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

520 DER FUEHRERimmediate following, his 'economic department' just dissolved byHitler, that had forced 'socialistic' economic projects on the party. Andnow these people came and offered Schleicher their collaboration!'Thank God, we're rid of the radicals . . . the party has become morerealistic' With these words the party's secret propaganda had been tryingfor some weeks to make the best of the Strasser catastrophe. There wasno more talk of revolution against the barons. Only a short time before,Hitler had rudely refused even to speak to Papen. Now Ribbentrop wasable to tell Papen that Hitler was extremely eager for an exchange ofopinions. False ideas about National Socialist aims must be dispelled.At this moment Papen may well have felt that he had succeeded, that hispolicy of education had been effective; Hitler was about to let himselfbe disciplined.On January 4, 1933, the two men met in Cologne at the house ofBaron Kurt von Schroeder, a National Socialist financier, part owner ofa banking house with a large share of Jewish capital. Schroeder was oneof the bankers of West German heavy industry, with a powerfulinfluence in the distribution of its political slush funds. Goring, who hadbeen on the outs with Papen since the clash in the Reichstag, wasabsent; tact forbade the presence of Goebbels, the mortal enemy of thebarons. Ribbentrop did not seem important enough to attend. On suchoccasions Hitler chose his escort with extreme care, as though to say:These are the men with whom I shall rule when the time comes. Thistime he chose Rudolf Hess and Heinrich Himmler, silent men endowedwith impressive self-control; but his most important companion was aman totally unknown to the public, the manufacturer Wilhelm Keppler.For some time Hitler had been consulting him in order to avoid the oldeconomic boners in his speeches. Keppler could explain with authorityand suitable technical phraseology that it was a gross error to identifythe party with every line in the program of the twenty-five points. Afterall, it was now not Feder, the author of the economic program, whoadvised the Leader, but he, Keppler; along with Strasser's otherplanners, the breaker of interest slavery had been shelved. A yearearlier, Hitler had spent two hours in