Word: papen
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...Papen's Dream. Exceedingly ingenious and in the trickiest tradition of European diplomacy, the MacDonald-Herriot formula appeared to settle everything while actually settling nothing. It fitted the U. S. State Department's demand that Europe must reach a final settlement of Reparations without reference to War Debts, yet if the next U. S. President and Congress prove reluctant to cancel all or part of what Europe owes, the Allies or any one of them can regain a completely free hand, merely by failing to ratify the MacDonald-Herriot formula...
Diplomatically speaking the formula was a masterpiece. But would Germany sign? The decision was not really up to Chancellor von Papen at Lausanne, but to his "Cabinet of Monocles" at Berlin, dominated by intriguing Lieut.-General Kurt von Schleicher, Minister of Defense. Last week the Government spokesman at Berlin made the Chancellor look like a figurehead, and a silly one at that, by flatly disclaiming von Papen's amazing proposal at Lausanne for a Franco-German military alliance (TIME, July 4). "The Chancellor," snapped the spokesman, "was only voicing a personal dream...
Under orders from Berlin, Chancellor von Papen presently called on Scot MacDonald in Lausanne. He demanded that the MacDonald-Herriot formula, if signed, should become binding immediately upon its ratification by a majority of the signatory powers. In other words France must not be permitted to keep everything in suspense until after the U. S. elections by delaying her ratification. Secondly the Chancellor declared that the German bond issue could not be for more than two billion marks, half what the Allies demanded and 1/57 of what Germany agreed to under the Young Plan. Finally von Papen demanded the writing...
Significance. Unquestionably the Fatherland was in ferment last week, the chief reason being that President von Hindenburg has called into being a Cabinet with no parliamentary majority, headed by Chancellor Lieut.-Colonel Franz von Papen (TIME, June 13). On July 31 Germans will elect a new Reichstag, chances being that the Fascists will emerge as the largest party but without a majority. In that unsatisfactory event the political deadlock would be so complete that a coup d'état looms distinctly possible. Last week every faction-Monarchist, Fascist, Socialist, Communist-was watching cat-like for a chance to seize...
...That von Papen is the creature of the camarilla headed by his Minister of Defense, Lieut.-General Kurt von Schleicher, few Germans doubted last week. They remembered however that Dr. BrÜning, utterly obscure when first appointed, grew in the 26 months that he was Chancellor into a figure commanding vast respect and not a little liking throughout Europe. Camarilla or no camarilla, intrigue or no intrigue, the German Chancellor today is Lieut.-Colonel Franz von Papen. Through his bony fingers pass the affairs of a Great Power. In Switzerland last week he seemed to be finding himself, seemed...