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

FEW FLAMES BURN IN GERMANY 287In 1926, Hitler promised the employers —as he had in 1920: 'Westand for the maintenance of private property. . . . We shall protect freeenterprise as the most expedient, or rather the sole possible, economicorder.' At the same time Strasser and Goebbels wanted to put an end tothe free economy. On November 22, 1925, the two of them called theirNorth German gauleiters to the city of Hanover and proclaimed theirprogram, and one of those assembled, Bern-hard Rust, a school-teacher(later Minister of Education), cried out that they would take no moreorders from the Tope' in Munich. Gottfried Feder came to supervise themeeting at Hitler's behest; Goebbels demanded the ejection of 'this idiot'from the hall. Of all the North Germans only one came out openly forHitler: Doctor Robert Ley, the chemist from Cologne.So far Gregor Strasser, with the help of his railroad pass, had madeprogress in his fight for the party leadership. Hitler countered in thesame style. On February 14, 1926, he summoned the gauleiters to theSouth German city of Bamberg. Those who now came were mostlySouth Germans, leaders of older gaus who had not been personallyappointed by Strasser; the journey was too long and above all too costlyfor the North Germans.A great word battle ensued between Hitler and Strasser. The issueswere the workers, socialism or free economy, the alliance with SovietRussia, the concept of revolution: Shall we create chaos, or shall we'legally' worm our way to power? We are against the old bourgeoisworld — in this Hitler and Strasser were agreed. But what does thismean in a serious situation? And things were getting serious. A mightypopular movement was at that time rolling through all Germany, farmore powerful than National Socialism; it aimed at preventing theformer German princes from retaining a good part of their so-calledprivate property, which in some cases amounted to hundreds of millionsand was private only in name, being actually state property appropriatedin former times. A plebiscite was ordered; it was a popular moraluprising, and Gregor Strasser declared: As National Socialists webelong to this popular uprising. . . .At that time Hitler received each month a sum of fifteen hundredmarks from the divorced Duchess Eduard von Sachsen-Anhalt.