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deeper into the pit. The existing government had no popular support, but was run by the

Herren Klub, an organization of big business men, aristocrats, and "office generals," having

some twenty branches throughout Germany. Its two most active politicians were Chancellor von

Papen and General von Schleicher, and they were supposed to be colleagues, but neither could

trust the other out of his sight. Now Papen was in office, and Schleicher was trading secretly

with the Nazis for their support to turn him out. Nobody could trust anybody, except the

eighty-five-year-old monument of the Junkerdom, General von Hindenburg. Poor alte Herr,

when the burdens of state were dumped upon him he could only answer: "Ich will meine Ruhe

haben!"— I must have my rest.

Johannes judged it certain that the Nazis would make heavy gains at the coming elections,

but he refused to worry about this. He had several of them on his payroll, but what he counted

upon most was the fact that Hitler had gone to Dusseldorf and had a long session with

Thyssen and other magnates of the Ruhr. They wanted the Red labor unions put down, and

Hitler had satisfied them that he was ready to do the job. You might fool one or two of those

tough steelmen, but not many; they knew politicians, and dealt with one crop after another; it

was part of the game of conducting industry in a world full of parliaments and parties. A

nuisance, but you learned to judge men and saw to it that none got into power who couldn't be

trusted. The same thing applied to the great landlords of Prussia; they wanted above all things

a bulwark against Bolshevism, and were willing to pay a heavy price for that service. These two

powers, the industrialists of the west and the landed gentry of the east, had governed Germany

since the days of Bismarck and would go on doing so.

"But aren't you afraid of Hitler's anti-Semitism?" asked Lanny.

"Herrgott!" exclaimed the owner of the Bessie Budd. "I was brought up in the midst of

pogroms, and what could I do then? It is said that there once lived a Jew called Jesus, and

other Jews had him executed by the Romans; such things happened ten thousand times, no

doubt; but because of this one time my poor people have to be spat upon and clubbed and

stabbed to death. What can any of us do, except to pray that it will not break out in the street

where we live?"

"But they threaten it wholesale, Johannes!"

"It is a means of getting power in a world where people are distracted and must have some

one to blame. I can only hope that if ever the Nazis come into office they will have real

problems to deal with, so that the spotlight will be turned away from my unfortunate people."

IV

Irma had voted to keep out of German political affairs, but that couldn't be arranged entirely.

There was the workers' school, in which Freddi was so deeply interested, and which had been

more or less modeled upon Lanny's own project. When they came back to Berlin Lanny's wife

played bridge while he went with Freddi and Rahel to a reception at which he met the

teachers and friends of the enterprise, heard its problems discussed, and told them how things

were going in the Midi.

In his way of thinking Lanny was nearer to these young Socialists than to any other group;

yet what a variety of opinion there was among them, and how difficult to get them together on

any program of action! A few days before the election the von Papen government had effected

a coup d'Etat in the state of Prussia, which includes Berlin; the premier and the principal

officials, all Social-Democrats, were turned out of office and threatened with arrest if they

attempted to resist—which they did so feebly that it amounted to submission. As a result,

the Socialists were buzzing like a swarm of bees whose hive has been upset; but alas, they

appeared to be bees which had lost their stingers! The Communists had proposed a general

strike of the workers and called upon the Socialists to co-operate with them; but how could

anybody cooperate with Communists? They would take advantage of an uprising to seize the

reins themselves; they would turn upon their allies as they had done with Kerensky in Russia.

The Socialists were more in fear of the Communists than of the reactionaries; they were

afraid of acting like Communists, of looking like Communists, of being called Communists.

So the Cabinet of the Barons seized control of the Berlin police and all the other powers of

the local government. How different it had been twelve years ago during the "Kapp Putsch"!

Then the workers hadn't waited for their leaders, they had known instantly what to do—drop

their tools and come into the streets and show their power. But now, apparently, they had lost

interest in the Republic. What good had it done them these twelve years? It couldn't prevent

hard times and unemployment, it couldn't even make promises any more! It was so chained by

its own notions of legality that it couldn't resist the illegality of others.