replying that he had reason to hope matters would soon be straightened out, and that he had
been asked to consider it confidential. Emil accepted this just as Heinrich had; all good
Germans would accept it.
Emil talked freely about the new
its orders because that was the duty of an army officer. Now Adolf Hitler had become his
Commander-in-chief, and it was necessary to obey him, however one might privately dislike his
manners. But Emil was sure that the stories of abuse of power had been greatly exaggerated, and
for malicious purposes. There were bound to be excesses in any governmental overturn; the
essential thing was that Germany had been saved from the clutches of the Reds, and every
civilized person owed the new Chancellor a debt of gratitude for that. Lanny indulged in no
Pink arguments, but said that he and his wife had been greatly impressed by what they had
found in the country.
They waited late for a call from Freddi, but none came, and they went to bed speculating
about it. Doubtless he was avoiding risks, and perhaps also afraid of bothering them; but it was
too bad they couldn't give him the news which would so greatly relieve his mind. Lanny was
prepared to state that he had come upon a wonderful Bouguereau!
Morning came, and the papers had editorials about the case of the Jewish
Hitlerland all news stories were editorials, and were full of rancid hatred and venomous
threats. At last the sneaking traitors were feeling the stern hand of the law; at last the vile
Semitic parasites were being shaken from the fair body of Germania!
especially exultant. Here was proof to all the world that National Socialism meant what it said,
that the stealthy influence of the Jewish plutocracy was no longer to rule the Fatherland!
Lanny translated the words, which really seemed insane in their virulence. "Mr. Mouth doesn't
sound so pleasant in print," he remarked.
Breakfast, and still no call from Freddi. They didn't like to go out until they had heard from
him. Irma had her hair dressed and got a manicure; Lanny read a little, wrote a few notes,
roamed about, and worried. They had a luncheon engagement at the Berlin home of General Graf
Stubendorf, and they had to go. Irma said: "Clarinet can call again; or he can drop us a note."
Driving to the palace, they were free to discuss the various possibilities. Goring might have had
Freddi arrested; or the Brownshirts might have picked him up, without Goring's knowing
anything about it. Freddi was a Jew and a Socialist, and either was enough. Irma suggested:
"Mightn't it be that Goring wants to keep the whole family in his hands until he's ready to put
them out?"
"Anything is possible," said Lanny; "except that I can't imagine Freddi delaying this long to
call us if he is free."
It rather spoiled their lunch. To tell the truth it wasn't an especially good lunch, or very good
company—unless it was enough for you to know that you were the guest of a high-up Junker.
The General Graf's attitude was the same as Emil's; he was a cog in the Reichswehr machine, and
he obeyed orders. His special concern was getting his home district out of the clutches of the
Poles; he knew that Lanny sympathized with this aim, but even so, he could talk about it only
guardedly, for the Chancellor had given the cue by a pacific speech, so it was the duty of good
Germans to let the subject of boundary lines rest and to concentrate on the right of the
Fatherland to equality of armaments. Having expressed regret over the plight of Lanny's
Jewish relative, the General Graf Stubendorf talked about other friends, and about the
condition of his crops and the market for them, and what did Lanny's father think about the
prospects for world recovery?
Lanny answered with one part of his mind, while the other part was thinking: "I wonder if
Freddi is calling now!"
But Freddi wasn't calling.
19
I
WHEN Mr. and Mrs. Irma Barnes had visited Berlin a year previously, they had been the
darlings of the smart set, and all the important people had been glad to entertain them. But
now the social weather had changed; a thunderstorm was raging, and nobody could be sure
where the lightning might strike. The story of Johannes Robin was known to the whole town;
and who could guess what confessions he might have made, or what might have been found in
his papers? Many persons have dealings with moneylenders which they don't care to have
become known. Many have affairs of various sorts which they prefer not to have looked into by
the Secret State Police, and they carefully avoid anyone who might be under surveillance by
that dreaded body.
Moreover, Irma and Lanny were worried, and when you are worried you are not very good
company. Another day passed, and another, and they became certain that something terrible
must have happened to Freddi. Of course he might have been knocked down by a truck, or
