Evening star., 1935-04-14
REICH INTERNAL POLITICS
GROWING MORE CHAOTIC
Reports Arriving Daily in Switzerland
Indicate Reign of Terror Is
Beginning Across Rhine.

Reichswehr's resistance to infiltration
of the s. A. and S. S. contingents,
even up to the present, has been re-
narkable.
But now that the Nazi government
proposes to double the size of the
Reichswehr, and to inaugurate hand
picked CONSUMPTION and compulsory
military service, it will be no time
before the Brownshirt veterans will
dominate. Hitler has evidently turned
the tables on the clique which Spon-
sored the Munich purge" of year
ago.
Still another significant develop
ment is the campaign against alleged
spies" Any one in Germany who is
critical of the Nazi regime is a po.
tential spy and is liable to a death
sentence in special tribunals. to which
there Is no appeal. The recent be-
heading of two German women
Baroness Renate Won Natmer and
Frau Won Falkenhayn-was not an
accident or isolated case. The Ger
mans completely forgot the Edith
Cavell incident in their brutality In
France, where espionage is a specially
heinous crime, the punishment in
peace time, for civilians, Is at worst
five years in prison. Already dozens
of Nazi opponents have been exc
cuted under the espionage law" The
case of Berthold Jacob, ex-German
newspaper man, who was forcibly
kidnapped inside Swiss territory and
taken to Germany, is an example of
the lengths the Nazi Secret Service
will go to get its man." The Incl
dent has had international repercus-
sions and were Switzerland not a
small and defenseless country it
would easily lead to aarupture of dip
lomatic relations. Violation of Swiss
neutrality or sovereignty is nothing
for Nazi Germany.
German newspaper men, even those
who seek to be friendly to the gov
ernment. are finding it hard to cleave
to the line delineated by Propaganda
Minister DR.. Joseph Goebbels, whose
demands become more and more ex-
acting. One of the latest veteran
journalists to feel the wrath of the
Nazis is DR.. Schaefer. editor in chief
of the well-known Koelnische Zei-
tung. DR.. Schaefer has been arrested
on charge Of having revealed-to
the detriment of the government
secret orders regarding political mat
tiers to the press. Schaefer's alleged
disclosures, it Is said, consisted in
taking orders" of the propaganda
ministry too seriously.
Refuse to Ease Up.
The recrudescence of intolerance
inside of Germany, at a time when
Hitler is admittedly on the crest of
the political wave. is bit difficult
to understand. With the opposition
completely crushed, with economic
conditions supposedly growing better,
with the population ''jazzed" up over
its new-found equality and arma-
ments liberty, it would be expected
that the Nazls would ease up. In
stead. the contrary has occurred.
If there is an undercurrent of op-
position in the Third Reich it is
not noticeable on the surface or to
outsiders. The monarchist move
ment. which few months ago was
considerable. seems to have subsidized.
such as the army, the police, the
civil services, the financial and eco
nomic machinery of the country
all are well under control of the
NaZis
Furthermore. there is no need to
stimulate, artificially, the passions of
the BrownShirts, as was the case when
the movement was in its infancy.
In foreign capitals great Importance
Is being attached to the masses of
raw materials which the Nazis are
importing. France has finally placed
an embargo on woods, cotton, certain
metals and exports that can be trans
formed into munitions. Germanys
nickel imports the past year greatly
exceeded the highest figures of pre-
war years. In Sweden, Denmark and
other Scandinavian countries German
traders have been buying live stock,
and especially horses. at prices far
above current quotations. Likewise,
cotton and wool purchased in North
ern France brought high premiums
until expectations were banned.
Either the Nazis are preparing for
hoStilities or they are anticipating a
crash in the German mark. In the
latter event the more Germany buys
now, with currency that is actually
hardly worth the paper upon which
it is printed, the better will be her
position when the crash comes.
Behind all the smoke that is camou-
faging events inside of Germany lies
an interesting story-a story which
soon will be revealed.