Evening star., 1932-06-02
BY EMIL LENGYEL.

BY EMIL LENGYEL.
Special Dispatch TO The Star.
NEW YORK. June '(N.AN.AD.-
The unexpected withdrawal of President
Won HindenburgS confidence from Chan
cellor Heinrich Bruening and the COM
mlsSionins Of Lieut.. Col. Franz Won
Papen, former military attachc at WASH
lngton, to form national concentration
cabinet, Is not the puzzle 1t seems to be
a first blush. 1t merely represents a
logical consequence of events that have
taken place in postwar Germany
In dramatic suddenness the event re-
minds observers of the former En-
peror's dismissal of Prince Bismarck, the
iron chancellor. although most of the
attending circumstances are entirely
different.
The boldness of the Presidents ac-
ton makes one think of a coup d'etat,
although it lacks the violation of the
fundamental law. The change means
that governmental power in Germany
has reverted. temporarily at least. to
those who held it for many years both
before and after the war: the Mill
tarists and the Junkers.
The new masters propose to rule
against the Socialists Communists and
Liberals. They will rule even against
Hitler's National Socialists, II possible
or with them provided developments in
the. Reich demonstrate the impossi-
blllty of ruling without their help.
Seemed Twin Brothers.
= For the last two years President Won
Hindenburg and Chancellor BrueninR
have appeared to the world as political
twin brothers. They ruled IN the hope
of averting the reign Of the Communists
or of the HVlerites. The question was
whether they could hold Germany to
a middle course until the catastropl1al
economic crises showed some signs of
abatement.
Although the President and his
chancellor insisted on the eXternals of
parliamentarism their method was die
tatorlal. They ruled mostly by means
of presidential DEGREES under article 48
OF the WeImar constitution. The gov
ernment maintained that these DEGREES
were necessitated by national emer-
gepcies, as prescribed by law, whereas
the opposition maintained the opposite
view.
Hndenburg has now decided that a
new course has become imperative. He
spent the last few weeks at his estate in
Eastern Prussia, where he renewed close
contact with his neighbors, the scions
OF old Junker families and the consery-
atire landed magnates. They convinced
him, evidently. that the Bruening gov
ernment-composed of the moderate
parties. which in the eyes of militant
East Prussians are ne early as bad as the
extreme Reds-waS leading the country
into disaster
Feared Loss Of Lands.
This they could maintain all the more
because the disaster of their own for
tunes would have been inevitable il
Bruenlng had had his way in parceling
out the mammoth estates among the
land,ess proletsriat Of the East. Such
measure. however. needed the consen:
of the president, which Hindenburg
promptly refused.
The Junkers showed the president the
danger Of letting Germany's destiny be
guided by government which was at
the mercy of the Socialists. They urged
on him their point Of view that the un-
derground work of the Hitlerites and
the Communists might impair the eff
cheney OF the army just at the time
when East Prussia is in mortal fear Of
an attack on Danzig. a free city by the
will of the great powers and a German
city by the will of its citizens.
President Won Hindenburg, over 80
years old, naturally no longer has the
fighting mood of his former chancellor,
a much younger man in years and in
spirit, and thus he yielded to the rep
resentatlons Of the Nationalists The
advanced age of the president, there
fore, becomes vital factor in a situa-
ton dependent on rapidly changing
conditions.
Why Franz Won Papen should have
been selected to form the government
at the very time when GERMANY is
IN great need of the sympathy of
Great Britain and the United States
IS one of those mysteries for whicn
1t will be difficult to find an explana-
ton
The Lausanne Conference. which en-
Nghtened world opinion had hoped
would do something toward solving the
pronlem OF reparations. will undoubted-
ly feel the repercussions of this choice,
Extreme Nationalist Cabinet.
Herr Won Papen will head a cabinet
consisting of generals industrialists
and landed magnateS of the extreme
Nationalist faith. 1t will be a govern
ment which would have caused no
surprise under the rule of the former
emperor
Although the majority Of the cabinet
no doubt will be sentimental monarch
1sts-as nea1y all iunkers are-they
Will be true to the oath of the republic,
as monarchism is dead issue In the
Germany of today. They are capitaI-
lists and they will fight the Socialists
and the Communists to the last ditch.
They will even fight those few radical
articles of faith which the Hitlerites
have retained.
Ihe Papen government, or any gov
ernment Of the same type. will adhere
10 the pledge OF Bruening that Ger
many cannot and will not pay repara-
tions, but that she will pay her .pri-
vate debts to her foreign creditors. pro-
Vlded she can find the money. It will
concentrate its foreign policy on Ger
many's Eastern frontier. in which the
Junkers are more directly interested.
Toward France, according to present
indications, 1t will assume a policy of
Watchful waiting tinged with a gen.
erous amount Of suspicion
; What will the parties of the opposi-
tion do? The Socialists will now be
relieved OF their obligation to support
q government-that of Bruening
which they had no love, for fear of
having to oppose a government-that
Of Hitler-for which they would have
had nothing but hatred The Commu-
nists will be stimulated to intran-
sigent opposition. They may go to the
worst extremes unless the Government
decides on policy of ruthless suppress
sion, of which it is quite capable.
The Nazis will be in a quandary. They
Will have either to support the govern
ment or to display toward 1t an atti-
tudes of benevolent neutrality. BY do
ing so they may lose much Of their
revolutionary punch and thereby for
felt much Of their popularity. The
present government wants to remain
in power either with Hitler, but. pref
erably, without him. Hitler. on the
other hand, wants the power all for
himself
The outcome of the struggle will de-
pend on the economic situation. A re-
convalescent Germany will be patient
with almost any government, while a