No matter what brutalities they might commit nor how queerly they might act, Nazi Storm Troop leaders under Adolf Hitler have always banked on his reputation of never letting an old comrade down.
Compared to the refined abruptness of Benito Mussolini or the violence of Josef Stalin in disposing of defective political tools, Adolf Hitler was, until last week, the Gentle Dictator. The accepted Brown House axiom "Once your friend. Der Führer is always your friend!" remained a potent Storm Troop recruiting slogan. One had only to scan the greedy, sensual, plug-ugly face of Storm Troop Chief of Staff Ernst Roehm; one had only to reflect that all Germany knew of his bull-like philandering with effeminate young men (TIME, March 20, 1933), to decide that since Chancellor Hitler stomached Captain Roehm there was probably no comrade he would not stomach. Historically last week Adolf Hitler retched at last and in his retching there was blood.
Fatefully the smudge-mustached little Chancellor left Berlin by air one day last week for Essen, deep plans and savage suspicions gyrating in his brain. With him flew spectacular Reichsminister General Hermann Wilhelm Göring, the bull-necked Nazi war ace who controls Prussia's Secret Police. They discussed recent Nazi squabbles in Berlin which to both seemed disgraceful — and ominous.
The trouble involved Germany's three unofficial armies: the 2,500,000 common S. A. Storm Troops in brown uniforms; the 200,000 S. S. Storm Troops in black uniforms who constitute the picked, super-drilled Nazi Praetorian Guard; and the 200,000 grey-clad Stahlhelm or war veterans organized and led by onetime Soda-water Tycoon Col. Franz Seldte.
By order of Chancellor Hitler the S. A. boys were to turn in their uniforms July 1 and take a month's vacation. Already on vacation was Storm Troop Chief of Staff Ernst Roehm at his rustic snuggery near Munich. But in Berlin his sub-comrades kept pestering the Chancellor with demands that he dissolve the rival Stahl helm. Despite the fact that Storm Troopers hooted at Stahlhelm Leader Seldte and stoned his bodyguards a few weeks ago the Storm Troopers based their demand on the obscure stabbing of one of their district leaders by a Stahlhelm official in Pomerania. When Herr Hitler refused last week to dissolve the Stahl helm and accorded Col. Seldte a friendly audience Berlin Storm Troop leaders were stupid enough to mutter openly against Der Führer and arouse the suspicions of General Göring's Secret Police.
In flight with Hitler to Essen, Göring showed Hitler certain other suspicious evidence gathered by his Secret Police. The Chancellor and the General then conferred with one of the Nazi Party's earliest and richest backers, Dr. Gustav Krupp von Bohlen and Halbach who led Der Führer proudly through the Krupp Works. Chancellor Hitler, after inspecting Westphalian labor camps, flew on to Bonn. General Göring flew back to Berlin. "Have my plane made ready," he commanded mysteriously.