could tell it to the men who were going to bring Freddi. Hugo said he had an appointment to
pay the money to a man in Munich at twenty o'clock, or 8:00 p.m. according to the American
way of stating it. Hugo was nervous about wandering around with such an unthinkable sum
in his pocket, so Lanny drove him up into the hills, where they looked at beautiful scenery. The
American quoted: "Where every prospect pleases and only man is vile." He didn't translate it for
his German friend.
Hugo had been talking to some of his party comrades in Munich, the birthplace of their
movement, and had picked up news which didn't get into the
was a terrible state of tension in the party; everybody appeared to be quarreling with everybody
else. Göring and Goebbels were at daggers drawn over the question of controlling policy—which,
Lanny understood, meant controlling Hitler's mind. Goebbels had announced a program of
compelling industry to share profits with the workers, and this, of course, was criminal to Göring
and his friends the industrialists. Just recently von Papen, still a Reichsminister, had made a
speech demanding freedom of the press to discuss all public questions, and Göring had
intervened and forbidden the publication of this speech. A day or two ago the man who was
said to have written the speech for the "gentleman jockey" had been arrested in Munich, and
the town was buzzing with gossip about the quarrel. It was rumored that a hundred and fifty of
Goebbels's personal guards had mutinied and been sent to a concentration camp. All sorts of
wild tales like this, and who knew what to believe?
They had come to the Tegernsee, a lovely mountain lake, and there was a road-sign, reading:
"Bad Wiessee, 7 km." Hugo said: "The papers report that Röhm is having his vacation there. I
hear he's had several conferences with the Führer in the past week or two, and they've had
terrible rows."
"What's the trouble between them?" inquired the gossip-hungry visitor.
"The same old story. Röhm and his friends want the original party program carried out.
Now, of course, he's wild over the idea of having his Stormtroopers disbanded."
Lanny could credit the latter motive, if not the former. He had heard the red-headed Chief of
Staff speak at one of the Nazi
tough military adventurer, untroubled by social ideals. Perhaps that was due in part to his
battle-scars, the upper part of his nose having been shot away! Röhm wanted the powers of his
Brownshirts increased, and naturally would fight desperately against having them wiped out.
Seven kilometers was nothing, so Lanny turned his car in the direction indicated by the sign.
A lovely little village with tree-shaded streets, and cottages on the lakefront. In front of one
of the largest, and also of the Gasthaus Heinzlbauer, were parked a great many fancy cars.
Hugo said: "They must be having a conference. Only our leaders can afford cars like those." The
note of bitterness indicated that he didn't trust his new Führer much more than his old.
"Do you know him?" asked Lanny.
"I know one of the staff members in Berlin, and he has told the Chief that I am working on
his behalf."
"Would you like to go in and meet him?"
"Do
"No; but I thought he might be interested to meet an American art expert."
strongest suit. "I really don't think he has much time to think about art right now!"
"He might take a fancy to a magnificent young athlete like yourself, Hugo."
"
It seemed almost blasphemy to talk about this subject while under the shadow of Röhm and
his entourage; but when the American put the question point blank, Hugo admitted that he
had heard about the habits of the Sturmabteilung Chief of Staff. Everybody in Germany knew
about them, for Hauptmann Röhm, while acting as a military instructor in Bolivia, had written
a series of letters home admitting his abnormal tastes, and these letters had been published in
the German press. Now, said Hugo, his enemies gave that as the reason for not taking him and
his staff into the regular army. "As if the Reichswehr officers were lily-white saints!" exclaimed
the S.A. man.
XI
Back in the city, Lanny took a long walk in the Englischer Garten, going over his plans and
trying to make all possible mistakes in advance. Then he went back and read the co-ordinated
newspapers, and picked up hints of the struggle going on—you could find them if you were an
insider. It looked very much as if the N.S.D.A.P. was going to split itself to pieces. Lanny was
tempted by the idea that if he waited a few days, Freddi Robin might come out from Dachau
with a brass band leading the way!
At the appointed hour Jerry Pendleton called; he was rolling on, and all was well. It was slow