rise-and-fall-of-the-third-reich-william-shirer-pdf

548 THE RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICHthe government was in communication with France about a time limit to theirwarning to Germany.After thirty-nine hours of war in Poland the House of Commons was in nomood for such dilatory tactics. A smell of Munich seemed to emanate from thegovernment bench. ”Speak for England!” cried Leopold Amery from the Conservativebenches as the acting leader of the Labor Opposition, Arthur Greenwood,got up to talk.”I wonder how long we are prepared to vacillate,” said Greenwood, ”at atime when Britain and all that Britain stands for, and human civilization, arein peril . . . We must march with the French . . . ”That was the trouble. It was proving difficult at this moment to get theFrench to march. But so disturbed was Chamberlain at the angry mood of theHouse that he intervened in the sharp debate to plead that it took time to synchronize”thoughts and actions” by telephone with Paris. ”I should be horrifiedif the House thought for one moment,” he added, ”that the statement that 1have made to them betrayed the slightest weakening either of this Governmentor of the French Government.” He said he understood the French governmentwas ”in session at this moment” and that a communication would be receivedfrom it ”in the next few hours.” At any rate, he tried to assure the arousedmembers, ”I anticipate that there is only one answer I shall be able to give theHouse tomorrow . . . and I trust the House . . . will believe me that I speak incomplete good faith . . . ”The inexorable approach of the greatest ordeal in British history was announced,as Namier later wrote, ”in a singularly halting manner.”Chamberlain well understood, as the confidential British papers make clear,that he was in deep trouble with his own people and that at this critical momentfor his country his own government was in danger of being overthrown.As soon as he left the Commons he rang up Daladier. The time is recordedas 9:50 P.M. and Cadogan, listening in, made a minute of it for the record.CHAMBERLAIN: The situation here is very grave . . . There hasbeen an angry scene in the House . . . if France were to insist on fortyeighthours to run from midday tomorrow, it would be impossiblefor the Government to hold the situation here.The Prime Minister said he quite realized that it is France who mustbear the burden of a German attack. But he was convinced somestep must be taken this evening.He proposed a compromise . . . An ultimatum at 8 A.M. tomorrow. . . expiring at noon. . . .Daladier replied that unless British bombers were ready to act atonce it would be better for French to delay, if possible, for somehours attacks on German armies.Less than an hour later, at 10:30 P.M., Halifax rang up Bonnet. He urgedthe French to agree to the British compromise, an ultimatum to be presentedin Berlin at 8 A.M. on the morrow (September 3) and to expire at noon. TheFrench Foreign Minister not only would not agree, he protested to Halifax thatthe British insistence on such speed would create a ”deplorable impression.” Hedemanded that London wait at least until noon before presenting any ultimatumto Hitler.