Der Fuehrer - Hitler's Rise to Power (1944) - Heiden

202 DER FUEHRERGilbert, of J. P. Morgan and Company, was to supervise the managementof German public finances and make sure the foreign capitalwas not misused. It was an oppressive and humiliating condition, but, inthe beginning at least, understandable from the viewpoint of thecreditor; for the next few years, Germany flourished under this system.A period of prosperity, of relaxed nerves and settled living conditionsbegan. This was the great recovery which Hitler had tried in vain toprevent with his last minute putsch. But the accomplices of the armedbohemians, the protectors and employers of the murderers' army, stillsat in their high state positions, in the ministries and courts. It was theseaccomplices who were to mete out justice to Hitler.The judges could scarcely look their victims in the eyes, the jailersdid not know whether to guard or wait on their prisoners. To be sure,there were numerous conscientious officials in all departments; andamong the accomplices many were enraged against Hitler for exposingthem. Epp declared in no uncertain terms that Hitler had broken hisword. Yet the leaders of the state were well aware that they were Hitler'saccomplices and should have been on trial with him, and their badconscience certainly weakened the prosecution. The young people whohad run so fast from the fire recovered their courage in the presence ofthe embarrassed police inspectors and state's attorneys. They wereseized with righteous indignation. They had marched out for a parade,and instead they had been forced to fight; the state which had alreadysurrendered to them suddenly slipped away. The armed bohemiansthought they were Germany; power over society was their prerogative,by virtue of their natural superiority and talents — and then they werefired upon. They were haled into court for proclaiming the violentoverthrow of the government, arresting the ministers and leadingofficials, seizing and threatening to kill men who were totally innocent,plundering private lodgings and stealing banknotes from state printingoffices. They scoffed and cursed at their judges, for daring to annoythem over such matters. Hitler in prison heard how his men hadrecovered their old daring and insolence; this, as he later related,considerably restored his courage.