Der Fuehrer - Hitler's Rise to Power (1944) - Heiden

THF UPROOTED AND DISINHERITED 315ganda for long years hardly kindled a flame, if it netted plenty ofbeatings and defeats, the leader of the beaten men consoled himself withthe thought that such bitter trials would separate 'the nation's newnobility from nature's mass production.'It will always remain one of Hitler's strongest gifts that he knew bowto learn from his enemy: 'Let us glance at the development of Marxismin Germany!' he cried out a year later at the second of the NurembergParty Days. 'Wherever a revolt takes place, it is always againstweakness and never against strength. Marxism created a community offorce-filled men. . . . Where force, determination, boldness, ruthlessness— where these qualities are harnessed to the service of a bad cause, theycan overthrow the state. The presupposition is a demand which itself inturn demands force of the individual. . . . For the individual is eager toprove his strength, quite regardless where he is placed. That is whygreat movements in world history have been able to conquer despiteapparently insuperable obstacles, despite economic interests, despite thepressure of public opinion, even despite reason if it is feeblyrepresented.'That is the secret. 'Therein lies the future of our movement,' he criesout, confident of victory, 'that slowly, imperturbably, by this process weassemble the historic minority which in Germany perhaps willconstitute six to eight hundred thousand men. If you have these menunited as the membership of a movement, you have created the center ofgravity of the state. If I regard our development up to now, I note thefollowing: First, our program passes as radical, and weak men are afraidto come to us because of the radicalism of our ideas. Second, the regimeoppresses us with all the means at its disposal, for it sees the dangerinherent in the fact that the human material assembling with us is thebest that Germany possesses. As long as this continues, and only themore courageous espouse our cause, we are on the right track and aremarching toward victory with an iron firmness. . . .'A confident prophecy, yet heavy with anxious foreboding. For Hitlercontinued: 'If the great mass were to join us with cries of hurrah, weshould be in a sad state. That is why we distinguish between membersand supporters. The supporters are the entire German people, themembers six to eight hundred thousand. That