Monday, December 24, 2018

Monday, July 28, 1930


Bucharest: Authorities arrest 7 Macedonian students in connection with the anti-Semitic violence that has wracked portions of the country lately.  The students have reportedly been distributing posters encouraging the violence.  Police additionally announce the capture of a courier at the border carrying materials which they say prove soviet involvement in the unrest, as well as in the assassination attempt on Acting Interior Minister Constantin Angelescu.  Likewise, police arrest Corneliu Codreanu, leader of the Iron Guard, whom they say was planning to lead a march into Bessarabia to “save Romania for the Romanians.”  The government announces that cabinet ministers will remain in the capital for the summer to deal with the crisis. 

Berlin: Another new political party forms, this one for liberals.  The Staatspartei forms from a union of Democrats and the Young German Order.  The party’s initial platform features a middle class disposition, but also opposition to Germany’s peace treaties from the World War.  Party leaders hope to attract some of the former nationalists (who also oppose Germany’s war treaties) who have left that party. 

New York:  More evidence of the Depression -- reports from 643 department stores around the country show retail trade down 10% from a year ago.  Wholesale trade is reported down 21%. 

Sunday, November 18, 2018

Sunday, July 27, 1930


Germany:

Chemnitz: Communists attack a hall where nazis are meeting, injuring three nazis and the police commissioner of the town.
 
Berlin: Communists, nazis and police battle in the streets in several parts of the city, with 100 communists arrested.  Meanwhile, new economic reports show unemployment among laborers increased by 16,000 over the first half of July, and continued depression in the cotton industry -- nearly 1 in 6 spindles in the Rhenish cotton district are idle.  Total unemployment is now at 2.7 million, up 125% from a year ago.

Paris:  Police arrest 61 Spanish anarchists and other agitators on the banks of the River Seine near the suburb of Villeneuve-Saint Georges.  They are holding a meeting of an organization known as The Federation of the Spanish Tongue, reportedly discussing ways to stir up unrest in Spain.  Five of the arrested turn out to be people already expelled from France, and police seize a large quantity of anarchist literature. 

Saturday, November 17, 2018

Saturday, July 26, 1930

Bucharest:  A reporter traveling through the region of Bukovina reports that even the Jews there admit the recent anti-Semitic unrest has been partly fueled by the Depression.  The government has arrested leaders of the agitation, including members of the fascist Iron Guard, but the Jews still live in fear.  Government sources claim communists are also involved in the unrest. 

Berlin: As they said they would, Chancellor Heinrich Bruening and President Paul von Hindenburg, operating under the emergency powers article of the German constitution, promulgate by decree the financial reform measures that the Reichstag wouldn’t approve.  The package calls for cutting $40 million in spending from the budget and raising income taxes 5% (10% for unmarried men).  It also calls for the federal government to stop funding the deficit between what cities pay in unemployment benefits and what they can afford to pay. 

Sunday, October 28, 2018

Friday, July 25, 1930


Berlin: President Paul von Hindenburg signs a decree prohibiting people participating in political gatherings from carrying weapons.  His purpose, he says, is a peaceful election in September.
 
Meanwhile, reports reveal that, as expected, some 200 lawsuits and other charges are pending against former Reichstag members, which can be prosecuted now that the legislators’ diplomatic immunity has ended with the Reichstag’s dissolution.  Or some of them can.  It also comes to light that Chancellor Heinrich Bruening offered the communists an ongoing guarantee of personal immunity from criminal charges in exchange for their support of a political amnesty bill.  Among the charges pending against some of the communists: high treason.  Many still face libel or slander charges.

Heading the list of former legislators facing charges, however, is Joseph Goebbels, a leader in the nazi party.  He’s loaded with libel lawsuits.  Most such charges, against communists and nazis alike, stem from inflammatory articles which the legislators signed.
 
Bereshty, Romania: Jews here ask the government for protection as reports say the Iron Guard is converging on the town by the hundreds, armed with rifles.  The Ministry of the Interior is said to be in contact with authorities in Bereshty and monitoring the situation. 

Saturday, October 27, 2018

Thursday, July 24, 1930


Bucharest:  The ministerial cabinet, presided over by King Carol II, warns that the government will institute martial law in the necessary districts if the recent spate of anti-Semitic violence doesn’t stop.  Carol appeals for mutual understanding between all citizens and nationalities, and expresses regret that the authorities haven’t taken a firmer hand against the violence. 

Tokyo: Prime Minister Osachi Hamaguchi takes the London Naval Treaty to the emperor as expected, and the emperor in turn sends it to the Privy Council for deliberation.  Sources say they expect the treaty to be ratified before September.  Meanwhile in London, the House of Commons ratifies the treaty on the same day.

Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Wednesday, July 23, 1930


Russia:  Red Army troops in the Amur and Vladivostok districts have clashed with peasants who were revolting as a result of a combination of forces: political exiles of the soviet government had roused some; others either were, or were angered about, ethnic Koreans who have been fleeing into Manchuria as a result of rough treatment at the hands of soviet collectivization; and others were or were supplied by White Russians, who are still operating in Manchuria.  Additionally, reports say some Red Army troops themselves are deserting.

Coblenz, Germany: President Paul von Hindenburg cancels the rest of his Rhineland liberation tour in the wake of the drowning tragedy yesterday.

Tokyo:  The Supreme Military Council, as expected, approves a report calling the London Naval Treaty “defective.”  On the same day, the cabinet of Prime Minister Osachi Hamaguchi agrees to submit the treaty to the emperor with a request that he submit it to the Privy Council for ratification. 

Tuesday, October 16, 2018

Tuesday, July 22, 1930


Germany:

Berlin:  Three people are shot in the southern part of the city when nazis start tearing down communist campaign posters.  One communist and two bystanders are wounded.

Coblenz: Tragedy strikes during the nighttime festivities celebrating the liberation of the Rhineland -- a pontoon bridge on which 80 people are standing to watch fireworks gives way, drowning perhaps 70 or more.
 
Tokyo:  The naval representatives on the Supreme Military Council, who have been debating the London Naval Treaty in informal meetings for several days, approve a report which calls the treaty “defective” and inadequate for the defense of Japan.  The council does accept an appeal from Naval Minister Takarabe Takeshi that the treaty’s defects may be remediable by new defense bills, a small government victory.  And the treaty’s ratification by the Privy Council is still expected.  Still, this vote is an embarrassment for the government of Prime Minister Osachi Hamaguchi.  The full Supreme Military Council, meeting in formal session tomorrow, is expected to agree with the naval members’ view.  The United States approved the treaty today, however, and this is reportedly received as good news in Japan.

Madrid:  The Spanish government increases tariffs on luxury items, including automobiles, in retaliation for the U.S. Smoot-Hawley tariff.
 
Canberra:  More bad economic news -- John Latham, opposition leader in parliament, claims unemployment in Australia has hit 18.5%.

New York:  Still more bad economic news -- steamship lines report that the number of ocean traveler is down 18% from last year, with no foreseeable prospects for improvement.

Monday, October 15, 2018

Monday, July 21, 1930


Romania:  The anti-Semitic troubles worsen.  Now units of the Iron Guard, an ultra-nationalist paramilitary and political organization, are reported to be marching toward Bessarabia to join the farmer uprising that started two days ago.  Jewish members of parliament request an immediate audience with King Carol.  

Meanwhile, an assassination attempt is made on Education Minister Constantin Angelescu.  His assailant, a young student, is believed to be among the ringleaders of the anti-Semitic violence.

Frankfort-on-Oder, Germany:  About 1,700 communists clash with police.  In the midst of a meeting, the communists attempt to surround and disarm the police guarding (and watching) them.  Reinforcements in the form of a riot squad swoop in, but the communists attack them too with clubs and flag poles they tear down.  The mob finally disperses when police open fire.

Tokyo:  The Supreme Military Council, a high-level advisory body to the government, is reported to be deeply divided over whether Japan should ratify the London Naval Treaty.  The naval representatives on the council in particular say the treaty is not adequate for Japan’s defense needs.
 
Moscow:  Maxim Litvinoff is named Commissar for Foreign Affairs.  He’s been acting commissar for some time during his predecessor’s (Georges Chicherin) ill health, and is a long time foreign ministry official.

Saturday, October 13, 2018

Sunday, July 20, 1930


Berlin:  A report out today shows Germany’s unemployment holding steady at 19.8%.  Meanwhile, in Wiesbaden and Mainz, President Paul von Hindenburg is in the midst of his tour of the liberated Rhineland.  But newspaper reporters observe that the president seems unusually weary; he cancels his appearance at a children’s pageant, for example.  Nonetheless, in the speaking engagements he does attend, he calls for liberation of the Saar as well, saying it would be the best way to ensure peace in Europe.  There are the usual street brawls between nazis and others in the liberated areas, but they are relatively minor: only one policeman is injured.
 
Romania:  Authorities arrest two Orthodox Christian priests in Bukowina, scene of a 3,000-man anti-Semitic mob yesterday, accusing them of stirring up anti-Jewish sentiment in the town.

Sunday, October 7, 2018

Saturday, July 19, 1930


Berlin:  Only 24 hours removed from the dissolution of the Reichstag, political campaigning is already under way for elections for the new one.  The communist party has published a manifesto urging voters to “arise and smite the fascist hunger government of Bruening and Hindenburg,” and “drive the servants of capitalism to the devil.”  The manifesto also calls for nationalization of mines, factories and banks, and for abandoning the Young Plan.  Political observers say the large numbers of unemployed make fertile ground for the communists.

Meanwhile the nazi newspaper Deutsche Zeitung publishes an article saying the impotence of the cabinet and Reichstag demonstrates the bankruptcy of the parliamentary system. 
As evidence of the atmosphere that is expected for the campaign season: the state of Prussia has outlawed all carrying of firearms for the duration. 

France:  Reports surface that the nation has moved many of its troops recently relieved of duty in the Rhineland to the Italian border. 

Bukowina, Romania:  More anti-Semitic violence.  A mob of 3,000 armed farmers sets out from here for Bessarabia, an area that is home to a higher proportion of Jews, to “finish Semites and authorities.”  At least one town in their path erects barricades to protect itself, and the cabinet of Prime Minister Iuliu Maniu calls an emergency meeting to deal with the crisis.

Saturday, October 6, 2018

Friday, July 18, 1930: The Reichstag is Dissolved


Berlin:  The vote on the socialists’ measure to declare illegal Chancellor Heinrich Bruening’s emergency-decree enacting his tax measures is held, as expected, and it passes, 236-221.  As a result, and also as expected, Bruening follows immediately with an announcement that based on the decree he’s already received from President Paul von Hindenburg, the Reichstag is dissolved.
 
The uproar on the chamber floor is so great Bruening’s last words are drowned out, with communists shouting, “Down with Hindenburg and Bruening!  Down with fascism!”
Within five minutes of the announcement, however, the floor of the chamber is almost empty, except for 50 or so communists singing the “International” song.  Other communists, as well as nazis, make a quick getaway because they know their parliamentary immunity from arrest will end with the Reichstag’s dissolution. 

This parliament thus joins every previous parliament since the founding of the Weimar Republic in being dissolved before its natural adjournment (which would have been 1932, four years after its election).

The dissolution means new parliamentary elections will be held, required by law within 60 days.  They are set for September 14.  Already political observers are speculating on what the new elections will bring.  One new political party has already come into being: the German Conservative Party, formed under Kuno von Westarp, who for many years was the floor leader for Alfred Hugenberg’s nationalists.  Incensed over Hugenberg’s willingness to vote with the socialists, Westarp has bolted.  This could fragment the nationalist vote – one reason why one of the predictions political observers have already made is that the party with the most to gain by the elections will be the nazis, led by Adolf Hitler. 

Tonight Bruening issues a proclamation to the country: “The Reichstag has refused to the Reich the means for carrying out its tasks.  President von Hindenburg’s financial reform program was rejected by a small majority which is divided in itself and incompetent to assume responsibility.  An appeal is now made to the nation to decide its future.  Do the people wish to withhold from the government what is necessary for regulating finances, maintaining German economic life and safeguarding social obligations?  That is the question for September 14.”
 
Hindenburg, meanwhile, departs on his planned tour of the newly liberated areas of the Rhineland.  It will be his first time to cross the Rhine River since 1918.

Moscow:  The “Volunteer Defense Society” announces that Russia plans to have a military of 17 million by 1933 as part of its new five-year plan for aerial and chemical defense.
 
Tokyo:  Reports circulate that Admiral Takarabe Takeshi, Minister of the Navy, will resign once the London Naval Treaty is approved by the Japanese government if he is not forced out before then.  Ratification of the treaty has been delayed again by a scheduled recess of the Privy Council. 

Tuesday, October 2, 2018

Thursday, July 17, 1930


Berlin:  As promised yesterday, the socialists introduce a measure in the Reichstag declaring illegal Chancellor Heinrich Bruening’s and President Paul von Hindenburg’s use of the emergency decree provision of the German constitution to implement Bruening’s tax measures, and calling for a vote of no-confidence in Bruening’s government.  Bruening postpones the vote on the measure until tomorrow.

In the meantime, nationalist political leader Alfred Hugenberg pays Bruening a visit.  Hugenberg’s nationalists now find themselves in the position of being able to save Bruening’s cabinet by voting against the socialists’ measure.  But in exchange, Hugenberg makes six demands of Bruening, one of which is his old ax-grinder: he wants Bruening to abolish the war debt payments of the Young Plan.  He also demands that the nationalists be included in a coalition government against the socialists, and that the socialists be turned out of office in Prussia and replaced with nationalist parties.  “Only a definite anti-Marxist policy can save Germany from being involved in fresh difficulties and from the downward path,” Hugenberg says.
 
Bruening refuses.  He apparently intends to go forward with the vote on the socialists’ measure, and if it passes, execute the signed order he’s already been given by President Hindenburg, dissolving parliament.
 
Harbin, Manchuria:  An estimated 40,000 ethnic Koreans who were living in Russian Siberia have fled into Manchuria in recent weeks, bringing with them stories of suffering and persecution wrought by soviet collectivization.  They report that more than 2,900 Korean farmers were exiled by the soviets to forced labor lumber camps in even more remote regions of Siberia.  Tens of thousands more Koreans are reportedly still in Russia trying to get out, but the soviet government has reinforced its border guard, preventing them from leaving.
 
Paris:  Responses keep coming in to France’s proposal for a “United States of Europe.”  Great Britain’s response is that the proposal is not acceptable to Britain in its present form, but that the essential idea is welcome, and questioning whether it could be achieved better through the League of Nations.

Sunday, September 30, 2018

Wednesday, July 16, 1930: Bruening and Hindenburg Invoke Article 48


Berlin:  Following through at last on the long-threatened maneuver, President Paul von Hindenburg and Chancellor Heinrich Bruening invoke Article 48 of the German constitution – the “emergency decree” provision – to enact the Bruening cabinet’s package of emergency taxes and other financial reforms without Reichstag approval.  It’s the first time the emergency decree provision has been invoked.  The constitution allows for the unusual step in instances where “the public safety and order in the German Reich are disturbed or endangered.”
 
The chain of events starts this way: the Reichstag, which has been wrangling with Bruening’s cabinet for weeks over the measures, votes them down, 256-204.  After this the communists in the Reichstag begin shouting, “Resign! Resign!” at Bruening, who shouts back, “In the name of the government I must now declare that it no longer places any value on continuation of debate.”

Bruening’s cabinet then holds an hour-long meeting, during which they vote unanimously to invoke Article 48.  Bruening then goes to Hindenburg, who signs the decree enacting the measure as law.
 
The decree does not dissolve the Reichstag.  That step is covered by a separate article of the constitution.  But Hindenburg reportedly has already given Bruening a signed decree to dissolve the Reichstag if he needs it.
 
He may.  The Socialists have already announced their intent to bring a motion before the Reichstag tomorrow declaring the use of Article 48 illegal.  If it passes, it’s expected that Bruening would then use Hindenburg’s decree to dissolve the body.  Ironically, the nationalists are expected to vote against the socialists’ measure, or at least abstain, ostensibly just to spite them, and thus may help uphold Bruening’s government.  But much hinges on what happens in the Reichstag tomorrow.

Meanwhile, at the state level of government, Prussia lifts its ban on the Stahlhelm paramilitary after Hindenburg said he wouldn’t attend any Rhineland liberation celebrations there because of it (see yesterday).  The Stahlhelm’s leadership made the decision easier by promising not to allow military training exercises by its members.  Prussia’s ban was based on its official view that the Stahlhelm is essentially a military organization.  Lifting the ban means Hindenburg will resume his plans to attend celebrations in Prussian towns.

New York:  More bad economic news -- the Annalist magazine’s monthly index of business activity falls to its lowest level since 1924.   

Saturday, September 29, 2018

Tuesday, July 15, 1930


Berlin:  President Paul von Hindenburg announces he will refuse to attend Rhine liberation celebrations in Prussia, because of that state’s ban on the nationalist Stahlhelm paramilitary, of which Hindenburg is the honorary president.  Hindenburg still plans to attend celebrations in Hessian and Bavarian cities.

Meanwhile, maneuvers in the Reichstag are getting tense over the taxation proposals of Finance Minister Hermann Dietrich.  Chancellor Heinrich Bruening again threatens to invoke Article 48 of the German constitution and enact Dietrich’s taxation measures by emergency decree if the Reichstag doesn’t approve them.  That threat – especially in view of President Hindenburg’s demonstrated willingness to play hardball (relative to Prussia) -- is enough to get one of Dietrich’s proposals through: an income tax increase.  Even so, the nationalists, communists and nazis vote against it.
 
Meanwhile, beer sales have plummeted as a result of the tax on alcoholic beverages.  Sales are down 20%, which just about offsets the 10-20% price increase resulting from the tax.  Bavarians are buying across the border in Czechoslovakia.
 
Helsinki:  President Lauri Relander dissolves the diet and calls for new elections after legislators fail to pass (for the second time this month) a constitutional amendment outlawing communist organizations.  Relander and Prime Minister Pehr Svinhufvud reportedly hope new elections will produce a parliament that will pass the amendment.

Thursday, September 27, 2018

Monday, July 14, 1930: Pope Warns Against Bolshevism; Frick Seeks Citizenship for Hitler


Vatican City:  Pope Pius XII warns the United States that it must “beware lest bolshevism spread in America at this moment of financial depression and unemployment.”  Speaking in a private audience with James H.A. Ryan, Rector of The National Catholic University in Washington, the Pope says, “This is just the ripe time for the spread of bolshevism.  The people of the United States do not realize how far bolshevism has spread.  We hear that, following the market crashes, there has been considerable unemployment.  When the number of people are out of work and when business leaders are crippled by depression and unable to care for them, this is a favorite period for the introduction and development of Bolshevism.”

Weimar, Germany:  Wilhelm Frick, nazi Minister of the Interior and Education in Thuringia, is at it again.  Rumors circulate that Frick intends to try to help nazi party head Adolf Hitler gain German citizenship, for example by appointing him as a police officer in Thuringia.  By law, this would confer on Hitler automatic citizenship.  The nazis evidently hope to avoid the same treatment of Hitler as recently happened to Waldemar Pabst, who, being a German citizen, was deported from Austria for his revolutionary activities (see June 15).
 
Rome:  In response to France’s recent gesture of suspending naval construction, Italy announces it will do the same for six months.  This is considered a significant improvement in relations between the two countries.

Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Sunday, July 13, 1930


Elbersdorf, Germany:  A battle breaks out between nazis and nazis, as a group of nazis loyal to Adolf Hitler interrupt a meeting of a group that was discussing pulling out of the party.  The “pro-Hitler” nazis beat speakers from the other group with blackjacks and switches made of steel.

Washington:  More bad economic news -- new government figures for May show U.S. import and export levels are down almost across the board, to virtually every part of the globe.  Import business was down approximately 28% in May 1930 vs. May 1929, and export business was down 18%.

London:  Still more bad economic news -- unemployment is up to nearly 1.9 million, a staggering 65.5% increase from same time last year. 

Monday, September 24, 2018

Saturday, July 12, 1930

Germany:
Berlin:  Germany submits its official reply to France’s idea for a “United States of Europe.”  Echoing some of the themes of Italy’s reply, Germany asks for a revision of the Treaty of Versailles and “equality” for Germany as a condition of Germany’s participation, as well as general European disarmament.

Meanwhile, Hermann Dietrich, Finance Minister, presents modified tax proposals to the Taxation Committee of the Reichstag which call for helping municipalities provide unemployment insurance to those who lose their jobs.  This would be funded by a poll tax, graduated according to a person’s means, and taxes on alcoholic beverages.  The proposals meet with a rough reception from the committee -- so much so that Dietrich is quoted as saying there’s no point proceeding with them, even though they will go before the full Reichstag soon.
 
Weimar:  Wilhelm Frick, nazi Minister of the Interior and Education in Thuringia, announces he has no plans to discontinue the “hate prayers” being recited in Thuringian schools, despite yesterday’s court decision that they are unconstitutional.
 
Rome – Paris:  The French and Italian governments find themselves in an odd spot – having to deny rumors that Italy had sought assurances of neutrality from Germany in the event of a war between Italy and France, and that France had communicated its displeasure to Germany over the matter.  The story supposedly came from a “high German authority,” who said Italian dictator Benito Mussolini had approached Berlin unofficially through naval and military attaches, asking whether Germany would remain neutral should Italy go to war with France.

“The Berlin story is a base lie and product of the imagination,” the Italian foreign office says.  “Italy has never proposed that Germany remain neutral in case of a Franco-Italian conflict.  France’s acceptance of Premier Mussolini’s proposal of a naval holiday is the most glaring proof of Italy’s desire to maintain the most friendly relations with France.”  France likewise calls the story, “a ridiculous fantasy and another hot weather yarn.”

Wednesday, September 19, 2018

Friday, July 11, 1930


Germany:
Leipzig:  The courts deal Wilhelm Frick, nazi Minister of the Interior and Education in the state of Thuringia, another blow when they declare unconstitutional his “hate prayer” which he has introduced in Thuringian schools.

Berlin:  Meanwhile, an ordinary automobile accident in the capital leads to evidence that nazis may have been planning a coup attempt.  A man and woman riding a motorcycle, killed in the crash, are found by their documents to be active members of the nazi party and transporting materials referencing the coup plot, which leads police to a large stash of arms.

Tokyo:  The cabinet of Prime Minister Osachi Hamaguchi decides to move forward with plans to present the London Naval Treaty for ratification by the Privy Council, without waiting for approval from the navy’s officers.  This despite earlier statements from some Privy Council members that they would not approve the treaty without the navy’s agreement.  Cabinet members nonetheless express confidence the treaty will be ratified.

Tuesday, September 18, 2018

Thursday, July 10, 1930


Paris:  In a goodwill gesture, France announces it will suspend its naval construction program until December to open the way for negotiations with Italy.  Speaking before the Foreign Relations Committee of the Chamber of Deputies, Foreign Minister Aristide Briand says, “Another war in Europe is impossible and inadmissible.” 

Monday, September 17, 2018

Wednesday, July 9, 1930


Canberra:  In a sign both of the growing economic depression and reaction to the U.S. tariff, Prime Minister James Scullin proposes an increase in import tariffs by 2%, and an income tax increase that some say will increase cost of living by $5 per person per week.  He’s dealing with a $68 million budget deficit, and blames the shortfall on the depression and a drying up credit market.

Wednesday, September 5, 2018

Tuesday, July 8, 1930


Tokyo:  A new complication emerges in Japan’s approval of the London Naval Treaty -- members of the Privy Council, the high-level advisory body to the Emperor, say they won’t approve the treaty until the navy’s officers do.  Considering the rate at which naval officers have been resigning in protest over the treaty, this would seem to be deal breaker.  Admiral Takarabe Takeshi, Minister of the Navy, says he thinks he can patch up the disagreement.

Rome:  Making good on its earlier commitment to increase defense spending, the government institutes a new 1.5% sales tax across the board. 

Monday, September 3, 2018

Monday, July 7, 1930: The Peasant March in Finland


Helsinki:  A mob estimated from 12- to 14,000 enters the capital at the end of what is being termed a “Peasant March” against communism.  They hold a demonstration during which parliament suspends its session, and are greeted by the new Prime Minister, Pehr Evind Svinhufvud.

Rome:  Italy publishes its official response to France’s idea for a “United States of Europe,” and the tone is not friendly, though it doesn’t reject the idea outright.  Instead, it places conditions on Italy’s participation in a union, some of which Benito Mussolini raised in an interview with a Paris newspaper July 3.

“Cancel all remaining demarcations between the conquerors and the defeated [from the World War] in favor of the establishment of conditions of absolute equality.  The fascist government is convinced that any project for a federal European union should be harmonized with the structure of the League of Nations.”  The response further says Russia and Turkey should be included in the invitation to union.  “The fascist government considers a federal union of Europe conceivable only as a union of all the states of Europe.  Otherwise the union might become a system in which one big state would be grouped with several minor states.  Therefore not coordination but secession would result, with Europe divided into contending groups of states.  We cannot divide modern civilization.  Material and moral progress have fixed intercontinental solidarity.  The League of Nations was founded on this universal solidarity.  The world of the League has only begun, having before it vast, complex and difficult work to accomplish.  It must be protected against any danger which would diminish its efficacy or weaken its authority and prestige.”  The desire to include Russia and Turkey is motivated of course by Italy’s constant desire not to let France dominate the continent.  The statement also makes a Europe-wide arms reduction a condition of Italy’s participation. 


Thursday, August 30, 2018

Sunday, July 6, 1930


Lencloitre, France:  Minister of Justice Raoul Peret, in a speech to war veterans here, excoriates the German nationalist groups responsible for violence against separatists in the Rhineland last week, and stresses that France’s defensive preparations must be adequate in the event these nationalists grow stronger.

Moscow:  The communist party congress, which has been going on for days, is winding down, and today’s events reaffirm the Soviet Union’s commitment to exporting communist revolution worldwide.  Vyacheslav (V.M.) Molotov, Assistant Secretary of the party, gives a report that outlines the Communist International’s (COMINTERN) goals for the years ahead, which includes infiltrating labor unions, creating more communist cells within factories, and urging the unemployed to seek more aid from their governments, to help destabilize them.

Wednesday, August 29, 2018

Saturday, July 5, 1930


Berlin:  Chancellor Heinrich Bruening is reportedly considering invoking Article 48 of the German constitution – the emergency powers article -- to implement his tax proposals by emergency decree, and thus bypass parliamentary approval.  President Paul von Hindenburg earlier threatened the same.
 
Meanwhile, the federal high court overturns a decree issued by Wilhelm Frick, nazi Minister of the Interior and Education in the state of Thuringia, which had suspended publication of a newspaper Frick wished to silence.  Frick has repeatedly run afoul of federal authorities since taking office in Thuringia, and the court rebukes him sharply for this latest overstep of his authority.
 
Paris:  Irritated at the Rhineland violence after the withdrawal of French forces, especially against separatists, France suspends negotiations with Germany over the fate of the Saar region.  The negotiations had been intended to determine whether French claims on the Saar might be ended early, as with the Rhineland.  Now, unless things change again, France would continue to hold preferential rights in the Saar until 1935.

Kovel, Poland: 40 Jews are injured in attacks by gangs of hoodlums in the Jewish quarter of this city in eastern Poland.  When the Jews seek protection from city authorities, they are told there are not enough police to protect them.

Helsinki:  Anti-communist agitation continues.  Ten men sweep into the Finnish Diet building, kidnap two communist legislators, and spirit them away in two automobiles.  It’s unknown whether these men are operatives of the government, which yesterday ordered all communist members of parliament arrested.  All other communist legislators have reportedly fled for the Russian border. 

Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Friday, July 4, 1930


Moscow:  The soviet government exiles 24 members of the Zeire Zion Jewish organization to Siberia for alleged anti-government activities.
 
Helsinki:  Prime Minister Kyosti Kallio and his cabinet resign, as they said on July 1 that they might, in an attempt to help the country find a solution to its widespread anti-communist agitation.  Kallio is replaced by Pehr Evind Svinhufvud, an “old man” of Finnish government who was independent Finland’s first regent.  One of his first acts is to order the arrest of the 23 communist members of parliament (most of whom have already fled).

Monday, August 27, 2018

Thursday, July 3, 1930


Berlin:  The state government of Prussia, alarmed at the growing agitation by the political parties of both extremes, forbids its employees and officials from supporting or participating in activities of the nazi or communist parties.
 
Paris:  Italy’s dictator Benito Mussolini gives an interview to the Petit Parisien newspaper which seems intended to give his views on French Foreign Minister Aristide Briand’s idea for a “United States of Europe.”  Mussolini says the treaties that ended the World War need to be revised before a united Europe is considered.  Italy was never happy with the territories it received after the World War, he says, and he claims the Allies reneged on the promises they made to lure Italy into the war on their side.
 
United States:  More bad economic news -- a new report shows automobile exports declined 15.5% from April to May. 

Sunday, August 26, 2018

Wednesday, July 2, 1930: Kapp Putsch Participants Pardoned

Berlin:  The Reichstag passes a bill granting amnesty for political crimes committed during the six years after the World War, except for the murder of ministers.  This will pardon participants in the Kapp Putsch, a coup attempted by nationalists and monarchists in 1920. 

Rome:  Italy responds to the U.S. Smoot-Hawley tariff with a tariff increase of its own -- on imported automobiles.  Depending on the model car, the increase can be 110 to 125%.  

Wednesday, August 22, 2018

Tuesday, July 1, 1930: Nazi Violence Mars Rhineland Celebrations


Germany:  Nine people are injured and more than 100 arrested in violence amidst the celebrations associated with the French evacuation of the Rhineland, most of it initiated by nazis.  In Berlin, nazis hold a dawn march shouting “Germany, wake up!” and battling communists wherever they find them.  Thousands of nazis battle police in the freed territory, using bottles, knives, whatever they can find.  Seventy are arrested at Cassel alone.  Two people are shot at Neumuenster in a battle between nazis and communists.  Shops and homes are set on fire, stores ransacked.  Much of the violence is directed at separatists, who wanted to see the Rhineland detached from Germany.  Yet the mood is still festive for most of the country.  Celebrants in the Rhineland don’t get home until 7 a.m.

Essen, Germany:  Despite the celebratory mood, bad economic news keeps pouring in -- steelworkers’ wages in much of northwestern Germany are cut due to the economic depression.
 
London:  More bad economic news -- the government’s revenues for the first quarter of the fiscal year are nearly US$11 million higher than first quarter last year . . . but expenses are higher by US $47 million.
 
New York:  Still more bad economic news -- a new report says factory employment is down 2% in the last month, bringing it to its lowest level since 1922.
 
Helsinki:  The government of Prime Minister Kyosti Kallio is reportedly considering resigning in the face of extensive anti-communist agitation and violence around the country.  The government has been closing communist newspapers and clamping down on communist propaganda, but anti-communist forces, mostly represented by the Lapua Movement, still say it’s not enough.