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

FRANCE IS TO BLAME 703and customs questions, of the competition between Polish and Germancoal and the importation of Polish agricultural products opposed byGerman farmers. But Hitler did not say a word about the fate of theGerman minorities in Poland.However, he did say a great deal about the fate of the people fromwhom he himself had sprung, the Austrians. 'The assertion that theGerman Reich intends to take over the Austrian state by force,' he said,'is absurd and cannot be proved.' The emphasis was on the words 'Reich'and 'state.' Hitler frankly acknowledged that National Socialisminvolved an international revolution and that Austria was a most logicalplace to start it. 'Of course, an idea that has taken hold of the entireGerman nation and stirred it to its depths is not going to halt at thefrontier posts of a country that is German by race.' Whether NationalSocialism was German or not, it reached across borders: 'But even apartfrom that, this case is not an isolated one if we consider that practicallyall intellectual and revolutionary movements in Europe have spreadbeyond the borders of their countries of origin. Thus, the ideas of theFrench Revolution filled the imagination of people all over theContinent regardless of frontiers. It was, therefore, quite natural for theAustrian Germans to take up the National Socialist idea in completeunity of spirit with the whole German people.' Germany, he went on,would gladly offer the Austrian government an opportunity for a fullagreement; but being an Austrian himself he knew the temper of hiscountrymen, and in his opinion the best thing the Austrian governmentcould do was to take a vote among its German people in order to proveto the whole world how well it was carrying out their wishes. In otherwords, Dollfuss should call an election and he would get the surprise ofhis life. 'I believe that I may say this much: no government that is keptin power by force alone can last forever.' In his excitement Hitler wentso far as to threaten Doll-fuss with murder in no uncertain terms if hedid not give in: 'Should the present Austrian government consider itnecessary to suppress this movement [National Socialism] by takingextreme measures and applying force, that is, of course, its ownbusiness. But then it must assume personal responsibility for theconsequences of its own policy and take what comes.'