The Washington times., 1934-07-02
BY II. II. KNICKERBOCKER
international News Service Staff
Correspondents


Correspondent
BERLIN, July 2 UNS0.-Hit
Ter has shot his best friend. Hitler
has shot the only man in the Nazi
party who was intimate enough
to call him Thou" Hitler has
shot eight Of his closest onetime
friends. He has shot too, his
most DANGEROUS enemy. Hitler
whom the world called a 'tSoftie,'
whom outsiders thought q sissy
has become overnight the Robe
SPHERE of the Nazi revolution.
In the flame Of fury against
disloyalty and worse, Hitler has
begun to kill like Robespierre
1.-THE tncorruptible." He has sent
his bullets against men, who
former friends or not, aroused his
fanatic moral conscience.
What Of the End
Nazis now have begun to kill
each other. But Robespierre met
the same fate he dealt his enemies
and today Germany asks where
when, and with whom will the
killing stop.
No invention Of a fiction writer
could equal the wildly improbable
melodrama Of the last 48 hours
events in Germany. Picture it
Hitler on Thursday peacefully at
tends the wedding Of a Nazi
underling in Essen.
On Friday night, Hitler in the
ancient university town Of Bonn
received the word which he al
first refuses to believe. But
Goering's secret police pile damn
ing evidence before him that hi:
best friend, Capt. Ernst Roehm
head Of all the 100000 storm
troops together, with half 9
dozen Of Hitler's Oldest collabora
tors, was planning revolt.
Goes To Munich
At midnight, Hitler takes ar
airplane from Bonn, arrives al
Munich at 4 o'clock Saturday
morning. There he learns the
whereabouts of Roehm, his best
friend. Roehm is the only mar
in the party who exchanges with
Hitler that all important intimate
''Du," which means they have
drunk "blood brotherhood" to
sether and regard themselves AZ
brothers.
Captain Roehm is in Wiesset
village outside of Munich. There
Roehm has set up secret head
quarters for his conspiracy X
force Hitler to make "the seconc
revolution" Captain Roehm wants
real socialism. He wants some
thing very much like BolsheviSm
He wants it and he has 1000 ,O0C
brown-Shirted storm trooper!
under his immediate command
Hitler is. commander in chief o.
the storm troops. but Roehm il
his chief Of staff and gives thu
orders.
Surprises Two Aides
Hitler learns Roehm plans K
force his hand and failing tina
to arrest him. He knows thai
Captain Roehm has a large force
of gunner with him. Neverthe
less at 4 o'clock Saturday morning
Hitler daShes out Of Munich II
a .motorcar with only his two
most trusted bodyguards anc
makes for WieSSe.
There just before 6 o'clock a.
dawn breaks they pull up befor'
the small cottage. Hitler enters i
alone. In one room he finds Cap
tain Roehm asleep. In another
he finds the huge brutal figure
Of Heines, head of the storm
troops and police chief Of Breslau
who was convicted Of murde,
under the republic and since Hit
Ter named him, has been boss O
terrorized Germany.
Sees With Own Eyes
Both men, so official commu
niques intimate, were found il
compromising positions. Boil
men were notorious for their ah
normal tendencies. The wording
from official statements can NEAR
but one thing.
Hitler has often been suspected
has often been falsely accuses
abroad Of being abnormal himself
This is not true. Hitler is aScetiC
He is in fact and in the technica
sense Of the word, innocent. F'o7
q decade he has protected Captain
Roehm against charges only to-
well founded. Now with his owl