February 5, 1931
- German Police Discover Secret Fascist "Army" By Sigrid Schultz Chicago Tribune Press Service BERLIN February 5 - A well organized secret Fascist local defense corps, ready to combat communist and other riots, was discovered in a score of Palatinate towns by the Speyer police today. According to political observers, the discoveries clearly reveal the restlessness[...]
German Police Discover Secret Fascist “Army”
By Sigrid Schultz
Chicago Tribune Press Service
Berlin, February 5 – A well organized secret Fascist local defense corps, ready to combat communist and other riots, was discovered in a score of Palatinate towns by the Speyer police today. According to political observers, the discoveries clearly reveal the restlessness and fear of a civil war gripping the population of Germany.
It is revealed that member of these secret Fascist “regiments” are equipped with rubber clubs. They are licensed to carry arms and own field gray uniforms similar to those worn by German soldiers during the war. Only fully trained former officers are granted posts as leaders. Blind obedience is demanded and members receive ammunition from their leaders.
“Directed at Communists.”
So far no stores of ammunition have been discovered.
The secret corps has been instructed to occupy town halls, public utility buildings, and traffic centers in case of riots or other disorders. Members are ordered “to direct activities against communists and other parties of the left.”
Authorities are examining licenses to carry guns in order to trace the organizers.
Dr. Paul Goebbels, Fascist leader, today assured the Reichstag the he knew nothing of a Fascist defense corps during a hot tilt with Chancellor Bruening after the latter had warned Parliament that the “Spartan” budget for 1931 must be adopted.
Calls Dictatorship “Ridiculous.”
“Talk of a dictatorship is ridiculous.” the chancellor said. “But we refuse to allow agitators to force irresponsible treatment in the question of a revision of reparations payments A revision must be carefully prepared, and until a new reparations solution has been found we shall strive to pay reparations regularly from our own strength. A partial solution badly prepared, would have to be paid with unbearable concessions.”
Dr. Goebbels thereupon jumped to his feet and in a vitriolic speech warned the chancellor that the Fascisti would wrench all power from him and his Democratic friends “by legal mean, though our aims are not legal.”
Communist heckled Chancellor Bruening during his speech and Dr. Goebbels demanded the cabinet resign and parliament be dissolved.
Police today suppressed the Fascist organ, Der Angriff, until Feb. 16, after an article glorified a recent Fascist attack on Republicans, in which the Fascists used pitchforks, flails, and boiling water. The paper is published by Dr. Goebbels. At Hamburg police also suspended publication of two communist newspapers for a for glorifying political killings.
Transcript
What is the situation in Germany, the situation that the Reich Chancellor explained from this place?
An army of almost five million unemployed marks the path of their politics. A peasant class that has gone over to open rebellion in the eastern and northern provinces characterizes their politics. A downtrodden middle class that no longer knows how to survive from one day to the next and is being squeezed to death by unheard of tax pressure. This is the result of their politics. The Reich without credit and without money, the countries gagged by the Reich, no longer capable of the primitive tasks of this situation, the cities on the verge of bankruptcy, the capital Berlin is already in the process of selling off its property in order to pay its civil servants’ salaries at the end of the month can.
There is a hole in the rice pineapples that is getting bigger and bigger, a deficit that can no longer be filled, that can no longer be done. The social budget has been cut back in all areas, social achievements have been abolished everywhere. And then the robbery of wages in all areas, arbitration breaches that give the worker too little to live for and too much to die for. And then, as a result of their policy, one outward commentator after the other, probably at the gates of Upper Silesia and the Germany of today is disarmed and has become rigid with weapons around the world.
This is the young Germany, which the Reich Chancellor did not spoil. However, he tries to conceal this by declaring that I have no intention here of making programmatic statements. No, Mr. Reich Chancellor, it is not true if you are accusing the opposition today of wanting a catastrophe. We don’t have to want the catastrophe, we brought it about. What sets us apart from your politics is that we have the courage to call a catastrophe a catastrophe, that we give things the right name. You can perhaps rely on us to explain that every country has gone through such hardship and that every country has overcome such hardship if national unity has been preserved. The fact that the crisis exists is not against us, rather than our criticism. But the fact that a system continues to exist that promised blessings and peace and freedom and beauty a year and a half ago and today places this crisis on this system and continues to bind it together in office and dignity and power, that is what we are fighting.
However, similar crises have also befallen other peoples, but only then could a people fight to overcome the crisis when the system that caused the crisis radiated and gave way to those who had protested against the crisis.
[Applause applause) .
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