Evening star., 1939-07-07
Ex-German Official
Says -Four Powers
Could Gust Hitler
Prestige Is Bosed on
Intimidoting Demoerocies
SoIImun Believes
~ the Associated Press.

fIelCQSIdS anu HllIllSleI VI GIle III
terror in the cabinet of Chancellor
Stresemann, predicted today wise
craftsmanship on the part Of Great
Britain, France, Russia and the
United States could precipitate a
domestic crisis in Gremany that
could force Hitler out of power.
Speaking before the University of
Virginia's Institute of Public At
fairs, Mr.. Sollmann said many Ger
man leaders were convinced that
Germany was on the road to catas-
trophe-not to greater world power
and added, "Hitler's prestige is based
on his achievements by initmidating
the Western democracies. His pres
tige will decrease and vanish if his
methods will be no longer success
full"
Walter LichtenStein. secretary of
the Federal Advisory Council of the
Federal Reserve System in Illinois
and vice president of the First
National Bank of Chicago, told the
institute the current low interest
rates in this country menace the
safety of our whole banking struc-
ture."
Menace to Industry.
Business stagnation, he said, had
prompted banks to invest undue
proportions" of their funds in bonds
and that a sudden change in the
yield on securities would threaten
to impair the capital structure of
the banking system of this coun-
try, and might even 60 so far as
to prove a menace to private In
dustry."
He said he doubted if private
business, as a whole, could survive
another widespread banking panic.
Percy w. Bidwell, director of
studies for the Council on Foreign
Relations, Inc, of New York, told
the Institutes section on national
affairs that control of the American
trade policy was vested in Congress,
the Treasury and in the President
Congress, although not willing to
act itself, has intrusted to the Presi-
dent, either directly or incidentally
WluC pOWClS "lllSll llC oOClllo W NC
not reluctant to use. CuriouSly
enough. the cry of dictatorship
which has been raised against the
wide use Of presidential powers in
domestic affairs does not so often
arise when he uses corresponding
powers in foreign affairs"
Might Get Out of Line.
His address, he said, was not con-
cerned with abstruse questions of
democracy or dictatorship, but lit
is, however, worth while to inquire
whether an aggressive President,
fully provided with economic
weapons, might not develop a policy
in foreign affairs to a point where
1t would be ou+ of line with the
predominant opinion in Congress
and in the country"
Mr. Sollmann told the institutes S
foreign affairs section that ''unfor-
tunately' peaceful cooperation be-
tween Hitler and Germany and her
southeastern neighbors would be
impossible for financial and political
reasons.
On the financial side. he said, the
NaA system has destroyed the basis
of free money exchange between
Germany and the rest of the world.
1t has severed the German economic
and financial system from countries
with free, liberal systems of cur
rency and economy exactly as Boil
shevist Russia did. Hitler Germany
is unable to pay in gold or foreign
bills for her imports. Therefore, she
develops a barter system.
This is not basis for lasting
peaceful cooperation on equal
rights"
On the other hand, he pointed out,
much more important is that Nazi
Germany does not want peaceful
cooperation on equal rights with
the Southeastern countries. Nazi
Germany intends to subjugate those
countries to make Germany
as strong as possible for a future
war and to prevent Germanys enc
mics from any possibility of block
aiding the Reich
1N1i oOllIlicAlll oa1o NCl SOuIu
never rule the oceans against the
combined sea power of Great Brit
ain and France, but that she could
control and exploit Eastern Europe
during war if those countries were
under Germany's military rulership
The former member of the Reich
stag said If "a program of recon-
struction of Europe is combined
with firm resolution not to capitu-
late to blackmailers" and if the in
dependence of smaller nations is not
sacrificed "for the creation of an
overwhelming German empire, =
the development in the next years
may prove that it is possible to
wreck relationships by strong re-
sistance without war;
Hits L. S. Aid to Japan.
Senator Schwellenbach, Democrat.
OF Washington, asserted last night
that the United States, for the
filthy profits involved" was aiding
and cooperating in the destruction
OF China by Japan.
so far as China and Japan are
concerned" he said, "it iSl't matter
OF us getting into the War-we al
ready are in the war.
We are in the war in violation
OF treaty which we signed with
China) in order to gain an advan-
tage which we sought. The back
ground OF our relations with China
should make that treaty the most
sacred Of any written"
Col. Theodore Roosevelt, ir
former Assistant Secretary of the
Navy and one-time governor gen.
eral Of the Philippines, speaking on
the same program with Senator
Schwellenbach, expressed the belief
America should not join with anv
other nations in any scheme for COL
lective security in an effort to pre-
serve the peace of the world.
Il do not believe in benevolent
meddling." Col. Roosevelt said. One
step invariably leads to another, and
If we take the first step we must
be prepared to take the last"
EcfndEcbo1 10 Y,,~c H.