1940-04-24 — Page 24

PAGE 4.-HONGKONG TELEGRAPH

YESTERDAY Sir

Nevile Henderson, Britain's prewar Am bassador to Germany, told you about

the "sinister and menacing impres sion" he received at the Nazis' Nuremberg rally;

¶

Hitler's coolness then he tried to revive the plan for a friendly, visit to London by Baron von Neurath ;. *

Goering's hint that the Nazis might decide to revise the Anglo-German Naval Treaty despite Sir Nevile's warning: "That would lead inevitably to

svar."

OF

all the big Nazi leadera, Hermann Goering was

for me by far the most sym- pathetic.

He may have been the man who was chiefly responsible for the firing of the Reichstag in 1933, and he certainly 'was the one to whom, as his moul trusted adherent, Hitler con- fided the task of cleaning up Berlin at the time of the Roehm purge in 1934.

In any crisis, as in war, he would be quite ruthless.. He. once said to me that the British whom he really ad- mired were those whom he described as the pirates such as Francis Drake, and he re- proached us for having become too "debrutalised."

He was, in fact, himself a typical and brutal buccaneer, but he had certain attractive qualities and I must frankly say that I had a real personal liking for him.

I liked Frau Goering as much us her husband, and possibly for better moral reasons. Absolutely unaffected, she was all kindness and simplicity.

He would not have Risked War

The

first time I met her was when she came with her husband to a big lunch at the Embassy to meet the Prime Minister of Cann- du, Mr. Mackenzie King, who was paying a visit to Berlin after the conclusion-of-the-Imperial Con- ference in June, 1037.

At the end of lunch there was a dish of cheese on pastry, which she refused on the ground that her allow her to eat doctor did not

prostry.

I suggested that it was a ques- tion of her excellent Agure, and ter reply was "Oh, no, Hermann likes woinen who are fat."

I apologised to her, saying that

I was not trying to be personal,

and that I thought I only right that woman should consider their figures.

Vanity was, in my opinion, I said, just as charming in wornch as it was repugnant in men.

It was possibly n tactless remark

to her as her husband's to make vanity, though harmless and child- ish, was notorious. But her only comment was "Do you really think 207 approve of vinity in a man.”

She said it so simply und natur- ally that one could not have helped liking her, and the more I saw her, the more I did like her,

Had she been politically minded she and her baby could have been and possibly were a good influence In Goering's life.

I would like to express here my belief that the Field Marshal, If it had depended on him, would not have gambled on war as lit- ler did in 1939.

As will be related in due course he come down decisively on the side of peace in September, 1038. ite was rumoured to have lost much of Hitler's favour on that account, and it is possible that it had not been for his efforts in 1030 he would have played the same role in 1939.

an experience, but Once war twice would have been regarded by Hitler as vice.

Collected Jokes About Himself

Goering was the absolute servant of his master, and I. have never seen greater loyalty and devotion than is to Hiller,

In all the very frank talks which I had with Goering, he never once Apoke of himself or of the great

Sir Nevile Henderson INSTAN

TO-DAY you read about Goering at home his playroom, stocked with mechanical toys.. his wife, simple and kindly., his jovial hospi tality to Sir Nevile on a hunting expedition.. a man with certain attractive qualities, but all the same a brute, a buccancer.

BOMBING

BRITAIN:

GOERING'S PLEDGE

part which he had played in the Nazi revolution,

Everything had been done by Hitler, all the credit was Hitler's, every decision was itler's, and he himself was nothing.

He had a Falstaman sense of humour, and was sald to have mude a collection of the innumer- able Jokes which were made about his faibles by the Berlinera.

In this respect he was quite un- like Dr, Goebbels or Hiler,

Most of the stories about Goering were, however, good natured, and generally, auch ng the following, made fun of his love for decort- ljons.

"Hitler went one day to visit God. The Almighty said, "I an always glad to see you, Adolf, but I wish pon would stop that fellow Hernians from coming up here. Every time he comes he takes away another star?"

Another was about a motorisi who ran into the Field Marshal's car on a dark night, and was brought before the Judge on o charge of reckless driving. He pleaded that it was not his fault, but that of the Field Marshal, whn, he said, had forgotten to dim- his decorations. He was acquitted.

Played alone with

Toy Bombers.

compassion

However little Goering may have had, like so many Germans, for his fellow-men, he loved animals and children, and

neither easily took nor lightly gave offence, and he was quick to seize the point at which one was driving. I do not flatter myself that, in the long conversations which I had with him, I ever modified his opinions, but he was always ready to listen and eager to learn,

64

"Military

Objectives only”.

He was always, for instance, ask- ing questions about England and Euglish personalities, about whom he was very fully, though often In-

THREE

Big Three of Nazi Germany bend their heads together, Centre is Joseph Goebbels whom Goering may yet have to fight before inheriting the Fuehrer's mantle.

son of the present German com- mander-in-chler.

Stug-shooting in the dense forests

of Europe is not like deer-stalking in Scotland. The deer cannot be spled from a distance, and their whereabouts can be discovered only when they roar during the rutting season. In the evening the stog comes out into some favourite clearing in the forest, where the grass is sweetest, and the castest way to shoot him is to wait at some sultable spot on is edge til he does 50.

"Hochstande" (literally high- stands, or a sort of platform some 20 to 30 feet high) are sometimes erected at such spots, and all the sportsman has to do is to climb it ond wait an hour or so before the stag usually appears with his harem.

I had arrived early in the morn- ing, and at about 4 p.m. arrange- ments were made for me to go to such a place to shoot a big 14 pointer which Was known to frequent It.

I was rather

gorrectly, informed, but in respect Nervous

of whom he often also expressed shrewd judgments.

Nor, except on the last occasion on which I ever saw him, dil he ever make these tiresome speeches to which one had sometimes to listen from others.

I spent two hours in his company on August 31 last, while the Pollah Ambassador was seeing Ribbentrop, and a few hours before the advance of the German army into Polish territory and the dispatch of his airmen at dawn to bomb the Polish aerodrome.

At that moment the order for the aggression had not yet ̈finally- been signed by Hitler, und every- · thing was believed to hang upon the nature of the interview be- tween Lipski and Ribbentrop.

Goering, though absolutely ready to press the button, still seemed at least half hopeful

of a peaceful In- sue.

Incidentally, he gave me the most categorical assur- anees that, In the event of war with Britain, his alr- men would not bomb anything definitely except

obfco- military tives.

་

When I pointed out that, owing to and the height speed of modern aircraft, that would not pre- vent bombs, aim- ed supposedly ht military target, falling in realden- tial London, and that I would much

object to being hit on the head by "any such present from Hermann Goering," his immediate answer was that, if that did hap- pen, he would certainly send a special neroplane to drop a wreath at my funeral.

"Frau Goering and her baby could have been, and possibly were, a good influence in Goering's life,"

before ever he had a child of his own, the top floor at his home at Karinhall, 40 miles from Berlin, contained a vast play room fitted up with every toy dear to the heart of the modern child,

Nothing used to give him greater pleasure than to go and play there with them.

The toys might, It is true, In- clude models of seroplanes drop- ping heavy bombs which explod- ed on defenceless towns or vil- tares, but, as he observed when I reproached blm an the subject, It was not part of the Nazi con- oeption of life to be excessively elviilsed or to teach squeamish- noes to the young,

Failing children he would romp.. with one of the baby lions, of which there was always one in the house until his daugliter Edda' arrived.

In spite of his innumerable acti- vities, Goering would always and Lime, not only to see one but to give one an apparently unlimited amount of his time.

He was a man to whom one could frankly. He absolutely

speak

And, If it did happen, I have no doubt he would do so,

Challenged Me

at Stag-Hunt

My first experience of his hos- pitality was at alag-hunting estate in party at Rominien, his East Prussia;

The house itself was n shinple shooting-box with a thatched roof, but fitted internally with overy comfort.

As far as I was aware, the house- bold consisted solely of malde with one manservant, and there was no ceremony of any kind.

One of his Swedish brothers-in- law, Count Rosen, was the only other guest, and the rest of the party consisted of Oberstjager- meister Scherping, Obseratjager- meister Menthe, and a young Air Offer A.D.C., Von Brauchitsch, n

Before starting off, Goering re- marked that Engilshmen, however good they might be with shot guns.. were no good with a rifle. He had once invited an English sportsman to shoot a stag and he had missed it three times!

It was not an encouraging start, and made me feel as !! I had got to defend the whole sporting honour of the British Isles.

Nor was

di- my nervousness iminished when I found that I was to be accompanied by Scherping and Menthe as well

by the regular keeper on whose bent this particular ing lived.

Its

2

I could not help reflecting that my companions were all feeling rather

of contemptuous

poor damned diplomat, and 2 British one at that.

Fortune was, however, with me on that occasion. We mounted the

valt high stand, and after a

of ever an hour, the stag And his harem appeared nt quile different place from that at which they were expected, and a good half-mile away.

Goering's

Peace Terms

#

There was nothing for it but to

talk descend and attempt a

on

more or less Scottish, lines. That meant walking some distance, then a long crawl on hands and knees and finally creeping all alone on the flut my face till I reached a small knobbie about a hundred yards from the herd.

When I got there the stag was kindly standing broadside on, and I shot it through the heart.

of

From that moment my reputa- tion as a sportsman was secure.

Goering was, felt, delighted and, when his people told him that I had had to crawl on my stomach In rare event in a German forest)

guffaw he remarked, with a laughter, that that was the right way for diplomats to get about.

incidentally I shot a second stag the next morning, again with one shet, and once more in the course of a stalk instead of

set

011

"highstand," which always gives one the impression of shooting at a target.

After

considered worthy to become, as I did later, an honorary member of the Ger- man Jagerschaft.

that I

በ13

I left Rominten with regret. I had had one long political talk with Goering. Very shrewd and astute a fat men so often are, his mind was simple and dealt only with essentials,

Ils idea of an understanding. between Great Britain and Ger- many was an agreement Imiter to two clauNCH,

In the first, Germany would recognise the supreme position of Great Brilak overseas, and undertake to put all hierre-

of sources at lhe disposal

the British Empire in case of need.

By the second, Great Britain would recognise the predomin- ant continental position of Ger. many in Europe, arul undertake

to do nothing to hinder her legi- fimate expansion.

free It was the theory of the hand for Germany in Central and Eastern Europe, and in' substance was identical with the last pro- posals handed to me by Hitler on August 25 two years later.

Its very simplicity made It the more plausible, but it left out of all account not only the national conscience and International idealism of the Western demo- cracies, but also the methods and . exaggerated pretensions of Nazism. With a Germany prepared 10 admit the equality of rights of

and to solve problems by Instead of by force, a

lines would have had much to recommend it.

greement on such

Any attempt to achieve it was bound to fall as long 115 Hitler and his Nazi regime persisted in employing outside Germany the some methods used to secure their position within Germany,

[Copyright in alt countrica through Raymond Savage Limited, London.

Reproduction in whole or in part strictly prohibited.]

TO-MORROW you will read of peace moves, then a dramatic warning--"It is not an army but the whole German nation which is being prepared for war."

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