MODERN GERMANY

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21577, 13 September 1935, Page 6

MODERN GERMANY

GOODWILL TOWARD BRITAIN A NEW ZEALANDER»S IMPRESSIONS . The goodwill shown by everybody .he met >in Germany towards English people was remarked on yesterday by Mr B. Falck, of Christchurch, on his return from a 14 months' tour of America, England, and Europe. Every facility', was offered to encourage English visitors to Germany, and they were helped by the cheapness of travelling there. ,

It was a great contrast to go from England, which was undoubtedly ahead of the rest of the world on the road to recovery, even though America was better off now than she was a year ago, to Germany, where there were unmistakable signs that the people were far from well off. If a man with £SOO a year went to Germany he could live on what was practically a millionaire basis. Wages there were low, but so was the cost of living, and this gave an advantage to tourists. \

Mr Falck found that with the mark at 18.5 to the £ he could obtain a very fine room in a good hotel at about five marks a day, and an excellent meal at two to three marks. Entertainment also was cheap, and a seat at the well-known Winter Garden in Berlin cost about 2s 6d, and he shared a box in a theatre for 3sv 4d. The cost of these seats for similar entertainments in England would have been 12s 6d and 15s.

Particularly noticeable tp a visitor from England was the small volume of motor traffic in Berlin compared with large cities in England and America. Many of the larger shops ,selling better class goods were closed, although they kept open their branches, selling cheaper goods in poorer districts. The goods displayed in the shops were very cheap.

Adoration of Hitler The adoration of Herr Hitler was remarkable, but he seemed really to have achieved something, particularly in unifying the German peonlp At the same time, an undercurrent of feeling could be noticed—affected by the food shortage and a tendency for the cost of-living to rise—that might bring about a political changp. The army leaders—as part from Hitler—were the real rulers of Germany. Mr Falck, saw no evidence of anti-Jewish feeling. The people the average tourist met were very kindly, and there was good feeling toward the English. The war was recognised as a mistake, but real hatred towards the French continued. The effects of the war could be noticed in the many memorials to the soldiers who fell, one in Hamburg -being for 50,000 men. An observer walking along the streets noticed the absence ot an entire generation—the men of tht 45 age group.