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

CHANCELLOR AT LAST 523All the same, the Cologne meeting did not immediately halt thedecline of the National Socialist Party; it did not bring the politicalcompromise that was so sorely needed. Schleicher had got wind of themeeting and accused Papen of acting behind his back. Papen repliedthat, on the contrary, he had been trying to do him a service, that Hitlerwas now ready for an understanding. But when Papen came out with thesuggestion of making Stuelpnagel Reichs-wehr Minister, Schleicherflatly refused.And so, from the purely political point of view, Hitler had merelygained the meager knowledge that he could, if he pleased, overthrowSchleicher with the help of the Communists, though the resultapparently would be a new Papen government. Meanwhile, theundisciplined party was continuing to crumble away beneath his feet. Inthe Bavarian province of Franconia, nearly the whole S.A. mutinied,with its group leader Stegmann at its head. The mutineers accusedGauleiter Streicher of embezzling funds due to the S.A. leadership, andrevealed interesting particulars of Strei-cher's private life, from his 'nudeculture' to his friendships with ex-convicts. Rohm was obliged to returnin haste from Capri, where he was spending platonic vacation days withhis friend Count Wolf Helldorf. With the help of the new funds, themost dangerous breaches were hastily mended, a number of Stegmann'ssubordinates were bribed and bought back, and the golden rain thatbegan to fall after the middle of January soon soothed rebellious spiritsthroughout the country. Whether the calm would last if the party did notsoon come to power was uncertain. The speedy fall of Schleicherremained a question of life and death for Hitler.It still looked as if the National Socialists would scarcely survive theblow of Strasser's entrance into the cabinet. Hitler, Goebbels, and theNational Socialist deputy Kerrl were gathered in their castle in the stateof Lippe; on January 13, Goring arrived with the terrifying news thatStrasser was soon to enter the cabinet; 'only a great success in the Lippecampaign can save us from this dangerous situation,' wrote Goebbels inhis diary.Suddenly another, almost equally dangerous enemy, attacked them inthe rear: Hugenberg. The leader of the German Nationalist Party, ownerof the largest German newspaper and film trust,