DEADLOCK.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 264, 7 November 1932, Page 7

DEADLOCK.

GERMAN ELECTION. EARLIEST RETURNS. papen Will Face Large, Hostile Opposition. POLICE FIRE ON STRIKERS. (United P.A.-Electric Telegraph-Copyright) (Received 1 p.m.) BERLIN, November 6. Polling began this morning in the fifth general election within a year. The opinion is still held that the Hitlerites (Nazis) will lose seats—some say many. The election has produced a further deadlock. Already it is obvious that Herr von Papen's Cabinet will face a lar"e and hostile opposition. In 9,000,000 votes'counted by 11 o'clock to-night the result was: — ' Nazis 157 Socialists 96 Communists 82 Centre party 59 German Nationals 39 Bavarian People's party .. 14 6erman People's party ... . 9 A curious feature is that electors could not vote for or against the Government because there are no Government candidates. " The Government stands quite aloof. It has left no doubt of its intention to remain in power, whatever the result of the election.

•Experienced politicians think: the Chancellor, JSerr von Papen, will soon be replaced by some other member of the ruling clique, but no one expects a modification of the Government's character or policy.

The transport etrike was the only novelty in the general election scene to which Germany is becoming accustomed. The absence of trams, buses and' the underground services meant that diversions were not available. Consequently there was a heavy poll in Berlin. * The Nazi and Communist alliance in the transport strike secured comparative electoral peace. There were only a few minor skirmishes. Fifty arrests were made for obstruction. Every policeman available was on duty, while aeroplanes were incessantly overhead. to warn the authorities of impending danger.

r-A.- fusillade of stones stopped tramcars in the evening. Nine passengers were injured by splintered glass. The police on three occasions fired on the tramway strikers and made 32 arrests.

-There were numerous disturbances elsewhere. Nazis shot with revolvers five Communists at Chemnitz. There were 23 arrests at Bremen in a Gom-munifit-Nazi clash, in which three Nazis were seriously injured. There were riots and-,,several people were injured ■ at Brunswick, Oldenburg, Mieburg and crefeid;;;- ~:...;■.-.-., -

The-iast election for the Reichstag was he]d on September 30 throughout Germany.. The total electorate is about ri,500,000. The poll was estimated at more than 36,000,000. This exceeded the total poll in 1930. The state of parties after the September poll was:— Seats. Votes. Narie 4 229-13,732,413 Socialite 132 7,949,883 Communists 88 5,276,887 Centre.... 76 4,600,295 Nationalists 36 2,174,071 Bavarian People's Party '. 19 1,179,717 People's Party 7 436,337 > State Party 6 374,816 Christian Socials 6 362,331 Economic Party 2 146,370 Agrarian Party 1 91,359 The effect of the election, in , fact, was » stalemate, for which Herr von Papen irae believed in some quarters to have hoped. The Reichstag as constituted by the September election was dissolved immedi- . ately it met,' and the present election was ordered.

SIGNIFICANT WORDS. CATHOLIC PARTY LEADER. (Received 1.30 p.m.) BERLIN, November B. £& Herr von Papen's continuance in office is a foregone conclusion despite the elections, considerable attention has been attracted by a speech of the chairman of W Catholic Centre party, Professor •Kaae, who recalled the ostentatious optifflWntilltlieendof 1918. He asked if the Pwent masters did not shrink from the oty.when their shallow, Haphazard optimism wonld culminate in bankruptcy unexampled in its dimensions. "We are * P" ave struggle than, most people Wink, We now are as we were in wartime. May the fate of those who then oachned to see be averted by those who - ?™* ow wilfully blind. Wβ will not *eoome revolutionaries, but legal, pasWTO and active resistance is harder to overcome than barricades,"

STRIKE SITUATION. THREAT TO SHOOT ISSUED. BERLIN, November 6. .J^ 61 " a broadcast threat that anyone interfering -with traffic would be shot, «°nsequ ent on the disturbances in connection with, the tramway strike, yesterday morning was marked by no dis- "; ? re « Plying squads of armed police «e patrolling the city, in parts of which "Wkers have filled the tram rails with and have erected barricades, inir* i fr&me are running but buses ana tube railways are idle. Two more newspapers have been sup-

siriv 6 Clty <* ustme n have joined the kiw 5 * The S asw °rkere are taking a TW ° n a P ro P° sal to ceas e -work, anj police ra ided a suburban house rimr aiTested 50 alleged Communists, ine ™ing strike leadere. -3 1 "storm troops" gathered around Hi. i. blood left on a pavement when killed a Nazi Customs officer. *v y ed a fla g in the blood. «aas who were escorting HeiT Hitler eL!^L e i ection meeting in the Rhineland ■earea hie path through the crowd with jTT7 w Wps. A girl who was struck ce ie suin S one of the Nazi e «»rt party.