THE NAZI MOVEMENT

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXVII, Issue 4458, 17 October 1933, Page 2

THE NAZI MOVEMENT

ANIMOSITY TO JEWS. SITUATION IN EUROPE. Comments on the Nazi movement in Germany and the general situation in Europe was made in an interview with a Wellington Post representative last week by Mr. A. Kummerle, of the Emil Kummerle spinning mills, Brandenburg, near Berlin, who arrived by the Tamaroa from England, accompanied by his wife. Mr. Kummerle said that the Hitler regime had resulted in a great cleaning up in Germany. The country was in better order, and his view was that Germany would benefit from the Nazi movement.

Mr. Kummerle speaks perfect English with not a trace of foreign accent, and in detailing his plans he reeled off a string of Maori names, usually something of a tall order for visitors from overseas, in a way that made it appear that he had visited the Dominion before. But he has not. This is his first visit to New Zealand, and of Wellington, his first acquaintance with the country, he said his first impression was excellent. He is on a combined business and pleasure trip. In New Zealand and Australia he will be buying, and in the Dutch East Indies and China, whence he proceeds after visiting this country and Australia, he will be selling. Speaking of the Nazi movement, Mr. Kummerle referred to it as having fought Bolshevism and Communism for all Europe. The Jewish question in Gei'many was very complicated, and he felt that one could not "get at it" in a few words. The chief cause of animosity in Germany was that the Jews were too much mixed with Socialism and Communism. That was what originaly created the animosity. The Nazi movement had resulted in a great cleaning up of Germany, which had been full of bribery and other dirty business—a result of the Versailles Treaty and the paying of debts out of borrowed money. The Jews represented less than 1 per cent, of

the population of Gearmany, yet they had ruled the Press, the banks, etc. That so small a percentage of the population should have such power and control had aroused a feeling of animosity, which possibly was hard to understand by the people of countries with no anti-Semitic feeling. Mr. Kummerle said he saw no cause for alarm in the general situation in Europe. There was, in his opinion, no danger of war. All that was silly talk. In his view the greatest danger to Europe was Japan. Japanese men worked one hundred hours a week and received 2s a day, and the women also worked long hours for 9d a day. Under such circumstances Europe could not compete.

Mr. Kummerles firm, which manufactures knitting yarns, employs about 1900 people. Over 20,000 bales of wool a year are used, and a big percentage of this, he said, came from New Zealand, mostly from the South Island. The North Island wool was not found to be as good. "Whether it is the climate or the breeding I don't know," he said. "If we can get it, we prefer the South Island wool."

In Germany, Mr. Kummerle continued, the wool business was very good; his firm was working a double shift. The wool business was good partly because of the financial circumstances of the people in the different countries. More knitting was being done than in prosperous times. There were still five million unemployed in Germany, but there were a million less this year. Mr. Kummerle will be in New Zealand about seven weeks before he and his wife proceed to Australia.