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

728 DER FUEHRERThe National Socialist financial backers now also came forward withtheir claims; the rich people who had supported the party during hardtimes and had helped the party leaders in many a financial strait, oftenenough by methods which involved cheating the state of taxes. Severalbig firms were threatened with proceedings for tax frauds; but now itturned out that the little favors done for Goring had been a goodinvestment. The businessmen came to him complaining: of course, theyhad defrauded the state, but only in order to save their enterprises andgive their workers a livelihood. Goring listened to them without wincingand wrote to Kerrl, his Minister of Justice, that in former times inbusiness actions were committed 'which, although they violated penallaw, were not inspired by selfish motives. The Bolshevistic taxes of thedemocratic state often compelled people, in the interest of preservingtheir enterprises, to enter upon paths which were not permissible from alegal point of view, but which are comprehensible in the light of theconditions prevailing at that time, especially as the rigorous economicconceptions of National Socialism had not yet become the common possessionof all circles of our nation. The indiscriminate prosecution ofsuch offenses might often affect persons who, imbued with the spirit ofthe National Socialist revolution, are now willing to collaborate in thedevelopment of our economy.'In thus breaking the law and saving millions for the big businessmenat the expense of the state, Goring again collected his share of the bootyin the form of tens and hundreds of thousands of marks. From a largedepartment store with a Jewish name he bought old furniture andprecious rugs without ever paying for them; a Jewish super-marketenjoyed the dubious privilege of delivering wines and delicacies to himgratis for years. In 1935, when he married, he said in an affable way toone of the best-known German industrialists that the Prussian statemanufacture of porcelain had a valuable table service worth sixtythousand marks for sale, and that it would really be a nice gesture if thisindustrialist presented it to him as a wedding gift. The man thus calledupon to make a princely gift was not particularly surprised; two yearsearlier, during a conversation about the new Minister, Goring, he hadheard a business acquaintance whisper rapturously, 'He accepts gifts!'The sixty thousand marks' worth of porcelain was bought and given.