 We are now at war. There are the two alternatives, total victory or total defeat. There can be no such thing as a military stalemate that would result in the survival of Hitlerism. That is the opinion of a man who knows. Douglas Miller, for 15 years commercial attaché to the American Embassy in Berlin, presenting a radio series based on Mr. Miller's book, You Can't Do Business with Hitler, Episode 4. Two for me, one for you. This is Douglas Miller speaking. I want to talk to you about Nazi bottom method. You know what bottom is. You give me your goods and I give something just as valuable an exchange. A $50 radio for a $50 vacuum cleaner. Fair enough? An even exchange is no robbery. One for you and one for me. But Nazi bottom is something different. Two for the Nazis and one for their customers. Or perhaps three for the Nazis and nothing for the customers. In other words, the Nazis used bottom as a weapon of world conquest, attacking the trade markets of the world with its unscrupulous weapons, just as they attacked their neighbors with dive bombers and 50 ton tanks. Now let's get back to the beginning. When Hitler came to power, he announced Germany would trade with the world on a bottom basis. That sounded all right and American businessmen wanted to give it a try. In 1934, the American Chamber of Commerce invited me to a meeting in Berlin. The meeting was called for the purpose of appointing a committee of American businessmen to negotiate border deals with the Nazi Ministry of Economics. And as far as I'm concerned, there's been too much funcum about this whole business. Let's get down to brass pack. You men know me and what I stand for. I'm a hard-headed business man and I'm proud of it. Well, I've seen my business here and Germany stock the pieces. Since this fell over, Hitler's come over and I guess they're all in the same boat. They're all boiled down to this. The Nazis can't buy American goods because they haven't any money. A lot of them are building their war machines with the Garcuban. That's very pun. But we need more than 20 cracks to put off in this industry. The point I'm making is that the Germans won't pay us cash for our goods, whether they have money for their army or not. But by heaven, they have offered to battle with us. And if we have any brains, we look into it. What's the difference between a cash deal and a border deal anyway? It all comes right down to the same thing. You trade your goods to the Germans, they give your German goods in exchange. You sell the German goods back home for American dollars and there you are. You'll make your profit far and over. Gentlemen, I know we appoint a special border committee. The committee will assist members in negotiating border deals with the German Ministry of Economics. The chair recognizes Mr. Miller. Gentlemen, Douglas Miller, our commercial attaché. Gentlemen, you are apparently enthused in Mr. Brownell's motion that we set up a border committee. I have no intention of being a wet blanket. But I must warn you that doing business with the Nazis, either on a border or any other basis, is not going to be as profitable as you might hope it to be. A phase realized that the Nazi policy is one of deliberate discrimination against American goods. Mr. Brownell. Mr. Miller has the floor. That doesn't mean he can fill us up to the next with a lot of rubbish. Mr. Miller, you don't seem to realize we have to eat the bottom of it. I see the bar of business. Oh, Mr. Brownell, it's quite possible you'll save money in the long run if you do go out of business. Oh, come now, Mr. Miller. Mr. Brownell, I'm only trying to point out that men who rule their country with black jacks and submachine guns will think nothing at all of cheating American businessmen. You imagine they'll give you a square deal? What? Well, they'll very probably have your pants. Mr. Miller, if the Nazis will pay me costs and 10% they can have my pants. Mr. Miller is obviously confusing politics with business. Mr. Brownell, I'm afraid the same traits that make the Nazis so difficult to deal with politically make them shizzlers in business. Ah, Tommy Rock. Gentlemen, I made a motion that we try to fix up some volunteers on the ground. I'd like to have your response to that motion. Gentlemen, is anyone any objection to taking a vote on Mr. Brownell's motion? Very well. All those in favor of the motion signify by saying aye. And so the motion was passed. I have been quite willing that American businessmen attempt to bother with the Nazis. I had only wanted to warn the Chamber of Commerce not to pin their hopes too heavily upon the success of such deals. However, the committee was organized and Mr. Brownell was selected as chairman. A few weeks later, the committee negotiated his first deal. An American wellness drawer named Davidson was to borrow $100,000 worth of wellness for $100,000 worth of German barbed wire. Mr. Brownell asked me to go to the German Ministry of Economics with Mr. Davidson to help him arrange the final details. Unfortunately, I was detained. When I arrived at the ministry, Davidson was there before me. He and an Nazi official were engaged in a violent argument. Well, Miller, I'm so glad you are here. Will you explain to your countrymen that I cannot ignore national socialistic regulations just to please him? God, God, he's trying to hide that. Hide that? What does that mean? That it's not an English word? You're a German writer, isn't it? It's an American word. Mr. Davidson, will you please stop talking? Gentlemen, gentlemen, please. What's this all about? He's trying to back out of the teeth. We are not backing out of nothing. You are the one who is backing out. Gentlemen, please. Now let's talk this over quietly and calm. Sir, let me explain. I came here in good faith to save my $100,000 worth of wellness for the same value in German barbed wire. You follow me? Yes. Go on. Well, now this seller here tells me I have to put up $200,000 cash on the side. Yes, Davidson. How many times must I tell you that it is not on the side, it is all part of the same deed? Not for my money, it is. Out of some minute, gentlemen, please. Now let me see if I understand this. Mr. Davidson, you came here expecting to trade $100,000 worth of wellness for $100,000 worth of German barbed wire, right? That's right. But you understand, my chief's purpose wasn't to buy barbed wire. My chief's purpose was to sell my wellness. I'm only taking the barbed wire in the hope that I can sell it as a profit back home. Yes, yes, I understand that. Now then, Airbnb is quite willing to make such a trade if you will, in the kitchen, buy an extra $200,000 worth of barbed wire and pay for it in cash. Yeah, naturally. That's what you say. Mr. Davidson, I'm just beginning to see the trouble here. You made a mistake. What was I have been saying to you? No, wait a minute. How do you figure I made a mistake? Well, didn't you expect to put up cash? Not the regulations don't permit Americans to secure barred deals on an even basis. The Nazis pay their share in goods, yes. But you're permitted to pay only one-third of your share in goods. You must pay the balance the other two thirds in cash. Oh, oh. I'm just about enough. You think I'm absolutely crazy? Or is it that this, the stuff Brown's here to take me for a fuck? What is he stuffing, sir? They're not paying me cash for my wallet. Why should I pay two-thirds cash for their rotten barbed wire? I don't know anything about the barbed wire business. I don't mind trying to sell wire that I got from my wallet. Maybe I couldn't sell the wallet anyway. But $200,000 worth of cash for a lot of barbed wire I haven't any use for? It's utterly impossible. It's fantastic. Well, but what did you expect, Davidson? Didn't the barter committee explain the naughty regulations? No, they shouldn't. Well, they should have. Let's forget the whole thing. I'm sorry I caused you so much trouble. And as for you, Mr. C. Mueller, all I can say is that the bill's off. Good day, Johnson. Uh, hey, I'll tell you this soon. Just one minute, sir. What is it? Why won't you take our barbed wire? It is very high quality, you understand? And you could surely tell it in America. Mr. C. Mueller, market for barbed wire in America is very limited. But there are hundreds of things you can do with barbed wire. Name what? Well, in the rice, we use thousands of feet of barbed wire to strengthen concentration camps. Mr. C. Mueller, I think you have unconsciously stumbled onto the fundamental reason why you and I can't do business. You see, we don't believe in concentration camps in America. This was one of the first barter deals any American had attempted to negotiate with the Nazis. And as you've seen, the deal fell through. Over a period of several months, various American businessmen who had American goods they hoped to exchange for German goods were sent to the Ministry of Economics. But it was always the same story. Americans had to conform to Nazi regulations. And this, they discovered, was impossible. You want proof of all of this? Get a copy of the magazine, Science, Atlantic Trade, on November 1934. This magazine was published by the American Chamber on page two and reads the story as told by the businessmen themselves. Well, the members of the barter committee finally gave up and discussed, except Mr. Brown-L, the chairman. He was something of a die-hard. I ran into him later at another meeting of the American Chamber of Commerce. A meeting that just ended and the crowd was leaving the hall. Well, hello there, Mr. Brown-L. How's the barter committee coming along? Oh, hello, Mr. Miller. Well, some of the members were a little impatient, dropping out, you know, but we're not doing so badly. Oh, come, come now. Don't you think it's a hopeless proposition? I wouldn't say that. We have completed a few deals, Miller. Very satisfactory deals, too. Where were those deals, small affairs, involving only a few thousand dollars at the most? Every deal that really amounted to anything failed, didn't it? Well, yes, but that wasn't my fault. The deals I had in mind were very good. The only trouble was they didn't conform to Nazi regulations. What's the point? No deal satisfactory to Americans ever will conform to Nazi regulations. Oh, I don't know about that. Hey, stop just a minute. Oh, hello, Dudley. Mr. Brown-L, you know, Mr. Dudley? He's the representative here, one of our American machine tool manufacturers. Yes, we've met. No, I was just having a little argument about barter, Mr. Dudley. Barter, don't mention that word to me. My company just completed a barter deal today. Was it a big deal? Big. Well, it went to the tune of about one million dollars on our side of the ledger. Oh, there you see, Marist. Now, what have you got to say about barter deals? I was right all along, wasn't I? Fair enough to press. Dudley, what did you get in exchange for that million dollars? 200,000 canaries. Did you say canaries? I said canaries. The Brown shirt owed us a bill for a million dollars worth of machinery. So we took the canaries in payment. A name of heifer? You wouldn't ask that if your firm owned a subsidiary in Germany, as my firm does. You mean? I mean, we're in no position to bargain. After all, we don't want our properties confiscated. You can't do business with Hitler. You have been listening to Episode 4 in a radio series entitled, You Can't Do Business with Hitler. This series is based upon the actual experiences of Douglas Miller who was for 15 years commercial attaché to the American Embassy in Berlin. Listen to the next episode in this series which is entitled, Mass Murder. This program was prepared and directed by the author for emergency in Washington. Music Music Music Music Music Music Music Music Music Music