Editorial: Whether Hitler or Himmler
The “Hitler” manifesto read by Himmler yesterday does not dispose of the widespread belief that the dictator is dead or at least unable to speak for himself. The labored explanation in the manifesto itself indicates that Germans, no less than others, think he would not have remained silent willingly during the past four fateful months.
This does not sound convincing:
If in these days I speak to you, the German people, only little and rarely, it is due to the fact that I work, work for the fulfillment of those tasks which the times have imposed on me and which must be fulfilled in order to give fate another turn again.
Whether Hitler is living or dead, whether he is a prisoner of Himmler or violently insane, whether he was seriously injured by attempted assassins or is simply too busy to speak, as the manifesto states, is all very interesting. But these questions are less important than many people seem to think – at least they are not decisive.
The significant fact, as pointed out by Prime Minister Churchill and others, is that there is no reliable evidence of German revolt or internal collapse. Allied military superiority, and not Hitler’s death, is what counts.
Though there is no sign of Germany quitting now, this defiant Hitler-Himmler manifesto and the twin speech by Goebbels tend to confirm two allied assumptions. One is that Germany’s rulers know they are licked, and that they are continuing the fight because they personally cannot survive unconditional surrender.
The other is that they still have hopes, however faint, that by prolonging a costly conflict they can create enough war weariness among the Allies to force a compromise peace. That would mean Nazi victory despite military defeat.
The last-ditch note runs through the Hitler-Himmler manifesto, and Goebbels speaks of the “last round” and of preparations to “fight in every house and every street.” Goebbels repeats the lie – denied by Messrs. Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin, and the French Foreign Minister – that the Allies want to “wipe the Reich off the map.” Then he says Germany “will fight until our damned enemies will be prepared to conclude a decent peace.” This is in line with the recurring reports that Germany is offering a compromise.
Fortunately, there is now less danger than ever before that Germany will win the war by such diplomatic trickery. There was a time when it seemed she might split the United Nations, by playing Russia off against Britain and the United States, or the opposite. For the Allies by quarrels to throw away complete victory now, when it is within their grasp, is unthinkable.
Whether the job takes six months more as Mr. Churchill suggested yesterday in Paris, or less as some Allied commanders believe, or whether it takes much longer, the enemy’s unconditional surrender is the fixed goal.