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Bell. Cold on a morgue slab in Durchholzen, Austria last week lay the body of Dr. George Bell. In the early days of Nazism, Dr. Bell was, with the notorious Count de Moulin Eckhardt, one of the intimates of the perverted Storm Troop Leader Capt. Ernst Roehm (TIME, March 20). While still in Nazi good graces he went to London" called according to rumor by Sir Henri Deterding who was currying favor with Adolf Hitler in the hope of winning oil contracts for Royal Dutch-Shell. Later came a break with Capt. Roehm. Dr. Bell was accused of being a traitor to the party, of printing Nazi secrets in a Munich Catholic paper,
The Straight Road. He fled to Austria.
Three weeks ago he telegraphed from Salzburg in terror, begging Capt. Roehm's forgiveness. There was no answer. Early last week two motor cars full of young Nazis found the village of Durchholzen where Dr. Bell was hiding. Servants at the inn heard a violent argument in his bedroom. Two Nazis came downstairs, went outside to confer with their friends. Suddenly the telephone line was cut. One huge young man with a pale face and staring eyes went back upstairs alone. There were shots in Dr. Bell's bedroom. A porter, rushing up in his green apron, was shot through the hip. Dr. Bell was dead, his roommate Major Hell severely wounded. The Nazis sped away.
Bears. Minister of Agriculture von Rohr sent an order to all German State Governments last week to forbid the entrance or performance of dancing bears in Germany. "These animals are often introduced by wandering gypsies," read the message, "and the tortures to which they are continually subjected offend German susceptibilities."
Mensuren. The desire to revive all the pomps and practices of pre-War Germany took a notable step forward last week when the Hitler Cabinet announced the restoration of all German orders, decorations and titles of nobility. New Nazi decorations are about to be established but they can only be bestowed by the President. Prussia will once more have a House of Peers. New Peers will be created by the Premier on behalf of the Chancellor—in other words Handsome Adolf, like Napoleon, will found his own aristocracy. The Governments of Prussia, Baden, Bavaria rescinded all Republican laws against mensuren, the bloody, rapier duels of German student corps. Wrote the Volkischer Beobachter:
"These measures will restore the sound, healthy idea that a man should take a weapon in his hand to avenge an insult instead of going before a judge and having his honor measured by legal paragraphs, as under the Republic."
Even under Kaiser Wilhelm's regime, grudge duelling, as distinct from the formalized slashing bouts of the corps students, was against the law and seriously punished.
Statthalters. One relic of the old Empire was definitely ended: the individual rights of German States. A four-pointed bill turned Germany last week from a loose confederation under Prussian domination to one of the most highly centralized governments in the world. It provided :
1) Abolition of parliamentary government in the States.
2) Creation of statthalters or viceroys to rule the States by appointment of Chancellor Hitler and responsible directly to Wilhelmstrasse.
3) The statthalters will appoint State Premiers who are to pick their own cabinets.