'tates that it m!st be loo&ed on as practically impossible for one "ower to b!ild vessels which

wo!ld have a s!perior fighting +!ality to that of the vessels of e+!al sie b!ilt by the other "owers% !t it is

even less feasible to b!ild vessels of smaller displacement which will be s!perior in action to those of larger

displacement%As a matter of fact, the smaller proportions of the 6erman vessels co!ld be maintained only at the e3pense

of speed and armament% (he phrase !sed to !stify this policy was in itself an evidence of the lac& of logical

thin&ing on the part of the naval a!thorities who were in charge of these matters in times of peace% (hey

declared that the 6erman g!ns were definitely s!perior to the ritish .<%= cm% as regards stri&ingefficiency%

!t that was !st why they sho!ld have adopted the policy of b!ilding .<%= cm% g!ns also> for it o!ght to

have been their obect not to achieve e+!ality b!t s!periority in fighting strength% If that were not so then it

wo!ld have been s!perfl!o!s to e+!ip the land forces with 42 cm% mortars> for the 6erman 21 cm% mortar

co!ld be far s!perior to any high-angle g!ns which the French possessed at that time and since thefortresses co!ld probably have been ta&en by means of .<%= cm% mortars% (he army a!thorities

!nfort!nately failed to do so% If they refrained from ass!ring s!perior efficiency in the artillery as in the

velocity, this was beca!se of the f!ndamentally false principle of ris&# which they adopted% (he navala!thorities, already in times of peace, reno!nced the principle of attac& and th!s had to follow a defensive

policy from the very beginning of the /ar% !t by this attit!de they reno!nced also the chances of final

s!ccess, which can be achieved only by an offensive policy%

A vessel with slower speed and wea&er armament will be crippled and battered by an adversary that isfaster and stronger and can fre+!ently shoot from a favo!rable distance% A large n!mber of cr!isers have

been thro!gh bitter e3periences in this matter% ow wrong were the ideas prevalent among the naval

a!thorities in times of peace was proved d!ring the /ar% (hey were compelled to modify the armament of

the old vessels and to e+!ip the new ones with better armament whenever there was a chance to do so% If the 6erman vessels in the attle of the '&agerra& had been of e+!al sie, the same armament and the same

speed as the 7nglish, the ritish Fleet wo!ld have gone down !nder the tempest of the 6erman .;centimeter shells, which hit their aims more acc!rately and were more effective%

)apan had followed a different &ind of naval policy% (here, care was principally ta&en to create with everysingle new vessel a fighting force that wo!ld be s!perior to those of the event!al adversaries% !t, beca!se

of this policy, it was afterwards possible to !se the fleet for the offensive%

/hile the army a!thorities ref!sed to adopt s!ch f!ndamentally erroneo!s principles, the navy - which

!nfort!nately had more representatives in "arliament - s!cc!mbed to the spirit that r!led there% (he navywas not organied on a strong basis, and it was later !sed in an !nsystematic and irresol!te way% (he

immortal glory which the navy won, in spite of these drawbac&s, m!st be entirely credited to the good wor&

and the efficiency and incomparable heroism of officers and crews% If the former commanders-in-chief had

been inspired with the same &ind of geni!s all the sacrifices wo!ld not have been in vain%It was probably the very parliamentarian s&ill displayed by the chief of the navy d!ring the years of peace

which later became the ca!se of the fatal collapse, since parliamentarian considerations had beg!n to play a

more important role in the constr!ction of the navy than fighting considerations% (he irresol!tion, thewea&ness and the fail!re to adopt a logically consistent policy, which is typical of the parliamentarysystem, contaminated the naval a!thorities%

As I have already emphasied, the military a!thorities did not allow themselves to be led astray by s!ch

f!ndamentally erroneo!s ideas% L!dendorff, who was then a $olonel in the 6eneral 'taff, led a desperate

str!ggle against the criminal vacillations with which the 8eichstag treated the most vital problems of thenation and in most cases voted against them% If the fight which this officer then waged remained

!ns!ccessf!l this m!st be debited to the "arliament and partly also to the wretched and wea& attit!de of the

$hancellor, ethmann-ollweg%Net those who are responsible for 6ermany#s collapse do not hesitate now to lay all the blame on the



sho!lders of the one man who too& a firm stand against the neglectf!l manner in which the interests of the

nation were managed% !t one falsehood more or less ma&es no difference to these congenital tric&sters%

Anybody who thin&s of all the sacrifices which this nation has had to bear, as a res!lt of the criminal

neglect of those irresponsible individ!als> anybody who thin&s of the n!mber of those who died or weremaimed !nnecessarily> anybody who thin&s of the deplorable shame and dishono!r which has been heaped

!pon !s and of the illimitable distress into which o!r people are now pl!nged - anybody who realies that

in order to prepare the way to a few seats in "arliament for some !nscr!p!lo!s place-h!nters and arrivists

will !nderstand that s!ch hirelings can be called by no other name than that of rascal and criminal> for otherwise those words co!ld have no meaning% In comparison with traitors who betrayed the nation#s tr!st

every other &ind of twister may be loo&ed !pon as an hono!rable man%

It was a pec!liar feat!re of the sit!ation that all the real fa!lts of the old 6ermany were e3posed to the

p!blic gae only when the inner solidarity of the nation co!ld be in!red by doing so% (hen, indeed,!npleasant tr!ths were openly proclaimed in the ears of the broad masses, while many other things were at

other times shamef!lly h!shed !p or their e3istence simply denied, especially at times when an open

disc!ssion of s!ch problems might have led to an improvement in their regard% (he higher government

a!thorities &new little or nothing of the nat!re and !se of propaganda in s!ch matters% Only the )ew &newthat by an able and persistent !se of propaganda heaven itself can be presented to the people as if it were

hell and, vice versa, the most miserable &ind of life can be presented as if it were paradise% (he )ew &new

this and acted accordingly% !t the 6erman, or rather his 6overnment, did not have the slightest s!spicion

of it% ?!ring the /ar the heaviest of penalties had to be paid for that ignorance%

Over against the inn!merable drawbac&s which I have mentioned here and which affected 6erman life before the /ar there were many o!tstanding feat!res on the positive side% If we ta&e an impartial s!rvey we

m!st admit that most of o!r drawbac&s were in great meas!re prevalent also in other co!ntries and among

the other nations, and very often in a worse form than with !s> whereas among !s there were many realadvantages which the other did not have%

(he leading phase of 6ermany#s s!periority arose from the fact that, almost alone among all the other

7!ropean nations, the 6erman nation had made the strongest effort to preserve the national character of its

economic str!ct!re and for this reason was less s!bect than other co!ntries to the power of internationalfinance, tho!gh indeed there were many !ntoward symptoms in this regard also%

And yet this s!periority was a perilo!s one and t!rned o!t later to be one of the chief ca!ses of the world

war%

!t even if we disregard this advantage of national independence in economic matters there were certainother positive feat!res of o!r social and political life which were of o!tstanding e3cellence% (hese feat!res

were represented by three instit!tions which were constant so!rces of regeneration% In their respectivespheres they were models of perfection and were partly !nrivalled%

(he first of these was the statal form as s!ch and the manner in which it had been developed for 6ermanyin modern times% Of co!rse we m!st e3cept those monarchs who, as h!man beings, were s!bect 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 wo!ld be hopeless> for if we ta&e into consideration the personal capabilities and

character of the representative fig!res in o!r present regime it wo!ld be diffic!lt to imagine a more modestlevel of intelligence and moral character% If we meas!re the val!e# of the 6erman 8evol!tion by the

personal worth and calibre of the individ!als whom this revol!tion has presented to the 6erman people

since *ovember 191; then we may feel ashamed indeed in thin&ing of the !dgment which posterity will

pass on these people, when the Law for the "rotection of the 8ep!blic can no longer silence p!blic opinion%$oming generations will s!rely decide that the intelligence and integrity of o!r new 6erman leaders were

in adverse ratio to their boasting and their vices%

It m!st be admitted that the monarchy had become alien in spirit to many citiens and especially the broadmasses% (his res!lted from the fact that the monarchs were not always s!rro!nded by the highestintelligence - so to say - and certainly not always by persons of the most !pright character% Mnfort!nately

many of them preferred flatterers to honest-spo&en men and hence received their information# from the

former% (his was a so!rce of grave danger at a time when the world was passing thro!gh a period in which

many of the old conditions were changing and when this change was affecting even the traditions of the$o!rt%

(he average man or woman co!ld not have felt a wave of enth!siasm s!rging within the breast when, for

e3ample, at the t!rn of the cent!ry, a princess in !niform and on horsebac& had the soldiers file past her on parade% (hose high circles had apparently no idea of the impression which s!ch a parade made on the



minds of ordinary people> else s!ch !nfort!nate occ!rrences wo!ld not have ta&en place% (he sentimental

h!manitarianism - not always very sincere - which was professed in those high circles was often more

rep!lsive than attractive% /hen, for instance, the "rincess W condescended to taste the prod!cts of a so!p

&itchen and fo!nd them e3cellent, as !s!al, s!ch a gest!re might have made an e3cellent impression intimes long past, b!t on this occasion it had the opposite effect to what was intended% For even if we ta&e it

for granted that er ighness did not have the slightest idea, that on the day she sampled it, the food was

not +!ite the same as on other days, it s!fficed that the people &new it% 7ven the best of intentions th!s

became an obect of ridic!le or a ca!se of e3asperation%?escriptions of the proverbial fr!gality practised by the monarch, his m!ch too early rise in the morning

and the dr!dgery he had to go thro!gh all day long !ntil late at night, and especially the constantly

e3pressed fears lest he might become !nderno!rished - all this gave rise to omino!s e3pression on the part

of the people% *obody was &een to &now what and how m!ch the monarch ate or dran&% *obody gr!dgedhim a f!ll meal, or the necessary amo!nt of sleep% 7verybody was pleased when the monarch, as a man and

a personality, bro!ght hono!r on his family and his co!ntry and f!lfilled his d!ties as a sovereign% All the

legends which were circ!lated abo!t him helped little and did m!ch damage%

(hese and s!ch things, however, are only mere bagatelle% /hat was m!ch worse was the feeling, whichspread thro!gho!t large sections of the nation, that the affairs of the individ!al were being ta&en care of

from above and that he did not need to bother himself with them% As long as the 6overnment was really

good, or at least moved by goodwill, no serio!s obections co!ld be raised%

!t the co!ntry was destined to disaster when the old 6overnment, which had at least striven for the best,

became replaced by a new regime which was not of the same +!ality% (hen the docile obedience andinfantile cred!lity which formerly offered no resistance was bo!nd to be one of the most fatal evils that can

be imagined%

!t against these and other defects there were certain +!alities which !ndo!btedly had a positive effect%First of all the monarchical form of government g!arantees stability in the direction of p!blic affairs and

safeg!ards p!blic offices from the spec!lative t!rmoil of ambitio!s politicians% F!rthermore, the venerable

tradition which this instit!tion possesses aro!ses a feeling which gives weight to the monarchical a!thority%

eyond this there is the fact that the whole corps of officials, and the army in partic!lar, are raised abovethe level of political party obligations% And still another positive feat!re was that the s!preme r!lership of

the 'tate was embodied in the monarch, as an individ!al person, who co!ld serve as the symbol of

responsibility, which a monarch has to bear more serio!sly than any anonymo!s parliamentary maority%

Indeed, the proverbial honesty and integrity of the 6erman administration m!st be attrib!ted chiefly to thisfact% Finally, the monarchy f!lfilled a high c!lt!ral f!nction among the 6erman people, which made

amends for many of its defects% (he 6erman residential cities have remained, even to o!r time, centres of that artistic spirit which now threatens to disappear and is becoming more and more materialistic% (he

6erman princes gave a great deal of e3cellent and practical enco!ragement to art and science, especiallyd!ring the nineteenth cent!ry% O!r present age certainly has nothing of e+!al worth%

?!ring that process of disintegration which was slowly e3tending thro!gho!t the social order the most

positive force of resistance was that offered by the army% (his was the strongest so!rce of ed!cation which

the 6erman people possessed% For that reason all the hatred of o!r enemies was directed against the paladinof o!r national self-preservation and o!r liberty% (he strongest testimony in favo!r of this !ni+!e instit!tion

is the fact that it was derided, hated and fo!ght against, b!t also feared, by worthless elements all ro!nd%

(he fact that the international profiteers who gathered at :ersailles, f!rther to e3ploit and pl!nder the

nations directed their enmity specially against the old 6erman army proved once again that it deserved to be regarded as the instit!tion which protected the liberties of o!r people against the forces of the

international stoc&-e3change% If the army had not been there to so!nd the alarm and stand on g!ard, the

p!rposes of the :ersailles representatives wo!ld have been carried o!t m!ch sooner% (here is only one wordto e3press what the 6erman people owe to this army - 7verythingJIt was the army that still inc!lcated a sense of responsibility among the people when this +!ality had

become very rare and when the habit of shir&ing every &ind of responsibility was steadily spreading% (his

habit had grown !p !nder the evil infl!ences of "arliament, which was itself the very model of

irresponsibility% (he army trained the people to personal co!rage at a time when the virt!e of timiditythreatened to become an epidemic and when the spirit of sacrificing one#s personal interests for the good of

the comm!nity was considered as something that amo!nted almost to wea&-mindedness% At a time when

only those were estimated as intelligent who &new how to safeg!ard and promote their own egotisticinterests, the army was the school thro!gh which individ!al 6ermans were ta!ght not to see& the salvation



of their nation in the false ideology of international fraterniation between negroes, 6ermans, $hinese,

French and 7nglish, etc%, b!t in the strength and !nity of their own national being%

(he army developed the individ!al#s powers of resol!te decision, and this at a time when a spirit of

indecision and scepticism governed h!man cond!ct% At a time when the wiseacres were everywhere settingthe fashion it needed co!rage to !phold the principle that any command is better than none% (his one

principle represents a rob!st and so!nd style of tho!ght, of which not a trace wo!ld have been left in the

other branches of life if the army had not f!rnished a constant re!venation of this f!ndamental force% A

s!fficient proof of this may be fo!nd in the appalling lac& of decision which o!r present governmenta!thorities display% (hey cannot sha&e off their mental and moral lethargy and decide on some definite line

of action e3cept when they are forced to sign some new dictate for the e3ploitation of the 6erman 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% (heir cond!ct is heree3plicable on the gro!nd that in this case they are not !nder the necessity of coming to a decision> for the

decision is dictated to them%

(he army imb!ed its members with a spirit of idealism and developed their readiness to sacrifice

themselves for their co!ntry and its hono!r, while greed and materialism dominated in all the other branches of life% (he army !nited a people who were split !p into classes0 and in this respect had only one

defect, which was the One Near ilitary 'ervice, a privilege granted to those who had passed thro!gh the

high schools% It was a defect, beca!se the principle of absol!te e+!ality was thereby violated> and those

who had a better ed!cation were th!s placed o!tside the cadres to which the rest of their comrades

belonged% (he reverse wo!ld have been better% 'ince o!r !pper classes were really ignorant of what wasgoing on in the body corporate of the nation and were becoming more and more estranged from the life of

the people, the army wo!ld have accomplished a very beneficial mission if it had ref!sed to discriminate in

favo!r of the so-called intellect!als, especially within its own ran&s% It was a mista&e that this was notdone> b!t in this world of o!rs can we find any instit!tion that has not at least one defect5 And in the army

the good feat!res were so absol!tely predominant that the few defects it had were far below the average

that generally rises from h!man wea&ness%

!t the greatest credit which the army of the old 7mpire deserves is that, at a time when the person of theindivid!al co!nted for nothing and the maority was everything, it placed individ!al personal val!es above

maority val!es% y insisting on its faith in personality, the army opposed that typically )ewish and

democratic apotheosis of the power of n!mbers% (he army trained what at that time was most s!rely

needed0 namely, real men% In a period when men were falling a prey to effeminacy and la3ity, .=<,<<<vigoro!sly trained yo!ng men went from the ran&s of the army each year to mingle with their fellow-men%

In the co!rse of their two years# training they had lost the softness of their yo!ng days and had developed bodies as to!gh as steel% (he yo!ng man who had been ta!ght obedience for two years was now fitted to

command% (he trained soldier co!ld be recognied already by his wal&%(his was the great school of the 6erman nation> and it was not witho!t reason that it drew !pon its head all

the bitter hatred of those who wanted the 7mpire to be wea& and defenceless, beca!se they were ealo!s of

its greatness and were themselves possessed by a spirit of rapacity and greed% (he rest of the world

recognied a fact which many 6ermans did not wish to see, either beca!se they were blind to facts or beca!se o!t of malice they did not wish to see it% (his fact was that the 6erman Army was the most

powerf!l weapon for the defence and freedom of the 6erman nation and the best g!arantee for the

livelihood of its citiens%

(here was a third instit!tion of positive worth, which has to be placed beside that of the monarchy and thearmy% (his was the civil service%

6erman administration was better organied and better carried o!t than the administration of other

co!ntries% (here may have been obections to the b!rea!cratic ro!tine of the officials, b!t from this point of view the state of affairs was similar, if not worse, in the other co!ntries% !t the other 'tates did not havethe wonderf!l solidarity which this organiation possessed in 6ermany, nor were their civil servants of that

same high level of scr!p!lo!s honesty% It is certainly better to be a trifle over-b!rea!cratic 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 insin!ated to-day that the 6erman administration of the pre-/ar period may have been e3cellent so far as b!rea!cratic techni+!e goes, b!t that from the practical b!siness

point of view it was incompetent, I can only give the following reply0 /hat other co!ntry in the world

possessed a better-organied and administered b!siness enterprise than the 6erman 'tate 8ailways, for instance5 It was left to the 8evol!tion to destroy this standard organiation, !ntil a time came when it was



ta&en o!t of the hands of the nation and socialied, in the sense which the fo!nders of the 8ep!blic had

given to that word, namely, ma&ing it s!bservient to the international stoc&-e3change capitalists, who were

the wire-p!llers of the 6erman 8evol!tion%

(he most o!tstanding trait in the civil service and the whole body of the civil administration was itsindependence of the vicissit!des of government, the political mentality of which co!ld e3ercise no

infl!ence on the attit!de of the 6erman 'tate officials% 'ince the 8evol!tion this sit!ation has been

completely changed% 7fficiency and capability have been replaced by the test of party-adherence> and

independence of character and initiative are no longer appreciated as positive +!alities in a p!blic official%(hey rather tell against him%

(he wonderf!l might and power of the old 7mpire was based on the monarchical form of government, the

army and the civil service% On these three fo!ndations rested that great strength which is now entirely

lac&ing> namely, the a!thority of the 'tate% For the a!thority of the 'tate cannot be based on the babblingthat goes on in "arliament or in the provincial diets and not !pon laws made to protect the 'tate, or !pon

sentences passed by the law co!rts to frighten those who have had the hardihood to deny the a!thority of

the 'tate, b!t only on the general confidence which the management and administration of the comm!nity

establishes among the people% (his confidence is in its t!rn, nothing else than the res!lt of an !nsha&ableinner conviction that the government and administration of a co!ntry 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 r!n, systems of government are not maintained by terrorism b!t on the belief of the

people in the merits and sincerity of those who administer and promote the p!blic interests%

(ho!gh it be tr!e that in the period preceding the /ar certain grave evils tended to infect and corrode theinner strength of the nation, it m!st be remembered that the other 'tates s!ffered even more than 6ermany

from these drawbac&s and yet those other 'tates did not fail and brea& down when the time of crisis came%

If we remember f!rther that those defects in pre-/ar 6ermany were o!tweighed by great positive +!alitieswe shall have to loo& elsewhere for the effective ca!se of the collapse% And elsewhere it lay%

(he !ltimate and most profo!nd reason of the 6erman downfall is to be fo!nd 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 ta&e place in the life of nations are not d!e to chance b!t are the nat!ral res!lts of the effortto conserve and m!ltiply the species and the race, even tho!gh men may not be able conscio!sly to pict!re

to their minds the profo!nd motives of their cond!ct%

$hapter 7leven0

(here are certain tr!ths which stand o!t so openly on the roadsides of life, as it were, that every passer-bymay see them% Net, beca!se of their very obvio!sness, the general r!n of people disregard s!ch tr!ths or at

least they do not ma&e them the obect of any conscio!s &nowledge% "eople are so blind to some of thesimplest facts in every-day life that they are highly s!rprised when somebody calls attention to what

everybody o!ght to &now% 73amples of (he $ol!mb!s 7gg lie aro!nd !s in h!ndreds of tho!sands> b!t

observers li&e $ol!mb!s are rare%

/al&ing abo!t in the garden of *at!re, most men have the self-conceit to thin& that they &now everything>yet almost all are blind to one of the o!tstanding principles that *at!re employs in her wor&% (his principle

may be called the inner isolation which characteries each and every living species on this earth%

7ven a s!perficial glance is s!fficient to show that all the inn!merable forms in which the life-!rge of

*at!re manifests itself are s!bect to a f!ndamental law - one may call it an iron law of *at!re - whichcompels the vario!s species to &eep within the definite limits of their own life-forms when propagating and

m!ltiplying their &ind% 7ach animal mates only with one of its own species% (he titmo!se cohabits only

with the titmo!se, the finch with the finch, the stor& with the stor&, the field-mo!se with the field-mo!se,the ho!se-mo!se with the ho!se-mo!se, the wolf with the she-wolf, etc%?eviations from this law ta&e place only in e3ceptional circ!mstances% (his happens especially !nder the

comp!lsion of captivity, or when some other obstacle ma&es procreative interco!rse impossible between

individ!als of the same species% !t then *at!re abhors s!ch interco!rse with all her might> and her protest

is most clearly demonstrated by the fact that the hybrid is either sterile or the fec!ndity of its descendants islimited% In most cases hybrids and their progeny are denied the ordinary powers of resistance to disease or

the nat!ral means of defence against o!ter attac&%

'!ch a dispensation of *at!re is +!ite logical% 7very crossing between two breeds which are not +!ite e+!alres!lts in a prod!ct which holds an intermediate place between the levels of the two parents% (his means



that the offspring will indeed be s!perior to the parent which stands in the biologically lower order of

being, b!t not so high as the higher parent% For this reason it m!st event!ally s!cc!mb in any str!ggle

against the higher species% '!ch mating contradicts the will of *at!re towards the selective improvements

of life in general% (he favo!rable preliminary to this improvement is not to mate individ!als of higher andlower orders of being b!t rather to allow the complete tri!mph of the higher order% (he stronger m!st

dominate and not mate with the wea&er, which wo!ld signify the sacrifice of its own higher nat!re% Only

the born wea&ling can loo& !pon this principle as cr!el, and if he does so it is merely beca!se he is of a

feebler nat!re and narrower mind> for if s!ch a law did not direct the process of evol!tion then the higher development of organic life wo!ld not be conceivable at all%

(his !rge for the maintenance of the !nmi3ed breed, which is a phenomenon that prevails thro!gho!t the

whole of the nat!ral world, res!lts not only in the sharply defined o!tward distinction between one species

and another b!t also in the internal similarity of characteristic +!alities which are pec!liar to each breed or species% (he fo3 remains always a fo3, the goose remains a goose, and the tiger will retain the character of

a tiger% (he only difference that can e3ist within the species m!st be in the vario!s degrees of str!ct!ral

strength and active power, in the intelligence, efficiency, end!rance, etc%, with which the individ!al

specimens are endowed% It wo!ld be impossible to find a fo3 which has a &indly and protective dispositiontowards geese, !st as no cat e3ists which has a friendly disposition towards mice%

(hat is why the str!ggle between the vario!s species does not arise from a feeling of m!t!al antipathy b!t

rather from h!nger and love% In both cases *at!re loo&s on calmly and is even pleased with what happens%

(he str!ggle for the daily livelihood leaves behind in the r!c& everything that is wea& 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 &ind% And this str!ggle is a means of f!rthering the health and powers of

resistance in the species% (h!s it is one of the ca!ses !nderlying the process of development towards a

higher +!ality of being%If the case were different the progressive process wo!ld cease, and even retrogression might set in% 'ince

the inferior always o!tn!mber the s!perior, the former wo!ld always increase more rapidly if they

possessed the same capacities for s!rvival and for the procreation of their &ind> and the final conse+!ence

wo!ld be that the best in +!ality wo!ld be forced to recede into the bac&gro!nd% (herefore a correctivemeas!re in favo!r of the better +!ality m!st intervene% *at!re s!pplies this by establishing rigoro!s

conditions of life to which the wea&er will have to s!bmit and will thereby be n!merically restricted> b!t

even that portion which s!rvives cannot indiscriminately m!ltiply, for here a new and rigoro!s selection

ta&es place, according to strength and health%If *at!re does not wish that wea&er individ!als sho!ld mate with the stronger, she wishes even less that a

s!perior race sho!ld intermingle with an inferior one> beca!se in s!ch a case all her efforts, thro!gho!th!ndreds of tho!sands of years, to establish an evol!tionary higher stage of being, may th!s be rendered

f!tile%istory f!rnishes !s with inn!merable 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 res!lt has been the downfall of

the people who were the standard-bearers of a higher c!lt!re% In *orth America, where the pop!lation is

prevalently (e!tonic, and where those elements intermingled with the inferior race only to a very smalldegree, we have a +!ality of man&ind and a civiliation which are different from those of $entral and 'o!th

America% In these latter co!ntries the immigrants - who mainly belonged to the Latin races - mated with the

aborigines, sometimes to a very large e3tent indeed% In this case we have a clear and decisive e3ample of

the effect prod!ced by the mi3t!re of races% !t in *orth America the (e!tonic element, which has &ept itsracial stoc& p!re and did not mi3 it with any other racial stoc&, has come to dominate the American

$ontinent and will remain master of it as long as that element does not fall a victim to the habit of

ad!lterating its blood%In short, the res!lts of miscegenation are always the following0BaC (he level of the s!perior race becomes lowered>

BbC physical and mental degeneration sets in, th!s leading slowly b!t steadily towards a progressive drying

!p of the vital sap%

(he act which brings abo!t s!ch a development is a sin against the will of the 7ternal $reator% And as a sinthis act will be avenged%

an#s effort to b!ild !p something that contradicts the iron logic of *at!re brings him into conflict with

those principles to which he himself e3cl!sively owes his own e3istence% y acting against the laws of *at!re he prepares the way that leads to his r!in%



ere we meet the insolent obection, which is )ewish in its inspiration and is typical of the modern pacifist%

It says0 Han can control even *at!re%H

(here are millions who repeat by rote that piece of )ewish babble and end !p by imagining that somehow

they themselves are the con+!erors of *at!re% And yet their only weapon is !st a mere idea, and a very prepostero!s idea into the bargain> beca!se if one accepted it, then it wo!ld be impossible even to imagine

the e3istence of the world%

(he real tr!th is that, not only has man failed to overcome *at!re in any sphere whatsoever b!t that at best

he has merely s!cceeded in getting hold of and lifting a tiny corner of the enormo!s veil which she hasspread over her eternal mysteries and secret% e never creates anything% All he can do is to discover

something% e does not master *at!re b!t has only come to be the master of those living beings who have

not gained the &nowledge he has arrived at by penetrating into some of *at!re#s laws and mysteries% Apart

from all this, an idea can never s!bect to its own sway those conditions which are necessary for thee3istence and development of man&ind> for the idea itself has come only from man% /itho!t man there

wo!ld be no h!man idea in this world% (he idea as s!ch is therefore always dependent on the e3istence of

man and conse+!ently is dependent on those laws which f!rnish the conditions of his e3istence%

And not only that% $ertain ideas are even confined to certain people% (his holds tr!e with regard to thoseideas in partic!lar which have not their roots in obective scientific tr!th b!t in the world of feeling% In

other words, to !se a phrase which is c!rrent to-day and which well and clearly e3presses this tr!th0 (hey

reflect an inner e3perience% All s!ch ideas, which have nothing to do with cold logic as s!ch b!t represent

mere manifestations of feeling, s!ch as ethical and moral conceptions, etc%, are ine3tricably bo!nd !p with

man#s e3istence% It is to the creative powers of man#s imagination that s!ch ideas owe their e3istence% *ow, then, a necessary condition for the maintenance of s!ch ideas is the e3istence of certain races and

certain types of men% For e3ample, anyone who sincerely wishes that the pacifist idea sho!ld prevail in this

world o!ght to do all he is capable of doing to help the 6ermans con+!er the world> for in case the reversesho!ld happen it may easily be that the last pacifist wo!ld disappear with the last 6erman% I say this

beca!se, !nfort!nately, only o!r people, and no other people in the world, fell a prey to this idea% /hether

yo! li&e it or not, yo! wo!ld have to ma&e !p yo!r mind to forget wars if yo! wo!ld achieve the pacifist

ideal% *othing less than this was the plan of the American world-redeemer, /oodrow /ilson% Anyhow thatwas what o!r visionaries believed, and they tho!ght that thro!gh his plans their ideals wo!ld be attained%

(he pacifist-h!manitarian idea may indeed become an e3cellent one when the most s!perior type of

manhood will have s!cceeded in s!b!gating the world to s!ch an e3tent that this type is then sole master of

the earth% (his idea co!ld have an in!rio!s effect only in the meas!re according to which its applicationwo!ld become diffic!lt and finally impossible% 'o, first of all, the fight and then pacifism% If the case were

different it wo!ld mean that man&ind has already passed the enith of its development, and accordingly theend wo!ld not be the s!premacy of some moral ideal b!t degeneration into barbarism and conse+!ent

chaos% "eople may la!gh at this statement> b!t o!r planet has been moving thro!gh the spaces of ether for millions and millions of years, !ninhabited by men, and at some f!t!re date may easily begin to do so again

- if men sho!ld forget that wherever they have reached a s!perior level of e3istence, it was not the res!lt of

following the ideas of cray visionaries b!t by ac&nowledging and rigoro!sly observing the iron laws of

*at!re%All that we admire in the world to-day, its science, its art, its technical developments and discoveries, are

the prod!cts of the creative activities of a few peoples, and it may be tr!e that their first beginnings m!st be

attrib!ted to one race% (he maintenance of civiliation is wholly dependent on s!ch peoples% 'ho!ld they

perish, all that ma&es this earth bea!tif!l will descend with them into the grave%owever great, for e3ample, be the infl!ence which the soil e3erts on men, this infl!ence will always vary

according to the race in which it prod!ces its effect% ?earth of soil may stim!late one race to the most

stren!o!s efforts and highest achievement> while, for another race, the poverty of the soil may be the ca!seof misery and finally of !nderno!rishment, with all its conse+!ences% (he internal characteristics of a people are always the ca!ses which determine the nat!re of the effect that o!ter circ!mstances have on

them% /hat red!ces one race to starvation trains another race to harder wor&%

All the great civiliations of the past became decadent beca!se the originally creative race died o!t, as a

res!lt of contamination of the blood%(he most profo!nd ca!se of s!ch a decline is to be fo!nd in the fact that the people ignored the principle

that all c!lt!re depends on men, and not the reverse% In other words, in order to preserve a certain c!lt!re,

the type of manhood that creates s!ch a c!lt!re m!st be preserved% !t s!ch a preservation goes hand-in-hand with the ine3orable law that it is the strongest and the best who m!st tri!mph and that they have the



right to end!re%

e who wo!ld live m!st fight% e who does not wish to fight in this world, where permanent str!ggle is the

law of life, has not the right to e3ist%

'!ch a saying may so!nd hard> b!t, after all, that is how the matter really stands% Net far harder is the lot of him who believes that he can overcome *at!re and th!s in reality ins!lts her% ?istress, misery, and disease

are her reoinders%

/hoever 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 victorio!s path of the s!perior race and, by so doing, heinterferes with a prere+!isite condition of all h!man progress% Loaded with the b!rden of h!manitarian

sentiment, he falls bac& to the level of those who are !nable to raise themselves in the scale of being%

It wo!ld be f!tile to attempt to disc!ss the +!estion as to what race or races were the original standard-

bearers of h!man c!lt!re and were thereby the real fo!nders of all that we !nderstand by the wordh!manity% It is m!ch simpler to deal with this +!estion in so far as it relates to the present time% ere the

answer is simple and clear% 7very manifestation of h!man c!lt!re, every prod!ct of art, science and

technical s&ill, which we see before o!r eyes to-day, is almost e3cl!sively the prod!ct of the Aryan creative

power% (his very fact f!lly !stifies the concl!sion that it was the Aryan alone who fo!nded a s!perior typeof h!manity> therefore he represents the architype of what we !nderstand by the term0 A*% e is the

"romethe!s of man&ind, from whose shining brow the divine spar& of geni!s has at all times flashed forth,

always &indling anew that fire which, in the form of &nowledge, ill!minated the dar& night by drawing

aside the veil of mystery and th!s showing man how to rise and become master over all the other beings on

the earth% 'ho!ld he be forced to disappear, a profo!nd dar&ness will descend on the earth> within a fewtho!sand years h!man c!lt!re will vanish and the world will become a desert%

If we divide man&ind into three categories - fo!nders of c!lt!re, bearers of c!lt!re, and destroyers of

c!lt!re - the Aryan alone can be considered as representing the first category% It was he who laid thegro!ndwor& and erected the walls of every great str!ct!re in h!man c!lt!re% Only the shape and colo!r of

s!ch str!ct!res are to be attrib!ted to the individ!al characteristics of the vario!s nations% It is the Aryan

who has f!rnished the great b!ilding-stones and plans for the edifices of all h!man progress> only the way

in which these plans have been e3ec!ted is to be attrib!ted to the +!alities of each individ!al race% /ithin afew decades the whole of 7astern Asia, for instance, appropriated a c!lt!re and called s!ch a c!lt!re its

own, whereas the basis of that c!lt!re was the 6ree& mind and (e!tonic s&ill as we &now it% Only the

e3ternal form - at least to a certain degree - shows the traits of an Asiatic inspiration% It is not tr!e, as some

believe, that )apan adds 7!ropean techni+!e to a c!lt!re of her own% (he tr!th rather is that 7!ropeanscience and technics are !st dec&ed o!t with the pec!liar characteristics of )apanese civiliation% (he

fo!ndations of act!al life in )apan to-day are not those of the native )apanese c!lt!re, altho!gh thischaracteries the e3ternal feat!res of the co!ntry, which feat!res stri&e the eye of 7!ropean observers on

acco!nt of their f!ndamental difference from !s> b!t the real fo!ndations of contemporary )apanese life arethe enormo!s scientific and technical achievements of 7!rope and America, that is to say, of Aryan peoples%

Only by adopting these achievements as the fo!ndations of their own progress can the vario!s nations of

the Orient ta&e a place in contemporary world progress% (he scientific and technical achievements of

7!rope and America provide the basis on which the str!ggle for daily livelihood is carried on in the Orient%(hey provide the necessary arms and instr!ments for this str!ggle, and only the o!ter forms of these

instr!ments have become grad!ally adapted to )apanese ways of life%

If, from to-day onwards, the Aryan infl!ence on )apan wo!ld cease - and if we s!ppose that 7!rope and

America wo!ld collapse - then the present progress of )apan in science and techni+!e might still last for ashort d!ration> b!t within a few decades the inspiration wo!ld dry !p, and native )apanese character wo!ld

tri!mph, while the present civiliation wo!ld become fossilied and fall bac& into the sleep from which it

was aro!sed abo!t seventy years ago by the impact of Aryan c!lt!re% /e may therefore draw the concl!sionthat, !st as the present )apanese development has been d!e to Aryan infl!ence, so in the immemorial pastan o!tside infl!ence and an o!tside c!lt!re bro!ght into e3istence the )apanese c!lt!re of that day% (his

opinion is very strongly s!pported by the fact that the ancient civiliation of )apan act!ally became

fossiliied and petrified% '!ch a process of senility can happen only if a people loses the racial cell which

originally had been creative or if the o!tside infl!ence sho!ld be withdrawn after having awa&ened andmaintained the first c!lt!ral developments in that region% If it be shown that a people owes the f!ndamental

elements of its c!lt!re to foreign races, assimilating and elaborating s!ch elements, and if s!bse+!ently that

c!lt!re becomes fossilied whenever the e3ternal infl!ence ceases, then s!ch a race may be called thedepository b!t never the creator of a c!lt!re%



If we s!bect the different peoples to a strict test from this standpoint we shall find that scarcely any one of

them has originally created a c!lt!re, b!t almost all have been merely the recipients of a c!lt!re created

elsewhere%

(his development may be depicted as always happening somewhat in the following way0Aryan tribes, often almost ridic!lo!sly small in n!mber, s!b!gated foreign peoples and, stim!lated by the

conditions of life which their new co!ntry offered them Bfertility, the nat!re of the climate, etc%C, and

profiting also by the ab!ndance of man!al labo!r f!rnished them by the inferior race, they developed

intellect!al and organiing fac!lties which had hitherto been dormant in these con+!ering tribes% /ithin theco!rse of a few tho!sand years, or even cent!ries, they gave life to c!lt!res whose primitive traits

completely corresponded to the character of the fo!nders, tho!gh modified by adaptation to the

pec!liarities of the soil and the characteristics of the s!b!gated people% !t finally the con+!ering race

offended against the principles which they first had observed, namely, the maintenance of their racial stoc& !nmi3ed, and they began to intermingle with the s!b!gated people% (h!s they p!t an end to their own

separate e3istence> for the original sin committed in "aradise has always been followed by the e3p!lsion of

the g!ilty parties%

After a tho!sand years or more the last visible traces of those former masters may then be fo!nd in a lighter tint of the s&in which the Aryan blood had be+!eathed to the s!b!gated race, and in a fossilied c!lt!re of

which those Aryans had been the original creators% For !st as the blood% of the con+!eror, who was a

con+!eror not only in body b!t also in spirit, got s!bmerged in the blood of the s!bect race, so the

s!bstance disappeared o!t of which the torch of h!man c!lt!re and progress was &indled% In so far as the

blood of the former r!ling race has left a light n!ance of colo!r in the blood of its descendants, as a to&enand a memory, the night of c!lt!ral life is rendered less dim and dar& by a mild light radiated from the

prod!cts of those who were the bearers of the original fire% (heir radiance shines across the barbarism to

which the s!bected race has reverted and might often lead the s!perficial observer to believe that he sees before him an image of the present race when he is really loo&ing into a mirror wherein only the past is

reflected%

It may happen that in the co!rse of its history s!ch a people will come into contact a second time, and even

oftener, with the original fo!nders of their c!lt!re and may not even remember that distant association%Instinctively the remnants of blood left from that old r!ling race will be drawn towards this new

phenomenon and what had formerly been possible only !nder comp!lsion can now be s!ccessf!lly

achieved in a vol!ntary way% A new c!lt!ral wave flows in and lasts !ntil the blood of its standard-bearers

becomes once again ad!lterated by intermi3t!re with the originally con+!ered race%It will be the tas& of those who set themselves to the st!dy of a !niversal history of civiliation to

investigate history from this point of view instead of allowing themselves to be smothered !nder the massof e3ternal data, as is only too often the case with o!r present historical science%

(his short s&etch of the changes that ta&e place among those races that are only the depositories of a c!lt!realso f!rnishes a pict!re of the development and the activity and the disappearance of those who are the tr!e

fo!nders of c!lt!re on this earth, namely the Aryans themselves%

)!st as in o!r daily life the so-called man of geni!s needs a partic!lar occasion, and sometimes indeed a

special stim!l!s, to bring his geni!s to light, so too in the life of the peoples the race that has geni!s in itneeds the occasion and stim!l!s to bring that geni!s to e3pression% In the monotony and ro!tine of

everyday life even persons of significance seem !st li&e the others and do not rise beyond the average level

of their fellow-men% !t as soon as s!ch men find themselves in a special sit!ation which disconcerts and

!nbalances the others, the h!mble person of apparently common +!alities reveals traits of geni!s, often tothe amaement of those who have hitherto &nown him in the small things of everyday life% (hat is the

reason why a prophet only seldom co!nts for something in his own co!ntry% /ar offers an e3cellent

occasion for observing this phenomenon% In times of distress, when the others despair, apparently harmless boys s!ddenly spring !p and become heroes, f!ll of determination, !nda!nted in the presence of ?eath andmanifesting wonderf!l powers of calm reflection !nder s!ch circ!mstances% If s!ch an ho!r of trial did not

come nobody wo!ld have tho!ght that the so!l of a hero l!r&ed in the body of that beardless yo!th% A

special imp!lse is almost always necessary to bring a man of geni!s into the foregro!nd% (he sledge-

hammer of Fate which stri&es down the one so easily s!ddenly finds the co!nter-impact of steel when itstri&es at the other% And, after the common shell of everyday life is bro&en, the core that lay hidden in it is

displayed to the eyes of an astonished world% (his s!rro!nding world then grows obstinate and will not

believe that what had seemed so li&e itself is really of that different +!ality so s!ddenly displayed% (his is a process which is repeated probably every time a man of o!tstanding significance appears%



(ho!gh an inventor, for e3ample, does not establish his fame !ntil the very day that he carries thro!gh his

invention, it wo!ld be a mista&e to believe that the creative geni!s did not become alive in him !ntil that

moment% From the very ho!r of his birth the spar& of geni!s is living within the man who has been

endowed with the real creative fac!lty% (r!e geni!s is an innate +!ality% It can never be the res!lt of ed!cation or training%

As I have stated already, this holds good not merely of the individ!al b!t also of the race% (hose peoples

who manifest creative abilities in certain periods of their history have always been f!ndamentally creative%

It belongs to their very nat!re, even tho!gh this fact may escape the eyes of the s!perficial observer% erealso recognition from o!tside is only the conse+!ence of practical achievement% 'ince the rest of the world

is incapable of recogniing geni!s as s!ch, it can only see the visible manifestations of geni!s in the form

of inventions, discoveries, b!ildings, painting, etc%> b!t even here a long time passes before recognition is

given% )!st as the individ!al person who has been endowed with the gift of geni!s, or at least talent of avery high order, cannot bring that endowment to realiation !ntil he comes !nder the !rge of special

circ!mstances, so in the life of the nations the creative capacities and powers fre+!ently have to wait !ntil

certain conditions stim!late them to action%

(he most obvio!s e3ample of this tr!th is f!rnished by that race which has been, and still is, the standard- bearer of h!man progress0 I mean the Aryan race% As soon as Fate brings them face to face with special

circ!mstances their powers begin to develop progressively and to be manifested in tangible form% (he

characteristic c!lt!res which they create !nder s!ch circ!mstances are almost always conditioned by the

soil, the climate and the people they s!b!gate% (he last factor - that of the character of the people - is the

most decisive one% (he more primitive the technical conditions !nder which the civiliing activity ta&es place, the more necessary is the e3istence of man!al labo!r which can be organied and employed so as to

ta&e the place of mechanical power% ad it not been possible for them to employ members of the inferior

race which they con+!ered, the Aryans wo!ld never have been in a position to ta&e the first steps on theroad which led them to a later type of c!lt!re> !st as, witho!t the help of certain s!itable animals which

they were able to tame, they wo!ld never have come to the invention of mechanical power which has

s!bse+!ently enabled them to do witho!t these beasts% (he phrase, (he oor has accomplished his

f!nction, so let him now depart#, has, !nfort!nately, a profo!nd application% For tho!sands of years thehorse has been the faithf!l servant of man and has helped him to lay the fo!ndations of h!man progress, b!t

now motor power has dispensed with the !se of the horse% In a few years to come the !se of the horse will

cease entirely> and yet witho!t its collaboration man co!ld scarcely have come to the stage of development

which he has now created%For the establishment of s!perior types of civiliation the members of inferior races formed one of the most

essential pre-re+!isites% (hey alone co!ld s!pply the lac& of mechanical means witho!t which no progressis possible% It is certain that the first stages of h!man civiliation were not based so m!ch on the !se of

tame animals as on the employment of h!man beings who were members of an inferior race%Only after s!b!gated races were employed as slaves was a similar fate allotted to animals, and not vice

versa, as some people wo!ld have !s believe% At first it was the con+!ered enemy who had to draw the

plo!gh and only afterwards did the o3 and horse ta&e his place% *obody else b!t p!ling pacifists can

consider this fact as a sign of h!man degradation% '!ch people fail to recognie that this evol!tion had tota&e place in order that man might reach that degree of civiliation which these apostles now e3ploit in an

attempt to ma&e the world pay attention to their rigmarole%

(he progress of man&ind may be compared to the process of ascending an infinite ladder% One does not

reach the higher level witho!t first having climbed the lower r!ngs% (he Aryan therefore had to ta&e thatroad which his sense of reality pointed o!t to him and not that which the modern pacifist dreams of% (he

path of reality is, however, diffic!lt and hard to tread> yet it is the only one which finally leads to the goal

where the others envisage man&ind in their dreams% !t the real tr!th is that those dreamers help only tolead man away from his goal rather than towards it%It was not by mere chance that the first forms of civiliation arose there where the Aryan came into contact

with inferior races, s!b!gated them and forced them to obey his command% (he members of the inferior

race became the first mechanical tools in the service of a growing civiliation%

(hereby the way was clearly indicated which the Aryan had to follow% As a con+!eror, he s!b!gatedinferior races and t!rned their physical powers into organied channels !nder his own leadership, forcing

them to follow his will and p!rpose% y imposing on them a !sef!l, tho!gh hard, manner of employing

their powers he not only spared the lives of those whom he had con+!ered b!t probably made their liveseasier than these had been in the former state of so-called freedom#% /hile he r!thlessly maintained his



position as their master, he not only remained master b!t he also maintained and advanced civiliation% For

this depended e3cl!sively on his inborn abilities and, therefore, on the preservation of the Aryan race as

s!ch% As soon, however, as his s!bect began to rise and approach the level of their con+!eror, a phase of

which ascension was probably the !se of his lang!age, the barriers that had disting!ished master fromservant bro&e down% (he Aryan neglected to maintain his own racial stoc& !nmi3ed and therewith lost the

right to live in the paradise which he himself had created% e became s!bmerged in the racial mi3t!re and

grad!ally lost his c!lt!ral creativeness, !ntil he finally grew, not only mentally b!t also physically, more

li&e the aborigines whom he had s!bected rather than his own ancestors% For some time he co!ld contin!eto live on the capital of that c!lt!re which still remained> b!t a condition of fossiliation soon set in and he

san& into oblivion%

(hat is how c!lt!res and empires decline and yield their places to new formations%

(he ad!lteration of the blood and racial deterioration conditioned thereby are the only ca!ses that acco!ntfor the decline of ancient civiliations> for it is never by war that nations are r!ined, b!t by the loss of their

powers of resistance, which are e3cl!sively a characteristic of p!re racial blood% In this world everything

that is not of so!nd racial stoc& is li&e chaff% 7very 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%(he +!estion as to the gro!nd reasons for the predominant importance of Aryanism can be answered by

pointing o!t that it is not so m!ch that the Aryans are endowed with a stronger instinct for self-preservation,

b!t rather that this manifests itself in a way which is pec!liar to themselves% $onsidered from the s!bective

standpoint, the will-to-live is of co!rse e+!ally strong all ro!nd and only the forms in which it is e3pressed

are different% Among the most primitive organisms the instinct for self-preservation does not e3tend beyondthe care of the individ!al ego% 7gotism, as we call this passion, is so predominant that it incl!des even the

time element> which means that the present moment is deemed the most important and that nothing is left

to the f!t!re% (he animal lives only for itself, searching for food only when it feels h!nger and fighting onlyfor the preservation of its own life% As long as the instinct for self-preservation manifests itself e3cl!sively

in s!ch a way, there is no basis for the establishment of a comm!nity> not even the most primitive form of

all, that is to say the family% (he society formed by the male with the female, where it goes beyond the mere

conditions of mating, calls for the e3tension of the instinct of self-preservation, since the readiness to fightfor one#s own ego has to be e3tended also to the mate% (he male sometimes provides food for the female,

b!t 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, tho!gh infinitely simple, manifestation of the spirit of

sacrifice% As soon as this spirit e3tends beyond the narrow limits of the family, we have the conditions!nder which larger associations and finally even 'tates can be formed%

(he lowest species of h!man beings give evidence of this +!ality only to a very small degree, so that oftenthey do not go beyond the formation of the family society% /ith an increasing readiness to place their

immediate personal interests in the bac&gro!nd, the capacity for organiing more e3tensive comm!nitiesdevelops%

(he readiness to sacrifice one#s personal wor& and, if necessary, even one#s life for others shows its most

highly developed form in the Aryan race% (he greatness of the Aryan is not based on his intellect!al

powers, b!t rather on his willingness to devote all his fac!lties to the service of the comm!nity% ere theinstinct for self-preservation has reached its noblest form> for the Aryan willingly s!bordinates his own ego

to the common weal and when necessity calls he will even sacrifice his own life for the comm!nity%

(he constr!ctive powers of the Aryan and that pec!liar ability he has for the b!ilding !p of a c!lt!re are not

gro!nded in his intellect!al gifts alone% If that were so they might only be destr!ctive and co!ld never havethe ability to organie> for the latter essentially depends on the readiness of the individ!al to reno!nce his

own personal opinions and interests and to lay both at the service of the h!man gro!p% y serving the

common weal he receives his reward in ret!rn% For e3ample, he does not wor& directly for himself b!tma&es his prod!ctive wor& a part of the activity of the gro!p to which he belongs, not only for his own benefit b!t for the general% (he spirit !nderlying this attit!de is e3pressed by the word0 /O8, which to

him does not at all signify a means of earning one#s daily livelihood b!t rather a prod!ctive activity which

cannot clash with the interests of the comm!nity% /henever h!man activity is directed e3cl!sively to the

service of the instinct for self-preservation it is called theft or !s!ry, robbery or b!rglary, etc%(his mental attit!de, which forces self-interest to recede into the bac&gro!nd in favo!r of the common

weal, is the first prere+!isite for any &ind of really h!man civiliation% It is o!t of this spirit alone that great

h!man achievements have spr!ng for which the original doers have scarcely ever received any recompense b!t which t!rns o!t to be the so!rce of ab!ndant benefit for their descendants% It is this spirit alone which



can e3plain why it so often happens that people can end!re a harsh b!t honest e3istence which offers them

no ret!rns for their toil e3cept a poor and modest livelihood% !t s!ch a livelihood helps to consolidate the

fo!ndations on which the comm!nity e3ists% 7very wor&er and every peasant, every inventor, state official,

etc%, who wor&s witho!t ever achieving fort!ne or prosperity for himself, is a representative of this s!blimeidea, even tho!gh he may never become conscio!s of the profo!nd meaning of his own activity%

7verything that may be said of that &ind of wor& which is the f!ndamental condition of providing food and

the basic means of h!man progress is tr!e even in a higher sense of wor& that is done for the protection of

man and his civiliation% (he ren!nciation of one#s own life for the sa&e of the comm!nity is the crowningsignificance of the idea of all sacrifice% In this way only is it possible to protect what has been b!ilt !p by

man and to ass!re that this will not be destroyed by the hand of man or of nat!re%

In the 6erman lang!age we have a word which admirably e3presses this !nderlying spirit of all wor&0 It is

"flichterfDll!ng, which means the service of the common weal before the consideration of one#s owninterests% (he f!ndamental spirit o!t of which this &ind of activity springs is the contradistinction of

7gotism# and we call it Idealism#% y this we mean to signify the willingness of the individ!al to ma&e

sacrifices for the comm!nity and his fellow-men%

It is of the !tmost importance to insist again and again that idealism is not merely a s!perfl!o!smanifestation of sentiment b!t rather something which has been, is and always will be, a necessary

precondition of h!man civiliation> it is even o!t of this that the very idea of the word !man# arises% (o

this &ind 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 man&ind#> for it is o!t of this spirit alone that the creative force

has come which in a !ni+!e way combined rob!st m!sc!lar power with a first-class intellect and th!screated the mon!ments of h!man civiliation%

/ere it not for idealism all the fac!lties of the intellect, even the most brilliant, wo!ld be nothing b!t

intellect itself, a mere e3ternal phenomenon witho!t inner val!e and never a creative force%'ince tr!e idealism, however, is essentially the s!bordination of the interests and life of the individ!al to

the interests and life of the comm!nity, and since the comm!nity on its part represents the pre-re+!isite

condition of every form of organiation, this idealism accords in its innermost essence with the final

p!rpose of *at!re% (his feeling alone ma&es men vol!ntarily ac&nowledge that strength and power areentitled to ta&e the lead and th!s ma&es them a constit!ent particle in that order o!t of which the whole

!niverse is shaped and formed%

/itho!t being conscio!s of it, the p!rest idealism is always associated with the most profo!nd &nowledge%

ow tr!e this is and how little gen!ine idealism has to do with fantastic self-dramatiation will becomeclear the moment we as& an !nspoilt child, a healthy boy for e3ample, to give his opinion% (he very same

boy who listens to the rantings of an idealistic# pacifist witho!t !nderstanding them, and even reects them,wo!ld readily sacrifice his yo!ng life for the ideal of his people%

Mnconscio!sly his instinct will s!bmit to the &nowledge that the preservation of the species, even at thecost of the individ!al 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 tho!gh camo!flaged, who contradict the laws

of h!man development% For it is a necessity of h!man evol!tion that the individ!al sho!ld be imb!ed with

the spirit of sacrifice in favo!r of the common weal, and that he sho!ld not be infl!enced by the morbidnotions of those &naves who pretend to &now better than *at!re and who have the imp!dencc to criticie

her decrees%

It is !st at those !nct!res when the idealistic attit!de threatens to disappear that we notice a wea&ening of

this force which is a necessary constit!ent in the fo!nding and maintenance of the comm!nity and isthereby a necessary condition of civiliation% As soon as the spirit of egotism begins to prevail among a

people then the bonds of the social order brea& and man, by see&ing his own personal happiness, veritably

t!mbles o!t of heaven and falls into hell%"osterity will not remember those who p!rs!ed only their own individ!al interests, b!t it will praise thoseheroes who reno!nced their own happiness%

(he )ew offers the most stri&ing contrast to the Aryan% (here is probably no other people in the world who

have so developed the instinct of self-preservation as the so-called chosen# people% (he best proof of this

statement is fo!nd in the simple fact that this race still e3ists% /here can another people be fo!nd that in theco!rse of the last two tho!sand years has !ndergone so few changes in mental o!tloo& and character as the

)ewish people5 And yet what other people has ta&en s!ch a constant part in the great revol!tions5 !t even

after having passed thro!gh the most gigantic catastrophes that have overwhelmed man&ind, the )ewsremain the same as ever% /hat an infinitely tenacio!s will-to-live, to preserve one#s &ind, is demonstrated



by that factJ

(he intellect!al fac!lties of the )ew have been trained thro!gh tho!sands of years% (o-day the )ew is loo&ed

!pon as specially c!nning#> and in a certain sense he has been so thro!gho!t the ages% is intellect!al

powers, however, are not the res!lt of an inner evol!tion b!t rather have been shaped by the obect-lessonswhich the )ew has received from others% (he h!man spirit cannot climb !pwards witho!t ta&ing s!ccessive

steps% For every step !pwards it needs the fo!ndation of what has been constr!cted before - the past - which

in, the comprehensive sense here employed, can have been laid only in a general civiliation% All thin&ing

originates only to a very small degree in personal e3perience% (he largest part is based on the acc!m!latede3periences of the past% (he general level of civiliation provides the individ!al, who in most cases is not

conscio!sly aware of the fact, with s!ch an ab!ndance of preliminary &nowledge that with this e+!ipment

he can more easily ta&e f!rther steps on the road of progress% (he boy of to-day, for e3ample, grows !p

among s!ch an overwhelming mass of technical achievement which has acc!m!lated d!ring the lastcent!ry that he ta&es as granted many things which a h!ndred years ago were still mysteries even to the

greatest minds of those times% Net these things that are not so m!ch a matter of co!rse are of enormo!s

importance to those who wo!ld !nderstand the progress we have made in these matters and wo!ld carry on

that progress a step farther% If a man of geni!s belonging to the twenties of the last cent!ry were to arisefrom his grave to-day he wo!ld find it more diffic!lt to !nderstand o!r present age than the contemporary

boy of fifteen years of age who may even have only an average intelligence% (he man of geni!s, th!s come

bac& from the past, wo!ld need to provide himself with an e3traordinary amo!nt of preliminary

information which o!r contemporary yo!th receive a!tomatically, so to spea&, d!ring the time they are

growing !p among the prod!cts of o!r modern civiliation%'ince the )ew - for reasons that I shall deal with immediately - never had a civiliation of his own, he has

always been f!rnished by others with a basis for his0 intellect!al wor&% is intellect has always developed

by the !se of those c!lt!ral achievements which he has fo!nd ready-to-hand aro!nd him%(he process has never been the reverse%

For, tho!gh among the )ews the instinct of self-preservation has not been wea&er b!t has been m!ch

stronger than among other peoples, and tho!gh the impression may easily be created that the intellect!al

powers of the )ew are at least e+!al to those of other races, the )ews completely lac& the most essential pre-re+!isite of a c!lt!ral people, namely the idealistic spirit% /ith the )ewish people the readiness for sacrifice

does not e3tend beyond the simple instinct of individ!al preservation% In their case the feeling of racial

solidarity which they apparently manifest is nothing b!t a very primitive gregario!s instinct, similar to that

which may be fo!nd among other organisms in this world% It is a remar&able fact that this herd instinct brings individ!als together for m!t!al protection only as long as there is a common danger which ma&es

m!t!al assistance e3pedient or inevitable% (he same pac& of wolves which a moment ago oined together ina common attac& on their victim will dissolve into individ!al wolves as soon as their h!nger has been

satisfied% (his is also s!re of horses, which !nite to defend themselves against any aggressor b!t separatethe moment the danger is over%

It is m!ch the same with the )ew% is spirit of sacrifice is only apparent% It manifests itself only so long as

the e3istence of the individ!al ma&es this a matter of absol!te necessity% !t as soon as the common foe is

con+!ered and the danger which threatened the individ!al )ews is overcome and the prey sec!red, then theapparent harmony disappears and the original conditions set in again% )ews act in concord only when a

common danger threatens them or a common prey attracts them% /here these two motives no longer e3ist

then the most br!tal egotism appears and these people who before had lived together in !nity will t!rn into

a swarm of rats that bitterly fight against each other%If the )ews were the only people in the world they wo!ld be wallowing in filth and mire and wo!ld e3ploit

one another and try to e3terminate one another in a bitter str!ggle, e3cept in so far as their !tter lac& of the

ideal of sacrifice, which shows itself in their cowardly spirit, wo!ld prevent this str!ggle from developing%(herefore it wo!ld be a complete mista&e to interpret the m!t!al help which the )ews render one another when they have to fight - or, to p!t it more acc!rately, to e3ploit - their fellow being, as the e3pression of a

certain idealistic spirit of sacrifice%

ere again the )ew merely follows the call of his individ!al egotism% (hat is why the )ewish 'tate, which

o!ght to be a vital organiation to serve the p!rpose of preserving or increasing the race, has absol!tely noterritorial bo!ndaries% For the territorial delimitation of a 'tate always demands a certain idealism of spirit

on the part of the race which forms that 'tate and especially a proper acceptance of the idea of wor&% A

'tate which is territorially delimited cannot be established or maintained !nless the general attit!de towardswor& be a positive one% If this attit!de be lac&ing, then the necessary basis of a civiliation is also lac&ing%



(hat is why the )ewish people, despite the intellect!al powers with which they are apparently endowed,

have not a c!lt!re - certainly not a c!lt!re of their own% (he c!lt!re which the )ew enoys to-day is the

prod!ct of the wor& of others and this prod!ct is debased in the hands of the )ew%

In order to form a correct !dgment of the place which the )ew holds in relation to the whole problem of h!man civiliation, we m!st bear in mind the essential fact that there never has been any )ewish art and

conse+!ently that nothing of this &ind e3ists to-day% /e m!st realie that especially in those two royal

domains of art, namely architect!re and m!sic, the )ew has done no original creative wor&% /hen the )ew

comes to prod!cing something in the field of art he merely bowdler-ies something already in e3istence or simply steals the intellect!al word, of others% (he )ew essentially lac&s those +!alities which are

characteristic of those creative races that are the fo!nders of civiliation%

(o what e3tent the )ew appropriates the civiliation b!ilt !p by others - or rather corr!pts it, to spea& more

acc!rately - is indicated by the fact that he c!ltivates chiefly the art which calls for the smallest amo!nt of original invention, namely the dramatic art% And even here he is nothing better than a &ind of !ggler or,

perhaps more correctly spea&ing, a &ind of mon&ey imitator> for in this domain also he lac&s the creative

elan which is necessary for the prod!ction of all really great wor&% 7ven here, therefore, he is not a creative

geni!s b!t rather a s!perficial imitator who, in spite of all his reto!ching and tric&s, cannot disg!ise the factthat there is no inner vitality in the shape he gives his prod!cts% At this !nct!re the )ewish "ress comes in

and renders friendly assistance by sho!ting hosannas over the head of even the most ordinary b!ngler of a

)ew, !ntil the rest of the world is stampeded into thin&ing that the obect of so m!ch praise m!st really be

an artist, whereas in reality he may be nothing more than a low-class mimic%

*o> the )ews have not the creative abilities which are necessary to the fo!nding of a civiliation> for inthem there is not, and never has been, that spirit of idealism which is an absol!tely necessary element in the

higher development of man&ind% (herefore the )ewish intellect will never be constr!ctive b!t always

destr!ctive% At best it may serve as a stim!l!s in rare cases b!t only within the meaning of the poet#s lines0The Power which alwa(s wills the *ad$ and alwa(s works the +ood, -Kraft$ die stets das *öse will und

stets das +ute schafft C% It is not thro!gh his help b!t in spite of his help that man&ind ma&es any progress%

'ince the )ew has never had a 'tate which was based on territorial delimitations, and therefore never a

civiliation of his own, the idea arose that here we were dealing with a people who had to be considered as *omads% (hat is a great and mischievo!s mista&e% (he tr!e nomad does act!ally possess a definite

delimited territory where he lives% It is merely that he does not c!ltivate it, as the settled farmer does, b!t

that he lives on the prod!cts of his herds, with which he wanders over his domain% (he nat!ral reason for

this mode of e3istence is to be fo!nd in the fact that the soil is not fertile and that it does not give the steady prod!ce which ma&es a fi3ed abode possible% O!tside of this nat!ral ca!se, however, there is a more

profo!nd ca!se0 namely, that no mechanical civiliation is at hand to ma&e !p for the nat!ral poverty of theregion in +!estion% (here are territories where the Aryan can establish fi3ed settlements by means of the

technical s&ill which he has developed in the co!rse of more than a tho!sand years, even tho!gh theseterritories wo!ld otherwise have to be abandoned, !nless the Aryan were willing to wander abo!t them in

nomadic fashion> b!t his technical tradition and his age-long e3perience of the !se of technical means

wo!ld probably ma&e the nomadic life !nbearable for him% /e o!ght to remember that d!ring the first

period of American coloniation n!mero!s Aryans earned their daily livelihood as trappers and h!nters,etc%, fre+!ently wandering abo!t in large gro!ps with their women and children, their mode of e3istence

very m!ch resembling that of ordinary nomads% (he moment, however, that they grew more n!mero!s and

were able to acc!m!late larger reso!rces, they cleared the land and drove o!t the aborigines, at the same

time establishing settlements which rapidly increased all over the co!ntry%(he Aryan himself was probably at first a nomad and became a settler in the co!rse of ages% !t yet he was

never of the )ewish &ind% (he )ew is not a nomad> for the nomad has already a definite attit!de towards the

concept of wor&#, and this attit!de served as the basis of a later c!lt!ral development, when the necessaryintellect!al conditions were at hand% (here is a certain amo!nt of idealism in the general attit!de of thenomad, even tho!gh it be rather primitive% is whole character may, therefore, be foreign to Aryan feeling

b!t it will never be rep!lsive% !t not even the slightest trace of idealism e3ists in the )ewish character% (he

)ew has never been a nomad, b!t always a parasite, battening on the s!bstance of others% If he occasionally

abandoned regions where he had hitherto lived he did not do it vol!ntarily% e did it beca!se from time totime he was driven o!t by people who were tired of having their hospitality ab!sed by s!ch g!ests% )ewish

self-e3pansion is a parasitic phenomenon - since the )ew is always loo&ing for new past!res for his race%

!t this has nothing to do with nomadic life as s!ch> beca!se the )ew does not ever thin& of leaving aterritory which he has once occ!pied% e stic&s where he is with s!ch tenacity that he can hardly be driven



o!t even by s!perior physical force% e e3pands into new territories only when certain conditions for his

e3istence are provided therein> b!t even then - !nli&e the nomad - he will not change his former abode% e

is and remains a parasite, a sponger who, li&e a pernicio!s bacill!s, spreads over wider and wider areas

according as some favo!rable area attracts him% (he effect prod!ced by his presence is also li&e that of thevampire> for wherever he establishes himself the people who grant him hospitality are bo!nd to be bled to

death sooner or later% (h!s the )ew has at all times lived in 'tates that have belonged to other races and

within the organiation of those 'tates he had formed a 'tate of his own, which is, however, hidden behind

the mas& of a religio!s comm!nity#, as long as e3ternal circ!mstances do not ma&e it advisable for thiscomm!nity to declare its tr!e nat!re% As soon as the )ew feels himself s!fficiently established in his

position to be able to hold it witho!t a disg!ise, he lifts the mas& and s!ddenly appears in the character

which so many did not formerly believe or wish to see0 namely that of the )ew%

(he life which the )ew lives as a parasite thriving on the s!bstance of other nations and 'tates has res!ltedin developing that specific character which 'chopenha!er once described when he spo&e of the )ew as (he

6reat aster of Lies#% (he &ind of e3istence which he leads forces the )ew to the systematic !se of

falsehood, !st as nat!rally as the inhabitants of northern climates are forced to wear warm clothes%

e can live among other nations and 'tates only as long as he s!cceeds in pers!ading them that the )ewsare not a distinct people b!t the representatives of a religio!s faith who th!s constit!te a religio!s

comm!nity#, tho!gh this be of a pec!liar character%

As a matter of fact, however, this is the first of his great falsehoods%

e is obliged to conceal his own partic!lar character and mode of life that he may be allowed to contin!e

his e3istence as a parasite among the nations% (he greater the intelligence of the individ!al )ew, the better will he s!cceed in deceiving others% is s!ccess in this line may even go so far that the people who grant

him hospitality may be led to believe that the )ew among them is a gen!ine Frenchman, for instance, or

7nglishman or 6erman or Italian, who !st happens to belong to a religio!s denomination which is differentfrom that prevailing in these co!ntries% 7specially in circles concerned with the e3ec!tive administration of

the 'tate, where the officials generally have only a minim!m of historical sense, the )ew is able to impose

his infamo!s deception with comparative ease% In these circles independent thin&ing is considered a sin

against the sacred r!les according to which official promotion ta&es place% It is therefore not s!rprising thateven to-day in the avarian government offices, for e3ample, there is not the slightest s!spicion that the

)ews form a distinct nation themselves and are not merely the adherents of a $onfession#, tho!gh one

glance at the "ress which belongs to the )ews o!ght to f!rnish s!fficient evidence to the contrary even for

those who possess only the smallest degree of intelligence% (he )ewish 7cho, however, is not an officialgaette and therefore not a!thoritative in the eyes of those government potentates%

)ewry 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, !rged on by the desire to ma&e their way in the world,

the )ews began to cast abo!t for a means whereby they might distract s!ch attention as might proveinconvenient for them% /hat co!ld be more effective and at the same time more above s!spicion than to

borrow and !tilie the idea of the religio!s comm!nity5 ere also everything is copied, or rather stolen> for

the )ew co!ld not possess any religio!s instit!tion which had developed o!t of his own conscio!sness,

seeing that he lac&s every &ind of idealism> which means that belief in a life beyond this terrestriale3istence is foreign to him% In the Aryan mind no religion can ever be imagined !nless it embodies the

conviction that life in some form or other will contin!e after death% As a matter of fact, the (alm!d is not a

boo& that lays down principles according to which the individ!al sho!ld prepare for the life to come% It only

f!rnishes r!les for a practical and convenient life in this world%(he religio!s teaching of the )ews is principally a collection of instr!ctions for maintaining the )ewish

blood p!re and for reg!lating interco!rse between )ews and the rest of the world0 that is to say, their

relation with non-)ews% !t the )ewish religio!s 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 val!e of thereligio!s teaching of the )ews there e3ist and always have e3isted +!ite e3ha!stive st!dies Bnot from the

)ewish side> for whatever the )ews have written on this +!estion has nat!rally always been of a tendentio!s

characterC which show !p the &ind of religion that the )ews have in a light that ma&es it loo& very !ncanny

to the Aryan mind% (he )ew himself is the best e3ample of the &ind of prod!ct which this religio!s trainingevolves% is life is of this world only and his mentality is as foreign to the tr!e spirit of $hristianity as his

character was foreign to the great Fo!nder of this new creed two tho!sand years ago% And the Fo!nder of

$hristianity made no secret indeed of is estimation of the )ewish people% /hen e fo!nd it necessary edrove those enemies of the h!man race o!t of the (emple of 6od> beca!se then, as always, they !sed



religion as a means of advancing their commercial interests% !t at that time $hrist was nailed to the $ross

for his attit!de towards the )ews> whereas o!r modern $hristians enter into party politics and when

elections are being held they debase themselves to beg for )ewish votes% (hey even enter into political

intrig!es with the atheistic )ewish parties against the interests of their own $hristian nation%On this first and f!ndamental lie, the p!rpose of which is to ma&e people believe that )ewry is not a nation

b!t a religion, other lies are s!bse+!ently based% One of those f!rther lies, for e3ample, is in connection

with the lang!age spo&en by the )ew% For him lang!age is not an instr!ment for the e3pression of his inner

tho!ghts b!t rather a means of cloa&ing them% /hen tal&ing French his tho!ghts are )ewish and whenwriting 6erman rhymes he only gives e3pression to the character of his own race%

As long as the )ew has not s!cceeded in mastering other peoples he is forced to spea& their lang!age

whether he li&es it or not% !t the moment that the world wo!ld become the slave of the )ew it wo!ld have

to learn some other lang!age B7speranto, for e3ampleC so that by this means the )ew co!ld dominate all themore easily%

ow m!ch the whole e3istence of this people is based on a permanent falsehood is proved in a !ni+!e way

by (he "rotocols of the 7lders of Kion#, which are so violently rep!diated by the )ews% /ith groans and

moans, the Fran&f!rter Keit!ng repeats again and again that these are forgeries% (his alone is evidence infavo!r of their a!thenticity% /hat many )ews !nconscio!sly wish to do is here clearly set forth% It is not

necessary to as& o!t of what )ewish brain these revelations sprang> b!t what is of vital interest is that they

disclose, with an almost terrifying precision, the mentality and methods of action characteristic of the

)ewish people and these writings e3po!nd in all their vario!s directions the final aims towards which the

)ews are striving% (he st!dy of real happenings, however, is the best way of !dging the a!thenticity of those doc!ments% If the historical developments which have ta&en place within the last few cent!ries be

st!died in the light of this boo& we shall !nderstand why the )ewish "ress incessantly rep!diates and

deno!nces it% For the )ewish peril will be stamped o!t the moment the general p!blic come into possessionof that boo& and !nderstand it%

In order to get to &now the )ew properly it is necessary to st!dy the road which he has been following

among the other peoples d!ring the last few cent!ries% One e3ample will s!ffice to give a clear insight here%

'ince his career has been the same at all epochs - !st as the people at whose e3pense he has lived haveremained the same - for the p!rposes of ma&ing the re+!isite analysis it will be best to mar& his progress by

stages% For the sa&e of simplicity we shall indicate these stages by letters of the alphabet%

(he first )ews came into what was then called 6ermania d!ring the period of the 8oman invasion> and, as

!s!al, they came as merchants% ?!ring the t!rmoil ca!sed by the great migrations of the 6erman tribes the)ews seem to have disappeared% /e may therefore consider the period when the 6ermans formed the first

political comm!nities as the beginning of that process whereby $entral and *orthern 7!rope was again,and this time permanently, )!daied% A development began which has always been the same or similar

wherever and whenever )ews came into contact with Aryan peoples%BaC As soon as the first permanent settlements had been established the )ew was s!ddenly there#% e

arrived as a merchant and in the beginning did not tro!ble to disg!ise his nationality% e still remained

openly a )ew, partly it may be beca!se he &new too little of the lang!age% It may also be that people of

other races ref!sed to mi3 with him, so that he co!ld not very well adopt any other appearance than that of a foreign merchant% eca!se of his s!btlety and c!nning and the lac& of e3perience on the part of the

people whose g!est he became, it was not to his disadvantage openly to retain his )ewish character% (his

may even have been advantageo!s to him> for the foreigner was received &indly%

BbC 'lowly b!t steadily he began to ta&e part in the economic life aro!nd him> not as a prod!cer, however, b!t only as a middleman% is commercial c!nning, ac+!ired thro!gh tho!sands of years of negotiation as

an intermediary, made him s!perior in this field to the Aryans, who were still +!ite ingen!o!s and indeed

cl!msy and whose honesty was !nlimited> so that after a short while commerce seemed destined to becomea )ewish monopoly% (he )ew began by lending o!t money at !s!rio!s interest, which is a permanent tradeof his% It was he who first introd!ced the payment of interest on borrowed money% (he danger which this

innovation involved was not at first recognied> indeed the innovation was welcomed, beca!se it offered

momentary advantages%

BcC At this stage the )ew had become firmly settled down> that is to say, he inhabited special sections of thecities and towns and had his own +!arter in the mar&et-places% (h!s he grad!ally came to form a 'tate

within a 'tate% e came to loo& !pon the commercial domain and all money transactions as a privilege

belonging e3cl!sively to himself and he e3ploited it r!thlessly%BdC At this stage finance and trade had become his complete monopoly% Finally, his !s!rio!s rate of interest



aro!sed opposition and the increasing imp!dence which the )ew began to manifest all ro!nd stirred !p

pop!lar indignation, while his display of wealth gave rise to pop!lar envy% (he c!p of his ini+!ity became

f!ll to the brim when he incl!ded landed property among his commercial wares and degraded the soil to the

level of a mar&et commodity% 'ince he himself never c!ltivated the soil b!t considered it as an obect to bee3ploited, on which the peasant may still remain b!t only on condition that he s!bmits to the most heartless

e3actions of his new master, p!blic antipathy against the )ew steadily increased and finally t!rned into open

animosity% is e3tortionate tyranny became so !nbearable that people rebelled against his control and !sed

physical violence against him% (hey began to scr!tinie this foreigner somewhat more closely, and then began to discover the rep!lsive traits and characteristics inherent in him, !ntil finally an abyss opened

between the )ews and their hosts, across which abyss there co!ld be no f!rther contact%

In times of distress a wave of p!blic anger has !s!ally arisen against the )ew> the masses have ta&en the

law into their own hands> they have seied )ewish property and r!ined the )ew in their !rge to protectthemselves against what they consider to be a sco!rge of 6od% aving come to &now the )ew intimately

thro!gh the co!rse of cent!ries, in times of distress they loo&ed !pon his presence among them as a p!blic

danger comparable only to the plag!e%

BeC !t then the )ew began to reveal his tr!e character% e paid co!rt to governments, with servile flattery,!sed his money to ingratiate himself f!rther and th!s reg!larly sec!red for himself once again the privilege

of e3ploiting his victim% Altho!gh p!blic wrath flared !p against this eternal profiteer and drove him o!t,

after a few years he reappeared in those same places and carried on as before% *o persec!tion co!ld force

him to give !p his trade of e3ploiting other people and no amo!nt of harrying s!cceeded in driving him o!t

permanently% e always ret!rned 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 )ew from

obtaining possession of the land%

BfC In proportion as the powers of &ings and princes increased, the )ew sidled !p to them% e begged for charters# and privileges# which those gentlemen, who were generally in financial straits, gladly granted if

they received ade+!ate payment in ret!rn% owever high the price he has to pay, the )ew will s!cceed in

getting it bac& within a few years from operating the privilege he has ac+!ired, even with interest and

compo!nd interest% e is a real leech who clings to the body of his !nfort!nate victims and cannot beremoved> so that when the princes fo!nd themselves in need once again they too& the blood from his

swollen veins with their own hands%

(his game was repeated !nendingly% In the case of those who were called 6erman "rinces#, the part they

played was +!ite as contemptible as that played by the )ew% (hey were a real sco!rge for their people% (heir compeers may be fo!nd in some of the government ministers of o!r time%

It was d!e to the 6erman princes that the 6erman nation co!ld not s!cceed in definitely freeing itself fromthe )ewish peril% Mnfort!nately the sit!ation did not change at a later period% (he princes finally received

the reward which they had a tho!sand-fold deserved for all the crimes committed by them against their own people% (hey had allied themselves with 'atan and later on they discovered that they were in 'atan#s

embrace%

BgC y permitting themselves to be entangled in the toils of the )ew, the princes prepared their own

downfall% (he position which they held among their people was slowly b!t steadily !ndermined not only bytheir contin!ed fail!re to g!ard the interests of their s!bects b!t by the positive e3ploitation of them% (he

)ew calc!lated e3actly the time when the downfall of the princes was approaching and did his best to

hasten it% e intensified their financial diffic!lties by hindering them in the e3ercise of their d!ty towards

their people, by inveigling them thro!gh the most servile flatteries into f!rther personal display, whereby hemade himself more and more indispensable to them% is ast!teness, or rather his !tter !nscr!p!lo!sness, in

money affairs enabled him to e3act new income from the princes, to s+!eee the money o!t of them and

then have it spent as +!ic&ly as possible% 7very $o!rt had its $o!rt )ews#, as this plag!e was called, whotort!red the innocent victims !ntil they were driven to despair> while at the same time this )ew provided themeans which the princes s+!andered on their own pleas!res% It is not to be wondered at that these

ornaments of the h!man race became the recipients of official hono!rs and even were admitted into the

ran&s of the hereditary nobility, th!s contrib!ting not only to e3pose that social instit!tion to ridic!le b!t

also to contaminate it from the inside% *at!rally the )ew co!ld now e3ploit the position to which he had attained and p!sh himself forward even

more rapidly than before% Finally he became baptied and th!s entitled to all the rights and privileges which

belonged to the children of the nation on which he preyed% (his was a high-class stro&e of b!siness for him,and he often availed himself of it, to the great oy of the $h!rch, which was pro!d of having gained a new



child in the Faith, and also to the oy of Israel, which was happy at seeing the tric& p!lled off s!ccessf!lly%

BhC At this stage a transformation began to ta&e place in the world of )ewry% Mp to now they had been )ews -

that is to say, they did not hitherto set any great val!e on pretending to be something else> and anyhow the

distinctive characteristics which separated them from other races co!ld not be easily overcome% 7ven aslate as the time of Frederic& the 6reat nobody loo&ed !pon the )ews as other than a foreign# people, and

6oethe rose !p in revolt against the fail!re legally to prohibit marriage between $hristians and )ews%

6oethe was certainly no reactionary and no time-server% /hat he said came from the voice of the blood and

the voice of reason% *otwithstanding the disgracef!l happenings ta&ing place in $o!rt circles, the peoplerecognied instinctively that the )ew was the foreign body in their own flesh and their attit!de towards him

was directed by recognition of that fact%

!t a change was now destined to ta&e place% In the co!rse of more than a tho!sand years the )ew had

learned to master the lang!age of his hosts so thoro!ghly that he considered he might now lay stress on his)ewish character and emphasie the 6ermanism# a bit more% (ho!gh it m!st have appeared ridic!lo!s and

abs!rd at first sight, he was imp!dent eno!gh to call himself a (e!ton#, which in this case meant a

6erman% In that way began one of the most infamo!s impositions that can be imagined% (he )ew did not

possess the slightest traces of the 6erman character% e had only ac+!ired the art of twisting the 6ermanlang!age to his own !ses, and that in a disg!sting way, witho!t having assimilated any other feat!re of the

6erman character% (herefore his command of the lang!age was the sole gro!nd on which he co!ld pretend

to be a 6erman% It is not however by the tie of lang!age, b!t e3cl!sively by the tie of blood that the

members of a race are bo!nd together% And the )ew himself &nows this better than any other, seeing that he

attaches so little importance to the preservation of his own lang!age while at the same time he strives his!tmost to maintain his blood free from intermi3t!re with that of other races% A man may ac+!ire and !se a

new lang!age witho!t m!ch tro!ble> b!t it is only his old ideas that he e3presses thro!gh the new lang!age%

is inner nat!re is not modified thereby% (he best proof of this is f!rnished by the )ew himself% e mayspea& a tho!sand tong!es and yet his )ewish nat!re will remain always one and the same% is

disting!ishing characteristics were the same when he spo&e the Latin lang!age at Ostia two tho!sand years

ago as a merchant in grain, as they are to-day when he tries to sell ad!lterated flo!r with the aid of his

6erman gibberish% e is always the same )ew% (hat so obvio!s a fact is not recognied by the averagehead-cler& in a 6erman government department, or by an officer in the police administration, is also a self-

evident and nat!ral fact> since it wo!ld be diffic!lt to find another class of people who are so lac&ing in

instinct and intelligence as the civil servants employed by o!r modern 6erman 'tate a!thorities%

(he reason why, at the stage I am dealing with, the )ew so s!ddenly decided to transform himself into a6erman is not diffic!lt to discover% e felt the power of the princes slowly cr!mbling and therefore loo&ed

abo!t to find a new social plan& on which he might stand% F!rthermore, his financial domination over allthe spheres of economic life had become so powerf!l that he felt he co!ld no longer s!stain that enormo!s

str!ct!re or add to it !nless he were admitted to the f!ll enoyment of the rights of citienship%# e aimedat both, preservation and e3pansion> for the higher he co!ld climb the more all!ring became the prospect of

reaching the old goal, which was promised to him in ancient times, namely world-r!lership, and which he

now loo&ed forward to with feverish eyes, as he tho!ght he saw it visibly approaching% (herefore all his

efforts were now directed to becoming a f!lly-fledged citien, endowed with all civil and political rights%(hat was the reason for his emancipation from the 6hetto%

BiC And th!s the $o!rt )ew slowly developed into the national )ew% !t nat!rally he still remained

associated with persons in higher +!arters and he even attempted to p!sh his way f!rther into the inner

circles of the r!ling set% !t at the same time some other representatives of his race were c!rrying favo!r with the people% If we remember the crimes the )ew had committed against the masses of the people in the

co!rse of so many cent!ries, how repeatedly and r!thlessly he e3ploited them and how he s!c&ed o!t even

the very marrow of their s!bstance, and when we f!rther remember how they grad!ally came to hate himand finally considered him as a p!blic sco!rge - then we may well !nderstand how diffic!lt the )ew m!sthave fo!nd this final transformation% Nes, indeed, it m!st ta3 all their powers to be able to present

themselves as friends of h!manity# to the poor victims whom they have s&inned raw%

(herefore the )ew began by ma&ing p!blic amends for the crimes which he had committed against the

people in the past% e started his metamorphosis by first appearing as the benefactor# of h!manity% 'incehis new philanthropic policy had a very concrete aim in view, he co!ld not very well apply to himself the

biblical co!nsel, not to allow the left hand to &now what the right hand is giving% e felt obliged to let as

many people as possible &now how deeply the s!fferings of the masses grieved him and to what e3cessesof personal sacrifice he was ready to go in order to help them% /ith this manifestation of innate modesty, so



typical of the )ew, he tr!mpeted his virt!es before the world !ntil finally the world act!ally began to

believe him% (hose who ref!sed to share this belief were considered to be doing him an in!stice% (h!s after

a little while he began to twist things aro!nd, so as to ma&e it appear that it was he who had always been

wronged, and vice versa% (here were really some partic!larly foolish people who co!ld not help pitying this poor !nfort!nate creat!re of a )ew%

Attention may be called to the fact that, in spite of his proclaimed readiness to ma&e personal sacrifices, the

)ew never becomes poor thereby% e has a happy &nac& of always ma&ing both ends meet% Occasionally his

benevolence might be compared to the man!re which is not spread over the field merely for the p!rpose of getting rid of it, b!t rather with a view to f!t!re prod!ce% Anyhow, after a comparatively short period of

time, the world was given to &now that the )ew had become a general benefactor and philanthropist% /hat a

transformationJ

/hat is loo&ed !pon as more or less nat!ral when done by other people here became an obect of astonishment, and even sometimes of admiration, beca!se it was considered so !n!s!al in a )ew% (hat is

why he has received more credit for his acts of benevolence than ordinary mortals%

And something more0 (he )ew became liberal all of a s!dden and began to tal& enth!siastically of how

h!man progress m!st be enco!raged% 6rad!ally he ass!med the air of being the herald of a new age%Net at the same time he contin!ed to !ndermine the gro!nd-wor& of that part of the economic system in

which the people have the most practical interest% e bo!ght !p stoc& in the vario!s national !nderta&ings

and th!s p!shed his infl!ence into the circ!it of national prod!ction, ma&ing this latter an obect of b!ying

and selling on the stoc& e3change, or rather what might be called the pawn in a financial game of chess,

and th!s r!ining the basis on which personal proprietorship alone is possible% Only with the entrance of the)ew did that feeling of estrangement, between employers and employees begin which led at a later date to

the political class-str!ggle%

Finally the )ew gained an increasing infl!ence in all economic !nderta&ings by means of his predominancein the stoc&-e3change% If not the ownership, at least he sec!red control of the wor&ing 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 t!rn% /ith characteristic tenacity

he championed the ca!se of religio!s tolerance for this p!rpose> and in the freemason organiation, whichhad fallen completely into his hands, he fo!nd a magnificent weapon which helped him to achieve his ends%

6overnment circles, as well as the higher sections of the political and commercial bo!rgeoisie, fell a prey

to his plans thro!gh his manip!lation of the masonic net, tho!gh they themselves did not even s!spect what

was happening%Only the people as s!ch, or rather the masses which were !st becoming conscio!s of their own power and

were beginning to !se it in the fight for their rights and liberties, had hitherto escaped the grip of the )ew%At least his infl!ence had not yet penetrated to the deeper and wider sections of the people% (his was

!nsatisfactory to him% (he most important phase of his policy was therefore to sec!re control over the people% (he )ew realied that in his efforts to reach the position of p!blic despot he wo!ld need a peace-

ma&er%# And he tho!ght he co!ld find a peace-ma&er if he co!ld whip-in s!fficient e3tensive sections of the

bo!rgeois% !t the freemasons failed to catch the glove-man!fact!rers 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% (h!sanother weapon beside that of freemasonry wo!ld have to be sec!red% (his was the "ress% (he )ew

e3ercised all his s&ill and tenacity in getting hold of it% y means of the "ress he began grad!ally to control

p!blic life in its entirety% e 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, !nder the name of p!blic opinion# is better &nown to-day than it was some decades ago%

'im!ltaneo!sly the )ew gave himself the air of thirsting after &nowledge% e la!ded every phase of

progress, partic!larly those phases which led to the r!in of others> for he !dges all progress anddevelopment from the standpoint of the advantages which these bring to his own people% /hen it bringshim no s!ch advantages he is the deadly enemy of enlightenment and hates all c!lt!re which is real c!lt!re

as s!ch% All the &nowledge which he ac+!ires in the schools of others is e3ploited by him e3cl!sively in the

service of his own race%

7ven more watchf!lly than ever before, he now stood g!ard over his )ewish nationality% (ho!gh b!bblingover with enlightenment#, progress#, liberty#, h!manity#, etc%, his first care was to preserve the racial

integrity of his own people% e occasionally bestowed one of his female members on an infl!ential

$hristian> b!t the racial stoc& of his male descendants was always preserved !nmi3ed f!ndamentally% e poisons the blood of others b!t preserves his own blood !nad!lterated% (he )ew scarcely ever marries a



$hristian girl, b!t the $hristian ta&es a )ewess to wife% (he mongrels that are a res!lt of this latter !nion

always declare themselves on the )ewish side% (h!s a part of the higher nobility in partic!lar became

completely degenerate% (he )ew was well aware of this fact and systematically !sed this means of

disarming the intellect!al leaders of the opposite race% (o mas& his tactics and fool his victims, he tal&s of the e+!ality of all men, no matter what their race or colo!r may be% And the simpletons begin to believe

him%

'ince his whole nat!re still retains too foreign an odo!r for the broad masses of the people to allow

themselves to be ca!ght in his snare, he !ses the "ress to p!t before the p!blic a pict!re of himself which isentirely !ntr!e to life b!t well designed to serve his p!rpose% In the comic papers special efforts are made to

represent the )ews as an inoffensive little race which, li&e all others, has its pec!liarities% In spite of their

manners, which may seem a bit strange, the comic papers present the )ews as f!ndamentally good-hearted

and hono!rable% Attempts are generally made to ma&e them appear insignificant rather than dangero!s%?!ring this phase of his progress the chief goal of the )ew was the victory of democracy, or rather the

s!preme hegemony of the parliamentary system, which embodies his concept of democracy% (his

instit!tion harmonises best with his p!rposes> for th!s the personal element is eliminated and in its place we

have the d!nder-headed maority, inefficiency and, last b!t by no means least, &navery%(he final res!lt m!st necessarily have been the overthrow of the monarchy, which had to happen sooner or

later%

BC A tremendo!s economic development transformed the social str!ct!re of the nation% (he small artisan

class slowly disappeared and the factory wor&er, who too& its place, had scarcely any chance of

establishing an independent e3istence of his own b!t san& more and more to the level of a proletariat% Anessential characteristic of the factory wor&er is that he is scarcely ever able to provide for an independent

so!rce of livelihood which will s!pport him in later life% In the tr!e sense of the word, he is disinherited#%

is old age is a misery to him and can hardly be called life at all%In earlier times a similar sit!ation had been created, which had imperatively demanded a sol!tion and for

which a sol!tion was fo!nd% 'ide by side with the peasant and the artisan, a new class was grad!ally

developed, namely that of officials and employees, especially those employed in the vario!s services of the

'tate% (hey also were a disinherited# class, in the tr!e sense of the word% !t the 'tate fo!nd a remedy for this !nhealthy sit!ation by ta&ing !pon itself the d!ty of providing for the 'tate official who co!ld establish

nothing that wo!ld be an independent means of livelihood for himself in his old age% (h!s the system of

pensions and retiring allowances was introd!ced% "rivate enterprises slowly followed this e3ample in

increasing n!mbers> so that to-day every permanent non-man!al wor&er receives a pension in his later years, if the firm which he has served is one that has reached or gone beyond a certain sie% It was only by

virt!e of the ass!rance given of 'tate officials, that they wo!ld be cared for in their old age% that s!ch a highdegree of !nselfish devotion to d!ty was developed, which in pre-war times was one of the disting!ising

characteristics of 6erman officials%(h!s a whole class which had no personal property was saved from destit!tion by an intelligent system of

provision, and fo!nd a place in the social str!ct!re of the national comm!nity%

(he problem is now p!t before the 'tate and nation, b!t this time in a m!ch larger form% /hen the new

ind!stries sprang !p and developed, millions of people left the co!ntryside and the villages to ta&e !pemployment in the big factories% (he conditions !nder which this new class fo!nd itself forced to live were

worse than miserable% (he more or less mechanical transformation of the methods of wor& hitherto in

vog!e among the artisans and peasants did not fit in well with the habits or mentality of this new wor&ing-

class% (he way in which the peasants and artisans had formerly wor&ed had nothing comparable to theintensive labo!r of the new factory wor&er% In the old trades time did not play a highly important role, b!t it

became an essential element in the new ind!strial system% (he formal ta&ing over of the old wor&ing ho!rs

into the mammoth ind!strial enterprises had fatal res!lts% (he act!al amo!nt of wor& hitherto accomplishedwithin a certain time was comparatively small, beca!se the modern methods of intensive prod!ction werethen !n&nown% (herefore, tho!gh in the older system a wor&ing day of fo!rteen or even fifteen ho!rs was

not !nend!rable, now it was beyond the possibilities of h!man end!rance beca!se in the new system every

min!te was !tilied to the e3treme% (his abs!rd transference of the old wor&ing ho!rs to the new ind!strial

system proved fatal in two directions% First, it r!ined the health of the wor&ers> secondly, it destroyed their faith in a s!perior law of !stice% Finally, on the one hand a miserable wage was received and, on the other,

the employer held a m!ch more l!crative position than before% ence a stri&ing difference between the

ways of life on the one side and on the other%In the open co!ntry there co!ld be no social problem, beca!se the master and the farm-hand were doing the



same &ind of wor& and doing it together% (hey ate their food in common, and sometimes even o!t of the

same dish% !t in this sphere also the new system introd!ced an entirely different set of conditions between

masters and men%

(he division created between employer and employees seems not to have e3tended to all branches of life%ow far this )!daiing process has been allowed to ta&e effect among o!r people is ill!strated by the fact

that man!al labo!r not only receives practically no recognition b!t is even considered degrading% (hat is

not a nat!ral 6erman attit!de% It is d!e to the introd!ction of a foreign element into o!r lives, and that

foreign element is the )ewish spirit, one of the effects of which has been to transform the high esteem inwhich o!r handicrafts once were held into a definite feeling that all physical labo!r is something base and

!nworthy%

(h!s a new social class has grown !p which stands in low esteem> and the day m!st come when we shall

have to face the +!estion of whether the nation will be able to ma&e this class an integral part of the socialcomm!nity or whether the difference of stat!s now e3isting will become a permanent g!lf separating this

class from the others%

One thing, however, is certain0 (his class does not incl!de the worst elements of the comm!nity in its

ran&s% 8ather the contrary is the tr!th0 it incl!des the most energetic parts of the nation% (he sophisticationwhich is the res!lt of a so-called civiliation has not yet e3ercised its disintegrating and degenerating

infl!ence on this class% (he broad masses of this new lower class, constit!ted by the man!al labo!rers, have

not yet fallen a prey to the morbid wea&ness of pacifism% (hese are still rob!st and, if necessary, they can

be br!tal%

/hile o!r bo!rgeoisie middle class paid no attention at all to this momento!s problem and indifferentlyallowed events to ta&e their co!rse, the )ew seied !pon the manifold possibilities which the sit!ation

offered him for the f!t!re% /hile on the one hand he organied capitalistic methods of e3ploitation to their

!ltimate degree of efficiency, he c!rried favo!r with the victims of his policy and his power and in a shortwhile became the leader of their str!ggle against himself% Against himself# is here only a fig!rative way of

spea&ing> for this 6reat aster of Lies# &nows how to appear in the g!ise of the innocent and throw the

g!ilt on others% 'ince he had the imp!dence to ta&e a personal lead among the masses, they never for a

moment s!spected that they were falling a prey to one of the most infamo!s deceits ever practised% And yetthat is what it act!ally was%

(he moment this new class had arisen o!t of the general economic sit!ation and ta&en shape as a definite

body in the social order, the )ew saw clearly where he wo!ld find the necessary pacema&er for his own

progressive march% At first he had !sed the bo!rgeois class as a battering-ram against the fe!dal order> andnow he !sed the wor&er against the bo!rgeois world% )!st as he s!cceeded in obtaining civic rights by

intrig!es carried on !nder the protection of the bo!rgeois class, he now hoped that by oining in the str!gglewhich the wor&ers were waging for their own e3istence he wo!ld be able to obtain f!ll control over them%

/hen that moment arrives, then the only obective the wor&ers will have to fight for will be the f!t!re of the )ewish people% /itho!t &nowing it, the wor&er 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 th!s he is all the

more easily bro!ght to fight for capitalist interests% O!tcries are systematically raised against international

capital b!t in reality it is against the str!ct!re of national economics that these slogans are directed% (heidea is to demolish this str!ct!re and on its r!ins tri!mphantly erect the str!ct!re of the International 'toc&

73change%

In this line of action the proced!re of the )ew was as follows0

e &owtowed to the wor&er, hypocritically pretended to feel pity for him and his lot, and even to beindignant at the misery and poverty which the wor&er had to end!re% (hat is the way in which the )ew

endeavo!red to gain the confidence of the wor&ing class% e showed himself eager to st!dy their vario!s

hardships, whether real or imaginary, and strove to awa&en a yearning on the part of the wor&ers to changethe conditions !nder which they lived% (he )ew artf!lly en&indled that innate yearning for social !sticewhich is a typical Aryan characteristic% Once that yearning became alive it was transformed into hatred

against those in more fort!nate circ!mstances of life% (he ne3t stage was to give a precise philosophical

aspect to the str!ggle for the elimination of social wrongs% And th!s the ar3ist doctrine was invented%

y presenting his doctrine as part and parcel of a !st revindication of social rights, the )ew propagated thedoctrine all the more effectively% !t at the same time he provo&ed the opposition of decent people who

ref!sed to admit these demands which, beca!se of the form and pse!do-philosophical trimmings in which

they are presented, seemed f!ndamentally !n!st and impossible for realiation% For, !nder the cloa& of p!rely social concepts there are hidden aims which are of a 'atanic character% (hese aims are even



e3po!nded in the open with the clarity of !nlimited imp!dence% (his ar3ist doctrine is an individ!al

mi3t!re of h!man reason and h!man abs!rdity> b!t the combination is arranged in s!ch a way that only the

abs!rd part of it co!ld ever be p!t into practice, b!t never the reasonable part of it% y categorically

rep!diating the personal worth of the individ!al and also the nation and its racial constit!ent, this doctrinedestroys the f!ndamental basis of all civiliation> for civiliation essentially depends on these very factors%

'!ch is the tr!e essence of the ar3ist Weltanschhauung , so far as the word Weltanschhauung can be

applied at all to this phantom arising from a criminal brain% (he destr!ction 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 )ews%

(he very abs!rdity of the economic and political theories of ar3ism gives the doctrine its pec!liar

significance% eca!se of its pse!do-logic, intelligent people ref!se to s!pport it, while all those who are less

acc!stomed to !se their intellect!al fac!lties, or who have only a r!dimentary notion of economic principles, oin the ar3ist ca!se with flying banners% (he intelligence behind the movement - for even this

movement needs intelligence if it is to s!bsist - is s!pplied by the )ews themselves, nat!rally of co!rse as a

grat!ito!s service which is at the same time a sacrifice on their part%

(h!s arose a movement which was composed e3cl!sively of man!al wor&ers !nder the leadership of )ews%(o all e3ternal appearances, this movement strives to ameliorate the conditions !nder which the wor&ers

live> b!t in reality its aim is to enslave and thereby annihilate the non-)ewish races%

(he 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 e3tended to the broad masses

of the wor&ers and bo!rgeoisie by means of the "ress, which was almost everywhere in )ewish hands% (othose two instr!ments of disintegration a third and still more r!thless one was added, namely, the

organiation of br!te physical force among the masses% As massed col!mns of attac&s, the ar3ist troops

stormed those parts of the social order which had been left standing after the two former !nderminingoperations had done their wor&%

(he combined activity of all these forces has been marvello!sly managed% And it will not be s!rprising if it

t!rns o!t that those instit!tions which have always appeared as the organs of the more or less traditional

a!thority of the 'tate sho!ld now fall before the ar3ist attac&% Among o!r higher and highest 'tateofficials, with very few e3ceptions, the )ew has fo!nd the cost complacent bac&ers in his wor& of

destr!ction% An attit!de of snea&ing servility towards s!periors# and s!percilio!s arrogance towards

inferiors# are the characteristics of this class of people, as well as a grade of st!pidity which is really

frightening and at the same time a towering self-conceit, which has been so consistently developed to ma&eit am!sing%

!t these +!alities are of the greatest !tility to the )ew in his dealings with o!r a!thorities% (herefore theyare +!alities which he appreciates most in the officials%

If I were to s&etch ro!ghly the act!al str!ggle which is now beginning I sho!ld describe it somewhat th!s0 *ot satisfied with the economic con+!est of the world, b!t also demanding that it m!st come !nder his

political control, the )ew s!bdivides the organied ar3ist power into two parts, which correspond to the

!ltimate obectives that are to be fo!ght for in this str!ggle which is carried on !nder the direction of the

)ew% (o o!tward appearance, these seem to be two independent movements, b!t in reality they constit!te anindivisible !nity% (he two divisions are0 (he political movement and the trades !nion movement%

(he trades !nion movement has to gather in the recr!its% It offers assistance and protection to the wor&ers

in the hard str!ggle which they have to wage for the bare means of e3istence, a str!ggle which has been

occasioned by the greediness and narrow-mindedness of many of the ind!strialists% Mnless the wor&ers beready to s!rrender all claims to an e3istence which the dignity of h!man nat!re itself demands, and !nless

they are ready to s!bmit their fate to the will of employers who in many cases have no sense of h!man

responsibilities and are !tterly callo!s to h!man wants, then the wor&er m!st necessarily ta&e matters intohis own hands, seeing that the organied social comm!nity - that is to say, the 'tate - pays no attention tohis needs%

(he so-called national-minded bo!rgeoisie, blinded by its own material interests, opposes this life-or-death

str!ggle of the wor&ers and places the most diffic!lt obstacles in their way% *ot only does this bo!rgeoisie

hinder all efforts to enact legislation which wo!ld shorten the inh!manly long ho!rs of wor&, prohibitchild-labo!r, grant sec!rity and protection to women and improve the hygienic conditions of the wor&shops

and the dwellings of the wor&ing-class, b!t while the bo!rgeoisie hinders all this the shrewd )ew ta&es the

ca!se of the oppressed into his own hands% e grad!ally becomes the leader of the trades !nionmovements, which is an easy tas& for him, beca!se he does not gen!inely intend to find remedies for the



social wrong0 he p!rs!es only one obective, namely, to gather and consolidate a body of followers who

will act !nder his commands as an armed weapon in the economic war for the destr!ction of national

economic independence% For, while a so!nd social policy has to move between the two poles of sec!ring a

decent level of p!blic health and welfare on the one hand and, on the other, that of safeg!arding theindependence of the economic life of the nation, the )ew does not ta&e these poles into acco!nt at all% (he

destr!ction of both is one of his main obects% e wo!ld r!in, rather than safeg!ard, the independence of

the national economic system% (herefore, as the leader of the trades !nion movement, he has no scr!ples

abo!t p!tting forward demands which not only go beyond the declared p!rpose of the movement b!t co!ldnot be carried into effect witho!t r!ining the national economic str!ct!re% On the other hand, he has no

interest in seeing a healthy and st!rdy pop!lation develop> he wo!ld be more content to see the people

degenerate into an !nthin&ing herd which co!ld be red!ced to total s!bection% eca!se these are his final

obectives, he can afford to p!t forward the most abs!rd claims% e &nows very well that these claims cannever be realied and that therefore nothing in the act!al state of affairs co!ld be altered by them, b!t that

the most they can do is to aro!se the spirit of !nrest among the masses% (hat is e3actly the p!rpose which

he wishes s!ch propaganda to serve and not a real and honest improvement of the social conditions%

(he )ews will therefore remain the !n+!estioned leaders of the trades !nion movement so long as acampaign is not !nderta&en, which m!st be carried o!t on gigantic lines, for the enlightenment of the

masses> so that they will be enabled better to !nderstand the ca!ses of their misery% Or the same end might

be achieved if the government a!thorities wo!ld get rid of the )ew and his wor&% For as long as the masses

remain so ill-informed as they act!ally are to-day, and as long as the 'tate remains as indifferent to their lot

as it now is, the masses will follow whatever leader ma&es them the most e3travagant promises in regard toeconomic matters% (he )ew is a past master at this art and his activities are not hampered by moral

considerations of any &ind%

*at!rally it ta&es him only a short time to defeat all his competitors in this field and drive them from thescene of action% In accordance with the general br!tality and rapacity of his nat!re, he t!rns the trades !nion

movement into an organiation for the e3ercise of physical violence% (he resistance of those whose

common sense has hitherto saved them from s!rrendering to the )ewish dictatorship is now bro&en down

by terroriation% (he s!ccess of that &ind of activity is enormo!s%"arallel with this, %the political organiation advances% It operates hand-in-hand with the trades !nion

movement, inasm!ch as the latter prepares the masses for the political organiation and even forces them

into it% (his is also the so!rce that provides the money which the political organiation needs to &eep its

enormo!s apparat!s in action% (he trades !nion organiation is the organ of control for the political activityof its members and whips in the masses for all great political demonstrations% In the end it ceases to

str!ggle for economic interests b!t places its chief weapon, the ref!sal to contin!e wor& - which ta&es theform of a general stri&e - at the disposal of the political movement%

y means of a "ress whose contents are adapted to the level of the most ignorant readers, the political andtrades !nion organiations are provided with an instr!ment which prepares the lowest strat!m of the nation

for a campaign of r!thless destr!ction% It is not considered part of the p!rpose of this "ress to inspire its

readers with ideals which might help them to lift their minds above the sordid conditions of their daily

lives> b!t, on the contrary, it panders to their lowest instincts% Among the lay-minded and self-see&ingsections of the masses this &ind of spec!lation t!rns o!t l!crative%

It is this "ress above all which carries on a fanatical campaign of cal!mny, strives to tear down everything

that might be considered as a mainstay of national independence and to sabotage all c!lt!ral val!es as well

as to destroy the a!tonomy of the national economic system%It aims its attac& especially against all men of character who ref!se to fall into line with the )ewish efforts

to obtain control over the 'tate or who appear dangero!s to the )ews merely beca!se of their s!perior

intelligence% For in order to inc!r the enmity of the )ew it is not necessary to show any open hostilitytowards him% It is +!ite s!fficient if one be considered capable of opposing the )ew some time in the f!t!reor !sing his abilities and character to enhance the power and position of a nation which the )ew finds

hostile to himself%

(he )ewish instinct, which never fails where these problems have to be dealt with, readily discerns the tr!e

mentality of those whom the )ew meets in everyday life> and those who are not of a &indred spirit with himmay be s!re of being listed among his enemies% 'ince the )ew is not the obect of aggression b!t the

aggressor himself, he considers as his enemies not only those who attac& him b!t also those who may be

capable of resisting him% (he means which he employs to brea& people of this &ind, who may showthemselves decent and !pright, are not the open means generally !sed in hono!rable conflict, b!t falsehood



and cal!mny%

e will stop at nothing% is !tterly low-down cond!ct is so appalling that one really cannot be s!rprised if

in the imagination of o!r people the )ew is pict!red as the incarnation of 'atan and the symbol of evil%

(he ignorance of the broad masses as regards the inner character of the )ew, and the lac& of instinct andinsight that o!r !pper classes display, are some of the reasons which e3plain how it is that so many people

fall an easy prey to the systematic campaign of falsehood which the )ew carries on%

/hile the !pper classes, with their innate cowardliness, t!rn away from anyone whom the )ew th!s attac&s

with lies and cal!mny, the common people are cred!lo!s of everything, whether beca!se of their ignoranceor their simple-mindedness% 6overnment a!thorities wrap themselves !p in a robe of silence, b!t more

fre+!ently they persec!te the victims of )ewish attac&s in order to stop the campaign in the )ewish "ress% (o

the fat!o!s mind of the government official s!ch a line of cond!ct appears to belong to the policy of

!pholding the a!thority of the 'tate and preserving p!blic order% 6rad!ally the ar3ist weapon in the handsof the )ew becomes a constant bogy to decent people% 'ometimes the fear of it stic&s in the brain or weighs

!pon them as a &ind of nightmare% "eople begin to +!ail before this fearf!l foe and therewith become his

victims%

B&C (he )ewish domination in the 'tate seems now so f!lly ass!red that not only can he now afford to callhimself a )ew once again, b!t he even ac&nowledges freely and openly what his ideas are on racial and

political +!estions% A section of the )ews avows itself +!ite openly as an alien people, b!t even here there is

another falsehood% /hen the Kionists try to ma&e the rest of the world believe that the new national

conscio!sness of the )ews will be satisfied by the establishment of a )ewish 'tate in "alestine, the )ews

thereby adopt another means to d!pe the simple-minded 6entile% (hey have not the slightest intention of b!ilding !p a )ewish 'tate in "alestine so as to live in it% /hat they really are aiming at is to establish a

central organiation for their international swindling and cheating% As a sovereign 'tate, this cannot be

controlled by any of the other 'tates% (herefore it can serve as a ref!ge for swindlers who have been fo!ndo!t and at the same time a high-school for the training of other swindlers%

As a sign of their growing pres!mption and sense of sec!rity, a certain section of them openly and

imp!dently proclaim their )ewish nationality while another section hypocritically pretend that they are

6erman, French or 7nglish as the case may be% (heir blatant behavio!r in their relations with other peopleshows how clearly they envisage their day of tri!mph in the near f!t!re%

(he blac&-haired )ewish yo!th lies in wait for ho!rs on end, satanically glaring at and spying on the

!ns!spicio!s girl whom he plans to sed!ce, ad!lterating her blood and removing her from the bosom of her

own people% (he )ew !ses every possible means to !ndermine the racial fo!ndations of a s!b!gated people% In his systematic efforts to r!in girls and women he strives to brea& down the last barriers of

discrimination between him and other peoples% (he )ews were responsible for bringing negroes into the8hineland, with the !ltimate idea of bastardiing the white race which they hate and th!s lowering its

c!lt!ral and political level so that the )ew might dominate% For as long as a people remain racially p!re andare conscio!s of the treas!re of their blood, they can never be overcome by the )ew% *ever in this world can

the )ew become master of any people e3cept a bastardied people%

(hat is why the )ew systematically endeavo!rs to lower the racial +!ality of a people by permanently

ad!lterating the blood of the individ!als who ma&e !p that people%In the field of politics he now begins to replace the idea of democracy by introd!cing the dictatorship of the

proletariat% In the masses organied !nder the ar3ist banners he has fo!nd a weapon which ma&es it

possible for him to discard democracy, so as to s!b!gate and r!le in a dictatorial fashion by the aid of br!te

force% e is systematically wor&ing in two ways to bring abo!t this revol!tion% (hese ways are theeconomic and the political respectively%

Aided by international infl!ences, he forms a ring of enemies aro!nd those nations which have proved

themselves too st!rdy for him in withstanding attac&s from within% e wo!ld li&e to force them into war and then, if it sho!ld be necessary to his plans, he will !nf!rl the banners of revolt even while the troops areact!ally fighting at the front%

7conomically he brings abo!t the destr!ction of the 'tate by a systematic method of sabotaging social

enterprises !ntil these become so costly that they are ta&en o!t of the hands of the 'tate and then s!bmitted

to the control of )ewish finance% "olitically he wor&s to withdraw from the 'tate its means of s!sbsistence,inasm!ch as he !ndermines the fo!ndations of national resistance and defence, destroys the confidence

which the people have in their 6overnment, reviles the past and its history and drags everything national

down into the g!tter%$!lt!rally his activity consists in bowdleriing art, literat!re and the theatre, holding the e3pressions of



national sentiment !p to scorn, overt!rning all concepts of the s!blime and bea!tif!l, the worthy and the

good, finally dragging the people to the level of his own low mentality%

Of religion he ma&es a moc&ery% orality and decency are described as anti+!ated pre!dices and th!s a

systematic attac& is made to !ndermine those last fo!ndations on which the national being m!st rest if thenation is to str!ggle for its e3istence in this world%

BlC *ow begins the great and final revol!tion% As soon as the )ew is in possession of political power he

drops the last few veils which have hitherto helped to conceal his feat!res% O!t of the democratic )ew, the

)ew of the "eople, arises the )ew of the lood#, the tyrant of the peoples% In the co!rse of a few years heendeavo!rs to e3terminate all those who represent the national intelligence% And by th!s depriving the

peoples of their nat!ral intellect!al leaders he fits them for their fate as slaves !nder a lasting despotism%

8!ssia f!rnishes the most terrible e3ample of s!ch a slavery% In that co!ntry the )ew &illed or starved thirty

millions of the people, in a bo!t of savage fanaticism and partly by the employment of inh!man tort!re%And he did this so that a gang of )ewish literati and financial bandits sho!ld dominate over a great people%

!t the final conse+!ence is not merely that the people lose all their freedom !nder the domination of the

)ews, b!t that in the end these parasites themselves disappear% (he death of the victim is followed sooner or

later by that of the vampire%If we review all the ca!ses which contrib!ted to bring abo!t the downfall of the 6erman people we shall

find that the most profo!nd and decisive ca!se m!st be attrib!ted to the lac& of insight into the racial

problem and especially in the fail!re to recognie the )ewish danger%

It wo!ld have been easy eno!gh to end!re the defeats s!ffered on the battlefields in A!g!st 191;% (hey

were nothing when compared with the military victories which o!r nation had achieved% O!r downfall wasnot the res!lt of those defeats> b!t 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 str!ggle for its e3istence and therewith sec!re the right to e3ist%y neglecting the problem of preserving the racial fo!ndations of o!r national life, the old 7mpire

abrogated the sole right which entitles a people to live on this planet% *ations that ma&e mongrels of their

people, or allow their people to be t!rned into mongrels, sin against the /ill of 7ternal "rovidence% And

th!s their overthrow at the hands of a stronger opponent cannot be loo&ed !pon as a wrong b!t, on thecontrary, as a restoration of !stice% If a people ref!ses to g!ard and !phold the +!alities with which it has

been endowed by *at!re and which have their roots in the racial blood, then s!ch a people has no right to

complain over the loss of its earthly e3istence%

7verything on this earth can be made into something better% 7very defeat may be made the fo!ndation of af!t!re victory% 7very lost war may be the ca!se of a later res!rgence% 7very visitation of distress can give a

new impet!s to h!man energy% And o!t of every oppression those forces can develop which bring abo!t anew re-birth of the national so!l - provided always that the racial blood is &ept p!re%

!t the loss of racial p!rity will wrec& inner happiness for ever% It degrades men for all time to come% Andthe physical and moral conse+!ences can never be wiped o!t%

If this !ni+!e problem be st!died and compared with the other problems of life we shall easily recognie

how small is their importance in comparison with this% (hey are all limited to time> b!t the problem of the

maintenance or loss of the p!rity 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 bac& to

the racial problem%

/hether one is dealing with +!estions of general law, or monstro!s e3crescences in economic life, of

phenomena which point to a c!lt!ral decline or political degeneration, whether it be a +!estion of defects inthe school-system or of the evil infl!ence which the "ress e3erts over the ad!lt pop!lation - always and

everywhere these phenomena are at bottom ca!sed by a lac& of consideration for the interests of the race to

which one#s own nation belongs, or by the fail!re to recognie the danger that comes from allowing aforeign race to e3ist within the national body%(hat is why all attempts at reform, all instit!tions for social relief, all political striving, all economic

progress and all apparent increase in the general stoc& of &nowledge, were doomed to be !nprod!ctive of

any significant res!lts% (he nation, as well as the organiation which enables it to e3ist - namely, the 'tate -

were not developing in inner strength and stability, b!t, on the contrary, were visibly losing their vitality%(he false brilliance of the 'econd 7mpire co!ld not disg!ise the inner wea&ness% And every attempt to

invigorate it anew failed beca!se the main and most important problem was left o!t of consideration%

It wo!ld be a mista&e to thin& that the followers of the vario!s political parties which tried to doctor thecondition of the 6erman people, or even all their leaders, were bad in themselves or meant wrong% (heir



activity even at best was doomed to fail, merely beca!se of the fact that they saw nothing b!t the symptoms

of o!r general malady and they tried to doctor the symptoms while they overloo&ed the real ca!se of the

disease% If one ma&es a methodical st!dy of the lines along which the old 7mpire developed one cannot

help seeing, after a caref!l political analysis, that a process of inner degeneration had already set in even atthe time when the !nited 7mpire was formed and the 6erman nation began to ma&e rapid e3ternal progress%

(he general sit!ation was declining, in spite of the apparent political s!ccess and in spite of the increasing

economic wealth% At the elections to the 8eichstag the growing n!mber of ar3ist votes indicated that the

internal brea&down and the political collapse were then rapidly approaching% All the victories of the so-called bo!rgeois parties were fr!itless, not only beca!se they co!ld not prevent the n!merical increase in

the growing mass of ar3ist votes, even when the bo!rgeois parties tri!mphed at the polls, b!t mainly

beca!se they themselves were already infected with the germs of decay% (ho!gh +!ite !naware of it, the

bo!rgeois world was infected from within with the deadly vir!s of ar3ist ideas% (he fact that theysometimes openly resisted was to be e3plained by the competitive strife among ambitio!s political leaders,

rather than by attrib!ting it to any opposition in principle between adversaries who were determined to

fight one another to the bitter end% ?!ring all those years only one protagonist was fighting with steadfast

perseverance% (his was the )ew% (he 'tar of ?avid steadily ascended as the will to national self- preservation declined%

(herefore it was not a solid national phalan3 that, of itself and o!t of its own feeling of solidarity, r!shed to

the battlefields in A!g!st 1914% !t it was rather the manifestation of the last flic&er from the instinct of

national self-preservation against the progress of the paralysis with which the pacifist and ar3ist doctrine

threatened o!r people% 7ven in those days when the destinies of the nation were in the balance the internalenemy was not recognied> therefore all efforts to resist the e3ternal enemy were bo!nd to be in vain%

"rovidence did not grant the reward to the victorio!s sword, b!t followed the eternal law of retrib!tive

!stice% A profo!nd recognition of all this was the so!rce of those principles and tendencies which inspireo!r new movement% /e were convinced that only by recogniing s!ch tr!ths co!ld we stop the national

decline in 6ermany and lay a granite fo!ndation on which the 'tate co!ld again be b!ilt !p, a 'tate which

wo!ld not be a piece of mechanism alien to o!r people, constit!ted for economic p!rposes and interests, b!t

an organism created from the so!l of the people themselves%A 678A* '(A(7 I* A 678A* *A(IO*

$hapter (welve0

ere at the close of the vol!me I shall describe the first stage in the progress of o!r movement and shall

give a brief acco!nt of the problems we had to deal with d!ring that period% In doing this I have nointention of e3po!nding the ideals which we have set !p as the goal of o!r movement> for these ideals are

so momento!s in their significance that an e3position of them will need a whole vol!me% (herefore I shalldevote the second vol!me of this boo& to a detailed s!rvey of the principles which form the programme of

o!r movement and I shall attempt to draw a pict!re of what we mean by the word 'tate#% /hen I say we#

in this connection I mean to incl!de all those h!ndreds of tho!sands who have f!ndamentally the same

longing, tho!gh in the individ!al cases they cannot find ade+!ate words to describe the vision that hovers before their eyes% It is a characteristic feat!re of all great reforms that in the beginning there is only one

single protagonist to come forward on behalf of several millions of people% (he final goal of a great

reformation has often been the obect of profo!nd longing on the parts of h!ndreds of tho!sands for many

cent!ries before, !ntil finally one among them comes forward as a herald to anno!nce the will of thatm!ltit!de and become the standard-bearer of the old yearning, which he now leads to a realiation in a new

idea%

(he fact that millions of o!r people yearn at heart for a radical change in o!r present conditions is proved by the profo!nd discontent which e3ists among them% (his feeling is manifested in a tho!sand ways% 'omee3press it in a form of disco!ragement and despair% Others show it in resentment and anger and indignation%

Among some the profo!nd discontent calls forth an attit!de of indifference, while it !rges others to violent

manifestations of wrath% Another indication of this feeling may be seen on the one hand in the attit!de of

those who abstain from voting at elections and, on the other, in the large n!mbers of those who side withthe fanatical e3tremists of the left wing%

(o these latter people o!r yo!ng movement had to appeal first of all% It was not meant to be an organiation

for contented and satisfied people, b!t was meant to gather in all those who were s!ffering from profo!ndan3iety and co!ld find no peace, those who were !nhappy and discontented% It was not meant to float on the



s!rface of the nation b!t rather to p!sh its roots deep among the masses%

Loo&ed at from the p!rely political point of view, the sit!ation in 191; was as follows0 A nation had been

torn into two parts% One part, which was by far the smaller of the two, contained the intellect!al classes of

the nation from which all those employed in physical labo!r were e3cl!ded% On the s!rface theseintellect!al classes appeared to be national-minded, b!t that word meant nothing else to them e3cept a very

vag!e and feeble concept of the d!ty to defend what they called the interests of the 'tate, which in t!rn

seemed identical with those of the dynastic regime% (his class tried to defend its ideas and reach its aims by

carrying on the fight with the aid of intellect!al weapons, which co!ld be !sed only here and there andwhich had only a s!perficial effect against the br!tal meas!res employed by the adversaries, in the face of

which the intellect!al weapons were of their very nat!re bo!nd to fail% /ith one violent blow the class

which had hitherto governed was now str!c& down% It trembled with fear and accepted every h!miliation

imposed on it by the merciless victor%Over against this class stood the broad masses of man!al labo!rers who were organied in movements with

a more or less radically ar3ist tendency% (hese organied masses were firmly determined to brea& any

&ind of intellect!al resistance by the !se of br!te force% (hey had no nationalist tendencies whatsoever and

deliberately rep!diated the idea of advancing the interests of the nation as s!ch% On the contrary, they promoted the interests of the foreign oppressor% *!merically this class embraced the maority of the

pop!lation and, what is more important, incl!ded all those elements of the nation witho!t whose

collaboration a national res!rgence was not only a practical impossibility b!t was even inconceivable%

For already in 191; one thing had to be clearly recognied> namely, that no res!rgence of the 6erman

nation co!ld ta&e place !ntil we had first restored o!r national strength to face the o!tside world% For this p!rpose arms are not the preliminary necessity, tho!gh o!r bo!rgeois statesmen# always blathered abo!t it

being so> what was wanted was will-power% At one time the 6erman people had more than s!fficient

military armament% And yet they were not able to defend their liberty beca!se they lac&ed those energieswhich spring from the instinct of national self-preservation and the will to hold on to one#s own% (he best

armament is only dead and worthless material as long as the spirit is wanting which ma&es men willing and

determined to avail themselves of s!ch weapons% 6ermany was rendered defenceless not beca!se she

lac&ed arms, b!t beca!se she lac&ed the will to &eep her arms for the maintenance of her people%(o-day o!r Left-wing politicians in partic!lar are constantly insisting that their craven-hearted and

obse+!io!s foreign policy necessarily res!lts from the disarmament of 6ermany, whereas the tr!th is that

this is the policy of traitors% (o all that &ind of tal& the answer o!ght to be0 *o, the contrary is the tr!th%

No!r action in delivering !p the arms was dictated by yo!r anti-national and criminal policy of abandoningthe interests of the nation% And now yo! try to ma&e people believe that yo!r miserable whining is

f!ndamentally d!e to the fact that yo! have no arms% )!st li&e everything else in yo!r cond!ct, this is a lieand a falsification of the tr!e reason%

!t the politicians of the 8ight deserve e3actly the same reproach% It was thro!gh their miserable cowardicethat those r!ffians of )ews who came into power in 191; were able to rob the nation of its arms% (he

conservative politicians have neither right nor reason on their side when they appeal to disarmament as the

ca!se which compelled them to adopt a policy of pr!dence Bthat is to say, cowardiceC% ere, again, the

contrary is the tr!th% ?isarmament is the res!lt of their lac& of spirit%(herefore the problem of restoring 6ermany#s power is not a +!estion of how can we man!fact!re arms b!t

rather a +!estion of how we can prod!ce that spirit which enables a people to bear arms% Once this spirit

prevails among a people then it will find a tho!sand ways, each of which leads to the necessary armament%

!t a coward will not fire even a single shot when attac&ed tho!gh he may be armed with ten pistols% For him they are of less val!e than a blac&thorn in the hands of a man of co!rage%

(he problem of re-establishing the political power of o!r 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 policyand every foreign !dgment on the worth of a 'tate has been proved by e3perience to be gro!nded not onthe material sie of the armament s!ch a 'tate may possess b!t rather on the moral capacity for resistance

which s!ch a 'tate has or is believed to have% (he +!estion whether or not a nation be desirable as an ally is

not so m!ch determined by the inert mass of arms which it has at hand b!t by the obvio!s presence of a

st!rdy will to national self-preservation and a heroic co!rage which will fight thro!gh to the last breath% For an alliance is not made between arms b!t between men%

(he ritish nation will therefore be considered as the most val!able ally in the world as long as it can be

co!nted !pon to show that br!tality and tenacity in its government, as well as in the spirit of the broadmasses, which enables it to carry thro!gh to victory any str!ggle that it once enters !pon, no matter how



long s!ch a str!ggle may last, or however great the sacrifice that may be necessary or whatever the means

that have to be employed> and all this even tho!gh the act!al military e+!ipment at hand may be !tterly

inade+!ate when compared with that of other nations%

Once it is !nderstood that the restoration of 6ermany is a +!estion of reawa&ening the will to political self- preservation we shall see +!ite clearly that it will not be eno!gh to win over those elements that are already

national-minded b!t that the deliberately anti-national masses m!st be converted to believe in the national

ideals%

A yo!ng movement that aims at re-establishing a 6erman 'tate with f!ll sovereign powers will thereforehave to ma&e the tas& of winning over the broad masses a special obective of its plan of campaign% O!r so-

called national bo!rgeoisie# are so lamentably s!pine, generally spea&ing, and their national spirit appears

so fec&less, that we may feel s!re they will offer no serio!s resistance against a vigoro!s national foreign -

or domestic policy% 7ven tho!gh the narrow-minded 6erman bo!rgeoisie sho!ld &eep !p a passiveresistance when the ho!r of deliverance is at hand, as they did in ismarc&#s time, we shall never have to

fear any active resistance on their part, beca!se of their recognied proverbial cowardice%

It is +!ite different with the masses of o!r pop!lation, who are imb!ed with ideas of internationalism%

(hro!gh the primitive ro!ghness of their nat!res they are disposed to accept the preaching of violence,while at the same time their )ewish leaders are more br!tal and r!thless% (hey will cr!sh any attempt at a

6erman revival, !st as they smashed the 6erman Army by stri&ing at it from the rear% Above all, these

organied masses will !se their n!merical maority in this "arliamentarian 'tate not only to hinder any

national foreign policy, b!t also to prevent 6ermany from restoring her political power and therewith her

prestige abroad% (h!s she becomes e3cl!ded from the ran&s of desirable allies% For it is not we o!rselvesalone who are aware of the handicap that res!lts from the e3istence of fifteen million ar3ists, democrats,

pacifists and followers of the $entre, in o!r midst, b!t foreign nations also recognie this internal b!rden

which we have to bear and ta&e it into their calc!lations when estimating the val!e of a possible alliancewith !s% *obody wo!ld wish to form an alliance with a 'tate where the active portion of the pop!lation is at

least passively opposed to any resol!te foreign policy%

(he sit!ation 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 beca!sethey want to retain the positions they now hold% According to the laws that govern h!man history it is

inconceivable that the 6erman people co!ld res!me the place they formerly held witho!t retaliating on

those who were both ca!se and occasion of the collapse that involved the r!in of o!r 'tate% efore the

!dgment seat of posterity *ovember 191; will not be regarded as a simple rebellion b!t as high treasonagainst the co!ntry%

(herefore it is not possible to thin& of re-establishing 6erman sovereignty and political independencewitho!t at the same time reconstr!cting a !nited front within the nation, by a peacef!l conversion of the

pop!lar will%Loo&ed at from the standpoint of practical ways and means, it seems abs!rd to thin& of liberating 6ermany

from foreign bondage as long as the masses of the people are not willing to s!pport s!ch an ideal of

freedom% After caref!lly considering this problem from the p!rely military point of view, everybody, and in

partic!lar every officer, will agree that a war cannot be waged against an o!tside enemy by battalions of st!dents> b!t that, together with the brains of the nation, the physical strength of the nation is also

necessary% F!rthermore it m!st be remembered that the nation wo!ld be robbed of its irreplaceable assets

by a national defence in which only the intellect!al circles, as they are called, were engaged% (he yo!ng

6erman intellect!als who oined the vol!nteer regiments and fell on the battlefields of Flanders in thea!t!mn of 1914 were bitterly missed later on% (hey were the dearest treas!re which the nation possessed

and their loss co!ld not be made good in the co!rse of the war% And it is not only the str!ggle itself which

co!ld not be waged if the wor&ing masses of the nation did not oin the storm battalions, b!t the necessarytechnical preparations co!ld not be made witho!t a !nified will and a common front within the nation itself%O!r nation which has to e3ist disarmed, !nder the tho!sand eyes appointed by the :ersailles "eace (reaty,

cannot ma&e any technical preparations for the recovery of its freedom and h!man independence !ntil the

whole army of spies employed within the co!ntry is c!t down to those few whose inborn baseness wo!ld

lead them to betray anything and everything for the proverbial thirty pieces of silver% !t we can deal withs!ch people% (he millions, however, who are opposed to every &ind of national revival simply beca!se of

their political opinions, constit!te an ins!rmo!ntable obstacle% At least the obstacle will remain

ins!rmo!ntable as long as the ca!se of their opposition, which is international ar3ism, is not overcomeand its teachings banished from both their hearts and heads%



From whatever point of view we may e3amine the possibility of recovering o!r independence as a 'tate

and a people, whether we consider the problem from the standpoint of technical rearmament or from that of

the act!al str!ggle itself, the necessary pre-re+!isite always remains the same% (his pre-re+!isite is that the

broad masses of the people m!st first be won over to accept the principle of o!r national independence%If we do not regain o!r e3ternal freedom every step forward in domestic reform will at best be an

a!gmentation of o!r prod!ctive powers for the benefit of those nations that loo& !pon !s as a colony to be

e3ploited% (he s!rpl!s prod!ced by any so-called improvement wo!ld only go into the hands of o!r

international controllers and any social betterment wo!ld at best increase the prod!ct of o!r labo!r infavo!r of those people% *o c!lt!ral progress can be made by the 6erman nation, beca!se s!ch progress is

too m!ch bo!nd !p with the political independence and dignity of a people%

(herefore, as we can find a satisfactory sol!tion for the problem of 6ermany#s f!t!re only by winning over

the broad masses of o!r people for the s!pport of the national idea, this wor& of ed!cation m!st beconsidered the highest and most important tas& to be accomplished by a movement which does not strive

merely to satisfy the needs of the moment b!t considers itself bo!nd to e3amine in the light of f!t!re res!lts

everything it decides to do or refrain from doing%

As early as 1919 we were convinced that the nationaliation of the masses wo!ld have to constit!te the firstand paramo!nt aim of the new movement% From the tactical standpoint, this decision laid a certain n!mber

of obligations on o!r sho!lders%

B1C *o social sacrifice co!ld 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 negligiblewhen compared with the benefit to be reaped by the whole nation if s!ch concessions contrib!te to bring

bac& the masses of the people once more to the bosom of their own nation% *othing b!t meanness and

shortsightedness, which are characteristics that !nfort!nately are only too prevalent among o!r employers,co!ld prevent people from recogniing that in the long r!n no economic improvement and therefore no rise

in profits are possible !nless internal solidarity be restored among the b!l& of the people who ma&e !p o!r

nation%

If the 6erman trades !nions had defended the interests of the wor&ing-classes !ncompromisingly d!ringthe /ar> if even d!ring the /ar they had !sed the weapon of the stri&e to force the ind!strialists - who were

greedy for higher dividends - to grant the demands of the wor&ers for whom the !nions acted> if at the same

time they had stood !p as good 6ermans for the defence of the nation as sto!tly as for their own claims,

and if they had given to their co!ntry what was their co!ntry#s d!e - then the /ar wo!ld never have beenlost% ow l!dicro!sly insignificant wo!ld all, and even the greatest, economic concession have been in face

of the tremendo!s importance of s!ch a victory%For a movement which wo!ld restore the 6erman wor&er to the 6erman people it is therefore absol!tely

necessary to !nderstand clearly that economic sacrifices m!st be considered light in s!ch cases, provided of co!rse that they do not go the length of endangering the independence and stability of the national

economic system%

B2C (he ed!cation of the masses along national lines can be carried o!t only indirectly, by improving their

social conditions> for only by s!ch a process can the economic conditions be created which enableeverybody to share in the c!lt!ral life of the nation%

B.C (he nationaliation of the broad masses can never be achieved by half-meas!res - that is to say, by

feebly insisting on what is called the obective side of the +!estion - b!t only by a r!thless and devoted

insistence on the one aim which m!st be achieved% (his means that a people cannot be made national#according to the signification attached to that word by o!r bo!rgeois class to-day - that is to say,

nationalism with many reservations - b!t national in the vehement and e3treme sense% "oison can be

overcome only by a co!nter-poison, and only the s!pine bo!rgeois mind co!ld thin& that the ingdom of eaven can be attained by a compromise%(he broad masses of a nation are not made !p of professors and diplomats% 'ince these masses have only a

poor ac+!aintance with abstract ideas, their reactions lie more in the domain of the feelings, where the roots

of their positive as well as their negative attit!des are implanted% (hey are s!sceptible only to a

manifestation of strength which comes definitely either from the positive or negative side, b!t they arenever s!sceptible to any half-hearted attit!de that wavers between one pole and the other% (he emotional

gro!nds of their attit!de f!rnish the reason for their e3traordinary stability% It is always more diffic!lt to

fight s!ccessf!lly against Faith than against &nowledge% Love is less s!bect to change than respect% atredis more lasting than mere aversion% And the driving force which has bro!ght abo!t the most tremendo!s



revol!tions on this earth has never been a body of scientific teaching which has gained power over the

masses, b!t always a devotion which has inspired them, and often a &ind of hysteria which has !rged them

to action%

/hoever wishes to win over the masses m!st &now the &ey that will open the door to their hearts% It is notobectivity, which is a fec&less attit!de, b!t a determined will, bac&ed !p by force, when necessary%

B4C (he so!l of the masses can be won only if those who lead the movement for that p!rpose are determined

not merely to carry thro!gh the positive str!ggle for their own aims b!t are also determined to destroy the

enemy that opposes them%/hen they see an !ncompromising onsla!ght against an adversary the people have at all times ta&en this as

a proof that right is on the side of the active aggressor> b!t if the aggressor sho!ld go only half-way and fail

to p!sh home his s!ccess by driving his opponent entirely from the scene of action, the people will loo&

!pon this as a sign that the aggressor is !ncertain of the !stice of his own ca!se and his half-way policymay even be an ac&nowledgment that his ca!se is !n!st%

(he masses are b!t a part of *at!re herself% (heir feeling is s!ch that they cannot !nderstand m!t!al hand-

sha&ings between men who are declared enemies% (heir wish is to see the stronger side win and the wea&er

wiped o!t or s!bected !nconditionally to the will of the stronger%(he nationaliation of the masses can be s!ccessf!lly achieved only if, in the positive str!ggle to win the

so!l of the people, those who spread the international poison among them are e3terminated%

B=C All the great problems of o!r time are problems of the moment and are only the res!lts of certain

definite ca!ses% And among all those there is only one that has a profo!ndly ca!sal significance% (his is the

problem of preserving the p!re racial stoc& among the people% !man vigo!r or decline depends on the blood% *ations that are not aware of the importance of their racial stoc&, or which neglect to preserve it, are

li&e men who wo!ld try to ed!cate the p!g-dog to do the wor& of the greyho!nd, not !nderstanding that

neither the speed of the greyho!nd nor the imitative fac!lties of the poodle are inborn +!alities whichcannot be drilled into the one or the other by any form of training% A people that fails to preserve the p!rity

of its racial blood thereby destroys the !nity of the so!l of the nation in all its manifestations% A

disintegrated national character is the inevitable conse+!ence of a process of disintegration in the blood%

And the change which ta&es place in the spirit!al and creative fac!lties of a people is only an effect of thechange that has modified its racial s!bstance%

If we are to free the 6erman people from all those failings and ways of acting which do not spring from

their original character, we m!st first get rid of those foreign germs in the national body which are the

ca!se of its failings and false ways%(he 6erman nation will never revive !nless the racial problem is ta&en into acco!nt and dealt with% (he

racial problem f!rnishes the &ey not only to the !nderstanding of h!man history b!t also to the!nderstanding of every &ind of h!man c!lt!re%

BC y incorporating in the national comm!nity the masses of o!r people who are now in the internationalcamp we do not thereby mean to reno!nce the principle that the interests of the vario!s trades and

professions m!st be safeg!arded% ?ivergent interests in the vario!s branches of labo!r and in the trades and

professions are not the same as a division between the vario!s classes, b!t rather a feat!re inherent in the

economic sit!ation% :ocational gro!ping does not clash in the least with the idea of a national comm!nity,for this means national !nity in regard to all those problems that affect the life of the nation as s!ch%

(o incorporate in the national comm!nity, or simply the 'tate, a strat!m of the people which has now

formed a social class the standing of the higher classes m!st not be lowered b!t that of the lower classes

m!st be raised% (he class which carries thro!gh this process is never the higher class b!t rather the lower one which is fighting for e+!ality of rights% (he bo!rgeoisie of to-day was not incorporated in the 'tate

thro!gh meas!res enacted by the fe!dal nobility b!t only thro!gh its own energy and a leadership that had

spr!ng from its own ran&s%(he 6erman wor&er cannot be raised from his present standing and incorporated in the 6erman fol&-comm!nity by means of goody-goody meetings where people tal& abo!t the brotherhood of the people, b!t

rather by a systematic improvement in the social and c!lt!ral life of the wor&er !ntil the yawning abyss

between him and the other classes can be filled in% A movement which has this for its aim m!st try to

recr!it its followers mainly from the ran&s of the wor&ing class% It m!st incl!de members of the intellect!alclasses only in so far as s!ch members have rightly !nderstood and accepted witho!t reserve the ideal

towards which the movement is striving% (his process of transformation and re!nion cannot be completed

within ten or twenty years% It will ta&e several generations, as the history of s!ch movements has shown%(he most diffic!lt obstacle to the re!nion of o!r contemporary wor&er in the national fol&-comm!nity does



not consist so m!ch in the fact that he fights for the interests of his fellow-wor&ers, b!t rather in the

international ideas with which he is imb!ed and which are of their nat!re at variance with the ideas of

nationhood and fatherland% (his hostile attit!de to nation and fatherland has been inc!lcated by the leaders

of the wor&ing class% If they were inspired by the principle of devotion to the nation in all that concerns its political and social welfare, the trades !nions wo!ld ma&e those millions of wor&ers most val!able

members of the national comm!nity, witho!t thereby affecting their own constant str!ggle for their

economic demands%

A movement which sincerely endeavo!rs to bring the 6erman wor&er bac& into his fol&-comm!nity, andresc!e him from the folly of internationalism, m!st wage a vigoro!s campaign against certain notions that

are prevalent among the ind!strialists% One of these notions is that according to the concept of the fol&-

comm!nity, the employee is obliged to s!rrender all his economic rights to the employer and, f!rther, that

the wor&ers wo!ld come into conflict with the fol&-comm!nity if they sho!ld attempt to defend their own !st and vital interests% (hose who try to propagate s!ch a notion are deliberate liars% (he idea of a fol&-

comm!nity does not impose any obligations on the one side that are not imposed on the other%

A wor&er certainly does something which is contrary to the spirit of fol&-comm!nity if he acts entirely on

his own initiative and p!ts forward e3aggerated demands witho!t ta&ing the common good intoconsideration or the maintenance of the national economic str!ct!re% !t an ind!strialist also acts against

the spirit of the fol&-comm!nity if he adopts inh!man methods of e3ploitation and mis!ses the wor&ing

forces of the nation to ma&e millions !n!stly for himself from the sweat of the wor&ers% e has no right to

call himself national# and no right to tal& of a fol&-comm!nity, for he is only an !nscr!p!lo!s egoist who

sows the seeds of social discontent and provo&es a spirit of conflict which sooner or later m!st be in!rio!sto the interests of the co!ntry%

(he reservoir from which the yo!ng movement has to draw its members will first of all be the wor&ing

masses% (hose masses m!st be delivered from the cl!tches of the international mania% (heir social distressm!st be eliminated% (hey m!st be raised above their present c!lt!ral level, which is deplorable, and

transformed into a resol!te and val!able factor in the fol&-comm!nity, inspired by national ideas and

national sentiment%

If among those intellect!al circles that are nationalist in their o!tloo& men can be fo!nd who gen!inely lovethe people and loo& forward eagerly to the f!t!re of 6ermany, and at the same time have a so!nd grasp of

the importance of a str!ggle whose aim is to win over the so!l of the masses, s!ch men are cordially

welcomed in the ran&s of o!r movement, beca!se they can serve as a val!able intellect!al force in the wor&

that has to be done% !t this movement can never aim at recr!iting its membership from the !nthin&ingherd of bo!rgeois voters% If it did so the movement wo!ld be b!rdened with a mass of people whose whole

mentality wo!ld only help to paralyse the effort of o!r campaign to win the mass of the people% In theory itmay be very fine to say that the broad masses o!ght to be infl!enced by a combined leadership of the !pper

and lower social strata within the framewor& of the one movement> b!t, notwithstanding all this, the factremains that tho!gh it may be possible to e3ercise a psychological infl!ence on the bo!rgeois classes and to

aro!se some enth!siasm or even awa&en some !nderstanding among them by o!r p!blic demonstrations,

their traditional characteristics cannot be changed% In other words, we co!ld not eliminate from the

bo!rgeois classes the inefficiency and s!pineness which are part of a tradition that has developed thro!ghcent!ries% (he difference between the c!lt!ral levels of the two gro!ps and between their respective

attit!des towards social-economic +!estions is still so great that it wo!ld t!rn o!t a hindrance to the

movement the moment the first enth!siasm aro!sed by o!r demonstrations calmed down%

Finally, it is not part of o!r programme to transform the nationalist camp itself, b!t rather to win over thosewho are anti-national in their o!tloo&% It is from this viewpoint that the strategy of the whole movement

m!st finally be decided%

BGC (his one-sided b!t accordingly clear and definite attit!de m!st be manifested in the propaganda of themovement> and, on the other hand, this is absol!tely necessary to ma&e the propaganda itself effective%If propaganda is to be of service to the movement it m!st be addressed to one side alone> for if it sho!ld

vary the direction of its appeal it will not be !nderstood in the one camp or may be reected by the other, as

merely insisting on obvio!s and !ninteresting tr!isms> for the intellect!al training of the two camps that

come into +!estion here has been very different%7ven the manner in which something is presented and the tone in which partic!lar details are emphasied

cannot have the same effect in those two strata that belong respectively to the opposite e3tremes of the

social str!ct!re% If the propaganda sho!ld refrain from !sing primitive forms of e3pression it will not appealto the sentiments of the masses% If, on the other hand, it conforms to the cr!de sentiments of the masses in



its words and gest!res the intellect!al circles will be averse to it beca!se of its ro!ghness and v!lgarity%

Among a h!ndred men who call themselves orators there are scarcely ten who are capable of spea&ing with

effect before an a!dience of street-sweepers, loc&smiths and navvies, etc%, to-day and e3po!nd the same

s!bect with e+!al effect to-morrow before an a!dience of !niversity professors and st!dents% Among atho!sand p!blic spea&ers there may be only one who can spea& before a composite a!dience of loc&smiths

and professors in the same hall in s!ch a way that his statements can be f!lly comprehended by each gro!p

while at the same time he effectively infl!ences both and awa&ens enth!siasm, on the one side as well as on

the other, to hearty appla!se% !t it m!st be remembered that in most cases even the most bea!tif!l ideaembodied in a s!blime theory can be bro!ght home to the p!blic only thro!gh the medi!m of smaller

minds% (he thing that matters here is not the vision of the man of geni!s who created the great idea b!t

rather the s!ccess which his apostles achieve in shaping the e3pression of this idea so as to bring it home to

the minds of the masses%'ocial-?emocracy and the whole ar3ist movement were partic!larly +!alified to attract the great masses

of the nation, beca!se of the !niformity of the p!blic to which they addressed their appeal% (he more

limited and narrow their ideas and arg!ments, the easier it was for the masses to grasp and assimilate them>

for those ideas and arg!ments were well adapted to a low level of intelligence%(hese considerations led the new movement to adopt a clear and simple line of policy, which was as

follows0

In its message as well as in its forms of e3pression the propaganda m!st be &ept on a level with the

intelligence of the masses, and its val!e m!st be meas!red only by the act!al s!ccess it achieves%

At a p!blic meeting where the great masses are gathered together the best spea&er is not he whose way of approaching a s!bect is most a&in to the spirit of those intellect!als who may happen to be present, b!t the

spea&er who &nows how to win the hearts of the masses%

An ed!cated man who is present and who finds fa!lt with an address beca!se he considers it to be on anintellect!al plane that is too low, tho!gh he himself has witnessed its effect on the lower intellect!al gro!ps

whose adherence has to be won, only shows himself completely incapable of rightly !dging the sit!ation

and therewith proves that he can be of no !se in the new movement% Only intellect!als can be of !se to a

movement who !nderstand its mission and its aims so well that they have learned to !dge o!r methods of propaganda e3cl!sively by the s!ccess obtained and never by the impression which those methods made on

the intellect!als themselves% For o!r propaganda is not meant to serve as an entertainment for those people

who already have a nationalist o!tloo&, b!t its p!rpose is to win the adhesion of those who have hitherto

been hostile to national ideas and who are nevertheless of o!r own blood and race%In general, those considerations of which I have given a brief s!mmary in the chapter on /ar "ropaganda#

became the g!iding r!les and principles which determined the &ind of propaganda we were to adopt in o!r campaign and the manner in which we were to p!t it into practice% (he s!ccess that has been obtained

proves that o!r decision was right%B;C (he ends which any political reform movement sets o!t to attain can never be reached by trying to

ed!cate the p!blic or infl!ence those in power b!t only by getting political power into its hands% 7very idea

that is meant to move the world has not only the right b!t also the obligation of sec!ring control of those

means which will enable the idea to be carried into effect% In this world s!ccess is the only r!le of !dgmentwhereby we can decide whether s!ch an !nderta&ing was right or wrong% And by the word s!ccess# in this

connection I do not mean s!ch a s!ccess as the mere con+!est of power in 191; b!t the s!ccessf!l iss!e

whereby the common interests of the nation have been served% A co!p d#etat cannot be considered

s!ccessf!l if, as many empty-headed government lawyers in 6ermany now believe, the revol!tionariess!cceeded in getting control of the 'tate into their hands b!t only if, in comparison with the state of affairs

!nder the old regime, the lot of the nation has been improved when the aims and intentions on which the

revol!tion was based have been p!t into practice% (his certainly does not apply to the 6erman 8evol!tion,as that movement was called, which bro!ght a gang of bandits into power in the a!t!mn of 191;%!t if the con+!est of political power be a re+!isite preliminary for the practical realiation of the ideals

that inspire a reform movement, then any movement which aims at reform m!st, 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 cl!b or an

association of philistines who meet to play ninepins%B9C (he nat!re and internal organiation of the new movement ma&e it anti-parliamentarian% (hat is to say,

it reects in general and in its own str!ct!re all those principles according to which decisions are to be ta&en

on the vote of the maority and according to which the leader is only the e3ec!tor of the will and opinion of others% (he movement lays down the principle that, in the smallest as well as in the greatest problems, one



person m!st have absol!te a!thority and bear all responsibility%

In o!r movement the practical conse+!ences of this principle are the following0

(he president of a large gro!p is appointed by the head of the gro!p immediately above his in a!thority% e

is then the responsible leader of his gro!p% All the committees are s!bect to his a!thority and not he totheirs% (here is no s!ch thing as committees that vote b!t only committees that wor&% (his wor& is allotted

by the responsible leader, who is the president of the gro!p% (he same principle applies to the higher

organiations - the eir& BdistrictC, the reis B!rban circ!itC and the 6a! Bthe regionC% In each case the

president is appointed from above and is invested with f!ll a!thority and e3ec!tive power% Only the leader of the whole party is elected at the general meeting of the members% !t he is the sole leader of the

movement% All the committees are responsible to him, b!t he is not responsible to the committees% is

decision is final, b!t he bears the whole responsibility of it% (he members of the movement are entitled to

call him to acco!nt 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 ade+!ately% e is then replaced by a more capable

man% who is invested with the same a!thority and obliged to bear the same responsibility%

One of the highest d!ties of the movement is to ma&e this principle imperative not only within its own

ran&s b!t also for the whole 'tate%(he man who becomes leader is invested with the highest and !nlimited a!thority, b!t he also has to bear

the last and gravest responsibility%

(he man who has not the co!rage to sho!lder responsibility for his actions is not fitted to be a leader% Only

a man of heroic mo!ld can have the vocation for s!ch a tas&%

!man progress and h!man c!lt!res are not fo!nded by the m!ltit!de% (hey are e3cl!sively the wor& of personal geni!s and personal efficiency%

eca!se of this principle, o!r movement m!st necessarily be anti-parliamentarian, and if it ta&es part in the

parliamentary instit!tion it is only for the p!rpose of destroying this instit!tion from within> in other words,we wish to do away with an instit!tion which we m!st loo& !pon as one of the gravest symptoms of h!man

decline%

B1<C (he movement steadfastly ref!ses to ta&e !p any stand in regard to those problems which are either

o!tside of its sphere of political wor& or seem to have no f!ndamental importance for !s% It does not aim at bringing abo!t a religio!s reformation, b!t rather a political reorganiation of o!r people% It loo&s !pon the

two religio!s denominations as e+!ally val!able mainstays for the e3istence of o!r people, and therefore it

ma&es war on all those parties which wo!ld degrade this fo!ndation, on which the religio!s and moral

stability of o!r people is based, to an instr!ment in the service of party interests%Finally, the movement does not aim at establishing any one form of 'tate or trying to destroy another, b!t

rather to ma&e those f!ndamental principles prevail witho!t which no rep!blic and no monarchy can e3istfor any length of time% (he movement does not consider its mission to be the establishment of a monarchy

or the preservation of the 8ep!blic b!t rather to create a 6erman 'tate%(he problem concerning the o!ter form of this 'tate, that is to say, its final shape, is not of f!ndamental

importance% It is a problem which m!st be solved in the light of what seems practical and opport!ne at the

moment%

Once a nation has !nderstood and appreciated the great problems that affect its inner e3istence, the +!estionof o!ter formalities will never lead to any internal conflict%

B11C (he problem of the inner organiation of the movement is not one of principle b!t of e3pediency%

(he best &ind of organiation is not that which places a large intermediary apparat!s between the leadership

of the movement and the individ!al followers b!t rather that which wor&s s!ccessf!lly with the smallest possible intermediary apparat!s% For it is the tas& of s!ch an organiation to transmit a certain idea which

originated in the brain of one individ!al to a m!ltit!de of people and to s!pervise the manner in which this

idea is being p!t into practice%(herefore, from any and every viewpoint, the organiation is only a necessary evil% At best it is only ameans of reaching certain ends% (he worst happens when it becomes an end in itself%

'ince the world prod!ces more mechanical than intelligent beings, it will always be easier to develop the

form of an organiation than its s!bstance> that is to say, the ideas which it is meant to serve%

(he march of any idea which strives towards practical f!lfilment, and in partic!lar those ideas which are of a reformatory character, may be ro!ghly s&etched as follows0

A creative idea ta&es shape in the mind of somebody who there!pon feels himself called !pon to transmit

this idea to the world% e propo!nds his faith before others and thereby grad!ally wins a certain n!mber of followers% (his direct and personal way of prom!lgating one#s ideas among one#s contemporaries is the



most nat!ral and the most ideal% !t as the movement develops and sec!res a large n!mber of followers it

grad!ally becomes impossible for the original fo!nder of the doctrine on which the movement is based to

carry on his propaganda personally among his inn!merable followers and at the same time g!ide the co!rse

of the movement%According as the comm!nity of followers increases, direct comm!nication between the head and the

individ!al followers becomes impossible% (his interco!rse m!st then ta&e place thro!gh an intermediary

apparat!s introd!ced into the framewor& of the movement% (h!s ideal conditions of inter-comm!nication

cease, and organiation has to be introd!ced as a necessary evil% 'mall s!bsidiary gro!ps come intoe3istence, as in the political movement, for e3ample, where the local gro!ps represent the germ-cells o!t of

which the organiation develops later on%

!t s!ch s!b-divisions m!st not be introd!ced into the movement !ntil the a!thority of the spirit!al fo!nder

and of the school he has created are accepted witho!t reservation% Otherwise the movement wo!ld r!n theris& of becoming split !p by divergent doctrines% In this connection too m!ch emphasis cannot be laid on

the importance of having one geographic centre as the chief seat of the movement% Only the e3istence of

s!ch a seat or centre, aro!nd which a magic charm s!ch as that of ecca or 8ome is woven, can s!pply a

movement with that permanent driving force which has its so!rces in the internal !nity of the movementand the recognition of one head as representing this !nity%

/hen the first germinal cells of the organiation are being formed care m!st always be ta&en to insist on

the importance of the place where the idea originated% (he creative, moral and practical greatness of the

place whence the movement went forth and from which it is governed m!st be e3alted to a s!preme

symbol, and this m!st be hono!red all the more according as the original cells of the movement become son!mero!s that they have to be regro!ped into larger !nits in the str!ct!re of the organiation%

/hen the n!mber of individ!al followers became so large that direct personal contact with the head of the

movement was o!t of the +!estion, then we had to form those first local gro!ps% As those gro!ps m!ltipliedto an e3traordinary n!mber it was necessary to establish higher cadres into which the local gro!ps were

distrib!ted% 73amples of s!ch cadres in the political organiation are those of the region B6a!C and the

district Beir&C%

(ho!gh it may be easy eno!gh to maintain the original central a!thority over the lowest gro!ps, it is m!chmore diffic!lt to do so in relation to the higher !nits of organiation which have now developed% And yet

we m!st s!cceed in doing this, for this is an indispensable condition if the !nity of the movement is to be

g!aranteed and the idea of it carried into effect%

Finally, when those larger intermediary organiations have to be combined in new and still higher !nits it becomes increasingly diffic!lt to maintain over them the absol!te s!premacy of the original seat of the

movement and the school attached to it%$onse+!ently the mechanical forms of an organiation m!st only be introd!ced if and in so far as the

spirit!al a!thority and the ideals of the central seat of the organiation are shown to be firmly established%In the political sphere it may often happen that this s!premacy can be maintained only when the movement

has ta&en over s!preme political control of the nation%

aving ta&en all these considerations into acco!nt, the following principles were laid down for the inner

str!ct!re of the movement0BaC (hat at the beginning all activity sho!ld be concentrated in one town0 namely, !nich% (hat a band of

absol!tely reliable followers sho!ld be trained and a school fo!nded which wo!ld s!bse+!ently help to

propagate the idea of the movement% (hat the prestige of the movement, for the sa&e of its s!bse+!ent

e3tension, sho!ld first be established here thro!gh gaining as many s!ccessf!l and visible res!lts as possible in this one place% (o sec!re name and fame for the movement and its leader it was necessary, not

only to give in this one town a stri&ing e3ample to shatter the belief that the ar3ist doctrine was invincible

b!t also to show that a co!nter-doctrine was possible%BbC (hat local gro!ps sho!ld not be established before the s!premacy of the central a!thority in !nich wasdefinitely established and ac&nowledged%

BcC (hat ?istrict, 8egional, and "rovincial gro!ps sho!ld be formed only after the need for them has

become evident and only after the s!premacy of the central a!thority has been satisfactorily g!aranteed%

F!rther, that the creation of s!bordinate organisms m!st depend on whether or not those persons can befo!nd who are +!alified to !nderta&e the leadership of them%

ere there were only two sol!tions0

BaC (hat the movement sho!ld ac+!ire the necessary f!nds to attract and train intelligent people who wo!ld be capable of becoming leaders% (he personnel th!s obtained co!ld then be systematically employed



according as the tactical sit!ation and the necessity for efficiency demanded%

(his sol!tion was the easier and the more e3pedite% !t it demanded large financial reso!rces> for this

gro!p of leaders co!ld wor& in the movement only if they co!ld be paid a salary%

BbC eca!se the movement is not in a position to employ paid officials it m!st begin by depending onhonorary helpers% *at!rally this sol!tion is slower and more diffic!lt%

It means that the leaders of the movement have to allow vast territories to lie fallow !nless in these

respective districts one of the members comes forward who is capable and willing to place himself at the

service of the central a!thority for the p!rpose of organiing and directing the movement in the regionconcerned%

It may happen that in e3tensive regions no s!ch leader can be fo!nd, b!t that at the same time in other

regions two or three or even more persons appear whose capabilities are almost on a level% (he diffic!lty

which this sit!ation involves is very great and can be overcome only with the passing of the years%For the establishment of any branch of the organiation the decisive condition m!st always be that a person

can be fo!nd who is capable of f!lfilling the f!nctions of a leader%

)!st as the army and all its vario!s !nits of organiation are !seless if there are no officers, so any political

organiation is worthless if it has not the right &ind of leaders%If an inspiring personality who has the gift of leadership cannot be fo!nd for the organiation and direction

of a local gro!p it is better for the movement to refrain from establishing s!ch a gro!p than to r!n the ris&

of fail!re after the gro!p has been fo!nded%

(he will to be a leader is not a s!fficient +!alification for leadership% For the leader m!st have the other

necessary +!alities% Among these +!alities will-power and energy m!st be considered as more serviceablethan the intellect of a geni!s% (he most val!able association of +!alities is to be fo!nd in a combination of

talent, determination and perseverance%

B12C (he f!t!re of a movement is determined by the devotion, and even intolerance, with which itsmembers fight for their ca!se% (hey m!st feel convinced that their ca!se alone is !st, and they m!st carry it

thro!gh to s!ccess, as against other similar organiations in the same field%

It is +!ite erroneo!s to believe that the strength of a movement m!st increase if it be combined with other

movements of a similar &ind% Any e3pansion res!lting from s!ch a combination will of co!rse mean anincrease in e3ternal development, which s!perficial observers might consider as also an increase of power>

b!t in reality the movement th!s admits o!tside elements which will s!bse+!ently wea&en its constit!tional

vigo!r%

(ho!gh it may be said that one movement is identical in character with another, in reality no s!ch identitye3ists% If it did e3ist then practically there wo!ld not be two movements b!t only one% And whatever the

difference may be, even if it consist only of the meas!re in which the capabilities of the one set of leadersdiffer from those of the other, there it is% It is against the nat!ral law of all development to co!ple dissimilar

organisms,or the law is that the stronger m!st overcome the wea&er and, thro!gh the str!ggle necessary for s!ch a con+!est, increase the constit!tional vigo!r and effective strength of the victor%

y amalgamating political organiations that are appro3imately ali&e, certain immediate advantages may

be gained, b!t advantages th!s gained are bo!nd in the long r!n to become the ca!se of internal wea&nesses

which will ma&e their appearance later on%A movement can become great only if the !nhampered development of its internal strength be safeg!arded

and steadfastly a!gmented, !ntil victory over all its competitors be sec!red%

One may safely say that the strength of a movement and its right to e3istence can be developed only as long

as it remains tr!e to the principle that str!ggle is a necessary condition of its progress and that its ma3im!mstrength will be reached only as soon as complete victory has been won%

(herefore a movement m!st not strive to obtain s!ccesses that will be only immediate and transitory, b!t it

m!st show a spirit of !ncompromising perseverance in carrying thro!gh a long str!ggle which will sec!refor it a long period of inner growth%All those movements which owe their e3pansion to a so-called combination of similar organisms, which

means that their e3ternal strength is d!e to a policy of compromise, are li&e plants whose growth is forced

in a hotho!se% (hey shoot !p e3ternally b!t they lac& that inner strength which enables the nat!ral plant to

grow into a tree that will withstand the storms of cent!ries%(he greatness of every powerf!l organiation which embodies a creative idea lies in the spirit of religio!s

devotion and intolerance with which it stands o!t against all others, beca!se it has an ardent faith in its own

right% If an idea is right in itself and, f!rnished with the fighting weapons I have mentioned, wages war onthis earth, then it is invincible and persec!tion will only add to its internal strength%



(he greatness of $hristianity did not arise from attempts to ma&e compromises with those philosophical

opinions of the ancient world which had some resemblance to its own doctrine, b!t in the !nrelenting and

fanatical proclamation and defence of its own teaching%

(he apparent advance that a movement ma&es by associating itself with other movements will be easilyreached and s!rpassed by the steady increase of strength which a doctrine and its organiation ac+!ires if it

remains independent and fights its own ca!se alone%

B1.C (he movement o!ght to ed!cate its adherents to the principle that str!ggle m!st not be considered a

necessary evil b!t as something to be desired in itself% (herefore they m!st not be afraid of the hostilitywhich their adversaries manifest towards them b!t they m!st ta&e it as a necessary condition on which their

whole right to e3istence is based% (hey m!st not try to avoid being hated by those who are the enemies of

o!r people and o!r philosophy of life, b!t m!st welcome s!ch hatred% Lies and cal!mnies are part of the

method which the enemy employs to e3press his chagrin%(he man who is not opposed and vilified and slandered in the )ewish "ress is not a sta!nch 6erman and not

a tr!e *ational 'ocialist% (he best r!le whereby the sincerity of his convictions, his character and strength

of will, can be meas!red is the hostility which his name aro!ses among the mortal enemies of o!r people%

(he followers of the movement, and indeed the whole nation, m!st be reminded again and again of the factthat, thro!gh the medi!m of his newspapers, the )ew is always spreading falsehood and that if he tells the

tr!th on some occasions it is only for the p!rpose of mas&ing some greater deceit, which t!rns the apparent

tr!th into a deliberate falsehood% (he )ew is the 6reat aster of Lies% Falsehood and d!plicity are the

weapons with which he fights%

7very cal!mny and falsehood p!blished by the )ews are to&ens of hono!r which can be worn by o!r comrades% e whom they decry most is nearest to o!r hearts and he whom they mortally hate is o!r best

friend%

If a comrade of o!rs opens a )ewish newspaper in the morning and does not find himself vilified there, thenhe has spent yesterday to no acco!nt% For if he had achieved something he wo!ld be persec!ted, slandered,

derided and ab!sed% (hose who effectively combat this mortal enemy of o!r people, who is at the same

time the enemy of all Aryan peoples and all c!lt!re, can only e3pect to aro!se opposition on the part of this

race and become the obect of its slandero!s attac&s%/hen these tr!ths become part of the flesh and blood, as it were, of o!r members, then the movement will

be impregnable and invincible%

B14C (he movement m!st !se all possible means to c!ltivate respect for the individ!al personality% It m!st

never forget that all h!man val!es are based on personal val!es, and that every idea and achievement is thefr!it of the creative power of one man% /e m!st never forget that admiration for everything that is great is

not only a trib!te to one creative personality b!t that all those who feel s!ch admiration become thereby!nited !nder one covenant%

*othing can ta&e the place of the individ!al, especially if the individ!al embodies in himself not themechanical element b!t the element of c!lt!ral creativeness% *o p!pil can ta&e the place of the master in

completing a great pict!re which he has left !nfinished> and !st in the same way no s!bstit!te can ta&e the

place of the great poet or thin&er, or the great statesman or military general% For the so!rce of their power is

in the realm of artistic creativeness% It can never be mechanically ac+!ired, beca!se it is an innate prod!ctof divine grace%

(he greatest revol!tions and the greatest achievements of this world, its greatest c!lt!ral wor&s and the

immortal creations of great statesmen, are inseparably bo!nd !p with one name which stands as a symbol

for them in each respective case% (he fail!re to pay trib!te to one of those great spirits signifies a neglect of that enormo!s so!rce of power which lies in the remembrance of all great men and women%

(he )ew himself &nows this best% e, whose great men have always been great only in their efforts to

destroy man&ind and its civiliation, ta&es good care that they are worshipped as idols% !t the )ew tries todegrade the hono!r in which nations hold their great men and women% e stigmaties this hono!r as thec!lt of personality#%

As soon as a nation has so far lost its co!rage as to s!bmit to this imp!dent defamation on the part of the

)ews it reno!nces the most important so!rce of its own inner strength% (his inner force cannot arise from a

policy of pandering to the masses b!t only from the worship of men of geni!s, whose lives have !pliftedand ennobled the nation itself%

/hen men#s hearts are brea&ing and their so!ls are pl!nged into the depths of despair, their great forebears

t!rn their eyes towards them from the dim shadows of the past - those forebears who &new how to tri!mphover an3iety and affliction, mental servit!de and physical bondage - and e3tend their eternal hands in a



gest!re of enco!ragement to despairing so!ls% /oe to the nation that is ashamed to clasp those hands%

?!ring the initial phase of o!r movement o!r greatest handicap was the fact that none of !s were &nown

and o!r names meant nothing, a fact which then seemed to some of !s to ma&e the chances of final s!ccess

problematical% O!r most diffic!lt tas& then was to ma&e o!r members firmly believe that there was atremendo!s f!t!re in store for the movement and to maintain this belief as a living faith> for at that time

only si3, seven or eight persons came to hear one of o!r spea&ers%

$onsider that only si3 or seven poor devils who were entirely !n&nown came together to fo!nd a

movement which sho!ld s!cceed in doing what the great mass-parties had failed to do0 namely, toreconstr!ct the 6erman 8eich, even in greater power and glory than before% /e sho!ld have been very

pleased if we were attac&ed or even ridic!led% !t the most depressing fact was that nobody paid any

attention to !s whatever% (his !tter lac& of interest in !s ca!sed me great mental pain at that time%

/hen I entered the circle of those men there was not yet any +!estion of a party or a movement% I havealready described the impression which was made on me when I first came into contact with that small

organiation% '!bse+!ently I had time, and also the occasion, to st!dy the form of this so-called party which

at first had made s!ch a woef!l impression% (he pict!re was indeed +!ite depressing and disco!raging%

(here was nothing, absol!tely nothing at all% (here was only the name of a party% And the committeeconsisted of all the party members% 'omehow or other it seemed !st the &ind of thing we were abo!t to

fight against - a miniat!re parliament% (he voting system was employed% /hen the great parliament cried

!ntil they were hoarse - at least they sho!ted over problems of importance - here this small circle engaged

in interminable disc!ssions as to the form in which they might answer the letters which they were delighted

to have received% *eedless to say, the p!blic &new nothing of all this% In !nich nobody &new of the e3istence of s!ch a

party, not even by name, e3cept o!r few members and their small circle of ac+!aintances%

7very /ednesday what was called a committee meeting was held in one of the cafs, and a debate wasarranged for one evening each wee&% In the beginning all the members of the movement were also members

of the committee, therefore the same persons always t!rned !p at both meetings% (he first step that had to

be ta&en was to e3tend the narrow limits of this small circle and get new members, b!t the principal

necessity was to !tilie all the means at o!r command for the p!rpose of ma&ing the movement &nown%/e chose the following methods0 /e decided to hold a monthly meeting to which the p!blic wo!ld be

invited% 'ome of the invitations were typewritten, and some were written by hand% For the first few

meetings we distrib!ted them in the streets and delivered them personally at certain ho!ses% 7ach one

canvassed among his own ac+!aintances and tried to pers!ade some of them to attend o!r meetings% (heres!lt was lamentable%

I still remember once how I personally delivered eighty of these invitations and how we waited in theevening for the crowds to come% After waiting in vain for a whole ho!r the chairman finally had to open the

meeting% Again there were only seven people present, the old familiar seven%/e then changed o!r methods% /e had the invitations written with a typewriter in a !nich stationer#s

shop and then m!ltigraphed them%

(he res!lt was that a few more people attended o!r ne3t meeting% (he n!mber increased grad!ally from

eleven to thirteen to seventeen, to twenty-three and finally to thirty-fo!r% /e collected some money withino!r own circle, each poor devil giving a small contrib!tion, and in that way we raised s!fficient f!nds to be

able to advertise one of o!r meetings in the !nich Observer, which was still an independent paper%

(his time we had an astonishing s!ccess% /e had chosen the !nich ofbrE!ha!s eller Bwhich m!st not

be confo!nded with the !nich ofbrE!ha!s FestsaalC as o!r meeting-place% It was a small hall and wo!ldaccommodate scarcely more than 1.< people% (o me, however, the hall seemed enormo!s, and we were all

trembling lest this tremendo!s edifice wo!ld remain partly empty on the night of the meeting%

At seven o#cloc& 111 persons were present, and the meeting was opened% A !nich professor delivered the principal address, and I spo&e after him% (hat was my first appearance in the role of p!blic orator% (hewhole thing seemed a very daring advent!re to err arrer, who was then chairman of the party% e was a

very decent fellow> b!t he had an a priori conviction that, altho!gh I might have +!ite a n!mber of good

+!alities, I certainly did not have a talent for p!blic spea&ing% 7ven later he co!ld not be pers!aded to

change his opinion% !t he was mista&en% (wenty min!tes had been allotted to me for my speech on thisoccasion, which might be loo&ed !pon as o!r first p!blic meeting%

I tal&ed for thirty min!tes, and what I always had felt deep down in my heart, witho!t being able to p!t it to

the test, was here proved to be tr!e0 I co!ld ma&e a good speech% At the end of the thirty min!tes it was+!ite clear that all the people in the little hall had been profo!ndly impressed% (he enth!siasm aro!sed



among them fo!nd its first e3pression in the fact that my appeal to those present bro!ght !s donations

which amo!nted to three h!ndred mar&s% (hat was a great relief for !s% O!r finances were at that time so

meagre that we co!ld not afford to have o!r party prospect!s printed, or even leaflets% *ow we possessed at

least the n!cle!s of a f!nd from which we co!ld pay the most !rgent and necessary e3penses%!t the s!ccess of this first larger meeting was also important from another point of view% I had already

beg!n to introd!ce some yo!ng and fresh members into the committee% ?!ring the long period of my

military service I had come to &now a large n!mber of good comrades whom I was now able to pers!ade to

oin o!r party% All of them were energetic and disciplined yo!ng men who, thro!gh their years of militaryservice, had been imb!ed with the principle that nothing is impossible and that where there#s a will there#s a

way%

(he need for this fresh blood s!pply became evident to me after a few wee&s of collaboration with the new

members% err arrer, who was then chairman of the party, was a o!rnalist by profession, and as s!ch hewas a man of general &nowledge% !t as leader of the party he had one very serio!s handicap0 he co!ld not

spea& to the crowd% (ho!gh he did his wor& conscientio!sly, it lac&ed the necessary driving force, probably

for the reason that he had no oratorical gifts whatsoever% err ?re3ler, at that time chairman of the !nich

local gro!p, was a simple wor&ing man% e, too, was not of any great importance as a spea&er% oreover,he was not a soldier% e had never done military service, even d!ring the /ar% 'o that this man who was

feeble and diffident by nat!re had missed the only school which &nows how to transform diffident and

wea&ly nat!res into real men% (herefore neither of those two men were of the st!ff that wo!ld have enabled

them to stir !p an ardent and indomitable faith in the !ltimate tri!mph of the movement and to br!sh aside,

with obstinate force and if necessary with br!tal r!thlessness, all obstacles that stood in the path of the newidea% '!ch a tas& co!ld be carried o!t only by men who had been trained, body and so!l, in those military

virt!es which ma&e a man, so to spea&, agile as a greyho!nd, to!gh as leather, and hard as r!pp steel%

At that time I was still a soldier% "hysically and mentally I had the polish of si3 years of service, so that inthe beginning this circle m!st have loo&ed on me as +!ite a stranger% In common with my army comrades, I

had forgotten s!ch phrases as0 H(hat will not goH, or H(hat is not possibleH, or H/e o!ght not to ta&e s!ch a

ris&> it is too dangero!sH%

(he whole !nderta&ing was of its very nat!re dangero!s% At that time there were many parts of 6ermanywhere it wo!ld have been absol!tely impossible openly to invite people to a national meeting that dared to

ma&e a direct appeal to the masses% (hose who attended s!ch meetings were !s!ally dispersed and driven

away with bro&en heads% It certainly did not call for any great +!alities to be able to do things in that way%

(he largest so-called bo!rgeois mass meetings were acc!stomed to dissolve, and those in attendance wo!ldr!n away li&e rabbits when frightened by a dog as soon as a doen comm!nists appeared on the scene% (he

8eds !sed to pay little attention to those bo!rgeois organiations where only babblers tal&ed% (heyrecognied the inner triviality of s!ch associations m!ch 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!se every possible means of annihilating once and for all any movement that appeared to them to be a

danger to their own interests% (he most effective means which they always employed in s!ch cases were

terror and br!te force%

(he ar3ist leaders, whose b!siness consisted in deceiving and misleading the p!blic, nat!rally hated mostof all a movement whose declared aim was to win over those masses which hitherto had been e3cl!sively at

the service of international ar3ism in the )ewish and 'toc& 73change parties% (he title alone, 6erman

Labo!r party#, irritated them% It co!ld easily be foreseen that at the first opport!ne moment we sho!ld have

to face the opposition of the ar3ist despots, who were still into3icated with their tri!mph in 191;%"eople in the small circles of o!r own movement at that time showed a certain amo!nt of an3iety at the

prospect of s!ch a conflict% (hey wanted to refrain as m!ch as possible from coming o!t into the open,

beca!se they feared that they might be attac&ed and beaten% In their minds they saw o!r first p!blicmeetings bro&en !p and feared that the movement might th!s be r!ined for ever% I fo!nd it diffic!lt todefend my own position, which was that the conflict sho!ld not be evaded b!t that it sho!ld be faced

openly and that we sho!ld be armed with those weapons which are the only protection against br!te force%

(error cannot be overcome by the weapons of the mind b!t only by co!nter-terror% (he s!ccess of o!r first

p!blic meeting strengthened my own position% (he members felt enco!raged to arrange for a secondmeeting, even on a larger scale%

'ome time in October 1919 the second larger meeting too& place in the 7berl-brE! eller% (he theme of o!r

speeches was rest-Litows& and :ersailles#% (here were fo!r spea&ers% I tal&ed for almost an ho!r, and thes!ccess was even more stri&ing than at o!r first meeting% (he n!mber of people who attended had grown to



more than 1.<% An attempt to dist!rb the proceedings was immediately fr!strated by my comrades% (he

wo!ld-be dist!rbers were thrown down the stairs, bearing imprints of violence on their heads%

A fortnight later another meeting too& place in the same hall% (he n!mber in attendance had now increased

to more than 1G<, which meant that the room was fairly well filled% I spo&e again, and once more thes!ccess obtained was greater than at the previo!s meeting%

(hen I proposed that a larger hall sho!ld be fo!nd% After loo&ing aro!nd for some time we discovered one

at the other end of the town, in the ?e!tschen 8eich# in the ?acha!er 'trasse% (he first meeting at this new

rendevo!s had a smaller attendance than the previo!s meeting% (here were !st less than 14< present% (hemembers of the committee began to be disco!raged, and those who had always been sceptical were now

convinced that this falling-off in the attendance was d!e to the fact that we were holding the meetings at too

short intervals% (here were lively disc!ssions, in which I !pheld my own opinion that a city with G<<,<<<

inhabitants o!ght to be able not only to stand one meeting every fortnight b!t ten meetings every wee&% Iheld that we sho!ld not be disco!raged by one comparative setbac&, that the tactics we had chosen were

correct, and that sooner or later s!ccess wo!ld be o!rs if we only contin!ed with determined perseverance

to p!sh forward on o!r road% (his whole winter of 1919-2< was one contin!al str!ggle to strengthen

confidence in o!r ability to carry the movement thro!gh to s!ccess and to intensify this confidence !ntil it became a b!rning faith that co!ld move mo!ntains%

O!r ne3t meeting in the small hall proved the tr!th of my contention% O!r a!dience had increased to more

than 2<<% (he p!blicity effect and the financial s!ccess were splendid% I immediately !rged that a f!rther

meeting sho!ld be held% It too& place in less than a fortnight, and there were more than 2G< people present%

(wo wee&s later we invited o!r followers and their friends, for the seventh time, to attend o!r meeting% (hesame hall was scarcely large eno!gh for the n!mber that came% (hey amo!nted to more than fo!r h!ndred%

?!ring this phase the yo!ng movement developed its inner form% 'ometimes we had more or less hefty

disc!ssions within o!r small circle% From vario!s sides - it was then !st the same as it is to-day - obectionswere made against the idea of calling the yo!ng movement a party% I have always considered s!ch criticism

as a demonstration of practical incapability and narrow-mindedness on the part of the critic% (hose

obections have always been raised by men who co!ld not differentiate between e3ternal appearances and

inner strength, b!t tried to !dge the movement by the high-so!nding character of the name attached to it%(o this end they ransac&ed the vocab!lary of o!r ancestors, with !nfort!nate res!lts%

At that time it was very diffic!lt to ma&e the people !nderstand that every movement is a party as long as it

has not bro!ght its ideals to final tri!mph and th!s achieved its p!rpose% It is a party even if it give itself a

tho!sand difterent names%Any person who tries to carry into practice an original idea whose realiation wo!ld be for the benefit of

his fellow men will first have to loo& for disciples who are ready to fight for the ends he has in view% And if these ends did not go beyond the destr!ction of the party system and therewith p!t a stop to the process of

disintegration, then all those who come forward as protagonists and apostles of s!ch an ideal are a party inthemselves as long as their final goal is reached% It is only hair-splitting and playing with words when these

anti+!ated theorists, whose practical s!ccess is in reverse ratio to their wisdom, pres!me to thin& 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 o!t of harmony with the spirit of the nation to &eep harping on that far-off andforgotten nomenclat!re which belongs to the ancient 6ermanic times and does not awa&en any distinct

association in o!r age% (his habit of borrowing words from the dead past tends to mislead the people into

thin&ing that the e3ternal trappings of its vocab!lary are the important feat!re of a movement% It is really a

mischievo!s habit> b!t it is +!ite prevalent nowadays%At that time, and s!bse+!ently, I had to warn followers repeatedly against these wandering scholars who

were peddling 6ermanic fol&-lore and who never accomplished anything positive or practical, e3cept to

c!ltivate their own s!perab!ndant self-conceit% (he new movement m!st g!ard itself against an infl!3 of people whose only recommendation is their own statement that they have been fighting for these very sameideals d!ring the last thirty or forty years%

*ow if somebody has fo!ght for forty years to carry into effect what he calls an idea, and if these alleged

efforts not only show no positive res!lts b!t have not even been able to hinder the s!ccess of the opposing

party, then the story of those forty years of f!tile effort f!rnishes s!fficient proof for the incompetence of s!ch a protagonist% "eople of that &ind are specially dangero!s beca!se they do not want to participate in

the movement as ordinary members% (hey tal& rather of the leading positions which wo!ld be the only

fitting posts for them, in view of their past wor& and also so that they might be enabled to carry on thatwor& f!rther% !t woe to a yo!ng movement if the cond!ct of it sho!ld fall into the hands of s!ch people% A



b!siness man who has been in charge of a great firm for forty years and who has completely r!ined it

thro!gh his mismanagement is not the &ind of person one wo!ld recommend for the fo!nding of a new

firm% And it is !st the same with a new national movement% *obody of common sense wo!ld appoint to a

leading post in s!ch a movement some (e!tonic eth!selah who had been ineffectively preaching someidea for a period of forty years, !ntil himself and his idea had entered the stage of senile decay%

F!rthermore, only a very small percentage of s!ch people oin a new movement with the intention of

serving its end !nselfishly and helping in the spread of its principles% In most cases they come beca!se they

thin& that, !nder the Sgis of the new movement, it will be possible for them to prom!lgate their old ideas tothe misfort!ne of their new listeners% Anyhow, nobody ever seems able to describe what e3actly these ideas

are%

It is typical of s!ch persons that they rant abo!t ancient (e!tonic heroes of the dim and distant ages, stone

a3es, battle spears and shields, whereas in reality they themselves are the woef!llest poltroons imaginable%For those very same people who brandish (e!tonic tin swords that have been fashioned caref!lly according

to ancient models and wear padded bear-s&ins, with the horns of o3en mo!nted over their bearded faces,

proclaim that all contemporary conflicts m!st be decided by the weapons of the mind alone% And th!s they

s&edaddle when the first comm!nist c!dgel appears% "osterity will have little occasion to write a new epicon these heroic gladiators%

I have seen too m!ch of that &ind of people not to feel a profo!nd contempt for their miserable play-acting%

(o the masses of the nation they are !st an obect of ridic!le> b!t the )ew finds it to his own interest to treat

these fol&-lore comedians with respect and to prefer them to real men who are fighting to establish a

6erman 'tate% And yet these comedians are e3tremely pro!d of themselves% *otwithstanding their completefec&lessness, which is an established fact, they pretend to &now everything better than other people> so

m!ch so that they ma&e themselves a veritable n!isance to all sincere and honest patriots, to whom not only

the heroism of the past is worthy of hono!r b!t who also feel bo!nd to leave e3amples of their own wor& for the inspiration of the coming generation%

Among those people there were some whose cond!ct can be e3plained by their innate st!pidity and

incompetence> b!t there are others who have a definite !lterior p!rpose in view% Often it is diffic!lt to

disting!ish between the two classes% (he impression which I often get, especially of those so-calledreligio!s reformers whose creed is gro!nded on ancient 6ermanic c!stoms, is that they are the missionaries

and protgs of those forces which do not wish to see a national revival ta&ing place in 6ermany% All their

activities tend to t!rn the attention of the people away from the necessity of fighting together in a common

ca!se against the common enemy, namely the )ew% oreover, that &ind of preaching ind!ces the people to!se !p their energies, not in fighting for the common ca!se, b!t in abs!rd and r!ino!s religio!s

controversies within their own ran&s% (here are definite gro!nds that ma&e it absol!tely necessary for themovement to be dominated by a strong central force which is embodied in the a!thoritative leadership% In

this way alone is it possible to co!nteract the activity of s!ch fatal elements% And that is !st the reason whythese fol&-lore Ahas!er!ses are vigoro!sly hostile to any movement whose members are firmly !nited

!nder one leader and one discipline% (hose people of whom I have spo&en hate s!ch a movement beca!se it

is capable of p!tting a stop to their mischief%

It was not witho!t good reason that when we laid down a clearly defined programme for the newmovement we e3cl!ded the word vRl&isch from it% (he concept !nderlying the term vRl&isch cannot serve

as the basis of a movement, beca!se it is too indefinite and general in its application% (herefore, if

somebody called himself vRl&isch s!ch a designation co!ld not be ta&en as the hall-mar& of some definite,

party affiliation%eca!se this concept is so indefinite from the practical viewpoint, it gives rise to vario!s interpretations and

th!s people can appeal to it all the more easily as a sort of personal recommendation% /henever s!ch a

vag!e concept, which is s!bect to so many interpretations, is admitted into a political movement it tends to brea& !p the disciplined solidarity of the fighting forces% *o s!ch solidarity can be maintained if eachindivid!al 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 &ind of people who float abo!t nowadays with the vRl&isch

symbol st!c& in their b!ttonholes, and at the same time to notice how many people have vario!s ideas of

their own as to the significance of that symbol% A well-&nown professor in avaria, a famo!s combatantwho fights only with the weapons of the mind and who boasts of having marched against erlin - by

sho!ldering the weapons of the mind, of co!rse - believes that the word vRl&isch is synonymo!s with

monarchical#% !t this learned a!thority has hitherto neglected to e3plain how o!r 6erman monarchs of the past can be identified with what we generally mean by the word vRl&isch to-day% I am afraid he will find



himself at a loss if he is as&ed to give a precise answer% For it wo!ld be very diffic!lt indeed to imagine

anything less vRl&isch than most of those 6erman monarchical 'tates were% ad they been otherwise they

wo!ld not have disappeared> or if they were vRl&isch, then the fact of their downfall may be ta&en as

evidence that the vRl&isch o!tloo& on the world BWeltanschhauung C is a false o!tloo&%7verybody interprets this concept in his own way% !t s!ch m!ltifario!s opinions cannot be adopted as the

basis of a militant political movement% I need not call attention to the absol!te lac& of worldly wisdom, and

especially the fail!re to !nderstand the so!l of the nation, which is displayed by these essianic "rec!rsors

of the (wentieth $ent!ry% '!fficient attention has been called to those people by the ridic!le which the left-wing parties have bestowed on them% (hey allow them to babble on and sneer at them%

I do not set m!ch val!e on the friendship of people who do not s!cceed in getting disli&ed by their enemies%

(herefore, we considered the friendship of s!ch people as not only worthless b!t even dangero!s to o!r

yo!ng movement% (hat was the principal reason why we first called o!rselves a "arty% /e hoped that bygiving o!rselves s!ch a name we might scare away a whole host of vRl&isch dreamers% And that was the

reason also why we named o!r "arty, (he *ational 'ocialist 6erman Labo!r "arty%

(he first term, "arty, &ept away all those dreamers who live in the past and all the lovers of bombastic

nomenclat!re, as well as those who went aro!nd beating the big dr!m for the vRl&isch idea% (he f!ll nameof the "arty &ept away all those heroes whose weapon is the sword of the spirit and all those whining

poltroons who ta&e ref!ge behind their so-called intelligence# as if it were a &ind of shield%

It was only to be e3pected that this latter class wo!ld la!nch a massed attac& against !s after o!r movement

had started> b!t, of co!rse, it was only a pen-and-in& attac&, for the goose-+!ill is the only weapon which

these vRl&isch lancers wield% /e had declared one of o!r principles th!s0 H/e shall meet violence withviolence in o!r own defenceH% *at!rally that principle dist!rbed the e+!animity of the &nights of the pen%

(hey reproached !s bitterly not only for what they called o!r cr!de worship of the c!dgel b!t also beca!se,

according to them, we had no intellect!al forces on o!r side% (hese charlatans did not thin& for a momentthat a ?emosthenes co!ld be red!ced to silence at a mass-meeting by fifty idiots who had come there to

sho!t him down and !se their fists against his s!pporters% (he innate cowardice of the pen-and-in&

charlatan prevents him from e3posing himself to s!ch a danger, for he always wor&s in safe retirement and

never dares to ma&e a noise or come forward in p!blic%7ven to-day I m!st warn the members of o!r yo!ng movement in the strongest possible terms to g!ard

against the danger of falling into the snare of those who call themselves silent wor&ers#% (hese silent

wor&ers# are not only a whitelivered lot b!t are also, and always will be, ignorant do-nothings% A man who

is aware of certain happenings and &nows that a certain danger threatens, and at the same time sees acertain remedy which can be employed against it, is in d!ty bo!nd not to wor& in silence b!t to come into

the open and p!blicly fight for the destr!ction of the evil and the acceptance of his own remedy% If he doesnot do so, then he is neglecting his d!ty and shows that he is wea& in character and that he fails to act either

beca!se of his timidity, or indolence or incompetence% ost of these silent wor&ers# generally pretend to&now 6od &nows what% *ot one of them is capable of any real achievement, b!t they &eep on trying to fool

the world with their antics% (ho!gh +!ite indolent, they try to create the impression that their silent wor&#

&eeps them very b!sy% (o p!t it briefly, they are sheer swindlers, political obbers who feel chagrined by the

honest wor& which others are doing% /hen yo! find one of these vRl&isch moths b!ing over the val!e of his silent wor&# yo! may be s!re that yo! are dealing with a fellow who does no prod!ctive wor& at all b!t

steals from others the fr!its of their honest labo!r%

In addition to all this one o!ght to note the arrogance and conceited imp!dence with which these

obsc!rantist idlers try to tear to pieces the wor& of other people, criticiing it with an air of s!periority, andth!s playing into the hands of the mortal enemy of o!r people%

7ven the simplest follower who has the co!rage to stand on the table in some beer-hall where his enemies

are gathered, and manf!lly and openly defend his position against them, achieves a tho!sand times morethan these slin&ing hypocrites% e at least will convert one or two people to believe in the movement% Onecan e3amine his wor& and test its effectiveness by its act!al res!lts% !t those &navish swindlers - who

praise their own silent wor&# and shelter themselves !nder the cloa& of anonymity, are !st worthless

drones, in the tr!est sense of the term, and are !tterly !seless for the p!rpose of o!r national reconstr!ction%

In the beginning of 192< I p!t forward the idea of holding o!r first mass meeting% On this proposal therewere differences of opinion amongst !s% 'ome leading members of o!r party tho!ght that the time was not

ripe for s!ch a meeting and that the res!lt might be detrimental% (he "ress of the Left had beg!n to ta&e

notice of !s and we were l!c&y eno!gh in being able grad!ally to aro!se their wrath% /e had beg!n toappear at other meetings and to as& +!estions or contradict the spea&ers, with the nat!ral res!lt that we



were sho!ted down forthwith% !t still we thereby gained some of o!r ends% "eople began to &now of o!r

e3istence and the better they !nderstood !s, the stronger became their aversion and their enmity% (herefore

we might e3pect that a large contingent of o!r friends from the 8ed $amp wo!ld attend o!r first mass

meeting%I f!lly realied that o!r meeting wo!ld probably be bro&en !p% !t we had to face the fight> if not now, then

some months later% 'ince the first day of o!r fo!ndation we were resolved to sec!re the f!t!re of the

movement by fighting o!r way forward in a spirit of blind faith and r!thless determination% I was well

ac+!ainted with the mentality of all those who belonged to the 8ed $amp, and I &new +!ite well that if weopposed them tooth and nail not only wo!ld we ma&e an impression on them b!t that we even might win

new followers for o!rselves% (herefore I felt that we m!st decide on a policy of active opposition%

err arrer was then chairman of o!r party% e did not see eye to eye with me as to the opport!ne time for

o!r first mass meeting% Accordingly he felt himself obliged to resign from the leadership of the movement,as an !pright and honest man% err Anton ?re3ler too& his place% I &ept the wor& of organiing the

propaganda in my own hands and I listened to no compromise in carrying it o!t%

/e decided on Febr!ary 24th 192< as the date for the first great pop!lar meeting to be held !nder the Sgis

of this movement which was hitherto !n&nown%I made all the preparatory arrangements personally% (hey did not ta&e very long% (he whole apparat!s of

o!r organiation was set in motion for the p!rpose of being able to sec!re a rapid decision as to o!r policy%

/ithin twenty-fo!r ho!rs we had to decide on the attit!de we sho!ld ta&e in regard to the +!estions of the

day which wo!ld be p!t forward at the mass meeting% (he notices which advertised the meeting had to

bring these points before the p!blic% In this direction we were forced to depend on the !se of posters andleaflets, the contents of which and the manner in which they were displayed were decided !pon in

accordance with the principles which I have already laid down in dealing with propaganda in general% (hey

were prod!ced in a form which wo!ld appeal to the crowd% (hey concentrated on a few points which wererepeated again and again% (he te3t was concise and definite, an absol!tely dogmatic form of e3pression

being !sed% /e distrib!ted these posters and leaflets with a dogged energy and then we patiently waited for

the effect they wo!ld prod!ce%

For o!r principal colo!r we chose red, as it has an e3citing effect on the eye and was therefore calc!lated toaro!se the attention of o!r opponents and irritate them% (h!s they wo!ld have to ta&e notice of !s - whether

they li&ed it or not - and wo!ld not forget !s%

One res!lt of o!r tactics was to show !p clearly the close political fraterniation that e3isted also here in

avaria between the ar3ists and the $entre "arty% (he political party that held power in avaria, whichwas the avarian "eople#s "arty Baffiliated with the $entre "artyC did its best to co!nteract the effect which

o!r placards were having on the 8ed# masses% (h!s they made a definite step to fetter o!r activities% If the police co!ld find no other gro!nds for prohibiting o!r placards, then they might claim that we were

dist!rbing the traffic in the streets% And th!s the so-called 6erman *ational "eople#s "arty calmed thean3ieties of their 8ed# allies by completely prohibiting those placards which proclaimed a message that

was bringing bac& to the bosom of their own people h!ndreds of tho!sands of wor&ers who had been

misled by international agitators and incensed against their own nation% (hese placards bear witness to the

bitterness of the str!ggle in which the yo!ng movement was then engaged% F!t!re generations will find inthese placards a doc!mentary proof of o!r determination and the !stice of o!r own ca!se% And these

placards will also prove how the so-called national officials too& arbitrary action to strangle a movement

that did not please them, beca!se it was nationaliing the broad masses of the people and winning them

bac& to their own racial stoc&%(hese placards will also help to ref!te the theory that there was then a national government in avaria and

they will afford doc!mentary confirmation of the fact that if avaria remained nationally-minded d!ring

the years 1919, 192<, 1921, 1922 and 192., this was not d!e to a national government b!t it was beca!sethe national spirit grad!ally gained a deeper hold on the people and the 6overnment was forced to follow p!blic feeling% (he 6overnment a!thorities themselves did everything in their power to hamper this process

of recovery and ma&e it impossible% !t in this connection two officials m!st be mentioned as o!tstanding

e3ceptions%

7rnst "Rhner was $hief of "olice at the time% e had a loyal co!nsellor in ?r% Fric&, who was his chief e3ec!tive official% (hese were the only men among the higher officials who had the co!rage to place the

interests of their co!ntry before their own interests in holding on to their obs% Of those in responsible

positions 7rnst "Rhner was the only one who did not pay co!rt to the mob b!t felt that his d!ty was towardsthe nation as s!ch and was ready to ris& and sacrifice everything, even his personal livelihood, to help in



the restoration of the 6erman people, whom he dearly loved% For that reason he was a bitter thorn in the

side of the venal gro!p of 6overnment officials% It was not the interests of the nation or the necessity of a

national revival that inspired or directed their cond!ct% (hey simply tr!c&led to the wishes of the

6overnment, so as to sec!re their daily bread for themselves, b!t they had no tho!ght whatsoever for thenational welfare that had been entr!sted to their care%

Above all, "Rhner was one of those people who, in contradistinction to the maority of o!r so-called

defenders of the a!thority of the 'tate, did not fear to inc!r the enmity of the traitors to the co!ntry and the

nation b!t rather co!rted it as a mar& of hono!r and honesty% For s!ch men the hatred of the )ews andar3ists and the lies and cal!mnies they spread, were their only so!rce of happiness in the midst of the

national misery% "Rhner was a man of granite loyalty% e was li&e one of the ascetic characters of the

classical era and was at the same time that &ind of straightforward 6erman for whom the saying etter

dead than a slave# is not an empty phrase b!t a veritable heart#s cry%In my opinion he and his collaborator, ?r% Fric&, are the only men holding positions then in avaria who

have the right to be considered as having ta&en active part in the creation of a national avaria%

efore holding o!r first great mass meeting it was necessary not only to have o!r propaganda material

ready b!t also to have the main items of o!r programme printed%In the second vol!me of this boo& I shall give a detailed acco!nt of the g!iding principles which we then

followed in drawing !p o!r programme% ere I will only say that the programme was arranged not merely

to set forth the form and content of the yo!ng movement b!t also with an eye to ma&ing it !nderstood

among the broad masses% (he so-called intellect!al circles made o&es and sneered at it and then tried to

criticie it% !t the effect of o!r programme proved that the ideas which we then held were right%?!ring those years I saw doens of new movements arise and disappear witho!t leaving a trace behind%

Only one movement has s!rvived% It is the *ational 'ocialist 6erman Labo!r "arty% (o-day I am more

convinced than ever before that, tho!gh they may combat !s and try to paralyse o!r movement, and tho!gh pettifogging party ministers may forbid !s the right of free speech, they cannot prevent the tri!mph of o!r

ideas% /hen 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 *ational 'ocialist movement will s!pply the

gro!ndwor& on which the f!t!re 'tate will be b!ilt%(he meetings which we held before )an!ary 192< had enabled !s to collect the financial means that were

necessary to have o!r first pamphlets and posters and programmes printed%

I shall bring the first part of this boo& to a close by referring to o!r first great mass meeting, beca!se that

meeting mar&ed the occasion on which o!r framewor& as a small party had to be bro&en !p and we startedto become the most powerf!l factor of this epoch in the infl!ence we e3ercised on p!blic opinion% At that

time my chief an3iety was that we might not fill the hall and that we might have to face empty benches% Imyself was firmly convinced that if only the people wo!ld come this day wo!ld t!rn o!t a great s!ccess for

the yo!ng movement% (hat was my feeling as I waited impatiently for the ho!r to come%It had been anno!nced that the meeting wo!ld begin at G%.<% A +!arter-of-an-ho!r before the opening time I

wal&ed thro!gh the chief hall of the ofbrE!ha!s on the "lat in !nich and my heart was nearly b!rsting

with oy% (he great hall - for at that time it seemed very big to me - was filled to overflowing% *early 2,<<<

people were present% And, above all, those people had come whom we had always wished to reach% orethan half the a!dience consisted of persons who seemed to be comm!nists or independents% O!r first great

demonstration was destined, in their view, to come to an abr!pt end%

!t things happened otherwise% /hen the first spea&er had finished I got !p to spea&% After a few min!tes I

was met with a hailstorm of interr!ptions and violent enco!nters bro&e o!t in the body of the hall% Ahandf!l of my loyal war comrades and some other followers grappled with the dist!rbers and restored order

in a little while% I was able to contin!e my speech% After half an ho!r the appla!se began to drown the

interr!ptions and the hootings% (hen interr!ptions grad!ally ceased and appla!se too& their place% /hen Ifinally came to e3plain the twenty-five points and laid them, point after point, before the masses gatheredthere and as&ed them to pass their own !dgment on each point, one point after another was accepted with

increasing enth!siasm% /hen the last point was reached I had before me a hall f!ll of people !nited by a

new conviction, a new faith and a new will%

*early fo!r ho!rs had passed when the hall began to clear% As the masses streamed towards the e3its,crammed sho!lder to sho!lder, shoving and p!shing, I &new that a movement was now set afoot among the

6erman people which wo!ld never pass into oblivion%

A fire was en&indled from whose glowing heat the sword wo!ld be fashioned which wo!ld restore freedomto the 6erman 'iegfried and bring bac& life to the 6erman nation%



eside the revival which I then foresaw, I also felt that the 6oddess of :engeance was now getting ready to

redress the treason of the 9th of *ovember, 191;% (he hall was emptied% (he movement was on the march%

:ol!me (wo0 (he *ational 'ocialist ovement

$hapter One

On Febr!ary 24th, 192<, the first great mass meeting !nder the a!spices of the new movement too& place%In the an+!et all of the ofbrE!ha!s in !nich the twenty-five theses which constit!ted the programme

of o!r new party were e3po!nded to an a!dience of nearly two tho!sand people and each thesis was

enth!siastically received%

(h!s we bro!ght to the &nowledge of the p!blic those first principles and lines of action along which thenew str!ggle was to be cond!cted for the abolition of a conf!sed mass of obsolete ideas and opinions which

had obsc!re and often pernicio!s tendencies% A new force was to ma&e its appearance among the timid and

fec&less bo!rgeoisie% (his force was destined to impede the tri!mphant advance of the ar3ists and bring

the $hariot of Fate to a standstill !st as it seemed abo!t to reach its goal%It was evident that this new movement co!ld gain the p!blic significance and s!pport which are necessary

pre-re+!isites in s!ch a gigantic str!ggle only if it s!cceeded from the very o!tset in awa&ening a

sacrosanct conviction in the hearts of its followers, that here it was not a case of introd!cing a new electoral

slogan into the political field b!t that an entirely new Weltanschhauung , which was of a radical

significance, had to be promoted%One m!st try to recall the miserable !mble of opinions that !sed to be arrayed side by side to form the

!s!al "arty "rogramme, as it was called, and one m!st remember how these opinions !sed to be br!shed !p

or dressed in a new form from time to time% If we wo!ld properly !nderstand these programmaticmonstrosities we m!st caref!lly investigate the motives which inspired the average bo!rgeois programme

committee#%

(hose people are always infl!enced by one and the same preocc!pation when they introd!ce something

new into their programme or modify something already contained in it% (hat preocc!pation is directedtowards the res!lts of the ne3t election% (he moment these artists in parliamentary government have the

first glimmering of a s!spicion that their darling p!blic may be ready to &ic& !p its heels and escape from

the harness of the old party wagon they begin to paint the shafts with new colo!rs% On s!ch occasions the

party astrologists and horoscope readers, the so-called e3perienced men# and e3perts#, come forward% For the most part they are old parliamentary hands whose political schooling has f!rnished them with ample

e3perience% (hey can remember former occasions when the masses showed signs of losing patience andthey now diagnose the menace of a similar sit!ation arising% 8esorting to their old prescription, they form a

committee#% (hey go aro!nd among the darling p!blic and listen to what is being said% (hey dip their nosesinto the newspapers and grad!ally begin to scent what it is that their darlings, the broad masses, are wishing

for, what they reect and what they are hoping for% (he gro!ps that belong to each trade or b!siness, and

even office employees, are caref!lly st!died and their innermost desires are investigated% (he malicio!s

slogans# of the opposition from which danger is threatened are now s!ddenly loo&ed !pon as worthy of reconsideration, and it often happens that these slogans, to the great astonishment of those who originally

coined and circ!lated them, now appear to be +!ite harmless and indeed are to be fo!nd among the dogmas

of the old parties%

'o the committees meet to revise the old programme and draw !p a new one%For these people change their convictions !st as the soldier changes his shirt in war - when the old one is

b!g-eaten% In the new programme everyone gets everything he wants% (he farmer is ass!red that the

interests of agric!lt!re will be safeg!arded% (he ind!strialist is ass!red of protection for his prod!cts% (hecons!mer is ass!red that his interests will be protected in the mar&et prices% (eachers are given higher salaries and civil servants will have better pensions% /idows and orphans will receive genero!s assistance

from the 'tate% (rade will be promoted% (he tariff will be lowered and even the ta3es, tho!gh they cannot

be entirely abolished, will be almost abolished% It sometimes happens that one section of the p!blic is

forgotten or that one of the demands mooted among the p!blic has not reached the ears of the party% (his isalso h!rriedly patched on to the whole, sho!ld there be any space available for it0 !ntil finally it is felt that

there are good gro!nds for hoping that the whole normal host of philistines, incl!ding their wives, will have

their an3ieties laid to rest and will beam with satisfaction once again% And so, internally armed with faith inthe goodness of 6od and the impenetrable st!pidity of the electorate, the str!ggle for what is called the



reconstr!ction of the 8eich# can now begin%

/hen the election day is over and the parliamentarians have held their last p!blic meeting for the ne3t five

years, when they can leave their ob of getting the pop!lace to toe the line and can now devote themselves

to higher and more pleasing tas&s - then the programme committee is dissolved and the str!ggle for the progressive reorganiation of p!blic affairs becomes once again a b!siness of earning one#s daily bread,

which for the parliamentarians means merely the attendance that is re+!ired in order to be able to draw

their daily rem!nerations% orning after morning the hono!rable dep!ty wends his way to the o!se, and

tho!gh he may not enter the $hamber itself he gets at least as far as the front hall, where he will find theregister on which the names of the dep!ties in attendance have to be inscribed% As a part of his onero!s

service to his constit!ents he enters his name, and in ret!rn receives a small indemnity as a well-earned

reward for his !nceasing and e3ha!sting labo!rs%

/hen fo!r years have passed, or in the meantime if there sho!ld be some critical wee&s d!ring which the parliamentary corporations have to face the danger of being dissolved, these hono!rable gentlemen become

s!ddenly seied by an irresistible desire to act% )!st as the gr!b-worm cannot help growing into a coc&-

chafer, these parliamentarian worms leave the great o!se of "!ppets and fl!tter on new wings o!t among

the beloved p!blic% (hey address the electors once again, give an acco!nt of the enormo!s labo!rs theyhave accomplished and emphasie the malicio!s obstinacy of their opponents% (hey do not always meet

with gratef!l appla!se> for occasionally the !nintelligent masses throw r!de and !nfriendly remar&s in their

faces% /hen this spirit of p!blic ingratit!de reaches a certain pitch there is only one way of saving the

sit!ation% (he prestige of the party m!st be b!rnished !p again% (he programme has to be amended% (he

committee is called into e3istence once again% And the swindle begins anew% Once we !nderstand theimpenetrable st!pidity of o!r p!blic we cannot be s!rprised that s!ch tactics t!rn o!t s!ccessf!l% Led by the

"ress and blinded once again by the all!ring appearance of the new programme, the bo!rgeois as well as

the proletarian herds of voters faithf!lly ret!rn to the common stall and re-elect their old deceivers% (hepeople#s man# and labo!r candidate now change bac& again into the parliamentarian gr!b and become fat

and rot!nd as they batten on the leaves that grow on the tree of p!blic life - to be retransformed into the

glittering b!tterfly after another fo!r years have passed%

'carcely anything else can be so depressing as to watch this process in sober reality and to be theeyewitness of this repeatedly rec!rring fra!d% On a spirit!al training gro!nd of that &ind it is not possible

for the bo!rgeois forces to develop the strength which is necessary to carry on the fight against the

organied might of ar3ism% Indeed they have never serio!sly tho!ght of doing so% (ho!gh these

parliamentary +!ac&s who represent the white race are generally recognied as persons of +!ite inferior mental capacity, they are shrewd eno!gh to &now that they co!ld not serio!sly entertain the hope of being

able to !se the weapon of /estern ?emocracy to fight a doctrine for the advance of which /estern?emocracy, with all its accessories, is employed as a means to an end% ?emocracy is e3ploited by the

ar3ists for the p!rpose of paralysing their opponents and gaining for themselves a free hand to p!t their own methods into action% /hen certain gro!ps of ar3ists !se all their ingen!ity for the time being to

ma&e 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 maority vote, as that principle is !nderstood by /estern ?emocracy% '!ch was the case inthose days when the bo!rgeois parliamentarians, in their mon!mental shortsightedness, believed that the

sec!rity of the 8eich was g!aranteed beca!se it had an overwhelming n!merical maority in its favo!r, and

the ar3ists did not hesitate s!ddenly to grasp s!preme power in their own hands, bac&ed by a mob of

loafers, deserters, political place-h!nters and )ewish dilettanti% (hat was a blow in the face for thatdemocracy in which so many parliamentarians believed% Only those cred!lo!s parliamentary wiards who

represented bo!rgeois democracy co!ld have believed that the br!tal determination of those whose interest

it is to spread the ar3ist world-pest, of which they are the carriers, co!ld for a moment, now or in thef!t!re, be held in chec& by the magical form!las of /estern "arliamentarianism% ar3ism will marchsho!lder to sho!lder with democracy !ntil it s!cceeds indirectly in sec!ring for its own criminal p!rposes

even the s!pport of those whose minds are nationally orientated and whom ar3ism strives to e3terminate%

!t if the ar3ists sho!ld one day come to believe that there was a danger that from this witch#s ca!ldron

of o!r parliamentary democracy a maority vote might be concocted, which by reason of its n!mericalmaority wo!ld be empowered to enact legislation and might !se that power serio!sly to combat ar3ism,

then the whole parliamentarian hoc!s-poc!s wo!ld be at an end% Instead of appealing to the democratic

conscience, the standard bearers of the 8ed International wo!ld immediately send forth a f!rio!s rallying-cry among the proletarian masses and the ens!ing fight wo!ld not ta&e place in the sedate atmosphere of



"arliament b!t in the factories and the streets% (hen democracy wo!ld be annihilated forthwith% And what

the intellect!al prowess of the apostles who represented the people in "arliament had failed to accomplish

wo!ld now be s!ccessf!lly carried o!t by the crow-bar and the sledge-hammer of the e3asperated

proletarian masses - !st as in the a!t!mn of 191;% At a blow they wo!ld awa&en the bo!rgeois world to seethe madness of thin&ing that the )ewish drive towards world-con+!est can be effect!ally opposed by means

of /estern ?emocracy%

As I have said, only a very cred!lo!s so!l co!ld thin& of binding himself to observe the r!les of the game

when he has to face a player for whom those r!les are nothing b!t a mere bl!ff or a means of serving hisown interests, which means he will discard them when they prove no longer !sef!l for his p!rpose%

All the parties that profess so-called bo!rgeois principles loo& !pon political life as in reality a str!ggle for

seats in "arliament% (he moment their principles and convictions are of no f!rther !se in that str!ggle they

are thrown overboard, as if they were sand ballast% And the programmes are constr!cted in s!ch a way thatthey can be dealt with in li&e manner% !t s!ch practice has a correspondingly wea&ening effect on the

strength of those parties% (hey lac& the great magnetic force which alone attracts the broad masses> for

these masses always respond to the compelling force which emanates from absol!te faith in the ideas p!t

forward, combined with an indomitable est 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 tho!gh it be criminal in a tho!sand ways - ma&es an attac& against the established

order the other side will be able to resist when it draws its strength from a new faith, which in o!r case is a

political faith% (his faith m!st s!persede the wea& and cowardly command to defend% In its stead we m!st

raise the battle-cry of a co!rageo!s and r!thless attac&% O!r present movement is acc!sed, especially by theso-called national bo!rgeois cabinet ministers - the avarian representatives of the $entre, for e3ample - of

heading towards a revol!tion% /e have one answer to give to those political pigmies% /e say to them0 /e

are trying to ma&e !p for that which yo!, in yo!r criminal st!pidity, have failed to carry o!t% y yo!r parliamentarian obbing yo! have helped to drag the nation into r!in% !t we, by o!r aggressive policy, are

setting !p a new Weltanschhauung which we shall defend with indomitable devotion% (h!s we are b!ilding

the steps on which o!r nation once again may ascend to the temple of freedom%

And so d!ring the first stages of fo!nding o!r movement we had to ta&e special care that o!r militant gro!pwhich fo!ght for the establishment of a new and e3alted political faith sho!ld not degenerate into a society

for the promotion of parliamentarian interests%

(he first preventive meas!re was to lay down a programme which of itself wo!ld tend towards developing

a certain moral greatness that wo!ld scare away all the petty and wea&ling spirits who ma&e !p the b!l& of o!r present party politicians%

(hose fatal defects which finally led to 6ermany#s downfall afford the clearest proof of how right we werein considering it absol!tely necessary to set !p programmatic aims which were sharply and distinctly

defined%eca!se we recognied the defects above mentioned, we realied that a new conception of the 'tate had to

be formed, which in itself became a part of o!r new conception of life in general%

In the first vol!me of this boo& I have already dealt with the term vRl&isch, and I said then that this term

has not a s!fficiently precise meaning to f!rnish the &ernel aro!nd which a closely consolidated militantcomm!nity co!ld be formed% All &inds of people, with all &inds of divergent opinions, are parading abo!t at

the present moment !nder the device vRl&isch on their banners% efore I come to deal with the p!rposes

and aims of the *ational 'ocialist Labo!r "arty I want to establish a clear !nderstanding of what is meant

by the concept vRl&isch and herewith e3plain its relation to o!r party movement% (he word vRl&isch doesnot e3press any clearly specified idea% It may be interpreted in several ways and in practical application it is

!st as general as the word religio!s#, for instance% It is diffic!lt to attach any precise meaning to this latter

word, either as a theoretical concept or as a g!iding principle in practical life% (he word religio!s# ac+!iresa precise meaning only when it is associated with a distinct and definite form thro!gh which the concept is p!t into practice% (o say that a person is deeply religio!s# may be very fine phraseology> b!t, generally

spea&ing, it tells !s little or nothing% (here may be some few people who are content with s!ch a vag!e

description and there may even be some to whom the word conveys a more or less definite pict!re of the

inner +!ality of a person th!s described% !t, since the masses of the people are not composed of philosophers or saints, s!ch a vag!e religio!s idea will mean for them nothing else than to !stify each

individ!al in thin&ing and acting according to his own bent% It will not lead to that practical faith into which

the inner religio!s yearning is transformed only when it leaves the sphere of general metaphysical ideas andis mo!lded to a definite dogmatic belief% '!ch a belief is certainly not an end in itself, b!t the means to an



end% Net it is a means witho!t which the end co!ld never be reached at all% (his end, however, is not merely

something ideal> for at the bottom it is eminently practical% /e m!st always bear in mind the fact that,

generally spea&ing, the highest ideals are always the o!tcome of some profo!nd vital need, !st as the most

s!blime bea!ty owes its nobility of shape, in the last analysis, to the fact that the most bea!tif!l form is theform that is best s!ited to the p!rpose it is meant to serve%

y helping to lift the h!man being above the level of mere animal e3istence, Faith really contrib!tes to

consolidate and safeg!ard its own e3istence% (a&ing h!manity as it e3ists to-day and ta&ing into

consideration the fact that the religio!s beliefs which it generally holds and which have been consolidatedthro!gh o!r ed!cation, so that they serve as moral standards in practical life, if we sho!ld now abolish

religio!s teaching and not replace it by anything of e+!al val!e the res!lt wo!ld be that the fo!ndations of

h!man e3istence wo!ld be serio!sly sha&en% /e may safely say that man does not live merely to serve

higher ideals, b!t that these ideals, in their t!rn, f!rnish the necessary conditions of his e3istence as ah!man being% And th!s the circle is closed%

Of co!rse, the word religio!s# implies some ideas and beliefs that are f!ndamental% Among these we may

rec&on the belief in the immortality of the so!l, its f!t!re e3istence in eternity, the belief in the e3istence of

a igher eing, and so on% !t all these ideas, no matter how firmly the individ!al believes in them, may be critically analysed by any person and accepted or reected accordingly, !ntil the emotional concept or

yearning has been transformed into an active service that is governed by a clearly defined doctrinal faith%

'!ch a faith f!rnishes the practical o!tlet for religio!s feeling to e3press itself and th!s opens the way

thro!gh which it can be p!t into practice%

/itho!t a clearly defined belief, the religio!s feeling wo!ld not only be worthless for the p!rposes of h!man e3istence b!t even might contrib!te towards a general disorganiation, on acco!nt of its vag!e and

m!ltifario!s tendencies%

/hat I have said abo!t the word religio!s# can also be applied to the term vRl&isch% (his word also impliescertain f!ndamental ideas% (ho!gh these ideas are very important indeed, they ass!me s!ch vag!e and

indefinite forms that they cannot be estimated as having a greater val!e than mere opinions, !ntil they

become constit!ent elements in the str!ct!re of a political party% For in order to give practical force to the

ideals that grow o!t of a Weltanschhauung and to answer the demands which are a logical conse+!ence of s!ch ideals, mere sentiment and inner longing are of no practical assistance, !st as freedom cannot be won

by a !niversal yearning for it% *o% Only when the idealistic longing for independence is organied in s!ch a

way that it can fight for its ideal with military force, only then can the !rgent wish of a people be

transformed into a potent reality%Any Weltanschhauung , tho!gh a tho!sandfold right and s!premely beneficial to h!manity, 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 !ntil is has

bro!ght its ideals to victory and transformed its party doctrines into the new fo!ndations of a 'tate whichgives the national comm!nity its final shape%

If an abstract conception of a general nat!re is to serve as the basis of a f!t!re development, then the first

prere+!isite is to form a clear !nderstanding of the nat!re and character and scope of this conception% For

only on s!ch a basis can a movement he fo!nded which will be able to draw the necessary fighting strengthfrom the internal cohesion of its principles and convictions% From general ideas a political programme m!st

be constr!cted and a general Weltanschhauung m!st receive the stamp of a definite political faith% 'ince

this faith m!st be directed towards ends that have to be attained in the world of practical reality, not only

m!st it serve the general ideal as s!ch b!t it m!st also ta&e into consideration the means that have to beemployed for the tri!mph of the ideal% ere the practical wisdom of the statesman m!st 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 g!iding star to man&ind, m!st be adapted to the e3igencies of h!man frailty so that its practical effect may not be fr!strated at the very o!tset thro!gh those shortcomings which are general toman&ind% (he e3ponent of tr!th m!st here go hand in hand with him who has a practical &nowledge of the

so!l of the people, so that from the realm of eternal verities and ideals what is s!ited to the capacities of

h!man nat!re may be selected and given practical form% (o ta&e abstract and general principles, derived

from a Weltanschhauung which is based on a solid fo!ndation of tr!th, and transform them into a militantcomm!nity whose members have the same political faith - a comm!nity which is precisely defined, rigidly

organied, of one mind and one will - s!ch a transformation is the most important tas& of all> for the

possibility of s!ccessf!lly carrying o!t the idea is dependent on the s!ccessf!l f!lfilment of that tas&% O!tof the army of millions who feel the tr!th of these ideas, and even may !nderstand them to some e3tent,



one man m!st arise% (his man m!st have the gift of being able to e3po!nd general ideas in a clear and

definite form, and, from the world of vag!e ideas shimmering before the minds of the masses, he m!st

form!late principles that will be as clear-c!t and firm as granite% e m!st fight for these principles as the

only tr!e ones, !ntil a solid roc& of common faith and common will emerges above the tro!bled waves of vagrant ideas% (he general !stification of s!ch action is to be so!ght in the necessity for it and the

individ!al will be !stified by his s!ccess%

If we try to penetrate to the inner meaning of the word vRl&isch we arrive at the following concl!sions0

(he c!rrent political conception of the world is that the 'tate, tho!gh it possesses a creative force whichcan b!ild !p civiliations, has nothing in common with the concept of race as the fo!ndation of the 'tate%

(he 'tate is considered rather as something which has res!lted from economic necessity, or, at best, the

nat!ral o!tcome of the play of political forces and imp!lses% '!ch a conception of the fo!ndations of the

'tate, together with all its logical conse+!ences, not only ignores the primordial racial forces that !nderliethe 'tate, b!t it also leads to a policy in which the importance of the individ!al is minimied% If it be denied

that races differ from one another in their powers of c!lt!ral creativeness, then this same erroneo!s notion

m!st necessarily infl!ence o!r estimation of the val!e of the individ!al% (he ass!mption that all races are

ali&e leads to the ass!mption that nations and individ!als are e+!al to one another% And internationalar3ism is nothing b!t the application - effected by the )ew, arl ar3 - of a general conception of life to

a definite profession of political faith> b!t in reality that general concept had e3isted long before the time of

arl ar3% If it had not already e3isted as a widely diff!sed infection the amaing political progress of the

ar3ist teaching wo!ld never have been possible% In reality what disting!ished arl ar3 from the

millions who were affected in the same way was that, in a world already in a state of grad!aldecomposition, he !sed his &een powers of prognosis to detect the essential poisons, so as to e3tract them

and concentrate them, with the art of a necromancer, in a sol!tion which wo!ld bring abo!t the rapid

destr!ction of the independent nations on the globe% !t all this was done in the service of his race%(h!s the ar3ist doctrine is the concentrated e3tract of the mentality which !nderlies the general concept

of life to-day% For this reason alone it is o!t of the +!estion and even ridic!lo!s to thin& that what is called

o!r bo!rgeois world can p!t !p any effective fight against ar3ism% For this bo!rgeois world is permeated

with all those same poisons and its conception of life in general differs from ar3ism only in degree and inthe character of the persons who hold it% (he bo!rgeois world is ar3ist b!t believes in the possibility of a

certain gro!p of people - that is to say, the bo!rgeoisie - being able to dominate the world, while ar3ism

itself systematically aims at delivering the world into the hands of the )ews%

Over against all this, the vRl&isch concept of the world recognies that the primordial racial elements are of the greatest significance for man&ind% In principle, the 'tate is loo&ed !pon only as a means to an end and

this end is the conservation of the racial characteristics of man&ind% (herefore on the vRl&isch principle wecannot admit that one race is e+!al to another% y recogniing that they are different, the vRl&isch concept

separates man&ind into races of s!perior and inferior +!ality% On the basis of this recognition it feels bo!ndin conformity with the eternal /ill that dominates the !niverse, to post!late the victory of the better and

stronger and the s!bordination of the inferior and wea&er% And so it pays homage to the tr!th that the

principle !nderlying all *at!re#s operations is the aristocratic principle and it believes that this law holds

good even down to the last individ!al organism% It selects individ!al val!es from the mass and th!soperates as an organiing principle, whereas ar3ism acts as a disintegrating solvent% (he vRl&isch belief

holds that h!manity m!st have its ideals, beca!se ideals are a necessary condition of h!man e3istence itself%

!t, on the other hand, it denies that an ethical ideal has the right to prevail if it endangers the e3istence of

a race that is the standard-bearer of a higher ethical ideal% For in a world which wo!ld be composed of mongrels and negroids all ideals of h!man bea!ty and nobility and all hopes of an idealied f!t!re for o!r

h!manity wo!ld be lost forever%

On this planet of o!rs h!man c!lt!re and civiliation are indissol!bly bo!nd !p with the presence of theAryan% If he sho!ld be e3terminated or s!b!gated, then the dar& shro!d of a new barbarian era wo!ldenfold the earth%

(o !ndermine the e3istence of h!man c!lt!re by e3terminating its fo!nders and c!stodians wo!ld be an

e3ecrable crime in the eyes of those who believe that the fol&-idea lies at the basis of h!man e3istence%

/hoever wo!ld dare to raise a profane hand against that highest image of 6od among is creat!res wo!ldsin against the bo!ntif!l $reator of this marvel and wo!ld collaborate in the e3p!lsion from "aradise%

ence the fol& concept of the world is in profo!nd accord with *at!re#s will> beca!se it restores the free

play of the forces which will lead the race thro!gh stages of s!stained reciprocal ed!cation towards a higher type, !ntil finally the best portion of man&ind will possess the earth and will be free to wor& in every



domain all over the world and even reach spheres that lie o!tside the earth%

/e all feel that in the distant f!t!re many may be faced with problems which can be solved only by a

s!perior race of h!man beings, a race destined to become master of all the other peoples and which will

have at its disposal the means and reso!rces of the whole world%It is evident that s!ch a general s&etch of the ideas implied in the fol& concept of the world may easily be

interpreted in a tho!sand different ways% As a matter of fact there is scarcely one of o!r recent political

movements that does not refer at some point to this conception of the world% !t the fact that this

conception of the world still maintains its independent e3istence in face of all the others proves that their ways of loo&ing at life are +!ite difierent from this% (h!s the ar3ist conception, directed by a central

organiation endowed with s!preme a!thority, is opposed by a motley crew of opinions which is not very

impressive in face of the solid phalan3 presented by the enemy% :ictory cannot be achieved with s!ch wea&

weapons% Only when the international idea, politically organied by ar3ism, is confronted by the fol& idea, e+!ally well organied in a systematic way and e+!ally well led - only then will the fighting energy in

the one camp be able to meet that of the other on an e+!al footing> and victory will be fo!nd on the side of

eternal tr!th%

!t a general conception of life can never be given an organic embodiment !ntil it is precisely anddefinitely form!lated% (he f!nction which dogma f!lfils in religio!s belief is parallel to the f!nction which

party principles f!lfil for a political party which is in the process of being b!ilt !p% (herefore, for the

conception of life that is based on the fol& idea it is necessary that an instr!ment be forged which can be

!sed in fighting for this ideal, similar to the ar3ist party organiation which clears the way for

internationalism%And this is the aim which the 6erman *ational 'ocialist Labo!r ovement p!rs!es%

(he fol& conception m!st therefore be definitely form!lated so that it may be organically incorporated in

the party% (hat is a necessary prere+!isite for the s!ccess of this idea% And that it is so is very clearly provedeven by the indirect ac&nowledgment of those who oppose s!ch an amalgamation of the fol& idea with

party principles% (he very people who never tire of insisting again and again that the conception of life

based on the fol& idea can never be the e3cl!sive property of a single gro!p, beca!se it lies dormant or

lives# in myriads of hearts, only confirm by their own statements the simple fact that the general presenceof s!ch ideas in the hearts of millions of men has not proved s!fficient to impede the victory of the

opposing ideas, which are championed by a political party organied on the principle of class conflict% If

that were not so, the 6erman people o!ght already to have gained a gigantic victory instead of finding

themselves on the brin& of the abyss% (he international ideology achieved s!ccess beca!se it was organiedin a militant political party which was always ready to ta&e the offensive% If hitherto the ideas opposed to

the international concept have had to give way before the latter the reason is that they lac&ed a !nited frontto fight for their ca!se% A doctrine which forms a definite o!tloo& on life cannot str!ggle and tri!mph by

allowing the right of free interpretation of its general teaching, b!t only by defining that teaching in certainarticles of faith that have to be accepted and incorporating it in a political organiation%

(herefore I considered it my special d!ty to e3tract from the e3tensive b!t vag!e contents of a general

Weltanschhauung the ideas which were essential and give them a more or less dogmatic form% eca!se of

their precise and clear meaning, these ideas are s!ited to the p!rpose of !niting in a common front all thosewho are ready to accept them as principles% In other words0 (he 6erman *ational 'ocialist Labo!r "arty

e3tracts the essential principles from the general conception of the world which is based on the fol& idea%

On these principles it establishes a political doctrine which ta&es into acco!nt the practical realities of the

day, the nat!re of the times, the available h!man material and all its deficiencies% (hro!gh this politicaldoctrine it is possible to bring great masses of the people into an organiation which is constr!cted as

rigidly as it co!ld be% '!ch an organiation is the main preliminary that is necessary for the final tri!mph of

this ideal%

$hapter (wo

Already in 192<-1921 certain circles belonging to the effete bo!rgeois class acc!sed o!r movement again

and again of ta&ing !p a negative attit!de towards the modern 'tate% For that reason the motley gang of camp followers attached to the vario!s political parties, representing a heterogeneo!s conglomeration of

political views, ass!med the right of !tiliing all available means to s!ppress the protagonists of this yo!ng

movement which was preaching a new political gospel% O!r opponents deliberately ignored the fact that the bo!rgeois class itself stood for no !niform opinion as to what the 'tate really meant and that the



bo!rgeoisie did not and co!ld not give any coherent definition of this instit!tion% (hose whose d!ty it is to

e3plain what is meant when we spea& of the 'tate, hold chairs in 'tate !niversities, often in the department

of constit!tional law, and consider it their highest d!ty to find e3planations and !stifications for the more

or less fort!nate e3istence of that partic!lar form of 'tate which provides them with their daily bread% (hemore abs!rd s!ch a form of 'tate is the more obsc!re and artificial and incomprehensible are the definitions

which are advanced to e3plain the p!rpose of its e3istence% /hat, for instance, co!ld a royal and imperial

!niversity professor write abo!t the meaning and p!rpose of a 'tate in a co!ntry whose statal form

represented the greatest monstrosity of the twentieth cent!ry5 (hat wo!ld be a diffic!lt !nderta&ing indeed,in view of the fact that the contemporary professor of constit!tional law is obliged not so m!ch to serve the

ca!se of tr!th b!t rather to serve a certain definite p!rpose% And this p!rpose is to defend at all costs the

e3istence of that monstro!s h!man mechanism which we now call the 'tate% *obody can be s!rprised if

concrete facts are evaded as far as possible when the problem of the 'tate is !nder disc!ssion and if professors adopt the tactics of concealing themselves in morass of abstract val!es and d!ties and p!rposes

which are described as ethical# and moral#%

6enerally spea&ing, these vario!s theorists may be classed in three gro!ps0

1% (hose who hold that the 'tate is a more or less vol!ntary association of men who have agreed to set !pand obey a r!ling a!thority%

(his is n!merically the largest gro!p% In its ran&s are to be fo!nd those who worship o!r present principle

of legalied a!thority% In their eyes the will of the people has no part whatever in the whole affair% For them

the fact that the 'tate e3ists is s!fficient reason to consider it sacred and inviolable% (o accept this

aberration of the h!man brain one wo!ld have to have a sort of canine adoration for what is called thea!thority of the 'tate% In the minds of these people the means is s!bstit!ted for the end, by a sort of sleight-

of-hand movement% (he 'tate no longer e3ists for the p!rpose of serving men b!t men e3ist for the p!rpose

of adoring the a!thority of the 'tate, which is vested in its f!nctionaries, even down to the smallest official%'o as to prevent this placid and ecstatic adoration from changing into something that might become in any

way dist!rbing, the a!thority of the 'tate is limited simply to the tas& of preserving order and tran+!illity%

(herewith it is no longer either a means or an end% (he 'tate m!st see that p!blic peace and order are

preserved and, in their t!rn, order and peace m!st ma&e the e3istence of the 'tate possible% All life m!stmove between these two poles% In avaria this view is !pheld by the artf!l politicians of the avarian

$entre, which is called the avarian "op!list "arty#% In A!stria the lac&-and-Nellow legitimists adopt a

similar attit!de% In the 8eich, !nfort!nately, the so-called conservative elements follow the same line of

tho!ght%2% (he second gro!p is somewhat smaller in n!mbers% It incl!des those who wo!ld ma&e the e3istence of

the 'tate dependent on some conditions at least% (hey insist that not only sho!ld there be a !niform systemof government b!t also, if possible, that only one lang!age sho!ld be !sed, tho!gh solely for technical

reasons of administration% In this view the a!thority of the 'tate is no longer the sole and e3cl!sive end for which the 'tate e3ists% It m!st also promote the good of its s!bects% Ideas of freedom#, mostly based on a

mis!nderstanding of the meaning of that word, enter into the concept of the 'tate as it e3ists in the minds of

this gro!p% (he form of government is no longer considered inviolable simply beca!se it e3ists% It m!st

s!bmit to the test of practical efficiency% Its venerable age no longer protects it from being criticied in thelight of modern e3igencies% oreover, in this view the first d!ty laid !pon the 'tate is to g!arantee the

economic well-being of the individ!al citiens% ence it is !dged from the practical standpoint and

according to general principles based on the idea of economic ret!rns% (he chief representatives of this

theory of the 'tate are to be fo!nd among the average 6erman bo!rgeoisie, especially o!r liberaldemocrats%

.% (he third gro!p is n!merically the smallest% In the 'tate they discover a means for the realiation of

tendencies that arise from a policy of power, on the part of a people who are ethnically homogeneo!s andspea& the same lang!age% !t those who hold this view are not clear abo!t what they mean by tendenciesarising from a policy of power#% A common lang!age is post!lated not only beca!se they hope that thereby

the 'tate wo!ld be f!rnished with a solid basis for the e3tension of its power o!tside its own frontiers, b!t

also beca!se they thin& - tho!gh falling into a f!ndamental error by doing so - that s!ch a common

lang!age wo!ld enable them to carry o!t a process of nationaliation in a definite direction%?!ring the last cent!ry it was lamentable for those who had to witness it, to notice how in these circles I

have !st mentioned the word 6ermaniation# was frivolo!sly played with, tho!gh the practice was often

well intended% I well remember how in the days of my yo!th this very term !sed to give rise to notionswhich were false to an incredible degree% 7ven in "an-6erman circles one heard the opinion e3pressed that



the A!strian 6ermans might very well s!cceed in 6ermaniing the A!strian 'lavs, if only the 6overnment

wo!ld be ready to co-operate% (hose people did not !nderstand that a policy of 6ermaniation can be

carried o!t only as regards h!man beings% /hat they mostly meant by 6ermaniation was a process of

forcing other people to spea& the 6erman lang!age% !t it is almost inconceivable how s!ch a mista&eco!ld be made as to thin& that a *igger or a $hinaman will become a 6erman beca!se he has learned the

6erman lang!age and is willing to spea& 6erman for the f!t!re, and even to cast his vote for a 6erman

political party% O!r bo!rgeois nationalists co!ld never clearly see that s!ch a process of 6ermaniation is in

reality de-6ermaniation> for even if all the o!tstanding and visible differences between the vario!s peoplesco!ld be bridged over and finally wiped o!t by the !se of a common lang!age, that wo!ld prod!ce a

process of bastardiation which in this case wo!ld not signify 6ermaniation b!t the annihilation of the

6erman element% In the co!rse of history it has happened only too often that a con+!ering race s!cceeded

by e3ternal force in compelling the people whom they s!bected to spea& the tong!e of the con+!eror andthat after a tho!sand years their lang!age was spo&en by another people and that th!s the con+!eror finally

t!rned o!t to be the con+!ered%

/hat ma&es a people or, to be more correct, a race, is not lang!age b!t blood% (herefore it wo!ld be

!stifiable to spea& of 6ermaniation only if that process co!ld change the blood of the people who wo!ld be s!bected to it, which is obvio!sly impossible% A change wo!ld be possible only by a mi3t!re of blood,

b!t in this case the +!ality of the s!perior race wo!ld be debased% (he final res!lt of s!ch a mi3t!re wo!ld

be that precisely those +!alities wo!ld be destroyed which had enabled the con+!ering race to achieve

victory over an inferior people% It is especially the c!lt!ral creativeness which disappears when a s!perior

race intermi3es with an inferior one, even tho!gh the res!ltant mongrel race sho!ld e3cel a tho!sandfold inspea&ing the lang!age of the race that once had been s!perior% 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 c!lt!ral creative power and once again prod!ce stri&ing e3amples of that power% !t these res!lts are d!e only to the activity of elements that have remained over from the s!perior

race or hybrids of the first crossing in whom the s!perior blood has remained dominant and see&s to assert

itself% !t this will never happen with the final descendants of s!ch hybrids% (hese are always in a state of

c!lt!ral retrogression%/e m!st consider it as fort!nate that a 6ermaniation of A!stria according to the plan of )oseph II did not

s!cceed% "robably the res!lt wo!ld have been that the A!strian 'tate wo!ld have been able to s!rvive, b!t

at the same time participation in the !se of a common lang!age wo!ld have debased the racial +!ality of the

6erman element% In the co!rse of cent!ries a certain herd instinct might have been developed b!t the herditself wo!ld have deteriorated in +!ality% A national 'tate might have arisen, b!t a people who had been

c!lt!rally creative wo!ld have disappeared%For the 6erman nation it was better that this process of intermi3t!re did not ta&e place, altho!gh it was not

reno!nced for any high-minded reasons b!t simply thro!gh the short-sighted pettiness of the absb!rgs% If it had ta&en place the 6erman people co!ld not now be loo&ed !pon as a c!lt!ral factor%

*ot only in A!stria, however, b!t also in the 8eich, these so-called national circles were, and still are,

!nder the infl!ence of similar erroneo!s ideas% Mnfort!nately, a policy towards "oland, whereby the 7ast

was to be 6ermanied, was demanded by many and was based on the same false reasoning% ere again itwas believed that the "olish people co!ld be 6ermanied by being compelled to !se the 6erman lang!age%

(he res!lt wo!ld have been fatal% A people of foreign race wo!ld have had to !se the 6erman lang!age to

e3press modes of tho!ght that were foreign to the 6erman, th!s compromising by its own inferiority the

dignity and nobility of o!r nation%It is revolting to thin& how m!ch damage is indirectly done to 6erman prestige to-day thro!gh the fact that

the 6erman patois of the )ews when they enter the Mnited 'tates enables them to be classed as 6ermans,

beca!se many Americans are +!ite ignorant of 6erman conditions% Among !s, nobody wo!ld thin& of ta&ing these !nhygienic immigrants from the 7ast for members of the 6erman race and nation merely beca!se they mostly spea& 6erman%

/hat has been beneficially 6ermanied in the co!rse of history was the land which o!r ancestors

con+!ered with the sword and colonied with 6erman tillers of the soil% (o the e3tent that they introd!ced

foreign blood into o!r national body in this coloniation, they have helped to disintegrate o!r racialcharacter, a process which has res!lted in o!r 6erman hyper-individ!alism, tho!gh this latter characteristic

is even now fre+!ently praised%

In this third gro!p also there are people who, to a certain degree, consider the 'tate as an end in itself%ence they consider its preservation as one of the highest aims of h!man e3istence% O!r analysis may be



s!mmed !p as follows0

All these opinions have this common feat!re and failing0 that they are not gro!nded in a recognition of the

profo!nd tr!th that the capacity for creating c!lt!ral val!es is essentially based on the racial element and

that, in accordance with this fact, the paramo!nt p!rpose of the 'tate is to preserve and improve the race>for this is an indispensable condition of all progress in h!man civiliation%

(h!s the )ew, arl ar3, was able to draw the final concl!sions from these false concepts and ideas on the

nat!re and p!rpose of the 'tate% y eliminating from the concept of the 'tate all tho!ght of the obligation

which the 'tate bears towards the race, witho!t finding any other form!la that might be !niversallyaccepted, the bo!rgeois teaching prepared the way for that doctrine which reects the 'tate as s!ch%

(hat is why the bo!rgeois str!ggle against ar3ist internationalism is absol!tely doomed to fail in this

field% (he bo!rgeois classes have already sacrificed the basic principles which alone co!ld f!rnish a solid

footing for their ideas% (heir crafty opponent has perceived the defects in their str!ct!re and advances to theassa!lt on it with those weapons which they themselves have placed in his hands tho!gh not meaning to do

so%

(herefore any new movement which is based on the racial concept of the world will first of all have to p!t

forward a clear and logical doctrine of the nat!re and p!rpose of the 'tate%(he f!ndamental principle is that the 'tate is not an end in itself b!t the means to an end% It is the

preliminary condition !nder which alone a higher form of h!man civiliation can be developed, b!t it is not

the so!rce of s!ch a development% (his is to be so!ght e3cl!sively in the act!al e3istence of a race which is

endowed with the gift of c!lt!ral creativeness% (here may be h!ndreds of e3cellent 'tates on this earth, and

yet if the Aryan, who is the creator and c!stodian of civiliation, sho!ld disappear, all c!lt!re that is on anade+!ate level with the spirit!al needs of the s!perior nations to-day wo!ld also disappear% /e may go still

f!rther and say that the fact that 'tates have been created by h!man beings does not in the least e3cl!de the

possiblity that the h!man race may become e3tinct, beca!se the s!perior intellect!al fac!lties and powersof adaptation wo!ld be lost when the racial bearer of these fac!lties and powers disappeared%

If, for instance, the s!rface of the globe sho!ld be sha&en to-day by some seismic conv!lsion and if a new

imalaya wo!ld emerge from the waves of the sea, this one catastrophe alone might annihilate h!man

civiliation% *o 'tate co!ld e3ist any longer% All order wo!ld be shattered% And all vestiges of c!lt!ral prod!cts which had been evolved thro!gh tho!sands of years wo!ld disappear% *othing wo!ld be left b!t

one tremendo!s field of death and destr!ction s!bmerged in floods of water and m!d% If, however, !st a

few people wo!ld s!rvive this terrible havoc, and if these people belonged to a definite race that had the

innate powers to b!ild !p a civiliation, when the commotion had passed, the earth wo!ld again bear witness to the creative power of the h!man spirit, even tho!gh a span of a tho!sand years might intervene%

Only with the e3termination of the last race that possesses the gift of c!lt!ral creativeness, and indeed onlyif all the individ!als of that race had disappeared, wo!ld the earth definitely be t!rned into a desert% On the

other hand, modern history f!rnishes e3amples to show that statal instit!tions which owe their beginningsto members of a race which lac&s creative geni!s are not made of st!ff that will end!re% )!st 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 fac!lty which enables him to find the weapons that are necessary

for him to maintain his own e3istence%It is not the 'tate as s!ch that brings abo!t a certain definite advance in c!lt!ral progress% (he 'tate can

only protect the race that is the ca!se of s!ch progress% (he 'tate as s!ch may well e3ist witho!t

!ndergoing any change for h!ndreds of years, tho!gh the c!lt!ral fac!lties and the general life of the

people, which is shaped by these fac!lties, may have s!ffered profo!nd changes by reason of the fact thatthe 'tate did not prevent a process of racial mi3t!re from ta&ing place% (he present 'tate, for instance, may

contin!e to e3ist in a mere mechanical form, b!t the poison of miscegenation permeating the national body

brings abo!t a c!lt!ral decadence which manifests itself already in vario!s symptoms that are of adetrimental character%(h!s the indispensable prere+!isite for the e3istence of a s!perior +!ality of h!man beings is not the 'tate

b!t the race, which is alone capable of prod!cing that higher h!man +!ality%

(his capacity is always there, tho!gh it will lie dormant !nless e3ternal circ!mstances awa&en it to action%

*ations, or rather races, which are endowed with the fac!lty of c!lt!ral creativeness possess this fac!lty ina latent form d!ring periods when the e3ternal circ!mstances are !nfavo!rable for the time being and

therefore do not allow the fac!lty to e3press itself effectively% It is therefore o!trageo!sly !n!st to spea& of

the pre-$hristian 6ermans as barbarians who had no civiliation% (hey never have been s!ch% !t theseverity of the climate that prevailed in the northern regions which they inhabited imposed conditions of



the vario!s f!ndamental racial characteristics% /e &now to-day that a complete assimilation of all the

vario!s elements which constit!te the national being might have res!lted in giving !s a larger share of

e3ternal power0 b!t, on the other hand, the highest of h!man aims wo!ld not have been attained, beca!se

the only &ind of people which fate has obvio!sly chosen to bring abo!t this perfection wo!ld have been lostin s!ch a general mi3t!re of races which wo!ld constit!te s!ch a racial amalgamation%

!t what has been prevented by a friendly ?estiny, witho!t any assistance on o!r part, m!st now be

reconsidered and !tilied in the light of o!r new &nowledge%

e who tal&s of the 6erman people as having a mission to f!lfil on this earth m!st &now that this cannot bef!lfilled e3cept by the b!ilding !p of a 'tate whose highest p!rpose is to preserve and promote those nobler

elements of o!r race and of the whole of man&ind which have remained !nimpaired%

(h!s for the first time a high inner p!rpose is accredited to the 'tate% In face of the ridic!lo!s phrase that

the 'tate sho!ld do no more than act as the g!ardian of p!blic order and tran+!illity, so that everybody can peacef!lly d!pe everybody else, it is given a very high mission indeed to preserve and enco!rage the

highest type of h!manity which a beneficent $reator has bestowed on this earth% O!t of a dead mechanism

which claims to be an end in itself a living organism shall arise which has to serve one p!rpose e3cl!sively0

and that, indeed, a p!rpose which belongs to a higher order of ideas%As a 'tate the 6erman 8eich shall incl!de all 6ermans% Its tas& is not only to gather in and foster the most

val!able sections of o!r people b!t to lead them slowly and s!rely to a dominant position in the world%

(h!s a period of stagnation is s!perseded by a period of effort% And here, as in every other sphere, the

proverb holds good that to rest is to r!st> and f!rthermore the proverb that victory will always be won by

him who attac&s% (he higher the final goal which we strive to reach, and the less it be !nderstood at thetime by the broad masses, the more magnificent will be its s!ccess% (hat 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 thro!gh with !nswerving persistence% any of the officials who direct the affairs of 'tatenowadays may find it easier to wor& for the maintenance of the present order than to fight for a new one%

(hey will find it more comfortable to loo& !pon the 'tate as a mechanism, whose p!rpose is its own

preservation, and to say that their lives belong to the 'tate,# as if anything that grew from the inner life of

the nation can logically serve anything b!t the national being, and as if man co!ld be made for anythingelse than for his fellow beings% *at!rally, it is easier, as I have said, to consider the a!thority of the 'tate as

nothing b!t the formal mechanism of an organiation, rather than as the sovereign incarnation of a people#s

instinct for self-preservation on this earth% For these wea& minds the 'tate and the a!thority of the 'tate is

nothing b!t an aim in itself, while for !s it is an effective weapon in the service of the great and eternalstr!ggle for e3istence, a weapon which everyone m!st adopt, not beca!se it is a mere formal mechanism,

b!t beca!se it is the main e3pression of o!r common will to e3ist%(herefore, in the fight for o!r new idea, which conforms completely to the primal meaning of life, we shall

find only a small n!mber of comrades in a social order which has become decrepit not only physically b!tmentally also% From these strata of o!r pop!lation only a few e3ceptional people will oin o!r ran&s, only

those few old people whose hearts have remained yo!ng and whose co!rage is still vigoro!s, b!t not those

who consider it their d!ty to maintain the state of affairs that e3ists%

Against !s we have the inn!merable army of all those who are lay-minded and indifferent rather than evil,and those whose self-interest leads them to !phold the present state of affairs% On the apparent hopelessness

of o!r great str!ggle is based the magnit!de of o!r tas& and the possibilities of s!ccess% A battle-cry which

from the very start will scare off all the petty spirits, or at least disco!rage them, will become the signal for

a rally of all those temperaments that are of the real fighting metal% And it m!st be clearly recognied that if a highly energetic and active body of men emerge from a nation and !nite in the fight for one goal, thereby

!ltimately rising above the inert masses of the people, this small percentage will become masters of the

whole% /orld history is made by minorities if these n!merical minorities represent in themselves the willand energy and initiative of the people as a whole%/hat seems an obstacle to many persons is really a preliminary condition of o!r victory% )!st beca!se o!r

tas& is so great and beca!se so many diffic!lties have to be overcome, the highest probability is that only

the best &ind of protagonists will oin o!r ran&s% (his selection is the g!arantee of o!r s!ccess% *at!re

generally ta&es certain meas!res to correct the effect which racial mi3t!re prod!ces in life% 'he is not m!chin favo!r of the mongrel% (he later prod!cts of cross-breeding have to s!ffer bitterly, especially the third,

fo!rth and fifth generations% *ot only are they deprived of the higher +!alities that belonged to the parents

who participated in the first mi3t!re, b!t they also lac& definite will-power and vigoro!s vital energiesowing to the lac& of harmony in the +!ality of their blood% At all critical moments in which a person of p!re



depraved degenerates to propagate themselves, thereby imposing !nspea&able s!ffering on their own

prod!cts and their contemporaries, while on the other hand contraceptives are permitted and sold in every

dr!g store and even by street haw&ers, so that babies sho!ld not be born even among the healthiest of o!r

people% In this present 'tate of o!rs, whose f!nction it is to be the g!ardian of peace and good order, o!r national bo!rgeoisie loo& !pon it as a crime to ma&e procreation impossible for syphilitics and those who

s!ffer from t!berc!losis or other hereditary diseases, also cripples and imbeciles% !t the practical

prevention of procreation among millions of o!r very best people is not considered as an evil, nor does it

offend against the noble morality of this social class b!t rather enco!rages their short-sightedness andmental lethargy% For otherwise they wo!ld at least stir their brains to find an answer to the +!estion of how

to create conditions for the feeding and maintaining of those f!t!re beings who will be the healthy

representatives of o!r nation and m!st also provide the conditions on which the generation that is to follow

them will have to s!pport itself and live%ow devoid of ideals and how ignoble is the whole contemporary systemJ (he fact that the ch!rches oin in

committing this sin against the image of 6od, even tho!gh they contin!e to emphasie the dignity of that

image, is +!ite in &eeping with their present activities% (hey tal& abo!t the 'pirit, b!t they allow man, as the

embodiment of the 'pirit, to degenerate to the proletarian level% (hen they loo& on with amaement whenthey realie how small is the infl!ence of the $hristian Faith in their own co!ntry and how depraved and

!ngodly is this riff-raff which is physically degenerate and therefore morally degenerate also% (o balance

this state of affairs they try to convert the ottentots and the K!l!s and the affirs and to bestow on them

the blessings of the $h!rch% /hile o!r 7!ropean people, 6od be praised and than&ed, are left to become

the victims of moral depravity, the pio!s missionary goes o!t to $entral Africa and establishes missionarystations for negroes% Finally, so!nd and healthy - tho!gh primitive and bac&ward - people will be

transformed, !nder the name of o!r higher civiliation#, into a motley of lay and br!talied mongrels%

It wo!ld better accord with noble h!man aspirations if o!r two $hristian denominations wo!ld cease to bother the negroes with their preaching, which the negroes do not want and do not !nderstand% It wo!ld be

better if they left this wor& alone, and if, in its stead, they tried to teach people in 7!rope, &indly and

serio!sly, that it is m!ch more pleasing to 6od if a co!ple that is not of healthy stoc& were to show loving

&indness to some poor orphan and become a father and mother to him, rather than give life to a sic&ly childthat will be a ca!se of s!ffering and !nhappiness to all%

In this field the "eople#s 'tate will have to repair the damage that arises from the fact that the problem is at

present neglected by all the vario!s parties concerned% It will be the tas& of the "eople#s 'tate to ma&e the

race the centre of the life of the comm!nity% It m!st ma&e s!re that the p!rity of the racial strain will be preserved% It m!st proclaim the tr!th that the child is the most val!able possession a people can have% It

m!st 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 s!ch cases it is a

high hono!r to refrain from doing so% !t, on the other hand, it m!st be considered as reprehensiblecond!ct to refrain from giving healthy children to the nation% In this matter the 'tate m!st assert itself as the

tr!stee of a millennial f!t!re, in face of which the egotistic desires of the individ!al co!nt for nothing and

will have to give way before the r!ling of the 'tate% In order to f!lfil this d!ty in a practical manner the

'tate will have to avail itself of modern medical discoveries% It m!st proclaim as !nfit for procreation allthose who are inflicted with some visible hereditary disease or are the carriers of it> and practical meas!res

m!st be adopted to have s!ch people rendered sterile% On the other hand, provision m!st be made for the

normally fertile woman so that she will not be restricted in child-bearing thro!gh the financial and

economic system operating in a political regime that loo&s !pon the blessing of having children as a c!rseto their parents% (he 'tate 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 s!preme protector of this

greatest blessing that a people can boast of% Its attention and care m!st be directed towards the child rather than the ad!lt%(hose who are physically and mentally !nhealthy and !nfit m!st not perpet!ate their own s!ffering in the

bodies of their children% From the ed!cational point of view there is here a h!ge tas& for the "eople#s 'tate

to accomplish% !t in a f!t!re era this wor& will appear greater and more significant than the victorio!s

wars of o!r present bo!rgeois epoch% (hro!gh ed!cational means the 'tate m!st teach individ!als thatillness is not a disgrace b!t an !nfort!nate accident which has to be pitied, yet that it is a crime and a

disgrace to ma&e this affliction all the worse by passing on disease and defects to innocent creat!res o!t of

mere egotism%And the 'tate m!st also teach the people that it is an e3pression of a really noble nat!re and that it is a



h!manitarian act worthy of admiration if a person who innocently s!ffers from hereditary disease refrains

from having a child of his own b!t gives his love and affection to some !n&nown child who, thro!gh its

health, promises to become a rob!st member of a healthy comm!nity% In accomplishing s!ch an ed!cational

tas& the 'tate integrates its f!nction by this activity in the moral sphere% It m!st act on this principle witho!t paying any attention to the +!estion of whether its cond!ct will be !nderstood or misconstr!ed, blamed or

praised%

If for a period of only << years those individ!als wo!ld be sterilied who are physically degenerate or

mentally diseased, h!manity wo!ld not only be delivered from an immense misfort!ne b!t also restored toa state of general health s!ch as we at present can hardly imagine% If the fec!ndity of the healthy portion of

the nation sho!ld be made a practical matter in a conscientio!s and methodical way, we sho!ld have at least

the beginnings of a race from which all those germs wo!ld be eliminated which are to-day the ca!se of o!r

moral and physical decadence% If a people and a 'tate ta&e this co!rse to develop that n!cle!s of the nationwhich is most val!able from the racial standpoint and th!s increase its fec!ndity, the people as a whole will

s!bse+!ently enoy that most precio!s of gifts which consists in a racial +!ality fashioned on tr!ly noble

lines%

(o achieve this the 'tate sho!ld first of all not leave the coloniation of newly ac+!ired territory to ahaphaard policy b!t sho!ld have it carried o!t !nder the g!idance of definite principles% 'pecially

competent committees o!ght to iss!e certificates to individ!als entitling them to engage in coloniation

wor&, and these certificates sho!ld g!arantee the racial p!rity of the individ!als in +!estion% In this way

frontier colonies co!ld grad!ally be fo!nded whose inhabitants wo!ld be of the p!rest racial stoc&, and

hence wo!ld possess the best +!alities of the race% '!ch colonies wo!ld be a val!able asset to the wholenation% (heir development wo!ld be a so!rce of oy and confidence and pride to each citien of the nation,

beca!se they wo!ld contain the p!re germ which wo!ld !ltimately bring abo!t a great development of the

nation and indeed of man&ind itself%(he Weltanschhauung which bases the 'tate on the racial idea m!st finally s!cceed in bringing abo!t a

nobler era, in which men will no longer pay e3cl!sive attention to breeding and rearing pedigree dogs and

horses and cats, b!t will endeavo!r to improve the breed of the h!man race itself% (hat will be an era of

silence and ren!nciation for one class of people, while the others will give their gifts and ma&e their sacrifices oyf!lly%

(hat s!ch a mentality may be possible cannot be denied in a world where h!ndreds and tho!sands accept

the principle of celibacy from their own choice, witho!t being obliged or pledged to do so by anything

e3cept an ecclesiastical precept% /hy sho!ld it not be possible to ind!ce people to ma&e this sacrifice if,instead of s!ch a precept, they were simply told that they o!ght to p!t an end to this tr!ly original sin of

racial corr!ption which is steadily being passed on from one generation to another% And, f!rther, they o!ghtto be bro!ght to realie that it is their bo!nden d!ty to give to the Almighty $reator beings s!ch as e

himself made to is own image% *at!rally, o!r wretched army of contemporary philistines will not !nderstand these things% (hey will

ridic!le them or shr!g their ro!nd sho!lders and groan o!t their everlasting e3c!ses0 HOf co!rse it is a fine

thing, b!t the pity is that it cannot be carried o!t%H And we reply0 H/ith yo! indeed it cannot be done, for

yo!r world is incapable of s!ch an idea% No! &now only one an3iety and that is for yo!r own personale3istence% No! have one 6od, and that is yo!r money% /e do not t!rn to yo!, however, for help, b!t to the

great army of those who are too poor to consider their personal e3istence as the highest good on earth% (hey

do not place their tr!st in money b!t in other gods, into whose hands they confide their lives% Above all we

t!rn to the vast army of o!r 6erman yo!th% (hey are coming to mat!rity in a great epoch, and they willfight against the evils which were d!e to the lainess and indifference of their fathers%H 7ither the 6erman

yo!th will one day create a new 'tate fo!nded on the racial idea or they will be the last witnesses of the

complete brea&down and death of the bo!rgeois world%For if a generation s!ffers from defects which it recognies and even admits and is nevertheless +!ite pleased with itself, as the bo!rgeois world is to-day, resorting to the cheap e3c!se that nothing can be done

to remedy the sit!ation, then s!ch a generation is doomed to disaster% A mar&ed characteristic of o!r

bo!rgeois world is that they no longer can deny the evil conditions that e3ist% (hey have to admit that there

is m!ch which is fo!l and wrong> b!t they are not able to ma&e !p their minds to fight against that evil,which wo!ld mean p!tting forth the energy to mobilie the forces of < or G< million people and th!s

oppose this menace% (hey do !st the opposite% /hen s!ch an effort is made elsewhere they only ind!lge in

silly comment and try from a safe distance to show that s!ch an enterprise is theoretically impossible anddoomed to fail!re% *o arg!ments are too st!pid to be employed in the service of their own pettifogging



ed!cation the 'tate even now interferes with the individ!al#s right of self-determination and insists !pon the

right of the comm!nity by s!bmitting the child to an obligatory system of training, witho!t paying attention

to the approval or disapproval of the parents% In a similar way and to a higher degree the new "eople#s 'tate

will one day ma&e its a!thority prevail over the ignorance and incomprehension of individ!als in problemsappertaining to the safety of the nation% It m!st organie its ed!cational wor& in s!ch a way that the bodies

of the yo!ng 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 'tate m!st see to it that a generation of stay-

at-homes is not developed%(he wor& of ed!cation and hygiene has to begin with the yo!ng mother% (he painsta&ing efforts carried on

for several decades have s!cceeded in abolishing septic infection at childbirth and red!cing p!erperal fever

to a relatively small n!mber of cases% And so it o!ght to be possible by means of instr!cting sisters and

mothers in an opport!ne way, to instit!te a system of training the child from early infancy onwards so thatthis may serve as an e3cellent basis for f!t!re development%

(he "eople#s 'tate o!ght to allow m!ch more time for physical training in the school% It is nonsense to

b!rden yo!ng brains with a load of material of which, as e3perience shows, they retain only a small part,

and mostly not the essentials, b!t only the secondary and !seless portion> beca!se the yo!ng mind isincapable of sifting the right &ind of learning o!t of all the st!ff that is p!mped into it% (o-day, even in the

c!rric!l!m of the high schools, only two short ho!rs in the wee& are reserved for gymnastics> and worse

still, it is left to the p!pils to decide whether or not they want to ta&e part% (his shows a grave disproportion

between this branch of ed!cation and p!rely intellect!al instr!ction% *ot a single day sho!ld be allowed to

pass in which the yo!ng p!pil does not have one ho!r of physical training in the morning and one in theevening> and every &ind of sport and gymnastics sho!ld be incl!ded% (here is one &ind of sport which

sho!ld be specially enco!raged, altho!gh many people who call themselves vRl&isch consider it br!tal and

v!lgar, and that is bo3ing% It is incredible how many false notions prevail among the c!ltivated# classes%(he fact that the yo!ng man learns how to fence and then spends his time in d!els is considered +!ite

nat!ral and respectable% !t bo3ing - that is br!tal% /hy5 (here is no other sport which e+!als this in

developing the militant spirit, none that demands s!ch a power of rapid decision or which gives the body

the fle3ibility of good steel% It is no more v!lgar when two yo!ng people settle their differences with their fists than with sharp-pointed pieces of steel% One who is attac&ed and defends himself with his fists s!rely

does not act less manly than one who r!ns off and yells for the assistance of a policeman% !t, above all, a

healthy yo!th has to learn to end!re hard &noc&s% (his principle may appear savage to o!r contemporary

champions who fight only with the weapons of the intellect% !t it is not the p!rpose of the "eople#s 'tateto ed!cate a colony of Ssthetic pacifists and physical degenerates% (his 'tate does not consider that the

h!man ideal is to be fo!nd in the hono!rable philistine or the maidenly spinster, b!t in a daref!l personification of manly force and in women capable of bringing men into the world%

6enerally spea&ing, the f!nction of sport is not only to ma&e the individ!al strong, alert and daring, b!talso to harden the body and train it to end!re an adverse environment%

If o!r s!perior class had not received s!ch a disting!ished ed!cation, and if, on the contrary, they had

learned bo3ing, it wo!ld never have been possible for b!llies and deserters and other s!ch canaille to carry

thro!gh a 6erman revol!tion% For the s!ccess of this revol!tion was not d!e to the co!rageo!s, energeticand a!dacio!s activities of its a!thors b!t to the lamentable cowardice and irresol!tion of those who r!led

the 6erman 'tate at that time and were responsible for it% !t o!r ed!cated leaders had received only an

intellect!al# training and th!s fo!nd themselves defenceless when their adversaries !sed iron bars instead

of intellect!al weapons% All this co!ld happen only beca!se o!r s!perior scholastic system did not train mento be real men b!t merely to be civil servants, engineers, technicians, chemists, litterate!rs, !rists and,

finally, professors> so that intellect!alism sho!ld not die o!t%

O!r leadership in the p!rely intellect!al sphere has always been brilliant, b!t as regards will-power in practical affairs o!r leadership has been beneath criticism%Of co!rse ed!cation cannot ma&e a co!rageo!s man o!t of one who is temperamentally a coward% !t a

man who nat!rally possesses a certain degree of co!rage will not be able to develop that +!ality if his

defective ed!cation has made him inferior to others from the very start as regards physical strength and

prowess% (he army offers the best e3ample of the fact that the &nowledge of one#s physical ability developsa man#s co!rage and militant spirit% O!tstanding heroes are not the r!le in the army, b!t the average

represents men of high co!rage% (he e3cellent schooling which the 6erman soldiers received before the

/ar imb!ed the members of the whole gigantic organism with a degree of confidence in their owns!periority s!ch as even o!r opponents never tho!ght possible% All the immortal e3amples of da!ntless



co!rage and daring which the 6erman armies gave d!ring the late s!mmer and a!t!mn of 1914, as they

advanced from tri!mph to tri!mph, were the res!lt of that ed!cation which had been p!rs!ed

systematically% ?!ring those long years of peace before the last /ar men who were almost physical

wea&lings were made capable of incredible deeds, and th!s a self-confidence was developed which did notfail even in the most terrible battles%

It is o!r 6erman people, which bro&e down and were delivered over to be &ic&ed by the rest of the world,

that had need of the power that comes by s!ggestion from self-confidence% !t this confidence in one#s self

m!st be instilled into o!r children from their very early years% (he whole system of ed!cation and trainingm!st be directed towards fostering in the child the conviction that he is !n+!estionably a match for any-

and everybody% (he individ!al has to regain his own physical strength and prowess in order to believe in

the invincibility of the nation to which he belongs% /hat has formerly led the 6erman armies to victory was

the s!m total of the confidence which each individ!al had in himself, and which all of them had in thosewho held the positions of command% /hat will restore the national strength of the 6erman people is the

conviction that they will be able to recon+!er their liberty% !t this conviction can only be the final prod!ct

of an e+!al feeling in the millions of individ!als% And here again we m!st have no ill!sions%

(he collapse of o!r people was overwhelming, and the efforts to p!t an end to so m!ch misery m!st also beoverwhelming% It wo!ld be a bitter and grave error to believe that o!r people co!ld be made strong again

simply by means of o!r present bo!rgeois training in good order and obedience% (hat will not s!ffice if we

are to brea& !p the present order of things, which now sanctions the ac&nowledgment of o!r defeat and cast

the bro&en chains of o!r slavery in the face of o!r opponents% Only by a s!perab!ndance of national energy

and a passionate thirst for liberty can we recover what has been lost%Also the manner of clothing the yo!ng sho!ld be s!ch as harmonies with this p!rpose% It is really

lamentable to see how o!r yo!ng people have fallen victims to a fashion mania which perverts the meaning

of the old adage that clothes ma&e the man%7specially in regard to yo!ng people clothes sho!ld ta&e their place in the service of ed!cation% (he boy

who wal&s abo!t in s!mmer-time wearing long baggy tro!sers and clad !p to the nec& is hampered even by

his clothes in feeling any inclination towards stren!o!s physical e3ercise% Ambition and, to spea& +!ite

fran&ly, even vanity m!st be appealed to% I do not mean s!ch vanity as leads people to want to wear fineclothes, which not everybody can afford, b!t rather the vanity which inclines a person towards developing a

fine bodily physi+!e% And this is something which everybody can help to do%

(his will come in !sef!l also for later years% (he yo!ng girl m!st become ac+!ainted with her sweetheart% If

the bea!ty of the body were not completely forced into the bac&gro!nd to-day thro!gh o!r st!pid manner of dressing, it wo!ld not be possible for tho!sands of o!r girls to be led astray by )ewish mongrels, with their

rep!lsive croo&ed waddle% It is also in the interests of the nation that those who have a bea!tif!l physi+!esho!ld be bro!ght into the foregro!nd, so that they might enco!rage the development of a bea!tif!l bodily

form among the people in general%ilitary training is e3cl!ded among !s to-day, and therewith the only instit!tion which in peace-times at

least partly made !p for the lac& of physical training in o!r ed!cation% (herefore what I have s!ggested is

all the more necessary in o!r time% (he s!ccess of o!r old military training not only showed itself in the

ed!cation of the individ!al b!t also in the infl!ence which it e3ercised over the m!t!al relationship between the se3es% (he yo!ng girl preferred the soldier to one who was not a soldier% (he "eople#s 'tate

m!st not confine its control of physical training to the official school period, b!t it m!st demand that, after

leaving school and while the adolescent body is still developing, the boy contin!es this training% For on

s!ch proper physical development s!ccess in after-life largely depends% It is st!pid to thin& that the right of the 'tate to s!pervise the ed!cation of its yo!ng citiens s!ddenly comes to an end the moment they leave

school and recommences only with military service% (his right is a d!ty, and as s!ch it m!st contin!e

!ninterr!ptedly% (he present 'tate, which does not interest itself in developing healthy men, has criminallyneglected this d!ty% It leaves o!r contemporary yo!th to be corr!pted on the streets and in the brothels,instead of &eeping hold of the reins and contin!ing the physical training of these yo!ths !p to the time

when they are grown into healthy yo!ng men and women%

For the present it is a matter of indifference what form the 'tate chooses for carrying on this training% (he

essential matter is that it sho!ld be developed and that the most s!itable ways of doing so sho!ld beinvestigated% (he "eople#s 'tate will have to consider the physical training of the yo!th after the school

period !st as m!ch a p!blic d!ty as their intellect!al training> and this training will have to be carried o!t

thro!gh p!blic instit!tions% Its general lines can be a preparation for s!bse+!ent service in the army% Andthen it will no longer be the tas& of the army to teach the yo!ng recr!it the most elementary drill



reg!lations% In fact the army will no longer have to deal with recr!its in the present sense of the word, b!t it

will rather have to transform into a soldier the yo!th whose bodily prowess has been already f!lly trained%

In the "eople#s 'tate the army will no longer be obliged to teach boys how to wal& and stand erect, b!t it

will be the final and s!preme school of patriotic ed!cation% In the army the yo!ng recr!it will learn the artof bearing arms, b!t at the same time he will be e+!ipped for his other d!ties in later life% And the s!preme

aim of military ed!cation m!st always be to achieve that which was attrib!ted to the old army as its highest

merit0 namely, that thro!gh his military schooling the boy m!st be transformed into a man, that he m!st not

only learn to obey b!t also ac+!ire the f!ndamentals that will enable him one day to command% e m!stlearn to remain silent not only when he is rightly reb!&ed b!t also when he is wrongly reb!&ed%

F!rthermore, on the self-conscio!sness of his own strength and on the basis of that esprit de corps which

inspires him and his comrades, he m!st 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% (he one will behis diploma as a citien of the 'tate, a !ridical doc!ment which will enable him to ta&e part in p!blic

affairs% (he second will be an attestation of his physical health, which g!arantees his fitness for marriage%

(he "eople#s 'tate will have to direct the ed!cation of girls !st as that of boys and according to the same

f!ndamental principles% ere again special importance m!st be given to physical training, and only after that m!st the importance of spirit!al and mental training be ta&en into acco!nt% In the ed!cation of the girl

the final goal always to be &ept in mind is that she is one day to be a mother%

It is only in the second place that the "eople#s 'tate m!st b!sy itself with the training of character, !sing all

the means adapted to that p!rpose%

Of co!rse the essential traits of the individ!al character are already there f!ndamentally before anyed!cation ta&es place% A person who is f!ndamentally egoistic will always remain f!ndamentally egoistic,

and the idealist will always remain f!ndamentally an idealist% esides those, however, who already possess

a definite stamp of character there are millions of people with characters that are indefinite and vag!e% (he born delin+!ent will always remain a delin+!ent, b!t n!mero!s people who show only a certain tendency to

commit criminal acts may become !sef!l members of the comm!nity if rightly trained> whereas, on the

other hand, wea& and !nstable characters may easily become evil elements if the system of ed!cation has

been bad%?!ring the /ar it was often lamented that o!r people co!ld be so little reticent% (his failing made it very

diffic!lt to &eep even highly important secrets from the &nowledge of the enemy% !t let !s as& this

+!estion0 /hat did the 6erman ed!cational system do in pre-/ar times to teach the 6ermans to be

discreet5 ?id it not very often happen in schooldays that the little tell-tale was preferred to his companionswho &ept their mo!ths sh!t5 Is it not tr!e that then, as well as now, complaining abo!t others was

considered praiseworthy cando!r#, while silent discretion was ta&en as obstinacy5 as any attempt ever been made to teach that discretion is a precio!s and manly virt!e5 *o, for s!ch matters are trifles in the

eyes of o!r ed!cators% !t these trifles cost o!r 'tate inn!merable millions in legal e3penses> for 9< per cent of all the processes for defamation and s!ch li&e charges arise only from a lac& of discretion% 8emar&s

that are made witho!t any sense of responsibility are tho!ghtlessly repeated from mo!th to mo!th> and o!r

economic welfare is contin!ally damaged beca!se important methods of prod!ction are th!s disclosed%

'ecret preparations for o!r national defence are rendered ill!sory beca!se o!r people have never learnedthe d!ty of silence% (hey repeat everything they happen to hear% In times of war s!ch tal&ative habits may

even ca!se the loss of battles and therefore may contrib!te essentially to the !ns!ccessf!l o!tcome of a

campaign% ere, as in other matters, we may rest ass!red that ad!lts cannot do what they have not learnt to

do in yo!th% A teacher m!st not try to discover the wild tric&s of the boys by enco!raging the evil practiceof tale-bearing% No!ng people form a sort of 'tate among themselves and face ad!lts with a certain

solidarity% (hat is +!ite nat!ral% (he ties which !nite the ten-year boys to one another are stronger and more

nat!ral than their relationship to ad!lts% A boy who tells on his comrades commits an act of treason andshows a bent of character which is, to spea& bl!ntly, similar to that of a man who commits high treason%'!ch a boy m!st not be classed as good#, reliable#, and so on, b!t rather as one with !ndesirable traits of

character% It may be rather convenient for the teacher to ma&e !se of s!ch !nworthy tendencies in order to

help his own wor&, b!t by s!ch an attit!de the germ of a moral habit is sown in yo!ng hearts and may one

day show fatal conse+!ences% It has happened more often than once that a yo!ng informer developed into a big sco!ndrel%

(his is only one e3ample among many% (he deliberate training of fine and noble traits of character in o!r

schools to-day is almost negative% In the f!t!re m!ch more emphasis will have to be laid on this side of o!r ed!cational wor&% Loyalty, self-sacrifice and discretion are virt!es which a great nation m!st possess% And



the teaching and development of these in the school is a more important matter than many others things

now incl!ded in the c!rric!l!m% (o ma&e the children give !p habits of complaining and whining and

howling when they are h!rt, etc%, also belongs to this part of their training% If the ed!cational system fails to

teach the child at an early age to end!re pain and in!ry witho!t complaining we cannot be s!rprised if at alater age, when the boy has grown to be the man and is, for e3ample, in the trenches, the postal service is

!sed for nothing else than to send home letters of weeping and complaint% If o!r yo!ths, d!ring their years

in the primary schools, had had their minds crammed with a little less &nowledge, and if instead they had

been better ta!ght how to be masters of themselves, it wo!ld have served !s well d!ring the years 1914-191;%

In its ed!cational system the "eople#s 'tate will have to attach the highest importance to the development

of character, hand-in-hand with physical training% any more defects which o!r national organism shows at

present co!ld be at least ameliorated, if not completely eliminated, by ed!cation of the right &ind%73treme importance sho!ld be attached to the training of will-power and the habit of ma&ing firm

decisions, also the habit of being always ready to accept responsibilities%

In the training of o!r old army the principle was in vog!e that any order is always better than no order%

Applied to o!r yo!th this principle o!ght to ta&e the form that any answer is better than no answer% (he fear of replying, beca!se one fears to be wrong, o!ght to be considered more h!miliating than giving the wrong

reply% On this simple and primitive basis o!r yo!th sho!ld be trained to have the co!rage to act%

It has been often lamented that in *ovember and ?ecember 191; all the a!thorities lost their heads and

that, from the monarch down to the last divisional commander, nobody had s!fficient mettle to ma&e a

decision on his own responsibility% (hat terrible fact constit!tes a grave reb!&e to o!r ed!cational system> beca!se what was then revealed on a colossal scale at that moment of catastrophe was only what happens

on a smaller scale everywhere among !s% It is the lac& of will-power, and not the lac& of arms, which

renders !s incapable of offering any serio!s resistance to-day% (his defect is fo!nd everywhere among o!r people and prevents decisive action wherever ris&s have to be ta&en, as if any great action can be ta&en

witho!t also ta&ing the ris&% !ite !ns!spectingly, a 6erman 6eneral fo!nd a form!la for this lamentable

lac& of the will-to-act when he said0 HI act only when I can co!nt on a =1 per cent probability of s!ccess%H

In that =1 per cent probability# we find the very root of the 6erman collapse% (he man who demands fromFate a g!arantee of his s!ccess deliberately denies the significance of an heroic act% For this significance

consists in the very fact that, in the definite &nowledge that the sit!ation in +!estion is fra!ght with mortal

danger, an action is !nderta&en which may lead to s!ccess% A patient s!ffering from cancer and who &nows

that his death is certain if he does not !ndergo an operation, needs no =1 per cent probability of a c!re before facing the operation% And if the operation promises only half of one per cent probability of s!ccess a

man of co!rage will ris& it and wo!ld not whine if it t!rned o!t !ns!ccessf!l%All in all, the cowardly lac& of will-power and the incapacity for ma&ing decisions are chiefly res!lts of the

erroneo!s ed!cation given !s in o!r yo!th% (he disastro!s effects of this are now widespread among !s% (hecrowning e3amples of that tragic chain of conse+!ences are shown in the lac& of civil co!rage which o!r

leading statesmen display%

(he cowardice which leads nowadays to the shir&ing of every &ind of responsibility springs from the same

roots% ere again it is the fa!lt of the ed!cation given o!r yo!ng people% (his drawbac& permeates allsections of p!blic life and finds its immortal cons!mmation in the instit!tions of government that f!nction

!nder the parliamentary regime%

Already in the school, !nfort!nately, more val!e is placed on confession and f!ll repentance# and contrite

reno!ncement#, on the part of little sinners, than on a simple and fran& avowal% !t this latter seems to-day,in the eyes of many an ed!cator, to savo!r of a spirit of !tter incorrigibility and depravation% And, tho!gh it

may seem incredible, many a boy is told that the gallows tree is waiting for him beca!se he has shown

certain traits which might be of inestimable val!e in the nation as a whole%)!st as the "eople#s 'tate m!st one day give its attention to training the will-power and capacity for decision among the yo!th, so too it m!st inc!lcate in the hearts of the yo!ng generation from early

childhood onwards a readiness to accept responsibilities, and the co!rage of open and fran& avowal% If it

recognies the f!ll significance of this necessity, finally - after a cent!ry of ed!cative wor& - it will s!cceed

in b!ilding !p a nation which will no longer be s!bect to those defeats that have contrib!ted sodisastro!sly to bring abo!t o!r present overthrow%

(he formal imparting of &nowledge, which constit!tes the chief wor& of o!r ed!cational system to-day, will

be ta&en over by the "eople#s 'tate with only few modifications% (hese modifications m!st be made inthree branches%



First of all, the brains of the yo!ng people m!st not generally be b!rdened with s!bects of which ninety-

five per cent are !seless to them and are therefore forgotten again% (he c!rric!l!m of the primary and

secondary schools presents an odd mi3t!re at the present time% In many branches of st!dy the s!bect

matter to be learned has become so enormo!s 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 &nowledge can be !sed% On the other hand,

what is learned is ins!fficient for anybody who wishes to specialie in any certain branch for the p!rpose of

earning his daily bread% (a&e, for e3ample, the average civil servant who has passed thro!gh the

6ymnasi!m or igh 'chool, and as& him at the age of thirty or forty how m!ch he has retained of the&nowledge that was crammed into him with so m!ch pains%

ow m!ch is retained from all that was st!ffed into his brain5 e will certainly answer0 H/ell, if a mass of

st!ff was then ta!ght, it was not for the sole p!rpose of s!pplying the st!dent with a great stoc& of

&nowledge from which he co!ld draw in later years, b!t it served to develop the !nderstanding, thememory, and above all it helped to strengthen the thin&ing powers of the brain%H (hat is partly tr!e% And yet

it is somewhat dangero!s to s!bmerge a yo!ng brain in a flood of impressions which it can hardly master

and the single elements of which it cannot discern or appreciate at their !st val!e% It is mostly the essential

part of this &nowledge, and not the accidental, that is forgotten and sacrificed% (h!s the principal p!rpose of this copio!s instr!ction is fr!strated, for that p!rpose cannot be to ma&e the brain capable of learning by

simply offering it an enormo!s and varied amo!nt of s!bects for ac+!isition, b!t rather to f!rnish the

individ!al with that stoc& of &nowledge which he will need in later life and which he can !se for the good

of the comm!nity% (his aim, however, is rendered ill!sory if, beca!se of the s!perab!ndance of s!bects

that have been crammed into his head in childhood, a person is able to remember nothing, or at least not theessential portion, of all this in later life% (here is no reason why millions of people sho!ld learn two or three

lang!ages d!ring the school years, when only a very small fraction will have the opport!nity to !se these

lang!ages in later life and when most of them will therefore forget those lang!ages completely% (o ta&e aninstance0 O!t of 1<<,<<< st!dents who learn French there are probably not 2,<<< who will be in a position

to ma&e !se of this accomplishment in later life, while 9;,<<< will never have a chance to !tilie in practice

what they have learned in yo!th% (hey have spent tho!sands of ho!rs on a s!bect which will afterwards be

witho!t any val!e or importance to them% (he arg!ment that these matters form part of the general processof ed!cating the mind is invalid% It wo!ld be so!nd if all these people were able to !se this learning in after

life% !t, as the sit!ation stands, 9;,<<< are tort!red to no p!rpose and waste their val!able time, only for

the sa&e of the 2,<<< to whom the lang!age will be of any !se%

In the case of that lang!age which I have chosen as an e3ample it cannot be said that the learning of ited!cates the st!dent in logical thin&ing or sharpens his mental ac!men, as the learning of Latin, for

instance, might be said to do% It wo!ld therefore be m!ch better to teach yo!ng st!dents only the generalo!tline, or, better, the inner str!ct!re of s!ch a lang!age0 that is to say, to allow them to discern the

characteristic feat!res of the lang!age, or perhaps to ma&e them ac+!ainted with the r!diments of itsgrammar, its pron!nciation, its synta3, style, etc% (hat wo!ld be s!fficient for average st!dents, beca!se it

wo!ld provide a clearer view of the whole and co!ld be more easily remembered% And it wo!ld be more

practical than the present-day attempt to cram into their heads a detailed &nowledge of the whole lang!age,

which they can never master and which they will readily forget% If this method were adopted, then wesho!ld avoid the danger that, o!t of the s!perab!ndance of matter ta!ght, only some fragments will remain

in the memory> for the yo!th wo!ld then have to learn what is worth while, and the selection between the

!sef!l and the !seless wo!ld th!s have been made beforehand%

As regards the maority of st!dents the &nowledge and !nderstanding of the r!diments of a lang!age wo!ld be +!ite s!fficient for the rest of their lives% And those who really do need this lang!age s!bse+!ently

wo!ld th!s have a fo!ndation on which to start, sho!ld they choose to ma&e a more thoro!gh st!dy of it%

y adopting s!ch a c!rric!l!m the necessary amo!nt of time wo!ld be gained for physical e3ercises as wellas for a more intense training in the vario!s ed!cational fields that have already been mentioned%A reform of partic!lar importance is that which o!ght to ta&e place in the present methods of teaching

history% 'carcely any other people are made to st!dy as m!ch of history as the 6ermans, and scarcely any

other people ma&e s!ch a bad !se of their historical &nowledge% If politics means history in the ma&ing,

then o!r way of teaching history stands condemned by the way we have cond!cted o!r politics% !t therewo!ld be no point in bewailing the lamentable res!lts of o!r political cond!ct !nless one is now determined

to give o!r people a better political ed!cation% In 99 o!t of 1<< cases the res!lts of o!r present teaching of

history are deplorable% Ms!ally only a few dates, years of birth and names, remain in the memory, while a&nowledge of the main and clearly defined lines of historical development is completely lac&ing% (he



essential feat!res which are of real significance are not ta!ght% It is left to the more or less bright

intelligence of the individ!al to discover the inner motivating !rge amid the mass of dates and

chronological s!ccession of events%

No! may obect as strongly as yo! li&e to this !npleasant statement% !t read with attention the speecheswhich o!r parliamentarians ma&e d!ring one session alone on political problems and on +!estions of

foreign policy in partic!lar% 8emember that those gentlemen are, or claim to be, the elite of the 6erman

nation and that at least a great n!mber of them have sat on the benches of o!r secondary schools and that

many of them have passed thro!gh o!r !niversities% (hen yo! will realie how defective the historicaled!cation of these people has been% If these gentlemen had never st!died history at all b!t had possessed a

so!nd instinct for p!blic affairs, things wo!ld have gone better, and the nation wo!ld have benefited greatly

thereby%

(he s!bect matter of o!r historical teaching m!st be c!rtailed% (he chief val!e of that teaching is to ma&ethe principal lines of historical development !nderstood% (he more o!r historical teaching is limited to this

tas&, the more we may hope that it will t!rn o!t s!bse+!ently to be of advantage to the individ!al and,

thro!gh the individ!al, to the comm!nity as a whole% For history m!st not be st!died merely with a view to

&nowing what happened in the past b!t as a g!ide for the f!t!re, and to teach !s what policy wo!ld be the best to follow for the preservation of o!r own people% (hat is the real end> and the teaching of history is

only a means to attain this end% !t here again the means has s!perseded the end in o!r contemporary

ed!cation% (he goal is completely forgotten% ?o not reply that a profo!nd st!dy of history demands a

detailed &nowledge of all these dates beca!se otherwise we co!ld not fi3 the great lines of development%

(hat tas& belongs to the professional historians% !t the average man is not a professor of history% For himhistory has only one mission and that is to provide him with s!ch an amo!nt of historical &nowledge as is

necessary in order to enable him to form an independent opinion on the political affairs of his own co!ntry%

(he man who wants to become a professor of history can devote himself to all the details later on% *at!rally he will have to occ!py himself even with the smallest details% Of co!rse o!r present teaching of

history is not ade+!ate to all this% Its scope is too vast for the average st!dent and too limited for the st!dent

who wishes to be an historical e3pert%

Finally, it is the b!siness of the "eople#s 'tate to arrange for the writing of a world history in which the race problem will occ!py a dominant position%

(o s!m !p0 (he "eople#s 'tate m!st reconstr!ct o!r system of general instr!ction in s!ch a way that it will

embrace only what is essential% eyond this it will have to ma&e provision for a more advanced teaching in

the vario!s s!bects for those who want to specialie in them% It will s!ffice for the average individ!al to beac+!ainted with the f!ndamentals of the vario!s s!bects to serve as the basis of what may be called an all-

ro!nd ed!cation% e o!ght to st!dy e3ha!stively and in detail only that s!bect in which he intends to wor& d!ring the rest of his life% A general instr!ction in all s!bects sho!ld be obligatory, and specialiation

sho!ld be left to the choice of the individ!al%In this way the scholastic programme wo!ld be shortened, and th!s several school ho!rs wo!ld be gained

which co!ld be !tilied for physical training and character training, in will-power, the capacity for ma&ing

practical !dgments, decisions, etc%

(he little acco!nt ta&en by o!r school training to-day, especially in the secondary schools, of the callingsthat have to be followed in after life is demonstrated by the fact that men who are destined for the same

calling in life are ed!cated in three different &inds of schools% /hat is of decisive importance is general

ed!cation only and not the special teaching% /hen special &nowledge is needed it cannot be given in the

c!rric!l!m of o!r secondary schools as they stand to-day%(herefore the "eople#s 'tate will one day have to abolish s!ch half-meas!res%

(he second modification in the c!rric!l!m which the "eople#s 'tate will have to ma&e is the following0

It is a characteristic of o!r materialistic epoch that o!r scientific ed!cation shows a growing emphasis onwhat is real and practical0 s!ch s!bects, for instance, as applied mathematics, physics, chemistry, etc% Of co!rse they are necessary in an age that is dominated by ind!strial technology and chemistry, and where

everyday life shows at least the e3ternal manifestations of these% !t it is a perilo!s thing to base the

general c!lt!re of a nation on the &nowledge of these s!bects% On the contrary, that general c!lt!re o!ght

always to be directed towards ideals% It o!ght to be fo!nded on the h!manist disciplines and sho!ld aim atgiving only the gro!nd wor& of f!rther specialied instr!ction in the vario!s practical sciences% Otherwise

we sho!ld sacrifice those forces that are more important for the preservation of the nation than any

technical &nowledge% In the historical department the st!dy of ancient history sho!ld not be omitted%8oman history, along general lines, is and will remain the best teacher, not only for o!r own time b!t also



for the f!t!re% And the ideal of ellenic c!lt!re sho!ld be preserved for !s in all its marvello!s bea!ty% (he

differences between the vario!s peoples sho!ld not prevent !s from recogniing the comm!nity of race

which !nites them on a higher plane% (he conflict of o!r times is one that is being waged aro!nd great

obectives% A civiliation is fighting for its e3istence% It is a civiliation that is the prod!ct of tho!sands of years of historical development, and the 6ree& as well as the 6erman forms part of it%

A clear-c!t division m!st be made between general c!lt!re and the special branches% (o-day the latter

threaten more and more to devote themselves e3cl!sively to the service of ammon% (o co!nterbalance

this tendency, general c!lt!re sho!ld be preserved, at least in its ideal forms% (he principle sho!ld berepeatedly emphasied, that ind!strial and technical progress, trade and commerce, can flo!rish only so

long as a fol& comm!nity e3ists whose general system of tho!ght is inspired by ideals, since that is the

preliminary condition for a flo!rishing development of the enterprises I have spo&en of% (hat condition is

not created by a spirit of materialist egotism b!t by a spirit of self-denial and the oy of giving one#s self inthe service of others%

(he system of ed!cation which prevails to-day sees its principal obect in p!mping into yo!ng people that

&nowledge which will help them to ma&e their way in life% (his principle is e3pressed in the following

terms0 H(he yo!ng man m!st one day become a !sef!l member of h!man society%H y that phrase theymean the ability to gain an honest daily livelihood% (he s!perficial training in the d!ties of good

citienship, which he ac+!ires merely as an accidental thing, has very wea& fo!ndations% For in itself the

'tate represents only a form, and therefore it is diffic!lt to train people to loo& !pon this form as the ideal

which they will have to serve and towards which they m!st feel responsible% A form can be too easily

bro&en% !t, as we have seen, the idea which people have of the 'tate to-day does not represent anythingclearly defined% (herefore, there is nothing b!t the !s!al stereotyped patriotic# training% In the old 6ermany

the greatest emphasis was placed on the divine right of the small and even the smallest potentates% (he way

in which this divine right was form!lated and presented was never very clever and often very st!pid%eca!se of the large n!mbers of those small potentates, it was impossible to give ade+!ate biographical

acco!nts of the really great personalities that shed their l!stre on the history of the 6erman people% (he

res!lt was that the broad masses received a very inade+!ate &nowledge of 6erman history% ere, too, the

great lines of development were missing%It is evident that in s!ch a way no real national enth!siasm co!ld be aro!sed% O!r ed!cational system

proved incapable of selecting from the general mass of o!r historical personages the names of a few

personalities which the 6erman people co!ld be pro!d to loo& !pon as their own% (h!s the whole nation

might have been !nited by the ties of a common &nowledge of this common heritage% (he really importantfig!res in 6erman history were not presented to the present generation% (he attention of the whole nation

was not concentrated on them for the p!rpose of awa&ening a common national spirit% From the vario!ss!bects that were ta!ght, those who had charge of o!r training seemed incapable of selecting what

redo!nded most to the national hono!r and lifting that above the common obective level, in order toinflame the national pride in the light of s!ch brilliant e3amples% At that time s!ch a co!rse wo!ld have

been loo&ed !pon as ran& cha!vinism, which did not then have a very pleasant savo!r% "ettifogging

dynastic patriotism was more acceptable and more easily tolerated than the glowing fire of a s!preme

national pride% (he former co!ld be always pressed into service, whereas the latter might one day become adominating force% onarchist patriotism terminated in Associations of :eterans, whereas passionate

national patriotism might have opened a road which wo!ld be diffic!lt to determine% (his national passion

is li&e a highly tempered thoro!ghbred who is discriminate abo!t the sort of rider he will tolerate in the

saddle% *o wonder that most people preferred to shir& s!ch a danger% *obody seemed to thin& it possiblethat one day a war might come which wo!ld p!t the mettle of this &ind of patriotism to the test, in artillery

bombardment and waves of attac&s with poison gas% !t when it did come o!r lac& of this patriotic passion

was avenged in a terrible way% *one were very enth!siastic abo!t dying for their imperial and royalsovereigns> while on the other hand the *ation# was not recognied by the greater n!mber of the soldiers%'ince the revol!tion bro&e o!t in 6ermany and the monarchist patriotism was therefore e3ting!ished, the

p!rpose of teaching history was nothing more than to add to the stoc& of obective &nowledge% (he present

'tate has no !se for patriotic enth!siasm> b!t it will never obtain what it really desires% For if dynastic

patriotism failed to prod!ce a s!preme power of resistance at a time when the principle of nationalismdominated, it will be still less possible to aro!se rep!blican enth!siasm% (here can be no do!bt that the

6erman people wo!ld not have stood on the field of battle for fo!r and a half years to fight !nder the battle

slogan For the 8ep!blic,# and least of all those who created this grand instit!tion%In reality this 8ep!blic has been allowed to e3ist !ndist!rbed only by grace of its readiness and its promise



to all and s!ndry, to pay trib!te and reparations to the stranger and to p!t its signat!re to any &ind of

territorial ren!nciation% (he rest of the world finds it sympathetic, !st as a wea&ling is always more

pleasing to those who want to bend him to their own !ses than is a man who is made of harder metal% !t

the fact that the enemy li&es this form of government is the worst &ind of condemnation% (hey love the6erman 8ep!blic and tolerate its e3istence beca!se no better instr!ment co!ld be fo!nd which wo!ld help

them to &eep o!r people in slavery% It is to this fact alone that this magnanimo!s instit!tion owes its

s!rvival% And that is why it can reno!nce any real system of national ed!cation and can feel satisfied when

the heroes of the 8eich banner sho!t their h!rrahs, b!t in reality these same heroes wo!ld scamper awayli&e rabbits if called !pon to defend that banner with their blood%

(he "eople#s 'tate will have to fight for its e3istence% It will not gain or sec!re this e3istence by signing

doc!ments li&e that of the ?awes "lan% !t for its e3istence and defence it will need precisely those things

which o!r present system believes can be rep!diated% (he more worthy its form and its inner national being% the greater will be the envy and opposition of its adversaries% (he best defence will not be in the

arms it possesses b!t in its citiens% astions of fortresses will not save it, b!t the living wall of its men and

women, filled with an ardent love for their co!ntry and a passionate spirit of national patriotism%

(herefore the third point which will have to be considered in relation to o!r ed!cational system is thefollowing0

(he "eople#s 'tate m!st realie that the sciences may also be made a means of promoting a spirit of pride

in the nation% *ot only the history of the world b!t the history of civiliation as a whole m!st be ta!ght in

the light of this principle% An inventor m!st appear great not only as an inventor b!t also, and even more so,

as a member of the nation% (he admiration aro!sed by the contemplation of a great achievement m!st betransformed into a feeling of pride and satisfaction that a man of one#s own race has been chosen to

accomplish it% !t o!t of the ab!ndance of great names in 6erman history the greatest will have to be

selected and presented to o!r yo!ng generation in s!ch a way as to become solid pillars of strength tos!pport the national spirit%

(he s!bect matter o!ght to be systematically organied from the standpoint of this principle% And the

teaching sho!ld 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 &ind, b!t a whole-hearted 6erman% 'o that this national feeling besincere from the very beginning, and not a mere pretence, the following f!ndamental and infle3ible

principle sho!ld be impressed on the yo!ng brain while it is yet malleable0 (he man who loves his nation

can prove the sincerity of this sentiment only by being ready to ma&e sacrifices for the nation#s welfare%

(here is no s!ch thing as a national sentiment which is directed towards personal interests% And there is nos!ch thing as a nationalism that embraces only certain classes% !rrahing proves nothing and does not

confer the right to call oneself national if behind that sho!t there is no sincere preocc!pation for theconservation of the nation#s well-being% One can be pro!d of one#s people only if there is no class left of

which one need to be ashamed% /hen one half of a nation is s!n& in misery and worn o!t by hard distress,or even depraved or degenerate, that nation presents s!ch an !nattractive pict!re that nobody can feel pro!d

to belong to it% It is only when a nation is so!nd in all its members, physically and morally, that the oy of

belonging to it can properly be intensified to the s!preme feeling which we call national pride% !t this

pride, in its highest form, can be felt only by those who &now the greatness of their nation%(he spirit of nationalism and a feeling for social !stice m!st be f!sed into one sentiment in the hearts of

the yo!th% (hen a day will come when a nation of citiens will arise which will be welded together thro!gh

a common love and a common pride that shall be invincible and indestr!ctible for ever%

(he dread of cha!vinism, which is a symptom of o!r time, is a sign of its impotence% 'ince o!r epoch notonly lac&s everything in the nat!re of e3!berant energy b!t even finds s!ch a manifestation disagreeable,

fate will never elect it for the accomplishment of any great deeds% For the greatest changes that have ta&en

place on this earth wo!ld have been inconceivable if they had not been inspired by ardent and evenhysterical passions, b!t only by the bo!rgeois virt!es of peacef!lness and order%One thing is certain0 o!r world is facing a great revol!tion% (he only +!estion is whether the o!tcome will

be propitio!s for the Aryan portion of man&ind or whether the everlasting )ew will profit by it%

y ed!cating the yo!ng generation along the right lines, the "eople#s 'tate will have to see to it that a

generation of man&ind is formed which will be ade+!ate to this s!preme combat that will decide thedestinies of the world%

(hat nation will con+!er which will be the first to ta&e this road%

(he whole organiation of ed!cation and training which the "eople#s 'tate is to b!ild !p m!st ta&e as itscrowning tas& the wor& of instilling into the hearts and brains of the yo!th entr!sted to it the racial instinct



ed!cational techni+!e, the more c!nning )ew sees in this fact a new proof to be !tilied for the theory with

which he wants to infect the p!blic, namely that all men are e+!al% It does not dawn on the m!r&y bo!rgeois

mind that the fact which is p!blished 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 !ntil the pretence can be made that he has beent!rned into a lawyer> while, on the other hand, millions who belong to the most civilied races have to

remain in positions which are !nworthy of their c!lt!ral level% (he bo!rgeois mind does not realie that it is

a sin against the will of the eternal $reator to allow h!ndreds of tho!sands of highly gifted people to remain

flo!ndering in the swamp of proletarian misery while ottentots and K!l!s are drilled to fill positions in theintellect!al professions% For here we have the prod!ct only of a drilling techni+!e, !st as in the case of the

performing dog% If the same amo!nt of care and effort were applied among intelligent races each individ!al

wo!ld become a tho!sand times more capable in s!ch matters%

(his state of affairs wo!ld become intolerable if a day sho!ld arrive when it no longer refers to e3ceptionalcases% !t the sit!ation is already intolerable where talent and nat!ral gifts are not ta&en as decisive factors

in +!alifying for the right to a higher ed!cation% It is indeed intolerable to thin& that year after year

h!ndreds of tho!sands of yo!ng people witho!t a single vestige of talent are deemed worthy of a higher

ed!cation, while other h!ndreds of tho!sands who possess high nat!ral gifts have to go witho!t any sort of higher schooling at all% (he practical loss th!s ca!sed to the nation is incalc!lable% If the n!mber of

important discoveries which have been made in America has grown considerably in recent years one of the

reasons is that the n!mber of gifted persons belonging to the lowest social classes who were given a higher

ed!cation in that co!ntry is proportionately m!ch larger than in 7!rope%

A stoc& of &nowledge pac&ed into the brain will not s!ffice for the ma&ing of discoveries% /hat co!nts hereis only that &nowledge which is ill!minated by nat!ral talent% !t with !s at the present time no val!e is

placed on s!ch gifts% Only good school reports co!nt%

ere is another ed!cative wor& that is waiting for the "eople#s 'tate to do% It will not be its tas& to ass!re adominant infl!ence to a certain social class already e3isting, b!t it will be its d!ty to attract the most

competent brains in the total mass of the nation and promote them to place and hono!r% It is not merely the

d!ty of the 'tate to give to the average child a certain definite ed!cation in the primary school, b!t it is also

its d!ty to open the road to talent in the proper direction% And above all, it m!st open the doors of the higher schools !nder the 'tate to talent of every sort, no matter in what social class it may appear% (his is an

imperative necessity> for th!s alone will it be possible to develop a talented body of p!blic leaders from the

class which represents learning that in itself is only a dead mass%

(here is still another reason why the 'tate sho!ld provide for this sit!ation% O!r intellect!al class, partic!larly in 6ermany, is so sh!t !p in itself and fossilied that it lac&s living contact with the classes

beneath it% (wo evil conse+!ences res!lt from this0 First, the intellect!al class neither !nderstands nor sympathies with the broad masses% It has been so long c!t off from all connection with them that it cannot

now have the necessary psychological ties that wo!ld enable it to !nderstand them% It has become estrangedfrom the people% 'econdly, the intellect!al class lac&s the necessary will-power> for this fac!lty is always

wea&er in c!ltivated circles, which live in secl!sion, than among the primitive masses of the people% 6od

&nows we 6ermans have never been lac&ing in ab!ndant scientific c!lt!re, b!t we have always had a

considerable lac& of will-power and the capacity for ma&ing decisions% For e3ample, the more intellect!al#o!r statesmen have been the more lac&ing they have been, for the most part, in practical achievement% O!r

political preparation and o!r technical e+!ipment for the world war were defective, certainly not beca!se

the brains governing the nation were too little ed!cated, b!t beca!se the men who directed o!r p!blic

affairs were over-ed!cated, filled to over-flowing with &nowledge and intelligence, yet witho!t any so!ndinstinct and simply witho!t energy, or any spirit of daring% It was o!r nation#s tragedy to have to fight for its

e3istence !nder a $hancellor who was a dillydallying philosopher% If instead of a ethmann von ollweg

we had had a ro!gh man of the people as o!r leader the heroic blood of the common grenadier wo!ld nothave been shed in vain% (he e3aggeratedly intellect!al material o!t of which o!r leaders were made provedto be the best ally of the sco!ndrels who carried o!t the *ovember revol!tion% (hese intellect!als

safeg!arded the national wealth in a miserly fashion, instead of la!nching it forth and ris&ing it, and th!s

they set the conditions on which the others won s!ccess%

ere the $atholic $h!rch presents an instr!ctive e3ample% $lerical celibacy forces the $h!rch to recr!it its priests not from their own ran&s b!t progressively from the masses of the people% Net there are not many

who recognie the significance of celibacy in this relation% !t therein lies the ca!se of the ine3ha!stible

vigo!r which characteries that ancient instit!tion% For by th!s !nceasingly recr!iting the ecclesiasticaldignitaries from the lower classes of the people, the $h!rch is enabled not only to maintain the contact of



instinctive !nderstanding with the masses of the pop!lation b!t also to ass!re itself of always being able to

draw !pon that f!nd of energy which is present in this form only among the pop!lar masses% ence the

s!rprising yo!thf!lness of that gigantic organism, its mental fle3ibility and its iron will-power%

It will be the tas& of the "eoples# 'tate so to organie and administer its ed!cational system that the e3istingintellect!al class will be constantly f!rnished with a s!pply of fresh blood from beneath% From the b!l& of

the nation the 'tate m!st sift o!t with caref!l scr!tiny those persons who are endowed with nat!ral talents

and see that they are employed in the service of the comm!nity% For neither the 'tate itself nor the vario!s

departments of 'tate e3ist to f!rnish reven!es for members of a special class, b!t to f!lfil the tas&s allottedto them% (his will be possible, however, only if the 'tate trains individ!als specially for these offices% '!ch

individ!als m!st have the necessary f!ndamental capabilities and will-power% (he principle does not hold

tr!e only in regard to the civil service b!t also in regard to all those who are to ta&e part in the intellect!al

and moral leadership of the people, no matter in what sphere they may be employed% (he greatness of a people is partly dependent on the condition that it m!st s!cceed in training the best brains for those

branches of the p!blic service for which they show a special nat!ral aptit!de and in placing them in the

offices where they can do their best wor& for the good of the comm!nity% If two nations of e+!al strength

and +!ality engage in a m!t!al conflict that nation will come o!t victorio!s which has entr!sted itsintellect!al and moral leadership to its best talents and that nation will go !nder whose government

represents only a common food tro!gh for privileged gro!ps or classes and where the inner talents of its

individ!al members are not availed of%

Of co!rse s!ch a reform seems impossible in the world as it is to-day% (he obection will at once be raised,

that it is too m!ch to e3pect from the favo!rite son of a highly-placed civil servant, for instance, that heshall wor& with his hands simply beca!se somebody else whose parents belong to the wor&ing-class seems

more capable for a ob in the civil service% (hat arg!ment may be valid as long as man!al wor& is loo&ed

!pon in the same way as it is loo&ed !pon to-day% ence the "eoples# 'tate will have to ta&e !p an attit!detowards the appreciation of man!al labo!r which will be f!ndamentally different from that which now

e3ists% If necessary, it will have to organie a persistent system of teaching which will aim at abolishing the

present-day st!pid habit of loo&ing down on physical labo!r as an occ!pation to be ashamed of%

(he individ!al will have to be val!ed, not by the class of wor& he does b!t by the way in which he does itand by its !sef!lness to the comm!nity% (his statement may so!nd monstro!s in an epoch when the most

brainless col!mnist on a newspaper staff is more esteemed than the most e3pert mechanic, merely beca!se

the former p!shes a pen% !t, as I have said, this false val!ation does not correspond to the nat!re of things%

It has been artificially introd!ced, and there was a time when it did not e3ist at all% (he present !nnat!ralstate of affairs is one of those general morbid phenomena that have arisen from o!r materialistic epoch%

F!ndamentally every &ind of wor& has a do!ble val!e> the one material, the other ideal% (he material val!edepends on the practical importance of the wor& to the life of the comm!nity% (he greater the n!mber of the

pop!lation who benefit from the wor&, directly or indirectly, the higher will be its material val!e% (hiseval!ation is e3pressed in the material recompense which the individ!al receives for his labo!r% In

contradistinction to this p!rely material val!e there is the ideal val!e% ere the wor& performed is not

!dged by its material importance b!t by the degree to which it answers a necessity% $ertainly the material

!tility of an invention may be greater than that of the service rendered by an everyday wor&man> b!t it isalso certain that the comm!nity needs each of those small daily services !st as m!ch as the greater

services% From the material point of view a distinction can be made in the eval!ation of different &inds of

wor& according to their !tility to the comm!nity, and this distinction is e3pressed by the differentiation in

the scale of recompense> b!t on the ideal or abstract plans all wor&men become e+!al the moment eachstrives to do his best in his own field, no matter what that field may be% It is on this that a man#s val!e m!st

be estimated, and not on the amo!nt of recompense received%

In a reasonably directed 'tate care m!st be ta&en that each individ!al is given the &ind of wor& whichcorresponds to his capabilities% In other words, people will be trained for the positions indicated by their nat!ral endowments> b!t these endowments or fac!lties are innate and cannot be ac+!ired by any amo!nt of

training, being a gift from *at!re and not merited by men% (herefore, the way in which men are generally

esteemed by their fellow-citiens m!st not be according to the &ind of wor& they do, beca!se that has been

more or less assigned to the individ!al% 'eeing that the &ind of wor& in which the individ!al is employed isto be acco!nted to his inborn gifts and the res!ltant training which he has received from the comm!nity, he

will have to be !dged by the way in which he performs this wor& entr!sted to him by the comm!nity% For

the wor& which the individ!al performs is not the p!rpose of his e3istence, b!t only a means% is real p!rpose in life is to better himself and raise himself to a higher level as a h!man being> b!t this he can only



do in and thro!gh the comm!nity whose c!lt!ral life he shares% And this comm!nity m!st always e3ist on

the fo!ndations on which the 'tate is based% e o!ght to contrib!te to the conservation of those

fo!ndations% *at!re determines the form of this contrib!tion% It is the d!ty of the individ!al to ret!rn to the

comm!nity, ealo!sly and honestly, what the comm!nity has given him% e who does this deserves thehighest respect and esteem% aterial rem!neration may be given to him whose wor& has a corresponding

!tility for the comm!nity> b!t the ideal recompense m!st lie in the esteem to which everybody has a claim

who serves his people with whatever powers *at!re has bestowed !pon him and which have been

developed by the training he has received from the national comm!nity% (hen it will no longer bedishono!rable to be an honest craftsman> b!t it will be a ca!se of disgrace to be an inefficient 'tate official,

wasting 6od#s day and filching daily bread from an honest p!blic% (hen it will be loo&ed !pon as +!ite

nat!ral that positions sho!ld not be given to persons who of their very nat!re are incapable of filling them%

F!rthermore, this personal efficiency will be the sole criterion of the right to ta&e part on an e+!al !ridicalfooting in general civil affairs%

(he present epoch is wor&ing o!t its own r!in% It introd!ces !niversal s!ffrage, chatters abo!t e+!al rights

b!t can find no fo!ndation for this e+!ality% It considers the material wage as the e3pression of a man#s

val!e and th!s destroys the basis of the noblest &ind of e+!ality that can e3ist% For e+!ality cannot and doesnot depend on the wor& a man does, b!t only on the manner in which each one does the partic!lar wor&

allotted to him% (h!s alone will mere nat!ral chance be set aside in determining the wor& of a man and th!s

only does the individ!al become the artificer of his own social worth%

At the present time, when whole gro!ps of people estimate each other#s val!e only by the sie of the

salaries which they respectively receive, there will be no !nderstanding of all this% !t that is no reasonwhy we sho!ld cease to champion those ideas% !ite the opposite0 in an epoch which is inwardly diseased

and decaying anyone who wo!ld heal it m!st have the co!rage first to lay bare the real roots of the disease%

And the *ational 'ocialist ovement m!st ta&e that d!ty on its sho!lders% It will have to lift its voiceabove the heads of the small bo!rgeoisie and rally together and co-ordinate all those pop!lar forces which

are ready to become the protagonists of a new Weltanschhauung %

Of co!rse the obection will be made that in general it is diffic!lt to differentiate between the material and

ideal val!es of wor& and that the lower prestige which is attached to physical labo!r is d!e to the fact thatsmaller wages are paid for that &ind of wor&% It will be said that the lower wage is in its t!rn the reason why

the man!al wor&er has less chance to participate in the c!lt!re of the nation> so that the ideal side of h!man

c!lt!re is less open to him beca!se it has nothing to do with his daily activities% It may be added that the

rel!ctance to do physical wor& is !stified by the fact that, on acco!nt of the small income, the c!lt!ral levelof man!al labo!rers m!st nat!rally be low, and that this in t!rn is a !stification for the lower estimation in

which man!al labo!r is generally held%(here is +!ite a good deal of tr!th in all this% !t that is the very reason why we o!ght to see that in the

f!t!re there sho!ld not be s!ch a wide difference in the scale of rem!neration% ?on#t say that !nder s!chconditions poorer wor& wo!ld be done% It wo!ld be the saddest symptom of decadence if finer intellect!al

wor& co!ld be obtained only thro!gh the stim!l!s of higher payment% If that point of view had r!led the

world !p to now h!manity wo!ld never have ac+!ired its greatest scientific and c!lt!ral heritage% For all

the greatest inventions, the greatest discoveries, the most profo!ndly revol!tionary scientific wor&, and themost magnificent mon!ments of h!man c!lt!re, were never given to the world !nder the imp!lse or

comp!lsion of money% !ite the contrary0 not rarely was their origin associated with a ren!nciation of the

worldly pleas!res that wealth can p!rchase%

It may be that money has become the one power that governs life to-day% Net a time will come when menwill again bow to higher gods% !ch that we have to-day owes its e3istence to the desire for money and

property> b!t there is very little among all this which wo!ld leave the world poorer by its lac&%

It is also one of the aims before o!r movement to hold o!t the prospect of a time when the individ!al will be given what he needs for the p!rposes of his life and it will be a time in which, on the other hand, the principle will be !pheld that man does not live for material enoyment alone% (his principle will find

e3pression in a wiser scale of wages and salaries which will enable everyone, incl!ding the h!mblest

wor&man who f!lfils his d!ties conscientio!sly, to live an hono!rable and decent life both as a man and as

a citien% Let it not be said that this is merely a visionary ideal, that this world wo!ld never tolerate it in practice and that of itself it is impossible to attain%

7ven we are not so simple as to believe that there will ever be an age in which there will be no drawbac&s%

!t that does not release !s from the obligation to fight for the removal of the defects which we haverecognied, 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 o!r aspirations% !t that is precisely why man

m!st strive again and again to serve the !ltimate aim and no fail!res m!st ind!ce him to reno!nce his

intentions, !st as we cannot sp!rn the sway of !stice beca!se mista&es creep into the administration of the

law, and !st as we cannot despise medical science beca!se, in spite of it, there will always be diseases%an sho!ld ta&e 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 wo!ld remind

them of the time when their heroism was the most convincing e3ample of the power inherent in ideal

motives% It was not preocc!pation abo!t their daily bread that led men to sacrifice their lives, b!t the love of their co!ntry, the faith which they had in its greatness, and an all ro!nd feeling for the hono!r of the nation%

Only after the 6erman people had become estranged from these ideals, to follow the material promises

offered by the 8evol!tion, only after they threw away their arms to ta&e !p the r!c&sac&, only then - instead

of entering an earthly paradise - did they sin& into the p!rgatory of !niversal contempt and at the same time!niversal want%

(hat is why we m!st face the calc!lators of the materialist 8ep!blic with faith in an idealist 8eich%

$hapter (hree

(he instit!tion that is now erroneo!sly called the 'tate generally classifies people only into two gro!ps0

citiens and aliens% $itiens are all those who possess f!ll civic rights, either by reason of their birth or by

an act of nat!raliation% Aliens are those who enoy the same rights in some other 'tate% etween these two

categories there are certain beings who resemble a sort of meteoric phenomena% (hey are people who haveno citienship in any 'tate and conse+!ently no civic rights anywhere%

In most cases nowadays a person ac+!ires civic rights by being born within the frontiers of a 'tate% (he

race or nationality to which he may belong plays no role whatsoever% (he child of a *egro who once livedin one of the 6erman protectorates and now ta&es !p his residence in 6ermany a!tomatically becomes a

6erman $itien# in the eyes of the world% In the same way the child of any )ew, "ole, African or Asian

may a!tomatically become a 6erman $itien%

esides nat!raliation that is ac+!ired thro!gh the fact of having been born within the confines of a 'tatethere e3ists another &ind of nat!raliation which can be ac+!ired later% (his process is s!bect to vario!s

preliminary re+!irements% For e3ample one condition is that, if possible, the applicant m!st not be a b!rglar

or a common street th!g% It is re+!ired of him that his political attit!de is not s!ch as to give ca!se for

!neasiness> in other words he m!st be a harmless simpleton in politics% It is re+!ired that he shall not be a b!rden to the 'tate of which he wishes to become a citien% In this realistic epoch of o!rs this last condition

nat!rally only means that he m!st not be a financial b!rden% If the affairs of the candidate are s!ch that itappears li&ely he will t!rn o!t to be a good ta3payer, that is a very important consideration and will help

him to obtain civic rights all the more rapidly%(he +!estion of race plays no part at all%

(he whole process of ac+!iring civic rights is not very different from that of being admitted to membership

of an a!tomobile cl!b, for instance% A person files his application% It is e3amined% It is sanctioned% And one

day the man receives a card which informs him that he has become a citien% (he information is given in anam!sing way% An applicant who has hitherto been a K!l! or affir is told0 Hy these presents yo! are now

become a 6erman $itien%H

(he "resident of the 'tate can perform this piece of magic% /hat 6od imself co!ld not do is achieved by

some (heophrast!s "aracels!s 1C of a civil servant thro!gh a mere twirl of the hand% *othing b!t a stro&eof the pen, and a ongolian slave is forthwith t!rned into a real 6erman% *ot only is no +!estion as&ed

regarding the race to which the new citien belongs> even the matter of his physical health is not in+!ired

into% is flesh may be corr!pted with syphilis> b!t he will still be welcome in the 'tate as it e3ists to-day solong as he may not become a financial b!rden or a political danger%In this way, year after year, those organisms which we call 'tates ta&e !p poisono!s matter which they can

hardly ever overcome%

Another point of distinction between a citien and an alien is that the former is admitted to all p!blic

offices, that he may possibly have to do military service and that in ret!rn he is permitted to ta&e a passiveor active part at p!blic elections% (hose are his chief privileges% For in regard to personal rights and

personal liberty the alien enoys the same amo!nt of protection as the citien, and fre+!ently even more%

Anyhow that is how it happens in o!r present 6erman 8ep!blic%I realie f!lly that nobody li&es to hear these things% !t it wo!ld be diffic!lt to find anything more illogical



or more insane than o!r contemporary laws in regard to 'tate citienship%

At present there e3ists one 'tate which manifests at least some modest attempts that show a better

appreciation of how things o!ght to be done in this matter% It is not, however, in o!r model 6erman

8ep!blic b!t in the M%'%A% that efforts are made to conform at least partly to the co!nsels of commonsense%y ref!sing immigrants to enter there if they are in a bad state of health, and by e3cl!ding certain races

from the right to become nat!ralied as citiens, they have beg!n to introd!ce principles similar to those on

which we wish to gro!nd the "eople#s 'tate%

(he "eople#s 'tate will classify its pop!lation in three gro!ps0 $itiens, s!bects of the 'tate, and aliens%(he principle is that birth within the confines of the 'tate gives only the stat!s of a s!bect% It does not carry

with it the right to fill any position !nder the 'tate or to participate in political life, s!ch as ta&ing an active

or passive part in elections% Another principle is that the race and nationality of every s!bect of the 'tate

will have to be proved% A s!bect is at any time free to cease being a s!bect and to become a citien of thatco!ntry to which he belongs in virt!e of his nationality% (he only difference between an alien and a s!bect

of the 'tate is that the former is a citien of another co!ntry%

(he yo!ng boy or girl who is of 6erman nationality and is a s!bect of the 6erman 'tate is bo!nd to

complete the period of school ed!cation which is obligatory for every 6erman% (hereby he s!bmits to thesystem of training which will ma&e him conscio!s of his race and a member of the fol&-comm!nity% (hen

he has to f!lfil all those re+!irements laid down by the 'tate in regard to physical training after he has left

school> and finally he enters the army% (he training in the army is of a general &ind% It m!st be given to each

individ!al 6erman and will render him competent to f!lfil the physical and mental re+!irements of military

service% (he rights of citienship shall be conferred on every yo!ng man whose health and character have been certified as good, after having completed his period of military service% (his act of ina!g!ration in

citienship shall be a solemn ceremony% And the diploma conferring the rights of citienship will be

preserved by the yo!ng man as the most precio!s testimonial of his whole life% It entitles him to e3ercise allthe rights of a citien and to enoy all the privileges attached thereto% For the 'tate m!st draw a sharp line of

distinction between those who, as members of the nation, are the fo!ndation and the s!pport of its e3istence

and greatness, and those who are domiciled in the 'tate simply as earners of their livelihood there%

On the occasion of conferring a diploma of citienship the new citien m!st ta&e a solemn oath of loyalty tothe national comm!nity and the 'tate% (his diploma m!st be a bond which !nites together all the vario!s

classes and sections of the nation% It shall be a greater hono!r to be a citien of this 8eich, even as a street-

sweeper, than to be the ing of a foreign 'tate%

(he citien has privileges which are not accorded to the alien% e is the master in the 8eich% !t this highhono!r has also its obligations% (hose who show themselves witho!t personal hono!r or character, or

common criminals, or traitors to the fatherland, can at any time be deprived of the rights of citienship%(herewith they become merely s!bects of the 'tate%

(he 6erman girl is a s!bect of the 'tate b!t will become a citien when she marries% At the same timethose women who earn their livelihood independently have the right to ac+!ire citienship if they are

6erman s!bects%

$hapter Fo!r

If the principal d!ty of the *ational 'ocialist "eople#s 'tate be to ed!cate and promote the e3istence of

those who are the material o!t of which the 'tate is formed, it will not be s!fficient to promote those racial

elements as s!ch, ed!cate them and finally train them for practical life, b!t the 'tate m!st also adapt itsown organiation to meet the demands of this tas&%

It wo!ld be abs!rd to appraise a man#s worth by the race to which he belongs and at the same time to ma&e

war against the ar3ist principle, that all men are e+!al, witho!t being determined to p!rs!e o!r own principle to its !ltimate conse+!ences% If we admit the significance of blood, that is to say, if we recogniethe race as the f!ndamental element on which all life is based, we shall have to apply to the individ!al the

logical conse+!ences of this principle% In general I m!st estimate the worth of nations differently, on the

basis of the different races from which they spring, and I m!st also differentiate in estimating the worth of

the individ!al within his own race% (he principle, that one people is not the same as another, applies also tothe individ!al members of a national comm!nity% *o one brain, for instance, is e+!al to another> beca!se

the constit!ent elements belonging to the same blood vary in a tho!sand s!btle details, tho!gh they are

f!ndamentally of the same +!ality%(he first conse+!ence of this fact is comparatively simple% It demands that those elements within the fol&-



comm!nity which show the best racial +!alities o!ght to be enco!raged more than the others and especially

they sho!ld be enco!raged to increase and m!ltiply%

(his tas& is comparatively simple beca!se it can be recognied and carried o!t almost mechanically% It is

m!ch more diffic!lt to select from among a whole m!ltit!de of people all those who act!ally possess thehighest intellect!al and spirit!al characteristics and assign them to that sphere of infl!ence which not only

corresponds to their o!tstanding talents b!t in which their activities will above all things be of benefit to the

nation% (his selection according to capacity and efficiency cannot be effected in a mechanical way% It is a

wor& which can be accomplished only thro!gh the permanent str!ggle of everyday life itself%A Weltanschhauung which rep!diates the democratic principle of the r!le of the masses and aims at giving

this world to the best people - that is, to the highest +!ality of man&ind - m!st also apply that same

aristocratic post!late to the individ!als within the fol&-comm!nity% It m!st ta&e care that the positions of

leadership and highest infl!ence are given to the best men% ence it is not based on the idea of the maority, b!t on that of personality%

Anyone who believes that the "eople#s *ational 'ocialist 'tate sho!ld disting!ish itself from the other

'tates only mechanically, as it were, thro!gh the better constr!ction of its economic life - than&s to a better

e+!ilibri!m between poverty and riches, or to the e3tension to broader masses of the power to determinethe economic process, or to a fairer wage, or to the elimination of vast differences in the scale of salaries -

anyone who thin&s this !nderstands only the s!perficial feat!res of o!r movement and has not the least idea

of what we mean when we spea& of o!r Weltanschhauung % All these feat!res !st mentioned co!ld not in

the least g!arantee !s a lasting e3istence and certainly wo!ld be no warranty of greatness% A nation that

co!ld content itself with e3ternal reforms wo!ld not have the slightest chance of s!ccess in the generalstr!ggle for life among the nations of the world% A movement that wo!ld confine its mission to s!ch

ad!stments, which are certainly right and e+!itable, wo!ld effect no far-reaching or profo!nd reform in the

e3isting order% (he whole effect of s!ch meas!res wo!ld be limited to e3ternals% (hey wo!ld not f!rnish thenation with that moral armament which alone will enable it effectively to overcome the wea&nesses from

which we are s!ffering to-day%

In order to el!cidate this point of view it may be worth while to glance once again at the real origins and

ca!ses of the c!lt!ral evol!tion of man&ind%(he first step which visibly bro!ght man&ind away from the animal world was that which led to the first

invention% (he invention itself owes its origin to the r!ses and stratagems which man employed to assist

him in the str!ggle with other creat!res for his e3istence and often to provide him with the only means he

co!ld adopt to achieve s!ccess in the str!ggle% (hose first very cr!de inventions cannot be attrib!ted to theindivid!al> for the s!bse+!ent observer, that is to say the modern observer, recognies them only as

collective phenomena% $ertain tric&s and s&ilf!l tactics which can be observed in !se among the animalsstri&e the eye of the observer as established facts which may be seen everywhere> and man is no longer in a

position to discover or e3plain their primary ca!se and so he contents himself with calling s!ch phenomenainstinctive%#

In o!r case this term has no meaning% eca!se everyone who believes in the higher evol!tion of living

organisms m!st admit that every manifestation of the vital !rge and str!ggle to live m!st have had a

definite beginning in time and that one s!bect alone m!st have manifested it for the first time% It was thenrepeated again and again> and the practice of it spread over a widening area, !ntil finally it passed into the

s!bconscience of every member of the species, where it manifested itself as instinct%#

(his is more easily !nderstood and more easy to believe in the case of man% is first s&illed tactics in the

str!ggle with the rest of the animals !ndo!btedly originated in his management of creat!res which possessed special capabilities%

(here can be no do!bt that personality was then the sole factor in all decisions and achievements, which

were afterwards ta&en over by the whole of h!manity as a matter of co!rse% An e3act e3emplification of this may be fo!nd in those f!ndamental military principles which have now become the basis of all strategyin war% Originally they sprang from the brain of a single individ!al and in the co!rse of many years, maybe

even tho!sands of years, they were accepted all ro!nd as a matter of co!rse and this gained !niversal

validity%

an completed his first discovery by ma&ing a second% Among other things he learned how to master other living beings and ma&e them serve him in his str!ggle for e3istence% And th!s began the real inventive

activity of man&ind, as it is now visible before o!r eyes% (hose material inventions, beginning with the !se

of stones as weapons, which led to the domestication of animals, the prod!ction of fire by artificial means,down to the marvello!s inventions of o!r own days, show clearly that an individ!al was the originator in



each case% (he nearer we come to o!r own time and the more important and revol!tionary the inventions

become, the more clearly do we recognie the tr!th of that statement% All the material inventions which we

see aro!nd !s have been prod!ced by the creative powers and capabilities of individ!als% And all these

inventions help man to raise himself higher and higher above the animal world and to separate himself fromthat world in an absol!tely definite way% ence they serve to elevate the h!man species and contin!ally to

promote its progress% And what the most primitive artifice once did for man in his str!ggle for e3istence, as

he went h!nting thro!gh the primeval forest, that same sort of assistance is rendered him to-day in the form

of marvello!s scientific inventions which help him in the present day str!ggle for life and to forge weaponsfor f!t!re str!ggles% In their final conse+!ences all h!man tho!ght and invention help man in his life-

str!ggle on this planet, even tho!gh the so-called practical !tility of an invention, a discovery or a profo!nd

scientific theory, may not be evident at first sight% 7verything contrib!tes to raise man higher and higher

above the level of all the other creat!res that s!rro!nd him, thereby strengthening and consolidating his position> so that he develops more and more in every direction as the r!ling being on this earth%

ence all inventions are the res!lt of the creative fac!lty of the individ!al% And all s!ch individ!als,

whether they have willed it or not, are the benefactors of man&ind, both great and small% (hro!gh their

wor& millions and indeed billions of h!man beings have been provided with means and reso!rces whichfacilitate their str!ggle for e3istence%

(h!s at the origin of the material civiliation which flo!rishes to-day we always see individ!al persons%

(hey s!pplement one another and one of them bases his wor& on that of the other% (he same is tr!e in

regard to the practical application of those inventions and discoveries% For all the vario!s methods of

prod!ction are in their t!rn inventions also and conse+!ently dependent on the creative fac!lty of theindivid!al% 7ven the p!rely theoretical wor&, which cannot be meas!red by a definite r!le and is

preliminary to all s!bse+!ent technical discoveries, is e3cl!sively the prod!ct of the individ!al brain% (he

broad masses do not invent, nor does the maority organie or thin&> b!t always and in every case theindivid!al man, the person%

Accordingly a h!man comm!nity is well organied only when it facilitates to the highest possible degree

individ!al creative forces and !tilies their wor& for the benefit of the comm!nity% (he most val!able 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% (he first and s!preme d!ty of an organied fol& comm!nity is to place

the inventor in a position where he can be of the greatest benefit to all% Indeed the very p!rpose of the

organiation is to p!t this principle into practice% Only by so doing can it ward off the c!rse of

mechaniation and remain a living thing% In itself it m!st personify the effort to place men of brains abovethe m!ltit!de and to ma&e the latter obey the former%

(herefore not only does the organiation possess no right to prevent men of brains from rising above them!ltit!de b!t, on the contrary, it m!st !se its organiing powers to enable and promote that ascension as far

as it possibly can% It m!st start o!t from the principle that the blessings of man&ind never came from themasses b!t from the creative brains of individ!als, who are therefore the real benefactors of h!manity% It is

in the interest of all to ass!re men of creative brains a decisive infl!ence and facilitate their wor&% (his

common interest is s!rely not served by allowing the m!ltit!de to r!le, for they are not capable of thin&ing

nor are they efficient and in no case whatsoever can they be said to be gifted% Only those sho!ld r!le whohave the nat!ral temperament and gifts of leadership%

'!ch men of brains are selected mainly, as I have already said, thro!gh the hard str!ggle for e3istence

itself% In this str!ggle there are many who brea& down and collapse and thereby show that they are not

called by ?estiny to fill the highest positions> and only very few are left who can be classed among theelect% In the realm of tho!ght and of artistic creation, and even in the economic field, this same process of

selection ta&es place, altho!gh - especially in the economic field - its operation is heavily handicapped%

(his same principle of selection r!les in the administration of the 'tate and in that department of power which personifies the organied military defence of the nation% (he idea of personality r!les everywhere,the a!thority of the individ!al over his s!bordinates and the responsibility of the individ!al towards the

persons who are placed over him% It is only in political life that this very nat!ral principle has been

completely e3cl!ded% (ho!gh all h!man civiliation has res!lted e3cl!sively from the creative activity of

the individ!al, the principle that it is the mass which co!nts - thro!gh the decision of the maority - ma&esits appearance only in the administration of the national comm!nity especially in the higher grades> and

from there downwards the poison grad!ally filters into all branches of national life, th!s ca!sing a veritable

decomposition% (he destr!ctive wor&ings of )!daism in different parts of the national body can be ascribedf!ndamentally to the persistent )ewish efforts at !ndermining the importance of personality among the



nations that are their hosts and, in place of personality, s!bstit!ting the domination of the masses% (he

constr!ctive principle of Aryan h!manity is th!s displaced by the destr!ctive principle of the )ews, (hey

become the ferment of decomposition# among nations and races and, in a broad sense, the wrec&ers of

h!man civiliation%ar3ism represents the most stri&ing phase of the )ewish endeavo!r to eliminate the dominant significance

of personality in every sphere of h!man life and replace it by the n!merical power of the masses% In politics

the parliamentary form of government is the e3pression of this effort% /e can observe the fatal effects of it

everywhere, from the smallest parish co!ncil !pwards to the highest governing circles of the nation% In thefield of economics we see the trade !nion movement, which does not serve the real interests of the

employees b!t the destr!ctive aims of international )ewry% )!st to the same degree in which the principle of

personality is e3cl!ded from the economic life of the nation, and the infl!ence and activities of the masses

s!bstit!ted in its stead, national economy, which sho!ld be for the service and benefit of the comm!nity asa whole, will grad!ally deteriorate in its creative capacity% (he shop committees which, instead of caring

for the interests of the employees, strive to infl!ence the process of prod!ction, serve the same destr!ctive

p!rpose% (hey damage the general prod!ctive system and conse+!ently in!re the individ!al engaged in

ind!stry% For in the long r!n it is impossible to satisfy pop!lar demands merely by high-so!ndingtheoretical phrases% (hese can be satisfied only by s!pplying goods to meet the individ!al needs of daily

life and by so doing create the conviction that, thro!gh the prod!ctive collaboration of its members, the fol&

comm!nity serves the interests of the individ!al%

7ven if, on the basis of its mass-theory, ar3ism sho!ld prove itself capable of ta&ing over and developing

the present economic system, that wo!ld not signify anything% (he +!estion as to whether the ar3istdoctrine be right or wrong cannot be decided by any test which wo!ld show that it can administer for the

f!t!re what already e3ists to-day, b!t only by as&ing whether it has the creative power to b!ild !p

according to its own principles a civiliation which wo!ld be a co!nterpart of what already e3ists% 7ven if ar3ism were a tho!sandfold capable of ta&ing over the economic life as we now have it and maintaining

it in operation !nder ar3ist direction, s!ch an achievement wo!ld prove nothing> beca!se, on the basis of

its own principles, ar3ism wo!ld never be able to create something which co!ld s!pplant what e3ists to-

day%And ar3ism itself has f!rnished the proof that it cannot do this% *ot only has it been !nable anywhere to

create a c!lt!ral or economic system of its own> b!t it was not even able to develop, according to its own

principles, the civiliation and economic system it fo!nd ready at hand% It has had to ma&e compromises,

by way of a ret!rn to the principle of personality, !st as it cannot dispense with that principle in its ownorganiation%

(he racial Weltanschhauung is f!ndamentally disting!ished from the ar3ist by reason of the fact that theformer recognies the significance of race and therefore also personal worth and has made these the pillars

of its str!ct!re% (hese are the most important factors of its Weltanschhauung %If the *ational 'ocialist ovement sho!ld fail to !nderstand the f!ndamental importance of this essential

principle, if it sho!ld merely varnish the e3ternal appearance of the present 'tate and adopt the maority

principle, it wo!ld really do nothing more than compete with ar3ism on its own gro!nd% For that reason it

wo!ld not have the right to call itself a Weltanschhauung % If the social programme of the movementconsisted in eliminating personality and p!tting the m!ltit!de in its place, then *ational 'ocialism wo!ld

be corr!pted with the poison of ar3ism, !st as o!r national-bo!rgeois parties are%

(he "eople#s 'tate m!st ass!re the welfare of its citiens by recogniing the importance of personal val!es

!nder all circ!mstances and by preparing the way for the ma3im!m of prod!ctive efficiency in all thevario!s branches of economic life, th!s sec!ring to the individ!al the highest possible share in the general

o!tp!t%

ence the "eople#s 'tate m!st mercilessly e3p!rgate from all the leading circles in the government of theco!ntry the parliamentarian principle, according to which decisive power thro!gh the maority vote isinvested in the m!ltit!de% "ersonal responsibility m!st be s!bstit!ted in its stead%

From this the following concl!sion res!lts0

(he best constit!tion and the best form of government is that which ma&es it +!ite nat!ral for the best

brains to reach a position of dominant importance and infl!ence in the comm!nity%)!st as in the field of economics men of o!tstanding ability cannot be designated from above b!t m!st

come forward in virt!e of their own efforts, and !st as there is an !nceasing ed!cative process that leads

from the smallest shop to the largest !nderta&ing, and !st as life itself is the school in which those lessonsare ta!ght, so in the political field it is not possible to discover# political talent all in a moment% 6eni!s of



an e3traordinary stamp is not to be !dged by normal standards whereby we !dge other men%

In its organiation the 'tate m!st be established on the principle of personality, starting from the smallest

cell and ascending !p to the s!preme government of the co!ntry%

(here are no decisions made by the maority vote, b!t only by responsible persons% And the word co!ncil#is once more restored to its original meaning% 7very man in a position of responsibility will have

co!ncillors at his side, b!t the decision is made by that individ!al person alone%

(he principle which made the former "r!ssian Army an admirable instr!ment of the 6erman nation will

have to become the basis of o!r statal constit!tion, that is to say, f!ll a!thority over his s!bordinates m!st be invested in each leader and he m!st be responsible to those above him%

7ven then we shall not be able to do witho!t those corporations which at present we call parliaments% !t

they will be real co!ncils, in the sense that they will have to give advice% (he responsibility can and m!st be

borne by one individ!al, who alone will be vested with a!thority and the right to command%"arliaments as s!ch are necessary beca!se they alone f!rnish the opport!nity for leaders to rise grad!ally

who will be entr!sted s!bse+!ently with positions of special responsibility%

(he following is an o!tline of the pict!re which the organiation will present0

From the m!nicipal administration !p to the government of the 8eich, the "eople#s 'tate will not have any body of representatives which ma&es its decisions thro!gh the maority vote% It will have only advisory

bodies to assist the chosen leader for the time being and he will distrib!te among them the vario!s d!ties

they are to perform% In certain fields they may, if necessary, have to ass!me f!ll responsibility, s!ch as the

leader or president of each corporation possesses on a larger scale%

In principle the "eople#s 'tate m!st forbid the c!stom of ta&ing advice on certain political problems -economics, for instance - from persons who are entirely incompetent beca!se they lac& special training and

practical e3perience in s!ch matters% $onse+!ently the 'tate m!st divide its representative bodies into a

political chamber and a corporative chamber that represents the respective trades and professions%(o ass!re an effective co-operation between those two bodies, a selected body will be placed over them%

(his will be a special senate%

*o vote will be ta&en in the chambers or senate% (hey are to be organiations for wor& and not voting

machines% (he individ!al members will have cons!ltive votes b!t no right of decision will be attachedthereto% (he right of decision belongs e3cl!sively to the president, who m!st be entirely responsible for the

matter !nder disc!ssion%

(his principle of combining absol!te a!thority with absol!te responsibility will grad!ally ca!se a selected

gro!p of leaders to emerge> which is not even thin&able in o!r present epoch of irresponsible parliamentarianism%

(he political constr!ction of the nation will thereby be bro!ght into harmony with those laws to which thenation already owes its greatness in the economic and c!lt!ral spheres%

8egarding the possibility of p!tting these principles into practice, I sho!ld li&e to call attention to the factthat the principle of parliamentarian democracy, whereby decisions are enacted thro!gh the maority vote,

has not always r!led the world% On the contrary, we find it prevalent only d!ring short periods of history,

and those have always been periods of decline in nations and 'tates%

One m!st not believe, however, that s!ch a radical change co!ld be effected by meas!res of a p!relytheoretical character, operating from above downwards> for the change I have been describing co!ld not be

limited to transforming the constit!tion of a 'tate b!t wo!ld have to incl!de the vario!s fields of legislation

and civic e3istence as a whole% '!ch a revol!tion can be bro!ght abo!t only by means of a movement

which is itself organied !nder the inspiration of these principles and th!s bears the germ of the f!t!re 'tatein its own organism%

(herefore it is well for the *ational 'ocialist ovement to ma&e itself completely familiar with those

principles to-day and act!ally to p!t them into practice within its own organiation, so that not only will it be in a position to serve as a g!ide for the f!t!re 'tate b!t will have its own organiation s!ch that it cans!bse+!ently be placed at the disposal of the 'tate itself%

$hapter Five

(he "eople#s 'tate, which I have tried to s&etch in general o!tline, will not become a reality in virt!e of the

simple fact that we &now the indispensable conditions of its e3istence% It does not s!ffice to &now what

aspect s!ch a 'tate wo!ld present% (he problem of its fo!ndation is far more important% (he parties whiche3ist at present and which draw their profits from the 'tate as it now is cannot be e3pected to bring abo!t a



radical change in the regime or to change their attit!de on their own initiative% (his is rendered all the more

impossible beca!se the forces which now have the direction of affairs in their hands are )ews here and )ews

there and )ews everywhere% (he trend of development which we are now e3periencing wo!ld, if allowed to

go on !nhampered, lead to the realiation of the "an-)ewish prophecy that the )ews will one day devo!r theother nations and become lords of the earth%

In contrast to the millions of bo!rgeois# and proletarian# 6ermans, who are st!mbling to their r!in, mostly

thro!gh timidity, indolence and st!pidity, the )ew p!rs!es his way persistently and &eeps his eye always

fi3ed on his f!t!re goal% Any party that is led by him can fight for no other interests than his, and hisinterests certainly have nothing in common with those of the Aryan nations%

If we wo!ld transform o!r ideal pict!re of the "eople#s 'tate into a reality we shall have to &eep

independent of the forces that now control p!blic life and see& for new forces that will be ready and

capable of ta&ing !p the fight for s!ch an ideal% For a fight it will have to be, since the first obective willnot be to b!ild !p the idea of the "eople#s 'tate b!t rather to wipe o!t the )ewish 'tate which is now in

e3istence% As so often happens in the co!rse of history, the main diffic!lty is not to establish a new order of

things b!t to clear the gro!nd for its establishment% "re!dices and egotistic interests oin together in

forming a common front against the new idea and in trying by every means to prevent its tri!mph, beca!seit is disagreeable to them or threatens their e3istence%

(hat is why the protagonist of the new idea is !nfort!nately, in spite of his X2=4Ydesire for constr!ctive

wor&, compelled to wage a destr!ctive battle first, in order to abolish the e3isting state of affairs%

A doctrine whose principles are radically new and of essential importance m!st adopt the sharp probe of

criticism as its weapon, tho!gh this may show itself disagreeable to the individ!al followers%It is evidence of a very s!perficial insight into historical developments if the so-called fol&ists emphasie

again and again that they will adopt the !se of negative criticism !nder no circ!mstances b!t will engage

only in constr!ctive wor&% (hat is nothing b!t p!erile chatter and is typical of the whole lot of fol&ists% It isanother proof that the history of o!r own times has made no impression on these minds% ar3ism too has

had its aims to p!rs!e and it also recognies constr!ctive wor&, tho!gh by this it !nderstands only the

establishment of despotic r!le in the hands of international )ewish finance% *evertheless for seventy years

its principal wor& still remains in the field of criticism% And what disr!ptive and destr!ctive criticism it has beenJ $riticism repeated again and again, !ntil the corrosive acid ate into the old 'tate so thoro!ghly that it

finally cr!mbled to pieces% Only then did the so-called constr!ctive# critical wor& of ar3ism begin% And

that was nat!ral, right and logical% An e3isting order of things is not abolished by merely proclaiming and

insisting on a new one% It m!st not be hoped that those who are the partisans of the e3isting order and havetheir interests bo!nd !p 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 differentsit!ations will e3ist side by side and that a Weltanschhauung is transformed into a party, above which level

it will not be able to raise itself afterwards% For a Weltanschhauung is intolerant and cannot permit another to e3ist side by side with it% It imperio!sly demands its own recognition as !ni+!e and e3cl!sive and a

complete transformation in accordance with its views thro!gho!t all the branches of p!blic life% It can never

allow the previo!s state of affairs to contin!e in e3istence by its side%

And the same holds tr!e of religions%$hristianity was not content with erecting an altar of its own% It had first to destroy the pagan altars% It was

only in virt!e of this passionate intolerance that an apodictic faith co!ld grow !p% And intolerance is an

indispensable condition for the growth of s!ch a faith%

It may be obected here that in these phenomena which we find thro!gho!t the history of the world we haveto recognie mostly a specifically )ewish mode of tho!ght and that s!ch fanaticism and intolerance are

typical symptoms of )ewish mentality% (hat may be a tho!sandfold tr!e> and it is a fact deeply to be

regretted% (he appearance of intolerance and fanaticism in the history of man&ind may be deeplyregrettable, and it may be loo&ed !pon as foreign to h!man nat!re, b!t the fact does not change conditionsas they e3ist to-day% (he men who wish to liberate o!r 6erman nation from the conditions in which it now

e3ists cannot c!dgel their brains with thin&ing how e3cellent it wo!ld be if this or that had never arisen%

(hey m!st strive to find ways and means of abolishing what act!ally e3ists% 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 ane+!ally ardent spirit and fo!ght for with as determined a will and which is itself a new idea, p!re and

absol!tely tr!e%

7ach one of !s to-day may regret the fact that the advent of $hristianity was the first occasion on whichspirit!al terror was introd!ced into the m!ch freer ancient world, b!t the fact cannot be denied that ever



since then the world is pervaded and dominated by this &ind of coercion and that violence is bro&en only by

violence and terror by terror% Only then can a new regime be created by means of constr!ctive wor&%

"olitical parties are prone to enter compromises> b!t a Weltanschhauung never does this% A political party is

inclined to ad!st its teachings with a view to meeting those of its opponents, b!t a Weltanschhauung proclaims its own infallibility%

In the beginning, political parties have also and nearly always the intention of X2==Ysec!ring an e3cl!sive

and despotic domination for themselves% (hey always show a slight tendency to become

Weltanschhauung en% !t the limited nat!re of their programme is in itself eno!gh to rob them of that heroicspirit which a Weltanschhauung demands% (he spirit of conciliation which animates their will attracts those

petty and chic&en-hearted people who are not fit to be protagonists in any cr!sade% (hat is the reason why

they mostly become str!c& in their miserable pettiness very early on the march% (hey give !p fighting for

their ideology and, by way of what they call positive collaboration,# they try as +!ic&ly as possible towedge themselves into some tiny place at the tro!gh of the e3istent regime and to stic& there as long as

possible% (heir whole effort ends at that% And if they sho!ld get sho!ldered away from the common manger

by a competition of more br!tal 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 bac& into the frontrow, and finally - even at the e3pense of their most sacred convictions - participate anew in that beloved

spot where they find their fodder% (hey are the ac&als of politics%

!t a general Weltanschhauung will never share its place with something else% (herefore 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 theway for its destr!ction%

(hese p!rely destr!ctive tactics, the danger of which is so readily perceived by the enemy that he forms a

!nited front against them for his common defence, and also the constr!ctive tactics, which m!st beaggressive in order to carry the new world of ideas to s!ccess - both these phases of the str!ggle call for a

body of resol!te fighters% Any new philosophy of life will bring its ideas to victory only if the most

co!rageo!s and active elements of its epoch and its people are enrolled !nder its standards and gro!ped

firmly together in a powerf!l fighting organiation% (o achieve this p!rpose it is absol!tely necessary toselect from the general system of doctrine a certain n!mber of ideas which will appeal to s!ch individ!als

and which, once they are e3pressed in a precise and clear-c!t form, will serve as articles of faith for a new

association of men% /hile the programme of the ordinary political party is nothing b!t the recipe for

coo&ing !p favo!rable res!lts o!t of the ne3t general elections, the programme of a Weltanschhauung represents a declaration of war against an e3isting order of things, against present conditions, in short,

against the established Weltanschhauung %It is not necessary, however, that every individ!al fighter for s!ch a new doctrine need have a f!ll grasp of

the !ltimate ideas and plans of those who are the leaders of the movement% It is only necessary that eachsho!ld have a clear notion of the f!ndamental ideas and that he sho!ld thoro!ghly assimilate a few of the

most f!ndamental principles, so that he will be convinced of the necessity of carrying the movement and its

doctrines to s!ccess% (he individ!al soldier is not initiated in the &nowledge of high strategical plans% !t

he is trained to s!bmit to a rigid discipline, to be passionately convinced of the !stice and inner worth of his ca!se and that he m!st devote himself to it witho!t reserve% 'o, too, the individ!al follower of a

movement m!st be made ac+!ainted with its far-reaching p!rpose, how it is inspired by a powerf!l will and

has a great f!t!re before it%

'!pposing that each soldier in an army were a general, and had the training and capacity for generalship,that army wo!ld not be an efficient fighting instr!ment% 'imilarly a political movement wo!ld not be very

efficient in fighting for a Weltanschhauung if it were made !p e3cl!sively of intellect!als% *o, we need the

simple soldier also% /itho!t him no discipline can be established%y its very nat!re, an organiation can e3ist only if leaders of high intellect!al ability are served by a largemass of men who are emotionally devoted to the ca!se% (o maintain discipline in a company of two

h!ndred men who are e+!ally intelligent and capable wo!ld t!rn o!t more diffic!lt in the long r!n than in a

company of one h!ndred and ninety less gifted men and ten who have had a higher ed!cation%

X2=Y(he 'ocial-?emocrats have profited very m!ch by recogniing this tr!th% (hey too& the broad massesof o!r people who had !st completed military service and learned to s!bmit to discipline, and they

s!bected this mass of men to the discipline of the 'ocial-?emocratic organiation, which was no less rigid

than the discipline thro!gh which the yo!ng men had passed in their military training% (he 'ocial-?emocratic organiation consisted of an army divided into officers and men% (he 6erman wor&er who had



passed thro!gh his military service became the private soldier in that army, and the )ewish intellect!al was

the officer% (he 6erman trade !nion f!nctionaries may be compared to the non-commissioned officers% (he

fact, which was always loo&ed !pon with indifference by o!r middle-classes, that only the so-called

!ned!cated classes oined ar3ism was the very gro!nd on which this party achieved its s!ccess% For whilethe bo!rgeois parties, beca!se they mostly consisted of intellect!als, were only a fec&less band of

!ndisciplined individ!als, o!t of m!ch less intelligent h!man material the ar3ist leaders formed an army

of party combatants who obey their )ewish masters !st as blindly as they formerly obeyed their 6erman

officers% (he 6erman middle-classes, who never> bothered their heads abo!t psychological problems beca!se they felt themselves s!perior to s!ch matters, did not thin& it necessary to reflect on the profo!nd

significance of this fact and the secret danger involved in it% Indeed they believed% that a political movement

which draws its followers e3cl!sively from intellect!al circles m!st, for that very reason, be of greater

importance and have better gro!nds% for its chances of s!ccess, and even a greater probability of ta&ingover the government of the co!ntry than a party made !p of the ignorant masses% (hey completely failed to

realie the fact that the strength of a political party never consists in the intelligence and independent spirit

of the ran&-and-file of its members b!t rather in the spirit of willing obedience with which they follow their

intellect!al leaders% /hat is of decisive importance is the leadership itself% /hen two bodies of troops arearrayed in m!t!al combat victory will not fall to that side in which every soldier has an e3pert &nowledge

of the r!les of strategy, b!t rather to that side which has the best leaders and at the same time the best

disciplined, most blindly obedient and best drilled troops%

(hat is a f!ndamental piece of &nowledge which we m!st always bear in mind when we e3amine the

possibility of transforming a Weltanschhauung into a practical reality%If we agree that in order to carry a Weltanschhauung into practical effect it m!st be incorporated in a

fighting movement, then the logical conse+!ence is that the programme of s!ch a movement m!st ta&e

acco!nt of the h!man material at its disposal% )!st as the !ltimate aims and f!ndamental principles m!st beabsol!tely definite and !nmista&able, so the propagandist programme m!st be well drawn !p and m!st be

inspired by a &een sense of its psychological appeals to the minds of those witho!t whose help the noblest

ideas will be doomed to remain in the eternal, realm of ideas%

If the idea of the "eople#s 'tate, which is at present an obsc!re wish, is one day to attain a clear and definites!ccess, from its vag!e and vast mass of tho!ght it will have to p!t forward certain definite principles

which of their very nat!re and content are calc!lated to attract a broad mass of adherents> in other words,

s!ch a gro!p of people as can g!arantee that these principles will be fo!ght for% (hat gro!p of people are

the 6erman wor&ers%(hat is why the programme of the new movement was condensed into a few f!ndamental post!lates,

twenty-five in all% (hey are meant first of all to give the ordinary man a ro!gh s&etch of what the movementis aiming at% (hey 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 !nite s!ch adherents together in a covenant to which allhave s!bscribed%

In these matters we m!st never lose sight of the following0 /hat we call the programme of the movement

is absol!tely right as far as its !ltimate aims are concerned, b!t as regards the manner in which that

programme is form!lated X2=GYcertain psychologica1 considerations had to be ta&en into acco!nt% ence,in the co!rse of time, the opinion may well arise that certain principles sho!ld be e3pressed differently and

might be better form!lated% !t any attempt at a different form!lation has a fatal effect in most cases% For

something that o!ght to be fi3ed and !nsha&able thereby becomes the s!bect of disc!ssion% As soon as one

point alone is removed from the sphere of dogmatic certainty, the disc!ssion will not simply res!lt in a newand better form!lation which will have greater consistency b!t may easily lead to endless debates and

general conf!sion% In s!ch cases the +!estion m!st always be caref!lly considered as to whether a new and

more ade+!ate form!lation is to be preferred, tho!gh it may ca!se a controversy within the movement, or whether it may not be better to retain the old form!la which, tho!gh probably not the best, represents anorganism enclosed in itself, solid and internally homogeneo!s% All e3perience shows that the second of

these alternatives is preferable% For since in these changes one is dealing only with e3ternal forms s!ch

corrections will always appear desirable and possible% !t in the last analysis the generality of people thin&

s!perficially and therefore the great danger is that in what is merely an e3ternal form!lation 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 wea&ened and the energies that o!ght to be directed towards the o!ter world

are dissipated in programmatic disc!ssions within the ran&s of the movement%For a doctrine that is act!ally right in its main feat!res it is less dangero!s to retain a form!lation which



have to give !p his attempt to pers!ade them% It wo!ld be li&e &noc&ing one#s head against a wall, so

desperate were these people% (hey wo!ld not listen nor !nderstand that :ersailles was a scandal and a

disgrace and that the dictate signified an act of highway robbery against o!r people% (he disr!ptive wor&

done by the ar3ists and the poisono!s propaganda of the e3ternal enemy had robbed these people of their reason% And one had no right to complain% For the g!ilt on this side was enormo!s% /hat had the 6erman

bo!rgeoisie done to call a halt to this terrible campaign of disintegration, to oppose it and open a way to a

recognition of the tr!th by giving a better and more thoro!gh e3planation of the sit!ation than that of the

ar3ists5 *othing, nothing% At that time I never saw those who are now the great apostles of the people%"erhaps they spo&e to select gro!ps, at tea parties of their own little coteries> b!t there where they sho!ld

have been, where the wolves were at wor&, they never ris&ed their appearance, !nless it gave them the

opport!nity of yelling in concert with the wolves%

As for myself, I then saw clearly that for the small gro!p which first composed o!r movement the +!estionof war g!ilt had to be cleared !p, and cleared !p in the light of historical tr!th% A preliminary condition for

the f!t!re s!ccess of o!r movement was that it sho!ld bring &nowledge of the meaning of the peace treaties

to the minds of the pop!lar masses% In the opinion of the masses, the peace treaties then signified a

democratic s!ccess% (herefore, it was necessary to ta&e the opposite side and dig o!rselves into the mindsof the people as the enemies of the peace treaties> so that later on, when the na&ed tr!th of this despicable

swindle wo!ld be disclosed in all its hideo!sness, the people wo!ld recall the position which we then too&

and wo!ld give !s their confidence%

Already at that time I too& !p my stand on those important f!ndamental +!estions where p!blic opinion had

gone wrong as a whole% I opposed these wrong notions witho!t regard either for pop!larity or for hatred,and I was ready to face the fight% (he *ational 'ocialist 6erman Labo!r "arty o!ght not to be the beadle

b!t rather the master of p!blic opinion% It m!st not serve the masses b!t rather dominate them%

In the case of every movement, especially d!ring its str!ggling stages, there is nat!rally a temptation toconform to the tactics of an opponent and !se the same battle-cries, when his tactics have s!cceeded in

leading the people to cray concl!sions or to adopt mista&en attit!des towards the +!estions at iss!e% (his

temptation is partic!larly strong when motives can be fo!nd, tho!gh they are entirely ill!sory, that seem to

point towards the same ends which the yo!ng movement is aiming at% !man poltroonery will then all themore readily adopt those arg!ments which give it a semblance of !stification, from its own point of view,#

in participating in the criminal policy which the adversary is following%

On several occasions I have e3perienced s!ch cases, in which the greatest energy had to be employed to

prevent the ship of o!r movement from being drawn into a general c!rrent which had been startedartificially, and indeed from sailing with it% (he last occasion was when o!r 6erman "ress, the ec!ba of

the e3istence of the 6erman nation, s!cceeded in bringing the +!estion of 'o!th (yrol into a position of importance which was serio!sly damaging to the interests of the 6erman people% /itho!t considering what

interests they were serving, several so-called national# men, parties and leag!es, oined in the general cry,simply for fear of p!blic opinion which had been e3cited by the )ews, and foolishly contrib!ted to help in

the str!ggle against a system which we 6ermans o!ght, partic!larly in those days, to consider as the one

ray of light in this distracted world% /hile the international /orld-)ew is slowly b!t s!rely strangling !s,

o!r so-called patriots vociferate against a man and his system which have had the co!rage to liberatethemselves from the shac&les of )ewish Freemasonry at least in one +!arter of the globe and to set the

forces of national resistance against the international world-poison% !t wea& characters were tempted to

set their sails according to the direction of the wind and capit!late before the sho!t of p!blic opinion% For it

was veritably a capit!lation% (hey are so m!ch in the habit of lying and so morally base that men may notadmit this even to themselves, b!t the tr!th remains that only cowardice and fear of the p!blic feeling

aro!sed by the )ews ind!ced certain people to oin in the h!e and cry% All the other reasons p!t forward

were only miserable e3c!ses of paltry c!lprits who were conscio!s of their own crime%(here it was necessary to grasp the r!dder with an iron hand and t!rn the movement abo!t, so as to save itfrom a co!rse that wo!ld have led it on the roc&s% $ertainly to attempt s!ch a change of co!rse was not a

pop!lar manoe!vre at that time, beca!se all the leading forces of p!blic opinion had been active and a great

flame of p!blic feeling ill!minated only one direction% '!ch a decision almost always brings disfavo!r on

those who dare to ta&e it% In the co!rse of history not a few men have been stoned for an act for which posterity has afterwards than&ed them on its &nees%

!t a movement m!st co!nt on posterity and not on the pla!dits of the movement% It may well be that at

s!ch moments certain individ!als have to end!re ho!rs of ang!ish> b!t they sho!ld not forget that themoment of liberation will come and that a movement which p!rposes to reshape the world m!st serve the



f!t!re and not the passing ho!r%

On this point it may be asserted that the greatest and most end!ring s!ccesses in history are mostly those

which were least !nderstood at the beginning, beca!se they were in strong contrast to p!blic opinion and

the views and wishes of the time%/e had e3perience of this when we made o!r own first p!blic appearance% In all tr!th it can be said that we

did not co!rt p!blic favo!r b!t made an onsla!ght on the follies of o!r people% In those days the following

happened almost always0 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% (hen I had to spend a co!ple of ho!rs in pers!ading two or three tho!sand people to give !p the opinions they had first held, in destroying the

fo!ndations of their views with one blow after another and finally in leading them over to ta&e their stand

on the gro!nds of o!r own convictions and o!r Weltanschhauung %

I learned something that was important at that time, namely, to snatch from the hands of the enemy theweapons which he was !sing in his reply% I soon noticed that o!r adversaries, especially in the persons of

those who led the disc!ssion against !s, were f!rnished with a definite repertoire of arg!ments o!t of which

they too& points against o!r claims which were being constantly repeated% (he !niform character of this

mode of proced!re pointed to a systematic and !nified training% And so we were able to recognie theincredible way in which the enemy#s propagandists had been disciplined, and I am pro!d to-day that I

discovered a means not only of ma&ing this propaganda ineffective b!t of beating the artificers of it at their

own wor&% (wo 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 co!nter-arg!ments we had to e3pect in the disc!ssion, so that in the co!rse of my own speechthese co!ld be dealt with and ref!ted% (o this end it was necessary to mention all the possible obections

and show their inconsistency> it was all the easier to win over an honest listener by e3p!nging from his

memory the arg!ments which had been impressed !pon it, so that we anticipated o!r replies% /hat he hadlearned was ref!ted witho!t having been mentioned by him and that made him all the more attentive to

what I had to say%

(hat was the reason why, after my first lect!re on the "eace (reaty of :ersailles,# which I delivered to the

troops while I was still a political instr!ctor in my regiment, I made an alteration in the title and s!bect andhenceforth spo&e on (he (reaties of rest-Litows& and :ersailles%# For after the disc!ssion which followed

my first lect!re I +!ic&ly ascertained that in reality people &new nothing abo!t the (reaty of rest-Litows&

and that able party propaganda had s!cceeded in presenting that (reaty as one of the most scandalo!s acts

of violence in the history of the world%As a res!lt of the persistency with which this falsehood was repeated again and again before the masses of

the people, millions of 6ermans saw in the (reaty of :ersailles a !st castigation for the crime we hadcommitted at rest-Litows&% (h!s they considered all opposition to :ersailles as !n!st and in many cases

there was an honest moral disli&e to s!ch a proceeding% And this was also the reason why the shameless andmonstro!s word 8eparations# came into common !se in 6ermany% (his hypocritical falsehood appeared to

millions of o!r e3asperated fellow co!ntrymen as the f!lfilment of a higher !stice% It is a terrible tho!ght,

b!t the fact was so% (he best proof of this was the propaganda which I initiated against :ersailles by

e3plaining the (reaty of rest-Litows&% I compared the two treaties with one another, point by point, andshowed how in tr!th the one treaty was immensely h!mane, in contradistinction to the inh!man barbarity of

the other% (he effect was very stri&ing% (hen I spo&e on this theme before an assembly of two tho!sand

persons, d!ring which I often saw three tho!sand si3 h!ndred hostile eyes fi3ed on me% And three ho!rs

later I had in front of me a swaying mass of righteo!s indignation and f!ry% A great lie had been !prootedfrom the hearts and brains of a crowd composed of tho!sands of individ!als and a tr!th had been implanted

in its place%

(he two lect!res - that On the $a!ses of the /orld /ar# and On the "eace (reaties of rest-Litows& and:ersailles# respectively - I then considered as the most important of all% (herefore I repeated them doens of times, always giving them a new intonation> !ntil at least on those points a definitely clear and !nanimo!s

opinion reigned among those from whom o!r movement recr!ited its first members%

F!rthermore, these gatherings bro!ght me the advantage that I slowly became a platform orator at mass

meetings, and gave me practice in the pathos and gest!re re+!ired in large halls that held tho!sands of people%

O!tside of the small circles which I have mentioned, at that time I fo!nd no party engaged in e3plaining

things to the people in this way% *ot one of these parties was then active which tal& to-day as if it was theywho had bro!ght abo!t the change in p!blic opinion% If a political leader, calling himself a nationalist,



prono!nced a disco!rse 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% !t that was not what was needed then% /hat was needed was to win over thro!gh propaganda

and e3planation those whose opinions and mental attit!des held them bo!nd to the enemy#s camp%(he one-page circ!lar was also adopted by !s to help in this propaganda% /hile still a soldier I had written

a circ!lar in which I contrasted the (reaty of rest-Litows& with that of :ersailles% (hat circ!lar was

printed and distrib!ted in large n!mbers% Later on I !sed it for the party, and also with good s!ccess% O!r

first meetings were disting!ished by the fact that there were tables covered with leaflets, papers, and pamphlets of every &ind% !t we relied principally on the spo&en word% And, in fact, this is the only means

capable of prod!cing really great revol!tions, which can be e3plained on general psychological gro!nds%

In the first vol!me I have already stated that all the formidable events which have changed the aspect of the

world were carried thro!gh, not by the written b!t by the spo&en word% On that point there was a longdisc!ssion in a certain section of the "ress d!ring the co!rse of which o!r shrewd bo!rgeois people strongly

opposed my thesis% !t the reason for this attit!de confo!nded the sceptics% (he bo!rgeois intellect!als

protested against my attit!de simply beca!se they themselves did not have the force or ability to infl!ence

the masses thro!gh the spo&en word> for they always relied e3cl!sively on the help of writers and did notenter the arena themselves as orators for the p!rpose of aro!sing the people% (he development of events

necessarily led to that condition of affairs which is characteristic of the bo!rgeoisie to-day, namely, the loss

of the psychological instinct to act !pon and infl!ence the masses%

An orator receives contin!o!s g!idance from the people before whom he spea&s% (his helps him to correct

the direction of his speech> for he can always ga!ge, by the faces of his hearers, how far they follow and!nderstand him, and whether his words are prod!cing the desired effect% !t the writer does not &now his

reader at all% (herefore, from the o!tset he does not address himself to a definite h!man gro!p of persons

which he has before his eyes b!t m!st write in a general way% ence, !p to a certain e3tent he m!st fail in psychological finesse and fle3ibility% (herefore, in general it may be said that a brilliant orator writes better

than a brilliant writer can spea&, !nless the latter has contin!al practice in p!blic spea&ing% One m!st also

remember that of itself the m!ltit!de is mentally inert, that it remains attached to its old habits and that it is

not nat!rally prone to read something which does not conform with its own pre-established beliefs whens!ch writing does not contain what the m!ltit!de hopes to find there% (herefore, some piece of writing

which has a partic!lar tendency is for the most part read only by those who are in sympathy with it% Only a

leaflet or a placard, on acco!nt of its brevity, can hope to aro!se a momentary interest in those whose

opinions differ from it% (he pict!re, in all its forms, incl!ding the film, has better prospects% ere there isless need of elaborating the appeal to the intelligence% It is s!fficient if one be caref!l to have +!ite short

te3ts, beca!se many people are more ready to accept a pictorial presentation than to read a long writtendescription% In a m!ch shorter time, at one stro&e I might say, people will !nderstand a pictorial

presentation of something which it wo!ld ta&e them a long and laborio!s effort of reading to !nderstand%(he most important consideration, however, is that one never &nows into what hands a piece of written

material comes and yet the form in which its s!bect is presented m!st remain the same% In general the

effect is greater when the form of treatment corresponds to the mental level of the reader and s!its his

nat!re% (herefore, a boo& which is meant for the broad masses of the people m!st try from the very start togain its effects thro!gh a style and level of ideas which wo!ld be +!ite different from a boo& intended to be

read by the higher intellect!al classes%

Only thro!gh his capacity for adaptability does the force of the written word approach that of oral speech%

(he orator may deal with the same s!bect as a boo& deals with> b!t if he has the geni!s of a great and pop!lar orator he will scarcely ever repeat the same arg!ment or the same material in the same form on two

consec!tive occasions% e will always follow the lead of the great mass in s!ch a way that from the living

emotion of his hearers the apt word which he needs will be s!ggested to him and in its t!rn this will gostraight to the hearts of his hearers% 'ho!ld he ma&e even a slight mista&e he has the living correction before him% As I have already said, he can read the play of e3pression on the faces of his hearers, first to see

if they !nderstand what he says, secondly to see if they ta&e in the whole of his arg!ment, and, thirdly, in

how far they are convinced of the !stice of what has been placed before them% 'ho!ld he observe, first,

that his hearers do not !nderstand him he will ma&e his e3planation so elementary and clear that they will be able to grasp it, even to the last individ!al% 'econdly, if he feels that they are not capable of following

him he will ma&e one idea follow another caref!lly and slowly !ntil the most slow-witted hearer no longer

lags behind% (hirdly, as soon as he has the feeling that they do not seem convinced that he is right in theway he has p!t things to them he will repeat his arg!ment over and over again, always giving fresh



ill!strations, and he himself will state their !nspo&en obection% e will repeat these obections, dissecting

them and ref!ting them, !ntil the last gro!p of the opposition show him by their behavio!r and play of

e3pression that they have capit!lated before his e3position of the case%

*ot infre+!ently it is a case of overcoming ingrained pre!dices which are mostly !nconscio!s and ares!pported by sentiment rather than reason% It is a tho!sand times more diffic!lt to overcome this barrier of

instinctive aversion, emotional hatred and preventive dissent than to correct opinions which are fo!nded on

defective or erroneo!s &nowledge% False ideas and ignorance may be set aside by means of instr!ction, b!t

emotional resistance never can% *othing b!t an appeal to these hidden forces will be effective here% Andthat appeal can be made by scarcely any writer% Only the orator can hope to ma&e it%

A very stri&ing proof of this is fo!nd in the fact that, tho!gh we had a bo!rgeois "ress which in many cases

was well written and prod!ced and had a circ!lation of millions among the people, it co!ld not prevent the

broad masses from becoming the implacable enemies of the bo!rgeois class% (he del!ge of papers and boo&s p!blished by the intellect!al circles year after year passed over the millions of the lower social strata

li&e water over glaed leather% (his proves that one of two things m!st be tr!e0 either that the matter offered

in the bo!rgeois "ress was worthless or that it is impossible to reach the hearts of the broad masses by

means of the written word alone% Of co!rse, the latter wo!ld be specially tr!e where the written materialshows s!ch little psychological insight as has hitherto been the case%

It is !seless to obect here, as certain big erlin papers of 6erman-*ational tendencies have attempted to

do, that this statement is ref!ted by the fact that the ar3ists have e3ercised their greatest infl!ence thro!gh

their writings, and especially thro!gh their principal boo&, p!blished by arl ar3% 'eldom has a more

s!perficial arg!ment been based on a false ass!mption% /hat gave ar3ism its amaing infl!ence over the broad masses was not that formal printed wor& which sets forth the )ewish system of ideas, b!t the

tremendo!s oral propaganda carried on for years among the masses% O!t of one h!ndred tho!sand 6erman

wor&ers scarcely one h!ndred &now of ar3#s boo&% It has been st!died m!ch more in intellect!al circlesand especially by the )ews than by the gen!ine followers of the movement who come from the lower

classes% (hat wor& was not written for the masses, b!t e3cl!sively for the intellect!al leaders of the )ewish

machine for con+!ering the world% (he engine was heated with +!ite different st!ff0 namely, the o!rnalistic

"ress% /hat differentiates the bo!rgeois "ress from the ar3ist "ress is that the latter is written byagitators, whereas the bo!rgeois "ress wo!ld li&e to carry on agitation by means of professional writers%

(he 'ocial-?emocrat s!b-editor, who almost always came directly from the meeting to the editorial offices

of his paper, felt his ob on his finger-tips% !t the bo!rgeois writer who left his des& to appear before the

masses already felt ill when he smelled the very odo!r of the crowd and fo!nd that what he had written was!seless to him%

/hat won over millions of wor&people to the ar3ist ca!se was not the e3 cathedra style of the ar3istwriters b!t the formidable propagandist wor& done by tens of tho!sands of indefatigable agitators,

commencing with the leading fiery agitator down to the smallest official in the syndicate, the tr!steddelegate and the platform orator% F!rthermore, there were the h!ndreds of tho!sands of meetings where

these orators, standing on tables in smo&y taverns, hammered their ideas into the heads of the masses, th!s

ac+!iring an admirable psychological &nowledge of the h!man material they had to deal with% And in this

way they were enabled to select the best weapons for their assa!lt on the citadel of p!blic opinion% Inaddition to all this there were the gigantic mass-demonstrations with processions in which a h!ndred

tho!sand men too& part% All this was calc!lated to impress on the petty-hearted individ!al the pro!d

conviction that, tho!gh a small worm, he was at the same time a cell of the great dragon before whose

devastating breath the hated bo!rgeois world wo!ld one day be cons!med in fire and flame, and thedictatorship of the proletariat wo!ld celebrate its concl!sive victory%

(his &ind of propaganda infl!enced men in s!ch a way as to give them a taste for reading the 'ocial

?emocratic "ress and prepare their minds for its teaching% (hat "ress, in its t!rn, was a vehicle of thespo&en word rather than of the written word% /hereas in the bo!rgeois camp professors and learnedwriters, theorists and a!thors of all &inds, made attempts at tal&ing, in the ar3ist camp real spea&ers often

made attempts at writing% And it was precisely the )ew who was most prominent here% In general and

beca!se of his shrewd dialectical s&ill and his &nac& of twisting the tr!th to s!it his own p!rposes, he was

an effective writer b!t in reality his mtier was that of a revol!tionary orator rather than a writer%For this reason the o!rnalistic bo!rgeois world, setting aside the fact that here also the )ew held the whip

hand and that therefore this press did not really interest itself in the instr!cttion of the broad masses, was

not able to e3ercise even the least infl!ence over the opinions held by the great masses of o!r people%It is diffic!lt to remove emotional pre!dices, psychological bias, feelings, etc%, and to p!t others in their



place% '!ccess depends here on imponderable conditions and infl!ences% Only the orator who is gifted with

the most sensitive insight can estimate all this% 7ven the time of day at which the speech is delivered has a

decisive infl!ence on its res!lts% (he same speech, made by the same orator and on the same theme, will

have very different res!lts according as it is delivered at ten o#cloc& in the forenoon, at three in theafternoon, or in the evening% /hen I first engaged in p!blic spea&ing I arranged for meetings to ta&e place

in the forenoon and I remember partic!larly a demonstration that we held in the !nich indl eller

Against the Oppression of 6erman ?istricts%# (hat was the biggest hall then in !nich and the a!dacity of

o!r !nderta&ing was great% In order to ma&e the ho!r of the meeting attractive for all the members of o!r movement and the other people who might come, I fi3ed it for ten o#cloc& on a '!nday morning% (he res!lt

was depressing% !t it was very instr!ctive% (he hall was filled% (he impression was profo!nd, b!t the

general feeling was cold as ice% *obody got warmed !p, and I myself, as the spea&er of the occasion, felt

profo!ndly !nhappy at the tho!ght that I co!ld not establish the slightest contact with my a!dience% I do notthin& I spo&e worse than before, b!t the effect seemed absol!tely negative% I left the hall very discontented,

b!t also feeling that I had gained a new e3perience% Later on I tried the same &ind of e3periment, b!t

always with the same res!lts%

(hat was nothing to be wondered at% If one goes to a theatre to see a matine performance and then attendsan evening performance of the same play one is asto!nded at the difference in the impressions created% A

sensitive person recognies for himself the fact that these two states of mind ca!sed by the matinee and the

evening performance respectively are +!ite different in themselves% (he same is tr!e of cinema prod!ctions%

(his latter point is important> for one may say of the theatre that perhaps in the afternoon the actor does not

ma&e the same effort as in the evening% !t s!rely it cannot be said that the cinema is different in theafternoon from what it is at nine o#cloc& in the evening% *o, here the time e3ercises a distinct infl!ence,

!st as a room e3ercises a distinct infl!ence on a person% (here are rooms which leave one cold, for reasons

which are diffic!lt to e3plain% (here are rooms which ref!se steadfastly to allow any favo!rable atmosphereto be created in them% oreover, certain memories and traditions which are present as pict!res in the h!man

mind may have a determining infl!ence on the impression prod!ced% (h!s, a representation of "arsifal at

ayre!th will have an effect +!ite different from that which the same opera prod!ces in any other part of

the world% (he mysterio!s charm of the o!se on the Festival eights# in the old city of (he argravecannot be e+!alled or s!bstit!ted anywhere else%

In all these cases one deals with the problem of infl!encing the freedom of the h!man will% And that is tr!e

especially of meetings where there are men whose wills are opposed to the spea&er and who m!st be

bro!ght aro!nd to a new way of thin&ing% In the morning and d!ring the day it seems that the power of theh!man will rebels with its strongest energy against any attempt to impose !pon it the will or opinion of

another% On the other hand, in the evening it easily s!cc!mbs to the domination of a stronger will% eca!sereally in s!ch assemblies there is a contest between two opposite forces% (he s!perior oratorical art of a

man who has the compelling character of an apostle will s!cceed better in bringing aro!nd to a new way of thin&ing those who have nat!rally been s!bected to a wea&ening of their forces of resistance rather than in

converting those who are in f!ll possession of their volitional and intellect!al energies%

(he mysterio!s artificial dimness of the $atholic ch!rches also serves this p!rpose, the b!rning candles, the

incense, the th!rible, etc%In this str!ggle between the orator and the opponent whom he m!st convert to his ca!se this marvello!s

sensibility towards the psychological infl!ences of propaganda can hardly ever be availed of by an a!thor%

6enerally spea&ing, the effect of the writer#s wor& helps rather to conserve, reinforce and deepen the

fo!ndations of a mentality already e3isting% All really great historical revol!tions were not prod!ced by thewritten word% At most, they were accompanied by it%

It is o!t of the +!estion to thin& that the French 8evol!tion co!ld have been carried into effect by

philosophiing theories if they had not fo!nd an army of agitators led by demagog!es of the grand style%(hese demagog!es inflamed pop!lar passion that had been already aro!sed, !ntil that volcanic er!ptionfinally bro&e o!t and conv!lsed the whole of 7!rope% And the same happened in the case of the gigantic

olshevi& revol!tion which recently too& place in 8!ssia% It was not d!e to the writers on Lenin#s side b!t

to the oratorical activities of those who preached the doctrine of hatred and that of the inn!merable small

and great orators who too& part in the agitation%(he masses of illiterate 8!ssians were not fired to $omm!nist revol!tionary enth!siasm by reading the

theories of arl ar3 b!t by the promises of paradise made to the people by tho!sands of agitators in the

service of an idea%It was always so, and it will always be so%



It is !st typical of o!r pig-headed intellect!als, who live apart from the practical world, to thin& that a

writer m!st of necessity be s!perior to an orator in intelligence% (his point of view was once e3+!isitely

ill!strated by a criti+!e, p!blished in a certain *ational paper which I have already mentioned, where it was

stated that one is often disill!sioned by reading the speech of an ac&nowledged great orator in print% (hatreminded me of another article which came into my hands d!ring the /ar% It dealt with the speeches of

Lloyd 6eorge, who was then inister of !nitions, and e3amined them in a painsta&ing way !nder the

microscope of criticism% (he writer made the brilliant statement that these speeches showed inferior

intelligence and learning and that, moreover, they were banal and commonplace prod!ctions% I myself proc!red some of these speeches, p!blished in pamphlet form, and had to la!gh at the fact that a normal

6erman +!ill-driver did not in the least !nderstand these psychological masterpieces in the art of

infl!encing the masses% (his man criticied these speeches e3cl!sively according to the impression they

made on his own blas mind, whereas the great ritish ?emagog!e had prod!ced an immense effect on hisa!dience thro!gh them, and in the widest sense on the whole of the ritish pop!lace% Loo&ed at from this

point of view, that 7nglishman#s speeches were most wonderf!l achievements, precisely beca!se they

showed an asto!nding &nowledge of the so!l of the broad masses of the people% For that reason their effect

was really penetrating% $ompare with them the f!tile stammerings of a ethmann-ollweg% On the s!rfacehis speeches were !ndo!btedly more intellect!al, b!t they !st proved this man#s inability to spea& to the

people, which he really co!ld not do% *evertheless, to the average st!pid brain of the 6erman writer, who

is, of co!rse, endowed with a lot of scientific learning, it came +!ite nat!ral to !dge the speeches of the

7nglish inister - which were made for the p!rpose of infl!encing the masses - by the impression which

they made on his own mind, fossilied in its abstract learning% And it was more nat!ral for him to comparethem in the light of that impression with the brilliant b!t f!tile tal& of the 6erman statesman, which of

co!rse appealed to the writer#s mind m!ch more favo!rably% (hat the geni!s of Lloyd 6eorge was not only

e+!al b!t a tho!sandfold s!perior to that of a ethmann-ollweg is proved by the fact that he fo!nd for hisspeeches that form and e3pression which opened the hearts of his people to him and made these people

carry o!t his will absol!tely% (he primitive +!ality itself of those speeches, the originality of his

e3pressions, his choice of clear and simple ill!stration, are e3amples which prove the s!perior political

capacity of this 7nglishman% For one m!st never !dge the speech of a statesman to his people by theimpression which it leaves on the mind of a !niversity professor b!t by the effect it prod!ces on the people%

And this is the sole criterion of the orator#s geni!s%

(he astonishing development of o!r movement, which was created from nothing a few years ago and is to-

day singled o!t for persec!tion by all the internal and e3ternal enemies of o!r nation, m!st be attrib!ted tothe constant recognition and practical application of those principles%

/ritten matter also played an important part in o!r movement> b!t at the stage of which I am writing itserved to give an e+!al and !niform ed!cation to the directors of the movement, in the !pper as well as in

the lower grades, rather than to convert the masses of o!r adversaries% It was only in very rare cases that aconvinced and devoted 'ocial ?emocrat or $omm!nist was ind!ced to ac+!ire an !nderstanding of o!r

Weltanschhauung or to st!dy a criticism of his own by proc!ring and reading one of o!r pamphlets or even

one of o!r boo&s% 7ven a newspaper is rarely read if it does not bear the stamp of a party affiliation%

oreover, the reading of newspapers helps little> beca!se the general pict!re given by a single n!mber of anewspaper is so conf!sed and prod!ces s!ch a fragmentary impression that it really does not infl!ence the

occasional reader% And where a man has to co!nt his pennies it cannot be ass!med that, e3cl!sively for the

p!rpose of being obectively informed, he will become a reg!lar reader or s!bscriber to a paper which

opposes his views% Only one who has already oined a movement will reg!larly read the party organ of thatmovement, and especially for the p!rpose of &eeping himself informed of what is happening in the

movement%

It is +!ite different with the spo&en# leaflet% 7specially if it be distrib!ted gratis it will be ta&en !p by one person or another, all the more willingly if its display title refers to a +!estion abo!t which everybody istal&ing at the moment% "erhaps the reader, after having read thro!gh s!ch a leaflet more or less

tho!ghtf!lly, will have new viewpoints and mental attit!des and may give his attention to a new movement%

!t with these, even in the best of cases, only a small imp!lse will be given, b!t no definite conviction will

be created> beca!se the leaflet can do nothing more than draw attention to something and can becomeeffective only by bringing the reader s!bse+!ently into a sit!ation where he is more f!ndamentally

informed and instr!cted% '!ch instr!ction m!st always be given at the mass assembly%

ass assemblies are also necessary for the reason that, in attending them, the individ!al who felt himself formerly only on the point of oining the new movement, now begins to feel isolated and in fear of being



left alone as he ac+!ires for the first time the pict!re of a great comm!nity which has a strengthening and

enco!raging effect on most people% rigaded in a company or battalion, s!rro!nded by his companions, he

will march with a lighter heart to the attac& than if he had to march alone% In the crowd he feels himself in

some way th!s sheltered, tho!gh in reality there are a tho!sand arg!ments against s!ch a feeling%ass demonstrations on the grand scale not only reinforce the will of the individ!al b!t they draw him still

closer to the movement and help to create an esprit de corps% (he man who appears first as the

representative of a new doctrine in his place of b!siness or in his factory is bo!nd to feel himself

embarrassed and has need of that reinforcement which comes from the conscio!sness that he is a member of a great comm!nity% And only a mass demonstration can impress !pon him the greatness of this

comm!nity% If, on leaving the shop or mammoth factory, in which he feels very small indeed, he sho!ld

enter a vast assembly for the first time and see aro!nd him tho!sands and tho!sands of men who hold the

same opinions> if, while still see&ing his way, he is gripped by the force of mass-s!ggestion which comesfrom the e3citement and enth!siasm of three or fo!r tho!sand other men in whose midst he finds himself> if

the manifest s!ccess and the concens!s of tho!sands confirm the tr!th and !stice of the new teaching and

for the first time raise do!bt in his mind as to the tr!th of the opinions held by himself !p to now - then he

s!bmits himself to the fascination of what we call mass-s!ggestion% (he will, the yearning and indeed thestrength of tho!sands of people are in each individ!al% A man who enters s!ch a meeting in do!bt and

hesitation leaves it inwardly fortified> he has become a member of a comm!nity%

(he *ational 'ocialist ovement sho!ld never forget this, and it sho!ld never allow itself to be infl!enced

by these bo!rgeois d!ffers who thin& they &now everything b!t who have foolishly gambled away a great

'tate, together with their own e3istence and the s!premacy of their own class% (hey are overflowing withability> they can do everything, and they &now everything% !t there is one thing they have not &nown how

to do, and that is how to save the 6erman people from falling into the arms of ar3ism% In that they have

shown themselves most pitiably and miserably impotent% 'o that the present opinion they have of themselves is only e+!al to their conceit% (heir pride and st!pidity are fr!its of the same tree%

If these people try to disparage the importance of the spo&en word to-day, they do it only beca!se they

realie - 6od be praised and than&ed - how f!tile all their own speechifying has been%

$hapter 'even

In 1919-2< and also in 1921 I attended some of the bo!rgeois meetings% Invariably I had the same feelingtowards these as towards the comp!lsory dose of castor oil in my boyhood days% It !st had to be ta&en

beca!se it was good for one0 b!t it certainly tasted !npleasant% If it were possible to tie ropes ro!nd the6erman people and forcibly drag them to these bo!rgeois meetings, &eeping them there behind barred

doors and allowing nobody to escape !ntil the meeting closed, then this proced!re might prove s!ccessf!lin the co!rse of a few h!ndred years% For my own part, I m!st fran&ly admit that, !nder s!ch circ!mstances,

I co!ld not find life worth living> and indeed I sho!ld no longer wish to be a 6erman% !t, than& 6od, all

this is impossible% And so it is not s!rprising that the sane and !nspoilt masses sh!n these bo!rgeois mass

meetings# as the devil sh!ns holy water%I came to &now the prophets of the bo!rgeois Weltanschhauung , and I was not s!rprised at what I learned,

as I &new that they attached little importance to the spo&en word% At that time I attended meetings of the

?emocrats, the 6erman *ationalists, the 6erman "eople#s "arty and the avarian "eople#s "arty Bthe

$entre "arty of avariaC% /hat str!c& me at once was the homogeneo!s !niformity of the a!diences% *early always they were made !p e3cl!sively of party members% (he whole affair was more li&e a yawning

card party than an assembly of people who had !st passed thro!gh a great revol!tion% (he spea&ers did all

they co!ld to maintain this tran+!il atmosphere% (hey declaimed, or rather read o!t, their speeches in thestyle of an intellect!al newspaper article or a learned treatise, avoiding all stri&ing e3pressions% ere andthere a feeble professorial o&e wo!ld be introd!ced, where!pon the people sitting at the spea&er#s table felt

themselves obliged to la!gh - not lo!dly b!t enco!ragingly and with well-bred reserve%

And there were always those people at the spea&er#s table% I once attended a meeting in the /agner all in

!nich% It was a demonstration to celebrate the anniversary of the attle of Leipig%1GC (he speech wasdelivered or rather read o!t by a venerable old professor from one or other of the !niversities% (he

committee sat on the platform0 one monocle on the right, another monocle on the left, and in the centre a

gentleman with no monocle% All three of them were p!nctilio!sly attired in morning coats, and I had theimpression of being present before a !dge#s bench !st as the death sentence was abo!t to be prono!nced



or at a christening or some more solemn religio!s ceremony% (he so-called speech, which in printed form

may have read +!ite well, had a disastro!s effect% After three +!arters of an ho!r the a!dience fell into a sort

of hypnotic trance, which was interr!pted only when some man or woman left the hall, or by the clatter

which the waitresses made, or by the increasing yawns of sl!mbering individ!als% I had posted myself behind three wor&men who were present either o!t of c!riosity or beca!se they were sent there by their

parties% From time to time they glanced at one another with an ill-concealed grin, n!dged one another with

the elbow, and then silently left the hall% One co!ld see that they had no intention whatsoever of

interr!pting the proceedings, nor indeed was it necessary to interr!pt them% At long last the celebrationshowed signs of drawing to a close% After the professor, whose voice had meanwhile become more and

more ina!dible, finally ended his speech, the gentleman witho!t the monocle delivered a ro!sing peroration

to the assembled 6erman sisters and brothers%# On behalf of the a!dience and himself he e3pressed

gratit!de for the magnificent lect!re which they had !st heard from "rofessor W and emphasied howdeeply the "rofessor#s words had moved them all% If a general disc!ssion on the lect!re were to ta&e place it

wo!ld be tantamo!nt to profanity, and he tho!ght he was voicing the opinion of all present in s!ggesting

that s!ch a disc!ssion sho!ld not be held% (herefore, he wo!ld as& the assembly to rise from their seats and

oin in singing the patriotic song, /ir sind ein einig :ol& von rDdern% (he proceedings finally closed withthe anthem, ?e!tschland Dber Alles%

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 lo!dly% /hen we reached the third verse my belief was

confirmed that a good many of those present were not very familiar with the te3t%

!t what has all this to do with the matter when s!ch a song is s!ng wholeheartedly and fervidly by anassembly of 6erman nationals5

After this the meeting bro&e !p and everyone h!rried to get o!tside, one to his glass of beer, one to a cafe,

and others simply into the fresh air%O!t into the fresh airJ (hat was also my feeling% And was this the way to hono!r an heroic str!ggle in

which h!ndreds of tho!sands of "r!ssians and 6ermans had fo!ght5 (o the devil with it allJ

(hat sort of thing might find favo!r with the 6overnment, it being merely a peacef!l# meeting% (he

inister responsible for law and order need not fear that enth!siasm might s!ddenly get the better of p!blicdecor!m and ind!ce these people to po!r o!t of the room and, instead of dispersing to beer halls and cafes,

march in rows of fo!r thro!gh the town singing ?e!tschland hoch in 7hren and ca!sing some

!npleasantness to a police force in need of rest%

*o% (hat type of citien is of no !se to anyone%On the other hand the *ational 'ocialist meetings were by no means peaceable# affairs% (wo distinct

Weltanschhauung en raged in bitter opposition to one another, and these meetings did not close with themechanical rendering of a d!ll patriotic song b!t rather with a passionate o!tbrea& of pop!lar national

feeling%It was imperative from the start to introd!ce rigid discipline into o!r meetings and establish the a!thority of

the chairman absol!tely% O!r p!rpose was not to po!r o!t a mi3t!re of soft-soap bo!rgeois tal&> what we

had to say was meant to aro!se the opponents at o!r meetingsJ ow often did they not t!rn !p in masses

with a few individ!al agitators among them and, !dging by the e3pression on all their faces, ready to finish!s off there and then%

Nes, how often did they not t!rn !p in h!ge n!mbers, those s!pporters of the 8ed Flag, all previo!sly

instr!cted to smash !p everything once and for all and p!t an end to these meetings% ore often than not

everything h!ng on a mere thread, and only the chairman#s r!thless determination and the ro!gh handling by o!r !shers baffled o!r adversaries# intentions% And indeed they had every reason for being irritated%

(he fact that we had chosen red as the colo!r for o!r posters s!fficed to attract them to o!r meetings% (he

ordinary bo!rgeoisie were very shoc&ed to see that, we had also chosen the symbolic red of olshevismand they regarded this as something ambig!o!sly significant% (he s!spicion was whispered in 6erman *ationalist circles that we also were merely another variety of ar3ism, perhaps even ar3ists s!itably

disg!ised, or better still, 'ocialists% (he act!al difference between 'ocialism and ar3ism still remains a

mystery to these people !p to this day% (he charge of ar3ism was concl!sively proved when it was

discovered that at o!r meetings we deliberately s!bstit!ted the words Fellow-co!ntrymen and /omen# for Ladies and 6entlemen# and addressed each other as "arty $omrade#% /e !sed to roar with la!ghter at

these silly faint-hearted bo!rgeoisie and their efforts to p!le o!t o!r origin, o!r intentions and o!r aims%

/e chose red for o!r posters after partic!lar and caref!l deliberation, o!r intention being to irritate the Left,so as to aro!se their attention and tempt them to come to o!r meetings - if only in order to brea& them !p -



so that in this way we got a chance of tal&ing to the people%

In those years# it was indeed a delightf!l e3perience to follow the constantly changing tactics of o!r

perple3ed and helpless adversaries% First of all they appealed to their followers to ignore !s and &eep away

from o!r meetings% 6enerally spea&ing this appeal was heeded% !t, as time went on, more and more of their followers grad!ally fo!nd their way to !s and accepted o!r teaching% (hen the leaders became nervo!s

and !neasy% (hey cl!ng to their belief that s!ch a development sho!ld not be ignored for ever, and that

terror m!st be applied in order to p!t an end to it%

Appeals were then made to the class-conscio!s proletariat# to attend o!r meetings in masses and stri&ewith the clenched hand of the proletarian at the representatives of a monarchist and reactionary agitation#%

O!r meetings s!ddenly became pac&ed with wor&-people f!lly three-+!arters of an ho!r before the

proceedings were sched!led to begin% (hese gatherings resembled a powder cas& ready to e3plode at any

moment> and the f!se was conveniently at hand% !t matters always t!rned o!t differently% "eople came asenemies and left, not perhaps prepared to oin !s, yet in a reflective mood and disposed critically to

e3amine the correctness of their own doctrine% 6rad!ally as time went on my three-ho!r lect!res res!lted in

s!pporters and opponents becoming !nited in one single enth!siastic gro!p of people% 7very signal for the

brea&ing-!p of the meeting failed% (he res!lt was that the opposition leaders became frightened and onceagain loo&ed for help to those +!arters that had formerly disco!ntenanced these tactics and, with some

show of right, had been of the opinion that on principle the wor&ers sho!ld be forbidden to attend o!r

meetings%

(hen they did not come any more, or only in small n!mbers% !t after a short time the whole game started

all over again% (he instr!ctions to &eep away from !s were ignored> the comrades came in steadilyincreasing n!mbers, !ntil finally the advocates of the radical tactics won the day% /e were to be bro&en !p%

Net when, after two, three and even eight meetings, it was realied that to brea& !p these gatherings was

easier said than done and that every meeting res!lted in a decisive wea&ening of the red fighting forces,then s!ddenly the other password was introd!ced0 "roletarians, comrades and comradesses, avoid

meetings of the *ational 'ocialist agitators#%

(he same eternally alternating tactics were also to be observed in the 8ed "ress% 'oon they tried to silence

!s b!t discovered the !selessness of s!ch an attempt% After that they sw!ng ro!nd to the opposite tactics%?aily reference# was made to !s solely for the p!rpose of absol!tely ridic!ling !s in the eyes of the

wor&ing-classes% After a time these gentlemen m!st have felt that no harm was being done to !s, b!t that,

on the contrary, we were reaping an advantage in that people were as&ing themselves why so m!ch space

was being devoted to a s!bect which was s!pposed to be so l!dicro!s% "eople became c!rio!s% '!ddenlythere was a change of tactics and for a time we were treated as veritable criminals against man&ind% One

article followed the other, in which o!r criminal intentions were e3plained and new proofs bro!ght forwardto s!pport what was said% 'candalo!s tales, all of them fabricated from start to finish, were p!blished in

order to help to poison the p!blic mind% !t in a short time even these attac&s also proved f!tile> and in factthey assisted materially beca!se they attracted p!blic attention to !s%

In those days I too& !p the standpoint that it was immaterial whether they la!ghed at !s or reviled !s,

whether they depicted !s as fools or criminals> the important point was that they too& notice of !s and that

in the eyes of the wor&ing-classes we came to be regarded as the only force capable of p!tting !p a fight% Isaid to myself that the followers of the )ewish "ress wo!ld come to &now all abo!t !s and o!r real aims%

One reason why they never got so far as brea&ing !p o!r meetings was !ndo!btedly the incredible

cowardice displayed by the leaders of the opposition% On every critical occasion they left the dirty wor& to

the smaller fry whilst they waited o!tside the halls for the res!lts of the brea& !p%/e were e3ceptionally well informed in regard to o!r opponents# intentions, not only beca!se we allowed

several of o!r party colleag!es to remain members of the 8ed organiations for reasons of e3pediency, b!t

also beca!se the 8ed wire-p!llers, fort!nately for !s, were afflicted with a degree of tal&ativeness that isstill !nfort!nately very prevalent among 6ermans% (hey co!ld not &eep their own co!nsel, and more oftenthan not they started cac&ling before the proverbial egg was laid% ence, time and again o!r preca!tions

were s!ch that 8ed agitators had no in&ling of how near they were to being thrown o!t of the meetings%

(his state of affairs compelled !s to ta&e the wor& of safeg!arding o!r meetings into o!r own hands% *o

reliance co!ld be placed on official protection% On the contrary> e3perience showed that s!ch protectionalways favo!red only the dist!rbers% (he only real o!tcome of police intervention wo!ld be that the

meeting wo!ld be dissolved, that is to say, closed% And that is precisely what o!r opponents granted%

6enerally spea&ing, this led the police to adopt a proced!re which, to say the least, was a most infamo!ssample of official malpractice% (he moment they received information of a threat that the one or other



meeting was to be bro&en !p, instead of arresting the wo!ld-be dist!rbers, they promptly advised the

innocent parties that the meeting was forbidden% (his step the police proclaimed as a preca!tionary

meas!re in the interests of law and order#%

(he political wor& and activities of decent people co!ld therefore always be hindered by desperate r!ffianswho had the means at their disposal% In the name of peace and order 'tate a!thority bowed down to these

r!ffians and demanded that others sho!ld not provo&e them% /hen *ational 'ocialism desired to hold

meetings in certain parts and the labo!r !nions declared that their members wo!ld resist, then it was not

these blac&mailers that were arrested and gaoled% *o% O!r meetings were forbidden by the police% Nes, thisorgan of the law had the !nspea&able imp!dence to advise !s in writing to this effect in inn!merable

instances% (o avoid s!ch event!alities, it was necessary to see to it that every attempt to dist!rb a meeting

was nipped in the b!d% Another feat!re to be ta&en into acco!nt in this respect is that all meetings which

rely on police protection m!st necessarily bring discredit to their promoters in the eyes of the general p!blic% eetings that are only possible with the protective assistance of a strong force of police convert

nobody> beca!se in order to win over the lower strata of the people there m!st be a visible show of strength

on one#s own side% In the same way that a man of co!rage will win a woman#s affection more easily than a

coward, so a heroic movement will be more s!ccessf!l in winning over the hearts of a people than a wea& movement which relies on police s!pport for its very e3istence%

It is for this latter reason in partic!lar that o!r yo!ng movement was to be charged with the responsibility of

ass!ring its own e3istence, defending itself> and cond!cting its own wor& of smashing the 8ed opposition%

(he wor& of organiing the protective meas!res for o!r meetings was based on the following0

B1C An energetic and psychologically !dicio!s way of cond!cting the meeting%B2C An organied s+!ad of troops to maintain order%

In those days we and no one else were masters of the sit!ation at o!r meetings and on no occasion did we

fail to emphasie this% O!r opponents f!lly realied that any provocation wo!ld be the occasion of throwingthem o!t of the hall at once, whatever the odds against !s% At meetings, partic!larly o!tside !nich, we

had in those days from five to eight h!ndred opponents against fifteen to si3teen *ational 'ocialists> yet we

broo&ed no interference, for we were ready to be &illed rather than capit!late% ore than once a handf!l of

party colleag!es offered a heroic resistance to a raging and violent mob of 8eds% (hose fifteen or twentymen wo!ld certainly have been overwhelmed in the end had not the opponents &nown that three or fo!r

times as many of themselves wo!ld first get their s&!lls crac&ed% Arid that ris& they were not willing to r!n%

/e had done o!r best to st!dy ar3ist and bo!rgeois methods of cond!cting meetings, and we had

certainly learnt something%(he ar3ists had always e3ercised a most rigid discipline so that the +!estion of brea&ing !p their

meetings co!ld never have originated in bo!rgeois +!arters% (his gave the 8eds all the more reason for acting on this plan% In time they not only became past-masters in this art b!t in certain large districts of the

8eich they went so far as to declare that non-ar3ist meetings were nothing less than a ca!se of# provocation against the proletariat% (his was partic!larly the case when the wire-p!llers s!spected that a

meeting might call attention to their own transgressions and th!s e3pose their own treachery and chicanery%

(herefore the moment s!ch a meeting was anno!nced to be held a howl of rage went !p from the 8ed

"ress% (hese detractors of the law nearly always t!rned first to the a!thorities and re+!ested in imperativeand threatening lang!age that this provocation of the proletariat# be stopped forthwith in the interests of

law and order#% (heir lang!age was chosen according to the importance of the official bloc&head they were

dealing with and th!s s!ccess was ass!red% If by chance the official happened to be a tr!e 6erman - and not

a mere fig!rehead - and he declined the imp!dent re+!est, then the time-hono!red appeal to stopprovocation of the proletariat# was iss!ed together with instr!ctions to attend s!ch and s!ch a meeting on a

certain date in f!ll strength for the p!rpose of p!tting a stop to the disgracef!l machinations of the

bo!rgeoisie by means of the proletarian fist#%(he pitif!l and frightened manner in which these bo!rgeois meetings are cond!cted m!st be seen in order to be believed% :ery fre+!ently these threats were s!fficient to call off s!ch a meeting at once% (he feeling

of fear was so mar&ed that the meeting, instead of commencing at eight o#cloc&, very seldom was opened

before a +!arter to nine or nine o#cloc&% (he $hairman there!pon did his best, by showering compliments

on the gentleman of the opposition# to prove how he and all others present were pleased Ba palpable lieC towelcome a visit from men who as yet were not in sympathy with them for the reason that only by m!t!al

disc!ssion Bimmediately agreed toC co!ld they be bro!ght closer together in m!t!al !nderstanding% Apart

from this the $hairman also ass!red them that the meeting had no intention whatsoever of interfering withthe professed convictions of anybody% Indeed no% 7veryone had the right to form and hold his own political



the city itself% In the a!t!mn and winter of 192<-1921 o!r meetings in the DrgerbrE! and !nich

indlbrE! had ass!med vast proportions and it was always the same pict!re that presented itself> namely,

meetings of the *'?A" B(he 6erman *ational 'ocialist Labo!r "artyC were always crowded o!t so that

the police were compelled to close and bar the doors long before proceedings commenced%(he organiation of defence g!ards for &eeping order at o!r meetings cleared !p a very diffic!lt +!estion%

Mp till then the movement had possessed no party badge and no party flag% (he lac& of these to&ens was not

only a disadvantage at that time b!t wo!ld prove intolerable in the f!t!re% (he disadvantages were chiefly

that members of the party possessed no o!tward bro&en of membership which lin&ed them together, and itwas absol!tely !nthin&able that for the f!t!re they sho!ld remain witho!t some to&en which wo!ld be a

symbol of the movement and co!ld be set against that of the International%

ore than once in my yo!th the psychological importance of s!ch a symbol had become clearly evident to

me and from a sentimental point of view also it was advisable% In erlin, after the /ar, I was present at amass-demonstration of ar3ists in front of the 8oyal "alace and in the L!stgarten% A sea of red flags, red

armlets and red flowers was in itself s!fficient to give that h!ge assembly of abo!t 12<,<<< persons an

o!tward appearance of strength% I was now able to feel and !nderstand how easily the man in the street

s!cc!mbs to the hypnotic magic of s!ch a grandiose piece of theatrical presentation%(he bo!rgeoisie, which as a party neither possesses or stands for any Weltanschhauung , had therefore not a

single banner% (heir party was composed of patriots# who went abo!t in the colo!rs of the 8eich% If these

colo!rs were the symbol of a definite Weltanschhauung then one co!ld !nderstand the r!lers of the 'tate

regarding this flag as e3pressive of their own Weltanschhauung , seeing that thro!gh their efforts the official

8eich flag was e3pressive of their own Weltanschhauung %!t in reality the position was otherwise%

(he 8eich was morticed together witho!t the aid of the 6erman bo!rgeoisie and the flag itself was born of

the /ar and therefore merely a 'tate flag possessing no importance in the sense of any partic!lar ideological mission%

Only in one part of the 6erman-spea&ing territory - in 6erman-A!stria - was there anything li&e a

bo!rgeois party flag in evidence% ere a section of the national bo!rgeoisie selected the 1;4; colo!rs

Bblac&, red and goldC as their party flag and therewith created a symbol which, tho!gh of no importancefrom a weltanscha!liche viewpoint, had, nevertheless, a revol!tionary character from a national point of

view% (he most bitter opponents of this flag at that time, and this sho!ld not be forgotten to-day, were the

'ocial ?emocrats and the $hristian 'ocialists or clericals% (hey, in partic!lar, were the ones who degraded

and besmirched these colo!rs in the same way as in 191; they dragged blac&, white and red into the g!tter%Of co!rse, the blac&, red and gold of the 6erman parties in the old A!stria were the colo!rs of the year

1;4;0 that is to say, of a period li&ely to be regarded as somewhat visionary, b!t it was a period that hadhonest 6erman so!ls as its representatives, altho!gh the )ews were l!r&ing !nseen as wire-p!llers in the

bac&gro!nd% It was high treason and the shamef!l enslavement of the 6erman territory that first of all madethese colo!rs so attractive to the ar3ists of the $entre "arty> so m!ch so that to-day they revere them as

their most cherished possession and !se them as their own banners for the protection of the flag they once

fo!lly besmirched%

It is a fact, therefore, that, !p till 192<, in opposition to the ar3ists there was no flag that wo!ld havestood for a consolidated resistance to them% For even if the better political elements of the 6erman

bo!rgeoisie were loath to accept the s!ddenly discovered blac&, red and gold colo!rs as their symbol after

the year 191;, they nevertheless were incapable of co!nteracting this with a f!t!re programme of their own

that wo!ld correspond to the new trend of affairs% At the most, they had a reconstr!ction of the old 8eich inmind%

And it is to this way of thin&ing that the blac&, white and red colo!rs of the old 8eich are indebted for their

res!rrection as the flag of o!r so-called national bo!rgeois parties%It was obvio!s that the symbol of a rgime which had been overthrown by the ar3ists !nder inglorio!scirc!mstances was not now worthy to serve as a banner !nder which the same ar3ism was to be cr!shed

in its t!rn% owever m!ch any decent 6erman may love and revere those old colo!rs, glorio!s when placed

side by side in their yo!thf!l freshness, when he had fo!ght !nder them and seen the sacrifice of so many

lives, that flag had little val!e for the str!ggle of the f!t!re%In o!r ovement I have always adopted the standpoint that it was a really l!c&y thing for the 6erman

nation that it had lost its old flag 1;C% (his standpoint of mine was in strong contrast to that of the bo!rgeois

politicians% It may be immaterial to !s what the 8ep!blic does !nder its flag% !t let !s be deeply gratef!l tofate for having so gracio!sly spared the most glorio!s war flag for all time from becoming an ignominio!s



rag% (he 8eich of to-day, which sells itself and its people, m!st never be allowed to adopt the hono!rable

and heroic blac&, white and red colo!rs%

As long as the *ovember o!trage end!res, that o!trage may contin!e to bear its own e3ternal sign and not

steal that of an hono!rable past% O!r bo!rgeois politicians sho!ld awa&en their consciences to the fact thatwhoever desires this 'tate to have the blac&, white and red colo!rs is pilfering from the past% (he old flag

was s!itable only for the old 8eich and, than& eaven, the 8ep!blic chose the colo!rs best s!ited to itself%

(his was also the reason why we *ational 'ocialists recognied that hoisting the old colo!rs wo!ld be no

symbol of o!r special aims> for we had no wish to res!rrect from the dead the old 8eich which had beenr!ined thro!gh its own bl!nders, b!t to b!ild !p a new 'tate%

(he ovement which is fighting ar3ism to-day along these lines m!st display on its banner the symbol

of the new 'tate%

(he +!estion of the new flag, that is to say the form and appearance it m!st ta&e, &ept !s very b!sy in thosedays% '!ggestions po!red in from all +!arters, which altho!gh well meant were more or less impossible in

practice% (he new flag had not only to become a symbol e3pressing o!r own str!ggle b!t on the other hand

it was necessary that it sho!ld prove effective as a large poster% All those who b!sy themselves with the

tastes of the p!blic will recognie and appreciate the great importance of these apparently petty matters% Inh!ndreds of tho!sands of cases a really stri&ing emblem may be the first ca!se of awa&ening interest in a

movement%

For this reason we declined all s!ggestions from vario!s +!arters for identifying o!r movement by means

of a white flag with the old 'tate or rather with those decrepit parties whose sole political obective is the

restoration of past conditions% And, apart from this, white is not a colo!r capable of attracting and foc!sing p!blic attention% It is a colo!r s!itable only for yo!ng women#s associations and not for a movement that

stands for reform in a revol!tionary period%

lac& was also s!ggested - certainly well-s!ited to the times, b!t embodying no significance to empress thewill behind o!r movement% And, finally, blac& is incapable of attracting attention%

/hite and bl!e was discarded, despite its admirable Ssthetic appeal - as being the colo!rs of an individ!al

6erman Federal 'tate - a 'tate that, !nfort!nately, thro!gh its political attit!de of partic!larist narrow-

mindedness did not enoy a good rep!tation% And, generally spea&ing, with these colo!rs it wo!ld have been diffic!lt to attract attention to o!r movement% (he same applies to blac& and white%

lac&, red and gold did not enter the +!estion at all%

And this also applies to blac&, white and red for reasons already stated% At least, not in the form hitherto in

!se% !t the effectiveness of these three colo!rs is far s!perior to all the others and they are certainly themost stri&ingly harmonio!s combination to be fo!nd%

I myself was always for &eeping the old colo!rs, not only beca!se I, as a soldier, regarded them as my mostsacred possession, b!t beca!se in their aesthetic effect, they conformed more than anything else to my

personal taste% Accordingly I had to discard all the inn!merable s!ggestions and designs which had been proposed for the new movement, among which were many that had incorporated the swasti&a into the old

colo!rs% I, as leader, was !nwilling to ma&e p!blic my own design, as it was possible that someone else

co!ld come forward with a design !st as good, if not better, than my own% As a matter of fact, a dental

s!rgeon from 'tarnberg s!bmitted a good design very similar to mine, with only one mista&e, in that hisswasti&a with c!rved corners was set !pon a white bac&gro!nd%

After inn!merable trials I decided !pon a final form - a flag of red material with a white disc bearing in its

centre a blac& swasti&a% 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 swasti&a% And this is how it has remained ever since%At the same time we immediately ordered the corresponding armlets for o!r s+!ad of men who &ept order

at meetings, armlets of red material, a central white disc with the blac& swasti&a !pon it% err FDss, a

!nich goldsmith, s!pplied the first practical and permanent design%(he new flag appeared in p!blic in the mids!mmer of 192<% It s!ited o!r movement admirably, both beingnew and yo!ng% *ot a so!l had seen this flag before> its effect at that time was something a&in to that of a

blaing torch% /e o!rselves e3perienced almost a boyish delight when one of the ladies of the party who

had been entr!sted with the ma&ing of the flag finally handed it over to !s% And a few months later those of

!s in !nich were in possession of si3 of these flags% (he steadily increasing strength of o!r hall g!ardswas a main factor in pop!lariing the symbol%

And indeed a symbol it proved to be%

*ot only beca!se it incorporated those revered colo!rs e3pressive of o!r homage to the glorio!s past andwhich once bro!ght so m!ch hono!r to the 6erman nation, b!t this symbol was also an elo+!ent e3pression



of the will behind the movement% /e *ational 'ocialists regarded o!r flag as being the embodiment of o!r

party programme% (he red e3pressed the social tho!ght !nderlying the movement% /hite the national

tho!ght% And the swasti&a signified the mission allotted to !s - the str!ggle for the victory of Aryan

man&ind and at the same time the tri!mph of the ideal of creative wor& which is in itself and always will beanti-'emitic%

(wo years later, when o!r s+!ad of hall g!ards had long since grown into storm detachments, it seemed

necessary to give this defensive organiation of a yo!ng Weltanschhauung a partic!lar symbol of victory,

namely a 'tandard% I also designed this and entr!sted the e3ec!tion of it to an old party comrade, err 6ahr, who was a goldsmith% 7ver since that time this 'tandard has been the distinctive to&en of the

*ational 'ocialist str!ggle%

(he increasing interest ta&en in o!r meetings, partic!larly d!ring 192<, compelled !s at times to hold two

meetings a wee&% $rowds gathered ro!nd o!r posters> the large meeting halls in the town were always filledand tens of tho!sands of people, who had been led astray by the teachings of ar3ism, fo!nd their way to

!s and assisted in the wor& of fighting for the liberation of the 8eich% (he p!blic in !nich had got to

&now !s% /e were being spo&en abo!t% (he words *ational 'ocialist# had become common property to

many and signified for them a definite party programme% O!r circle of s!pporters and even of members wasconstantly increasing, so that in the winter of 192<-21 we were able to appear as a strong party in !nich%

At that time there was no party in !nich with the e3ception of the ar3ist parties - certainly no

nationalist party - which was able to hold s!ch mass demonstrations as o!rs% (he !nich indl all, which

held =,<<< people, was more than once overcrowded and !p till then there was only one other hall, the

rone $irc!s all, into which we had not vent!red%At the end of )an!ary 1921 there was again great ca!se for an3iety in 6ermany% (he "aris Agreement, by

which 6ermany pledged herself to pay the cray s!m of a h!ndred milliards of gold mar&s, was to be

confirmed by the London Mltimat!m%(here!pon an old-established !nich wor&ing committee, representative of so-called vRl&isch gro!ps,

deemed it advisable to call for a p!blic meeting of protest% I became nervo!s and restless when I saw that a

lot of time was being wasted and nothing !nderta&en% At first a meeting was s!ggested in the Rnig "lat>

on second tho!ghts this was t!rned down, as someone feared the proceedings might be wrec&ed by 8edelements% Another s!ggestion was a demonstration in front of the Feldherrn all, b!t this also came to

nothing% Finally a combined meeting in the !nich indl all was s!ggested% eanwhile, day after day

had gone by> the big parties had entirely ignored the terrible event, and the wor&ing committee co!ld not

decide on a definite date for holding the demonstration%On (!esday, Febr!ary 1st, I p!t forward an !rgent demand for a final decision% I was p!t off !ntil

/ednesday% On that day I demanded to be told clearly if and when the meeting was to ta&e place% (he replywas again !ncertain and evasive, it being stated that it was intended# to arrange a demonstration that day

wee&%At that I lost all patience and decided to cond!ct a demonstration of protest on my own% At noon on

/ednesday I dictated in ten min!tes the te3t of the poster and at the same time hired the rone $irc!s all

for the ne3t day, Febr!ary .rd%

In those days this was a tremendo!s vent!re% *ot only beca!se of the !ncertainty of filling that vast hall, b!t also beca!se of the ris& of the meeting being wrec&ed%

*!merically o!r s+!ad of hall g!ards was not strong eno!gh for this vast hall% I was also !ncertain abo!t

what to do in case the meeting was bro&en !p - a h!ge circ!s b!ilding being a different proposition from an

ordinary meeting hall% !t events showed that my fears were misplaced, the opposite being the case% In thatvast b!ilding a s+!ad of wrec&ers co!ld be tac&led and s!bd!ed more easily than in a cramped hall%

One thing was certain0 A fail!re wo!ld throw !s bac& for a long time to come% If one meeting was wrec&ed

o!r prestige wo!ld be serio!sly in!red and o!r opponents wo!ld be enco!raged to repeat their s!ccess%(hat wo!ld lead to sabotage of o!r wor& in connection with f!rther meetings and months of diffic!ltstr!ggle wo!ld be necessary to overcome this%

/e had only one day in which to post o!r bills, (h!rsday% Mnfort!nately it rained on the morning of that

day and there was reason to fear that many people wo!ld prefer to remain at home rather than h!rry to a

meeting thro!gh rain and snow, especially when there was li&ely to be violence and bloodshed%And indeed on that (h!rsday morning I was s!ddenly str!c& with fear that the hall might never be filled to

capacity, which wo!ld have made me ridic!lo!s in the eyes of the wor&ing committee% I therefore

immediately dictated vario!s leaflets, had them printed and distrib!ted in the afternoon% Of co!rse theycontained an invitation to attend the meeting%



(wo lorries which I hired were draped as m!ch as possible in red, each had o!r new flag hoisted on it and

was then filled with fifteen or twenty members of o!r party% Orders were given the members to canvas the

streets thoro!ghly, distrib!te leaflets and cond!ct propaganda for the mass meeting to be held that evening%

It was the first time that lorries had driven thro!gh the streets bearing flags and not manned by ar3ists%(he p!blic stared open-mo!thed at these red-draped cars, and in the o!tlying districts clenched fists were

angrily raised at this new evidence of provocation of the proletariat#% /ere not the ar3ists the only ones

entitled to hold meetings and drive abo!t in motor lorries5

At seven o#cloc& in the evening only a few had gathered in the circ!s hall% I was being &ept informed bytelephone every ten min!tes and was becoming !neasy% Ms!ally at seven or a +!arter past o!r meeting halls

were already half filled> sometimes even pac&ed% !t I soon fo!nd o!t the reason why I was !neasy% I had

entirely forgotten to ta&e into acco!nt the h!ge dimensions of this new meeting place% A tho!sand people in

the ofbrE!ha!s was +!ite an impressive sight, b!t the same n!mber in the $irc!s b!ilding was swallowed!p in its dimensions and was hardly noticeable% 'hortly afterwards I received more hopef!l reports and at a

+!arter to eight I was informed that the hall was three-+!arters filled, with h!ge crowds still lined !p at the

pay bo3es% I then left for the meeting%

I arrived at the $irc!s b!ilding at two min!tes past eight% (here was still a crowd of people o!tside, partlyin+!isitive people and many opponents who preferred to wait o!tside for developments%

/hen I entered the great hall I felt the same oy I had felt a year previo!sly at the first meeting in the

!nich ofbrE! an+!et all> b!t it was not !ntil I had forced my way thro!gh the solid wall of people

and reached the platform that I perceived the f!ll meas!re of o!r s!ccess% (he hall was before me, li&e a

h!ge shell, pac&ed with tho!sands and tho!sands of people% 7ven the arena was densely crowded% orethan =,<< tic&ets had been sold and, allowing for the !nemployed, poor st!dents and o!r own detachments

of men for &eeping order, a crowd of abo!t ,=<< m!st have been present%

y theme was F!t!re or ?ownfall# and I was filled with oy at the conviction that the f!t!re wasrepresented by the crowds that I was addressing%

I began, and spo&e for abo!t two and a half ho!rs% I had the feeling after the first half-ho!r that the meeting

was going to be a big s!ccess% $ontact had been at once established with all those tho!sands of individ!als%

After the first ho!r the speech was already being received by spontaneo!s o!tbrea&s of appla!se, b!t after the second ho!r this died down to a solemn stillness which I was to e3perience so often later on in this

same hall, and which will for ever be remembered by all those present% *othing bro&e this impressive

silence and only when the last word had been spo&en did the meeting give vent to its feelings by singing

the national anthem%I watched the scene d!ring the ne3t twenty min!tes, as the vast hall slowly emptied itself, and only then did

I leave the platform, a happy man, and made my way home%"hotographs were ta&en of this first meeting in the rone $irc!s all in !nich% (hey are more elo+!ent

than words to demonstrate the s!ccess of this demonstration% (he bo!rgeois papers reprod!ced photographsand reported the meeting as having been merely nationalist# in character> in their !s!al modest fashion they

omitted all mention of its promoters%

(h!s for the first time we had developed far beyond the dimensions of an ordinary party% /e co!ld no

longer be ignored% And to dispel all do!bt that the meeting was merely an isolated s!ccess, I immediatelyarranged for another at the $irc!s all in the following wee&, and again we had the same s!ccess% Once

more the vast hall was overflowing with people> so m!ch so that I decided to hold a third meeting d!ring

the following wee&, which also proved a similar s!ccess%

After these initial s!ccesses early in 1921 I increased o!r activity in !nich still f!rther% I not only heldmeetings once a wee&, b!t d!ring some wee&s even two were reg!larly held and very often d!ring

mids!mmer and a!t!mn this increased to three% /e met reg!larly at the $irc!s all and it gave !s great

satisfaction to see that every meeting bro!ght !s the same meas!re of s!ccess%(he res!lt was shown in an ever-increasing n!mber of s!pporters and members into o!r party% *at!rally, s!ch s!ccess did not allow o!r opponents to sleep so!ndly% At first their tactics fl!ct!ated

between the !se of terror and silence in o!r regard% (hen they recognied that neither terror nor silence

co!ld hinder the progress of o!r movement% 'o they had reco!rse to a s!preme act of terror which was

intended to p!t a definite end to o!r activities in the holding of meetings%As a prete3t for action along this line they availed themselves of a very mysterio!s attac& on one of the

Landtag dep!ties, named 7rhard A!er% It was declared that someone had fired several shots at this man one

evening% (his meant that he was not shot b!t that an attempt had been made to shoot him% A fab!lo!s presence of mind and heroic co!rage on the part of 'ocial ?emocratic leaders not only prevented the



sacrilegio!s intention from ta&ing effect b!t also p!t the cray wo!ld-be assassins to flight, li&e the

cowards that they were% (hey were so +!ic& and fled so far that s!bse+!ently the police co!ld not find even

the slightest traces of them% (his mysterio!s episode was !sed by the organ of the 'ocial ?emocratic "arty

to aro!se p!blic feeling against the movement, and while doing this it delivered its old rigmarole abo!t thetactics that were to be employed the ne3t time% (heir p!rpose was to see to it that o!r movement sho!ld not

grow b!t sho!ld be immediately hewn down root and branch by the hefty arm of the proletariat%

A few days later the real attac& came% It was decided finally to interr!pt one of o!r meetings which was

billed to ta&e place in the !nich ofbrE!ha!s, and at which I myself was to spea&%On *ovember 4th, 1921, in the evening between si3 and seven o#cloc& I received the first precise news that

the meeting wo!ld positively be bro&en !p and that to carry o!t this action o!r adversaries had decided to

send to the meeting great masses of wor&men employed in certain 8ed# factories%

It was d!e to an !nfort!nate accident that we did not receive this news sooner% On that day we had given !po!r old b!siness office in the 'ternec&er 6asse in !nich and moved into other +!arters> or rather we had

given !p the old offices and o!r new +!arters were not yet in f!nctioning order% (he telephone

arrangements had been c!t off by the former tenants and had not yet been reinstalled% ence it happened

that several attempts made that day to inform !s by telephone of the brea&-!p which had been planned for the evening did not reach !s%

$onse+!ently o!r order troops were not present in strong force at that meeting% (here was only one s+!ad

present, which did not consist of the !s!al one h!ndred men, b!t only of abo!t forty-si3% And o!r telephone

connections were not yet s!fficiently organied to be able to give the alarm in the co!rse of an ho!r or so,

so that a s!fficiently powerf!l n!mber of order troops to deal with the sit!ation co!ld be called% It m!st also be added that on several previo!s occasions we had been forewarned, b!t nothing special happened% (he

old proverb, 8evol!tions which were anno!nced have scarcely ever come off#, had hitherto been proved

tr!e in o!r regard%"ossibly for this reason also s!fficiently strong preca!tions had not been ta&en on that day to cope with the

br!tal determination of o!r opponents to brea& !p o!r meeting%

Finally, we did not believe that the ofbrE!ha!s in !nich was s!itable for the interr!ptive tactics of o!r

adversaries% /e had feared s!ch a thing far more in the bigger halls, especially that of the rone $irc!s%!t on this point we learned a very serviceable lesson that evening% Later, we st!died this whole +!estion

according to a scientific system and arrived at res!lts, both interesting and incredible, and which

s!bse+!ently were an essential factor in the direction of o!r organiation and in the tactics of o!r 'torm

(roops%/hen I arrived in the entrance halt of the ofbrE!ha!s at G%4= that evening I realicd that there co!ld be no

do!bt as to what the 8eds# intended% (he hall was filled, and for that reason the police had barred theentrances% O!r adversaries, who had arrived very early, were in the hall, and o!r followers were for the

most part o!tside% (he small bodyg!ard awaited me at the entrance% I had the doors leading to the principalhall closed and then as&ed the bodyg!ard of forty-five or forty-si3 men to come forward% I made it clear to

the boys that perhaps on that evening for the first time they wo!ld have to show their !nbending and

!nbrea&able loyalty to the movement and that not one of !s sho!ld leave the hall !nless carried o!t dead% I

added that I wo!ld remain in the hall and that I did not believe that one of them wo!ld abandon me, andthat if I saw any one of them act the coward I myself wo!ld personally tear off his armlet and his badge% I

demanded of them that they sho!ld come forward if the slightest attempt to sabotage the meeting were

made and that they m!st remember that the best defence is always attac&%

I was greeted with a triple eil# which so!nded more hoarse and violent than !s!al%(hen I advanced thro!gh the hall and co!ld ta&e in the sit!ation with my own eyes% O!r opponents sat

closely h!ddled together and tried to pierce me thro!gh with their loo&s% Inn!merable faces glowing with

hatred and rage were fi3ed on me, while others with sneering grimaces sho!ted at me together% *ow theywo!ld Finish with !s% /e m!st loo& o!t for o!r entrails% (o-day they wo!ld smash in o!r faces once andfor all%# And there were other e3pressions of an e+!ally elegant character% (hey &new that they were there in

s!perior n!mbers and they acted accordingly%

Net we were able to open the meeting> and I began to spea&% In the all of the ofbrE!ha!s I stood always

at the side, away from the entry and on top of a beer table% (herefore I was always right in the midst of thea!dience% "erhaps this circ!mstance was responsible for creating a certain feeling and a sense of agreement

which I never fo!nd elsewhere%

efore me, and especially towards my left, there were only opponents, seated or standing% (hey weremostly rob!st yo!ths and men from the affei Factory, from !stermann#s, and from the factories on the



Isar, etc% Along the right-hand wall of the hall they were thic&ly massed +!ite close to my table% (hey now

began to order litre m!gs of beer, one after the other, and to throw the empty m!gs !nder the table% In this

way whole batteries were collected% I sho!ld have been s!rprised had this meeting ended peacef!lly%

In spite of all the interr!ptions, I was able to spea& for abo!t an ho!r and a half and I felt as if I were master of the sit!ation% 7ven the ringleaders of the dist!rbers appeared to be convinced of this> for they steadily

became more !neasy, often left the hall, ret!rned and spo&e to their men in an obvio!sly nervo!s way%

A small psychological error which I committed in replying to an interr!ption, and the mista&e of which I

myself was conscio!s the moment the words had left my mo!th, gave the sign for the o!tbrea&%(here were a few f!rio!s o!tb!rsts and all in a moment a man !mped on a seat and sho!ted HLibertyH% At

that signal the champions of liberty began their wor&%

In a few moments the hall was filled with a yelling and shrie&ing mob% *!mero!s beer-m!gs flew li&e

howiters above their heads% Amid this !proar one heard the crash of chair legs, the crashing of m!gs,groans and yells and screams%

It was a mad spectacle% I stood where I was and co!ld observe my boys doing their d!ty, every one of them%

(here I had the chance of seeing what a bo!rgeois meeting co!ld be%

(he dance had hardly beg!n when my 'torm (roops, as they were called from that day onwards, la!nchedtheir attac&% Li&e wolves they threw themselves on the enemy again and again in parties of eight or ten and

began steadily to thrash them o!t of the hall% After five min!tes I co!ld see hardly one of them that was not

streaming with blood% (hen I realied what &ind of men many of them were, above all my brave a!rice

ess, who is my private secretary to-day, and many others who, even tho!gh serio!sly wo!nded, attac&ed

again and again as long as they co!ld stand on their feet% (wenty min!tes long the pandemoni!m contin!ed%(hen the opponents, who had n!mbered seven or eight h!ndred, had been driven from the hall or h!rled o!t

headlong by my men, who had not n!mbered fifty% Only in the left corner a big crowd still stood o!t against

o!r men and p!t !p a bitter fight% (hen two pistol shots rang o!t from the entrance to the hall in thedirection of the platform and now a wild din of shooting bro&e o!t from all sides% One#s heart almost

reoiced at this spectacle which recalled memories of the /ar%

At that moment it was not possible to identify the person who had fired the shots% !t at any rate I co!ld

see that my boys renewed the attac& with increased f!ry !ntil finally the last dist!rbers were overcome andfl!ng o!t of the hall%

Abo!t twenty-five min!tes had passed since it all began% (he hall loo&ed as if a bomb had e3ploded there%

any of my comrades had to be bandaged and others ta&en away% !t we remained masters of the

sit!ation% ermann 7ssen, who was chairman of the meeting, anno!nced0 H(he meeting will contin!e% (hespea&er shall proceed%H 'o I went on with my speech%

/hen we o!rselves declared the meeting at an end an e3cited police officer r!shed in, waved his hands anddeclared0 H(he meeting is dissolved%H

/itho!t wishing to do so I had to la!gh at this e3ample of the law#s delay% It was the a!thentic constab!laryofficiosio!sness% (he smaller they are the greater they m!st always appear%

(hat evening we learned a real lesson% And o!r adversaries never forgot the lesson they had received%

Mp to the a!t!mn of 192. the Dnchener post did not again mention the clenched fists of the "roletariat%

$hapter 7ight

In the preceding chapter I mentioned the e3istence of a co-operative !nion between the 6erman patriotic

associations% ere I shall deal briefly with this +!estion%In spea&ing of a co-operative !nion we generally mean a gro!p of associations which, for the p!rpose of

facilitating their wor&, establish m!t!al relations for collaborating with one another along certain lines,

appointing a common directorate with varying powers and thenceforth carrying o!t a common line of action% (he average citien is pleased and reass!red when he hears that these associations, by establishing aco-operative !nion among one another, have at long last discovered a common platform on which they can

stand !nited and have eliminated all gro!nds of m!t!al difference% (herewith a general conviction arises, to

the effect that s!ch a !nion is an immense gain in strength and that small gro!ps which were wea& as long

as they stood alone have now s!ddenly become strong% Net this conviction is for the most part a mista&enone%

It will be interesting and, in my opinion, important for the better !nderstanding of this +!estion if we try to

get a clear notion of how it comes abo!t that these associations, !nions, etc%, are established, when all of them declare that they have the same ends in view% In itself it wo!ld be logical to e3pect that one aim



sho!ld be fo!ght for by a single association and it wo!ld be more reasonable if there were not a n!mber of

associations fighting for the same aim% In the beginning there was !ndo!btedly only one association which

had this one fi3ed aim in view% One man proclaimed a tr!th somewhere and, calling for the sol!tion of a

definite +!estion, fi3ed his aim and fo!nded a movement for the p!rpose of carrying his views into effect%(hat is how an association or a party is fo!nded, the scope of whose programme is either the abolition of

e3isting evils or the positive establishment of a certain order of things in the f!t!re%

Once s!ch a movement has come into e3istence it may lay practical claim to certain priority rights% (he

nat!ral co!rse of things wo!ld now be that all those who wish to fight for the same obective as thismovement is striving for sho!ld identify themselves with it and th!s increase its strength, so that the

common p!rpose in view may be all the better served% 7specially men of s!perior intelligence m!st feel,

one and all, that by oining the movement they are establishing precisely those conditions which are

necessary for practical s!ccess in the common str!ggle% 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 sho!ld be fo!nded for the p!rpose of attaining the one aim%

(he fact that this does not happen m!st be attrib!ted to two ca!ses% (he first may almost be described as

tragic% (he second is a matter for pity, beca!se it has its fo!ndation in the wea&nesses of h!man nat!re% !t,on going to the bottom of things, I see in both ca!ses only facts which give still another gro!nd for

strengthening o!r will, o!r energy and intensity of p!rpose> so that finally, thro!gh the higher development

of the h!man fac!lties, the sol!tion of the problem in +!estion may be rendered possible%

(he tragic reason why it so often happens that the p!rs!it of one definite tas& is not left to one association

alone is as follows0 6enerally spea&ing, every action carried o!t on the grand style in this world is thee3pression of a desire that has already e3isted for a long time in millions of h!man hearts, a longing which

may have been no!rished in silence% Nes, it may happen that thro!gho!t cent!ries men may have been

yearning for the sol!tion of a definite problem, beca!se they have been s!ffering !nder an !nend!rableorder of affairs, witho!t seeing on the far horion the coming f!lfilment of the !niversal longing% *ations

which are no longer capable of finding an heroic deliverance from s!ch a sorrowf!l fate may be loo&ed

!pon as effete% !t, on the other hand, nothing gives better proof of the vital forces of a people and the

conse+!ent g!arantee of its right to e3ist than that one day, thro!gh a happy decree of ?estiny, a man ariseswho is capable of liberating his people from some great oppression, or of wiping o!t some bitter distress, or

of calming the national so!l which had been tormented thro!gh its sense of insec!rity, and th!s f!lfilling

what had long been the !niversal yearning of the people%

An essential characteristic of what are called the great +!estions of the time is that tho!sands !nderta&e thetas& of solving them and that many feel themselves called to this tas&0 yea, even that ?estiny itself has

proposed many for the choice, so that thro!gh the free play of forces the stronger and bolder shall finally bevictorio!s and to him shall be entr!sted the tas& of solving the problem%

(h!s it may happen that for cent!ries many are discontented with the form in which their religio!s lifee3presses itself and yearn for a renovation of it> and so it may happen that thro!gh this imp!lse of the so!l

some doens of men may arise who believe that, by virt!e of their !nderstanding and their &nowledge, they

are called to solve the religio!s diffic!lties of the time and accordingly present themselves as the prophets

of a new teaching or at least as declared adversaries of the standing beliefs%ere also it is certain that the nat!ral law will ta&e its co!rse, inasm!ch as the strongest will be destined to

f!lfil the great mission% !t !s!ally the others are slow to ac&nowledge that only one man is called% On the

contrary, they all believe that they have an e+!al right to engage in the sol!tion of the diffc!lties in +!estion

and that they are e+!ally called to that tas&% (heir contemporary world is generally +!ite !nable to decidewhich of all these possesses the highest gifts and accordingly merits the s!pport of all%

'o in the co!rse of cent!ries, or indeed often within the same epoch, different men establish different

movements to str!ggle towards the same end% At least the end is declared by the fo!nders of the movementsto be the same, or may be loo&ed !pon as s!ch by the masses of the people% (he pop!lace no!rishes vag!edesires and has only general opinions, witho!t having any precise notion of their own ideals and desires or

of the +!estion whether and how it is impossible for these ideals and desires to be f!lfilled%

(he tragedy lies in the fact that many men str!ggle to reach the same obective by different roads, each one

gen!inely believing in his own mission and holding himself in d!ty bo!nd to follow his own road witho!tany regard for the others%

(hese movements, parties, religio!s gro!ps, etc%, originate entirely independently of one another o!t of the

general !rge of the time, and all with a view to wor&ing towards the same goal% It may seem a tragic thing,at least at first sight, that this sho!ld be so, beca!se people are too often inclined to thin& that forces which



are dispersed in different directions wo!ld attain their ends far more +!ic&ly and more s!rely if they were

!nited in one common effort% !t that is not so% For *at!re herself decides according to the r!les of her

ine3orable logic% 'he leaves these diverse gro!ps to compete with one another and disp!te the palm of

victory and th!s she chooses the clearest, shortest and s!rest way along which she leads the movement toits final goal%

ow co!ld one decide from o!tside 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 !dgment of men who are so infat!ated with their own

s!perior &nowledge that their minds are not open to accept the indisp!table proof presented by manifests!ccess, which in the last analysis always gives the final confirmation of the !stice of a co!rse of action%

ence, tho!gh diverse gro!ps march along different ro!tes towards the same obective, as soon as they

come to &now that analogo!s efforts are being made aro!nd them, they will have to st!dy all the more

caref!lly whether they have chosen the best way and whether a shorter way may not be fo!nd and howtheir efforts can best be employed to reach the obective more +!ic&ly%

(hro!gh this rivalry each individ!al protagonist develops his fac!lties to a still higher pitch of perfection

and the h!man race has fre+!ently owed its progress to the lessons learned from the misfort!nes of former

attempts which have come to grief% (herefore we may concl!de that we come to &now the better ways of reaching final res!lts thro!gh a state of things which at first sight appeared tragic> namely, the initial

dispersion of individ!al efforts, wherein each gro!p was !nconscio!sly responsible for s!ch dispersion%

In st!dying the lessons of history with a view to finding a way for the sol!tion of the 6erman 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 sho!ld have !nited from the very beginning% (he chief representatives andchampions of these two paths were A!stria and "r!ssia respectively, absb!rg and ohenollern% All the

rest, according to this prevalent opinion, o!ght to have entr!sted their !nited forces to the one or the other

party% !t at that time the path of the most prominent representative, the absb!rg, wo!ld have been ta&en,tho!gh the A!strian policy wo!ld never have led to the fo!ndation of a !nited 6erman 8eich%

Finally, a strong and !nited 6erman 8eich arose o!t of that which many millions of 6ermans deplored in

their hearts as the last and most terrible manifestation of o!r fratricidal strife% (he tr!th is that the 6erman

Imperial $rown was retrieved on the battle field of RniggrEt and not in the fights that were waged before"aris, as was commonly asserted afterwards%

(h!s the fo!ndation of the 6erman 8eich was not the conse+!ence of any common will wor&ing along

common lines, b!t it was m!ch more the o!tcome of a deliberate str!ggle for hegemony, tho!gh the

protagonists were often hardly conscio!s of this% And from this str!ggle "r!ssia finally came o!t victorio!s%Anybody who is not so blinded by partisan politics as to deny this tr!th will have to agree that the so-called

wisdom of men wo!ld never have come to the same wise decision as the wisdom of Life itself, that is tosay, the free play of forces, finally bro!ght to realiation% For in the 6erman lands of two h!ndred years

before who wo!ld serio!sly have believed that ohenollern "r!ssia, and not absb!rg, wo!ld become thegerm cell, the fo!nder and the t!tor of the new 8eich5 And, on the other hand, who wo!ld deny to-day that

?estiny th!s acted wiser than h!man wisdom% /ho co!ld now imagine a 6erman 8eich based on the

fo!ndations of an effete and degenerate dynasty5

*o% (he general evol!tion of things, even tho!gh it too& a cent!ry of str!ggle, placed the best in the position that it had merited%

And that will always be so% (herefore it is not to be regretted if different men set o!t to attain the same

obective% In this way the strongest and swiftest becomes recognied and t!rns o!t to be the victor%

*ow there is a second ca!se for the fact that often in the lives of nations several movements which showthe same characteristics strive along different ways to reach what appears to be the same goal% (his second

ca!se is not at all tragic, b!t !st something that rightly calls forth pity% It arises from a sad mi3t!re of envy,

ealo!sy, ambition, and the itch for ta&ing what belongs to others% Mnfort!nately these failings are oftenfo!nd !nited in single specimens of the h!man species%(he moment a man arises who profo!ndly !nderstands the distress of his people and, having diagnosed the

evil with perfect acc!racy, ta&es meas!res to c!re it> the moment he fi3es 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 th!s come before the p!blic gae% )!st li&e sparrows who are apparently indifferent, b!t in realityare firmly intent on the movements of the fort!nate companion with the morsel of bread so that they may

snatch it from him if he sho!ld momentarily rela3 his hold on it, so it is also with the h!man species% All

that is needed is that one man sho!ld stri&e o!t on a new road and then a crowd of poltroons will pric& !ptheir ears and begin to sniff for whatever little booty may possibly lie at the end of that road% (he moment



they thin& they have discovered where the booty is to be gathered they h!rry to find another way which

may prove to be +!ic&er in reaching that goal%

As soon as a new movement is fo!nded and has form!lated a definite programme, people of that &ind come

forward and proclaim that they are fighting for the same ca!se% (his does not imply that they are readyhonestly to oin the ran&s of s!ch a movement and th!s recognie its right of priority% It implies rather that

they intend to steal the programme and fo!nd a new party on it% In doing this they are shameless eno!gh to

ass!re the !nthin&ing p!blic that for a long time they had intended to ta&e the same line of action as the

other has now ta&en, and fre+!ently they s!cceed in th!s placing themselves in a favo!rable light, insteadof aro!sing the general disapprobation which they !stly deserve% For it is a piece of gross imp!dence to

ta&e 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 gro!p as if all had been created by the new fo!nder of this gro!p%

(he imp!dence of s!ch cond!ct is partic!larly demonstrated when the individ!als who first ca!seddispersion and disr!ption by their new fo!ndation are those who - as e3perience has shown - are most

emphatic in proclaiming the necessity of !nion and !nity the moment they find they cannot catch !p with

their adversary#s advance%

It is to that &ind of cond!ct that the so-called patriotic disintegration# is to be attrib!ted%$ertainly in the years 191; - 1919 the fo!nding of a m!ltit!de of new gro!ps, parties, etc%, calling

themselves "atriotic,# was a nat!ral phenomenon of the time, for which the fo!nders were not at all

responsible% y 192< the *ational 'ocialist 6erman Labo!r "arty had slowly crystallied from all these

parties and had become s!preme% (here co!ld be no better proof of the sterling honesty of certain

individ!al fo!nders than the fact that many of them decided, in a really admirable manner, to sacrifice their manifestly less s!ccessf!l movements to the stronger movement, by oining it !nconditionally and

dissolving their own%

(his is specially tr!e in regard to )!li!s 'treicher, who was at that time the protagonist of the 6erman'ocialist party in *Drnberg% (he *ational 'ocialist 6erman Labo!r "arty had been fo!nded with similar

aims in view, b!t +!ite independently of the other% I have already said that 'treicher, then a teacher in

*Drnberg, was the chief protagonist of the 6erman 'ocialist "arty% e had a sacred conviction of the

mission and f!t!re of his own movement% As soon, however, as the s!perior strength and stronger growth of the *ational 'ocialist "arty became clear and !n+!estionable to his mind, he gave !p his wor& in the

6erman 'ocialist "arty and called !pon his followers to fall into line with the *ational 'ocialist 6erman

Labo!r "arty, which had come o!t victorio!s from the m!t!al contest, and carry on the fight within its

ran&s for the common ca!se% (he decision was personally a diffic!lt one for him, b!t it showed a profo!ndsense of honesty%

/hen that first period of the movement was over there remained no f!rther dispersion of forces0 for their honest intentions had led the men of that time to the same hono!rable, straightforward and !st concl!sion%

/hat we now call the patriotic disintegration# owes its e3istence e3cl!sively to the second of the twoca!ses which I have mentioned% Ambitio!s men who at first had no ideas of their own, and still less any

concept of aims to be p!rs!ed, felt themselves called# e3actly at that moment in which the s!ccess of the

*ational 'ocialist 6erman Labo!r "arty became !n+!estionable%

'!ddenly programmes appeared which were mere transcripts of o!rs% Ideas were proclaimed which had been ta&en from !s% Aims were set !p on behalf of which we had been fighting for several years, and ways

were mapped o!t which the *ational 'ocialists had for a long time trodden% All &inds of means were

resorted to for the p!rpose of trying to convince the p!blic that, altho!gh the *ational 'ocialist 6erman

Labo!r "arty had now been for a long time in e3istence, it was fo!nd necessary to establish these new parties% !t all these phrases were !st as insincere as the motives behind them were ignoble%

In reality all this was gro!nded only on one dominant motive% (hat motive was the personal ambition of the

fo!nders, who wished to play a part in which their own pigmy talents co!ld contrib!te nothing originale3cept the gross effrontery which they displayed in appropriating the ideas of others, a mode of cond!ctwhich in ordinary life is loo&ed !pon as thieving%

At that time there was not an idea or concept la!nched by other people which these political &leptomaniacs

did not seie !pon at once for the p!rpose of applying to their own base !ses% (hose who did all this were

the same people who s!bse+!ently, with tears in their eyes, profo!ndly deplored the patrioticdisintegration# and spo&e !nceasingly abo!t the necessity of !nity#% In doing this they n!rt!red the secret

hope that they might be able to cry down the others, who wo!ld tire of hearing these lo!d-mo!thed

acc!sations and wo!ld end !p by abandoning all claim to the ideas that had been stolen from them andwo!ld abandon to the thieves not only the tas& of carrying these ideas into effect b!t also the tas& of



carrying on the movements of which they themselves were the original fo!nders%

/hen that did not s!cceed, and the new enterprises, than&s to the paltry mentality of their promoters, did

not show the favo!rable res!lts which had been promised beforehand, then they became more modest in

their pretences and were happy if they co!ld land themselves in one of the so-called co-operative !nions#%At that period everything which co!ld not stand on its own feet oined one of those co-operative !nions,

believing that eight lame people hanging on to one another co!ld force a gladiator to s!rrender to them%

!t if among all these cripples there was one who was so!nd of limb he had to !se all his strength to

s!stain the others and th!s he himself was practically paralysed%/e o!ght to loo& !pon the +!estion of oining these wor&ing coalitions as a tactical problem, b!t, in

coming to a decision, we m!st never forget the following f!ndamental principle0

(hro!gh the formation of a wor&ing coalition associations which are wea& in themselves can never be

made strong, whereas it can and does happen not infre+!ently that a strong association loses its strength by oining in a coalition with wea&er ones% It is a mista&e to believe that a factor of strength will res!lt from

the coalition of wea& gro!ps> beca!se e3perience shows that !nder all forms and all conditions the maority

represents the d!ffers and poltroons% ence a m!ltiplicity of associations, !nder a directorate of many

heads, elected by these same associations, is abandoned to the control of poltroons and wea&lings% (hro!ghs!ch a coalition the free play of forces is paralysed, the str!ggle for the selection of the best is abolished

and therewith the necessary and final victory of the healthier and stronger is impeded% $oalitions of that

&ind are inimical to the process of nat!ral development, beca!se for the most part they hinder rather than

advance the sol!tion of the problem which is being fo!ght for%

It may happen that, from considerations of a p!rely tactical &ind, the s!preme command of a movementwhose goal is set in the f!t!re will enter into a coalition with s!ch associations for the treatment of special

+!estions and may also stand on a common platform with them, b!t this can be only for a short and limited

period% '!ch a coalition m!st not be permanent, if the movement does not wish to reno!nce its liberatingmission% eca!se if it sho!ld become indissol!bly tied !p in s!ch a combination it wo!ld lose the capacity

and the right to allow its own forces to wor& freely in following o!t a nat!ral development, so as to

overcome rivals and attain its own obective tri!mphantly%

It m!st never be forgotten that nothing really great in this world has ever been achieved thro!gh coalitions, b!t that s!ch achievements have always been d!e to the tri!mph of the individ!al% '!ccesses achieved

thro!gh coalitions, owing to the very nat!re of their so!rce, carry the germs of f!t!re disintegration in them

from the very start> so m!ch so that they have already forfeited what has been achieved% (he great

revol!tions which have ta&en place in h!man tho!ght and have veritably transformed the aspect of theworld wo!ld have been inconceivable and impossible to carry o!t e3cept thro!gh titanic str!ggles waged

between individ!al nat!res, b!t never as the enterprises of coalitions%And, above all things, the "eople#s 'tate will never be created by the desire for compromise inherent in a

patriotic coalition, b!t only by the iron will of a single movement which has s!ccessf!lly come thro!gh inthe str!ggle with all the others%

$hapter *ine

(he strength of the old state rested on three pillars0 the monarchical form of government, the civil service,

and the army% (he 8evol!tion of 191; abolished the form of government, dissolved the army and

abandoned the civil service to the corr!ption of party politics% (h!s the essential s!pports of what is called

the A!thority of the 'tate were shattered% (his a!thority nearly always depends on three elements, whichare the essential fo!ndations of all a!thority%

"op!lar s!pport is the first element which is necessary for the creation of a!thority% !t an a!thority resting

on that fo!ndation alone is still +!ite frail, !ncertain and vacillating% ence everyone who finds himself vested with an a!thority that is based only on pop!lar s!pport m!st ta&e meas!res to improve andconsolidate the fo!ndations of that a!thority by the creation of force% Accordingly we m!st loo& !pon

power, that is to say, the capacity to !se force, as the second fo!ndation on which all a!thority is based%

(his fo!ndation is more stable and sec!re, b!t not always stronger, than the first% If pop!lar s!pport and

power are !nited together and can end!re for a certain time, then an a!thority may arise which is based on astill stronger fo!ndation, namely, the a!thority of tradition% And, finally, if pop!lar s!pport, power, and

tradition are !nited together, then the a!thority based on them may be loo&ed !pon as invincible%

In 6ermany the 8evol!tion abolished this last fo!ndation% (here was no longer even a traditional a!thority%/ith the collapse of the old 8eich, the s!ppression of the monarchical form of government, the destr!ction



of all the old insignia of greatness and the imperial symbols, tradition was shattered at a blow% (he res!lt

was that the a!thority of the 'tate was sha&en to its fo!ndations%

(he second pillar of statal a!thority, namely power, also ceased to e3ist% In order to carry thro!gh the

8evol!tion it was necessary to dissolve that body which had hitherto incorporated the organied force and power of the 'tate, namely, the Army% Indeed, some detached fragments of the Army itself had to be

employed as fighting elements in the 8evol!tion% (he Armies at the front were not s!bected in the same

meas!re to this process of disr!ption> b!t as they grad!ally left farther behind them the fields of glory on

which they had fo!ght heroically for fo!r-and-half years, they were attac&ed by the solvent acid that had permeated the Fatherland> and when they arrived at the demobiliing centres they fell into that state of

conf!sion which was styled vol!ntary obedience in the time of the 'oldiers# $o!ncils%

Of co!rse it was o!t of the +!estion to thin& of fo!nding any &ind of a!thority on this crowd of m!tineering

soldiers, who loo&ed !pon military service as a wor& of eight ho!rs per day% (herefore the second element,that which g!arantees the stability of a!thority, was also abolished and the 8evol!tion had only the original

element, pop!lar s!pport, on which to b!ild !p its a!thority% !t this basis was e3traordinarily insec!re% y

means of a few violent thr!sts the 8evol!tion had shattered the old statal edifice to its deepest fo!ndations,

b!t only beca!se the normal e+!ilibri!m within the social str!ct!re of the nation had already beendestroyed by the war%

7very national body is made !p of three main classes% At one e3treme we have the best of the people,

ta&ing the word best# here to indicate those who are highly endowed with the civic virt!es and are noted

for their co!rage and their readiness to sacrifice their private interests% At the other e3treme are the worst

dregs of h!manity, in whom vice and egotistic interests prevail% etween these two e3tremes stands thethird class, which is made !p of the broad middle strat!m, who do not represent radiant heroism or v!lgar

vice%

(he stages of a nation#s rise are accomplished e3cl!sively !nder the leadership of the best e3treme%(imes of normal and symmetrical development, or of stable conditions, owe their e3istence and o!twardly

visible characteristics to the preponderating infl!ence of the middle strat!m% In this stage the two e3treme

classes are balanced against one another> in other words, they are relatively cancelled o!t%

(imes of national collapse are determined by the preponderating infl!ence of the worst elements%It m!st be noted here, however, that the broad masses, which constit!te what I have called the middle

section, come forward and ma&e their infl!ence felt only when the two e3treme sections are engaged in

m!t!al strife% In case one of the e3treme sections comes o!t victorio!s the middle section will readily

s!bmit to its domination% If the best dominate, the broad masses will follow it% 'ho!ld the worst e3tremet!rn o!t tri!mphant, then the middle section will at least offer no opposition to it> for the masses that

constit!te the middle class never fight their own battles%(he o!tpo!ring of blood for fo!r-and-a-half years d!ring the war destroyed the inner e+!ilibri!m between

these three sections in so far as it can be said - tho!gh admitting the sacrifices made by the middle section -that the class which consisted of the best h!man elements almost completely disappeared thro!gh the loss

of so m!ch of its blood in the war, beca!se it was impossible to replace the tr!ly enormo!s +!antity of

heroic 6erman blood which had been shed d!ring those fo!r-and-a-half years% In h!ndreds of tho!sands of

cases it was always a matter of vol!nteers to the front#, vol!nteers for patrol and d!ty, vol!nteer dispatchcarriers, vol!nteers for establishing and wor&ing telephonic comm!nications, vol!nteers for bridge-

b!ilding, vol!nteers for the s!bmarines, vol!nteers for the air service, vol!nteers for the storm battalions,

and so on, and so on% ?!ring fo!r-and-a-half years, and on tho!sands of occasions, there was always the

call for vol!nteers and again for vol!nteers% And the res!lt was always the same% eardless yo!ng fellowsor f!lly developed men, all filled with an ardent love for their co!ntry, !rged on by their own co!rageo!s

spirit or by a lofty sense of their d!ty - it was always s!ch men who answered the call for vol!nteers% (ens

of tho!sands, indeed h!ndreds of tho!sands, of s!ch men came forward, so that that &ind of h!man materialsteadily grew scarcer and scarcer% /hat did not act!ally fall was maimed in the fight or grad!ally had to oin the ran&s of the crippled beca!se of the wo!nds they were constantly receiving, and th!s they had to

carry on interminably owing to the steady decrease in the s!pply of s!ch men% In 1914 whole armies were

composed of vol!nteers who, owing to a criminal lac& of conscience on the part of o!r fec&less

parliamentarians, had not received any proper training in times of peace, and so were thrown as defencelesscannon-fodder to the enemy% (he fo!r h!ndred tho!sand who th!s fell or were permanently maimed on the

battlefields of Flanders co!ld not be replaced any more% (heir loss was something far more than merely

n!merical% /ith their death the scales, which were already too lightly weighed at that end of the socialstr!ct!re which represented o!r best h!man +!ality, now moved !pwards rapidly, becoming heavier on the



other end with those v!lgar elements of infamy and cowardice - in short, there was an increase in the

elements that constit!ted the worst e3treme of o!r pop!lation%

And there was something more0 /hile for fo!r-and-a-half years o!r best h!man material was being thinned

to an e3ceptional degree on the battlefields, o!r worst people wonderf!lly s!cceeded in saving themselves%For each hero who made the s!preme sacrifice and ascended the steps of :alhalla, there was a shir&er who

c!nningly dodged death on the plea of being engaged in b!siness that was more or less !sef!l at home%

And so the pict!re which presented itself at the end of the war was this0 (he great middle strat!m of the

nation had f!lfilled its d!ty and paid its toll of blood% One e3treme of the pop!lation, which was constit!tedof the best elements, had given a typical e3ample of its heroism and had sacrificed itself almost to a man%

(he other e3treme, which was constit!ted of the worst elements of the pop!lation, had preserved itself

almost intact, thro!gh ta&ing advantage of abs!rd laws and also beca!se the a!thorities failed to enforce

certain articles of the military code%(his caref!lly preserved sc!m of o!r nation then made the 8evol!tion% And the reason why it co!ld do so

was that the e3treme section composed of the best elements was no longer there to oppose it% It no longer

e3isted%

ence the 6erman 8evol!tion, from the very beginning, depended on only one section of the pop!lation%(his act of $ain was not committed by the 6erman people as s!ch, b!t by an obsc!re canaille of deserters,

hooligans, etc%

(he man at the front gladly welcomed the end of the strife in which so m!ch blood had been shed% e was

happy to be able to ret!rn home and see his wife and children once again% !t he had no moral connection

with the 8evol!tion% e did not li&e it, nor did he li&e those who had provo&ed and organied it% ?!ring thefo!r-and-a-half years of that bitter str!ggle at the front he had come to forget the party hyenas at home and

all their wrangling had become foreign to him%

(he 8evol!tion was really pop!lar only with a small section of the 6erman people0 namely, that class andtheir accomplices who had selected the r!c&sac& as the hall-mar& of all hono!rable citiens in this new

'tate% (hey did not li&e the 8evol!tion for its own sa&e, tho!gh many people still erroneo!sly believe the

contrary, b!t for the conse+!ences which followed in its train%

!t it was very diffic!lt to establish any abiding a!thority on the pop!lar s!pport given to these ar3istfreebooters% And yet the yo!ng 8ep!blic stood in need of a!thority at any cost, !nless 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 e3treme of the pop!lation%

(he danger which those who were responsible for the 8evol!tion feared most at that time was that, in thet!rmoil of the conf!sion which they themselves had created, the gro!nd wo!ld s!ddenly be ta&en from

!nder their feet, that they might be s!ddenly seied and transported to another terrain by an iron grip, s!chas has often appeared at these !nct!res in the history of nations% (he 8ep!blic m!st be consolidated at all

costs%ence it was forced almost immediately after its fo!ndation to erect another pillar beside that wavering

pillar of pop!larity% (hey fo!nd that power m!st be organied once again in order to proc!re a firmer

fo!ndation for their a!thority%

/hen those who had been the matadors of the 8evol!tion in ?ecember 191;, and )an!ary and Febr!ary1919, felt the gro!nd trembling beneath their feet they loo&ed aro!nd them for men who wo!ld be ready to

reinforce them with military s!pport> for their feeble position was dependent only on whatever pop!lar

favo!r they enoyed% (he anti-militarist# 8ep!blic had need of soldiers% !t the first and only pillar on

which the a!thority of the 'tate rested, namely, its pop!larity, was gro!nded only on a conglomeration of rowdies and thieves, b!rglars, deserters, shir&ers, etc% (herefore in that section of the nation which we have

called the evil e3treme it was !seless to loo& for men who wo!ld be willing to sacrifice their lives on behalf

of a new ideal% (he section which had no!rished the revol!tionary idea and carried o!t the 8evol!tion wasneither able nor willing to call on the soldiers to protect it% For that section had no wish whatsoever toorganie a rep!blican 'tate, b!t to disorganie what already e3isted and th!s satisfy its own instincts all the

better% (heir password was not the organiation and constr!ction of the 6erman 8ep!blic, b!t rather the

pl!ndering of it%

ence the cry for help sent o!t by the p!blic representatives, who were beset by a tho!sand an3ieties, didnot find any response among this class of people, b!t rather provo&ed a feeling of bitterness and

rep!diation% For they loo&ed !pon this step as the beginning of a breach of faith and tr!st, and in the

b!ilding !p of an a!thority which was no longer based on pop!lar s!pport b!t also on force they saw the beginning of a hostile move against what the 8evol!tion meant essentially for those elements% (hey feared



that meas!res might be ta&en against the right to robbery and absol!te domination on the part of a horde of

thieves and pl!nderers - in short, the worst rabble - who had bro&en o!t of the convict prisons and left their

chains behind%

(he representatives of the people might cry o!t as m!ch as they li&ed, b!t they co!ld get no help from thatrabble% (he cries for help were met with the co!nter-cry traitors# by those very people on whose s!pport

the pop!larity of the regime was fo!nded%

(hen for the first time large n!mbers of yo!ng 6ermans were fo!nd who were ready to b!tton on the

military !niform once again in the service of "eace and Order#, as they believed, sho!ldering the carbineand rifle and donning the steel helmet to defend the wrec&ers of the Fatherland% :ol!nteer corps were

assembled and, altho!gh hating the 8evol!tion, they began to defend it% (he practical effect of their action

was to render the 8evol!tion firm and stable% In doing this they acted in perfect good faith%

(he real organier of the 8evol!tion and the act!al wire-p!ller behind it, the international )ew, had sied !pthe sit!ation correctly% (he 6erman people were not yet ripe to be drawn into the blood swamp of

olshevism, as the 8!ssian people had been drawn% And that was beca!se there was a closer racial !nion

between the intellect!al classes in 6ermany and the man!al wor&ers, and also beca!se broad social strata

were permeated with c!lt!red people, s!ch as was the case also in the other 'tates of /estern 7!rope> b!tthis state of affairs was completely lac&ing in 8!ssia% In that co!ntry the intellect!al classes were mostly

not of 8!ssian nationality, or at least they did not have the racial characteristics of the 'lav% (he thin !pper

layer of intellect!als which then e3isted in 8!ssia might be abolished at any time, beca!se there was no

intermediate strat!m connecting it organically with the great mass of the people% (here the mental and

moral level of the great mass of the people was frightf!lly low%In 8!ssia the moment the agitators were s!ccessf!l in inciting broad masses of the people, who co!ld not

read or write, against the !pper layer of intellect!als who were not in contact with the masses or

permanently lin&ed with them in any way - at that moment the destiny of 8!ssia was decided, the s!ccessof the 8evol!tion was ass!red% (here!pon the analphabetic 8!ssian became the slave of his )ewish

dictators who, on their side, were shrewd eno!gh to name their dictatorship (he ?ictatorship of the

"eople#%

In the case of 6ermany an additional factor m!st be ta&en into acco!nt% ere the 8evol!tion co!ld becarried into effect only if the Army co!ld first be grad!ally dismembered% !t the real a!thor of the

8evol!tion and of the process of disintegration in the Army was not the soldier who had fo!ght at the front

b!t the canaille which more or less sh!nned the light and which were either +!artered in the home garrisons

or were officiating as indispensables# somewhere in the b!siness world at home% (his army was reinforced by ten tho!sand deserters who, witho!t r!nning any partic!lar ris&, co!ld t!rn their bac&s on the Front% At

all times the real poltroon fears nothing so m!ch as death% !t at the Front he had death before his eyesevery day in a tho!sand different shapes% (here has always been one possible way, and one only, of ma&ing

wea& or wavering men, or even downright poltroons, face their d!ty steadfastly% (his means that thedeserter m!st be given to !nderstand that his desertion will bring !pon him !st the very thing he is flying

from% At the Front a man may die, b!t the deserter m!st die% Only this draconian threat against every

attempt to desert the flag can have a terrifying effect, not merely on the individ!al b!t also on the mass%

(herein lay the meaning and p!rpose of the military penal code%It was a fine belief to thin& that the great str!ggle for the life of a nation co!ld be carried thro!gh if it were

based solely on vol!ntary fidelity arising from and s!stained by the &nowledge that s!ch a str!ggle was

necessary% (he vol!ntary f!lfilment of one#s d!ty is a motive that determines the actions of only the best

men, b!t not of the average type of men% ence special laws are necessary> !st as, for instance, the lawagainst stealing, which was not made for men who are honest on principle b!t for the wea& and !nstable

elements% '!ch laws are meant to hinder the evil-doer thro!gh their deterrent effect and th!s prevent a state

of affairs from arising in which the honest man is considered the more st!pid, and which wo!ld 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 mista&e to believe that in a str!ggle which, according to all h!man foresight, might last for several

years it wo!ld be possible to dispense with those e3pedients which the e3perience of h!ndreds and even of

tho!sands of years had proved to be effective in ma&ing wea& and !nstable men face and f!lfil their d!ty indiffic!lt times and at moments of great nervo!s stress%

For the vol!ntary war hero it is, of co!rse, not necessary to have the death penalty in the military code, b!t

it is necessary for the cowardly egoists who val!e their own lives more than the e3istence of the comm!nityin the ho!r of national need% '!ch wea& and characterless people can be held bac& from s!rrendering to



their cowardice only by the application of the heaviest penalties% /hen men have to str!ggle with death

every day and remain for wee&s in trenches of mire, often very badly s!pplied with food, the man who is

!ns!re of himself and begins to waver cannot be made to stic& to his post by threats of imprisonment or

even penal servit!de% Only by a r!thless enforcement of the death penalty can this be effected% For e3perience shows that at s!ch a time the recr!it considers prison a tho!sand times more preferable than the

battlefield% In prison at least his precio!s life is not in danger% (he practical abolition of the death penalty

d!ring the war was a mista&e for which we had to pay dearly% '!ch omission really meant that the military

penal code was no longer recognied as valid% An army of deserters po!red into the stations at the rear or ret!rned home, especially in 191;, and there began to form that h!ge criminal organiation with which we

were s!ddenly faced, after *ovember Gth, 191;, and which perpetrated the 8evol!tion%

(he Front had nothing to do with all this% *at!rally, the soldiers at the Front were yearning for peace% !t it

was precisely that fact which represented a special danger for the 8evol!tion% For when the 6ermansoldiers began to draw near home, after the Armistice, the revol!tionaries were in trepidation and as&ed the

same +!estion again and again0 /hat will the troops from the Front do5 /ill the field-greys stand for it5

?!ring those wee&s the 8evol!tion was forced to give itself at least an e3ternal appearance of moderation,

if it were not to r!n the ris& of being wrec&ed in a moment by a few 6erman divisions% For at that time,even if the commander of one division alone had made !p his mind to rally the soldiers of his division, who

had always remained faithf!l to him, in an onsla!ght to tear down the red flag and p!t the co!ncils# !p

against the wall, or, if there was any resistance, to brea& it with trench-mortars and hand grenades, that

division wo!ld have grown into an army of si3ty divisions in less than fo!r wee&s% (he )ew wire-p!llers

were terrified by this prospect more than by anything else> and to forestall this partic!lar danger they fo!ndit necessary to give the 8evol!tion a certain aspect of moderation% (hey dared not allow it to degenerate

into olshevism, so they had to face the e3isting conditions by p!tting !p the hypocritical pict!re of order

and tran+!illity#% ence many important concessions, the appeal to the old civil service and to the heads of the old Army% (hey wo!ld be needed at least for a certain time, and only when they had served the p!rpose

of (!r&s# eads co!ld the deserved &ic&-o!t be administered with imp!nity% (hen the 8ep!blic wo!ld be

ta&en entirely o!t of the hands of the old servants of the 'tate and delivered into the claws of the

revol!tionaries%(hey tho!ght that this was the only plan which wo!ld s!cceed in d!ping the old generals and civil servants

and disarm any event!al opposition beforehand thro!gh the apparently harmless and mild character of the

new regime%

"ractical e3perience has shown to what e3tent the plan s!cceeded%(he 8evol!tion, however, was not made by the peacef!l and orderly elements of the nation b!t rather by

rioters, thieves and robbers% And the way in which the 8evol!tion was developing did not accord with theintentions of these latter elements> still, on tactical gro!nds, it was not possible to e3plain to them the

reasons for the co!rse things were ta&ing and ma&e that co!rse acceptable%As 'ocial ?emocracy grad!ally gained power it lost more and more the character of a cr!de revol!tionary

party% Of co!rse in their inner hearts the 'ocial ?emocrats wanted a revol!tion> and their leaders had no

other end in view% $ertainly not% !t what finally res!lted was only a revol!tionary programme> b!t not a

body of men who wo!ld be able to carry it o!t% A revol!tion cannot be carried thro!gh by a party of tenmillion members% If s!ch a movement were attempted the leaders wo!ld find that it was not an e3treme

section of the pop!lation on which they had to depend b!trather the broad masses of the middle strat!m>

hence the inert masses%

8ecogniing all this, already d!ring the war, the )ews ca!sed the famo!s split in the 'ocial ?emocratic"arty% /hile the 'ocial ?emocratic "arty, conforming to the inertia of its mass following, cl!ng li&e a

leaden weight on the nec& of the national defence, the actively radical elements were e3tracted from it and

formed into new aggressive col!mns for p!rposes of attac&% (he Independent 'ocialist "arty and the'partacist Leag!e were the storm battalions of revol!tionary ar3ism% (he obective assigned to them wasto create a fait accompli, on the gro!nds of which the masses of the 'ocial ?emocratic "arty co!ld ta&e

their stand, having been prepared for this event long beforehand% (he fec&less bo!rgeoisie had been

estimated at its !st val!e by the ar3ists and treated en canaille% *obody bothered abo!t it, &nowing well

that in their canine servility the representatives of an old and worn-o!t generation wo!ld not be able to offer any serio!s resistance%

/hen the 8evol!tion had s!cceeded and its artificers believed that the main pillars of the old 'tate had

been bro&en down, the Army ret!rning from the Front began to appear in the light of a sinister sphin3 andth!s made it necessary to slow down the national co!rse of the 8evol!tion% (he main body of the 'ocial



?emocratic horde occ!pied the con+!ered positions, and the Independent 'ocialist and 'partacist storm

battalions were side-trac&ed%

!t that did not happen witho!t a str!ggle%

(he activist assa!lt formations that had started the 8evol!tion were dissatisfied and felt that they had been betrayed% (hey now wanted to contin!e the fight on their own acco!nt% !t their illimitable rac&eteering

became odio!s even to the wire-p!llers of the 8evol!tion% For the 8evol!tion 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% /as it not perfectly nat!ral that o!r bo!rgeoisie sho!ld r!sh withflying colo!rs to the camp of peace and order5 For once in their lives their piteo!s political organiations

fo!nd it possible to act, inasm!ch as the gro!nd had been prepared for them on which they were glad to get

a new footing> and th!s to a certain e3tent they fo!nd themselves in coalition with that power which they

hated b!t feared% (he 6erman political bo!rgeoisie achieved the high hono!r of being able to associateitself with the acc!rsed ar3ist leaders for the p!rpose of combating olshevism%

(h!s the following state of affairs too& shape as early as ?ecember 191; and )an!ary 19190

A minority constit!ted of the worst elements had made the 8evol!tion% And behind this minority all the

ar3ist parties immediately fell into step% (he 8evol!tion itself had an o!tward appearance of moderation,which aro!sed against it the enmity of the fanatical e3tremists% (hese began to la!nch hand-grenades and

fire machine-g!ns, occ!pying p!blic b!ildings, th!s threatening to destroy the moderate appearance of the

8evol!tion% (o prevent this terror from developing f!rther a tr!ce was concl!ded 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 e3tremists% (he res!lt was that the enemies of the 8ep!blic ceased to oppose the 8ep!blicas s!ch and helped to s!b!gate those who were also enemies of the 8ep!blic, tho!gh for +!ite different

reasons% !t a f!rther res!lt was that all danger of the adherents of the old 'tate p!tting !p a fight against

the new was now definitely averted%(his fact m!st always be clearly &ept in mind% Only by remembering it can we !nderstand how it was

possible that a nation in which nine-tenths of the people had not oined in a revol!tion, where seven-tenths

rep!diated it and si3-tenths detested it - how this nation allowed the 8evol!tion to be imposed !pon it by

the remaining one-tenth of the pop!lation%6rad!ally the barricade heroes in the 'partacist camp petered o!t, and so did the nationalist patriots and

idealists on the other side% As these two gro!ps steadily dwindled, the masses of the middle strat!m, as

always happens, tri!mphed% (he o!rgeoisie and the ar3ists met together on the gro!nds of

accomplished facts, and the 8ep!blic began to be consolidated% At first, however, that did not prevent the bo!rgeois parties from propo!nding their monarchist ideas for some time f!rther, especially at the

elections, whereby they endeavo!red to con!re !p the spirits of the dead past to enco!rage their ownfeeble-hearted followers% It was not an honest proceeding% In their hearts they had bro&en with the

monarchy long ago> b!t the fo!lness of the new regime had beg!n to e3tend its corr!ptive action and ma&eitself felt in the camp of the bo!rgeois parties% (he common bo!rgeois politician now felt better in the slime

of rep!blican corr!ption than in the severe decency of the def!nct 'tate, which still lived in his memory%

As I have already pointed o!t, after the destr!ction of the old Army the revol!tionary leaders were forced to

strengthen statal a!thority by creating a new factor of power% In the conditions that e3isted they co!ld dothis only by winning over to their side the adherents of a Weltanschhauung which was a direct contradiction

of their own% From those elements alone it was possible slowly to create a new army which, limited

n!merically by the peace treaties, had to be s!bse+!ently transformed in spirit so as to become an

instr!ment of the new regime%'etting aside the defects of the old 'tate, which really became the ca!se of the 8evol!tion, if we as& how it

was possible to carry the 8evol!tion to a s!ccessf!l iss!e as a political act, we arrive at the following

concl!sions0l% It was d!e to a process of dry rot in o!r conceptions of d!ty and obedience%2% It was d!e also to the passive timidity of the "arties who were s!pposed to !phold the 'tate%

(o this the following m!st be added0 (he dry rot which attac&ed o!r concepts of d!ty and obedience was

f!ndamentally d!e to o!r wholly non-national and p!rely 'tate ed!cation% From this came the habit of

conf!sing means and ends% $onscio!sness of d!ty, f!lfilment of d!ty, and obedience, are not ends inthemselves no more than the 'tate is an end in itself> b!t they all o!ght to be employed as means to

facilitate and ass!re the e3istence of a comm!nity of people who are &indred both physically and

spirit!ally% At a moment when a nation is manifestly collapsing and when all o!tward signs show that it ison the point of becoming the victim of r!thless oppression, than&s to the cond!ct of a few miscreants, to



obey these people and f!lfil one#s d!ty towards them is merely doctrinaire formalism, and indeed p!re

folly> whereas, on the other hand, the ref!sal of obedience and f!lfilment of d!ty in s!ch a case might save

the nation from collapse% According to o!r c!rrent bo!rgeois idea of the 'tate, if a divisional general

received from above the order not to shoot he f!lfilled his d!ty and therefore acted rightly in not shooting, beca!se to the bo!rgeois mind blind formal obedience is a more val!able thing than the life of a nation% !t

according to the *ational 'ocialist concept it is not obedience to wea& s!periors that sho!ld prevail at s!ch

moments, in s!ch an ho!r the d!ty of ass!ming personal responsibility towards the whole nation ma&es its

appearance%(he 8evol!tion s!cceeded beca!se that concept had ceased to be a vital force with o!r people, or rather

with o!r governments, and died down to something that was merely formal and doctrinaire%

As regards the second point, it may be said that the more profo!nd ca!se of the fec&lessness of the

bo!rgeois parties m!st be attrib!ted to the fact that the most active and !pright section of o!r people hadlost their lives in the war% Apart from that, the bo!rgeois parties, which may be considered as the only

political formations that stood by the old 'tate, were convinced that they o!ght to defend their principles

only by intellect!al ways and means, since the !se of physical force was permitted only to the 'tate% (hat

o!tloo& was a sign of the wea&ness and decadence which had been grad!ally developing% And it was alsosenseless 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% /hen ar3ism emerged in the world of bo!rgeois democracy, as a conse+!ence of that

democracy itself, the appeal sent o!t by the bo!rgeois democracy to fight ar3ism with intellect!al

weapons was a piece of folly for which a terrible e3piation had to be made later on% For ar3ism always professed the doctrine that the !se of arms was a matter which had to be !dged from the standpoint of

e3pediency and that s!ccess !stified the !se of arms%

(his idea was proved correct d!ring the days from *ovember G to 1<, 191;% (he ar3ists did not then bother themselves in the least abo!t parliament or democracy, b!t they gave the death blow to both by

t!rning loose their horde of criminals to shoot and raise hell%

/hen the 8evol!tion was over the bo!rgeois parties changed the title of their firm and s!ddenly

reappeared, the heroic leaders emerging from dar& cellars or more lightsome storeho!ses where they hadso!ght ref!ge% !t, !st as happens in the case of all representatives of anti+!ated instit!tions, they had not

forgotten their errors or learned anything new% (heir political programme was gro!nded in the past, even

tho!gh they themselves had become reconciled to the new regime% (heir aim was to sec!re a share in the

new establishment, and so they contin!ed the !se of words as their sole weapon%(herefore after the 8evol!tion the bo!rgeois parties also capit!lated to the street in a miserable fashion%

/hen the law for the "rotection of the 8ep!blic was introd!ced the maority was not at first in favo!r of it%!t, confronted with two h!ndred tho!sand ar3ists demonstrating in the streets, the bo!rgeois statesmen#

were so terror-stric&en that they voted for the Law against their wills, for the edifying reason that otherwisethey feared they might get their heads smashed by the enraged masses on leaving the 8eichstag%

And so the new 'tate developed along its own co!rse, as if there had been no national opposition at all%

(he only organiations which at that time had the strength and co!rage to face ar3ism and its enraged

masses were first of all the vol!nteer corps 19C, and s!bse+!ently the organiations for self-defence, thecivic g!ards and finally the associations formed by the demobilied soldiers of the old Army%

!t the e3istence of these bodies did not appreciably change the co!rse of 6erman history> and that for the

following ca!ses0

As the so-called national parties were witho!t infl!ence, beca!se they had no force which co!ld effectivelydemonstrate in the street, the Leag!es of ?efence co!ld not e3ercise any infl!ence beca!se they had no

political idea and especially beca!se they had no definite political aim in view%

(he s!ccess which ar3ism once attained was d!e to perfect co-operation between political p!rposes andr!thless force% /hat deprived nationalist 6ermany of all practical hopes of shaping 6erman developmentwas the lac& of a determined co-operation between br!te force and political aims wisely chosen%

/hatever 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%

(he ?efence Leag!es had force at their disposal% (hey were masters of the street and of the 'tate, b!t theylac&ed political ideas and aims on behalf of which their forces might have been or co!ld have been

employed in the interests of the 6erman nation% (he c!nning )ew was able in both cases, by his ast!te

powers of pers!asion, in reinforcing an already e3isting tendency to ma&e this !nfort!nate state of affairs permanent and at the same time to drive the roots of it still deeper%



(he )ew s!cceeded brilliantly in !sing his "ress for the p!rpose of spreading abroad the idea that the

defence associations were of a non-political# character !st as in politics he was always ast!te eno!gh to

praise the p!rely intellect!al character of the str!ggle and demand that it m!st always be &ept on that plane

illions of 6erman imbeciles then repeated this folly witho!t having the slightest s!spicion that by sodoing they were, for all practical p!rposes, disarming themselves and delivering themselves defenceless

into the hands of the )ew%

!t there is a nat!ral e3planation of this also% (he lac& of a great idea which wo!ld re-shape things anew

has always meant a limitation in fighting power% (he conviction of the right to employ even the most br!talweapons is always associated with an ardent faith in the necessity for a new and revol!tionary

transformation of the world%

A movement which does not fight for s!ch high aims and ideals will never have reco!rse to e3treme means%

(he appearance of a new and great idea was the secret of s!ccess in the French 8evol!tion% (he 8!ssian8evol!tion owes its tri!mph to an idea% And it was only the idea that enabled Fascism tri!mphantly to

s!bect a whole nation to a process of complete renovation%

o!rgeois parties are not capable of s!ch an achievement% And it was not the bo!rgeois parties alone that

fi3ed their aim in a restoration of the past% (he defence associations also did so, in so far as they concernedthemselves with political aims at all% (he spirit of the old war legions and yffa!ser tendencies lived in

them and therewith helped politically to bl!nt the sharpest weapons which the 6erman nation then

possessed and allow them to r!st in the hands of rep!blican serfs% (he 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 co!rse they adopted%In the consolidated 8eichswehr ar3ism grad!ally ac+!ired the s!pport of force, which it needed for its

a!thority% As a logical conse+!ence it proceeded to abolish those defence associations which it considered

dangero!s, declaring that they were now no longer necessary% 'ome rash leaders who defied the ar3istorders were s!mmoned to co!rt and sent to prison% !t they all got what they had deserved%

(he fo!nding of the *ational 'ocialist 6erman Labo!r "arty incited a movement which was the first to fi3

its aim, not in a mechanical restoration of the past - as the bo!rgeois parties did - b!t in the s!bstit!tion of

an organic "eople#s 'tate for the present abs!rd statal mechanism%From the first day of its fo!ndation the new movement too& its stand on the principle that its ideas had to be

propagated by intellect!al means b!t that, wherever necessary, m!sc!lar force m!st be employed to s!pport

this propaganda% In accordance with their conviction of the paramo!nt importance of the new doctrine, the

leaders of the new movement nat!rally believe that no sacrifice can be considered too great when it is a+!estion of carrying thro!gh the p!rpose of the movement%

I have emphasied that in certain circ!mstances a movement which is meant to win over the hearts of the people m!st 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 'tate a!thority has failed to brea& a reign of terror which was inspired by a Weltanschhauung % It can only be con+!ered by a new and

different Weltanschhauung whose representatives are +!ite as a!dacio!s and determined% (he

ac&nowledgment of this fact has always been very !npleasant for the b!rea!crats who are the protectors of

the 'tate, b!t the fact remains nevertheless% (he r!lers of the 'tate can g!arantee tran+!illity and order onlyin case the 'tate embodies a Weltanschhauung which is shared in by the people as a whole> so that elements

of dist!rbance can be treated as isolated criminals, instead of being considered as the champions of an idea

which is diametrically opposed to official opinions% If s!ch sho!ld be the case the 'tate may employ the

most violent meas!res for cent!ries long against the terror that threatens it> b!t in the end all thesemeas!res will prove f!tile, and the 'tate will have to s!cc!mb%

(he 6erman 'tate is intensely overr!n by ar3ism% In a str!ggle that went on for seventy years the 'tate

was not able to prevent the tri!mph of the ar3ist idea% 7ven tho!gh the sentences to penal servit!de andimprisonment amo!nted in all to tho!sands of years, and even tho!gh the most sang!inary methods of repression were in inn!merable instances threatened against the champions of the ar3ist

Weltanschhauung , in the end the 'tate was forced to capit!late almost completely% (he ordinary bo!rgeois

political leaders will deny all this, b!t their protests are f!tile%

'eeing that the 'tate capit!lated !nconditionally to ar3ism on *ovember 9th, 191;, it will not s!ddenlyrise !p tomorrow as the con+!eror of ar3ism% On the contrary% o!rgeois simpletons sitting on office

stools in the vario!s ministries babble abo!t the necessity of not governing against the wishes of the

wor&ers, and by the word wor&ers# they mean the ar3ists% y identifying the 6erman wor&er withar3ism not only are they g!ilty of a vile falsification of the tr!th, b!t they th!s try to hide their own



collapse before the ar3ist idea and the ar3ist organiation%

In view of the complete s!bordination of the present 'tate to ar3ism, the *ational 'ocialist ovement

feels all the more bo!nd not only to prepare the way for the tri!mph of its idea by appealing to the reason

and !nderstanding of the p!blic b!t also to ta&e !pon itself the responsibility of organiing its own defenceagainst the terror of the International, which is into3icated with its own victory%

I have already described how practical e3perience in o!r yo!ng movement led !s slowly to organie a

system of defence for o!r meetings% (his grad!ally ass!med the character of a military body specially

trained for the maintenance of order, and tended to develop into a service which wo!ld have its properlyorganied cadres%

(his new formation might resemble the defence associations e3ternally, b!t in reality there were no

gro!nds of comparison between the one and the other%

As I have already said, the 6erman defence organiations did not have any definite political ideas of their own% (hey really were only associations for m!t!al protection, and they were trained and organied

accordingly, so that they were an illegal complement or a!3iliary to the legal forces of the 'tate% (heir

character as free corps arose only from the way in which they were constr!cted and the sit!ation in which

the 'tate fo!nd itself at that time% !t they certainly co!ld not claim to be free corps on the gro!nds thatthey were associations formed freely and privately for the p!rpose of fighting for their own freely formed

political convictions% '!ch they were not, despite the fact that some of their leaders and some associations

as s!ch were definitely opposed to the 8ep!blic% For before we can spea& of political convictions in the

higher sense we m!st be something more than merely convinced that the e3isting regime is defective%

"olitical convictions in the higher sense mean that one has the pict!re of a new regime clearly before one#smind, feels that the establishment of this regime is an absol!te necessity and sets himself to carry o!t that

p!rpose as the highest tas& to which his life can be devoted%

(he troops for the preservation of order, which were then formed !nder the *ational 'ocialist ovement,were f!ndamentally different from all the other defence associations by reason of the fact that o!r

formations were not meant in any way to defend the state of things created by the 8evol!tion, b!t rather

that they were meant e3cl!sively to s!pport o!r str!ggle for the creation of a new 6ermany%

In the beginning this body was merely a g!ard to maintain order at o!r meetings% Its first tas& was limitedto ma&ing it possible for !s to hold o!r meetings, which otherwise wo!ld have been completely prevented

by o!r opponents% (hese men were at that time trained merely for p!rposes of attac&, b!t they were not

ta!ght to adore the big stic& e3cl!sively, as was then pretended in st!pid 6erman patriotic circles% (hey

!sed the c!dgel beca!se they &new that it can be made impossible for high ideals to be p!t forward if theman who endeavo!rs to propagate them can be str!c& down with the c!dgel% As a matter of fact, it has

happened in history not infre+!ently that some of the greatest minds have perished !nder the blows of themost insignificant helots% O!r bodyg!ards did not loo& !pon violence as an end in itself, b!t they protected

the e3positors of ideal aims and p!rposes against hostile coercion by violence% (hey also !nderstood thatthere was no obligation to !nderta&e the defence of a 'tate which did not g!arantee the defence of the

nation, b!t that, on the contrary, they had to defend the nation against those who were threatening to

destroy nation and 'tate%

After the fight which too& place at the meeting in the !nich ofbrE!ha!s, where the small n!mber of o!r g!ards who were present won everlasting fame for themselves by the heroic manner in which they stormed

the adversaries> these g!ards were called (he 'torm ?etachment% As the name itself indicates, they

represent only a detachment of the ovement% (hey are one constit!ent element of it, !st as is the "ress,

the propaganda, ed!cational instit!tes, and other sections of the "arty%/e learned how necessary was the formation of s!ch a body, not only from o!r e3perience on the occasion

of that memorable meeting b!t also when we so!ght grad!ally to carry the ovement beyond !nich and

e3tend it to the other parts of 6ermany% Once we had beg!n to appear as a danger to ar3ism the ar3istslost no opport!nity of trying to cr!sh beforehand all preparations for the holding of *ational 'ocialistmeetings% /hen they did not s!cceed in this they tried to brea& !p the meeting itself% It goes witho!t saying

that all the ar3ist organiations, no matter of what grade or view, blindly s!pported the policy and

activities of their representations in every case% !t what is to be said of the bo!rgeois parties who, when

they were red!ced to silence by these same ar3ists and in many places did not dare to send their spea&ersto appear before the p!blic, yet showed themselves pleased, in a st!pid and incomprehensible manner,

every time we received any &ind of set-bac& in o!r fight against ar3ism% (he bo!rgeois parties were

happy to thin& that those whom they themselves co!ld not stand !p against, b!t had to &n!c&le down to,co!ld not be bro&en by !s% /hat m!st be said of those 'tate officials, chiefs of police, and even cabinet



ministers, who showed a scandalo!s lac& of principle in presenting themselves e3ternally to the p!blic as

national# and yet shamelessly acted as the henchmen of the ar3ists in the disp!tes which we, *ational

'ocialists, had with the latter% /hat can be said of persons who debased themselves so far, for the sa&e of a

little abect praise in the )ewish "ress, that they persec!ted those men to whose heroic co!rage andintervention, regardless of ris&, they were partly indebted for not having been torn to pieces by the 8ed

mob a few years previo!sly and str!ng !p to the lamp-posts5

One day these lamentable phenomena fired the late b!t !nforgotten "refect "Rhner - a man whose

!nbending straightforwardness forced him to hate all twisters and to hate them as only a man with anhonest heart can hate - to say0 HIn all my life I wished to be first a 6erman and then an official, and I never

wanted to mi3 !p with these creat!res who, as if they were &ept officials, prostit!ted themselves before

anybody who co!ld play lord and master for the time being%H

It was a specially sad thing that grad!ally tens of tho!sands of honest and loyal servants of the 'tate did notonly come !nder the power of s!ch people b!t were also slowly contaminated by their !nprincipled morals%

oreover, these &ind of men p!rs!ed honest officials with a f!rio!s 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 &ind we co!ld e3pect no s!pport, and only in very rare instances was it given% Only by b!ilding !p its own defence co!ld o!r movement become sec!re and attract that amo!nt of p!blic

attention and general respect which is given to those who can defend themselves when attac&ed%

As an !nderlying principle in the internal development of the 'torm ?etachment, we came to the decision

that not only sho!ld it be perfectly trained in bodily efficiency b!t that the men sho!ld be so instr!cted as to

ma&e them indomitably convinced champions of the *ational 'ocialist ideas and, finally, that they sho!ld be schooled to observe the strictest discipline% (his body was to have nothing to do with the defence

organiations of the bo!rgeois type and especially not with any secret organiation%

y reasons at that time for g!arding strictly against letting the 'torm ?etachment of the 6erman *ational'ocialist Labo!r "arty appear as a defence association were as follows0

On p!rely practical gro!nds it is impossible to b!ild !p a national defence organiation by means of private

associations, !nless the 'tate ma&es an enormo!s contrib!tion to it% /hoever thin&s otherwise

overestimates his own powers% *ow it is entirely o!t of the +!estion to form organiations of any militaryval!e for a definite p!rpose on the principle of so-called vol!ntary discipline#% ere the chief s!pport for

enforcing orders, namely, the power of inflicting p!nishment, is lac&ing% In the a!t!mn, or rather in the

spring, of 1919 it was still possible to raise vol!nteer corps#, not only beca!se most of the men who came

forward at that time had been thro!gh the school of the old Army, b!t also beca!se the &ind of d!tyimposed there constrained the individ!al to absol!te obedience at least for a definite period of time%

(hat spirit is entirely lac&ing in the vol!nteer defence organiations of to-day% (he more the defenceassociation grows, the wea&er its discipline becomes and so m!ch the less can one demand from the

individ!al members% (h!s the whole organiation will more and more ass!me the character of the old non- political associations of war comrades and veterans%

It is impossible to carry thro!gh a vol!ntary training in military service for larger masses !nless one is

ass!red absol!te power of command% (here will always be few men who will vol!ntarily and

spontaneo!sly s!bmit to that &ind of obedience which is considered nat!ral and necessary in the Army%oreover, a proper system of military training cannot be developed where there are s!ch ridic!lo!sly

scanty means as those at the disposal of the defence associations% (he principal tas& of s!ch an instit!tion

m!st be to impart the best and most reliable &ind of instr!ction% 7ight years have passed since the end of

the /ar, and d!ring that time none of o!r 6erman yo!th, at an age when formerly they wo!ld have had todo military service, have received any systematic training at all% (he 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 co!ld be

rec&oned with mathematical acc!racy when the last member wo!ld leave the association% 7ven the yo!nger soldier from 191; will no longer be fit for front-line service twenty years later, and we are approaching thatstate of things with a rapidity that gives ca!se for an3iety% (h!s the defence associations m!st ass!me more

and more the aspect of the old e3-service men#s societies% !t that cannot be the meaning and p!rpose of an

instit!tion which calls itself, not an association of e3-service men b!t a defence association, indicating by

this title that it considers its tas& to be, not only to preserve the tradition of the old soldiers and hold themtogether b!t 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%

!t this implies that those elements will receive a military training which !p to now have received none%(his is something that in practice is impossible for the defence associations% 8eal soldiers cannot be made



by a training of one or two ho!rs per wee&% In view of the enormo!sly increasing demands which modern

warfare imposes on each individ!al soldier to-day, a military service of two years is barely s!fficient to

transform a raw recr!it into a trained soldier% At the Front d!ring the /ar we all saw the fearf!l

conse+!ences which o!r yo!ng recr!its had to s!ffer from their lac& of a thoro!gh military training%:ol!nteer formations which had been drilled for fifteen or twenty wee&s !nder an iron discipline and shown

!nlimited self-denial proved nevertheless to be no better than cannon fodder at the Front% Only when

distrib!ted among the ran&s of the old and e3perienced soldiers co!ld the yo!ng recr!its, who had been

trained for fo!r or si3 months, become !sef!l members of a regiment% 6!ided by the old men#, theyadapted themselves grad!ally to their tas&%

In the light of all this, how hopeless m!st the attempt be to create a body of fighting troops by a so-called

training of one or two ho!rs in the wee&, witho!t any definite power of command and witho!t any

considerable means% In that way perhaps one co!ld refresh military training in old soldiers, b!t raw recr!itscannot th!s be transformed into e3pert soldiers%

ow s!ch a proceeding prod!ces !tterly worthless res!lts may also be demonstrated by the fact that at the

same time as these so-called vol!nteer defence associations, with great effort and o!tcry and !nder

diffic!lties and lac& of necessities, try to ed!cate and train a few tho!sand men of goodwill Bthe others neednot be ta&en into acco!ntC for p!rposes of national defence, the 'tate teaches o!r yo!ng men democratic

and pacifist ideas and th!s deprives millions and millions of their national instincts, poisons their logical

sense of patriotism and grad!ally t!rns them into a herd of sheep who will patiently follow any arbitrary

command% (h!s they render ridic!lo!s all those attempts made by the defence associations to inc!lcate

their ideas in the minds of the 6erman yo!th%Almost more important is the following consideration, which has always made me ta&e !p a stand against

all attempts at a so-called military training on the basis of the vol!nteer associations%

Ass!ming that, in spite of all the diffic!lties !st mentioned, a defence association were s!ccessf!l intraining a certain n!mber of 6ermans every year to be efficient soldiers, not only as regards their mental

o!tloo& b!t also as regards bodily efficiency and the e3pert handling of arms, the res!lt m!st necessarily be

n!ll and void in a 'tate whose whole tendency ma&es it not only loo& !pon s!ch a defensive formation as

!ndesirable b!t even positively hate it, beca!se s!ch an association wo!ld completely contradict theintimate aims of the political leaders, who are the corr!pters of this 'tate%

!t anyhow, s!ch a res!lt wo!ld be worthless !nder 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 malignante3istence%

And that is the state of affairs to-day% It is not ridic!lo!s to thin& of training some ten tho!sand men in the!se of arms, and carry on that training s!rreptitio!sly, when a few years previo!sly the 'tate, having

shamef!lly sacrificed eight-and-a-half million highly trained soldiers, not merely did not re+!ire their services any more, b!t, as a mar& of gratit!de for their sacrifices, held them !p to p!blic cont!mely% 'hall

we train soldiers for a regime which besmirched and spat !pon o!r most glorio!s soldiers, tore the medals

and badges from their breasts, trampled on their flags and derided their achievements5 as the present

regime ta&en one step towards restoring the hono!r of the old army and bringing those who destroyed ando!traged it to answer for their deeds5 *ot in the least% On the contrary, the people I have !st referred to

may be seen enthroned in the highest positions !nder the 'tate to-day% And yet it was said at Leipig0

H8ight goes with might%H 'ince, however, in o!r 8ep!blic to-day might is in the hands of the very men who

arranged for the 8evol!tion, and since that 8evol!tion represents a most despicable act of high treasonagainst the nation - yea, the vilest act in 6erman history - there can s!rely be no gro!nds for saying that

might of this character sho!ld be enhanced by the formation of a new yo!ng army% It is against all so!nd

reason%(he importance which this 'tate attached, after the 8evol!tion of 191;, to the reinforcement of its positionfrom the military point of view is clearly and !nmista&ably demonstrated by its attit!de towards the large

self-defence organiations which e3isted in that period% (hey were not !nwelcome as long as they were of

!se for the personal protection of the miserable creat!res cast !p by the 8evol!tion%

!t the danger to these creat!res seemed to disappear as the debasement of o!r people grad!ally increased%As the e3istence of the defence associations no longer implied a reinforcement of the national policy they

became s!perfl!o!s% ence every effort was made to disarm them and s!ppress them wherever that was

possible%istory records only a few e3amples of gratit!de on the part of princes% !t there is not one patriot among



the new bo!rgeoisie who can co!nt on the gratit!de of revol!tionary incendiaries and assassins, persons

who have enriched themselves from the p!blic spoil and betrayed the nation% In e3amining the problem as

to the wisdom of forming these defence associations I have never ceased to as&0 For whom shall I train

these yo!ng men5 For what p!rpose will they be employed when they will have to be called o!t5# (heanswer to these +!estions lays down at the same time the best r!le for !s to follow%

If the present 'tate sho!ld one day have to call !pon trained troops of this &ind it wo!ld never be for the

p!rpose of defending the interests of the nation vis-P-vis those of the stranger b!t rather to protect the

oppressors of the nation inside the co!ntry against the danger of a general o!tbrea& of wrath on the part of anation which has been deceived and betrayed and whose interests have been bartered away%

For this reason it was decided that the 'torm ?etachment of the 6erman *ational 'ocialist Labo!r "arty

o!ght not to be in the nat!re of a military organiation% It had to be an instr!ment of protection and

ed!cation for the *ational 'ocialist ovement and its d!ties sho!ld be in +!ite a different sphere from thatof the military defence association%

And, of co!rse, the 'torm ?etachment sho!ld not be in the nat!re of a secret organiation% 'ecret

organiations are established only for p!rposes that are against the law% (herewith the p!rpose of s!ch an

organiation is limited by its very nat!re% $onsidering the lo+!acio!s propensities of the 6erman people, itis not possible to b!ild !p any vast organiation, &eeping it secret at the same time and cloa&ing its p!rpose%

7very attempt of that &ind is destined to t!rn o!t absol!tely f!tile% It is not merely that o!r police officials

to-day have at their disposal a staff of eaves-droppers and other s!ch rabble who are ready to play traitor,

li&e )!das, for thirty pieces of silver and will betray whatever secrets they can discover and will invent what

they wo!ld li&e to reveal% In order to forestall s!ch event!alities, it is never possible to bind one#s ownfollowers to the silence that is necessary% Only small gro!ps can become really secret societies, and that

only after long years of filtration% !t the very smallness of s!ch gro!ps wo!ld deprive them of all val!e

for the *ational 'ocialist ovement% /hat we needed then and need now is not one or two h!ndred dare-devil conspirators b!t a h!ndred tho!sand devoted champions of o!r Weltanschhauung % (he wor& m!st not

be done thro!gh secret conventicles b!t thro!gh formidable mass demonstrations in p!blic% ?agger and

pistol and poison-vial cannot clear the way for the progress of the movement% (hat can be done only by

winning over the man in the street% /e m!st overthrow ar3ism, so that for the f!t!re *ational 'ocialismwill be master of the street, !st as it will one day become master of the 'tate%

(here is another danger connected with secret societies% It lies in the fact that their members often

completely mis!nderstand the greatness of the tas& in hand and are apt to believe that a favo!rable destiny

can be ass!red for the nation all at once by means of a single m!rder% '!ch a belief may find historical !stification by appealing to cases where a nation had been s!ffering !nder the tyranny of some oppressor

who at the same time was a man of geni!s and whose e3traordinary personality g!aranteed the internalsolidity of his position and enabled him to maintain his fearf!l oppression% In s!ch cases a man may

s!ddenly arise from the ran&s of the people who is ready to sacrifice himself and pl!nge the deadly steelinto the heart of the hated individ!al% In order to loo& !pon s!ch a deed as abhorrent one m!st have the

rep!blican mentality of that petty canaille who are conscio!s of their own crime% !t the greatest champion

2<C of liberty that the 6erman people have ever had has glorified s!ch a deed in /illiam (ell%

?!ring 1919 and 192< there was danger that the members of secret organiations, !nder the infl!ence of great historical e3amples and overcome by the immensity of the nation#s misfort!nes, might attempt to

wrea& vengeance on the destroyers of their co!ntry, !nder the belief that this wo!ld end the miseries of the

people% All s!ch attempts were sheer folly, for the reason that the ar3ist tri!mph was not d!e to the

s!perior geni!s of one remar&able person b!t rather to immeas!rable incompetence and cowardly shir&ingon the part of the bo!rgeoisie% (he hardest criticism that can be !ttered against o!r bo!rgeoisie is simply to

state the fact that it s!bmitted to the 8evol!tion, even tho!gh the 8evol!tion did not prod!ce one single

man of eminent worth% One can always !nderstand how it was possible to capit!late before a 8obespierre, a?anton, or a arat> b!t it was !tterly scandalo!s to go down on all fo!rs before the withered 'cheidemann,the obese err 7rberger, Frederic& 7bert, and the inn!merable other political pigmies of the 8evol!tion%

(here was not a single man of parts in whom one co!ld see the revol!tionary man of geni!s% (herein lay

the co!ntry#s misfort!ne> for they were only revol!tionary b!gs, 'partacists wholesale and retail% (o

s!ppress one of them wo!ld be an act of no conse+!ence% (he only res!lt wo!ld be that another pair of bloods!c&ers, e+!ally fat and thirsty, wo!ld be ready to ta&e his place%

?!ring those years we had to ta&e !p a determined stand against an idea which owed its origin and

fo!ndation to historical episodes that were really great, b!t to which o!r own despicable epoch did not bear the slightest similarity%



(he same reply may be given when there is +!estion of p!tting somebody on the spot# who has acted as a

traitor to his co!ntry% It wo!ld be ridic!lo!s and illogical to shoot a poor wretch 21C who had betrayed the

position of a howiter to the enemy while the highest positions of the government are occ!pied by a rabble

who bartered away a whole empire, who have on their consciences the deaths of two million men who weresacrificed in vain, fellows who were responsible for the millions maimed in the war and who ma&e a

thriving b!siness o!t of the rep!blican regime witho!t allowing their so!ls to be dist!rbed in any way% It

wo!ld be abs!rd to do away with small traitors in a 'tate whose government has absolved the great traitors

from all p!nishment% For it might easily happen that one day an honest idealist, who, o!t of love for hisco!ntry, had removed from circ!lation some miserable informer that had given information abo!t secret

stores of arms might now be called to answer for his act before the chief traitors of the co!ntry% And there is

still an important +!estion0 'hall some small traitoro!s creat!re be s!ppressed by another small traitor, or

by an idealist5 In the former case the res!lt wo!ld be do!btf!l and the deed wo!ld almost s!rely berevealed later on% In the second case a petty rascal is p!t o!t of the way and the life of an idealist who may

be irreplaceable is in eopardy%

For myself, I believe that small thieves sho!ld not be hanged while big thieves are allowed to go free% One

day a national trib!nal will have to !dge and sentence some tens of tho!sands of organiers who wereresponsible for the criminal *ovember betrayal and all the conse+!ences that followed on it% '!ch an

e3ample 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 gro!nds of these considerations I steadfastly forbade all participation in secret societies, and I too&

care that the 'torm ?etachment sho!ld not ass!me s!ch a character% ?!ring those years I &ept the *ational'ocialist ovement away from those e3periments which were being !nderta&en by yo!ng 6ermans who

for the most part were inspired with a s!blime idealism b!t who became the victims of their own deeds,

beca!se they co!ld not ameliorate the lot of their fatherland to the slightest degree%If then the 'torm ?etachment m!st not be either a military defence organiation or a secret society, the

following concl!sions m!st res!lt0

1% Its training m!st not be organied from the military standpoint b!t from the standpoint of what is most

practical for party p!rposes% 'eeing that its members m!st !ndergo a good physical training, the place of chief importance m!st not be given to military drill b!t rather to the practice of sports% I have always

considered bo3ing and !-its! more important than some &ind of bad, beca!se mediocre, training in rifle-

shooting% If the 6erman nation were presented with a body of yo!ng men who had been perfectly trained in

athletic sports, who were imb!ed with an ardent love for their co!ntry and a readiness to ta&e the initiativein a fight, then the national 'tate co!ld ma&e an army o!t of that body within less than two years if it were

necessary, provided the cadres already e3isted% In the act!al state of affairs only the 8eichswehr co!ldf!rnish the cadres and not a defence organiation that was neither one thing nor the other% odily efficiency

wo!ld develop in the individ!al a conviction of his s!periority and wo!ld give him that confidence which isalways based only on the conscio!sness of one#s own powers% (hey m!st also develop that athletic agility

which can be employed as a defensive weapon in the service of the ovement%

2% In order to safeg!ard the 'torm ?etachment against any tendency towards secrecy, not only m!st the

!niform be s!ch that it can immediately be recognied by everybody, b!t the large n!mber of its effectivesshow the direction in which the ovement is going and which m!st be &nown to the whole p!blic% (he

members of the 'torm ?etachment m!st not hold secret gatherings b!t m!st march in the open and th!s, by

their actions, p!t an end to all legends abo!t a secret organiation% In order to &eep them away from all

temptations towards finding an o!tlet for their activities in small conspiracies, from the very beginning wehad to inc!lcate in their minds the great idea of the ovement and ed!cate them so thoro!ghly to the tas&

of defending this idea that their horion became enlarged and that the individ!al no longer considered it his

mission to remove from circ!lation some rascal or other, whether big or small, b!t to devote himself entirely to the tas& of bringing abo!t the establishment of a new *ational 'ocialist "eople#s 'tate% In thisway the str!ggle against the present 'tate was placed on a higher plane than that of petty revenge and small

conspiracies% It was elevated to the level of a spirit!al str!ggle on behalf of a Weltanschhauung , for the

destr!ction of ar3ism in all its shapes and forms%

.% (he form of organiation adopted for the 'torm ?etachment, as well as its !niform and e+!ipment, hadto follow different models from those of the old Army% (hey had to be specially s!ited to the re+!irements

of the tas& that was assigned to the 'torm ?etachment%

(hese were the ideas I followed in 192< and 1921% I endeavo!red to instil them grad!ally into the membersof the yo!ng organiation% And the res!lt was that by the mids!mmer of 1922 we had a goodly n!mber of



formations which consisted of a h!ndred men each% y the late a!t!mn of that year these formations

received their distinctive !niforms% (here were three events which t!rned o!t to be of s!preme importance

for the s!bse+!ent development of the 'torm ?etachment%

1% (he great mass demonstration against the Law for the "rotection of the 8ep!blic% (his demonstrationwas held in the late s!mmer of 1922 on the Rnigs-plat in !nich, by all the patriotic societies% (he

*ational 'ocialist ovement also participated in it% (he march-past of o!r party, in serried ran&s, was led

by si3 !nich companies of a h!ndred men each, followed by the political sections of the "arty% (wo bands

marched with !s and abo!t fifteen flags were carried% /hen the *ational 'ocialists arrived at the greats+!are it was already half f!ll, b!t no flag was flying% O!r entry aro!sed !nbo!nded enth!siasm% I myself

had the hono!r of being one of the spea&ers who addressed that mass of abo!t si3ty tho!sand people%

(he demonstration was an overwhelming s!ccess> especially beca!se it was proved for the first time that

nationalist !nich co!ld march on the streets, in spite of all threats from the 8eds% embers of theorganiation for the defence of the 8ed 8ep!blic endeavo!red to hinder the marching col!mns by their

terrorist activities, b!t they were scattered by the companies of the 'torm ?etachment within a few min!tes

and sent off with bleeding s&!lls% (he *ational 'ocialist ovement had then shown for the first time that in

f!t!re it was determined to e3ercise the right to march on the streets and th!s ta&e this monopoly awayfrom the international traitors and enemies of the co!ntry%

(he res!lt of that day was an incontestable proof that o!r ideas for the creation of the 'torm ?etachment

were right, both from the psychological viewpoint and as to the manner in which this body was organied%

On the basis of this s!ccess the enlistment progressed so rapidly that within a few wee&s the n!mber of

!nich companies of a h!ndred men each became do!bled%2% (he e3pedition to $ob!rg in October 1922%

$ertain "eople#s 'ocieties had decided to hold a 6erman ?ay at $ob!rg% I was invited to ta&e part, with the

intimation that they wished me to bring a following along% (his invitation, which I received at eleveno#cloc& in the morning, arrived !st in time% /ithin an ho!r the arrangements for o!r participation in the

6erman $ongress were ready% I pic&ed eight h!ndred men of the 'torm ?etachment to accompany me%

(hese were divided into abo!t fo!rteen companies and had to be bro!ght by special train from !nich to

$ob!rg, which had !st voted by plebiscite to be anne3ed to avaria% $orresponding orders were given toother gro!ps of the *ational 'ocialist 'torm ?etachment which had meanwhile been formed in vario!s

other localities%

(his was the first time that s!ch a special train ran in 6ermany% At all the places where the new members of

the 'torm ?etachment oined !s o!r train ca!sed a sensation% any of the people had never seen o!r flag%And it made a very great impression%

As we arrived at the station in $ob!rg we were received by a dep!tation of the organiing committee of the6erman ?ay% (hey anno!nced that it had been arranged# at the orders of local trades !nions - that is to say,

the Independent and $omm!nist "arties - that we sho!ld not enter the town with o!r flags !nf!rled and o!r band playing Bwe had a band consisting of forty-two m!sicians with !sC and that we sho!ld not march with

closed ran&s%

I immediately reected these !nmilitary 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 s!ch people and coming to anagreement with them% (hen I anno!nced that the 'torm (roops wo!ld immediately march into the town in

company formation, with o!r flags flying and the band playing%

And that is what happened%

As we came o!t into the station yard we were met by a growling and yelling mob of several tho!sand, thatsho!ted at !s0 Assassins#, andits#, 8obbers#, $riminals#% (hese were the choice names which these

e3emplary fo!nders of the 6erman 8ep!blic showered on !s% (he yo!ng 'torm ?etachment gave a model

e3ample of order% (he companies fell into formation on the s+!are in front of the station and at first too& nonotice of the ins!lts h!rled at them by the mob% (he police were an3io!s% (hey did not pilot !s to the+!arters assigned to !s on the o!ts&irts of $ob!rg, a city +!ite !n&nown to !s, b!t to the ofbrE!ha!s

eller in the centre of the town% 8ight and left of o!r march the t!m!lt raised by the accompanying mob

steadily increased% 'carcely had the last company entered the co!rtyard of the ofbrE!ha!s when the h!ge

mass made a r!sh to get in after them, sho!ting madly% In order to prevent this, the police closed the gates%'eeing the position was !ntenable I called the 'torm ?etachment to attention and then as&ed the police to

open the gates immediately% After a good deal of hesitation, they consented%

/e now marched bac& along the same ro!te as we had come, in the direction of o!r +!arters, and there wehad to ma&e a stand against the crowd% As their cries and yells all along the ro!te had failed to dist!rb the



e+!animity of o!r companies, the champions of tr!e 'ocialism, 7+!ality, and Fraternity now too& to

throwing stones% (hat bro!ght o!r patience to an end% For ten min!tes long, blows fell right and left, li&e a

devastating shower of hail% Fifteen min!tes later there were no more 8eds to be seen in the street%

(he collisions which too& place when the night came on were more serio!s% "atrols of the 'torm?etachment had discovered *ational 'ocialists who had been attac&ed singly and were in an atrocio!s

state% (here!pon we made short wor& of the opponents% y the following morning the 8ed terror, !nder

which $ob!rg had been s!ffering for years, was definitely smashed%

Adopting the typically ar3ist and )ewish method of spreading falsehoods, leaflets were distrib!ted byhand on the streets, bearing the caption0 H$omrades and $omradesses of the International "roletariat%H

(hese leaflets were meant to aro!se the wrath of the pop!lace% (wisting the facts completely aro!nd, they

declared that o!r bands of assasins# had commenced a war of e3termination against the peacef!l wor&ers

of $ob!rg#% At half-past one that day there was to be a great pop!lar demonstration#, at which it was hopedthat the wor&ers of the whole district wo!ld t!rn !p% I was determined finally to cr!sh this 8ed terror and so

I s!mmoned the 'torm ?etachment to meet at midday% (heir n!mber had now increased to 1,=<<% I decided

to march with these men to the $ob!rg Festival and to cross the big s+!are where the 8ed demonstration

was to ta&e place% I wanted to see if they wo!ld attempt to assa!lt !s again% /hen we entered the s+!are wefo!nd that instead of the ten tho!sand that had been advertised, there were only a few h!ndred people

present% As we approached they remained silent for the most part, and some ran away% Only at certain

points along the ro!te some bodies of 8eds, who had arrived from o!tside the city and had not yet come to

&now !s, attempted to start a row% !t a few fistic!ffs p!t them to flight% And now one co!ld see how the

pop!lation, which had for s!ch a long time been so wretchedly intimidated, slowly wo&e !p and recoveredtheir co!rage% (hey welcomed !s openly, and in the evening, on o!r ret!rn march, spontaneo!s sho!ts of

!bilation bro&e o!t at several points along the ro!te%

At the station the railway employees informed !s all of a s!dden that o!r train wo!ld not move% (here!ponI had some of the ringleaders told that if this were the case I wo!ld have all the 8ed "arty heroes arrested

that fell into o!r hands, that we wo!ld drive the train o!rselves, b!t that we wo!ld ta&e away with !s, in the

locomotive and tender and in some of the carriages, a few doen members of this brotherhood of

international solidarity% I did not omit to let those gentry &now that if we had to cond!ct the train the o!rney wo!ld !ndo!btedly be a very ris&y advent!re and that we might all brea& o!r nec&s% It wo!ld be a

consolation, however, to &now that we sho!ld not go to 7ternity alone, b!t in e+!ality and fraternity with

the 8ed gentry%

(here!pon the train departed p!nct!ally and we arrived ne3t morning in !nich safe and so!nd%(h!s at $ob!rg, for the first time since 1914, the e+!ality of all citiens before the law was re-established%

For even if some co3comb of a higher official sho!ld assert to-day that the 'tate protects the lives of itscitiens, at least in those days it was not so% For at that time the citiens had to defend themselves against

the representatives of the present 'tate%At first it was not possible f!lly to estimate the importance of the conse+!ences which res!lted from that

day% (he victorio!s 'torm (roops had their confidence in themselves considerably reinforced and also their

faith in the sagacity of their leaders% O!r contemporaries began to pay !s special attention and for the first

time many recognied the *ational 'ocialist ovement as an organiation that in all probability wasdestined to bring the ar3ist folly to a deserving end%

Only the democrats lamented the fact that we had not the complaisance to allow o!r s&!lls to be crac&ed

and that we had dared, in a democratic 8ep!blic, to hit bac& with fists and stic&s at a br!tal assa!lt, rather

than with pacifist chants%6enerally spea&ing, the bo!rgeois "ress was partly distressed and partly v!lgar, as always% Only a few

decent newspapers e3pressed their satisfaction that at least in one locality the ar3ist street b!llies had

been effectively dealt with%And in $ob!rg itself at least a part of the ar3ist wor&ers who m!st be loo&ed !pon as misled, learnedfrom the blows of *ational 'ocialist fists that these wor&ers were also fighting for ideals, beca!se

e3perience teaches that the h!man being fights only for something in which he believes and which he

loves%

(he 'torm ?etachment itself benefited most from the $ob!rg events% It grew so +!ic&ly in n!mbers that atthe "arty $ongress in )an!ary 192. si3 tho!sand men participated in the ceremony of consecrating the flags

and the first companies were f!lly clad in their new !niform%

O!r e3perience in $ob!rg proved how essential it is to introd!ce one distinctive !niform for the 'torm?etachment, not only for the p!rpose of strengthening the esprit de corps b!t also to avoid conf!sion and



the danger of not recogniing the opponent in a s+!abble% Mp to that time they had merely worn the armlet,

b!t now the t!nic and the well-&nown cap were added%

!t the $ob!rg e3perience had also another important res!lt% /e now determined to brea& the 8ed (error

in all those localities where for many years it had prevented men of other views from holding their meetings% /e were determined to restore the right of free assembly% From that time onwards we bro!ght o!r

battalions together in s!ch places and little by little the red citadels of avaria, one after another, fell before

the *ational 'ocialist propaganda% (he 'torm (roops became more and more adept at their ob% (hey

increasingly lost all semblance of an aimless and lifeless defence movement and came o!t into the light asan active militant organiation, fighting for the establishment of a new 6erman 'tate%

(his logical development contin!ed !ntil arch 192.% (hen an event occ!rred which made me divert the

ovement from the co!rse hitherto followed and introd!ce some changes in its o!ter formation%

In the first months of 192. the French occ!pied the 8!hr district% (he conse+!ence of this was of greatimportance in the development of the 'torm ?etachment%

It is not yet possible, nor wo!ld it be in the interest of the nation, to write or spea& openly and freely on the

s!bect% I shall spea& of it only as far as the matter has been dealt with in p!blic disc!ssions and th!s

bro!ght to the &nowledge of everybody%(he occ!pation of the 8!hr district, which did not come as a s!rprise to !s, gave gro!nds for hoping that

6ermany wo!ld at last abandon its cowardly policy of s!bmission and therewith give the defensive

associations a definite tas& to f!lfil% (he 'torm ?etachment also, which now n!mbered several tho!sand of

rob!st and vigoro!s yo!ng men, sho!ld not be e3cl!ded from this national service% ?!ring the spring and

s!mmer of 192. it was transformed into a fighting military organiation% It is to this reorganiation that wem!st in great part attrib!te the later developments that too& place d!ring 192., in so far as it affected o!r

ovement%

7lsewhere I shall deal in broad o!tline with the development of events in 192.% ere I wish only to statethat the transformation of the 'torm ?etachment at that time m!st have been detrimental to the interests of

the ovement 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%

(he events which too& place at the close of 192., terrible as they may appear at first sight, were almost anecessity if loo&ed at from a higher standpoint> beca!se, in view of the attit!de ta&en by the 6overnment of

the 6erman 8eich, conversion of the 'torm (roops into a military force wo!ld be meaningless and th!s a

transformation which wo!ld also be harmf!l to the ovement was ended at one stro&e% At the same time it

was made possible for !s to reconstr!ct at the point where we had been diverted from the proper co!rse%In the year 192= the 6erman *ational 'ocialist Labo!r "arty was re-fo!nded and had to organie and train

its 'torm ?etachment once again according to the principles I have laid down% It m!st ret!rn to the originalidea and once more it m!st consider its most essential tas& to f!nction as the instr!ment of defence and

reinforcement in the spirit!al str!ggle to establish the ideals of the ovement%(he 'torm ?etachment m!st not be allowed to sin& to the level of something in the nat!re of a defence

organiation or a secret society% 'teps m!st be ta&en rather to ma&e it a vang!ard of 1<<,<<< men in the

str!ggle for the *ational 'ocialist ideal which is based on the profo!nd principle of a "eople#s 'tate%

$hapter (en

In the winter of 1919, and still more in the spring and s!mmer of 192<, the yo!ng "arty felt bo!nd to ta&e

!p a definite stand on a +!estion which already had become +!ite serio!s d!ring the /ar% In the firstvol!me of this boo& I have briefly recorded certain facts which I had personally witnessed and which

foreboded the brea&-!p of 6ermany% In describing these facts I made reference to the special nat!re of the

propaganda which was directed by the 7nglish as well as the French towards reopening the breach that hade3isted between *orth and 'o!th in 6ermany% In the spring of 191= there appeared the first of a series of leaflets which was systematically followed !p and the aim of which was to aro!se feeling against "r!ssia as

being solely responsible for the war% Mp to 191 this system had been developed and perfected in a c!nning

and shameless manner% Appealing to the basest of h!man instincts, this propaganda endeavo!red to aro!se

the wrath of the 'o!th 6ermans against the *orth 6ermans and after a short time it bore fr!it% "ersons whowere then in high positions !nder the 6overnment and in the Army, especially those attached to

head+!arters in the avarian Army, merited the !st reproof of having blindly neglected their d!ty and

failed to ta&e the necessary steps to co!nter s!ch propaganda% !t nothing was done% On the contrary, insome +!arters it did not appear to be +!ite !nwelcome and probably they were short-sighted eno!gh to



thin& that s!ch propaganda might help along the development of !nification in 6ermany b!t even that it

might a!tomatically bring abo!t consolidation of the federative forces% 'carcely ever in history was s!ch a

wic&ed neglect more wic&edly avenged% (he wea&ening of "r!ssia, which they believed wo!ld res!lt from

this propaganda, affected the whole of 6ermany% It res!lted in hastening the collapse which not onlywrec&ed 6ermany as a whole b!t even more partic!larly the federal states%

In that town where the artificially created hatred against "r!ssia raged most violently the revolt against the

reigning o!se was the beginning of the 8evol!tion%

It wo!ld be a mista&e to thin& that the enemy propaganda was e3cl!sively responsible for creating an anti-"r!ssian feeling and that there were no reasons which might e3c!se the people for having listened to this

propaganda% (he incredible fashion in which the national economic interests were organied d!ring the

/ar, the absol!tely cray system of centraliation which made the whole 8eich its ward and e3ploited the

8eich, f!rnished the principal gro!nds for the growth of that anti-"r!ssian feeling% (he average citienloo&ed !pon the companies for the placing of war contracts, all of which had their head+!arters in erlin,

as identical with erlin and erlin itself as identical with "r!ssia% (he average citien did not &now that the

organiation of these robber companies, which were called /ar $ompanies, was not in the hands of erlin

or "r!ssia and not even in 6erman hands at all% "eople recognied only the gross irreg!larities and thecontin!al encroachments of that hated instit!tion in the etropolis of the 8eich and directed their anger

towards erlin and "r!ssia, all the more beca!se in certain +!arters Bthe avarian 6overnmentC nothing

was done to correct this attit!de, b!t it was even welcomed with silent r!bbing of hands%

(he )ew was far too shrewd not to !nderstand that the infamo!s campaign which he had organied, !nder

the cloa& of /ar $ompanies, for pl!ndering the 6erman nation wo!ld and m!st event!ally aro!seopposition% As long as that opposition did not spring directly at his own throat he had no reason to be

afraid% ence he decided that the best way of forestalling an o!tbrea& on the part of the enraged and

desperate masses wo!ld be to inflame their wrath and at the same time give it another o!tlet%Let avaria +!arrel as m!ch as it li&ed with "r!ssia and "r!ssia with avaria% (he more, the merrier% (his

bitter strife between the two states ass!red peace to the )ew% (h!s p!blic attention was completely diverted

from the international maggot in the body of the nation> indeed, he seemed to have been forgotten% (hen

when there came a danger that level-headed people, of whom there are many to be fo!nd also in avaria,wo!ld advise a little more reserve and a more !dicio!s eval!ation of things, th!s calming the rage against

"r!ssia, all the )ew had to do in erlin was to stage a new provocation and await res!lts% 7very time that

was done all those who had profiteered o!t of the conflict between *orth and 'o!th filled their l!ngs and

again fanned the flame of indignation !ntil it became a blae%It was a shrewd and e3pert manoe!vre on the part of the )ew, to set the different branches of the 6erman

people +!arrelling with one another, so that their attention wo!ld be t!rned away from himself and he co!ld pl!nder them all the more completely%

(hen came the 8evol!tion%Mntil the year 191;, or rather !ntil the *ovember of that year, the average 6erman citien, partic!larly the

less ed!cated lower middle-class and the wor&ers, did not rightly !nderstand what was happening and did

not realie what m!st be the inevitable conse+!ences, especially for avaria, of this internecine strife

between the branches of the 6erman people> b!t at least those sections which called themselves *ational#o!ght to have clearly perceived these conse+!ences on the day that the 8evol!tion bro&e o!t% For the

moment the co!p d#tat had s!cceeded, the leader and organier of the 8evol!tion in avaria p!t himself

forward as the defender of avarian# interests% (he international )ew, !rt 7isner, began to play off

avaria against "r!ssia% (his Oriental was !st abo!t the last person in the world that co!ld be pointed to asthe logical defender of avarian interests% In his trade as newspaper reporter he had wandered from place to

place all over 6ermany and to him it was a matter of sheer indifference whether avaria or any other

partic!lar part of 6od#s whole world contin!ed to e3ist%In deliberately giving the revol!tionary rising in avaria the character of an offensive against "r!ssia, !rt7isner was not acting in the slightest degree from the standpoint of avarian interests, b!t merely as the

commissioned representative of )ewry% e e3ploited e3isting instincts and antipathies in avaria as a means

which wo!ld help to ma&e the dismemberment of 6ermany all the more easy% /hen once dismembered, the

8eich wo!ld fall an easy prey to olshevism%(he tactics employed by him were contin!ed for a time after his death% (he ar3ists, who had always

derided and e3ploited the individ!al 6erman states and their princes, now s!ddenly appealed, as an

Independent "arty# to those sentiments and instincts which had their strongest roots in the families of thereigning princes and the individ!al states%



(he fight waged by the avarian 'oviet 8ep!blic against the military contingents that were sent to free

avaria from its grasp was represented by the ar3ist propagandists as first of all the 'tr!ggle of the

avarian /or&er# against "r!ssian ilitarism%# (his e3plains why it was that the s!ppression of the 'oviet

8ep!blic in !nich did not have the same effect there as in the other 6erman districts% Instead of recallingthe masses to a sense of reason, it led to increased bitterness and anger against "r!ssia%

(he art of the olshevi& agitators, in representing the s!ppression of the avarian 'oviet 8ep!blic as a

victory of "r!ssian ilitarism# over the Anti-militarists# and Anti-"r!ssian# people of avaria, bore rich

fr!it% /hereas on the occasion of the elections to the avarian Legislative ?iet, !rt 7isner did not haveten tho!sand followers in !nich and the $omm!nist party less than three tho!sand, after the fall of the

avarian 8ep!blic the votes given to the two parties together amo!nted to nearly one h!ndred tho!sand%

It was then that I personally began to combat that cray incitement of some branches of the 6erman people

against other branches%I believe that never in my life did I !nderta&e a more !npop!lar tas& than I did when I too& my stand

against the anti-"r!ssian incitement% ?!ring the 'oviet regime in !nich great p!blic meetings were held

at which hatred against the rest of 6ermany, b!t partic!larly against "r!ssia, was ro!sed !p to s!ch a pitch

that a *orth 6erman wo!ld have ris&ed his life in attending one of those meetings% (hese meetings oftenended in wild sho!ts0 HAway from "r!ssiaH, H?own with the "r!ssiansH, H/ar against "r!ssiaH, and so on%

(his feeling was openly e3pressed in the 8eichstag by a partic!larly brilliant defender of avarian

sovereign rights when he said0 H8ather die as a avarian than rot as a "r!ssianH%

One sho!ld have attended some of the meetings held at that time in order to !nderstand what it meant for

one when, for the first time and s!rro!nded by only a handf!l of friends, I raised my voice against this follyat a meeting held in the !nich LRwenbrE! eller% 'ome of my /ar 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 !s

and threatened to &ill !s% ?!ring the time that we were fighting for the co!ntry the same crowd were for themost part safely ensconced in the rear positions or were peacef!lly circ!lating at home as deserters and

shir&ers% It is tr!e that that scene t!rned o!t to be of advantage to me% y small band of comrades felt for

the first time absol!tely !nited with me and readily swore to stic& by me thro!gh life and death%

(hese conflicts, which were constantly repeated in 1919, seemed to become more violent soon after the beginning of 192<% (here were meetings - I remember especially one in the /agner all in the

'onnenstrasse in !nich - d!ring the co!rse of which my gro!p, now grown m!ch larger, had to defend

themselves against assa!lts of the most violent character% It happened more than once that doens of my

followers were mishandled, thrown to the floor and stamped !pon by the attac&ers and were finally throwno!t of the hall more dead than alive%

(he str!ggle which I had !nderta&en, first by myself alone and afterwards with the s!pport of my war comrades, was now contin!ed by the yo!ng movement, I might say almost as a sacred mission%

I am pro!d of being able to say to-day that we - depending almost e3cl!sively on o!r followers in avaria -were responsible for p!tting an end, slowly b!t s!rely, to the coalition of folly and treason% I say folly and

treason beca!se, altho!gh convinced that the masses who oined in it meant well b!t were st!pid, I cannot

attrib!te s!ch simplicity as an e3ten!ating circ!mstance in the case of the organiers and their abetters% I

then loo&ed !pon them,and still loo& !pon them to-day, as traitors in the payment of France% In one case,that of ?orten, history has already prono!nced its !dgment%

(he sit!ation became specially dangero!s at that time by reason of the fact that they were very ast!te in

their ability to cloa& their real tendencies, by insisting primarily on their federative intentions and claiming

that those were the sole motives of the agitation% Of co!rse it is +!ite obvio!s that the agitation against"r!ssia had nothing to do with federalism% '!rely 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

form!la !sed by ismarc& to define his idea of the 8eich is not a co!nterfeit phrase, co!ld not in the same breath e3press the desire to c!t off portions of the "r!ssian 'tate, which was created or at least completed by ismarc&% *or co!ld he p!blicly s!pport s!ch a separatist attempt%

/hat an o!tcry wo!ld be raised in !nich if some pr!ssian conservative party declared itself in favo!r of

detaching Franconia from avaria or too& p!blic action in demanding and promoting s!ch a separatist

policy% *evertheless, one can only have sympathy for all those real and honest federalists who did not seethro!gh this infamo!s swindle, for they were its principal victims% y distorting the federalist idea in s!ch a

way its own champions prepared its grave% One cannot ma&e propaganda for a federalist config!ration of

the 8eich by debasing and ab!sing and besmirching the essential element of s!ch a political str!ct!re,namely "r!ssia, and th!s ma&ing s!ch a $onfederation 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 "r!ssian people which was the last that co!ld be loo&ed !pon as connected with

the *ovember democracy% For the ab!se and attac&s of these so-called federalists were not levelled against

the fathers of the /eimar $onstit!tion - the maority of whom were 'o!th 6ermans or )ews - b!t againstthose who represented the old conservative "r!ssia, which was the antipodes of the /eimar $onstit!tion%

(he fact that the directors of this campaign were caref!l not to to!ch the )ews is not to be wondered at and

perhaps gives the &ey to the whole riddle%

efore the 8evol!tion the )ew was s!ccessf!l in distracting attention from himself and his /ar $ompanies by inciting the masses, and especially the avarians, against "r!ssia% 'imilarly he felt obliged, after the

8evol!tion, to find some way of camo!flaging his new pl!nder campaign which was nine or ten times

greater% And again he s!cceeded, in this case by provo&ing the so-called national# elements against one

another0 the conservative avarians against the "r!ssians, who were !st as conservative% e acted againwith e3treme c!nning, inasm!ch as he who held the reins of "r!ssia#s destiny in his hands provo&ed s!ch

cr!de and tactless aggressions that again and again they set the blood boiling in those who were being

contin!ally d!ped% *ever against the )ew, however, b!t always the 6erman against his own brother% (he

avarian did not see the erlin of fo!r million ind!strio!s and efficient wor&ing people, b!t only the layand decadent erlin which is to be fo!nd in the worst +!arters of the /est 7nd% And his antipathy was not

directed against this /est 7nd of erlin b!t against the "r!ssian# city%

In many cases it tempted one to despair%

(he ability which the )ew has displayed in t!rning p!blic attention away from himself and giving it another

direction may be st!died also in what is happening to-day%In 191; there was nothing li&e an organied anti-'emitic feeling% I still remember the diffic!lties we

enco!ntered the moment we mentioned the )ew% /e were either confronted with d!mb-str!c& faces or else

a lively and hefty antagonism% (he efforts we made at the time to point o!t the real enemy to the p!blicseemed to be doomed to fail!re% !t then things began to change for the better, tho!gh only very slowly%

(he Leag!e for ?efence and Offence# was defectively organied b!t at least it had the great merit of

opening !p the )ewish +!estion once again% In the winter of 191;-1919 a &ind of anti-semitism began

slowly to ta&e root% Later on the *ational 'ocialist ovement presented the )ewish problem in a new light%(a&ing the +!estion beyond the restricted circles of the !pper classes and small bo!rgeoisie we s!cceeded

in transforming it into the driving motive of a great pop!lar movement% !t the moment we were s!ccessf!l

in placing this problem before the 6erman people in the light of an idea that wo!ld !nite them in one

str!ggle the )ew reacted% e resorted to his old tactics% /ith amaing alacrity he h!rled the torch of discordinto the patriotic movement and opened a rift there% In bringing forward the !ltramontane +!estion and in

the m!t!al +!arrels that it gave rise to between $atholicism and "rotestantism lay the sole possibility, asconditions then were, of occ!pying p!blic attention with other problems and th!s ward off the attac& which

had been concentrated against )ewry% (he men who dragged o!r people into this controversy can never ma&e amends for the crime they then committed against the nation% Anyhow, the )ew has attained the ends

he desired% $atholics and "rotestants are fighting with one another to their hearts# content, while the enemy

of Aryan h!manity and all $hristendom is la!ghing !p his sleeve%

Once it was possible to occ!py the attention of the p!blic for several years with the str!ggle betweenfederalism and !nification, wearing o!t their energies in this m!t!al friction while the )ew traffic&ed in the

freedom of the nation and sold o!r co!ntry to the masters of international high finance% 'o in o!r day he has

s!cceeded again, this time by raising r!ctions between the two 6erman religio!s denominations while the

fo!ndations on which both rest are being eaten away and destroyed thro!gh the poison inected by theinternational and cosmopolitan )ew%

Loo& at the ravages from which o!r people are s!ffering daily as a res!lt of being contaminated with

)ewish blood% ear in mind the fact that this poisono!s contamination can be eliminated from the national body only after cent!ries, or perhaps never% (hin& f!rther of how the process of racial decomposition isdebasing and in some cases even destroying the f!ndamental Aryan +!alities of o!r 6erman people, so that

o!r c!lt!ral creativeness as a nation is grad!ally becoming impotent and we are r!nning the danger, at least

in o!r great cities, of falling to the level where 'o!thern Italy is to-day% (his pestilential ad!lteration of the

blood, of which h!ndreds of tho!sands of o!r people ta&e no acco!nt, is being systematically practised bythe )ew to-day% 'ystematically these negroid parasites in o!r national body corr!pt o!r innocent fair-haired

girls and th!s destroy something which can no longer be replaced in this world%

(he two $hristian denominations loo& on with indifference at the profanation and destr!ction of a nobleand !ni+!e creat!re who was given to the world as a gift of 6od#s grace% For the f!t!re of the world,



however, it does not matter which of the two tri!mphs over the other, the $atholic or the "rotestant% !t it

does matter whether Aryan h!manity s!rvives or perishes% And yet the two $hristian denominations are not

contending against the destroyer of Aryan h!manity b!t are trying to destroy one another% 7verybody who

has the right &ind of feeling for his co!ntry is solemnly bo!nd, each within his own denomination, to see toit that he is not constantly tal&ing abo!t the /ill of 6od merely from the lips b!t that in act!al fact he

f!lfils the /ill of 6od and does not allow 6od#s handiwor& to be debased% For it was by the /ill of 6od

that men were made of a certain bodily shape, were given their nat!res and their fac!lties% /hoever

destroys is wor& wages war against 6od#s $reation and 6od#s /ill% (herefore everyone sho!ldendeavo!r, each in his own denomination of co!rse, and sho!ld consider it as his first and most solemn

d!ty to hinder any and everyone whose cond!ct tends, either by word or deed, to go o!tside his own

religio!s body and pic& a +!arrel with those of another denomination% For, in view of the religio!s schism

that e3ists in 6ermany, to attac& the essential characteristics of one denomination m!st necessarily lead to awar of e3termination between the two $hristian denominations% ere there can be no comparison between

o!r position and that of France, or 'pain or Italy% In those three co!ntries one may, for instance, ma&e

propaganda for the side that is fighting against !ltramontanism witho!t thereby inc!rring the danger of a

national rift among the French, or 'panish or Italian people% In 6ermany, however, that cannot be so, for here the "rotestants wo!ld also ta&e part in s!ch propaganda% And th!s the defence which elsewhere only

$atholics organie against clerical aggression in political matters wo!ld ass!me with !s the character of a

"rotestant attac& against $atholicism% /hat may be tolerated by the faithf!l in one denomination even

when it seems !n!st to them, will at once be indignantly reected and opposed on a priori gro!nds if it

sho!ld come from the militant leaders of another denomination% (his is so tr!e that even men who wo!ld beready and willing to fight for the removal of manifest grievances within their own religio!s denomination

will drop their own fight and t!rn their activities against the o!tsider the moment the abolition of s!ch

grievances is co!nselled or demanded by one who is not of the same faith% (hey consider it !n!stified andinadmissible and incorrect for o!tsiders to meddle in matters which do not affect them at all% '!ch attempts

are not e3c!sed even when they are inspired by a feeling for the s!preme interests of the national

comm!nity> beca!se even in o!r day religio!s feelings still have deeper roots than all feeling for political

and national e3pediency% (hat cannot be changed by setting one denomination against another in bitter conflict% It can be changed only if, thro!gh a spirit of m!t!al tolerance, the nation can be ass!red of a f!t!re

the greatness of which will grad!ally operate as a conciliating factor in the sphere of religion also% I have

no hesitation in saying that in those men who see& to-day to embroil the patriotic movement in religio!s

+!arrels I see worse enemies of my co!ntry than the international comm!nists are% For the *ational'ocialist ovement has set itself to the tas& of converting those comm!nists% !t anyone who goes o!tside

the ran&s of his own ovement and tends to t!rn it away from the f!lfilment of its mission is acting in amanner that deserves the severest condemnation% e is acting as a champion of )ewish interests, whether

conscio!sly or !nconscio!sly does not matter% For it is in the interests of the )ews to-day that the energiesof the patriotic movement sho!ld be s+!andered in a religio!s conflict, beca!se it is beginning to be

dangero!s for the )ews% I have p!rposely !sed the phrase abo!t s+!andering the energies of the ovement,

beca!se nobody b!t some person who is entirely ignorant of history co!ld imagine that this movement can

solve a +!estion which the greatest statesmen have tried for cent!ries to solve, and tried in vain%Anyhow the facts spea& for themselves% (he men who s!ddenly discovered, in 1924, that the highest

mission of the patriotic movement was to fight !ltramontanism, have not s!cceeded in smashing

!ltramontanism, b!t they s!cceeded in splitting the patriotic movement% I have to g!ard against the

possibility of some immat!re brain arising in the patriotic movement which thin&s that it can do what evena ismarc& failed to do% It will be always one of the first d!ties of those who are directing the *ational

'ocialist ovement to oppose !nconditionally any attempt to place the *ational 'ocialist ovement at the

service of s!ch a conflict% And anybody who cond!cts a propaganda with that end in view m!st be e3pelledforthwith from its ran&s%As a matter of fact we s!cceeded !ntil the a!t!mn of 192. in &eeping o!r movement away from s!ch

controversies% (he most devoted "rotestant co!ld stand side by side with the most devoted $atholic in o!r

ran&s witho!t having his conscience dist!rbed in the slightest as far as concerned his religio!s convictions%

(he bitter str!ggle which both waged in common against the wrec&er of Aryan h!manity ta!ght themnat!ral respect and esteem% And it was !st in those years that o!r movement had to engage in a bitter strife

with the $entre "arty not for religio!s ends b!t for national, racial, political and economic ends% (he

s!ccess we then achieved showed that we were right, b!t it does not spea& to-day in favo!r of those whotho!ght they &new better%



In recent years things have gone so far that patriotic circles, in god-forsa&en blindness of their religio!s

strife, co!ld not recognie the folly of their cond!ct even from the fact that atheist ar3ist newspapers

advocated the ca!se of one religio!s denomination or the other, according as it s!ited ar3ist interests, so

as to create conf!sion thro!gh slogans and declarations which were often immeas!rably st!pid, nowmolesting the one party and again the other, and th!s po&ing the fire to &eep the blae at its highest%

!t in the case of a people li&e the 6ermans, whose history has so often shown them capable of fighting for

phantoms to the point of complete e3ha!stion, every war-cry is a mortal danger% y these slogans o!r

people have often been drawn away from the real problems of their e3istence% /hile we were e3ha!stingo!r energies in religio!s wars the others were ac+!iring their share of the world% And while the patriotic

movement is debating with itself whether the !ltramontane danger be greater than the )ewish, or vice versa,

the )ew is destroying the racial basis of o!r e3istence and thereby annihilating o!r people% As far as regards

that &ind of patriotic# warrior, on behalf of the *ational 'ocialist ovement and therefore of the 6erman people I pray with all my heart0 HLord, preserve !s from s!ch friends, and then we can easily deal with o!r

enemies%H

(he controversy over federation and !nification, so c!nningly propagandied by the )ews in 1919-192< and

onwards, forced *ational 'ocialism, which rep!diated the +!arrel, to ta&e !p a definite stand in relation tothe essential problem concerned in it% O!ght 6ermany to be a confederacy or a military 'tate5 /hat is the

practical significance of these terms5 (o me it seems that the second +!estion is more important than the

first, beca!se it is f!ndamental to the !nderstanding of the whole problem and also beca!se the answer to it

may help to clear !p conf!sion and therewith have a conciliating effect%

/hat is a $onfederacy5 22Cy a $onfederacy we mean a !nion of sovereign states which of their own free will and in virt!e of their

sovereignty come together and create a collective !nit, ceding to that !nit as m!ch of their own sovereign

rights as will render the e3istence of the !nion possible and will g!arantee it%!t the theoretical form!la is not wholly p!t into practice by any confederacy that e3ists to-day% And least

of all by the American Mnion, where it is impossible to spea& of original sovereignty in regard to the

maority of the states% any of them were not incl!ded in the federal comple3 !ntil long after it had been

established% (he states that ma&e !p the American Mnion are mostly in the nat!re of territories, more or less, formed for technical administrative p!rposes, their bo!ndaries having in many cases been fi3ed in the

mapping office% Originally these states did not and co!ld not possess sovereign rights of their own% eca!se

it was the Mnion that created most of the so-called states% (herefore the sovereign rights, often very

comprehensive, which were left, or rather granted, to the vario!s territories correspond not only to thewhole character of the $onfederation b!t also to its vast space, which is e+!ivalent to the sie of a

$ontinent% $onse+!ently, in spea&ing of the Mnited 'tates of America one m!st not consider them assovereign states b!t as enoying rights or, better perhaps, a!tarchic powers, granted to them and g!aranteed

by the $onstit!tion% *or does o!r definition ade+!ately e3press the condition of affairs in 6ermany% It is tr!e that in 6ermany

the individ!al states e3isted as states before the 8eich and that the 8eich was formed from them% (he

8eich, however, was not formed by the vol!ntary and e+!al co-operation of the individ!al states, b!t rather

beca!se the state of "r!ssia grad!ally ac+!ired a position of hegemony over the others% (he difference inthe territorial area alone between the 6erman states prevents any comparison with the American Mnion%

(he great difference in territorial area between the very small 6erman states that then e3isted and the

larger, or even still more the largest, demonstrates the ine+!ality of their achievements and shows that they

co!ld not ta&e an e+!al part in fo!nding and shaping the federal 7mpire% In the case of most of theseindivid!al states it cannot be maintained that they ever enoyed real sovereignty> and the term 'tate

'overeignty# was really nothing more than an administrative form!la which had no inner meaning% As a

matter of fact, not only developments in the past b!t also in o!r own time wiped o!t several of these so-called 'overeign 'tates# and th!s proved in the most definite way how frail these sovereign# stateformations were%

I cannot deal here with the historical +!estion of how these individ!al states came to be established, b!t I

m!st call attention to the fact that hardly in any case did their frontiers coincide with ethical frontiers of the

inhabitants% (hey were p!rely political phenomena which for the most part emerged d!ring the sad epochwhen the 6erman 7mpire was in a state of e3ha!stion and was dismembered% (hey represented both ca!se

and effect in the process of e3ha!stion and partition of o!r fatherland%

(he $onstit!tion of the old 8eich too& all this into acco!nt, at least !p to a certain degree, in so far as theindivid!al states were not accorded e+!al representation in the 8eichstag, b!t a representation proportionate



to their respective areas, their act!al importance and the role which they played in the formation of the

8eich%

(he sovereign rights which the individ!al states reno!nced in order to form the 8eich were vol!ntarily

ceded only to a very small degree% For the most part they had no practical e3istence or they were simplyta&en by "r!ssia !nder the press!re of her preponderant power% (he principle followed by ismarc& was

not to give the 8eich what he co!ld ta&e from the individ!al states b!t to demand from the individ!al states

only what was absol!tely necessary for the 8eich% A moderate and wise policy% On the one side ismarc&

showed the greatest regard for c!stoms and traditions> on the other side his policy sec!red for the new8eich from its fo!ndation onwards a great meas!re of love and willing co-operation% !t it wo!ld be a

f!ndamental error to attrib!te ismarc&#s decision to any conviction on his part that the 8eich was th!s

ac+!iring all the rights of sovereignty which wo!ld s!flice for all time% (hat was far from ismarc&#s idea%

On the contrary, he wished to leave over for the f!t!re what it wo!ld be diffic!lt to carry thro!gh at themoment and might not have been readily agreed to by the individ!al states% e tr!sted to the levelling

effect of time and to the press!re e3ercised by the process of evol!tion, the steady action of which appeared

more effective than an attempt to brea& the resistance which the individ!al states offered at the moment% y

this policy he showed his great ability in the art of statesmanship% And, as a matter of fact, the sovereigntyof the 8eich has contin!ally increased at the cost of the sovereignty of the individ!al states% (he passing of

time has achieved what ismarc& hoped it wo!ld%

(he 6erman collapse and the abolition of the monarchical form of government necessarily hastened this

development% (he 6erman federal states, which had not been gro!nded on ethnical fo!ndations b!t arose

rather o!t of political conditions, were bo!nd 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 individ!al states owned their political origin and development% (h!s deprived of their internal raison

d#Utre, they reno!nced all right to s!rvival and were ind!ced by p!rely practical reasons to f!se with their neighbo!rs or else they oined the more powerf!l states o!t of their own free will% (hat proved in a stri&ing

manner how e3traordinarily frail was the act!al sovereignty these small phantom states enoyed, and it

proved too how lightly they were estimated by their own citiens%

(ho!gh the abolition of the monarchical regime and its representatives had dealt a hard blow to the federalcharacter of the 8eich, still more destr!ctive, from the federal point of view, was the acceptance of the

obligations that res!lted from the peace# treaty%

It was only nat!ral and logical that the federal states sho!ld lose all sovereign control over the finances the

moment the 8eich, in conse+!ence of a lost war, was s!bected to financial obligations which co!ld never be g!aranteed thro!gh separate treaties with the individ!al states% (he s!bse+!ent steps which led the 8eich

to ta&e over the posts and railways were an enforced advance in the process of enslaving o!r people, a process which the peace treaties grad!ally developed% (he 8eich was forced to sec!re possession of

reso!rces which had to be constantly increased in order to satisfy the demands made by f!rther e3tortions%(he form in which the powers of the 8eich were th!s e3tended to embrace the federal states was often

ridic!lo!sly st!pid, b!t in itself the proced!re was logical and nat!ral% (he blame for it m!st be laid at the

door of these men and those parties that failed in the ho!r of need to concentrate all their energies in an

effort to bring the war to a victorio!s iss!e% (he g!ilt lies on those parties which, especially in avaria,catered for their own egotistic interests d!ring the war and ref!sed to the 8eich what the 8eich had to

re+!isition to a tenfold greater meas!re when the war was lost% (he retrib!tion of istoryJ 8arely has the

vengeance of eaven followed so closely on the crime as it did in this case% (hose same parties which, a

few years previo!sly, placed the interests of their own states - especially in avaria - before those of the8eich had now to loo& on passively while the press!re of events forced the 8eich, in its own interests, to

abolish the e3istence of the individ!al states% (hey were the victims of their own defa!lts%

It was an !nparalleled e3ample of hypocrisy to raise the cry of lamentation over the loss which the federalstates s!ffered in being deprived of their sovereign rights% (his cry was raised before the electorate, for it isonly to the electorate that o!r contemporary parties address themselves% !t these parties, witho!t

e3ception, o!tbid one another in accepting a policy of f!lfilment which, by the sheer force of circ!mstances

and in its !ltimate conse+!ences, co!ld not b!t lead to a profo!nd alteration in the internal str!ct!re of the

8eich% ismarc&#s 8eich was free and !nhampered by any obligations towards the o!tside world%ismarc&#s 8eich never had to sho!lder s!ch heavy and entirely !nprod!ctive obligations as those to which

6ermany was s!bected !nder the ?awes "lan% Also in domestic affairs ismarc&#s 8eich was able to limit

its powers to a few matters that were absol!tely necessary for its e3istence% (herefore it co!ld dispense withthe necessity of a financial control over these states and co!ld live from their contrib!tions% On the other



side the relatively small financial trib!te which the federal states had to pay to the 8eich ind!ced them to

welcome its e3istence% !t it is !ntr!e and !n!st to state now, as certain propagandists do, that the federal

states are displeased with the 8eich merely beca!se of their financial s!bection to it% *o, that is not how

the matter really stands% (he lac& of sympathy for the political idea embodied in the 8eich is not d!e to theloss of sovereign rights on the part of the individ!al states% It is m!ch more the res!lt of the deplorable

fashion in which the present rgime cares for the interests of the 6erman people% ?espite all the

celebrations in hono!r of the national flag and the $onstit!tion, every section of the 6erman people feels

that the present 8eich is not in accordance with its heart#s desire% And the Law for the "rotection of the8ep!blic may prevent o!trages against rep!blican instit!tions, b!t it will not gain the love of one single

6erman% In its constant an3iety to protect itself against its own citiens by means of laws and sentences of

imprisonment, the 8ep!blic has aro!sed sharp and h!miliating criticism of all rep!blican instit!tions as

s!ch%For another reason also it is !ntr!e to say, as certain parties affirm to-day, that the 8eich has ceased to be

pop!lar on acco!nt of its overbearing cond!ct in regard to certain sovereign rights which the individ!al

states had heretofore enoyed% '!pposing the 8eich had not e3tended its a!thority over the individ!al states,

there is no reason to believe that it wo!ld find more favo!r among those states if the general obligationsremained so heavy as they now are% On the contrary, if the individ!al states had to pay their respective

shares of the highly increased trib!te which the 8eich has to meet to-day in order to f!lfil the provisions of

the :ersailles ?ictate, the hostility towards the 8eich wo!ld be infinitely greater% For then not only wo!ld it

prove diffic!lt to collect the respective contrib!tions d!e to the 8eich from the federal states, b!t coercive

methods wo!ld have to be employed in ma&ing the collections% (he 8ep!blic stands on the footing of the peace treaties and has neither the co!rage nor the intention to brea& them% (hat being so, it m!st observe

the obligations which the peace treaties have imposed on it% (he responsibility for this sit!ation is to be

attrib!ted solely to those parties who preach !nceasingly to the patient electoral masses on the necessity of maintaining the a!tonomy of the federal states, while at the same time they champion and demand of the

8eich a policy which m!st necessarily lead to the s!ppression of even the very last of those so-called

sovereign# rights%

I say necessarily beca!se the present 8eich has no other possible means of bearing the b!rden of chargeswhich an insane domestic and foreign policy has laid on it% ere still another wedge is placed on the

former, to drive it in still deeper% 7very new debt which the 8eich contracts, thro!gh the criminal way in

which the interests of 6ermany are represented vis-P-vis foreign co!ntries, necessitates a new and stronger

blow which drives the !nder wedges still deeper, (hat blow demands another step in the progressiveabolition of the sovereign rights of the individ!al states, so as not to allow the germs of opposition to rise

!p into activity or even to e3ist%(he chief characteristic difference between the policy of the present 8eich and that of former times lies in

this0 (he old 8eich gave freedom to its people at home and showed itself strong towards the o!tside world,whereas the 8ep!blic shows itself wea& towards the stranger and oppresses its own citiens at home% In

both cases one attit!de determines the other% A vigoro!s national 'tate does not need to ma&e many laws for

the interior, beca!se of the affection and attachment of its citiens% (he international servile 'tate can live

only by coercing its citiens to render it the services it demands% And it is a piece of imp!dent falsehood for the present regime to spea& of Free citiens#% Only the old 6ermany co!ld spea& in that manner% (he

present 8ep!blic is a colony of slaves at the service of the stranger% At best it has s!bects, b!t not citiens%

ence it does not possess a national flag b!t only a trade mar&, introd!ced and protected by official decree

and legislative meas!res% (his symbol, which is the 6essler#s cap of 6erman ?emocracy, will alwaysremain alien to the spirit of o!r people% On its side, the 8ep!blic having no sense of tradition or respect for

past greatness, dragged the symbol of the past in the m!d, b!t it will be s!rprised one day to discover how

s!perficial is the devotion of its citiens to its own symbol% (he 8ep!blic has given to itself the character of an intermeo in 6erman history% And so this 'tate is bo!nd constantly to restrict more and more thesovereign rights of the individ!al states, not only for general reasons of a financial character b!t also on

principle% For by enforcing a policy of financial blac&mail, to s+!eee the last o!nce of s!bstance o!t of its

people, it is forced also to ta&e their last rights away from them, lest the general discontent may one day

flame !p into open rebellion%/e, *ational 'ocialists, wo!ld reverse this form!la and wo!ld adopt the following a3iom0 A strong

national 8eich which recognies and protects to the largest possible meas!re the rights of its citiens both

within and o!tside its frontiers can allow freedom to reign at home witho!t trembling for the safety of the'tate% On the other hand, a strong national 6overnment can intervene to a considerable degree in the



liberties of the individ!al s!bect as well as in the liberties of the constit!ent states witho!t thereby

wea&ening the ideal of the 8eich> and it can do this while recogniing its responsibility for the ideal of the

8eich, beca!se in these partic!lar acts and meas!res the individ!al citien recognies a means of promoting

the prestige of the nation as a whole%Of co!rse, every 'tate in the world has to face the +!estion of !nification in its internal organiation% And

6ermany is no e3ception in this matter% *owadays it is abs!rd to spea& of statal sovereignty# for the

constit!ent states of the 8eich, beca!se that has already become impossible on acco!nt of the ridic!lo!sly

small sie of so many of these states% In the sphere of commerce as well as that of administration theimportance of the individ!al states has been steadily decreasing% odern means of comm!nication and

mechanical progress have been increasingly restricting distance and space% /hat was once a 'tate is to-day

only a province and the territory covered by a modern 'tate had once the importance of a continent% (he

p!rely technical diffic!lty of administering a 'tate li&e 6ermany is not greater than that of governing a province li&e randenb!rg a h!ndred years ago% And to-day it is easier to cover the distance from !nich

to erlin than it was to cover the distance from !nich to 'tarnberg a h!ndred years ago% In view of the

modern means of transport, the whole territory of the 8eich to-day is smaller than that of certain 6erman

federal states at the time of the *apoleonic wars% (o close one#s eyes to the conse+!ences of these factsmeans to live in the past% (here always were, there are and always will be, men who do this% (hey may

retard b!t they cannot stop the revol!tions of history%

/e, *ational 'ocialists, m!st not allow the conse+!ences of that tr!th to pass by !s !nnoticed% In these

matters also we m!st not permit o!rselves to be misled by the phrases of o!r so-called national bo!rgeois

parties% I say phrases#, beca!se these same parodies do not serio!sly believe that it is possible for them tocarry o!t their proposals, and beca!se they themselves are the chief c!lprits and also the accomplices

responsible for the present state of affairs% 7specially in avaria, the demands for a halt in the process of

centraliation can be no more than a party move behind which there is no serio!s idea% If these parties ever had to pass from the realm of phrase-ma&ing into that of practical deeds they wo!ld present a sorry

spectacle% 7very so-called 8obbery of 'overeign 8ights# from avaria by the 8eich has met with no

practical resistance, e3cept for some fat!o!s bar&ing by way of protest% Indeed, when anyone serio!sly

opposed the madness that was shown in carrying o!t this system of centraliation he was told by thosesame parties that he !nderstood nothing of the nat!re and needs of the 'tate to-day% (hey slandered him and

prono!nced him anathema and persec!ted him !ntil he was either sh!t !p in prison or illegally deprived of

the right of p!blic speech% In the light of these facts o!r followers sho!ld become all the more convinced of

the profo!nd hypocrisy which characteries these so-called federalist circles% (o a certain e3tent they !sethe federalist doctrine !st as they !se the name of religion, merely as a means of promoting their own base

party interests%A certain !nification, especially in the field of transport%, appears logical% !t we, *ational 'ocialists, feel it

o!r d!ty to oppose with all o!r might s!ch a development in the modern 'tate, especially when themeas!res proposed are solely for the p!rpose of screening a disastro!s foreign policy and ma&ing it

possible% And !st beca!se the present 8eich has threatened to ta&e over the railways, the posts, the

finances, etc%, not from the high standpoint of a national policy, b!t in order to have in its hands the means

and pledges for an !nlimited policy of f!lfilment - for that reason we, *ational 'ocialists, m!st ta&e everystep that seems s!itable to obstr!ct and, if possible, definitely to prevent s!ch a policy% /e m!st fight

against the present system of amalgamating instit!tions that are vitally important for the e3istence of o!r

people, beca!se this system is being adopted solely to facilitate the payment of milliards and the

transference of pledges to the stranger, !nder the post-/ar provisions which o!r politicians have accepted%For these reasons also the *ational 'ocialist ovement has to ta&e !p a stand against s!ch tendencies%

oreover, we m!st oppose s!ch centraliation beca!se in domestic affairs it helps to reinforce a system of

government which in all its manifestations has bro!ght the greatest misfort!nes on the 6erman nation% (he present )ewish-?emocratic 8eich, which has become a veritable c!rse for the 6erman people, is see&ing tonegative the force of the criticism offered by all the federal states which have not yet become imb!ed with

the spirit of the age, and is trying to carry o!t this policy by cr!shing them to the point of annihilation% In

face of this we *ational 'ocialists m!st try to gro!nd the opposition of the individ!al states on s!ch a basis

that it will be able to operate with a good promise of s!ccess% /e m!st do this by transforming the str!ggleagainst centraliation into something that will be an e3pression of the higher interests of the 6erman nation

as s!ch% (herefore, while the avarian "op!list "arty, acting from its own narrow and partic!larist

standpoint, fights to maintain the special rights# of the avarian 'tate, we o!ght to stand on +!ite adifferent gro!nd in fighting for the same rights% O!r gro!nds o!ght to be those of the higher national



interests in opposition to the *ovember ?emocracy%

A still f!rther reason for opposing a centraliing process of that &ind arises from the certain conviction that

in great part this so-called nationaliation does not ma&e for !nification at all and still less for

simplification% In many cases it is adopted simply as a means of removing from the sovereign control of theindivid!al states certain instit!tions which they wish to place in the hands of the revol!tionary parties% In

6erman istory favo!ritism has never been of so base a character as in the democratic rep!blic% A great

portion of this centraliation to-day is the wor& of parties which once promised that they wo!ld open the

way for the promotion of talent, meaning thereby that they wo!ld fill those posts and offices entirely withtheir own partisans% 'ince the fo!ndation of the 8ep!blic the )ews especially have been obtaining positions

in the economic instit!tions ta&en over by the 8eich and also positions in the national administration, so

that the one and the other have become preserves of )ewry%

For tactical reasons, this last consideration obliges !s to watch with the greatest attention every f!rther attempt at centraliation and fight it at each step% !t in doing this o!r standpoint m!st always be that of a

lofty national policy and never a pettifogging partic!larism%

(his last observation is necessary, lest an opinion might arise among o!r own followers that we do not

accredit to the 8eich the right of incorporating in itself a sovereignty which is s!perior to that of theconstit!ent states% As regards this right we cannot and m!st not entertain the slightest do!bt% eca!se for !s

the 'tate is nothing b!t a form% Its s!bstance, or content, is the essential thing% And that is the nation, the

people% It is clear therefore that every other interest m!st be s!bordinated to the s!preme interests of the

nation% In partic!lar we cannot accredit to any other state a sovereign power and sovereign rights within the

confines of the nation and the 8eich, which represents the nation% (he abs!rdity which some federal statescommit by maintaining representations# abroad and corresponding foreign representations# among

themselves - that m!st cease and will cease% Mntil this happens we cannot be s!rprised if certain foreign

co!ntries are d!bio!s abo!t the political !nity of the 8eich and act accordingly% (he abs!rdity of theserepresentations# is all the greater beca!se they do harm and do not bring the slightest advantage% If the

interests of a 6erman abroad cannot be protected by the ambassador of the 8eich, m!ch less can they be

protected by the minister from some small federal state which appears ridic!lo!s in the framewor& of the

present world order% (he real tr!th is that these small federal states are envisaged as points of attac& for attempts at secession, which prospect is always pleasing to a certain foreign 'tate% /e, *ational 'ocialists,

m!st not allow some noble caste which has become effete with age to occ!py an ambassadorial post

abroad, with the idea that by engrafting one of its withered branches in new soil the green leaves may

spro!t again% Already in the time of the old 8eich o!r diplomatic representatives abroad were s!ch a sorrylot that a f!rther trial of that e3perience wo!ld be o!t of the +!estion%

It is certain that in the f!t!re the importance of the individ!al states will be transferred to the sphere of o!r c!lt!ral policy% (he monarch who did most to ma&e avaria an important centre was not an obstinate

partic!larist with anti-6erman tendencies, b!t L!dwig I who was as m!ch devoted to the ideal of 6ermangreatness as he was to that of art% is first consideration was to !se the powers of the state to develop the

c!lt!ral position of avaria and not its political power% And in doing this he prod!ced better and more

d!rable res!lts than if he had followed any other line of cond!ct% Mp to this time !nich was a provincial

residence town of only small importance, b!t he transformed it into the metropolis of 6erman art and bydoing so he made it an intellect!al centre which even to-day holds Franconia to avaria, tho!gh the

Franconians are of +!ite a different temperament% If !nich had remained as it had been earlier, what has

happened in 'a3ony wo!ld have been repeated in avaria, with the diAerence that Leipig and avarian

*Drnberg wo!ld have become, not avarian b!t Franconian cities% It was not the cry of H?own with"r!ssiaH that made !nich great% /hat made this a city of importance was the ing who wished to present

it to the 6erman nation as an artistic ewel that wo!ld have to be seen and appreciated, and so it has t!rned

o!t in fact% (herein lies a lesson for the f!t!re% (he importance of the individ!al states in the f!t!re will nolonger lie in their political or statal power% I loo& to them rather as important ethnical and c!lt!ral centres%!t even in this respect time will do its levelling wor&% odern travelling facilities sh!ffle people among

one another in s!ch a way that tribal bo!ndaries will fade o!t and even the c!lt!ral pict!re will grad!ally

become more of a !niform pattern%

(he army m!st definitely be &ept clear of the infl!ence of the individ!al states% (he coming *ational'ocialist 'tate m!st not fall bac& into the error of the past by imposing on the army a tas& which is not

within its sphere and never sho!ld have been assigned to it% (he 6erman army does not e3ist for the

p!rpose of being a school in which tribal partic!larisms are to be c!ltivated and preserved, b!t rather as aschool for teaching all the 6ermans to !nderstand and adapt their habits to one another% /hatever tends to



have a separating infl!ence in the life of the nation o!ght to be made a !nifying infl!ence in the army% (he

army m!st raise the 6erman boy above the narrow horion of his own little native province and set him

within the broad pict!re of the nation% (he yo!th m!st learn to &now, not the confines of his own region b!t

those of the fatherland, beca!se it is the latter that he will have to defend one day% It is therefore abs!rd tohave the 6erman yo!th do his military training in his own native region% ?!ring that period he o!ght to

learn to &now 6ermany% (his is all the more important to-day, since yo!ng 6ermans no longer travel on

their own acco!nt as they once !sed to do and th!s enlarge their horion% In view of this, is it not abs!rd to

leave the yo!ng avarian recr!it at !nich, the recr!it from aden at aden itself and the /Drttemberger at 't!ttgart and so on5 And wo!ld it not be more reasonable to show the 8hine and the *orth 'ea to the

avarian, the Alps to the native of amb!rg and the mo!ntains of $entral 6ermany to the boy from 7ast

"r!ssia5 (he character proper to each region o!ght to be maintained in the troops b!t not in the training

garrisons% /e may disapprove of every attempt at !nification b!t not that of !nifying the army% On thecontrary, even tho!gh we sho!ld wish to welcome no other &ind of !nification, this m!st be greeted with

oy% In view of the sie of the present army of the 8eich, it wo!ld be abs!rd to maintain the federal

divisions among the troops% oreover, in the !nification of the 6erman army which has act!ally been

effected we see a fact which we m!st not reno!nce b!t restore in the f!t!re national army%Finally a new and tri!mphant idea sho!ld b!rst every chain which tends to paralyse its efforts to p!sh

forward% *ational 'ocialism m!st claim the right to impose its principles on the whole 6erman nation,

witho!t regard to what were hitherto the confines of federal states% And we m!st ed!cate the 6erman nation

in o!r ideas and principles% As the $h!rches do not feel themselves bo!nd or limited by political confines,

so the *ational 'ocialist Idea cannot feel itself limited to the territories of the individ!al federal states that belong to o!r Fatherland%

(he *ational 'ocialist doctrine is not handmaid to the political interests of the single federal states% One

day it m!st become teacher to the whole 6erman nation% It m!st determine the life of the whole people andshape that life anew% For this reason we m!st imperatively demand the right to overstep bo!ndaries that

have been traced by a political development which we rep!diate%

(he more completely o!r ideas tri!mph, the more liberty can we concede in partic!lar affairs to o!r citiens

at home%$hapter 7leven

(he year 1921 was specially important for me from many points of view%

/hen I entered the 6erman Labo!r "arty I at once too& charge of the propaganda, believing this branch to

be far the most important for the time being% )!st then it was not a matter of pressing necessity to c!dgelone#s brains over problems of organiation% (he first necessity was to spread o!r ideas among as many

people as possible% "ropaganda sho!ld go well ahead of organiation and gather together the h!manmaterial for the latter to wor& !p% I have never been in favo!r of hasty and pedantic methods of

organiation, beca!se in most cases the res!lt is merely a piece of dead mechanism and only rarely a livingorganiation% Organiation is a thing that derives its e3istence from organic life, organic evol!tion% /hen

the same set of ideas have fo!nd a lodgement in the minds of a certain n!mber of people they tend of

themselves to form a certain degree of order among those people and o!t of this inner formation something

that is very val!able arises% Of co!rse here, as everywhere else, one m!st ta&e acco!nt of those h!manwea&nesses which ma&e men hesitate, especially at the beginning, to s!bmit to the control of a s!perior

mind% If an organiation is imposed from above downwards in a mechanical fashion, there is always the

danger that some individ!al may p!sh himself forward who is not &nown for what he is and who, o!t of

ealo!sy, will try to hinder abler persons from ta&ing a leading place in the movement% (he damage thatres!lts from that &ind of thing may have fatal conse+!ences, especially in a new movement%

For this reason it is advisable first to propagate and p!blicly e3po!nd the ideas on which the movement is

fo!nded% (his wor& of propaganda sho!ld contin!e for a certain time and sho!ld be directed from onecentre% /hen the ideas have grad!ally won over a n!mber of people this h!man material sho!ld becaref!lly sifted for the p!rpose of selecting those who have ability in leadership and p!tting that ability to

the test% It will often be fo!nd that apparently insignificant persons will nevertheless t!rn o!t to be born

leaders%

Of co!rse, it is +!ite a mista&e to s!ppose that those who show a very intelligent grasp of the theory!nderlying a movement are for that reason +!alified to fill responsible positions on the directorate% (he

contrary is very fre+!ently the case%

6reat masters of theory are only very rarely great organiers also% And this is beca!se the greatness of thetheorist and fo!nder of a system consists in being able to discover and lay down those laws that are right in



the abstract, whereas the organier m!st first of all be a man of psychological insight% e m!st ta&e men as

they are, and for that reason he m!st &now them, not having too high or too low an estimate of h!man

nat!re% e m!st ta&e acco!nt of their wea&nesses, their baseness and all the other vario!s characteristics, so

as to form something o!t of them which will be a living organism, endowed with strong powers of resistance, fitted to be the carrier of an idea and strong eno!gh to ens!re the tri!mph of that idea%

!t it is still more rare to find a great theorist who is at the same time a great leader% For the latter m!st be

more of an agitator, a tr!th 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 nat!ral% For an agitator who shows himself capable of e3po!nding ideas to the great masses m!st always be a psychologist, even tho!gh he may be

only a demagog!e% (herefore he will always be a m!ch more capable leader than the contemplative theorist

who meditates on his ideas, far from the h!man throng and the world% For to be a leader means to be able to

move the masses% (he gift of form!lating ideas has nothing whatsoever to do with the capacity for leadership% It wo!ld be entirely f!tile to disc!ss the +!estion as to which is the more important0 the fac!lty

of conceiving ideals and h!man aims or that of being able to have them p!t into practice% ere, as so often

happens in life, the one wo!ld be entirely meaningless witho!t the other% (he noblest conceptions of the

h!man !nderstanding remain witho!t p!rpose or val!e if the leader cannot move the masses towards them%And, conversely, what wo!ld it avail to have all the geni!s and elan of a leader if the intellect!al theorist

does not fi3 the aims for which man&ind m!st str!ggle% !t when the abilities of theorist and organier and

leader are !nited in the one person, then we have the rarest phenomenon on this earth% And it is that !nion

which prod!ces the great man%

As I have already said, d!ring my first period in the "arty I devoted myself to the wor& of propaganda% Ihad to s!cceed in grad!ally gathering together a small n!cle!s of men who wo!ld accept the new teaching

and be inspired by it% And in this way we sho!ld provide the h!man material which s!bse+!ently wo!ld

form the constit!ent elements of the organiation% (h!s the goal of the propagandist is nearly always fi3edfar beyond that of the organier%

If a movement proposes to overthrow a certain order of things and constr!ct a new one in its place, then the

following principles m!st be clearly !nderstood and m!st dominate in the ran&s of its leadership0 7very

movement which has gained its h!man material m!st first divide this material into two gro!ps0 namely,followers and members%

It is the tas& of the propagandist to recr!it the followers and it is the tas& of the organier to select the

members%

(he follower of a movement is he who !nderstands and accepts its aims> the member is he who fights for them%

(he follower is one whom the propaganda has converted to the doctrine of the movement% (he member ishe who will be charged by the organiation to collaborate in winning over new followers from which in

t!rn new members can be formed%(o be a follower needs only the passive recognition of the idea% (o be a member means to represent that

idea and fight for it% From ten followers one can have scarcely more than two members% (o 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 co!rage to participate actively in diff!sing that teaching in which he has come to believe%eca!se of its passive character, the simple effort of believing in a political doctrine is eno!gh for the

maority, for the maority of man&ind is mentally lay and timid% (o be a member one m!st be intellect!ally

active, and therefore this applies only to the minority%

'!ch being the case, the propagandist m!st see& !ntiringly to ac+!ire new followers for the movement,whereas the organier m!st diligently loo& o!t for the best elements among s!ch followers, so that these

elements may be transformed into members% (he propagandist need not tro!ble too m!ch abo!t the

personal worth of the individ!al proselytes he has won for the movement% e need not in+!ire into their abilities, their intelligence or character% From these proselytes, however, the organier will have to selectthose individ!als who are most capable of actively helping to bring the movement to victory%

(he propagandist aims at ind!cing the whole people to accept his teaching% (he organier incl!des in his

body of membership only those who, on psychological gro!nds, will not be an impediment to the f!rther

diff!sion of the doctrines of the movement%(he propagandist inc!lcates his doctrine among the masses, with the idea of preparing them for the time

when this doctrine will tri!mph, thro!gh 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 str!ggle to victory%(he final tri!mph 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 organiation that actively cond!cts the fight be

e3cl!sive, vigoro!s and solid%

/hen the propaganda wor& has converted a whole people to believe in a doctrine, the organiation can t!rn

the res!lts of this into practical effect thro!gh the wor& of a mere handf!l of men% "ropaganda andorganiation, therefore follower and member, then stand towards one another in a definite m!t!al

relationship% (he better the propaganda has wor&ed, the smaller will the organiation be% (he greater the

n!mber of followers, so m!ch the smaller can be the n!mber of members% And conversely% If the

propaganda be bad, the organiation m!st be large% And if there be only a small n!mber of followers, themembership m!st be all the larger - if the movement really co!nts on being s!ccessf!l%

(he first d!ty of the propagandist is to win over people who can s!bse+!ently be ta&en into the

organiation% And the first d!ty of the organiation is to select and train men who will be capable of

carrying on the propaganda% (he second d!ty of the organiation is to disr!pt the e3isting order of thingsand th!s ma&e room for the penetration of the new teaching which it represents, while the d!ty of the

organier m!st be to fight for the p!rpose of sec!ring power, so that the doctrine may finally tri!mph%

A revol!tionary conception of the world and h!man e3istence will always achieve decisive s!ccess when

the new Weltanschhauung has been ta!ght to a whole people, or s!bse+!ently forced !pon them if necessary, and when, on the other hand, the central organiation, the movement itself, is in the hands of

only those few men who are absol!tely indispensable to form the nerve-centres of the coming 'tate%

"!t in another way, this means that in every great revol!tionary movement that is of world importance the

idea of this movement m!st always be spread abroad thro!gh the operation of propaganda% (he

propagandist m!st never tire in his efforts to ma&e the new ideas clearly !nderstood, inc!lcating themamong others, or at least he m!st place himself in the position of those others and endeavo!r to !pset their

confidence in the convictions they have hitherto held% In order that s!ch propaganda sho!ld have bac&bone

to it, it m!st be based on an organiation% (he organiation chooses its members from among thosefollowers whom the propaganda has won% (hat organiation will become all the more vigoro!s if the wor&

of propaganda be p!shed forward intensively% And the propaganda will wor& all the better when the

organiation bac& of it is vigoro!s and strong in itself%

ence the s!preme tas& of the organier is to see to it that any discord or differences which may ariseamong the members of the movement will not lead to a split and thereby cramp the wor& within the

movement% oreover, it is the d!ty of the organiation to see that the fighting spirit of the movement does

not flag or die o!t b!t that it is constantly reinvigorated and restrengthened% It is not necessary the n!mber

of members sho!ld increase indefinitely% !ite the contrary wo!ld be better% In view of the fact that only afraction of h!manity has energy and co!rage, a movement which increases its own organiation indefinitely

m!st of necessity one day become plethoric and inactive% Organiations, that is to say, gro!ps of members,which increase their sie beyond certain dimensions grad!ally lose their fighting force and are no longer in

form to bac& !p the propagation of a doctrine with aggressive elan and determination% *ow the greater and more revol!tionary a doctrine is, so m!ch the more active will be the spirit inspiring

its body of members, beca!se the s!bversive energy of s!ch a doctrine will frighten way the chic&en-

hearted and small-minded bo!rgeoisie% In their hearts they may believe in the doctrine b!t they are afraid to

ac&nowledge their belief openly% y reason of this very fact, however, an organiation inspired by averitable revol!tionary 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, g!aranteed by the process of nat!ral selection, that we are to see& the prere+!isite conditions for the

contin!ation of an active and spirited propaganda and also the victorio!s str!ggle for the s!ccess of the ideaon which the movement is based%

(he greatest danger that can threaten a movement is an abnormal increase in the n!mber of its members,

owing to its too rapid s!ccess% 'o long as a movement has to carry on a hard and bitter fight, people of wea& and f!ndamentally egotistic temperament will steer very clear of it> b!t these will try to be acceptedas members the moment the party achieves a manifest s!ccess in the co!rse of its development%

It is on these gro!nds that we are to e3plain why so many movements which were at first s!ccessf!l slowed

down before reaching the f!lfilment of their p!rpose and, from an inner wea&ness which co!ld not

otherwise be e3plained, gave !p the str!ggle and finally disappeared from the field% As a res!lt of the earlys!ccesses achieved, so many !ndesirable, !nworthy and especially timid individ!als became members of

the movement that they finally sec!red the maority and stifled the fighting spirit of the others% (hese

inferior elements then t!rned the movement to the service of their personal interests and, debasing it to thelevel of their own miserable heroism, no longer str!ggled for the tri!mph of the original idea% (he fire of



the first fervo!r died o!t, the fighting spirit flagged and, as the bo!rgeois world is acc!stomed to say very

!stly in s!ch cases, the party mi3ed water with its wine%

For this reason it is necessary that a movement sho!ld, from the sheer instinct of self-preservation, close its

lists to new membership the moment it becomes s!ccessf!l% And any f!rther increase in its organiationsho!ld be allowed to ta&e place only with the most caref!l foresight and after a painsta&ing sifting of those

who apply for membership% Only th!s will it be possible to &eep the &ernel of the movement intact and

fresh and so!nd% $are m!st be ta&en that the cond!ct of the movement is maintained e3cl!sively in the

hands of this original n!cle!s% (his means that the n!cle!s m!st direct the propaganda which aims atsec!ring general recognition for the movement% And the movement itself, when it has sec!red power in its

hands, m!st carry o!t all those acts and meas!res which are necessary in order that its ideas sho!ld be

finally established in practice%

/ith those elements that originally made the movement, the organiation sho!ld occ!py all the important positions that have been con+!ered and from those elements the whole directorate sho!ld be formed% (his

sho!ld contin!e !ntil the ma3ims and doctrines of the party have become the fo!ndation and policy of the

new 'tate% Only then will it be permissible grad!ally to give the reins into the hands of the $onstit!tion of

that 'tate which the spirit of the movement has created% !t this !s!ally happens thro!gh a process of m!t!al rivalry, for here it is less a +!estion of h!man intelligence than of the play and effect of the forces

whose development may indeed be foreseen from the start b!t not perpet!ally controlled%

All great movements, whether of a political or religio!s nat!re, owe their imposing s!ccess to the

recognition and adoption of those principles% And no d!rable s!ccess is conceivable if these laws are not

observed%As director of propaganda for the party, I too& care not merely to prepare the gro!nd for the greatness of the

movement in its s!bse+!ent stages, b!t I also adopted the most radical meas!res against allowing into the

organiation any other than the best material% For the more radical and e3citing my propaganda was, themore did it frighten wea& and wavering characters away, th!s preventing them from entering the first

n!cle!s of o!r organiation% "erhaps they remained followers, b!t they did not raise their voices% On the

contrary, they maintained a discreet silence on the fact% any tho!sands of persons then ass!red me that

they were in f!ll agreement with !s b!t they co!ld not on any acco!nt become members of o!r party% (heysaid that the movement was so radical that to ta&e part in it as members wo!ld e3pose them to grave

cens!res and grave dangers, so that they wo!ld rather contin!e to be loo&ed !pon as honest and peacef!l

citiens and remain aside, for the time being at least, tho!gh devoted to o!r ca!se with all their hearts%

And that was all to the good% If all these men who in their hearts did not approve of revol!tionary ideascame into o!r movement as members at that time, we sho!ld be loo&ed !pon as a pio!s confraternity to-day

and not as a yo!ng movement inspired with the spirit of combat%(he lively and combative form which I gave to all o!r propaganda fortified and g!aranteed the radical

tendency of o!r movement, and the res!lt was that, with a few e3ceptions, only men of radical views weredisposed to become members%

It was d!e to the effect of o!r propaganda that within a short period of time h!ndreds of tho!sands of

citiens became convinced in their hearts that we were right and wished !s victory, altho!gh personally

they were too timid to ma&e sacrifices for o!r ca!se or even participate in it%Mp to the middle of 1921 this simple activity of gathering in followers was s!fficient and was of val!e to

the movement% !t in the s!mmer of that year certain events happened which made it seem opport!ne for

!s to bring o!r organiation into line with the manifest s!ccesses which the propaganda had achieved%

An attempt made by a gro!p of patriotic visionaries, s!pported by the chairman of the party at that time, tota&e over the direction of the party led to the brea& !p of this little intrig!e and, by a !nanimo!s vote at a

general meeting, entr!sted the entire direction of the party to my own hands% At the same time a new stat!te

was passed which invested sole responsibility in the chairman of the movement, abolished the system of resol!tions in committee and in its stead introd!ced the principle of division of labo!r which since that timehas wor&ed e3cellently%

From A!g!st 1st, 1921, onwards I !ndertoo& this internal reorganiation of the party and was s!pported by

a n!mber of e3cellent men% I shall mention them and their wor& individ!ally later on%

In my endeavo!r to t!rn the res!lts gained by the propaganda to the advantage of the organiation and th!sstabilie them, I had to abolish completely a n!mber of old c!stoms and introd!ce reg!lations which none

of the other parties possessed or had adopted%

In the years 192<-21 the movement was controlled by a committee elected by the members at a generalmeeting% (he committee was composed of a first and second treas!rer, 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 vario!s assessors%

$omically eno!gh, the committee embodied the very principle against which the movement itself wanted to

fight with all its energy, namely, the principle of parliamentarianism% ere was a principle which personified everything that was being opposed by the movement, from the smallest local gro!ps to the

district and regional gro!ps, the state gro!ps and finally the national directorate itself% It was a system !nder

which we all s!ffered and are still s!ffering%

It was imperative to change this state of affairs forthwith, if this bad fo!ndation in the internal organiationwas not to &eep the movement insec!re and render the f!lfilment of its high mission impossible%

(he sessions of the committee, which were r!led by a protocol, and in which decisions were made

according to the vote of the maority, presented the pict!re of a miniat!re parliament% ere also there was

no s!ch thing as personal responsibility% And here reigned the same abs!rdities and illogical state of affairsas flo!rish in o!r great representative bodies of the 'tate% *ames were presented to this committee for

election as secretaries, treas!rers, representatives of the members of the organiation, propaganda agents

and 6od &nows what else% And then they all acted in common on every partic!lar +!estion and decided it

by vote% Accordingly, the director of propaganda voted on a +!estion that concerned the man who had to dowith the finances and the latter in his t!rn voted on a +!estion that concerned only the organiation as s!ch,

the organier voting on a s!bect that had to do with the secretarial department, and so on%

/hy select a special man for propaganda if treas!rers and scribes and commissaries, etc%, had to deliver

!dgment on +!estions concerning it5 (o a person of commonsense that sort of thing seemed as

incomprehensible as it wo!ld be if in a great man!fact!ring concern the board of directors were to decideon technical +!estions of prod!ction or if, inversely, the engineers were to decide on +!estions of

administration%

I ref!sed to co!ntenance that &ind of folly and after a short time I ceased to appear at the meetings of thecommittee% I did nothing else e3cept attend to my own department of propaganda and I did not permit any

of the others to po&e their heads into my activities% $onversely, I did not interfere in the affairs of others%

/hen the new stat!te was approved and I was appointed as president, I had the necessary a!thority in my

hands and also the corresponding right to ma&e short shrift of all that nonsense% In the place of decisions bythe maority vote of the committee, the principle of absol!te responsibility was introd!ced%

(he chairman is responsible for the whole control of the movement% e apportions the wor& among the

members of the committee s!bordinate to him and for special wor& he selects other individ!als% 7ach of

these gentlemen m!st bear sole responsibility for the tas& assigned to him% e is s!bordinate only to thechairman, whose d!ty is to s!pervise the general collaboration, selecting the personnel and giving general

directions for the co-ordination of the common wor&%(his principle of absol!te responsibility is being adopted little by little thro!gho!t the movement% In the

small local gro!ps and perhaps also in the regional and district gro!ps it will ta&e yet a long time before the principle can be thoro!ghly imposed, beca!se timid and hesitant characters are nat!rally opposed to it% For

them the idea of bearing absol!te responsibility for an act opens !p an !npleasant prospect% (hey wo!ld

li&e to hide behind the sho!lders of the maority in the so-called committee, having their acts covered by

decisions passed in that way% !t it seems to me a matter of absol!te necessity to ta&e a decisive standagainst that view, to ma&e no concessions whatsoever to this fear of responsibility, even tho!gh it ta&es

some time before we can p!t f!lly into effect this concept of d!ty and ability in leadership, which will

finally bring forward leaders who have the re+!isite abilities to occ!py the chief posts%

In any case, a movement which m!st fight against the abs!rdity of parliamentary instit!tions m!st beimm!ne from this sort of thing% Only th!s will it have the re+!isite strength to carry on the str!ggle%

At a time when the maority 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 sit!ation and tri!mph over the e3isting regime% (hat is a mathematicalcertainty%

(his idea made it necessary to reorganie o!r movement internally% (he logical development of this

reorganiation bro!ght abo!t a clear-c!t distinction between the economic section of the movement and the

general political direction% (he principle of personal responsibility was e3tended to all the administrative branches of the party and it bro!ght abo!t a healthy renovation, by liberating them from political infl!ences

and allowing them to operate solely on economic principles%

In the a!t!mn of 1921, when the party was fo!nded, there were only si3 members% (he party did not haveany head+!arters, nor officials, nor form!laries, nor a stamp, nor printed material of any sort% (he



committee first held its sittings in a resta!rant on the errengasse and then in a caf at 6asteig% (his state

of affairs co!ld not last% 'o I at once too& action in the matter% I went aro!nd to several resta!rants and

hotels in !nich, with the idea of renting a room in one of them for the !se of the "arty% In the old

'ternec&erbrE! im (al, there was a small room with arched roof, which in earlier times was !sed as a sort of festive tavern where the avarian $o!nsellors of the oly 8oman 7mpire foregathered% It was dar& and

dismal and accordingly well s!ited to its ancient !ses, tho!gh less s!ited to the new p!rpose it was now

destined to serve% (he little street on which its one window loo&ed o!t was so narrow that even on the

brightest s!mmer day the room remained dim and sombre% ere we too& !p o!r first fi3ed abode% (he rentcame to fifty mar&s per month, which was then an enormo!s s!m for !s% !t o!r e3igencies had to be very

modest% /e dared not complain even when they removed the wooden wainscoting a few days after we had

ta&en possession% (his panelling had been specially p!t !p for the Imperial $o!nsellors% (he place began to

loo& more li&e a grotto than an office%'till it mar&ed an important step forward% 'lowly we had electric light installed and later on a telephone% A

table and some borrowed chairs were bro!ght, an open paper-stand and later on a c!pboard% (wo

sideboards, which belonged to the landlord, served to store o!r leaflets, placards, etc%

As time went on it t!rned o!t impossible to direct the co!rse of the movement merely by holding acommittee meeting once a wee&% (he c!rrent b!siness administration of the movement co!ld not be

reg!larly attended to e3cept we had a salaried official%

!t that was then very diffic!lt for !s% (he movement had still so few members that it was hard to find

among them a s!itable person for the ob who wo!ld be content with very little for himself and at the same

time wo!ld be ready to meet the manifold demands which the movement wo!ld ma&e on his time andenergy%

After long searching we discovered a soldier who consented to become o!r first administrator% is name

was 'chDssler, an old war comrade of mine% At first he came to o!r new office every day between si3 andeight o#cloc& in the evening% Later on he came from five to eight and s!bse+!ently for the whole afternoon%

Finally it became a f!ll-time ob and he wor&ed in the office from morning !ntil late at night% e was an

ind!strio!s, !pright and thoro!ghly honest man, faithf!l and devoted to the movement% e bro!ght with

him a small Adler typewriter of his own% It was the first machine to be !sed in the service of the party%'!bse+!ently the party bo!ght it by paying for it in installments% /e needed a small safe in order to &eep

o!r papers and register of membership from danger of being stolen - not to g!ard o!r f!nds, which did not

then e3ist% On the contrary, o!r financial position was so miserable that I often had to dip my hand into my

own personal savings%After eighteen months o!r b!siness +!arters had become too small, so we moved to a new place in the

$orneli!s 'trasse% Again o!r office was in a resta!rant, b!t instead of one room we now had three smaller rooms and one large room with great windows% At that time this appeared a wonderf!l thing to !s% /e

remained there !ntil the end of *ovember 192.%In ?ecember 192<, we ac+!ired the :Rl&ischer eobachter% (his newspaper which, as its name implies,

championed the claims of the people, was now to become the organ of the 6erman *ational 'ocialist

Labo!r "arty% At first it appeared twice wee&ly> b!t at the beginning of 192; it became a daily paper, and at

the end of A!g!st in the same year it began to appear in the large format which is now well &nown%As a complete novice in o!rnalism I then learned many a lesson for which I had to pay dearly%

In contradistinction to the enormo!s n!mber of papers in )ewish hands, there was at that time only one

important newspaper that defended the ca!se of the people% (his was a matter for grave consideration% As I

have often learned by e3perience, the reason for that state of things m!st be attrib!ted to the incompetentway in which the b!siness side of the so-called pop!lar newspapers was managed% (hese were cond!cted

too m!ch according to the r!le that opinion sho!ld prevail over action that prod!ces res!lts% !ite a wrong

standpoint, for opinion is of itself something internal and finds its best e3pression in prod!ctive activity%(he man who does val!able wor& for his people e3presses thereby his e3cellent sentiments, whereasanother who merely tal&s abo!t his opinions and does nothing that is of real val!e or !se to the people is a

person who perverts all right thin&ing% And that attit!de of his is also pernicio!s for the comm!nity%

(he :Rl&ische eobachter was a so-called pop!lar# organ, as its name indicated% It had all the good

+!alities, b!t still more the errors and wea&nesses, inherent in all pop!lar instit!tions% (ho!gh its contentswere e3cellent, its management as a b!siness concern was simply impossible% ere also the !nderlying idea

was that pop!lar newspapers o!ght to be s!bsidied by pop!lar contrib!tions, witho!t recogniing that it

had to ma&e its way in competition with the others and that it was dishonest to e3pect the s!bscriptions of good patriots to ma&e !p for the mista&en management of the !nderta&ing%



I too& care to alter those conditions promptly, for I recognied the danger l!r&ing in them% L!c& was on my

side here, inasm!ch as it bro!ght me the man who since that time has rendered inn!merable services to the

movement, not only as b!siness manager of the newspaper b!t also as b!siness manager of the party% In

1914, in the /ar, I made the ac+!aintance of a3 Amann, who was then my s!perior and is to-day general b!siness ?irector of the "arty% ?!ring fo!r years in the /ar I had occasion to observe almost contin!ally

the !n!s!al ability, the diligence and the rigoro!s conscientio!sness of my f!t!re collaborator%

In the s!mmer of 1921 I applied to my old regimental comrade, whom I met one day by chance, and as&ed

him to become b!siness manager of the movement% At that time the movement was passing thro!gh a gravecrisis and I had reason to be dissatisfied with several of o!r officials, with one of whom I had had a very

bitter e3perience% Amann then held a good sit!ation in which there were also good prospects for him%

After long hesitation he agreed to my re+!est, b!t only on condition that he m!st not be at the mercy of

incompetent committees% e m!st be responsible to one master, and only one%It is to the inestimable credit of this first b!siness manager of the party, whose commercial &nowledge is

e3tensive and profo!nd, that he bro!ght order and probity into the vario!s offices of the party% 'ince that

time these have remained e3emplary and cannot be e+!alled or e3celled in this by any other branches of the

movement% !t, as often happens in life, great ability provo&es envy and disfavo!r% (hat had also to bee3pected in this case and borne patiently%

'ince 1922 rigoro!s reg!lations have been in force, not only for the commercial constr!ction of the

movement b!t also in the organiation of it as s!ch% (here e3ists now a central filing system, where the

names and partic!lars of all the members are enrolled% (he financing of the party has been placed on so!nd

lines% (he c!rrent e3pendit!re m!st be covered by the c!rrent receipts and special receipts can be !sed onlyfor special e3pendit!res% (h!s, notwithstanding the diffic!lties of the time the movement remained

practically witho!t any debts, e3cept for a few small c!rrent acco!nts% Indeed, there was a permanent

increase in the f!nds% (hings are managed as in a private b!siness% (he employed personnel hold their obsin virt!e of their practical efficiency and co!ld not in any manner ta&e cover behind their professed loyalty

to the party% A good *ational 'ocialist proves his so!ndness by the readiness, diligence and capability with

which he discharges whatever d!ties are assigned to him in whatever sit!ation he holds within the national

comm!nity% (he man who does not f!lfil his d!ty in the ob he holds cannot boast of a loyalty againstwhich he himself really sins%

Adamant against all &inds of o!ter infl!ence, the new b!siness director of the party firmly maintained the

standpoint that there were no sinec!re posts in the party administration for followers and members of the

movement whose pleas!re is not wor&% A movement which fights so energetically against the corr!ptionintrod!ced into o!r civil service by the vario!s political parties m!st be imm!ne from that vice in its own

administrative department% It happened that some men were ta&en on the staff of the paper who hadformerly been adherents of the avarian "eople#s "arty, b!t their wor& showed that they were e3cellently

+!alified for the ob% (he res!lt of this e3periment was generally e3cellent% It was owing to this honest andfran& recognition of individ!al efficiency that the movement won the hearts of its employees more swiftly

and more profo!ndly than had ever been the case before% '!bse+!ently they became good *ational

'ocialists and remained so% *ot in word only, b!t they proved it by the steady and honest and conscientio!s

wor& which they performed in the service of the new movement% *at!rally a well +!alified party member was preferred to another who had e+!al +!alifications b!t did not belong to the party% (he rigid

determination with which o!r new b!siness chief applied these principles and grad!ally p!t them into

force, despite all mis!nderstandings, t!rned o!t to be of great advantage to the movement% (o this we owe

the fact that it was possible for !s - d!ring the diffic!lt period of the inflation, when tho!sands of b!sinesses failed and tho!sands of newspapers had to cease p!blication - not only to &eep the commercial

department of the movement going and meet all its obligations b!t also to ma&e steady progress with the

:Rl&ische eobachter% At that time it came to be ran&ed among the great newspapers%(he year 1921 was of f!rther importance for me by reason of the fact that in my position as chairman of the party I slowly b!t steadily s!cceeded in p!tting a stop to the criticisms and the intr!sions of some members

of the committee in regard to the detailed activities of the party administration% (his was important, beca!se

we co!ld not get a capable man to ta&e on a ob if nincompoops were constantly allowed to b!tt in,

pretending that they &new everything m!ch better> whereas in reality they had left only general chaos behind them% (hen these wise-acres retired, for the most part +!ite modestly, to see& another field for their

activities where they co!ld s!pervise and tell how things o!ght to be done% 'ome men seemed to have a

mania for sniffing behind everything and were, so to say, always in a permanent state of pregnancy withmagnificent plans and ideas and proects and methods% *at!rally their noble aim and ideal were always the



action as long as there were men among the employers who had no sense of their social obligations nor

even of the most elementary h!man rights% And I concl!ded by saying that if s!ch self-defence be

considered necessary its form o!ght to be that of an association made !p of the wor&ers themselves on the

basis of trades !nions%(his was my general idea and it remained the same in 1922% !t a clear and precise form!la was still to be

discovered% /e co!ld not be satisfied with merely !nderstanding the problem% It was necessary to come to

some concl!sions that co!ld be p!t into practice% (he following +!estions had to be answered0

B1C Are trade !nions necessary5B2C 'ho!ld the 6erman *ational 'ocialist Labo!r "arty itself operate on a trade !nionist basis or have its

members ta&e part in trade !nionist activities in some form or other5

B.C /hat form sho!ld a *ational 'ocialist (rades Mnion ta&e5 /hat are the tas&s confronting !s and the

ends we m!st try to attain5B4C ow can we establish trade !nions for s!ch tas&s and aims5

I thin& that I have already answered the first +!estion ade+!ately% In the present state of affairs I am

convinced that we cannot possibly dispense with the trades !nions% On the contrary, they are among the

most important instit!tions in the economic life of the nation% *ot only are they important in the sphere of social policy b!t also, and even more so, in the national political sphere% For when the great masses of a

nation see their vital needs satisfied thro!gh a !st trade !nionist movement the stamina of the whole nation

in its str!ggle for e3istence will be enormo!sly reinforced thereby%

efore everything else, the trades !nions are necessary as b!ilding stones for the f!t!re economic

parliament, which will be made !p of chambers representing the vario!s professions and occ!pations%(he second +!estion is also easy to answer% If the trade !nionist movement is important, then it is clear that

*ational 'ocialism o!ght to ta&e a definite stand on that +!estion, not only theoretically b!t also in

practice% !t how5 (hat is more diffic!lt to see clearly%(he *ational 'ocialist ovement, which aims at establishing the *ational 'ocialist "eople#s 'tate, m!st

always bear steadfastly in mind the principle that every f!t!re instit!tion !nder that 'tate m!st be rooted in

the movement itself% It is a great mista&e to believe that by ac+!iring possession of s!preme political power

we can bring abo!t a definite reorganiation, s!ddenly starting from nothing, witho!t the help of a certainreserve stoc& of men who have been trained beforehand, especially in the spirit of the movement% ere also

the principle holds good that the spirit is always more important than the e3ternal form which it animates>

since this form can be created mechanically and +!ic&ly% For instance, the leadership principle may be

imposed on an organied political comm!nity in a dictatorial way% !t this principle can become a livingreality only by passing thro!gh the stages that are necessary for its own evol!tion% (hese stages lead from

the smallest cell of the 'tate organism !pwards% As its bearers and representatives, the leadership principlem!st have a body of men who have passed thro!gh a process of selection lasting over several years, who

have been tempered by the hard realities of life and th!s rendered capable of carrying the principle into practical effect%

It is o!t of the +!estion to thin& that a scheme for the $onstit!tion of a 'tate can be p!lled o!t of a portfolio

at a moment#s notice and introd!ced# by imperative orders from above% One may try that &ind of thing b!t

the res!lt will always be something that has not s!fficient vitality to end!re% It will be li&e a stillborn infant%(he idea of it calls to mind the origin of the /eimar $onstit!tion and the attempt to impose on the 6erman

people a new $onstit!tion and a new flag, neither of which had any inner relation to the vicissit!des of o!r

people#s history d!ring the last half cent!ry%

(he *ational 'ocialist 'tate m!st g!ard against all s!ch e3periments% It m!st grow o!t of an organiationwhich has already e3isted for a long time% (his organiation m!st possess *ational 'ocialist life in itself, so

that finally it may be able to establish a *ational 'ocialist 'tate that will be a living reality%

As I have already said, the germ cells of this 'tate m!st lie in the administrative chambers which willrepresent the vario!s occ!pations and professions, therefore first of all in the trades !nions% If thiss!bse+!ent vocational representation and the $entral 7conomic "arliament are to be *ational 'ocialist

instit!tions, these important germ cells m!st be vehicles of the *ational 'ocialist concept of life% (he

instit!tions of the movement are to be bro!ght over into the 'tate> for the 'tate cannot call into e3istence all

of a s!dden and as if by magic those instit!tions which are necessary to its e3istence, !nless it wishes tohave instit!tions that are bo!nd to remain completely lifeless%

Loo&ing at the matter from the highest standpoint, the *ational 'ocialist ovement will have to recognie

the necessity of adopting its own trade-!nionist policy%It m!st do this for a f!rther reason, namely beca!se a real *ational 'ocialist ed!cation for the employer as



well as for the employee, in the spirit of a m!t!al co-operation within the common framewor& of the

national comm!nity, cannot be sec!red by theoretical instr!ction, appeals and e3hortations, b!t thro!gh the

str!ggles of daily life% In this spirit and thro!gh this spirit the movement m!st ed!cate the several large

economic gro!ps and bring them closer to one another !nder a wider o!tloo&% /itho!t this preparatorywor& it wo!ld be sheer ill!sion to hope that a real national comm!nity can be bro!ght into e3istence% (he

great ideal represented by its philosophy of life and for which the movement fights can alone form a

general style of tho!ght steadily and slowly% And this style will show that the new state of things rests on

fo!ndations that are internally so!nd and not merely an e3ternal faZade%ence the movement m!st adopt a positive attit!de towards the trade-!nionist idea% !t it m!st go f!rther

than this% For the enormo!s n!mber of members and followers of the trade-!nionist movement it m!st

provide a practical ed!cation which will meet the e3igencies of the coming *ational 'ocialist 'tate%

(he answer to the third +!estion follows from what has been already said%(he *ational 'ocialist (rades Mnion is not an instr!ment for class warfare, b!t a representative organ of the

vario!s occ!pations and callings% (he *ational 'ocialist 'tate recognies no classes#% !t, !nder the

political aspect, it recognies only citiens with absol!tely e+!al rights and e+!al obligations corresponding

thereto% And, side by side with these, it recognies s!bects of the 'tate who have no political rightswhatsoever%

According to the *ational 'ocialist concept, it is not the tas& of the trades !nion to band together certain

men within the national comm!nity and th!s grad!ally transform these men into a class, so as to !se them

in a conflict against other gro!ps similarly organied within the national comm!nity% /e certainly cannot

assign this tas& to the trades !nion as s!ch% (his was the tas& assigned to it the moment it became a fightingweapon in the hands of the ar3ists% (he trades !nion is not nat!rally an instr!ment of class warfare> b!t

the ar3ists transformed it into an instr!ment for !se in their own class str!ggle% (hey created the

economic weapon which the international )ew !ses for the p!rpose of destroying the economic fo!ndationsof free and independent national 'tates, for r!ining their national ind!stry and trade and thereby enslaving

free nations to serve )ewish world-finance, which transcends all 'tate bo!ndaries%

In contradistinction to this, the *ational 'ocialist (rades Mnion m!st organie definite gro!ps and those

who participate in the economic life of the nation and th!s enhance the sec!rity of the national economicsystem itself, reinforcing it by the elimination of all those anomalies which !ltimately e3ercise a destr!ctive

infl!ence on the social body of the nation, damaging the vital forces of the national comm!nity, pre!dicing

the welfare of the 'tate and, by no means as a last conse+!ence, bringing evil and destr!ction on economic

life itself%(herefore in the hands of the *ational 'ocialist (rades Mnion the stri&e is not an instr!ment for dist!rbing

and dislocating the national prod!ction, b!t for increasing it and ma&ing it r!n smoothly, by fightingagainst all those annoyances which by reason of their !nsocial character hinder efficiency in b!siness and

thereby hamper the e3istence of the whole nation% For individ!al efficiency stands always in cas!al relationto the general social and !ridical position of the individ!al in the economic process% Individ!al efficiency

is also the sole root of the conviction that the economic prosperity of the nation m!st necessarily redo!nd to

the benefit of the individ!al citien%

(he *ational 'ocialist employee will have to recognie the fact that the economic prosperity of the nation brings with it his own material happiness%

(he *ational 'ocialist employer m!st recognie that the happiness and contentment of his employees are

necessary pre-re+!isites for the e3istence and development of his own economic prosperity%

*ational 'ocialist wor&ers and employers are both together the delegates and mandatories of the wholenational comm!nity% (he large meas!re of personal freedom which is accorded to them for their activities

m!st be e3plained by the fact that e3perience has shown that the prod!ctive powers of the individ!al are

more enhanced by being accorded a genero!s meas!re of freedom than by coercion from above% oreover, by according this freedom we give free play to the nat!ral process of selection which brings forward theablest and most capable and most ind!strio!s% For the *ational 'ocialist (rades Mnion, therefore, the stri&e

is a means that may, and indeed m!st, be resorted to as long as there is not a *ational 'ocialist 'tate yet%

!t when that 'tate is established it will, as a matter of co!rse, abolish the mass str!ggle between the two

great gro!ps made !p of employers and employees respectively, a str!ggle which has always res!lted inlessening the national prod!ction and in!ring the national comm!nity% In place of this str!ggle, the

*ational 'ocialist 'tate will ta&e over the tas& of caring for and defending the rights of all parties

concerned% It will be the d!ty of the 7conomic $hamber itself to &eep the national economic system insmooth wor&ing order and to remove whatever defects or errors it may s!ffer from% !estions that are now



fo!ght over thro!gh a +!arrel that involves millions of people will then be settled in the 8epresentative

$hambers of (rades and "rofessions and in the $entral 7conomic "arliament% (h!s employers and

employees will no longer find themselves drawn into a m!t!al conflict over wages and ho!rs of wor&,

always to the detriment of their m!t!al interests% !t they will solve these problems together on a higher plane, where the welfare of the national comm!nity and of the 'tate will be as a shining ideal to throw light

on all their negotiations%

ere again, as everywhere else, the infle3ible principle m!st be observed, that the interests of the co!ntry

m!st come before party interests%(he tas& of the *ational 'ocialist (rades Mnion will be to ed!cate and prepare its members to conform to

these ideals% (hat tas& may be stated as follows0 All m!st wor& together for the maintenance and sec!rity of

o!r people and the "eople#s 'tate, each one according to the abilities and powers with which *at!re has

endowed him and which have been developed and trained by the national comm!nity%O!r fo!rth +!estion was0 ow shall we establish trades !nions for s!ch tas&s and aims5 (hat is far more

diffic!lt to answer%

6enerally spea&ing, it is easier to establish something in new territory than in old territory which already

has its established instit!tions% In a district where there is no e3isting b!siness of a special character one caneasily establish a new b!siness of this character% !t it is more diffic!lt if the same &ind of enterprise

already e3ists and it is most diffic!lt of all when the conditions are s!ch that only one enterprise of this &ind

can prosper% For here the promoters of the new enterprise find themselves confronted not only with the

problem of introd!cing their own b!siness b!t also that of how to bring abo!t the destr!ction of the other

b!siness already e3isting in the district, so that the new enterprise may be able to e3ist%It wo!ld be senseless to have a *ational 'ocialist (rades Mnion side by side with other trades !nions% For

this (rades Mnion m!st be thoro!ghly imb!ed with a feeling for the ideological nat!re of its tas& and of the

res!lting obligation not to tolerate other similar or hostile instit!tions% It m!st also insist that itself alone isnecessary, to the e3cl!sion of all the rest% It can come to no arrangement and no compromise with &indred

tendencies b!t m!st assert its own absol!te and e3cl!sive right%

(here were two ways which might lead to s!ch a development0

B1C /e co!ld establish o!r (rades Mnion and then grad!ally ta&e !p the fight against the ar3istInternational (rades Mnion%

B2C Or we co!ld enter the ar3ist (rades Mnion and inc!lcate a new spirit in it, with the idea of

transforming it into an instr!ment in the service of the new ideal%

(he first way was not advisable, by reason of the fact that o!r financial sit!ation was still the ca!se of m!chworry to !s at that time and o!r reso!rces were +!ite slender% (he effects of the inflation were steadily

spreading and made the partic!lar sit!ation still more diffic!lt for !s, beca!se in those years one co!ldscarcely spea& of any material help which the trades !nions co!ld e3tend to their members% From this point

of view, there was no reason why the individ!al wor&er sho!ld pay his d!es to the !nion% 7ven the ar3ist!nions then e3isting were already on the point of collapse !ntil, as the res!lt of err $!no#s enlightened

8!hr policy, millions were s!ddenly po!red into their coffers% (his so-called national# $hancellor of the

8eich sho!ld go down in history as the 8edeemer of the ar3ist trades !nions%

/e co!ld not co!nt on similar financial facilities% And nobody co!ld be ind!ced to enter a new (radesMnion which, on acco!nt of its financial wea&ness, co!ld not offer him the slightest material benefit% On the

other hand, I felt bo!nd absol!tely to g!ard against the creation of s!ch an organiation which wo!ld only

be a shelter for shir&ers of the more or less intellect!al type%

At that time the +!estion of personnel played the most important role% I did not have a single man whom Imight call !pon to carry o!t this important tas&% /hoever co!ld have s!cceeded at that time in

overthrowing the ar3ist !nions to ma&e way for the tri!mph of the *ational 'ocialist corporative idea,

which wo!ld then ta&e the place of the r!ino!s class warfare - s!ch a person wo!ld be fit to ran& with thevery greatest men o!r nation has prod!ced and his b!st sho!ld be installed in the :alhalla at 8egensb!rg for the admiration of posterity%

!t I &new of no person who co!ld +!alify for s!ch a pedestal%

In this connection we m!st not be led astray by the fact that the international trades !nions are cond!cted

by men of only mediocre significance, for when those !nions were fo!nded there was nothing else of asimilar &ind already in e3istence% (o-day the *ational 'ocialist ovement m!st fight against a monster

organiation which has e3isted for a long time, rests on gigantic fo!ndations and is caref!lly constr!cted

even in the smallest details% An assailant m!st always e3ercise more intelligence than the defender, if he isto overthrow the latter% (he ar3ist trade-!nionist citadel may be governed to-day by mediocre leaders, b!t



it cannot be ta&en by assa!lt e3cept thro!gh the da!ntless energy and geni!s of a s!perior leader on the

other side% If s!ch a leader cannot be fo!nd it is f!tile to str!ggle with Fate and even more foolish to try to

overthrow the e3isting state of things witho!t being able to constr!ct a better in its place%

ere one m!st apply the ma3im 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 lac& of s!itable means%

(o this we m!st 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 str!ggle in

the political field it wo!ld be a grave mista&e to mi3 !p economic +!estions with this str!ggle in its earlier stages% (his applies partic!larly to o!r 6erman people% For if s!ch were to happen in their case the

economic str!ggle wo!ld immediately distract the energy necessary for the political fight% Once the people

are bro!ght to believe that they can b!y a little ho!se with their savings they will devote themselves to the

tas& of increasing their savings and no spare time will be left to them for the political str!ggle against thosewho, in one way or another, will one day sec!re 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

bro!ght to accept they will now go f!rther with their settlement# idea and in the end they will find

themselves for the most part sitting on the gro!nd amidst all the stools%(o-day the *ational 'ocialist ovement is at the beginning of its str!ggle% In great part it m!st first of all

shape and develop its ideals% It m!st employ every o!nce of its energy in the str!ggle to have its great ideal

accepted, and the s!ccess of this effort is not conceivable !nless the combined energies of the movement be

entirely at the service of this str!ggle%

(o-day we have a classical e3ample of how the active strength of a people becomes paralysed when that people is too m!ch ta&en !p with p!rely economic problems%

(he 8evol!tion which too& place in *ovember 191; was not made by the trades !nions, b!t it was carried

o!t in spite of them% And the people of 6ermany did not wage any political fight for the f!t!re of their co!ntry beca!se they tho!ght that the f!t!re co!ld be s!fficiently sec!red by constr!ctive wor& in the

economic field%

/e m!st learn a lesson from this e3perience, beca!se in o!r case the same thing m!st happen !nder the

same circ!mstances% (he more the combined strength of o!r movement is concentrated in the politicalstr!ggle, the more confidently may we co!nt on being s!ccessf!l along o!r whole front% !t if we b!sy

o!rselves premat!rely with trade !nionist problems, settlement problems, etc%, it will be to the disadvantage

of o!r own ca!se, ta&en as a whole% For, tho!gh these problems may be important, they cannot be solved in

an ade+!ate manner !ntil we have political power in o!r hand and are able to !se it in the service of thisidea% Mntil that day comes these problems can have only a paralysing effect on the movement% And if it

ta&es them !p too soon they will only be a hindrance in the effort to attain its own ideological aims% It maythen easily happen that trade !nionist considerations will control the political direction of the movement,

instead of the ideological aims of the movement directing the way that the trades !nions are to ta&e%(he movement and the nation can derive advantage from a *ational 'ocialist trade !nionist organiation

only if the latter be so thoro!ghly inspired by *ational 'ocialist ideas that it r!ns no danger of falling into

step behind the ar3ist movement% For a *ational 'ocialist (rades Mnion which wo!ld consider itself only

as a competitor against the ar3ist !nions wo!ld be worse than none% It m!st declare war against thear3ist (rades Mnion, not only as an organiation b!t, above all, as an idea% It m!st declare itself hostile to

the idea of class and class warfare and, in place of this, it m!st declare itself as the defender of the vario!s

occ!pational and professional interests of the 6erman people%

$onsidered from all these points of view it was not then advisable, nor is it yet advisable, to thin& of fo!nding o!r own (rades Mnion% (hat seemed clear to me, at least !ntil somebody appeared who was

obvio!sly called by fate to solve this partic!lar problem%

(herefore there remained only two possible ways% 7ither to recommend o!r own party members to leavethe trades !nions in which they were enrolled or to remain in them for the moment, with the idea of ca!singas m!ch destr!ction in them as possible%

In general, I recommended the latter alternative%

7specially in the year 1922-2. we co!ld easily do that% For, d!ring the period of inflation, the financial

advantages which might be reaped from a trades !nion organiation wo!ld be negligible, beca!se we co!lde3pect to enroll only a few members owing to the !ndeveloped condition of o!r movement% (he damage

which might res!lt from s!ch a policy was all the greater beca!se its bitterest critics and opponents were to

be fo!nd among the followers of the *ational 'ocialist "arty%I had already entirely disco!ntenanced all e3periments which were destined from the very beginning to be



!ns!ccessf!l% I wo!ld have considered it criminal to r!n the ris& of depriving a wor&er of his scant earnings

in order to help an organiation which, according to my inner conviction, co!ld not promise real advantages

to its members%

'ho!ld a new political party fade o!t of e3istence one day nobody wo!ld be in!red thereby and somewo!ld have profited, b!t none wo!ld have a right to complain% For what each individ!al contrib!tes to a

political movement is given with the idea that it may !ltimately come to nothing% !t the man who pays his

d!es to a trade !nion has the right to e3pect some g!arantee in ret!rn% If this is not done, then the directors

of s!ch a trade !nion are swindlers or at least careless people who o!ght to be bro!ght to a sense of their responsibilities%

/e too& all these viewpoints into consideration before ma&ing o!r decision in 1922% Others tho!ght

otherwise and fo!nded trades !nions% (hey !pbraided !s for being short-sighted and failing to see into the

f!t!re% !t it did not ta&e long for these organiations to disappear and the res!lt was what wo!ld havehappened in o!r own case% !t the difference was that we sho!ld have deceived neither o!rselves nor those

who believed in !s%

$hapter (hirteen

(he erratic manner in which the foreign affairs of the 8eich were cond!cted was d!e to a lac& of so!nd

g!iding principles for the formation of practical and !sef!l alliances% *ot only was this state of affairs

contin!ed after the 8evol!tion, b!t it became even worse%

For the conf!sed state of o!r political ideas in general before the /ar may be loo&ed !pon as the chief

ca!se of o!r defective statesmanship> b!t in the post-/ar period this ca!se m!st be attrib!ted to a lac& of honest intentions% It was nat!ral that those parties who had f!lly achieved their destr!ctive p!rpose by

means of the 8evol!tion sho!ld feel that it wo!ld not serve their interests if a policy of alliances were

adopted which m!st !ltimately res!lt in the restoration of a free 6erman 'tate% A development in thisdirection wo!ld not be in conformity with the p!rposes of the *ovember crime% It wo!ld have interr!pted

and indeed p!t an end to the internationaliation of 6erman national economy and 6erman Labo!r% !t

what was feared most of all was that a s!ccessf!l effort to ma&e the 8eich independent of foreign co!ntries

might have an infl!ence in domestic politics which one day wo!ld t!rn o!t disastro!s for those who nowhold s!preme power in the government of the 8eich% One cannot imagine the revival of a nation !nless that

revival be preceded by a process of nationaliation% $onversely, every important s!ccess in the field of

foreign politics m!st call forth a favo!rable reaction at home% 73perience proves that every str!ggle for

liberty increases the national sentiment and national self-conscio!sness and therewith gives rise to a &eener sensibility towards anti-national elements and tendencies% A state of things, and persons also, that may be

tolerated and even pass !nnoticed in times of peace will not only become the obect of aversion whennational enth!siasm is aro!sed b!t will even provo&e positive opposition, which fre+!ently t!rns o!t

disastro!s for them% In this connection we may recall the spy-scare that became prevalent when the war bro&e o!t, when h!man passion s!ddenly manifested itself to s!ch a heightened degree as to lead to the

most br!tal persec!tions, often witho!t any !stifiable gro!nds, altho!gh everybody &new that the danger

res!lting from spies is greater d!ring the long periods of peace> b!t, for obvio!s reasons, they do not then

attract a similar amo!nt of p!blic attention% For this reason the s!btle instinct of the 'tate parasites whocame to the s!rface of the national body thro!gh the *ovember happenings ma&es them feel at once that a

policy of alliances which wo!ld restore the freedom of o!r people and awa&en national sentiment might

possibly r!in their own criminal e3istence%

(h!s we may e3plain the fact that since 191; the men who have held the reins of government adopted anentirely negative attit!de towards foreign affairs and that the b!siness of the 'tate has been almost

constantly cond!cted in a systematic way against the interests of the 6erman nation% For that which at first

sight seemed a matter of chance proved, on closer e3amination, to be a logical advance along the roadwhich was first p!blicly entered !pon by the *ovember 8evol!tion of 191;%Mndo!btedly a distinction o!ght to be made between B1C the responsible administrators of o!r affairs of

'tate, or rather those who o!ght to be responsible> B2C the average r!n of o!r parliamentary politicasters,

and B.C the masses of o!r people, whose sheepish docility corresponds to their want of intelligence%

(he first &now what they want% (he second fall into line with them, either beca!se they have been alreadyschooled in what is afoot or beca!se they have not the co!rage to ta&e an !ncompromising stand against a

co!rse which they &now and feel to be detrimental% (he third !st s!bmit to it beca!se they are too st!pid to

!nderstand%/hile the 6erman *ational 'ocialist Labo!r "arty was only a small and practically !n&nown society,



districts m!st be !ncompromisingly regarded as a matter of secondary importance in the face of the one

main tas&, which is to win bac& the freedom of the central territory% For the detached and oppressed

fragments of a nation or an imperial province cannot achieve their liberation thro!gh the e3pression of

yearnings and protests on the part of the oppressed and abandoned, b!t only when the portion which hasmore or less retained its sovereign independence can resort to the !se of force for the p!rpose of

recon+!ering those territories that once belonged to the common fatherland%

(herefore, in order to recon+!er lost territories the first condition to be f!lfilled is to wor& energetically for

the increased welfare and reinforcement of the strength of that portion of the 'tate which has remained over after the partition% (h!s the !n+!enchable yearning which sl!mbers in the hearts of the people m!st be

awa&ened and restrengthened by bringing new forces to its aid, so that when the ho!r comes all will be

devoted to the one p!rpose of liberating and !niting the whole people% (herefore, the interests of the

separated territories m!st be s!bordinated to the one p!rpose% (hat one p!rpose m!st aim at obtaining for the central remaining portion s!ch a meas!re of power and might that will enable it to enforce its will on

the hostile will of the victor and th!s redress the wrong% For flaming protests will not restore the oppressed

territories to the bosom of a common 8eich% (hat can be done only thro!gh the might of the sword%

(he forging of this sword is a wor& that has to be done thro!gh the domestic policy which m!st be adopted by a national government% (o see that the wor& of forging these arms is ass!red, and to recr!it the men who

will bear them, that is the tas& of the foreign policy%

In the first vol!me of this boo& I disc!ssed the inade+!acy of o!r policy of alliances before the /ar% (here

were fo!r possible ways to sec!re the necessary foodst!ffs for the maintenance of o!r people% Of these

ways the fo!rth, which was the most !nfavo!rable, was chosen% Instead of a so!nd policy of territoriale3pansion in 7!rope, o!r r!lers embar&ed on a policy of colonial and trade e3pansion% (hat policy was all

the more mista&en inasm!ch as they pres!med that in this way the danger of an armed conflict wo!ld be

averted% (he res!lt of the attempt to sit on many stools at the same time might have been foreseen% It let !sfall to the gro!nd in the midst of them all% And the /orld /ar was only the last rec&oning presented to the

8eich to pay for the fail!re of its foreign policy%

(he right way that sho!ld have been ta&en in those days was the third way I indicated0 namely, to increase

the strength of the 8eich as a $ontinental "ower by the ac+!isition of new territory in 7!rope% And at thesame time a f!rther e3pansion, thro!gh the s!bse+!ent ac+!isition of colonial territory, might th!s be

bro!ght within the range of practical politics% Of co!rse, this policy co!ld not have been carried thro!gh

e3cept in alliance with 7ngland, or by devoting s!ch abnormal efforts to the increase of military force and

armament that, for forty or fifty years, all c!lt!ral !nderta&ings wo!ld have to be completely relegated tothe bac&gro!nd% (his responsibility might very well have been !nderta&en% (he c!lt!ral importance of a

nation is almost always dependent on its political freedom and independence% "olitical freedom is a prere+!isite condition for the e3istence, or rather the creation, of great c!lt!ral !nderta&ings% Accordingly

no sacrifice can be too great when there is +!estion of sec!ring the political freedom of a nation% /hatmight have to be ded!cted from the b!dget e3penses for c!lt!ral p!rposes, in order to meet abnormal

demands for increasing the military power of the 'tate, can be genero!sly paid bac& later on% Indeed, it may

be said that after a 'tate has concentrated all its reso!rces in one effort for the p!rpose of sec!ring its

political independence a certain period of ease and renewed e+!ilibri!m sets in% And it often happens thatthe c!lt!ral spirit of the nation, which had been heretofore cramped and confined, now s!ddenly blooms

forth% (h!s 6reece e3perienced the great "ericlean era after the miseries it had s!ffered d!ring the "ersian

/ars% And the 8oman 8ep!blic t!rned its energies to the c!ltivation of a higher civiliation when it was

freed from the stress and worry of the "!nic /ars%Of co!rse, it co!ld not be e3pected that a parliamentary maority of fec&less and st!pid people wo!ld be

capable of deciding on s!ch a resol!te policy for the absol!te s!bordination of all other national interests to

the one sole tas& of preparing for a f!t!re conflict of arms which wo!ld res!lt in establishing the sec!rity of the 'tate% (he father of Frederic& the 6reat sacrificed everything in order to be ready for that conflict> b!tthe fathers of o!r abs!rd parliamentarian democracy, with the )ewish hall-mar&, co!ld not do it%

(hat is why, in pre-/ar times, the military preparation necessary to enable !s to con+!er new territory in

7!rope was only very mediocre, so that it was diffic!lt to obtain the s!pport of really helpf!l allies%

(hose who directed o!r foreign affairs wo!ld not entertain even the idea of systematically preparing for war% (hey reected every plan for the ac+!isition of territory in 7!rope% And by preferring a policy of

colonial and trade e3pansion, they sacrificed the alliance with 7ngland, which was then possible% At the

same time they neglected to see& the s!pport of 8!ssia, which wo!ld have been a logical proceeding%Finally they st!mbled into the /orld /ar, abandoned by all e3cept the ill-starred absb!rgs%



(he characteristic of o!r present foreign policy is that it follows no discernible or even intelligible lines of

action% /hereas before the /ar a mista&e was made in ta&ing the fo!rth way that I have mentioned, and

this was p!rs!ed only in a halfhearted manner, since the 8evol!tion not even the sharpest eye can detect

any way that is being followed% 7ven more than before the /ar, there is absol!tely no s!ch thing as asystematic plan, e3cept the systematic attempts that are made to destroy the last possibility of a national

revival%

If we ma&e an impartial e3amination of the sit!ation e3isting in 7!rope to-day as far as concerns the

relation of the vario!s "owers to one another, we shall arrive at the following res!lts0For the past three h!ndred years the history of o!r $ontinent has been definitely determined by 7ngland#s

efforts to &eep the 7!ropean 'tates opposed to one another in an e+!ilibri!m of forces, th!s ass!ring the

necessary protection of her own rear while she p!rs!ed the great aims of ritish world-policy%

(he traditional tendency of ritish diplomacy ever since the reign of !een 7liabeth has been to employsystematically every possible means to prevent any one "ower from attaining a preponderant position over

the other 7!ropean "owers and, if necessary, to brea& that preponderance by means of armed intervention%

(he only parallel to this has been the tradition of the "r!ssian Army% 7ngland has made !se of vario!s

forces to carry o!t its p!rpose, choosing them according to the act!al sit!ation or the tas& to be faced> b!tthe will and determination to !se them has always been the same% (he more diffic!lt 7ngland#s position

became in the co!rse of history the more the ritish Imperial 6overnment considered it necessary to

maintain a condition of political paralysis among the vario!s 7!ropean 'tates, as a res!lt of their m!t!al

rivalries% /hen the *orth American colonies obtained their political independence it became still more

necessary for 7ngland to !se every effort to establish and maintain the defence of her flan& in 7!rope% Inaccordance with this policy she red!ced 'pain and the *etherlands to the position of inferior naval "owers%

aving accomplished this, 7ngland concentrated all her forces against the increasing strength of France,

!ntil she bro!ght abo!t the downfall of *apoleon onaparte and therewith destroyed the militaryhegemony of France, which was the most dangero!s rival that 7ngland had to fear%

(he change of attit!de in ritish statesmanship towards 6ermany too& place only very slowly, not only

beca!se the 6erman nation did not represent an obvio!s danger for 7ngland as long as it lac&ed national

!nification, b!t also beca!se p!blic opinion in 7ngland, which had been directed to other +!arters by asystem of propaganda that had been carried o!t for a long time, co!ld be t!rned to a new direction only by

slow degrees% In order to reach the proposed ends the calmly reflecting statesman had to bow to pop!lar

sentiment, which is the most powerf!l motive-force and is at the same time the most lasting in its energy%

/hen the statesman has attained one of his ends, he m!st immediately t!rn his tho!ghts to others> b!t only by degrees and the slow wor& of propaganda can the sentiment of the masses be shaped into an instr!ment

for the attainment of the new aims which their leaders have decided on%As early as 1;G<-G1 7ngland had decided on the new stand it wo!ld ta&e% On certain occasions minor

oscillations in that policy were ca!sed by the growing infl!ence of America in the commercial mar&ets of the world and also by the increasing political power of 8!ssia> b!t, !nfort!nately, 6ermany did not ta&e

advantage of these and, therefore, the original tendency of ritish diplomacy was only reinforced%

7ngland loo&ed !pon 6ermany as a "ower which was of world importance commercially and politically

and which, partly beca!se of its enormo!s ind!strial development, ass!med s!ch threatening proportionsthat the two co!ntries already contended against one another in the same sphere and with e+!al energy% (he

so-called peacef!l con+!est of the world by commercial enterprise, which, in the eyes of those who

governed o!r p!blic affairs at that time, represented the highest pea& of h!man wisdom, was !st the thing

that led 7nglish statesmen to adopt a policy of resistance% (hat this resistance ass!med the form of anorganied aggression on a vast scale was in f!ll conformity with a type of statesmanship which did not aim

at the maintenance of a d!bio!s world peace b!t aimed at the consolidation of ritish world-hegemony% In

carrying o!t this policy, 7ngland allied herself with those co!ntries which had a definite militaryimportance% And that was in &eeping with her traditional ca!tion in estimating the power of her adversaryand also in recogniing her own temporary wea&ness% (hat line of cond!ct cannot be called !nscr!p!lo!s>

beca!se s!ch a comprehensive organiation for war p!rposes m!st not be !dged from the heroic point of

view b!t from that of e3pediency% (he obect of a diplomatic policy m!st not be to see that a nation goes

down heroically b!t rather that it s!rvives in a practical way% ence every road that leads to this goal isopport!ne and the fail!re to ta&e it m!st be loo&ed !pon as a criminal neglect of d!ty%

/hen the 6erman 8evol!tion too& place 7ngland#s fears of a 6erman world hegemony came to a

satisfactory end%From that time it was not an 7nglish interest to see 6ermany totally cancelled from the geographic map of



7!rope% On the contrary, the asto!nding collapse which too& place in *ovember 191; fo!nd ritish

diplomacy confronted with a sit!ation which at first appeared !ntenable%

For fo!r-and-a-half years the ritish 7mpire had fo!ght to brea& the pres!med preponderance of a

$ontinental "ower% A s!dden collapse now happened which removed this "ower from the foregro!nd of 7!ropean affairs% (hat collapse disclosed itself finally in the lac& of even the primordial instinct of self-

preservation, so that 7!ropean e+!ilibri!m was destroyed within forty-eight ho!rs% 6ermany was

annihilated and France became the first political "ower on the $ontinent of 7!rope%

(he tremendo!s propaganda which was carried on d!ring this war for the p!rpose of enco!raging theritish p!blic to stic& it o!t to the end aro!sed all the primitive instincts and passions of the pop!lace and

was bo!nd event!ally to hang as a leaden weight on the decisions of ritish statesmen% /ith the colonial,

economical and commercial destr!ction of 6ermany, 7ngland#s war aims were attained% /hatever went

beyond those aims was an obstacle to the f!rtherance of ritish interests% Only the enemies of 7nglandco!ld profit by the disappearance of 6ermany as a 6reat $ontinental "ower in 7!rope% In *ovember 191;,

however, and !p to the s!mmer of 1919, it was not possible for 7ngland to change its diplomatic attit!de>

beca!se d!ring the long war it had appealed, more than it had ever done before, to the feelings of the

pop!lace% In view of the feeling prevalent among its own people, 7ngland co!ld not change its foreign policy> and another reason which made that impossible was the military strength to which other 7!ropean

"owers had now attained% France had ta&en the direction of peace negotiations into her own hands and

co!ld impose her law !pon the others% ?!ring those months of negotiations and bargaining the only "ower

that co!ld have altered the co!rse which things were ta&ing was 6ermany herself> b!t 6ermany was torn

as!nder by a civil war, and her so-called statesmen had declared themselves ready to accept any and everydictate imposed on them%

*ow, in the comity of nations, when one nation loses its instinct for self-preservation and ceases to be an

active member it sin&s to the level of an enslaved nation and its territory will have to s!ffer the fate of acolony%

(o prevent the power of France from becoming too great, the only form which 7nglish negotiations co!ld

ta&e was that of participating in France#s l!st for aggrandiement%

As a matter of fact, 7ngland did not attain the ends for which she went to war% *ot only did it t!rn o!timpossible to prevent a $ontinental "ower from obtaining a preponderance over the ratio of strength in the

$ontinental 'tate system of 7!rope, b!t a large meas!re of preponderance had been obtained and firmly

established%

In 1914 6ermany, considered as a military 'tate, was wedged in between two co!ntries, one of which hade+!al military forces at its disposal and the other had greater military reso!rces% (hen there was 7ngland#s

overwhelming s!premacy at sea% France and 8!ssia alone hindered and opposed the e3cessiveaggrandiement of 6ermany% (he !nfavo!rable geographical sit!ation of the 8eich, from the military point

of view, might be loo&ed !pon as another coefficient of sec!rity against an e3aggerated increase of 6erman power% From the naval point of view, the config!ration of the coast-line was !nfavo!rable in case of a

conflict with 7ngland% And tho!gh the maritime frontier was short and cramped, the land frontier was

widely e3tended and open%

France#s position is different to-day% It is the first military "ower witho!t a serio!s rival on the $ontinent% Itis almost entirely protected by its so!thern frontier against 'pain and Italy% Against 6ermany it is

safeg!arded by the prostrate condition of o!r co!ntry% A long stretch of its coast-line faces the vital nervo!s

system of the ritish 7mpire% *ot only co!ld French aeroplanes and long-range batteries attac& the vital

centres of the ritish system, b!t s!bmarines can threaten the great ritish commercial ro!tes% A s!bmarinecampaign based on France#s long Atlantic coast and on the 7!ropean and *orth African coasts of the

editerranean wo!ld have disastro!s conse+!ences for 7ngland%

(h!s the political res!lts of the war to prevent the development of 6erman power was the creation of aFrench hegemony on the $ontinent% (he military res!lt was the consolidation of France as the first$ontinental "ower and the recognition of American e+!ality on the sea% (he economic res!lt was the

cession of great spheres of ritish interests to her former allies and associates%

(he al&aniation of 7!rope, !p to a certain degree, was desirable and indeed necessary in the light of the

traditional policy of 6reat ritain, !st as France desired the al&aniation of 6ermany%/hat 7ngland has always desired, and will contin!e to desire, is to prevent any one $ontinental "ower in

7!rope from attaining a position of world importance% (herefore 7ngland wishes to maintain a definite

e+!ilibri!m of forces among the 7!ropean 'tates - for this e+!ilibri!m seems a necessary condition of 7ngland#s world-hegemony%



/hat France has always desired, and will contin!e to desire, is to prevent 6ermany from becoming a

homogeneo!s "ower% (herefore France wants to maintain a system of small 6erman 'tates whose forces

wo!ld balance one another and over which there sho!ld be no central government% (hen, by ac+!iring

possession of the left ban& of the 8hine, she wo!ld have f!lfilled the pre-re+!isite conditions for theestablishment and sec!rity of her hegemony in 7!rope%

(he final aims of French diplomacy m!st be in perpet!al opposition to the final tendencies of ritish

statesmanship%

(a&ing these considerations as a starting-point, anyone who investigates the possibilities that e3ist for 6ermany to find allies m!st come to the concl!sion that there remains no other way of forming an alliance

e3cept to approach 7ngland% (he conse+!ences of 7ngland#s war policy were and are disastro!s for

6ermany% owever, we cannot close o!r eyes to the fact that, as things stand to-day, the necessary interests

of 7ngland no longer demand the destr!ction of 6ermany% On the contrary, ritish diplomacy m!st tendmore and more, from year to year, towards c!rbing France#s !nbridled l!st after hegemony% *ow, a policy

of alliances cannot be p!rs!ed by bearing past grievances in mind, b!t it can be rendered fr!itf!l by ta&ing

acco!nt of past e3periences% 73perience sho!ld have ta!ght !s that alliances formed for negative p!rposes

s!ffer from intrinsic wea&ness% (he destinies of nations can be welded together only !nder the prospect of acommon s!ccess, of common gain and con+!est, in short, a common e3tension of power for both

contracting parties%

(he ignorance of o!r people on +!estions of foreign politics is clearly demonstrated by the reports in the

daily "ress which tal& abo!t Hfriendship towards 6ermanyH on the part of one or the other foreign

statesman, whereby this professed friendship is ta&en as a special g!arantee that s!ch persons willchampion a policy that will be advantageo!s to o!r people% (hat &ind of tal& is abs!rd to an incredible

degree% It means spec!lating on the !nparalleled simplicity of the average 6erman philistine when he

comes to tal&ing politics% (here is not any ritish, American, or Italian statesman who co!ld ever bedescribed as pro-6erman#% 7very 7nglishman m!st nat!rally be ritish first of all% (he same is tr!e of

every American% And no Italian statesman wo!ld be prepared to adopt a policy that was not pro-Italian%

(herefore, anyone who e3pects to form alliances with foreign nations on the basis of a pro-6erman feeling

among the statesmen of other co!ntries is either an ass or a deceiver% (he necessary condition for lin&ingtogether the destinies of nations is never m!t!al esteem or m!t!al sympathy, b!t rather the prospect of

advantages accr!ing to the contracting parties% It is tr!e that a ritish statesman will always follow a pro-

ritish and not a pro-6erman policy> b!t it is also tr!e that certain definite interests involved in this pro-

ritish policy may coincide on vario!s gro!nds with 6erman interests% *at!rally that can be so only to acertain degree and the sit!ation may one day be completely reversed% !t the art of statesmanship is shown

when at certain periods there is +!estion of reaching a certain end and when allies are fo!nd who m!st ta&ethe same road in order to defend their own interests%

(he practical application of these principles at the present time m!st depend on the answer given to thefollowing +!estions0 /hat 'tates are not vitally interested in the fact that, by the complete abolition of a

6erman $entral 7!rope, the economic and military power of France has reached a position of absol!te

hegemony5 /hich are the 'tates that, in consideration of the conditions which are essential to their own

e3istence and in view of the tradition that has hitherto been followed in cond!cting their foreign policy,envisage s!ch a development as a menace to their own f!t!re5

Finally, we m!st be +!ite clear on the following point0 France is and will remain the implacable enemy of

6ermany% It does not matter what 6overnments have r!led or will r!le in France, whether o!rbon or

)acobin, *apoleonic or o!rgeois-?emocratic, $lerical 8ep!blican or 8ed olshevi&, their foreign policywill always be directed towards ac+!iring possession of the 8hine frontier and consolidating France#s

position on this river by dis!niting and dismembering 6ermany%

7ngland did not want 6ermany to be a world "ower% France desired that there sho!ld be no "ower called6ermany% (herefore there was a very essential difference% (o-day we are not fighting for o!r position as a/orld-"ower b!t only for the e3istence of o!r co!ntry, for national !nity and the daily bread of o!r

children% (a&ing this point of view into consideration, only two 'tates remain to !s as possible allies in

7!rope - 7ngland and Italy%

7ngland is not pleased to see a France on whose military power there is no chec& in 7!rope, so that one dayshe might !nderta&e the s!pport of a policy which in some way or other might come into conflict with

ritish interests% *or can 7ngland be pleased to see France in possession of s!ch enormo!s coal and iron

mines in /estern 7!rope as wo!ld ma&e it possible for her one day to play a role in world-commercewhich might threaten danger to ritish interests% oreover, 7ngland can never be pleased to see a France



whose political position on the $ontinent, owing to the dismemberment of the rest of 7!rope, seems so

absol!tely ass!red that she is not only able to res!me a French world-policy on great lines b!t wo!ld even

find herself compelled to do so% (he bombs which were once dropped by the Keppelins might be m!ltiplied

by the tho!sand every night% (he military predominance of France is a weight that presses heavily on thehearts of the /orld 7mpire over which 6reat ritain r!les%

*or can Italy desire, nor will she desire, any f!rther strengthening of France#s power in 7!rope% (he f!t!re

of Italy will be conditioned by the development of events in the editerranean and by the political sit!ation

in the area s!rro!nding that sea% (he reason that led Italy into the /ar was not a desire to contrib!tetowards the aggrandiement of France b!t rather to deal her hated Adriatic rival a mortal blow% Any f!rther

increase of France#s power on the $ontinent wo!ld hamper the development of Italy#s f!t!re, and Italy does

not deceive herself by thin&ing that racial &indred between the nations will in any way eliminate rivalries%

'erio!s and impartial consideration proves that it is these two 'tates, 6reat ritain and Italy, whose nat!ralinterests not only do not contrast with the conditions essential to the e3istence of the 6erman nation b!t are

identical with them, to a certain e3tent%

!t when we consider the possibilities of alliances we m!st be caref!l not to lose sight of three factors% (he

first factor concerns o!rselves> the other two concern the two 'tates I have mentioned%Is it at all possible to concl!de an alliance with 6ermany as it is to-day5 $an a "ower which wo!ld enter

into an alliance for the p!rpose of sec!ring assistance in an effort to carry o!t its own offensive aims - can

s!ch a "ower form an alliance with a 'tate whose r!lers have for years long presented a spectacle of

deplorable incompetence and pacifist cowardice and where the maority of the people, blinded by

democratic and ar3ist teachings, betray the interests of their own people and co!ntry in a manner thatcries to eaven for vengeance5 As things stand to-day, can any "ower hope to establish !sef!l relations and

hope to fight together for the f!rtherance of their common interests with this 'tate which manifestly has

neither the will nor the co!rage to move a finger even in the defence of its bare e3istence5 (a&e the case of a "ower for which an alliance m!st be m!ch more than a pact to g!arantee a state of slow decomposition,

s!ch as happened with the old and disastro!s (riple Alliance% $an s!ch a "ower associate itself for life or

death with a 'tate whose most characteristic signs of activity consist of a rampant servility in e3ternal

relations and a scandalo!s repression of the national spirit at home5 $an s!ch a "ower be associated with a'tate in which there is nothing of greatness, beca!se its whole policy does not deserve it5 Or can alliances

be made with 6overnments which are in the hands of men who are despised by their own fellow-citiens

and conse+!ently are not respected abroad5

*o% A self-respecting "ower which e3pects something more from alliances than commissions for greedy"arliamentarians will not and cannot enter into an alliance with o!r present-day 6ermany% O!r present

inability to form alliances f!rnishes the principle and most solid basis for the combined action of theenemies who are robbing !s% eca!se 6ermany does not defend itself in any other way e3cept by the

flamboyant protests of o!r parliamentarian elect, there is no reason why the rest of the world sho!ld ta&e !pthe fight in o!r defence% And 6od does not follow the principle of granting freedom to a nation of cowards,

despite all the implications of o!r patriotic# associations% (herefore, for those 'tates which have not a

direct interest in o!r annihilation no other co!rse remains open e3cept to participate in France#s campaign

of pl!nder, at least to ma&e it impossible for the strength of France to be e3cl!sively aggrandied thereby%In the second place, we m!st not forget that among the nations which were formerly o!r enemies mass-

propaganda has t!rned the opinions and feelings of large sections of the pop!lation in a fi3ed direction%

/hen for years long a foreign nation has been presented to the p!blic as a horde of !ns#, 8obbers#,

:andals#, etc%, they cannot s!ddenly be presented as something different, and the enemy of yesterdaycannot be recommended as the ally of tomorrow%

!t the third factor deserves greater attention, since it is of essential importance for establishing f!t!re

alliances in 7!rope%From the political point of view it is not in the interests of 6reat ritain that 6ermany sho!ld be r!inedeven still more, b!t s!ch a proceeding wo!ld be very m!ch in the interests of the international money-

mar&ets manip!lated by the )ew% (he cleavage between the official, or rather traditional, ritish

statesmanship and the controlling infl!ence of the )ew on the money-mar&ets is nowhere so clearly

manifested as in the vario!s attit!des ta&en towards problems of ritish foreign policy% $ontrary to theinterests and welfare of the ritish 'tate, )ewish finance demands not only the absol!te economic

destr!ction of 6ermany b!t its complete political enslavement% (he internationaliation of o!r 6erman

economic system, that is to say, the transference of o!r prod!ctive forces to the control of )ewishinternational finance, can be completely carried o!t only in a 'tate that has been politically olshevied%



!t the ar3ist fighting forces, commanded by international and )ewish stoc&-e3change capital, cannot

finally smash the national resistance in 6ermany witho!t friendly help from o!tside% For this p!rpose

French armies wo!ld first have to invade and overcome the territory of the 6erman 8eich !ntil a state of

international chaos wo!ld set in, and then the co!ntry wo!ld have to s!cc!mb to olshevi& storm troops inthe service of )ewish international finance%

ence it is that at the present time the )ew is the great agitator for the complete destr!ction of 6ermany%

/henever we read of attac&s against 6ermany ta&ing place in any part of the world the )ew is always the

instigator% In peace-time, as well as d!ring the /ar, the )ewish-ar3ist stoc&-e3change "ress systematicallystirred !p hatred against 6ermany, !ntil one 'tate after another abandoned its ne!trality and placed itself at

the service of the world coalition, even against the real interests of its own people%

(he )ewish way of reasoning th!s becomes +!ite clear% (he olsheviation of 6ermany, that is to say, the

e3termination of the patriotic and national 6erman intellect!als, th!s ma&ing it possible to force 6ermanLabo!r to bear the yo&e of international )ewish finance - that is only the overt!re to the movement for

e3panding )ewish power on a wider scale and finally s!b!gating the world to its r!le% As has so often

happened in history, 6ermany is the chief pivot of this formidable str!ggle% If o!r people and o!r 'tate

sho!ld fall victims to these oppressors of the nations, l!sting after blood and money, the whole earth wo!ld become the prey of that hydra% 'ho!ld 6ermany be freed from its grip, a great menace for the nations of the

world wo!ld thereby be eliminated%

It is certain that )ewry !ses all its s!bterranean activities not only for the p!rpose of &eeping alive old

national enmities against 6ermany b!t even to spread them farther and render them more ac!te wherever

possible% It is no less certain that these activities are only very partially in &eeping with the tr!e interests of the nations among whose people the poison is spread% As a general principle, )ewry carries on its campaign

in the vario!s co!ntries by the !se of arg!ments that are best calc!lated to appeal to the mentality of the

respective nations and are most li&ely to prod!ce the desired res!lts> for )ewry &nows what the p!blicfeeling is in each co!ntry% O!r national stoc& has been so m!ch ad!lterated by the mi3t!re of alien elements

that, in its fight for power, )ewry can ma&e !se of the more or less cosmopolitan# circles which e3ist

among !s, inspired by the pacifist and international ideologies% In France they e3ploit the well-&nown and

acc!rately estimated cha!vinistic spirit% In 7ngland they e3ploit the commercial and world-politicalo!tloo&% In short, they always wor& !pon the essential characteristics that belong to the mentality of each

nation% /hen they have in this way achieved a decisive infl!ence 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% (heir wor& of destr!ction now goes ahead more +!ic&ly, red!cing one'tate after another to a mass of r!ins on which they will erect the everlasting and sovereign )ewish 7mpire%

In 7ngland, and in Italy, the contrast between the better &ind of solid statesmanship and the policy of the)ewish stoc&-e3change often becomes stri&ingly evident%

Only in France there e3ists to-day more than ever before a profo!nd accord between the views of the stoc&-e3change, controlled by the )ews, and the cha!vinistic policy p!rs!ed by French statesmen% (his identity of

views constit!tes an immense, danger for 6ermany% And it is !st for this reason that France is and will

remain by far the most dangero!s enemy% (he French people, who are becoming more and more obsessed

by negroid ideas, represent a threatening menace to the e3istence of the white race in 7!rope, beca!se theyare bo!nd !p with the )ewish campaign for world-domination% For the contamination ca!sed by the infl!3

of negroid blood on the 8hine, in the very heart of 7!rope, is in accord with the sadist and perverse l!st for

vengeance on the part of the hereditary enemy of o!r people, !st as it s!its the p!rpose of the cool

calc!lating )ew who wo!ld !se this means of introd!cing a process of bastardiation in the very centre of the 7!ropean $ontinent and, by infecting the white race with the blood of an inferior stoc&, wo!ld destroy

the fo!ndations of its independent e3istence%

France#s activities in 7!rope to-day, sp!rred on by the French l!st for vengeance and systematicallydirected by the )ew, are a criminal attac& against the life of the white race and will one day aro!se againstthe French people a spirit of vengeance among a generation which will have recognied the original sin of

man&ind in this racial poll!tion%

As far as concerns 6ermany, the danger which France represents involves the d!ty of relegating all

sentiment to a s!bordinate place and e3tending the hand to those who are threatened with the same menaceand who are not willing to s!ffer or tolerate France#s l!st for hegemony%

For a long time yet to come there will be only two "owers in 7!rope with which it may be possible for

6ermany to concl!de an alliance% (hese "owers are 6reat ritain and Italy%If we ta&e the tro!ble to cast a glance bac&wards on the way in which 6erman foreign policy has been



cond!cted since the 8evol!tion we m!st, in view of the constant and incomprehensible acts of s!bmission

on the part% of o!r governments, either lose heart or become fired with rage and ta&e !p the c!dgels against

s!ch a regime% (heir way of acting cannot be attrib!ted to a want of !nderstanding, beca!se what seemed to

every thin&ing man to be inconceivable was accomplished by the leaders of the *ovember parties withtheir $yclopean intellects% (hey bowed to France and begged her favo!r% Nes, d!ring all these recent years,

with the to!ching simplicity of incorrigible visionaries, they went on their &nees to France again and again%

(hey perpet!aily wagged their tails before the 6rande *ation% And in each tric&-o#-the-loop which the

French hangmen performed with his rope they recognied a visible change of feeling% O!r real politicalwire-p!llers never shared in this abs!rd cred!lity% (he idea of establishing a friendship with France was for

them only a means of thwarting every attempt on 6ermany#s part to adopt a practical policy of alliances%

(hey had no ill!sions abo!t French aims or those of the men behind the scenes in France% /hat ind!ced

them to ta&e !p s!ch an attit!de and to act as if they honestly believed that the fate of 6ermany co!ld possibly be changed in this way was the cool calc!lation that if this did not happen o!r people might ta&e

the reins into their own hands and choose another road%

Of co!rse it is diffic!lt for !s to propose 7ngland as o!r possible ally in the f!t!re% O!r )ewish "ress has

always been adept in concentrating hatred against 7ngland partic!larly% And many of o!r good 6ermansimpletons perch on these branches which the )ews have limed to capt!re them% (hey babble abo!t a

restoration of 6erman sea power and protest against the robbery of o!r colonies% (h!s they f!rnish material

which the contriving )ew transmits to his clansmen in 7ngland, so that it can be !sed there for p!rposes of

practical propaganda% For o!r simple-minded bo!rgeoisie who ind!lge in politics can ta&e in only little by

little the idea that to-day we have not to fight for sea-power# and s!ch things% 7ven before the /ar it wasabs!rd to direct the national energies of 6ermany towards this end witho!t first having sec!red o!r position

in 7!rope% '!ch a hope to-day reaches that pea& of abs!rdity which may be called criminal in the domain

of politics%Often one becomes really desperate on seeing how the )ewish wire-p!llers s!cceeded in concentrating the

attention of the people on things which are only of secondary importance to-day, (hey incited the people to

demonstrations and protests while at the same time France was tearing o!r nation as!nder bit by bit and

systematically removing the very fo!ndations of o!r national independence%In this connection I have to thin& of the /ooden orse in the riding of which the )ew showed e3traordinary

s&ill d!ring these years% I mean 'o!th (yrol%

Nes, 'o!th (yrol% (he reason why I ta&e !p this +!estion here is !st beca!se I want to call to acco!nt that

shamef!l canaille who relied on the ignorance and short memories of large sections of o!r people andstim!lated a national indignation which is as foreign to the real character of o!r parliamentary impostors as

the idea of respect for private property is to a magpie%I sho!ld li&e to state here that I was one of those who, at the time when the fate of 'o!th (yrol was being

decided - that is to say, from A!g!st 1914 to *ovember 191; - too& my place where that co!ntry also co!ldhave been effectively defended, namely, in the Army% I did my share in the fighting d!ring those years, not

merely to save 'o!th (yrol from being lost b!t also to save every other 6erman province for the

Fatherland%

(he parliamentary sharpers did not ta&e part in that combat% (he whole canaille played party politics% Onthe other hand, we carried on the fight in the belief that a victorio!s iss!e of the /ar wo!ld enable the

6erman nation to &eep 'o!th (yrol also> b!t the lo!d-mo!thed traitor carried on a seditio!s agitation

against s!ch a victorio!s iss!e, !ntil the fighting 'iegfried s!cc!mbed to the dagger pl!nged in his bac&% It

was only nat!ral that the inflammatory and hypocritical speeches of the elegantly dressed parliamentarianson the :ienna 8atha!s "lat or in front of the Feldherrnhalle in !nich co!ld not save 'o!th (yrol for

6ermany% (hat co!ld be done only by the fighting battalions at the Front% (hose who bro&e !p that fighting

front betrayed 'o!th (yrol, as well as the other districts of 6ermany%Anyone who thin&s that the 'o!th (yrol +!estion can be solved to-day by protests and manifestations and processions organied by vario!s associations is either a h!mb!g or merely a 6erman philistine%

In this regard it m!st be +!ite clearly !nderstood that we cannot get bac& the territories we have lost if we

depend on solemn imprecations before the throne of the Almighty 6od or on pio!s hopes in a Leag!e of

*ations, b!t only by the force of arms%(herefore the only remaining +!estion is0 /ho is ready to ta&e !p arms for the restoration of the lost

territories5

As far as concerns myself personally, I can state with a good conscience that I wo!ld have co!rage eno!ghto ta&e part in a campaign for the recon+!est of 'o!th (yrol, at the head of parliamentarian storm battalions



consisting of parliamentarian gasconaders and all the party leaders, also the vario!s $o!ncillors of 'tate%

Only the ?evil &nows whether I might have the l!c& of seeing a few shells s!ddenly b!rst over this

b!rning# demonstration of protest% I thin& that if a fo3 were to brea& into a po!ltry yard his presence wo!ld

not provo&e s!ch a helter-s&elter and r!sh to cover as we sho!ld witness in the band of protesters#%(he vilest part of it all is that these tal&ers themselves do not believe that anything can be achieved in this

way% 7ach one of them &nows very well how harmless and ineffective their whole pretence is% (hey do it

only beca!se it is easier now to babble abo!t the restoration of 'o!th (yrol than to fight for its preservation

in days gone by%7ach one plays the part that he is best capable of playing in life% In those days we offered o!r blood% (o-day

these people are engaged in whetting their t!s&s%

It is partic!larly interesting to note to-day how legitimist circles in :ienna preen themselves on their wor&

for the restoration of 'o!th (yrol% 'even years ago their a!g!st and ill!strio!s ?ynasty helped, by an act of per!ry and treason, to ma&e it possible for the victorio!s world-coalition to ta&e away 'o!th (yrol% At that

time these circles s!pported the perfidio!s policy adopted by their ?ynasty and did not tro!ble themselves

in the least abo!t the fate of 'o!th (yrol or any other province% *at!rally it is easier to-day to ta&e !p the

fight for this territory, since the present str!ggle is waged with the weapons of the mind#% Anyhow, it iseasier to oin in a meeting of protestation# and tal& yo!rself hoarse in giving vent to the noble indignation

that fills yo!r breast, or stain yo!r finger with the writing of a newspaper article, than to blow !p a bridge,

for instance, d!ring the occ!pation of the 8!hr%

(he reason why certain circles have made the +!estion of 'o!th (yrol the pivot of 6erman-Italian relations

d!ring the past few years is +!ite evident% )ews and absb!rg legitimists are greatly interested in preventing 6ermany from p!rs!ing a policy of alliance which might lead one day to the res!rgence of a

free 6erman fatherland% It is not o!t of love for 'o!th (yrol that they play this role to-day - for their policy

wo!ld t!rn o!t detrimental rather than helpf!l to the interests of that province - b!t thro!gh fear of anagreement being established between 6ermany and Italy%

A tendency towards lying and cal!mny lies in the nat!re of these people, and that e3plains how they can

calmly and braenly attempt to twist things in s!ch a way as to ma&e it appear that we have betrayed#

'o!th (yrol%(here is one clear answer that m!st be given to these gentlemen% It is this0 (yrol has been betrayed, in the

first place, by every 6erman who was so!nd in limb and body and did not offer himself for service at the

Front d!ring 1914-191; to do his d!ty towards his co!ntry%

In the second place, (yrol was betrayed by every man who, d!ring those years did not help to reinforce thenational spirit and the national powers of resistance, so as to enable the co!ntry to carry thro!gh the /ar

and &eep !p the fight to the very end%In the third place, 'o!th (yrol was betrayed by everyone who too& part in the *ovember 8evol!tion, either

directly by his act or indirectly by a cowardly toleration of it, and th!s bro&e the sole weapon that co!ldhave saved 'o!th (yrol%

In the fo!rth place, 'o!th (yrol was betrayed by those parties and their adherents who p!t their signat!res

to the disgracef!l treaties of :ersailles and 't% 6ermain%

And so the matter stands, my brave gentlemen, who ma&e yo!r protests only with words%(o-day I am g!ided by a calm and cool recognition of the fact that the lost territories cannot be won bac&

by the whetted tong!es of parliamentary spo!ters b!t only by the whetted sword> in other words, thro!gh a

fight where blood will have to be shed%

*ow, I have no hesitations in saying that to-day, once the die has been cast, it is not only impossible to win bac& 'o!th (yrol thro!gh a war b!t I sho!ld definitely ta&e my stand against s!ch a movement, beca!se I

am convinced that it wo!ld not be possible to aro!se the national enth!siasm of the 6erman people and

maintain it in s!ch a way as wo!ld be necessary in order to carry thro!gh s!ch a war to a s!ccessf!l iss!e%On the contrary, I believe that if we have to shed 6erman blood once again it wo!ld be criminal to do so for the sa&e of liberating 2<<,<<< 6ermans, when more than seven million neighbo!ring 6ermans are s!ffering

!nder foreign domination and a vital artery of the 6erman nation has become a playgro!nd for hordes of

African niggers%

If the 6erman nation is to p!t an end to a state of things which threatens to wipe it off the map of 7!rope itm!st not fall into the errors of the pre-/ar period and ma&e the whole world its enemy% !t it m!st

ascertain who is its most dangero!s enemy so that it can concentrate all its forces in a str!ggle to beat him%

And if, in order to carry thro!gh this str!ggle to victory, sacrifices sho!ld be made in other +!arters, f!t!regenerations will not condemn !s for that% (hey will ta&e acco!nt of the miseries and an3ieties which led !s



to ma&e s!ch a bitter decision, and in the light of that consideration they will more clearly recognie the

brilliancy of o!r s!ccess%

Again I m!st say here that we m!st always be g!ided by the f!ndamental principle that, as a preliminary to

winning bac& lost provinces, the political independence and strength of the motherland m!st first berestored%

(he first tas& which has to be accomplished is to ma&e that independence possible and to sec!re it by a

wise policy of alliances, which pres!pposes an energetic management of o!r p!blic affairs%

!t it is !st on this point that we, *ational 'ocialists, have to g!ard against being dragged into the tow of o!r ranting bo!rgeois patriots who ta&e their c!e from the )ew% It wo!ld be a disaster if, instead of

preparing for the coming str!ggle, o!r ovement also were to b!sy itself with mere protests by word of

mo!th%

It was the fantastic idea of a *ibel!ngen alliance with the decomposed body of the absb!rg 'tate that bro!ght abo!t 6ermany#s r!in% Fantastic sentimentality in dealing with the possibilities of foreign policy to-

day wo!ld be the best means of preventing o!r revival for inn!merable years to come%

ere I m!st briefly answer the obections which may be raised in regard to the three +!estions I have p!t%

1% Is it possible at all to form an alliance with the present 6ermany, whose wea&ness is so visible to alleyes5

2% $an the e3-enemy nations change their attit!de towards 6ermany5

.% In other nations is not the infl!ence of )ewry stronger than the recognition of their own interests, and

does not this infl!ence thwart all their good intentions and render all their plans f!tile5

I thin& that I have already dealt ade+!ately with one of the two aspects of the first point% Of co!rse nobodywill enter into an alliance with the present 6ermany% *o "ower in the world wo!ld lin& its fort!nes with a

'tate whose government does not afford gro!nds for the slightest confidence% As regards the attempt which

has been made by many of o!r compatriots to e3plain the cond!ct of the 6overnment by referring to thewoef!l state of p!blic feeling and th!s e3c!se s!ch cond!ct, I m!st strongly obect to that way of loo&ing at

things%

(he lac& of character which o!r people have shown d!ring the last si3 years is deeply distressing% (he

indifference with which they have treated the most !rgent necessities of o!r nation might veritably lead oneto despair% (heir cowardice is s!ch that it often cries to heaven for vengeance% !t one m!st never forget

that we are dealing with a people who gave to the world, a few years previo!sly, an admirable e3ample of

the highest h!man +!alities% From the first days of A!g!st 1914 to the end of the tremendo!s str!ggle

between the nations, no people in the world gave a better proof of manly co!rage, tenacity and patientend!rance, than this people gave who are so cast down and dispirited to-day% *obody will dare to assert

that the lac& of character among o!r people to-day is typical of them% /hat we have to end!re to-day,among !s and aro!nd !s, is d!e only to the infl!ence of the sad and distressing effects that followed the

high treason committed on *ovember 9th, 191;% ore than ever before the word of the poet is tr!e0 thatevil can only give rise to evil% !t even in this epoch those +!alities among o!r people which are

f!ndamentally so!nd are not entirely lost% (hey sl!mber in the depths of the national conscience, and

sometimes in the clo!ded firmament we see certain +!alities li&e shining lights which 6ermany will one

day remember as the first symptoms of a revival% /e often see yo!ng 6ermans assembling and formingdetermined resol!tions, as they did in 1914, freely and willingly to offer themselves as a sacrifice on the

altar of their beloved Fatherland% illions of men have res!med wor&, whole-heartedly and ealo!sly, as if

no revol!tion had ever affected them% (he smith is at his anvil once again% And the farmer drives his

plo!gh% (he scientist is in his laboratory% And everybody is once again attending to his d!ty with the sameeal and devotion as formerly%

(he oppression which we s!ffer from at the hands of o!r enemies is no longer ta&en, as it formerly was, as

a matter for la!ghter> b!t it is resented with bitterness and anger% (here can be no do!bt that a great changeof attit!de has ta&en place%(his evol!tion has not yet ta&en the shape of a conscio!s intention and movement to restore the political

power and independence of o!r nation> b!t the blame for this m!st be attrib!ted to those !tterly

incompetent people who have no nat!ral endowments to +!alify them for statesmanship and yet have been

governing o!r nation since 191; and leading it to r!in%Nes% If anybody acc!ses o!r people to-day he o!ght to be as&ed0 /hat is being done to help them5 /hat

are we to say of the poor s!pport which the people give to any meas!res introd!ced by the 6overnment5 Is

it not tr!e that s!ch a thing as a 6overnment hardly e3ists at all5 And m!st we consider the poor s!pportwhich it receives as a sign of a lac& of vitality in the nation itself> or is it not rather a proof of the complete



fail!re of the methods employed in the management of this val!able tr!st5 /hat have o!r 6overnments

done to re-awa&en in the nation a pro!d spirit of self-assertion, !p-standing manliness, and a spirit of

righteo!s defiance towards its enemies5

In 1919, when the "eace (reaty was imposed on the 6erman nation, there were gro!nds for hoping that thisinstr!ment of !nrestricted oppression wo!ld help to reinforce the o!tcry for the freedom of 6ermany% "eace

treaties which ma&e demands that fall li&e a whip-lash on the people t!rn o!t not infre+!ently to be the

signal of a f!t!re revival%

(o what p!rpose co!ld the (reaty of :ersailles have been e3ploited5In the hands of a willing 6overnment, how co!ld this instr!ment of !nlimited blac&mail and shamef!l

h!miliation have been applied for the p!rpose of aro!sing national sentiment to its highest pitch5 ow

co!ld a well-directed system of propaganda have !tilied the sadist cr!elty 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 da!ntlessresistance5

7ach point of that (reaty co!ld have been engraved on the minds and hearts of the 6erman people and

b!rned into them !ntil si3ty million men and women wo!ld find their so!ls aflame with a feeling of rage

and shame> and a torrent of fire wo!ld b!rst forth as from a f!rnace, and one common will wo!ld be forgedfrom it, li&e a sword of steel% (hen the people wo!ld oin in the common cry0 H(o arms againJH

Nes% A treaty of that &ind can be !sed for s!ch a p!rpose% Its !nbo!nded oppression and its imp!dent

demands were an e3cellent propaganda weapon to aro!se the sl!ggish spirit of the nation and restore its

vitality%

(hen, from the child#s story-boo& to the last newspaper in the co!ntry, and every theatre and cinema, every pillar where placards are posted and every free space on the hoardings sho!ld be !tilied in the service of

this one great mission, !ntil the faint-hearted cry, HLord, deliver !s,H which o!r patriotic associations send

!p to eaven to-day wo!ld be transformed into an ardent prayer0 HAlmighty 6od, bless o!r arms when theho!r comes% e !st, as (ho! hast always been !st% )!dge now if we deserve o!r freedom% Lord, bless o!r

str!ggle%H

All opport!nities were neglected and nothing was done%

/ho will be s!rprised now if o!r people are not s!ch as they sho!ld be or might be5 (he rest of the worldloo&s !pon !s only as its valet, or as a &indly dog that will lic& its master#s hand after he has been whipped%

Of co!rse the possibilities of forming alliances with other nations are hampered by the indifference of o!r

own people, b!t m!ch more by o!r 6overnments% (hey have been and are so corr!pt that now, after eight

years of indescribable oppression, there e3ists only a faint desire for liberty%In order that o!r nation may !nderta&e a policy of alliances, it m!st restore its prestige among other

nations, and it m!st have an a!thoritative 6overnment that is not a dr!dge in the service of foreign 'tatesand the tas&master of its own people, b!t rather the herald of the national will%

If o!r people had a government which wo!ld loo& !pon this as its mission, si3 years wo!ld not have passed before a co!rageo!s foreign policy on the part of the 8eich wo!ld find a corresponding s!pport among the

people, whose desire for freedom wo!ld be enco!raged and intensified thereby%

(he third obection referred to the diffic!lty of changing the e3-enemy nations into friendly allies% (hat

obection may be answered as follows0(he general anti-6erman psychosis which has developed in other co!ntries thro!gh the war propaganda

m!st of necessity contin!e to e3ist as long as there is not a renaissance of the national conscience among

the 6erman people, so that the 6erman 8eich may once again become a 'tate which is able to play its part

on the chess-board of 7!ropean politics and with whom the others feel that they can play% Only when the6overnment and the people feel absol!tely certain of being able to !nderta&e a policy of alliances can one

"ower or another, whose interests coincide with o!rs, thin& of instit!ting a system of propaganda for the

p!rpose of changing p!blic opinion among its own people% *at!rally it will ta&e several years of persevering and ably directed wor& to reach s!ch a res!lt% )!st beca!se a long period is needed in order tochange the p!blic opinion of a co!ntry, it is necessary to reflect calmly before s!ch an enterprise be

!nderta&en% (his means that one m!st not enter !pon this &ind of wor& !nless one is absol!tely convinced

that it is worth the tro!ble and that it will bring res!lts which will be val!able in the f!t!re% One m!st not

try to change the opinions and feelings of a people by basing one#s actions on the vain caolery of a more or less brilliant Foreign inister, b!t only if there be a tangible g!arantee that the new orientation will be

really !sef!l% Otherwise p!blic opinion in the co!ntry dealt with may be !st thrown into a state of complete

conf!sion% (he most reliable g!arantee that can be given for the possibility of s!bse+!ently entering into analliance with a certain 'tate cannot be fo!nd in the lo+!acio!s s!avity of some individ!al member of the



else than to reno!nce the idea of adopting any policy of alliances for the f!t!re% For if we cannot form an

alliance with 7ngland beca!se she has robbed !s of o!r colonies, or with Italy beca!se she has ta&en

possession of 'o!th (yrol, or with "oland or $echoslova&ia, then there remains no other possibility of an

alliance in 7!rope e3cept with France which, inter alia, has robbed !s of Alsace and Lorraine%(here can scarcely be any do!bt as to whether this last alternative wo!ld be advantageo!s to the interests of

the 6erman people% !t if it be defended by somebody one is always do!btf!l whether that person be

merely a simpleton or an ast!te rog!e%

As far as concerns the leaders in these activities, I thin& the latter hypothesis is tr!e%A change in p!blic feeling among those nations which have hitherto been enemies and whose tr!e interests

will correspond in the f!t!re with o!rs co!ld be effected, as far as h!man calc!lation goes, if the internal

strength of o!r 'tate and o!r manifest determination to sec!re o!r own e3istence made it clear that we

sho!ld be val!able allies% oreover, it is necessary that o!r incompetent way of doing things and o!r criminal cond!ct in some matters sho!ld not f!rnish gro!nds which may be !tilied for p!rposes of

propaganda by those who wo!ld oppose o!r proects of establishing an alliance with one or other of o!r

former enemies%

(he answer to the third +!estion is still more diffic!lt0 Is it conceivable that they who represent the tr!einterests of those nations which may possibly form an alliance with !s co!ld p!t their views into practice

against the will of the )ew, who is the mortal enemy of national and independent pop!lar 'tates5

For instance, co!ld the motive-forces of 6reat ritain#s traditional statesmanship smash the disastro!s

infl!ence of the )ew, or co!ld they not5

(his +!estion, as I have already said, is very diffic!lt to answer% (he answer depends on so many factorsthat it is impossible to form a concl!sive !dgment% Anyhow, one thing is certain0 (he power of the

6overnment in a given 'tate and at a definite period may be so firmly established in the p!blic estimation

and so absol!tely at the service of the co!ntry#s interests that the forces of international )ewry co!ld not possibly organie a real and effective obstr!ction against meas!res considered to be politically necessary%

(he fight which Fascist Italy waged against )ewry#s three principal weapons, the profo!nd reasons for

which may not have been conscio!sly !nderstood Btho!gh I do not believe this myselfC f!rnishes the best

proof that the poison fangs of that "ower which transcends all 'tate bo!ndaries are being drawn, eventho!gh in an indirect way% (he prohibition of Freemasonry and secret societies, the s!ppression of the

s!pernational "ress and the definite abolition of ar3ism, together with the steadily increasing

consolidation of the Fascist concept of the 'tate - all this will enable the Italian 6overnment, in the co!rse

of some years, to advance more and more the interests of the Italian people witho!t paying any attention tothe hissing of the )ewish world-hydra%

(he 7nglish sit!ation is not so favo!rable% In that co!ntry which has the freest democracy# the )ew dictateshis will, almost !nrestrained b!t indirectly, thro!gh his infl!ence on p!blic opinion% And yet there is a

perpet!al str!ggle in 7ngland between those who are entr!sted with the defence of 'tate interests and the protagonists of )ewish world-dictatorship%

After the /ar it became clear for the first time how sharp this contrast is, when ritish statesmanship too&

one stand on the )apanese problem and the "ress too& a different stand%

)!st after the /ar had ceased the old m!t!al antipathy between America and )apan began to reappear% *at!rally the great 7!ropean "owers co!ld not remain indifferent to this new war menace% In 7ngland,

despite the ties of &inship, there was a certain amo!nt of ealo!sy and an3iety over the growing importance

of the Mnited 'tates in all spheres of international economics and politics% /hat was formerly a colonial

territory, the da!ghter of a great mother, seemed abo!t to become the new mistress of the world% It is +!ite!nderstandable that to-day 7ngland sho!ld re-e3amine her old alliances and that ritish statesmanship

sho!ld loo& an3io!sly to the danger of a coming moment when the cry wo!ld no longer be0 Hritain r!les

the wavesH, b!t rather0 H(he 'eas belong to the Mnited 'tatesH%(he gigantic *orth American 'tate, with the enormo!s reso!rces of its virgin soil, is m!ch moreinv!lnerable than the encircled 6erman 8eich% 'ho!ld a day come when the die which will finally decide

the destinies of the nations will have to be cast in that co!ntry, 7ngland wo!ld be doomed if she stood

alone% (herefore she eagerly reaches o!t her hand to a member of the yellow race and enters an alliance

which, from the racial point of view is perhaps !npardonable> b!t from the political viewpoint it representsthe sole possibility of reinforcing ritain#s world position in face of the stren!o!s developments ta&ing

place on the American continent%

?espite the fact that they fo!ght side by side on the 7!ropean battlefields, the ritish 6overnment did notdecide to concl!de an alliance with the Asiatic partner, yet the whole )ewish "ress opposed the idea of a



)apanese alliance%

ow can we e3plain the fact that !p to 191; the )ewish "ress championed the policy of the ritish

6overnment against the 6erman 8eich and then s!ddenly began to ta&e its own way and showed itself

disloyal to the 6overnment5It was not in the interests of 6reat ritain to have 6ermany annihilated, b!t primarily a )ewish interest%

And to-day the destr!ction of )apan wo!ld serve ritish political interests less than it wo!ld serve the far-

reaching intentions of those who are leading the movement that hopes to establish a )ewish world-empire%

/hile 7ngland is !sing all her endeavo!rs to maintain her position in the world, the )ew is organiing hisaggressive plans for the con+!est of it%

e already sees the present 7!ropean 'tates as pliant instr!ments in his hands, whether indirectly thro!gh

the power of so-called /estern ?emocracy or in the form of a direct domination thro!gh 8!ssian

olshevism% !t it is not only the old world that he holds in his snare> for a li&e fate threatens the newworld% )ews control the financial forces of America on the stoc& e3change% Near after year the )ew increases

his hold on Labo!r in a nation of 12< million so!ls% !t a very small section still remains +!ite independent

and is th!s the ca!se of chagrin to the )ew%

(he )ews show cons!mmate s&ill in manip!lating p!blic opinion and !sing it as an instr!ment in fightingfor their own f!t!re%

(he great leaders of )ewry are confident that the day is near at hand when the command given in the Old

(estament will be carried o!t and the )ews will devo!r the other nations of the earth%

Among this great mass of denationalied co!ntries which have become )ewish colonies one independent

'tate co!ld bring abo!t the r!in of the whole str!ct!re at the last moment% (he reason for doing this wo!ld be that olshevism as a world-system cannot contin!e to e3ist !nless it encompasses the whole earth%

'ho!ld one 'tate preserve its national strength and its national greatness the empire of the )ewish satrapy,

li&e every other tyranny, wo!ld have to s!cc!mb to the force of the national idea%As a res!lt of his millennial e3perience in accommodating himself to s!rro!nding circ!mstances, the )ew

&nows very well that he can !ndermine the e3istence of 7!ropean nations by a process of racial

bastardiation, b!t that he co!ld hardly do the same to a national Asiatic 'tate li&e )apan% (o-day he can ape

the ways of the 6erman and the 7nglishman, the American and the Frenchman, b!t he has no means of approach to the yellow Asiatic% (herefore he see&s to destroy the )apanese national 'tate by !sing other

national 'tates as his instr!ments, so that he may rid himself of a dangero!s opponent before he ta&es over

s!preme control of the last national 'tate and transforms that control into a tyranny for the oppression of

the defenceless%e does not want to see a national )apanese 'tate in e3istence when he fo!nds his millennial empire of the

f!t!re, and therefore he wants to destroy it before establishing his own dictatorship%And so he is b!sy to-day in stirring !p antipathy towards )apan among the other nations, as he stirred it !p

against 6ermany% (h!s it may happen that while ritish statesmanship is still endeavo!ring to gro!nd its policy in the alliance with )apan, the )ewish "ress in 6reat ritain may be at the same time leading a

hostile movement against that ally and preparing for a war of destr!ction by pretending that it is for the

tri!mph of democracy and at the same time raising the war-cry0 ?own with )apanese militarism and

imperialism%(h!s in 7ngland to-day the )ew opposes the policy of the 'tate% And for this reason the str!ggle against the

)ewish world-danger will one day begin also in that co!ntry%

And here again the *ational 'ocialist ovement has a tremendo!s tas& before it%

It m!st open the eyes of o!r people in regard to foreign nations and it m!st contin!ally remind them of thereal enemy who menaces the world to-day% In place of preaching hatred against Aryans from whom we may

be separated on almost every other gro!nd b!t with whom the bond of &indred blood and the main feat!res

of a common civiliation !nite !s, we m!st devote o!rselves to aro!sing general indignation against themaleficent enemy of h!manity and the real a!thor of all o!r s!fferings%(he *ational 'ocialist ovement m!st see to it that at least in o!r own co!ntry the mortal enemy is

recognied 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 h!manity in the str!ggle for its e3istence%

Finally, may reason be o!r g!ide and will-power o!r strength% And may the sacred d!ty of directing o!r cond!ct as I have pointed o!t give !s perseverance and tenacity> and may o!r faith be o!r s!preme

protection%

$hapter Fo!rteen



(here are two considerations which ind!ce me to ma&e a special analysis of 6ermany#s position in regard

to 8!ssia% (hese are0

B1C (his may prove to be the most decisive point in determining 6ermany#s foreign policy%

B2C (he problem which has to be solved in this connection is also a to!chstone to test the political capacityof the yo!ng *ational 'ocialist ovement for clear thin&ing and acting along the right lines%

I m!st confess that the second consideration has often been a so!rce of great an3iety to me% (he members

of o!r movement are not recr!ited from circles which are habit!ally indifferent to p!blic affairs, b!t mostly

from among men who hold more or less e3treme views% '!ch being the case, it is only nat!ral that their !nderstanding of foreign politics sho!ld s!ffer from the pre!dice and inade+!ate &nowledge of those

circles to which they were formerly attached by political and ideological ties% And this is tr!e not merely of

the men who come to !s from the Left% On the contrary, however s!bversive may have been the &ind of

teaching they formerly received in regard to these problems, in very many cases this was at least partlyco!nterbalanced by the resid!e of so!nd and nat!ral instincts which remained% In s!ch cases it is only

necessary to s!bstit!te a better teaching in place of the earlier infl!ences, in order to transform the instinct

of self-preservation and other so!nd instincts into val!able assets%

On the other hand, it is m!ch more diffic!lt to impress definite political ideas on the minds of men whoseearlier political ed!cation was not less nonsensical and illogical than that given to the partisans of the Left%

(hese men have sacrificed the last resid!e of their nat!ral instincts to the worship of some abstract and

entirely obective theory% It is partic!larly diffic!lt to ind!ce these representatives of o!r so-called

intellect!al circles to ta&e a realistic and logical view of their own interests and the interests of their nation

in its relations with foreign co!ntries% (heir minds are overladen with a h!ge b!rden of pre!dices andabs!rd ideas and they have lost or reno!nced every instinct of self-preservation% /ith those men also the

*ational 'ocialist ovement has to fight a hard battle% And the str!ggle is all the harder beca!se, tho!gh

very often they are !tterly incompetent, they are so self-conceited that, witho!t the slightest !stification,they loo& down with disdain on ordinary commonsense people% (hese arrogant snobs who pretend to &now

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 !st this circle which is beginning to-day to divert o!r foreign policy into most disastro!s directions

and t!rn it away from the tas& of promoting the real interests of the nation% 'eeing that they do this in order

to serve their own fantastic ideologies, I feel myself obliged to ta&e the greatest pains in laying before my

own colleag!es a clear e3position of the most important problem in o!r foreign policy, namely, o!r positionin relation to 8!ssia% I shall deal with it,as thoro!ghly as may be necessary to ma&e it generally !nderstood

and as far as the limits of this boo& permit% Let me begin by laying down the following post!late0/hen we spea& of foreign politics we !nderstand that domain of government which has set before it the

tas& of managing the affairs of a nation in its relations with the rest of the world% *ow the g!iding principles which m!st be followed in managing these affairs m!st be based on the definite facts that are at

hand% oreover, as *ational 'ocialists, we m!st lay down the following a3iom regarding the manner in

which the foreign policy of a "eople#s 'tate sho!ld be cond!cted0

(he foreign policy of a "eople#s 'tate m!st first of all bear in mind the d!ty of sec!ring the e3istence of therace which is incorporated in this 'tate% And this m!st be done by establishing a healthy and nat!ral

proportion between the n!mber and growth of the pop!lation on the one hand and the e3tent and reso!rces

of the territory they inhabit, on the other% (hat balance m!st be s!ch that it accords with the vital necessities

of the people%/hat I call a healthy proportion is that in which the s!pport of a people is g!aranteed by the reso!rces of its

own soil and s!b-soil% Any sit!ation which falls short of this condition is none the less !nhealthy even

tho!gh it may end!re for cent!ries or even a tho!sand years% 'ooner or later, this lac& of proportion m!st of necessity lead to the decline or even annihilation of the people concerned%Only a s!fficiently large space on this earth can ass!re the independent e3istence of a people%

(he e3tent of the territorial e3pansion that may be necessary for the settlement of the national pop!lation

m!st not be estimated by present e3igencies nor even by the magnit!de of its agric!lt!ral prod!ctivity in

relation to the n!mber of the pop!lation% In the first vol!me of this boo&, !nder the heading H6ermany#s"olicy of Alliances before the /ar,H I have already e3plained that the geometrical dimensions of a 'tate are

of importance not only as the so!rce of the nation#s foodst!ffs and raw materials, b!t also from the political

and military standpoints% Once a people is ass!red of being able to maintain itself from the reso!rces of thenational territory, it m!st thin& of how this national territory can be defended% *ational sec!rity depends on



the political strength of a 'tate, and this strength, in its t!rn, depends on the military possibilities inherent in

the geographical sit!ation%

(h!s the 6erman nation co!ld ass!re its own f!t!re only by being a /orld "ower% For nearly two tho!sand

years the defence of o!r national interests was a matter of world history, as can be seen from o!r more or less s!ccessf!l activities in the field of foreign politics% /e o!rselves have been witnesses to this, seeing

that the gigantic str!ggle that went on from 1914 to 191; was only the str!ggle of the 6erman people for

their e3istence on this earth, and it was carried o!t in s!ch a way that it has become &nown in history as the

/orld /ar%/hen 6ermany entered this str!ggle it was pres!med that she was a /orld "ower% I say pres!med, beca!se

in reality she was no s!ch thing% In 1914, if there had been a different proportion between the 6erman

pop!lation and its territorial area, 6ermany wo!ld have been really a /orld "ower and, if we leave other

factors o!t of co!nt, the /ar wo!ld have ended in o!r favo!r%It is not my tas& nor my intention here to disc!ss what wo!ld have happened if certain conditions had been

f!lfilled% !t I feel it absol!tely inc!mbent on me to show the present conditions in their bare and

!nadorned reality, insisting on the wea&ness inherent in them, so that at least in the ran&s of the *ational

'ocialist ovement they sho!ld receive the necessary recognition%6ermany is not at all a /orld "ower to-day% 7ven tho!gh o!r present military wea&ness co!ld be

overcome, we still wo!ld have no claim to be called a /orld "ower% /hat importance on earth has a 'tate

in which the proportion between the sie of the pop!lation and the territorial area is so miserable as in the

present 6erman 8eich5 At an epoch in which the world is being grad!ally portioned o!t among 'tates

many of whom almost embrace whole continents one cannot spea& of a /orld "ower in the case of a 'tatewhose political motherland is confined to a territorial area of barely five-h!ndred-tho!sand s+!are

&ilometres%

Loo&ed at p!rely from the territorial point of view, the area comprised in the 6erman 8eich is insignificantin comparison with the other 'tates that are called /orld "owers% 7ngland m!st not be cited here as an

e3ample to contradict this statement> for the 7nglish motherland is in reality the great metropolis of the

ritish /orld 7mpire, which owns almost a fo!rth of the earth#s s!rface% *e3t to this we m!st consider the

American Mnion as one of the foremost among the colossal 'tates, also 8!ssia and $hina% (hese areenormo!s spaces, some of which are more than ten times greater in territorial e3tent than the present

6erman 8eich% France m!st also be ran&ed among these colossal 'tates% *ot only beca!se she is adding to

the strength of her army in a constantly increasing meas!re by recr!iting colo!red troops from the

pop!lation of her gigantic empire, b!t also beca!se France is racially becoming more and more negroid, som!ch so that now one can act!ally spea& of the creation of an African 'tate on 7!ropean soil% (he

contemporary colonial policy of France cannot be compared with that of 6ermany in the past% If Francedevelops along the lines it has ta&en in o!r day, and sho!ld that development contin!e for the ne3t three

h!ndred years, all traces of French blood will finally be s!bmerged in the formation of a 7!ro-African!latto 'tate% (his wo!ld represent a formidable and compact colonial territory stretching from the 8hine

to the $ongo, inhabited by an inferior race which had developed thro!gh a slow and steady process of

bastardiation%

(hat process disting!ishes French colonial policy from the policy followed by the old 6ermany%(he former 6erman colonial policy was carried o!t by half-meas!res, as was almost everything they did at

that time% (hey did not gain an e3panse of territory for the settlement of 6erman nationals nor did they

attempt to reinforce the power of the 8eich thro!gh the enlistment of blac& troops, which wo!ld have been

a criminal !nderta&ing% (he As&ari in 6erman 7ast Africa represented a small and hesitant step along thisroad> b!t in reality they served only for the defence of the colony itself% (he idea of importing blac& troops

to a 7!ropean theatre of war - apart entirely from the practical impossibility of this in the /orld /ar - was

never entertained as a proposal to be carried o!t !nder favo!rable circ!mstances> whereas, on the contrary,the French always loo&ed on s!ch an idea as f!ndamental in their colonial activities%(h!s we find in the world to-day not only a n!mber of 'tates that are m!ch greater than the 6erman in the

mere n!merical sie of their pop!lations, b!t also possess a greater s!pport for their political power% (he

proportion between the territorial dimensions of the 6erman 8eich and the n!merical sie of its pop!lation

was never so !nfavo!rable in comparison with the other world 'tates as at the beginning of o!r history twotho!sand years ago and again to-day% At the former !nct!re we were a yo!ng people and we stormed a

world which was made !p of great 'tates that were already in a decadent condition, of which the last giant

was 8ome, to whose overthrow we contrib!ted% (o-day we find o!rselves in a world of great and powerf!l'tates, among which the importance of o!r own 8eich is constantly declining more and more%



/e m!st always face this bitter tr!th with clear and calm minds% /e m!st st!dy the area and pop!lation of

the 6erman 8eich in relation to the other 'tates and compare them down thro!gh the cent!ries% (hen we

shall find that, as I have said, 6ermany is not a /orld "ower whether its military strength be great or not%

(here is no proportion between o!r position and that of the other 'tates thro!gho!t the world% And this lac& of proportion is to be attrib!ted to the fact that o!r foreign policy never had a definite aim to attain, and

also to the fact that we lost every so!nd imp!lse and instinct for self-preservation%

If the historians who are to write o!r national history at some f!t!re date are to give the *ational 'ocialist

ovement the credit of having devoted itself to a sacred d!ty in the service of o!r people, this movementwill have to recognie the real tr!th of o!r sit!ation in regard to the rest of the world% owever painf!l this

recognition may be, the movement m!st draw co!rage from it and a sense of practical realities in fighting

against the aimlessness and incompetence which has hitherto been shown by o!r people in the cond!ct of

their foreign policy% /itho!t respect for tradition,# and witho!t any preconceived notions, the movementm!st find the co!rage to organie o!r national forces and set them on the path which will lead them away

from that territorial restriction which is the bane of o!r national life to-day, and win new territory for them%

(h!s the movement will save the 6erman people from the danger of perishing or of being slaves in the

service of any other people%O!r movement m!st see& to abolish the present disastro!s proportion between o!r pop!lation and the area

of o!r national territory, considering national territory as the so!rce of o!r maintenance or as a basis of

political power% And it o!ght to strive to abolish the contrast between past history and the hopelessly

powerless sit!ation in which we are to-day% In striving for this it m!st bear in mind the fact that we are

members of the highest species of h!manity on this earth, that we have a correspondingly high d!ty, andthat we shall f!lfil this d!ty only if we inspire the 6erman people with the racial idea, so that they will

occ!py themselves not merely with the breeding of good dogs and horses and cats, b!t also care for the

p!rity of their own blood%/hen I say that the foreign policy hitherto followed by 6ermany has been witho!t aim and ineffect!al, the

proof of my statement will be fo!nd in the act!al fail!res of this policy% /ere o!r people intellect!ally

bac&ward, or if they lac&ed co!rage, the final res!lts of their efforts co!ld not have been worse than what

we see to-day% /hat happened d!ring the last decades before the /ar does not permit of any ill!sions onthis point> beca!se we m!st not meas!re the strength of a 'tate ta&en by itself, b!t in comparison with other

'tates% *ow, this comparison shows that the other 'tates increased their strength in s!ch a meas!re that not

only did it balance that of 6ermany b!t t!rned o!t in the end to be greater> so that, contrary to appearances,

when compared with the other 'tates 6ermany declined more and more in power !ntil there was a largemargin in her disfavo!r% Nes, even in the sie of o!r pop!lation we remained far behind, and &ept on losing

gro!nd% (ho!gh it is tr!e that the co!rage of o!r people was not s!rpassed by that of any other in the worldand that they po!red o!t more blood than any other nation in defence of their e3istence, their fail!re was

d!e only to the erroneo!s way in which that co!rage was t!rned to practical p!rposes%In this connection, if we e3amine the chain of political vicissit!des thro!gh which o!r people have passed

d!ring more than a tho!sand years, recalling the inn!merable str!ggles and wars and scr!tiniing it all in

the light of the res!lts that are before o!r eyes to-day, we m!st confess that from the ocean of blood only

three phenomena have emerged which we m!st consider as lasting fr!its of political happenings definitelydetermined by o!r foreign policy%

B1C (he coloniation of the 7astern ar&, which was mostly the wor& of the a!vari%

B2C (he con+!est and settlement of the territory east of the 7lbe%

B.C (he organiation of the randenb!rg-"r!ssian 'tate, which was the wor& of the ohenollerns andwhich became the model for the crystalliation of a new 8eich%

An instr!ctive lesson for the f!t!re%

(hese first two great s!ccesses of o!r foreign policy t!rned o!t to be the most end!ring% /itho!t them o!r people wo!ld play no role in the world to-day% (hese achievements were the first and !nfort!nately the onlys!ccessf!l attempts to establish a harmony between o!r increasing pop!lation and the territory from which

it drew its livelihood% And we m!st loo& !pon it as of really fatal import that o!r 6erman historians have

never correctly appreciated these formidable facts which were so f!ll of importance for the following

generations% In contradistinction to this, they wrote panegyrics on many other things, fantastic heroism,inn!merable advent!res and wars, witho!t !nderstanding that these latter had no significance whatsoever

for the main line of o!r national development%

(he third great s!ccess achieved by o!r political activity was the establishment of the "r!ssian 'tate andthe development of a partic!lar 'tate concept which grew o!t of this% (o the same so!rce we are to attrib!te



the organiation of the instinct of national self-preservation and self-defence in the 6erman Army, an

achievement which s!ited the modern world% (he transformation of the idea of self-defence on the part of

the individ!al into the d!ty of national defence is derived from the "r!ssian 'tate and the new statal

concept which it introd!ced% It wo!ld be impossible to over-estimate the importance of this historical process% ?isr!pted by e3cessive individ!alism, the 6erman nation became disciplined !nder the

organiation of the "r!ssian Army and in this way recovered at least some of the capacity to form a national

comm!nity, which in the case of other people had originally arisen thro!gh the constr!ctive !rge of the

herd instinct% $onse+!ently the abolition of comp!lsory national military service - which may have nomeaning for doens of other nations - had fatal conse+!ences for !s% (en generations of 6ermans left

witho!t the corrective and ed!cative 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 dis!nity

of world-o!tloo& - these ten generations wo!ld be s!fficient to allow o!r people to lose the last relics of anindependent e3istence on this earth%

(he 6erman spirit co!ld then ma&e its contrib!tion to civiliation only thro!gh individ!als living !nder the

r!le of foreign nations and the origin of those individ!als wo!ld remain !n&nown% (hey wo!ld remain as

the fertiliing man!re of civiliation, !ntil the last resid!e of *ordic-Aryan blood wo!ld become corr!ptedor drained o!t%

It is a remar&able fact that the real political s!ccesses achieved by o!r people d!ring their millennial

str!ggles are better appreciated and !nderstood among o!r adversaries than among o!rselves% 7ven still to-

day we grow enth!siastic abo!t a heroism which robbed o!r people of millions of their best racial stoc& and

t!rned o!t completely fr!itless in the end%(he distinction between the real political s!ccesses which o!r people achieved in the co!rse of their long

history and the f!tile ends for which the blood of the nation has been shed is of s!preme importance for the

determination of o!r policy now and in the f!t!re%/e, *ational 'ocialists, m!st never allow o!rselves to re-echo the h!rrah patriotism of o!r contemporary

bo!rgeois circles% It wo!ld be a fatal danger for !s to loo& on the immediate developments before the /ar

as constit!ting a precedent which we sho!ld be obliged to ta&e into acco!nt, even tho!gh only to the very

smallest degree, in choosing o!r own way% /e can recognie no obligation devolving on !s which mayhave its historical roots in any part of the nineteenth cent!ry% In contradistinction to the policy of those who

represented that period, we m!st ta&e o!r stand on the principles already mentioned in regard to foreign

policy0 namely, the necessity of bringing o!r territorial area into !st proportion with the n!mber of o!r

pop!lation% From the past we can learn only one lesson% And this is that the aim which is to be p!rs!ed ino!r political cond!ct m!st be twofold0 namely B1C the ac+!isition of territory as the obective of o!r foreign

policy and B2C the establishment of a new and !niform fo!ndation%as the obective of o!r political activitiesat home, in accordance with o!r doctrine of nationhood%

I shall briefly deal with the +!estion of how far o!r territorial aims are !stified according to ethical andmoral principles% (his is all the more necessary here beca!se, in o!r so-called nationalist circles, there are

all &inds of pla!sible phrase-mongers who try to pers!ade the 6erman people that the great aim of their

foreign policy o!ght to be to right the wrongs of 191;, while at the same time they consider it inc!mbent on

them to ass!re the whole world of the brotherly spirit and sympathy of the 6erman people towards all other nations%

In regard to this point I sho!ld li&e to ma&e the following statement0 (o demand that the 1914 frontiers

sho!ld be restored is a glaring political abs!rdity that is fra!ght with s!ch conse+!ences as to ma&e the

claim itself appear criminal% (he confines of the 8eich as they e3isted in 1914 were thoro!ghly illogical> beca!se they were not really complete, in the sense of incl!ding all the members of the 6erman nation% *or

were they reasonable, in view of the geographical e3igencies of military defence% (hey were not the

conse+!ence of a political plan which had been well considered and carried o!t% !t they were temporaryfrontiers established in virt!e of a political str!ggle that had not been bro!ght to a finish> and indeed theywere partly the chance res!lt of circ!mstances% One wo!ld have !st as good a right, and in many cases a

better right, to choose some other o!tstanding year than 1914 in the co!rse of o!r history and demand that

the obective of o!r foreign policy sho!ld be the re-establishment of the conditions then e3isting% (he

demands I have mentioned are +!ite characteristic of o!r bo!rgeois compatriots, who in s!ch matters ta&eno political tho!ght of the f!t!re, (hey live only in the past and indeed only in the immediate past> for their

retrospect does not go bac& beyond their own times% (he law of inertia binds them to the present order of

things, leading them to oppose every attempt to change this% (heir opposition, however, never passes over into any &ind of active defence% It is only mere passive obstinacy% (herefore, we m!st regard it as +!ite



nat!ral that the political horion of s!ch people sho!ld 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 !p the rifts

that are already becoming apparent in the leag!e which o!r enemies have formed against !s% Only on these

gro!nds can we e3plain the fact that eight years after a world conflagration in which a n!mber 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%

7ach of those 'tates in its t!rn profited by the 6erman collapse% In the fear which they all felt before the

proof of strength that we had given, the 6reat "owers maintained a m!t!al silence abo!t their individ!alfeelings of envy and enmity towards one another% (hey felt that the best g!arantee against a res!rgence of

o!r strength in the f!t!re wo!ld be to brea& !p and dismember o!r 8eich as thoro!ghly as possible% A bad

conscience and fear of the strength of o!r people made !p the d!rable cement which has held the members

of that leag!e together, even !p to the present moment%And o!r cond!ct does not tend to change this state of affairs% Inasm!ch as o!r bo!rgeoisie sets !p the

restoration of the 1914 frontiers as the aim of 6ermany#s political programme, each member of the enemy

coalition who otherwise might be inclined to withdraw from the combination stic&s to it, o!t of fear lest he

might be attac&ed by !s if he isolated himself and in that case wo!ld not have the s!pport of his allies% 7achindivid!al 'tate feels itself aimed at and threatened by this programme% And the programme is abs!rd, for

the following two reasons0

B1C eca!se there are no available means of e3tricating it from the twilight atmosphere of political soirees

and transforming it into reality%

B2C 7ven if it co!ld be really carried into effect the res!lt wo!ld be so miserable that, s!rely to 6od, itwo!ld not be worth while to ris& the blood of o!r people once again for s!ch a p!rpose%

For there can be scarcely any do!bt whatsoever that only thro!gh bloodshed co!ld we achieve the

restoration of the 1914 frontiers% One m!st have the simple mind of a child to believe that the revision of the :ersailles (reaty can be obtained by indirect means and by beseeching the clemency of the victors>

witho!t ta&ing into acco!nt the fact that for this we sho!ld need somebody who had the character of a

(alleyrand,and there is no (alleyrand among !s% Fifty percent of o!r politicians consists of artf!l dodgers

who have no character and are +!ite hostile to the sympathies of o!r people, while the other fifty per cent ismade !p of well-meaning, harmless, and complaisant incompetents% (imes have changed since the

$ongress of :ienna% It is no longer princes or their co!rtesans who contend and bargain abo!t 'tate

frontiers, b!t the ine3orable cosmopolitan )ew who is fighting for his own dominion over the nations% (he

sword is the only means whereby a nation can thr!st that cl!tch from its throat% Only when nationalsentiment is organied and concentrated into an effective force can it defy that international menace which

tends towards an enslavement of the nations% !t this road is and will always be mar&ed with bloodshed%If we are once convinced that the f!t!re of 6ermany calls for the sacrifice, in one way or another, of all that

we have and are, then we m!st set aside considerations of political pr!dence and devote o!rselves whollyto the str!ggle for a f!t!re that will be worthy of o!r co!ntry%

For the f!t!re of the 6erman nation the 1914 frontiers are of no significance% (hey did not serve to protect

!s in the past, nor do they offer any g!arantee for o!r defence in the f!t!re% /ith these frontiers the 6erman

people cannot maintain themselves as a compact !nit, nor can they be ass!red of their maintenance% Fromthe military viewpoint these frontiers are not advantageo!s or even s!ch as not to ca!se an3iety% And while

we are bo!nd to s!ch frontiers it will not be possible for !s to improve o!r present position in relation to the

other /orld "owers, or rather in relation to the real /orld "owers% /e shall not lessen the discrepancy

between o!r territory and that of 6reat ritain, nor shall we reach the magnit!de of the Mnited 'tates of America% *ot only that, b!t we cannot s!bstantially lessen the importance of France in international

politics%

One thing alone is certain0 (he attempt to restore the frontiers of 1914, even if it t!rned o!t s!ccessf!l,wo!ld demand so m!ch bloodshed on the part of o!r people that no f!t!re sacrifice wo!ld be possible tocarry o!t effectively s!ch meas!res as wo!ld be necessary to ass!re the f!t!re e3istence of the nation% On

the contrary, !nder the into3ication of s!ch a s!perficial s!ccess f!rther aims wo!ld be reno!nced, all the

more so beca!se the so-called national hono!r# wo!ld seem to be revindicated and new ports wo!ld be

opened, at least for a certain time, to o!r commercial development%Against all this we, *ational 'ocialists, m!st stic& firmly to the aim that we have set for o!r foreign policy>

namely, that the 6erman people m!st be ass!red the territorial area which is necessary for it to e3ist on this

earth% And only for s!ch action as is !nderta&en to sec!re those ends can it be lawf!l in the eyes of 6od ando!r 6erman posterity to allow the blood of o!r people to be shed once again% efore 6od, beca!se we are



sent into this world with the commission to str!ggle for o!r daily bread, as creat!res to whom nothing is

donated and who m!st be able to win and hold their position as lords of the earth only thro!gh their own

intelligence and co!rage% And this !stification m!st be established also before o!r 6erman posterity, on the

gro!nds that for each one who has shed his blood the life of a tho!sand others will be g!aranteed to posterity% (he territory on which one day o!r 6erman peasants will be able to bring forth and no!rish their

st!rdy sons will !stify 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 persec!ted by their contemporaries, b!t posterity will absolve

them from all g!ilt for having demanded this offering from their people%ere I m!st protest as sharply as possible against those nationalist scribes who pretend that s!ch territorial

e3tension wo!ld be a Hviolation of the sacred rights of manH and accordingly po!r o!t their literary

eff!sions against it% One never &nows what are the hidden forces behind the activities of s!ch persons% !t

it is certain that the conf!sion which they provo&e s!its the game o!r enemies are playing against o!r nation and is in accordance with their wishes% y ta&ing s!ch an attit!de these scribes contrib!te criminally

to wea&en from the inside and to destroy the will of o!r people to promote their own vital interests by the

only effective means that can be !sed for that p!rpose% For no nation on earth possesses a s+!are yard of

gro!nd and soil by decree of a higher /ill and in virt!e of a higher 8ight% (he 6erman frontiers are theo!tcome of chance, and are only temporary frontiers that have been established as the res!lt of political

str!ggles which too& place at vario!s times% (he same is also tr!e of the frontiers which demarcate the

territories on which other nations live% And !st as only an imbecile co!ld loo& on the physical geography

of the globe as fi3ed and !nchangeable - for in reality it represents a definite stage in a given evol!tionary

epoch which is d!e to the formidable forces of *at!re and may be altered to-morrow by more powerf!lforces of destr!ction and change - so, too, in the lives of the nations the confines which are necessary for

their s!stenance are s!bect to change%

'tate frontiers are established by h!man beings and may be changed by h!man beings%(he fact that a nation has ac+!ired an enormo!s territorial area is no reason why it sho!ld hold that territory

perpet!ally% At most, the possession of s!ch territory is a proof of the strength of the con+!eror and the

wea&ness of those who s!bmit to him% And in this strength alone lives the right of possession% If the

6erman people are imprisoned within an impossible territorial area and for that reason are face to face witha miserable f!t!re, this is not by the command of ?estiny, and the ref!sal to accept s!ch a sit!ation is by no

means a violation of ?estiny#s laws% For !st as no igher "ower has promised more territory to other

nations than to the 6erman, so it cannot be blamed for an !n!st distrib!tion of the soil% (he soil on which

we now live was not a gift bestowed by eaven on o!r forefathers% !t they had to con+!er it by ris&ingtheir lives% 'o also in the f!t!re o!r people will not obtain territory, and therewith the means of e3istence,

as a favo!r from any other people, b!t will have to win it by the power of a tri!mphant sword%(o-day we are all convinced of the necessity of reg!lating o!r sit!ation in regard to France> b!t o!r s!ccess

here will be ineffective in its broad res!lts if the general aims of o!r foreign policy will have to stop at that%It can have significance for !s only if it serves to cover o!r flan& in the str!ggle for that e3tension of

territory which is necessary for the e3istence of o!r people in 7!rope% For colonial ac+!isitions will not

solve that +!estion% It can be solved only by the winning of s!ch territory for the settlement of o!r people as

will e3tend the area of the motherland and thereby will not only &eep the new settlers in the closestcomm!nion with the land of their origin, b!t will g!arantee to this territorial ensemble the advantages

which arise from the fact that in their e3pansion over greater territory the people remain !nited as a

political !nit%

(he *ational ovement m!st not be the advocate for other nations, b!t the protagonist for its own nation%Otherwise it wo!ld be something s!perfl!o!s and, above all, it wo!ld have no right to clamo!r against the

action of the past> for then it wo!ld be repeating the action of the past% (he old 6erman policy s!ffered

from the mista&e of having been determined by dynastic considerations% (he new 6erman policy m!st notfollow the sentimentality of cosmopolitan patriotism% Above all, we m!st not form a police g!ard for thefamo!s poor small nations#> b!t we m!st be the soldiers of the 6erman nation%

/e *ational 'ocialists have to go still f!rther% (he right to territory may become a d!ty when a great nation

seems destined to go !nder !nless its territory be e3tended% And that is partic!larly tr!e when the nation in

+!estion is not some little gro!p of negro people b!t the 6ermanic mother of all the life which has givenc!lt!ral shape to the modern world% 6ermany will either become a /orld "ower or will not contin!e to

e3ist at all% !t in order to become a /orld "ower it needs that territorial magnit!de which gives it the

necessary importance to-day and ass!res the e3istence of its citiens%(herefore we *ational 'ocialists have p!rposely drawn a line thro!gh the line of cond!ct followed by pre-



/ar 6ermany in foreign policy% /e p!t an end to the perpet!al 6ermanic march towards the 'o!th and

/est of 7!rope and t!rn o!r eyes towards the lands of the 7ast% /e finally p!t a stop to the colonial and

trade policy of pre-/ar times and pass over to the territorial policy of the f!t!re%

!t when we spea& of new territory in 7!rope to-day we m!st principally thin& of 8!ssia and the border 'tates s!bect to her%

?estiny itself seems to wish to point o!t the way for !s here% In delivering 8!ssia over to olshevism, Fate

robbed the 8!ssian people of that intellect!al class which had once created the 8!ssian 'tate and were the

g!arantee of its e3istence% For the 8!ssian 'tate was not organied by the constr!ctive political talent of the'lav element in 8!ssia, b!t was m!ch more a marvello!s e3emplification of the capacity for 'tate-b!ilding

possessed by the 6ermanic element in a race of inferior worth% (h!s were many powerf!l 7mpires created

all over the earth% ore often than once inferior races with 6ermanic organiers and r!lers as their leaders

became formidable 'tates and contin!ed to e3ist as long as the racial n!cle!s remained which hadoriginally created each respective 'tate% For cent!ries 8!ssia owed the so!rce of its livelihood as a 'tate to

the 6ermanic n!cle!s of its governing class% !t this n!cle!s is now almost wholly bro&en !p and

abolished% (he )ew has ta&en its place% )!st as it is impossible for the 8!ssian to sha&e off the )ewish yo&e

by e3erting his own powers, so, too, it is impossible for the )ew to &eep this formidable 'tate in e3istencefor any long period of time% e himself is by no means an organiing element, b!t rather a ferment of

decomposition% (his colossal 7mpire in the 7ast is ripe for dissol!tion% And the end of the )ewish

domination in 8!ssia will also be the end of 8!ssia as a 'tate% /e are chosen by ?estiny to be the

witnesses of a catastrophe which will afford the strongest confirmation of the nationalist theory of race%

!t it is o!r tas&, and it is the mission of the *ational 'ocialist ovement, to develop in o!r people that political mentality which will enable them to realie that the aim which they m!st set to themselves for the

f!lfilment of their f!t!re m!st not be some wildly enth!siastic advent!re in the footsteps of Ale3ander the

6reat b!t ind!strio!s labo!r with the 6erman plo!gh, for which the 6erman sword will provide the soil%(hat the )ew sho!ld declare himself bitterly hostile to s!ch a policy is only +!ite nat!ral% For the )ews

&now better than any others what the adoption of this line of cond!ct m!st mean for their own f!t!re% (hat

fact alone o!ght to teach all gen!ine nationalists that this new orientation is the right and !st one% !t,

!nfort!nately, the opposite is the case% *ot only among the members of the 6erman-*ational "arty b!t alsoin p!rely nationalist circles violent opposition is raised against this 7astern policy% And in connection with

that opposition, as in all s!ch cases, the a!thority of great names is appealed to% (he spirit of ismarc& is

evo&ed in defence of a policy which is as st!pid as it is impossible, and is in the highest degree detrimental

to the interests of the 6erman people% (hey say that ismarc& laid great importance on the val!e of goodrelations with 8!ssia% (o a certain e3tent, that is tr!e% !t they +!ite forget to add that he laid e+!al stress

on the importance of good relations with Italy, for e3ample% Indeed, the same err von ismarc& onceconcl!ded an alliance with Italy so that he might more easily settle acco!nts with A!stria% /hy is not this

policy now advocated5 (hey will reply that the Italy of to-day is not the Italy of that time% 6ood% !t then,hono!rable sirs, permit me to remind yo! that the 8!ssia of to-day is no longer the 8!ssia of that time%

ismarc& never laid down a policy which wo!ld be permanently binding !nder all circ!mstances and

sho!ld be adhered to on principle% e was too m!ch the master of the moment to b!rden himself with that

&ind of obligation% (herefore, the +!estion o!ght not to be what ismarc& then did, b!t rather what hewo!ld do to-day% And that +!estion is very easy to answer% is political sagacity wo!ld never allow him to

ally himself with a 'tate that is doomed to disappear%

oreover, ismarc& loo&ed !pon the colonial and trade policy of his time with mi3ed feelings, beca!se

what he most desired was to ass!re the best possibilities of consolidating and internally strengthening thestate system which he himself had created% (hat was the sole gro!nd on which he then welcomed the

8!ssian defence in his rear, so as to give him a free hand for his activities in the /est% !t what was

advantageo!s then to 6ermany wo!ld now be detrimental%As early as 192<-21, when the yo!ng movement began slowly to appear on the political horion andmovements for the liberation of the 6erman nation were formed here and there, the "arty was approached

from vario!s +!arters in an attempt to bring it into definite connection with the liberationist movements in

other co!ntries% (his was in line with the plans of the Leag!e of Oppressed *ations#, which had been

advertised in many +!arters and was composed principally of representatives of some of the al&an 'tatesand also of 7gypt and India% (hese always impressed me as charlatans who gave themselves big airs b!t

had no real bac&gro!nd at all% *ot a few 6ermans, however, especially in the nationalist camp, allowed

themselves to be ta&en in by these pompo!s Orientals, and in the person of some wandering Indian or 7gyptian st!dent they believed at once that they were face to face with a representative# of India or 7gypt%



(hey did not realie that in most cases they were dealing with persons who had no bac&ing whatsoever,

who were not a!thoried by anybody to concl!de any sort of agreement whatsoever> so that the practical

res!lt of every negotiation with s!ch individ!als was negative and the time spent in s!ch dealings had to be

rec&oned as !tterly lost% I was always on my g!ard against these attempts% *ot only that I had something better to do than to waste wee&s in s!ch sterile disc!ssions#, b!t also beca!se I believed that even if one

were dealing with gen!ine representatives that whole affair wo!ld be bo!nd to t!rn o!t f!tile, if not

positively harmf!l%

In peace-time it was already lamentable eno!gh that the policy of alliances, beca!se it had no active andaggressive aims in view, ended in a defensive association with anti+!ated 'tates that had been pensioned

off by the history of the world% (he alliance with A!stria, as well as that with (!r&ey, was not m!ch to be

oyf!l abo!t% /hile the great military and ind!strial 'tates of the earth had come together in a leag!e for

p!rposes of active aggression, a few old and effete 'tates were collected, and with this anti+!e bric-P-bracan attempt was made to face an active world coalition% 6ermany had to pay dearly for that mista&en foreign

policy and yet not dearly eno!gh to prevent o!r incorrigible visionaries from falling bac& into the same

error again% For the attempt to ma&e possible the disarmament of the all-powerf!l victorio!s 'tates thro!gh

a Leag!e of Oppressed *ations# is not only ridic!lo!s b!t disastro!s% It is disastro!s beca!se in that waythe 6erman people are again being diverted from real possibilities, which they abandon for the sa&e of

fr!itless hopes and ill!sions% In reality the 6erman of to-day is li&e a drowning man that cl!tches at any

straw which may float beside him% And one finds people doing this who are otherwise highly ed!cated%

/herever some will-o#-the-wisp of a fantastic hope appears these people set off immediately to chase it%

Let this be a Leag!e of Oppressed *ations, a Leag!e of *ations, or some other fantastic invention,tho!sands of ingen!o!s so!ls will always be fo!nd to believe in it%

I remember well the childish and incomprehensible hopes which arose s!ddenly in nationalist circles in the

years 192<-21 to the effect that 7ngland was !st nearing its downfall in India% A few Asiatic mo!nteban&s,who p!t themselves forward as Hthe champions of Indian FreedomH, then began to peregrinate thro!gho!t

7!rope and s!cceeded in inspiring otherwise +!ite reasonable people with the fi3ed notion that the ritish

/orld 7mpire, which had its pivot in India, was !st abo!t to collapse there% (hey never realied that their

own wish was the father of all these ideas% *or did they stop to thin& how abs!rd their wishes were% For inasm!ch as they e3pected the end of the ritish 7mpire and of 7ngland#s power to follow the collapse of

its dominion over India, they themselves admitted that India was of the most o!tstanding importance for

7ngland%

*ow in all li&elihood the deep mysteries of this most important problem m!st have been &nown not only tothe 6erman-*ational prophets b!t also to those who had the direction of ritish history in their hands% It is

right down p!erile to s!ppose that in 7ngland itself the importance of India for the ritish 7mpire was notade+!ately appreciated% And it is a proof of having learned nothing from the world war and of thoro!ghly

mis!nderstanding or &nowing nothing abo!t Anglo-'a3on determination, when they imagine that 7nglandco!ld lose India witho!t first having p!t forth the last o!nce of her strength in the str!ggle to hold it%

oreover, it shows how complete is the ignorance prevailing in 6ermany as to the manner in which the

spirit of 7ngland permeates and administers her 7mpire% 7ngland will never lose India !nless she admits

racial disr!ption in the machinery of her administration Bwhich at present is entirely o!t of the +!estion inIndiaC or !nless she is overcome by the sword of some powerf!l enemy% !t Indian risings will never bring

this abo!t% /e 6ermans have had s!fficient e3perience to &now how hard it is to coerce 7ngland% And,

apart from all this, I as a 6erman wo!ld far rather see India !nder ritish domination than !nder that of any

other nation%(he hopes of an epic rising in 7gypt were !st as chimerical% (he oly /ar# may bring the pleasing

ill!sion to o!r 6erman nincompoops that others are now ready to shed their blood for them% Indeed, this

cowardly spec!lation is almost always the father of s!ch hopes% !t in reality the ill!sion wo!ld soon be bro!ght to an end !nder the f!sillade from a few companies of ritish machine-g!ns and a hail of ritish bombs%

A coalition of cripples cannot attac& a powerf!l 'tate which is determined, if necessary, to shed the last

drop of its blood to maintain its e3istence% (o me, as a nationalist who appreciates the worth of the racial

basis of h!manity, I m!st recognie the racial inferiority of the so-called Oppressed *ations#, and that iseno!gh to prevent me from lin&ing the destiny of my people with the destiny of those inferior races%

(o-day we m!st ta&e !p the same sort of attit!de also towards 8!ssia% (he 8!ssia of to-day, deprived of its

6ermanic r!ling class, is not a possible ally in the str!ggle for 6erman liberty, setting aside entirely theinner designs of its new r!lers% From the p!rely military viewpoint a 8!sso-6erman coalition waging war



against /estern 7!rope, and probably against the whole world on that acco!nt, wo!ld be catastrophic for

!s% (he str!ggle wo!ld have to be fo!ght o!t, not on 8!ssian b!t on 6erman territory, witho!t 6ermany

being able to receive from 8!ssia the slightest effective s!pport% (he means of power at the disposal of the

present 6erman 8eich are so miserable and so inade+!ate to the waging of a foreign war that it wo!ld beimpossible to defend o!r frontiers against /estern 7!rope, 7ngland incl!ded% And the ind!strial area of

6ermany wo!ld have to be abandoned !ndefended to the concentrated attac& of o!r adversaries% It m!st be

added that between 6ermany and 8!ssia there is the "olish 'tate, completely in the hands of the French% In

case 6ermany and 8!ssia together sho!ld wage war against /estern 7!rope, 8!ssia wo!ld have tooverthrow "oland before the first 8!ssian soldier co!ld arrive on the 6erman front% !t it is not so m!ch a

+!estion of soldiers as of technical e+!ipment% In this regard we sho!ld have o!r sit!ation in the world war

repeated, b!t in a more terrible manner% At that time 6erman ind!stry had to be drained to help o!r glorio!s

allies, and from the technical side 6ermany had to carry on the war almost alone% In this new hypotheticalwar 8!ssia, as a technical factor, wo!ld co!nt for nothing% /e sho!ld have practically nothing to oppose to

the general motoriation of the world, which in the ne3t war will ma&e its appearance in an overwhelming

and decisive form% In this important field 6ermany has not only shamef!lly lagged behind, b!t with the

little it has it wo!ld have to reinforce 8!ssia, which at the present moment does not possess a single factorycapable of prod!cing a motor g!n-wagon% Mnder s!ch conditions the pres!pposed coming str!ggle wo!ld

ass!me the character of sheer sla!ghter% (he 6erman yo!th wo!ld have to shed more of its blood than it did

even in the world war> for, as always, the hono!r of fighting will fall on !s alone, and the res!lt wo!ld be

an inevitable catastrophe% !t even admitting that a miracle were prod!ced and that this war did not end in

the total annihilation of 6ermany, the final res!lt wo!ld be that the 6erman nation wo!ld be bled white,and, s!rro!nded by great military 'tates, its real sit!ation wo!ld be in no way ameliorated%

It is !seless to obect here that in case of an alliance with 8!ssia we sho!ld not thin& of an immediate war

or that, anyhow, we sho!ld have means of ma&ing thoro!gh preparations for war% *o% An alliance which isnot for the p!rpose of waging war has no meaning and no val!e% 7ven tho!gh at the moment when an

alliance is concl!ded the prospect of war is a distant one, still the idea of the sit!ation developing towards

war is the profo!nd reason for entering into an alliance% It is o!t of the +!estion to thin& that the other

"owers wo!ld be deceived as to the p!rpose of s!ch an alliance% A 8!sso-6erman coalition wo!ld remaineither a matter of so m!ch paper - and in this case it wo!ld have no meaning for !s - or the letter of the

treaty wo!ld be p!t into practice visibly, and in that case the rest of the world wo!ld be warned% It wo!ld be

childish to thin& that in s!ch circ!mstances 7ngland and France wo!ld wait for ten years to give the 8!sso-

6erman alliance time to complete its technical preparations% *o% (he storm wo!ld brea& over 6ermanyimmediately%

(herefore the fact of forming an alliance with 8!ssia wo!ld be the signal for a new war% And the res!lt of that wo!ld be the end of 6ermany%

(o these considerations the following m!st be added0B1C (hose who are in power in 8!ssia to-day have no idea of forming an hono!rable alliance or of

remaining tr!e to it, if they did%

It m!st never be forgotten that the present r!lers of 8!ssia are blood-stained criminals, that here we have

the dregs of h!manity which, favo!red by the circ!mstances of a tragic moment, overran a great 'tate,degraded and e3tirpated millions of ed!cated people o!t of sheer blood-l!st, and that now for nearly ten

years they have r!led with s!ch a savage tyranny as was never &nown before% It m!st not be forgotten that

these r!lers belong to a people in whom the most bestial cr!elty is allied with a capacity for artf!l

mendacity and believes itself to-day more than ever called to impose its sang!inary despotism on the rest of the world% It m!st not be forgotten that the international )ew, who is to-day the absol!te master of 8!ssia,

does not loo& !pon 6ermany as an ally b!t as a 'tate condemned to the same doom as 8!ssia% One does not

form an alliance with a partner whose only aim is the destr!ction of his fellow-partner% Above all, one doesnot enter into alliances with people for whom no treaty is sacred> beca!se they do not move abo!t this earthas men of hono!r and sincerity b!t as the representatives of lies and deception, thievery and pl!nder and

robbery% (he man who thin&s that he can bind himself by treaty with parasites is li&e the tree that believes it

can form a profitable bargain with the ivy that s!rro!nds it%

B2C (he menace to which 8!ssia once s!cc!mbed is hanging steadily over 6ermany% Only a bo!rgeoissimpleton co!ld imagine that olshevism can be tamed% In his s!perficial way of thin&ing he does not

s!spect that here we are dealing with a phenomenon that is d!e to an !rge of the blood0 namely, the

aspiration of the )ewish people to become the despots of the world% (hat aspiration is +!ite as nat!ral as theimp!lse of the Anglo-'a3on to sit in the seats of r!lership all over the earth% And as the Anglo-'a3on



chooses his own way of reaching those ends and fights for them with his characteristic weapons, so also

does the )ew% (he )ew wriggles his way in among the body of the nations and bores them hollow from

inside% (he weapons with which he wor&s are lies and cal!mny, poisono!s infection and disintegration,

!ntil he has r!ined his hated adversary% In 8!ssian olshevism we o!ght to recognie the &ind of attemptwhich is being made by the )ew in the twentieth cent!ry to sec!re dominion over the world% In other epochs

he wor&ed towards the same goal b!t with different, tho!gh at bottom similar, means% (he &ind of effort

which the )ew p!ts forth springs from the deepest roots in the nat!re of his being% A people does not of

itself reno!nce the imp!lse to increase its stoc& and power% Only e3ternal circ!mstances or senileimpotence can force them to reno!nce this !rge% In the same way the )ew will never spontaneo!sly give !p

his march towards the goal of world dictatorship or repress his e3ternal !rge% e can be thrown bac& on his

road only by forces that are e3terior to him, for his instinct towards world domination will die o!t only with

himself% (he impotence of nations and their e3tinction thro!gh senility can come only when their blood hasremained no longer p!re% And the )ewish people preserve the p!rity of their blood better than any other

nation on earth% (herefore the )ew follows his destined road !ntil he is opposed by a force s!perior to him%

And then a desperate str!ggle ta&es place to send bac& to L!cifer him who wo!ld assa!lt the heavens%

(o-day 6ermany is the ne3t battlefield for 8!ssian olshevism% All the force of a fresh missionary idea isneeded to raise !p o!r nation once more, to resc!e it from the coils of the international serpent and stop the

process of corr!ption which is ta&ing place in the internal constit!tion of o!r blood> so that the forces of o!r

nation, once liberated, may be employed to preserve o!r nationality and prevent the repetition of the recent

catastrophe from ta&ing place even in the most distant f!t!re% If this be the goal we set to o!rselves it wo!ld

be folly to ally o!rselves with a co!ntry whose master is the mortal enemy of o!r f!t!re% ow can werelease o!r people from this poisono!s grip if we accept the same grip o!rselves5 ow can we teach the

6erman wor&er that olshevism is an infamo!s crime against h!manity if we ally o!rselves with this

infernal abortion and recognie its e3istence as legitimate% /ith what right shall we condemn the membersof the broad masses whose sympathies lie with a certain Weltanschhauung if the r!lers of o!r 'tate choose

the representatives of that Weltanschhauung as their allies5 (he str!ggle against the )ewish olsheviation

of the world demands that we sho!ld declare o!r position towards 'oviet 8!ssia% /e cannot cast o!t the

?evil thro!gh eeleb!b% If nationalist circles to-day grow enth!siastic abo!t the idea of an alliance witholshevism, then let them loo& aro!nd only in 6ermany and recognie from what +!arter they are being

s!pported% ?o these nationalists believe that a policy which is recommended and acclaimed by the ar3ist

international "ress can be beneficial for the 6erman people5 'ince when has the )ew acted as shield-bearer

for the militant nationalist5One special reproach which co!ld be made against the old 6erman 8eich with regard to its policy of

alliances was that it spoiled its relations towards all others by contin!ally swinging now this way and nowthat way and by its wea&ness in trying to preserve world peace at all costs% !t one reproach which cannot

be made against it is that it did not contin!e to maintain good relations with 8!ssia%I admit fran&ly that before the /ar I tho!ght it wo!ld have been better if 6ermany had abandoned her

senseless colonial policy and her naval policy and had oined 7ngland in an alliance against 8!ssia,

therewith reno!ncing her wea& world policy for a determined 7!ropean policy, with the idea of ac+!iring

new territory on the $ontinent% I do not forget the constant insolent threats which "an-'lavist 8!ssia madeagainst 6ermany% I do not forget the contin!al trial mobiliations, the sole obect of which was to irritate

6ermany% I cannot forget the tone of p!blic opinion in 8!ssia which in pre-/ar days e3celled itself in hate-

inspired o!tb!rsts against o!r nation and 8eich% *or can I forget the big 8!ssian "ress which was always

more favo!rable to France than to !s%!t, in spite of everything, there was still a second way possible before the /ar% /e might have won the

s!pport of 8!ssia and t!rned against 7ngland% $irc!mstances are entirely different to-day% If, before the

/ar, throwing all sentiment to the winds, we co!ld have marched by the side of 8!ssia, that is no longer possible for !s to-day% 'ince then the hand of the world-cloc& has moved forward% (he ho!r has str!c& andstr!c& lo!dly, when the destiny of o!r people m!st be decided one way or another%

(he present consolidation of the great 'tates of the world is the last warning signal for !s to loo& to

o!rselves and bring o!r people bac& from their land of visions to the land of hard tr!th and point the way

into the f!t!re, on which alone the old 8eich can march tri!mphantly once again%If, in view of this great and most important tas& placed before it, the *ational 'ocialist ovement sets

aside all ill!sions and ta&es reason as its sole effective g!ide the catastrophe of 191; may t!rn o!t to be an

infinite blessing for the f!t!re of o!r nation% From the lesson of that collapse it may form!late an entirelynew orientation for the cond!ct of its foreign policy% Internally reinforced thro!gh its new



Weltanschhauung , the 6erman nation may reach a final stabiliation of its policy towards the o!tside

world% It may end by gaining what 7ngland has, what even 8!ssia had, and what France again and again

!tilied as the !ltimate gro!nds on which she was able to base correct decisions for her own interests0

namely, A "olitical (estament% "olitical (estament of the 6erman *ation o!ght to lay down the followingr!les, which will be always valid for its cond!ct towards the o!tside world0

*ever permit two $ontinental "owers to arise in 7!rope% 'ho!ld any attempt be made to organie a second

military "ower on the 6erman frontier by the creation of a 'tate which may become a ilitary "ower, with

the prospect of an aggression against 6ermany in view, s!ch an event confers on 6ermany not only theright b!t the d!ty to prevent by every means, incl!ding military means, the creation of s!ch a 'tate and to

cr!sh it if created% 'ee to it that the strength of o!r nation does not rest on colonial fo!ndations b!t on those

of o!r own native territory in 7!rope% *ever consider the 8eich sec!re !nless, for cent!ries to come, it is in

a position to give every descendant of o!r race a piece of gro!nd and soil that he can call his own% *ever forget that the most sacred of all rights in this world is man#s right to the earth which he wishes to c!ltivate

for himself and that the holiest of all sacrifices is that of the blood po!red o!t for it%

I sho!ld not li&e to close this chapter witho!t referring once again to the one sole possibility of alliances

that e3ists for !s in 7!rope at the present moment% In spea&ing of the 6erman alliance problem in the present chapter I mentioned 7ngland and Italy as the only co!ntries with which it wo!ld be worth while for

!s to strive to form a close alliance and that this alliance wo!ld be advantageo!s% I sho!ld li&e here to

!nderline again the military importance of s!ch an alliance%

(he military conse+!ences of forming this alliance wo!ld be the direct opposite of the conse+!ences of an

alliance with 8!ssia% ost important of all is the fact that a rapprochement with 7ngland and Italy wo!ld inno way involve a danger of war% (he only "ower that co!ld oppose s!ch an arrangement wo!ld be France>

and France wo!ld not be in a position to ma&e war% !t the alliance sho!ld allow to 6ermany the

possibility of ma&ing those preparations in all tran+!illity which, within the framewor& of s!ch a coalition,might in one way or another be re+!isite in view of a reg!lation of acco!nts with France% For the f!ll

significance of s!ch an alliance lies in the fact that on its concl!sion 6ermany wo!ld no longer be s!bect

to the threat of a s!dden invasion% (he coalition against her wo!ld disappear a!tomatically> that is to say,

the 7ntente which bro!ght s!ch disaster to !s% (h!s France, the mortal enemy of o!r people, wo!ld beisolated% And even tho!gh at first this s!ccess wo!ld have only a moral effect, it wo!ld be s!fficient to give

6ermany s!ch liberty of action as we cannot now imagine% For the new Anglo-6erman-Italian alliance

wo!ld hold the political initiative and no longer France%

A f!rther s!ccess wo!ld be that at one stro&e 6ermany wo!ld be delivered from her !nfavo!rablestrategical sit!ation% On the one side her flan& wo!ld be strongly protected> and, on the other, the ass!rance

of being able to import her foodst!ffs and raw materials wo!ld be a beneficial res!lt of this new alignmentof 'tates% !t almost of greater importance wo!ld be the fact that this new Leag!e wo!ld incl!de 'tates

that possess technical +!alities which m!t!ally s!pplement each other% For the first time 6ermany wo!ldhave allies who wo!ld not be as vampires on her economic body b!t wo!ld contrib!te their part to

complete o!r technical e+!ipment% And we m!st not forget a final fact0 namely, that in this case we sho!ld

not have allies resembling (!r&ey and 8!ssia to-day% (he greatest /orld "ower on this earth and a yo!ng

national 'tate wo!ld s!pply far other elements for a str!ggle in 7!rope than the p!trescent carcasses of the'tates with which 6ermany was allied in the last war%

As I have already said, great diffic!lties wo!ld nat!rally be made to hinder the concl!sion of s!ch an

alliance% !t was not the formation of the 7ntente somewhat more diffic!lt5 /here ing 7dward :II

s!cceeded partly against interests that were of their nat!re opposed to his wor& we m!st and will s!cceed, if the recognition of the necessity of s!ch a development so inspires !s that we shall be able to act with s&ill

and con+!er o!r own feelings in carrying the policy thro!gh% (his will be possible when, incited to action

by the miseries of o!r sit!ation, we shall adopt a definite p!rpose and follow it o!t systematically instead of the defective foreign policy of the last decades, which never had a fi3ed p!rpose in view%(he f!t!re goal of o!r foreign policy o!ght not to involve an orientation to the 7ast or the /est, b!t it o!ght

to be an 7astern policy which will have in view the ac+!isition of s!ch territory as is necessary for o!r

6erman people% (o carry o!t this policy we need that force which the mortal enemy of o!r nation, France,

now deprives !s of by holding !s in her grip and pitilessly robbing !s of o!r strength% (herefore we m!ststop at no sacrifice in o!r effort to destroy the French striving towards hegemony over 7!rope% As o!r

nat!ral ally to-day we have every "ower on the $ontinent that feels France#s l!st for hegemony in 7!rope

!nbearable% *o attempt to approach those "owers o!ght to appear too diffic!lt for !s, and no sacrificesho!ld be considered too heavy, if the final o!tcome wo!ld be to ma&e it possible for !s to overthrow o!r



bitterest enemy% (he minor wo!nds will be c!red by the beneficent infl!ence of time, once the gro!nd

wo!nds have been ca!teried and closed%

*at!rally the internal enemies of o!r people will howl with rage% !t this will not s!cceed in forcing !s as

*ational 'ocialists to cease o!r preaching in favo!r of that which o!r most profo!nd conviction tells !s to be necessary% /e m!st oppose the c!rrent of p!blic opinion which will be driven mad by )ewish c!nning in

e3ploiting o!r 6erman tho!ghtlessness% (he waves of this p!blic opinion often rage and roar against !s> b!t

the man who swims with the c!rrent attracts less attention than he who b!ffets it% (o-day we are b!t a roc&

in the river% In a few years Fate may raise !s !p as a dam against which the general c!rrent will be bro&en,only to flow forward in a new bed% (herefore it is necessary that in the eyes of the rest of the world o!r

movement sho!ld be recognied as representing a definite and determined political programme% /e o!ght

to bear on o!r visors the disting!ishing sign of that tas& which eaven e3pects !s to f!lfil%

/hen we o!rselves are f!lly aware of the inel!ctable necessity which determines o!r e3ternal policy this&nowledge will fill !s with the grit which we need in order to stand !p with e+!animity !nder the

bombardment la!nched against !s by the enemy "ress and to hold firm when some insin!ating voice

whispers that we o!ght to give gro!nd here and there in order not to have all against !s and that we might

sometimes howl with the wolves%$hapter Fifteen

After we had laid down o!r arms, in *ovember 191;, a policy was adopted which in all h!man probability

was bo!nd to lead grad!ally to o!r complete s!b!gation% Analogo!s e3amples from history show that

those nations which lay down their arms witho!t being absol!tely forced to do so s!bse+!ently prefer to

s!bmit to the greatest h!miliations and e3actions rather than try to change their fate by resorting to armsagain%

(hat is intelligible on p!rely h!man gro!nds% A shrewd con+!eror will always enforce his e3actions on the

con+!ered only by stages, as far as that is possible% (hen he may e3pect that a people who have lost allstrength of character - which is always the case with every nation that vol!ntarily s!bmits to the threats of

an opponent - will not find in any of these acts of oppression, if one be enforced apart from the other,

s!fficient gro!nds for ta&ing !p arms again% (he more n!mero!s the e3tortions th!s passively accepted so

m!ch the less will resistance appear !stified in the eyes of other people, if the van+!ished nation sho!ldend 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 m!ch more e3acting%

(he fall of $arthage is a terrible e3ample of the slow agony of a people which ended in destr!ction and

which was the fa!lt of the people themselves%In his (hree Articles of Faith $la!sewit e3pressed this idea admirably and gave it a definite form when he

said0 H(he stigma of shame inc!rred by a cowardly s!bmission can never be effaced% (he drop of poisonwhich th!s enters the blood of a nation will be transmitted to posterity% It will !ndermine and paralyse the

strength of later generations%H !t, on the contrary, he added0 H7ven the loss of its liberty after a sang!inaryand hono!rable str!ggle ass!res the res!rgence of the nation and is the vital n!cle!s from which one day a

new tree can draw firm roots%

*at!rally a nation which has lost all sense of hono!r and all strength of character will not feel the force of

s!ch a doctrine% !t any nation that ta&es it to heart will never fall very low% Only those who forget it or donot wish to ac&nowledge it will collapse% ence those responsible for a cowardly s!bmission cannot be

e3pected s!ddenly to ta&e tho!ght with themselves, for the p!rpose of changing their former cond!ct and

directing it in the way pointed o!t by h!man reason and e3perience% On the contrary, they will rep!diate

s!ch a doctrine, !ntil the people either become permanently habit!ated to the yo&e of slavery or the better elements of the nation p!sh their way into the foregro!nd and forcibly ta&e power away from the hands of

an infamo!s and corr!pt regime% In the first case those who hold power will be pleased with the state of

affairs, beca!se the con+!erors often entr!st them with the tas& of s!pervising the slaves% And these !tterlycharacterless beings then e3ercise that power to the detriment of their own people, more cr!elly than themost cr!el-hearted stranger that might be nominated by the enemy himself%

(he events which happened s!bse+!ent to 191; in 6ermany prove how the hope of sec!ring the clemency

of the victor by ma&ing a vol!ntary s!bmission had the most disastro!s infl!ence on the political views and

cond!ct of the broad masses% I say the broad masses e3plicitly, beca!se I cannot pers!ade myself that thethings which were done or left !ndone by the leaders of the people are to be attrib!ted to a similar

disastro!s ill!sion% 'eeing that the direction of o!r historical destiny after the war was now openly

controlled by the )ews, it is impossible to admit that a defective &nowledge of the state of affairs was thesole ca!se of o!r misfort!nes% On the contrary, the concl!sion that m!st be drawn from the facts is that o!r



people were intentionally driven to r!in% If we e3amine 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 scr!tiniing the matter

closely we see clearly that this cond!ct was a proced!re which had been calmly calc!lated, shrewdly

defined and logically carried o!t in the service of the )ewish idea and the )ewish endeavo!r to sec!re themastery of the world%

From 1;< to 1;1. "r!ssia was in a state of collapse% !t that period s!fficed to renew the vital energies of

the nation and inspire it once more with a resol!te determination to fight% An e+!al period of time has

passed over o!r heads from 191; !ntil to-day, and no advantage has been derived from it% On the contrary,the vital strength of o!r 'tate has been steadily sapped%

'even years after *ovember 191; the Locarno (reaty was signed%

(h!s the development which too& place was what I have indicated above% Once the shamef!l Armistice had

been signed o!r people were !nable to pl!c& !p s!fficient co!rage and energy to call a halt s!ddenly to thecond!ct of o!r adversary as the oppressive meas!res were being constantly renewed% (he enemy was too

shrewd to p!t forward all his demands at once% e confined his d!ress always to those e3actions which, in

his opinion and that of o!r 6erman 6overnment, co!ld be s!bmitted to for the moment0 so that in this way

they did not ris& ca!sing an e3plosion of p!blic feeling% !t according as the single impositions wereincreasingly s!bscribed to and tolerated it appeared less !stifiable to do now in the case of one sole

imposition or act of d!ress what had not been previo!sly done in the case of so many others, namely, to

oppose it% (hat is the drop of poison# of which $la!sewit spea&s% Once this lac& of character is manifested

the res!ltant condition becomes steadily aggravated and weighs li&e an evil inheritance on all f!t!re

decisions% It may become as a leaden weight aro!nd the nation#s nec&, which cannot be sha&en off b!twhich forces it to drag o!t its e3istence in slavery%

(h!s, in 6ermany, edicts for disarmament and oppression and economic pl!nder followed one after the

other, ma&ing !s politically helpless% (he res!lt of all this was to create that mood which made so manyloo& !pon the ?awes "lan as a blessing and the Locarno (reaty as a s!ccess% From a higher point of view

we may spea& of one sole blessing in the midst of so m!ch misery% (his blessing is that, tho!gh men may

be fooled, eaven can#t be bribed% For eaven withheld its blessing% 'ince that time isery and An3iety

have been the constant companions of o!r people, and ?istress is the one Ally that has remained loyal to !s%In this case also ?estiny has made no e3ceptions% It has given !s o!r deserts% 'ince we did not &now how to

val!e hono!r any more, it has ta!ght !s to val!e the liberty to see& for bread% *ow that the nation has

learned to cry for bread, it may one day learn to pray for freedom%

(he collapse of o!r nation in the years following 191; was bitter and manifest% And yet that was the timechosen to persec!te !s in the most malicio!s way o!r enemies co!ld devise, so that what happened

afterwards co!ld have been foretold by anybody then% (he government to which o!r people s!bmitted wasas hopelessly incompetent as it was conceited, and this was especially shown in rep!diating those who gave

any warning that dist!rbed or displeased% (hen we saw - and to-day also - the greatest parliamentarynincompoops, really common saddlers and glove-ma&ers - not merely by trade, for that wo!ld signify very

little - s!ddenly raised to the ran& of statesmen and sermoniing to h!mble mortals from that pedestal% It

did not matter, and it still does not matter, that s!ch a statesman#, after having displayed his talents for si3

months or so as a mere windbag, is shown !p for what he is and becomes the obect of p!blic raillery andsarcasm% It does not matter that he has given the most evident proof of complete incompetency% *o% (hat

does not matter at all% On the contrary, the less real service the parliamentary statesmen of this 8ep!blic

render the co!ntry, the more savagely they persec!te all who e3pect that parliamentary dep!ties sho!ld

show some positive res!lts of their activities% And they persec!te everybody who dares to point to thefail!re of these activities and predict similar fail!res for the f!t!re% If one finally s!cceeds in nailing down

one of these parliamentarians to hard facts, so that this political artist can no longer deny the real fail!re of

his whole action and its res!lts, then he will find tho!sands of gro!nds for e3c!se, b!t will in no way admitthat he himself is the chief ca!se of the evil%In the winter of 1922-2., at the latest, it o!ght to have been generally recognied that, even after the

concl!sion of peace, France was still endeavo!ring with iron consistency to attain those ends which had

been originally envisaged as the final p!rpose of the /ar% For nobody co!ld thin& of believing that for fo!r

and a half years France contin!ed to po!r o!t the not ab!ndant s!pply of her national blood in the mostdecisive str!ggle thro!gho!t all her history in order s!bse+!ently to obtain compensation thro!gh

reparations for the damages s!stained% 7ven Alsace and Lorraine, ta&en by themselves, wo!ld not acco!nt

for the energy with which the French cond!cted the /ar, if Alsace-Lorraine were not already considered asa part of the really vast programme which French foreign policy had envisaged for the f!t!re% (he aim of



that programme was0 ?isintegration of 6ermany into a collection of small states% It was for this that

$ha!vinist France waged war> and in doing so she was in reality selling her people to be the serfs of the

international )ew%

French war aims wo!ld have been obtained thro!gh the /orld /ar if, as was originally hoped in "aris, thestr!ggle had been carried o!t on 6erman soil% Let !s imagine the bloody battles of the /orld /ar not as

having ta&en place on the 'omme, in Flanders, in Artois, in front of /arsaw, *ihni-*ovogorod, owno,

and 8iga b!t in 6ermany, in the 8!hr or on the aine, on the 7lbe, in front of anover, Leipig, *Drnberg,

etc% If s!ch happened, then we m!st admit that the destr!ction of 6ermany might have been accomplished%It is very m!ch open to +!estion if o!r yo!ng federal 'tate co!ld have borne the hard str!ggle for fo!r and a

half years, as it was borne by a France that had been centralied for cent!ries, with the whole national

imagination foc!sed on "aris% If this titanic conflict between the nations developed o!tside the frontiers of

o!r fatherland, not only is all the merit d!e to the immortal service rendered by o!r old army b!t it was alsovery fort!nate for the f!t!re of 6ermany% I am f!lly convinced that if things had ta&en a different co!rse

there wo!ld no longer be a 6erman 8eich to-day b!t only 6erman 'tates#% And that is the only reason why

the blood which was shed by o!r friends and brothers in the /ar was at least not shed in vain%

(he co!rse which events too& was otherwise% In *ovember 191; 6ermany did indeed collapse withlightning s!ddenness% !t when the catastrophe too& place at home the armies !nder the $ommander-in-

$hief were still deep in the enemy#s co!ntry% At that time France#s first preocc!pation was not the

dismemberment of 6ermany b!t the problem of how to get the 6erman armies o!t of France and elgi!m

as +!ic&ly as possible% And so, in order to p!t an end to the /ar, the first thing that had to be done by the

"aris 6overnment was to disarm the 6erman armies and p!sh them bac& into 6ermany if possible% Mntilthis was done the French co!ld not devote their attention to carrying o!t their own partic!lar and original

war aims% As far as concerned 7ngland, the /ar was really won when 6ermany was destroyed as a colonial

and commercial "ower and was red!ced to the ran& of a second-class 'tate% It was not in 7ngland#s interestto wipe o!t the 6erman 'tate altogether% In fact, on many gro!nds it was desirable for her to have a f!t!re

rival against France in 7!rope% (herefore French policy was forced to carry on by peacef!l means the wor&

for which the /ar had opened the way> and $lemencea!#s statement, that for him "eace was merely a

contin!ation of the /ar, th!s ac+!ired an enhanced significance%"ersistently and on every opport!nity that arose, the effort to dislocate the framewor& of the 8eich was to

have been carried on% y perpet!ally sending new notes that demanded disarmament, on the one hand, and

by the imposition of economic levies which, on the other hand, co!ld be carried o!t as the process of

disarmament progressed, it was hoped in "aris that the framewor& of the 8eich wo!ld grad!ally fall to pieces% (he more the 6ermans lost their sense of national hono!r the more co!ld economic press!re and

contin!ed economic distress be effective as factors of political destr!ction% '!ch a policy of politicaloppression and economic e3ploitation, carried o!t for ten or twenty years, m!st in the long r!n steadily r!in

the most compact national body and, !nder certain circ!mstances, dismember it% (hen the French war aimswo!ld have been definitely attained%

y the winter of 1922-2. the intentions of the French m!st already have been &nown for a long time bac&%

(here remained only two possible ways of confronting the sit!ation% If the 6erman national body showed

itself s!fficiently to!gh-s&inned, it might grad!ally bl!nt the will of the French or it might do - once and for all - what was bo!nd to become inevitable one day0 that is to say, !nder the provocation of some

partic!larly br!tal act of oppression it co!ld p!t the helm of the 6erman ship of state to ro!ndabo!t and

ram the enemy% (hat wo!ld nat!rally involve a life-and-death-str!ggle% And the prospect of coming thro!gh

the str!ggle alive depended on whether France co!ld be so far isolated that in this second battle 6ermanywo!ld not have to fight against the whole world b!t in defence of 6ermany against a France that was

persistently dist!rbing the peace of the world%

I insist on this point, and I am profo!ndly convinced of it, namely, that this second alternative will one day be chosen and will have to be chosen and carried o!t in one way or another% I shall never believe thatFrance will of herself alter her intentions towards !s, beca!se, in the last analysis, they are only the

e3pression of the French instinct for self-preservation% /ere I a Frenchman and were the greatness of

France so dear to me as that of 6ermany act!ally is, in the final rec&oning I co!ld not and wo!ld not act

otherwise than a $lemencea!% (he French nation, which is slowly dying o!t, not so m!ch thro!ghdepop!lation as thro!gh the progressive disappearance of the best elements of the race, can contin!e to play

an important role in the world only if 6ermany be destroyed% French policy may ma&e a tho!sand deto!rs

on the march towards its fi3ed goal, b!t the destr!ction of 6ermany is the end which it always has in viewas the f!lfilment of the most profo!nd yearning and !ltimate intentions of the French% *ow it is a mista&e



to believe that if the will on one side sho!ld remain only passive and intent on its own self-preservation it

can hold o!t permanently against another will which is not less forcef!l b!t is active% As long as the eternal

conflict between France and 6ermany is waged only in the form of a 6erman defence against the French

attac&, that conflict can never be decided> and from cent!ry to cent!ry 6ermany will lose one position after another% If we st!dy the changes that have ta&en place, from the twelfth cent!ry !p to o!r day, in the

frontiers within which the 6erman lang!age is spo&en, we can hardly hope for a s!ccessf!l iss!e to res!lt

from the acceptance and development of a line of cond!ct which has hitherto been so detrimental for !s%

Only when the 6ermans have ta&en all this f!lly into acco!nt will they cease from allowing the nationalwill-to-life to wear itself o!t in merely passive defence, b!t they will rally together for a last decisive

contest with France% And in this contest the essential obective of the 6erman nation will be fo!ght for%

Only then will it be possible to p!t an end to the eternal Franco-6erman conflict which has hitherto proved

so sterile% Of co!rse it is here pres!med that 6ermany sees in the s!ppression of France nothing more thana means which will ma&e it possible for o!r people finally to e3pand in another +!arter% (o-day there are

eighty million 6ermans in 7!rope% And o!r foreign policy will be recognied as rightly cond!cted only

when, after barely a h!ndred years, there will be 2=< million 6ermans living on this $ontinent, not pac&ed

together as the coolies in the factories of another $ontinent b!t as tillers of the soil and wor&ers whoselabo!r will be a m!t!al ass!rance for their e3istence%

In ?ecember 1922 the sit!ation between 6ermany and France ass!med a partic!larly threatening aspect%

France had new and vast oppressive meas!res in view and needed sanctions for her cond!ct% "olitical

press!re had to precede the economic pl!nder, and the French believed that only by ma&ing a violent attac&

against the central nervo!s system of 6erman life wo!ld they be able to ma&e o!r recalcitrant# people bowto their galling yo&e% y the occ!pation of the 8!hr ?istrict, it was hoped in France that not only wo!ld the

moral bac&bone of 6ermany be bro&en finally b!t that we sho!ld be red!ced to s!ch a grave economic

condition that we sho!ld be forced, for weal or woe, to s!bscribe to the heaviest possible obligations%It was a +!estion of bending and brea&ing 6ermany% At first 6ermany bent and s!bse+!ently bro&e in

pieces completely%

(hro!gh the occ!pation of the 8!hr, Fate once more reached o!t its hand to the 6erman people and bade

them arise% For what at first appeared as a heavy stro&e of misfort!ne was fo!nd, on closer e3amination, tocontain e3tremely enco!raging possibilities of bringing 6ermany#s s!fferings to an end%

As regards foreign politics, the action of France in occ!pying the 8!hr really estranged 7ngland for the

first time in +!ite a profo!nd way% Indeed it estranged not merely ritish diplomatic circles, which had

concl!ded the French alliance and had !pheld it from motives of calm and obective calc!lation, b!t it alsoestranged large sections of the 7nglish nation% (he 7nglish b!siness world in partic!lar scarcely concealed

the displeas!re it felt at this incredible forward step in strengthening the power of France on the $ontinent%From the military standpoint alone France now ass!med a position in 7!rope s!ch as 6ermany herself had

not held previo!sly% oreover, France th!s obtained control over economic reso!rces which practicallygave her a monopoly that consolidated her political and commercial strength against all competition% (he

most important iron and coal mines of 7!rope were now !nited in the hand of one nation which, in contrast

to 6ermany, had hitherto defended her vital interests in an active and resol!te fashion and whose military

efficiency in the 6reat /ar was still fresh in the memories of the whole world% (he French occ!pation of the 8!hr coal field deprived 7ngland of all the s!ccesses she had gained in the /ar% And the victors were

now arshal Foch and the France he represented, no longer the calm and painsta&ing ritish statesmen%

In Italy also the attit!de towards France, which had not been very favo!rable since the end of the /ar, now

became positively hostile% (he great historic moment had come when the Allies of yesterday might becomethe enemies of to-morrow% If things happened otherwise and if the Allies did not s!ddenly come into

conflict with one another, as in the 'econd al&an /ar, that was d!e to the fact that 6ermany had no 7nver

"asha b!t merely a $!no as $hancellor of the 8eich% *evertheless, the French invasion of the 8!hr opened !p great possibilities for the f!t!re not only in6ermany#s foreign politics b!t also in her internal politics% A considerable section of o!r people who,

than&s to the persistent infl!ence of a mendacio!s "ress, had loo&ed !pon France as the champion of

progress and liberty, were s!ddenly c!red of this ill!sion% In 1914 the dream of international solidarity

s!ddenly vanished from the brain of o!r 6erman wor&ing class% (hey were bro!ght bac& into the world of everlasting str!ggle, where one creat!re feeds on the other and where the death of the wea&er implies the

life of the stronger% (he same thing happened in the spring of 192.%

/hen the French p!t their threats into effect and penetrated, at first hesitatingly and ca!tio!sly, into thecoal-basin of Lower 6ermany the ho!r of destiny had str!c& for 6ermany% It was a great and decisive



moment% If at that moment o!r people had changed not only their frame of mind b!t also their cond!ct the

6erman 8!hr ?istrict co!ld have been made for France what oscow t!rned o!t to be for *apoleon%

Indeed, there were only two possibilities0 either to leave this move also to ta&e its co!rse and do nothing or

to t!rn to the 6erman people in that region of sweltering forges and flaming f!rnaces% An effort might have been made to set their wills afire with determination to p!t an end to this persistent disgrace and to face a

momentary terror rather than s!bmit to a terror that was endless%

$!no, who was then $hancellor of the 8eich, can claim the immortal merit of having discovered a third

way> and o!r 6erman bo!rgeois political parties merit the still more glorio!s hono!r of having admired himand collaborated with him%

ere I shall deal with the second way as briefly as possible%

y occ!pying the 8!hr France committed a glaring violation of the :ersailles (reaty% er action bro!ght

her into conflict with several of the g!arantor "owers, especially with 7ngland and Italy% 'he co!ld nolonger hope that those 'tates wo!ld bac& her !p in her egotistic act of brigandage% 'he co!ld co!nt only on

her own forces to reap anything li&e a positive res!lt from that advent!re, for s!ch it was at the start% For a

6erman *ational 6overnment there was only one possible way left open% And this was the way which

hono!r prescribed% $ertainly at the beginning we co!ld not have opposed France with an active armedresistance% !t it sho!ld have been clearly recognied that any negotiations which did not have the

arg!ment of force to bac& them !p wo!ld t!rn o!t f!tile and ridic!lo!s% If it were not possible to organie

an active resistance, then it was abs!rd to ta&e !p the standpoint0 H/e shall not enter into any negotiations%H

!t it was still more abs!rd finally to enter into negotiations witho!t having organied the necessary force

as a s!pport% *ot that it was possible for !s by military means to prevent the occ!pation of the 8!hr% Only a madman

co!ld have recommended s!ch a decision% !t !nder the impression prod!ced by the action which France

had ta&en, and d!ring the time that it was being carried o!t, meas!res co!ld have been, and sho!ld have been, !nderta&en witho!t any regard to the :ersailles (reaty, which France herself had violated, to provide

those military reso!rces which wo!ld serve as a collateral arg!ment to bac& !p the negotiations later on%

For it was +!ite clear from the beginning that the fate of this district occ!pied by the French wo!ld one day

be decided at some conference table or other% !t it also m!st have been +!ite to everybody that even the best negotiators co!ld have little s!ccess as long as the gro!nd on which they themselves stood and the

chair on which they sat were not !nder the armed protection of their own people% A wea& pigmy cannot

contend against athletes, and a negotiator witho!t any armed defence at his bac& m!st always bow in

obeisance when a renn!s throws the sword into the scales on the enemy#s side, !nless an e+!ally strongsword can be thrown into the scales at the other end and th!s maintain the balance% It was really distressing

to have to observe the comedy of negotiations which, ever since 191;, reg!larly preceded each arbitrarydictate that the enemy imposed !pon !s% /e offered a sorry spectacle to the eyes of the whole world when

we were invited, for the sa&e of derision, to attend conference tables simply to be presented with decisionsand programmes which had already been drawn !p and passed a long time before, and which we were

permitted to disc!ss, b!t from the beginning had to be considered as !nalterable% It is tr!e that in scarcely a

single instance were o!r negotiators men of more than mediocre abilities% For the most part they !stified

only too well the insolent observation made by Lloyd 6eorge when he sarcastically remar&ed, in the presence of a former $hancellor of the 8eich, err 'imon, that the 6ermans were not able to choose men

of intelligence as their leaders and representatives% !t in face of the resol!te determination and the power

which the enemy held in his hands, on the one side, and the lamentable impotence of 6ermany on the other,

even a body of geni!ses co!ld have obtained only very little for 6ermany%In the spring of 192., however, anyone who might have tho!ght of seiing the opport!nity of the French

invasion of the 8!hr to reconstr!ct the military power of 6ermany wo!ld first have had to restore to the

nation its moral weapons, to reinforce its will-power, and to e3tirpate those who had destroyed this mostval!able element of national strength%)!st as in 191; we had to pay with o!r blood for the fail!re to cr!sh the ar3ist serpent !nderfoot once and

for all in 1914 and 191=, now we have to s!ffer retrib!tion for the fact that in the spring of 192. we did not

seie the opport!nity then offered !s for finally wiping o!t the handiwor& done by the ar3ists who

betrayed their co!ntry and were responsible for the m!rder of o!r people%Any idea of opposing French aggression with an efficacio!s resistance was only p!re folly as long as the

fight had not been ta&en !p against those forces which, five years previo!sly, had bro&en the 6erman

resistance on the battlefields by the infl!ences which they e3ercised at home% Only bo!rgeois minds co!ldhave arrived at the incredible belief that ar3ism had probably become +!ite a different thing now and that



the canaille of ringleaders in 191;, who callo!sly !sed the bodies of o!r two million dead as stepping-

stones on which they climbed into the vario!s 6overnment positions, wo!ld now, in the year 192.,

s!ddenly show themselves ready to pay their trib!te to the national conscience% It was veritably a piece of

incredible folly to e3pect that those traitors wo!ld s!ddenly appear as the champions of 6erman freedom%(hey had no intention of doing it% )!st as a hyena will not leave its carrion, a ar3ist will not give !p

ind!lging in the betrayal of his co!ntry% It is o!t of the +!estion to p!t forward the st!pid retort here, that so

many of the wor&ers gave their blood for 6ermany% 6erman wor&ers, yes, b!t no longer international

ar3ists% If the 6erman wor&ing class, in 1914, consisted of real ar3ists the /ar wo!ld have endedwithin three wee&s% 6ermany wo!ld have collapsed before the first soldier had p!t a foot beyond the

frontiers% *o% (he fact that the 6erman people carried on the /ar proved that the ar3ist folly had not yet

been able to penetrate deeply% !t as the /ar was prolonged 6erman soldiers and wor&ers grad!ally fell

bac& into the hands of the ar3ist leaders, and the n!mber of those who th!s relapsed became lost to their co!ntry% At the beginning of the /ar, or even d!ring the /ar, if twelve or fifteen tho!sand of these )ews

who were corr!pting the nation had been forced to s!bmit to poison-gas, !st as h!ndreds of tho!sands of

o!r best 6erman wor&ers from every social strat!m and from every trade and calling had to face it in the

field, then the millions of sacrifices made at the front wo!ld not have been in vain% On the contrary0 If twelve tho!sand of these malefactors had been eliminated in proper time probably the lives of a million

decent men, who wo!ld be of val!e to 6ermany in the f!t!re, might have been saved% !t it was in

accordance with bo!rgeois statesmanship# to hand over, witho!t the twitch of an eyelid, millions of h!man

beings to be sla!ghtered on the battlefields, while they loo&ed !pon ten or twelve tho!sand p!blic traitors,

profiteers, !s!rers and swindlers, as the dearest and most sacred national treas!re and proclaimed their persons to be inviolable% Indeed it wo!ld be hard to say what is the most o!tstanding feat!re of these

bo!rgeois circles0 mental debility, moral wea&ness and cowardice, or a mere down-at-heel mentality% It is a

class that is certainly doomed to go !nder b!t, !nhappily, it drags down the whole nation with it into theabyss%

(he sit!ation in 192. was +!ite similar to that of 191;% *o matter what form of resistance was decided

!pon, the first prere+!isite for ta&ing action was the elimination of the ar3ist poison from the body of the

nation% And I was convinced that the first tas& then of a really *ational 6overnment was to see& and findthose forces that were determined to wage a war of destr!ction against ar3ism and to give these forces a

free hand% It was their d!ty not to bow down before the fetish of order and tran+!illity# at a moment when

the enemy from o!tside was dealing the Fatherland a death-blow and when high treason was l!r&ing behind

every street corner at home% *o% A really *ational 6overnment o!ght then to have welcomed disorder and!nrest if this t!rmoil wo!ld afford an opport!nity of finally settling with the ar3ists, who are the mortal

enemies of o!r people% If this preca!tion were neglected, then it was sheer folly to thin& of resisting, nomatter what form that resistance might ta&e%

Of co!rse, s!ch a settlement of acco!nts with the ar3ists as wo!ld be of real historical importance co!ldnot be effected along lines laid down by some secret co!ncil or according to some plan concocted by the

shrivelled mind of some cabinet minister% It wo!ld have to be in accordance with the eternal laws of life on

this 7arth which are and will remain those of a ceaseless str!ggle for e3istence% It m!st 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 res!lted a

state of national p!trescence that ree&ed to the s&ies% (he fate of a nation cannot be changed in &id gloves%

And so in the year 192. br!tal action sho!ld have been ta&en to stamp o!t the vipers that battened on the

body of the nation% If this were done, then the first prere+!isite for an active opposition wo!ld have beenf!lfilled%

At that time I often tal&ed myself hoarse in trying to ma&e it clear, at least to the so-called national circles,

what was then at sta&e and that by repeating the errors committed in 1914 and the following years we m!stnecessarily come to the same &ind of catastrophe as in 191;% I fre+!ently implored of them to let Fate havea free hand and to ma&e it possible for o!r ovement to settle with the ar3ists% !t I preached to deaf

ears% (hey all tho!ght they &new better, incl!ding the $hief of the ?efence Force, !ntil finally they fo!nd

themselves forced to s!bscribe to the vilest capit!lation that history records%

I then became profo!ndly convinced that the 6erman bo!rgeoisie had come to the end of its mission andwas not capable of f!lfilling any f!rther f!nction% And then also I recognied the fact that all the bo!rgeois

parties had been fighting ar3ism merely from the spirit of competition witho!t sincerely wishing to

destroy it% For a long time they had been acc!stomed to assist in the destr!ction of their co!ntry, and their one great care was to sec!re good seats at the f!neral ban+!et% It was for this alone that they &ept on



fighting#%

At that time - I admit it openly - I conceived a profo!nd admiration for the great man beyond the Alps,

whose ardent love for his people inspired him not to bargain with Italy#s internal enemies b!t to !se all

possible ways and means in an effort to wipe them o!t% /hat places !ssolini in the ran&s of the world#sgreat men is his decision not to share Italy with the ar3ists b!t to redeem his co!ntry from ar3ism by

destroying internationalism%

/hat miserable pigmies o!r sham statesmen in 6ermany appear by comparison with him% And how

na!seating it is to witness the conceit and effrontery of these nonentities in criticiing a man who is atho!sand times greater than them% And how painf!l it is to thin& that this ta&es place in a co!ntry which

co!ld point to a ismarc& as its leader as recently as fifty years ago%

(he attit!de adopted by the bo!rgeoisie in 192. and the way in which they dealt &indly with ar3ism

decided from the o!tset the fate of any attempt at active resistance in the 8!hr% /ith that deadly enemy ino!r own ran&s it was sheer folly to thin& of fighting France% (he most that co!ld then be done was to stage

a sham fight in order to satisfy the 6erman national element to some e3tent, to tran+!illie the boiling state

of the p!blic mind#, or dope it, which was what was really intended% ad they really believed in what they

did, they o!ght to have recognied that the strength of a nation lies, first of all, not in its arms b!t in its will,and that before con+!ering the e3ternal enemy the enemy at home wo!ld have to be eliminated% If not, then

disaster m!st res!lt if victory be not achieved on the very first day of the fight% (he shadow of one defeat is

s!fficient to brea& !p 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 192. all this might have been predicted% It is !seless to as& whether it was then possible toco!nt on a military s!ccess against France% For if the res!lt of the 6erman action in regard to the French

invasion of the 8!hr had been only the destr!ction of ar3ism at home, s!ccess wo!ld have been on o!r

side% Once liberated from the deadly enemies of her present and f!t!re e3istence, 6ermany wo!ld possessforces which no power in the world co!ld strangle again% On the day when ar3ism is bro&en in 6ermany

the chains that bind 6ermany will be smashed for ever% For never in o!r history have we been con+!ered by

the strength of o!r o!tside enemies b!t only thro!gh o!r own failings and the enemy in o!r own camp%

'ince it was not able to decide on s!ch heroic action at that time, the 6overnment co!ld have chosen thefirst way0 namely, to allow things to ta&e their co!rse and do nothing at all%

!t at that great moment eaven made 6ermany a present of a great man% (his was err $!no% e was

neither a statesman nor a politician by profession, still less a politician by birth% !t he belonged to that

type of politician who is merely !sed for li+!idating some definite +!estion% Apart from that, he had b!siness e3perience% It was a c!rse for 6ermany that, in the practice of politics, this b!siness man loo&ed

!pon politics also as a b!siness !nderta&ing and reg!lated his cond!ct accordingly%HFrance occ!pies the 8!hr% /hat is there in the 8!hr5 $oal% And so France occ!pies the 8!hr for the sa&e

of its coal5H /hat co!ld come more nat!rally to the mind of err $!no than the idea of a stri&e, whichwo!ld prevent the French from obtaining any coal5 And therefore, in the opinion of err $!no, one day or

other they wo!ld certainly have to get o!t of the 8!hr again if the occ!pation did not prove to be a paying

b!siness% '!ch were appro3imately the lines along which that o!tstanding national statesman reasoned% At

't!ttgart and other places he spo&e to his people# and this people became lost in admiration for him% Of co!rse they needed the ar3ists for the stri&e, beca!se the wor&ers wo!ld have to be the first to go on

stri&e% *ow, in the brain of a bo!rgeois statesman s!ch as $!no, a ar3ist and a wor&er are one and the

same thing% (herefore it was necessary to bring the wor&er into line with all the other 6ermans in a !nited

front% One sho!ld have seen how the co!ntenances of these party politicians beamed with the light of their moth-eaten bo!rgeois c!lt!re when the great geni!s spo&e the word of revelation to them% ere was a

nationalist and also a man of geni!s% At last they had discovered what they had so long so!ght% For now the

abyss between ar3ism and themselves co!ld be bridged over% And th!s it became possible for the pse!do-nationalist to ape the 6erman manner and adopt nationalist phraseology in reaching o!t the ingen!o!s handof friendship to the internationalist traitors of their co!ntry% (he traitor readily grasped that hand, beca!se,

!st as err $!no had need of the ar3ist chiefs for his !nited front#, the ar3ist chiefs needed err

$!no#s money% 'o that both parties m!t!ally benefited by the transaction% $!no obtained his !nited front,

constit!ted of nationalist charlatans and international swindlers% And now, with the help of the money paidto them by the 'tate, these people were able to p!rs!e their glorio!s mission, which was to destroy the

national economic system% It was an immortal tho!ght, that of saving a nation by means of a general stri&e

in which the stri&ers were paid by the 'tate% It was a command that co!ld be enth!siastically obeyed by themost indifferent of loafers%



7verybody &nows that prayers will not ma&e a nation free% !t that it is possible to liberate a nation by

giving !p wor& has yet to be proved by historical e3perience% Instead of promoting a paid general stri&e at

that time, and ma&ing this the basis of his !nited front#, if err $!no had demanded two ho!rs more wor&

from every 6erman, then the swindle of the !nited front# wo!ld have been disposed of within three days% *ations do not obtain their freedom by ref!sing to wor& b!t by ma&ing sacrifices%

Anyhow, the so-called passive resistance co!ld not last long% *obody b!t a man entirely ignorant of war

co!ld imagine that an army of occ!pation might be frightened and driven o!t by s!ch ridic!lo!s means%

And yet this co!ld have been the only p!rpose of an action for which the co!ntry had to pay o!t milliardsand which contrib!ted serio!sly to deval!ate the national c!rrency%

Of co!rse the French were able to ma&e themselves almost at home in the 8!hr basin the moment they saw

that s!ch ridic!lo!s meas!res were being adopted against them% (hey had received the prescription directly

from o!rselves of the best way to bring a recalcitrant civil pop!lation to a sense of reason if its cond!ctimplied a serio!s danger for the officials which the army of occ!pation had placed in a!thority% *ine years

previo!sly we wiped o!t with lightning rapidity bands of elgian francs-tire!rs and made the civil

pop!lation clearly !nderstand the serio!sness of the sit!ation, when the activities of these bands threatened

grave danger for the 6erman army% In li&e manner if the passive resistance of the 8!hr became reallydangero!s for the French, the armies of occ!pation wo!ld have needed no more than eight days to bring the

whole piece of childish nonsense to a gr!esome end% For we m!st always go bac& to the original +!estion

in all this b!siness0 /hat were we to do if the passive resistance came to the point where it really got on the

nerves of o!r opponents and they proceeded to s!ppress it with force and bloodshed5 /o!ld we still

contin!e to resist5 If so, then, for weal or woe, we wo!ld have to s!bmit to a severe and bloody persec!tion% And in that case we sho!ld be faced with the same sit!ation as wo!ld have faced !s in the case

of an active resistance% In other words, we sho!ld have to fight% (herefore the so-called passive resistance

wo!ld be logical only if s!pported by the determination to come o!t and wage an open fight in case of necessity or adopt a &ind of g!erilla warfare% 6enerally spea&ing, one !nderta&es s!ch a str!ggle when

there is a possibility of s!ccess% (he moment a besieged fortress is ta&en by assa!lt there is no practical

alternative left to the defenders e3cept to s!rrender, if instead of probable death they are ass!red that their

lives will be spared% Let the garrison of a citadel which has been completely encircled by the enemy oncelose all hope of being delivered by their friends, then the strength of the defence collapses totally%

(hat is why passive resistance in the 8!hr, when one considers the final conse+!ences which it might and

m!st necessarily have if it were to t!rn o!t really s!ccessf!l, had no practical meaning !nless an active

front had been organied to s!pport it% (hen one might have demanded immense efforts from o!r people% If each of these /estphalians in the 8!hr co!ld have been ass!red that the home co!ntry had mobilied an

army of eighty or a h!ndred divisions to s!pport them, the French wo!ld have fo!nd themselves treadingon thorns% '!rely a greater n!mber of co!rageo!s men co!ld be fo!nd to sacrifice themselves for a

s!ccessf!l enterprise than for an enterprise that was manifestly f!tile%(his was the classic occasion that ind!ced !s *ational 'ocialists to ta&e !p a resol!te stand against the so-

called national word of command% And that is what we did% ?!ring those months I was attac&ed by people

whose patriotism was a mi3t!re of st!pidity and h!mb!g and who too& part in the general h!e and cry

beca!se of the pleasant sensation they felt at being s!ddenly enabled to show themselves as nationalists,witho!t r!nning any danger thereby% In my estimation, this despicable !nited front# was one of the most

ridic!lo!s things that co!ld be imagined% And events proved that I was right%

As soon as the (rades Mnions had nearly filled their treas!ries with $!no#s contrib!tions, and the moment

had come when it wo!ld be necessary to transform the passive resistance from a mere inert defence intoactive aggression, the 8ed hyenas s!ddenly bro&e o!t of the national sheepfold and ret!rned to be what

they always had been% /itho!t so!nding any dr!ms or tr!mpets, err $!no ret!rned to his ships% 6ermany

was richer by one e3perience and poorer by the loss of one great hope%Mp to mids!mmer of that year several officers, who certainly were not the least brave and hono!rable of their &ind, had not really believed that the co!rse of things co!ld ta&e a t!rn that was so h!miliating% (hey

had all hoped that - if not openly, then at least secretly - the necessary meas!res wo!ld be ta&en to ma&e

this insolent French invasion a t!rning-point in 6erman history% In o!r ran&s also there were many who

co!nted at least on the intervention of the 8eichswehr% (hat conviction was so ardent that it decisivelyinfl!enced the cond!ct and especially the training of inn!merable yo!ng men%

!t when the disgracef!l collapse set in and the most h!miliating &ind of capit!lation was made,

indignation against s!ch a betrayal of o!r !nhappy co!ntry bro&e o!t into a blae% illions of 6ermanmoney had been spent in vain and tho!sands of yo!ng 6ermans had been sacrificed, who were foolish



eno!gh to tr!st in the promises made by the r!lers of the 8eich illions of people now became clearly

(eBook) History - Adolf Hitler - Mein Kampf - English (1)

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