Fire and Steel, Volume 3 Read online

  The reaction was explosive. Men were on their feet again, shouting and shaking their fists. Wow! Hans thought. Talk about striking a nerve. Fury rocked the hall, and had it been aimed at them, Hans would have been frightened.

  “Here’s another thing our party shall demand. Our current government talks much about educating the masses, about providing schools in poor neighborhoods. But we say, improve the standard of living of the masses so that the poor neighborhoods are automatically eliminated, and the education of their children will naturally follow. We say that the role of government is to create the economic conditions that will enable everyone to share equally in the cultural life of our nation. And I tell you this: our party will not tolerate a government who gives bread crumbs to the poor and asks them to be patient. We say, ‘The poor have been patient long enough! Poison can only be overcome with counter-poison. The kingdom cannot be achieved through compromise.’ No, I say. Forever no!”

  And with that, as every man shot out of his chair and wildly applauded, Adolf raised a hand in a brief wave and returned to his chair and sat down.

  8:46 p.m.

  Hans watched the group pressing in upon them, standing back for now, not wanting to intrude. He was standing with Heinrich Eckart and Ernst Roehm. Adolf and Herr Harrer were engaged with a crowd of men pressing in around them. With all the noise in the room, Hans couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he didn’t need to. The men were not talking to Harrer. They were reaching out and shaking Adolf’s hand, pounding him on the shoulders as they yelled into his ear. Even Harrer, who had argued that Adolf was not an effective orator, was beaming happily.

  Gradually the crowd began to thin. Harrer finally turned his head and saw the three of them waiting and watching and waved them over. Hans, being junior to both the others in terms of membership, fell in behind them. As they approached, Harrer spoke. “Yes? Is there a problem?”

  It was Eckart who replied. “Karl, we have tallied the contributions and thought you might like a report.”

  He waved a hand. “Ja, ja. Of course. How did we do?”

  Hans stepped forward. “Wait a moment. Adolf is going to want to hear this too.” And without waiting for their response, he stepped over to Adolf, who was listening to a man giving him advice on what things they needed to put in the party platform. “Excuse me, Herr Hitler,” Hans said politely. “But the chairman needs you for a minute.” Looking relieved, Adolf shook the man’s hand and came over to join them. Hans explained to him that they were about to get a report on the contributions.

  “All right,” Harrer said as they came up. “How much did we take in?”

  Eckart’s eyes were dancing with excitement. “Just over three hundred marks!”

  Adolf’s and Harrer’s reactions were almost identical. Their eyes widened and their mouths fell open. “Three hundred?” Adolf cried. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, Adolf,” Roehm exclaimed. “It was brilliant of you to warn them beforehand that we were going to solicit contributions afterward.”

  “Ja,” Harrer rumbled happily. “Incredible! This puts us on a firm footing financially. Well done, Adolf. Well done.”

  Almost bashfully, Adolf nodded, accepting the accolades. Then he looked at Hans. “And you, O graduate from the Von Kruger Academy, what did you think of tonight?”

  Hans smiled lazily. “To be honest, and with apologies to Herr Harrer, I don’t think the word incredible does full justice to what we have witnessed here tonight.”

  Chapter Notes

  No specific date is given for the meeting described here, but it was almost certainly early in 1920. It also is not clear at exactly what point Hitler was made the Propaganda Officer for the party, but it too was early on.

  No mention is made of what the professor spoke about, so his topic was my creation. Likewise, Hitler’s introductory “warm-up” remarks are mine. But the rest of his philosophy as given here is an abbreviated version from his own account of that day (see Mein Kampf, 146–54).

  Hitler says that his words were well received, but the best evidence of how the people responded was the three hundred marks given in donations afterward. This became an important turning point for the movement, giving them sufficient funds to begin to implement their program. It also clearly established Hitler as a dominant force in the fledgling party.

  February 22, 1920, 11:22 a.m.—Munich LDS Branch meetinghouse

  Inga was sitting between Paula’s family and Emilee and baby Alisa. Next to Emilee were her mother and Heinz-Albert.

  Inga was watching them out of the corner of her eye, wondering what was going on in their minds. This was not the first Mormon meeting for Emilee. She had come last fall with Inga and Paula to hear President Cannon and Elders Reissner and Westland. So she knew what to expect. But Inga remembered well the feelings she had experienced that first time she went with Paula to a sacrament meeting back in the summer of 1914. How different it was from what she had expected. Strange, even. But in spite of that, the simplicity of the service and the immediacy of its outreach toward those seeking solace had deeply affected her—and still appealed greatly to her.

  But could Frieda see any of that? She was clearly intrigued and watched everything closely. Sometimes Inga thought she saw mild surprise register in her eyes, but she didn’t seem to be put off by what was happening.

  The members had welcomed the Frommes warmly, as they did all visitors, but Inga was especially pleased with what happened with Heinz-Albert. As Bruno ran off to be with his friends before the meeting started, Gretl took Heinz-Albert over and introduced him to the other youth in the branch. He was twenty now and was obviously older than they were, but Gretl must have told her friends about him, and he was immediately welcomed into their circle. And bless Gretl for that, Inga thought. She was a lovely girl with much of Paula’s patience and natural goodness. She and Heinz-Albert had hit it off at Hans’s and Emilee’s wedding, and since the Frommes had moved to Munich they had become close friends. All of which pleased Frieda greatly.

  But Inga could also sense that Frieda was somewhat taken aback by it all. After being a member for six years, Inga found it not at all strange to have a man in a business suit instead of clerical robes and vestments lead the meeting. Fortunately, the chorister had chosen for the opening hymn “Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow,” a familiar hymn written by Martin Luther, and that helped a little.

  The previous evening, after arriving by train from Graswang, Inga had explained to Frieda about the sacrament, explaining that though it was slightly different in how it was administered, in concept it was the same as the Lutheran Eucharist, or communion. “Our prayer says these emblems are offered in remembrance of the body and the blood of Christ, which was offered to us as His gift. As we partake of the bread and water, we make a covenant to take His name upon us, or in other words, to be His disciples, to keep His commandments, and to always remember Him in order to always have His Spirit to be with us.”

  She also explained how the Church used water instead of wine or grape juice. She had concluded by telling Frieda that there was no obligation for her or Emilee or Heinz-Albert to partake of the sacrament if they felt uncomfortable doing so. But if they felt that they wished to make that covenant with their Savior, they were welcome to do so.

  Now she felt a warm glow of satisfaction, as both mother and daughter partook of the emblems in great solemnity. Heinz-Albert watched Gretl and Bruno closely and then followed their example.

  As the boys who had passed around the pitcher of water and the four water cups returned to their seats, President Schiller, the branch president, got up and went to the small, portable podium. “Thank you, brethren,” he said. “We appreciate your reverence in handling the emblems of the Lord’s sacrament.” Then he looked around. “And I thank the rest of you for your reverence as well. We especially welcome friends and family who are visiting with us today. We are
grateful for your presence and hope you find joy in this Sabbath day.”

  Inga loved President Schiller. He was a simple man, probably in his mid-forties or early fifties. He was a shoemaker by trade and had that confident patience so often exhibited by craftsmen. He spoke with a quiet grace and dignity, yet smiled often. His sense of humor could be wry and quick but was never cruel. Everything about him exuded warmth and sincerity and goodness. He came to Graswang every month or two to visit Inga, and after he left, invariably Hans Sr. would say something like, “What a fine man he is,” or, “He epitomizes the essence of Christianity.”

  “Brothers and sisters,” President Schiller began, letting his eyes sweep across the congregation of about fifty. Paula had warned Frieda of the Mormon custom of referring to each other as brother or sister, but that was not unique to the Mormons, so she had just nodded.

  “We have a fine Sabbath program today, but before we get to that, I should like to share something with you. Last Monday, I received a letter from President Cannon filled with news and information that I think you will find of interest, and even heartening.”

  Inga leaned in closer to Frieda. “President Cannon is our mission president,” she whispered. “His headquarters are in Basel, Switzerland, but he presides over all of the missionary work in Germany and German-speaking Switzerland. He also is our presiding authority, kind of like an archbishop of a diocese presides over the smaller parishes.”

  Frieda nodded. “Danke.”

  President Schiller took an envelope from an inside pocket of his suit coat, removed two sheets of paper, and laid them on the podium. He picked up the first sheet and began to read. “As an introduction, he says: ‘My dear brothers and sisters, warmest greetings from myself, Sister Cannon, and all of the staff of the Swiss-German Mission office. You are in our prayers each and every day, and we rejoice over the reports we receive that verify your continued faithfulness, even in the face of these difficult times. It is with considerable regret that Sister Cannon and I report to you that we have been notified by Salt Lake City—’”

  Inga leaned in again to explain what that meant, but Emilee beat her to it. “Salt Lake City is in America, Mama. It’s where the Church is headquartered.”

  Then President Schiller’s words made Inga’s head jerk up. “‘—that our missionary service will conclude later this year.’”

  There were cries of surprise and dismay from all around them. Mission presidents were, with very few exceptions, loved and revered by the German Saints. But President Cannon had been the one responsible for alerting the First Presidency to the desperate need of the Saints in Germany after the war. And when the Church had purchased more than fifty tons of war surplus commodities from the U.S. Army, it had been President Cannon who had personally secured those commodities and overseen their distribution to members. He was deeply loved and respected.

  “‘Happily, however,’” the branch president continued, “‘our release will not take place until near the end of the year, so we hope to get around and personally bid farewell to each of you before we depart. Sister Cannon and I arrived here in 1916, right in the midst of the war, and I must admit that we came with much fear and trepidation. But our fears proved to be groundless. These past four years have been a grand and glorious experience for the both of us.’”

  President Schiller paused, obviously reading ahead, and he began to chuckle. “I think all of us will especially appreciate his next comments.”

  He began to read again. “‘I cannot help but think back on the time when I first came to Germany as a young and very frightened missionary back in 1887. On my arrival, I knew no more than a dozen words of German and felt as if I might never master this wondrous language. Even after being here for several months, I could barely communicate. I don’t want to say that my German was bad, but I do remember the day when I was asked to give the opening prayer in a church meeting. By that time I had been here for several months, so I decided I would pray in German. After struggling mightily for what seemed like an eternity to me, a good sister abruptly called out in all sincerity, “Brother, why don’t you pray in English so that the Lord can understand what you are saying?”’”

  That brought warm laughter from the congregation. President Schiller lowered the letter and spoke to the congregation directly. “President Cannon said that he has not been able as yet to determine how many of our brethren here in the Fatherland either enlisted in or were conscripted into military service during the war. But the records do show that approximately seventy-five of our brethren in the Church lost their lives during the war. We mourn their loss and extend our deepest condolences to their families.

  “This next point surprised me,” the president went on reading from the letter. “‘Membership in the Church actually increased by about 500 members during the war years, even with the military and civilian deaths that resulted from the war. There were about one hundred sixty missionaries in the Swiss-German Mission when war broke out. Ninety percent of those were serving in Germany, while the rest were in Switzerland. And of that ninety percent, all but about ten percent of those were missionaries from America and went home.’”

  At that, Frieda whipped around and stared at Inga and Emilee. “America sent missionaries here during the war?”

  “No,” Inga whispered. “This was before the war.”

  “Oh.” Frieda sat back again.

  President Schiller continued. “But here is what was interesting to me. Because the vast majority of the missionaries returned to America, and because many of our native German missionaries were drafted into military service, we ended up with only about two dozen full-time missionaries during the war years. In other words, we went from one hundred and sixty missionaries to twenty-four missionaries, yet the baptisms continued at a rate of about three hundred each year. That is quite astonishing to me, to be honest.”

  He wasn’t the only one who was astonished. Inga had just assumed that when the full-time American missionaries had gone home, missionary work had all but ended.

  President Schiller continued. “And that is not all. President Cannon announced that the Church recently purchased a building in Hamburg that will serve as the chapel for the Hamburg Branch. This is the first Church-owned chapel in Germany. In all other cases, we use rented facilities. He believes this is a harbinger of things to come as we continue to grow. And he believes that someday we shall even start constructing our own chapels.

  “Unfortunately, President Cannon reaffirms what he said when he was here last summer. It will probably be another year before the government allows American missionaries back into Germany, so he has begun calling sixty new local missionaries, and many of them are now serving. As you know, we have one of our own brethren, Bruder Oskar Wolferts, who has answered the call and is now serv­ing in Hamburg. President Cannon is still looking for a few more recommendations and reminded us that in cases where the missionary may be a breadwinner in the family, President Cannon has been authorized by the Church to pay the family a monthly allowance to help during his time of absence.”

  President Schiller’s voice was getting somewhat animated now. “The results have been amazing. Listen to this. ‘In 1918, the last year of the war, there were three hundred baptisms in the mission, about the same as the previous three years. But in 1919, baptisms nearly doubled to just under six hundred!”

  There were soft cries of amazement from around the room.

  “But that is not all. President Cannon says that in January of this year alone, there were almost a hundred baptisms. If that rate continues, then this year our baptisms will double again. Can you believe that? Over a thousand baptisms in one year. Let me read to you his summary comment: ‘Given these encouraging statistics, and with the increase in our missionary force this year and next, I am projecting that by the end of 1921, there will be approximately eleven thousand members of the Church in the Swiss-German Mission. This wi
ll be the result of baptizing an estimated one thousand new members of the Church this year, and another fifteen hundred in 1921. If I am right in my projections—and I am being conservative—I have great confidence that by the end of 1921, the Swiss-German Mission will be the number-one baptizing mission in the Church.’”

  President Schiller had to stop as people openly gasped and the buzz of conversation rose so quickly he couldn’t be heard. He waited for a moment and then went on, raising his voice. “President Cannon continues, ‘If I am right, that means that in less than two years there will be more members of the Church in our mission than any other mission in the world, including all of the missions in America. To put it another way, we will have more members in the German mission than the Mexican, Norwegian, Danish, Hawaiian, Australian, French, Swedish, and Canadian missions combined.’” President Schiller glanced up. “Can you believe that, brothers and sisters? Only Utah will have a larger number of members than there will be here in Germany.”

  Inga and Paula exchanged glances. “I can scarcely believe that,” Paula whispered.

  “It is amazing,” Inga agreed. “This is wonderful news.”

  “And,” President Schiller went on, “President Cannon says that doesn’t count the nearly ten thousand German members who have emigrated to America since the Church first arrived here in 1857. He continues: ‘I am told that there are now approximately six thousand German-born individuals living in the state of Utah and that they have their own German-language newspaper now in its twentieth year of publication.’”

  He lowered the letter, letting the reactions sweep through the hall. Inga leaned in and spoke to Emilee and her mother. “I know that having eight thousand members of our Church here in Germany is nothing compared to the Roman Catholics and the Lutherans, who have millions, but this is really exciting for us.”

  Emilee nodded. “I can understand why. Do you know how many members there are in your whole church?”