“Now, I’ll explain everything to you....” But Dr. Wiesel did not let him continue. “You will pardon me, but it would be more appropriate for this explanation to come from _our_ side.” A menacing tone, ominous emphasis on the word “our.” And in a trice Holborn was in the Christian corner, where, in a few terse sentences, Wiesel sketched the situation: “As to what is going to happen, you will hear that shortly from the lips of our Chancellor, Dr. Karl Schwertfeger, who will go into the details of the law for the expulsion of all non-Aryans from Austria. Briefly, the history is as follows: After our so-called financial recovery, which lasted for two years, Austrian money again fell into a disorganized state. And when the value of the krone had fallen to the two hundredth part of a centime, chaos set in. Ministries fell one after the other, disturbances occurred every day, there was looting of shops, to say nothing of pogroms--the populace, desperate, stopped at nothing, until finally new elections had to be called. The Social-Democrats entered the campaign with their old program, while the Christian-Socialists swarmed about their gifted leader, Dr. Karl Schwertfeger, whose rallying-cry was: Throw out the Jews from Austria! Now, as you may be aware,”--Holborn nodded, though he knew nothing about it,--“the result of the elections was a complete collapse of the Social-Democrats, Communists, and Liberals. Even the working masses voted for ‘throwing out the Jews,’ and the Socialist party, formerly the strongest, barely salvaged eleven seats. The Pan-Germans, however, who came out with flying colors, had also taken up the cry of ‘Throw out the Jews.’ “So, with his genius, his fearless energy, his bold impetuosity and eloquence, Dr. Schwertfeger succeeded in obtaining the consent of the League of Nations for this great expulsion of the Jews; for he had placed before the League the alternative of the annexation of Austria to Germany or a free hand in this matter. And now Schwertfeger is to propose the law, which will certainly be passed. You are, therefore, witnessing an historic....” Calls of “Hush!” came from all sides. Wiesel could not continue, for the Presiding Officer of the House, a red-whiskered Tyrolese, flourished his gavel and gave the floor to the Chancellor. Sepulchral silence, through which the humming of the ventilators sounded weirdly. A suppressed cough, the rustling of papers in the press gallery--everything was heard distinctly. Inordinately tall although his head was thrust forward and his shoulders stooped, the Chancellor stood on the platform. His hands, clenched into fists, rested on the desk; from under the bushy gray brows his keen, glittering eyes sped over the auditorium. He stood thus, motionless, until suddenly, throwing back his head, he began with the powerful voice that had always commanded attention at even the most turbulent meetings: