In the early part of that year the Ruhr was occupied by the French, and this was subsequently of great importance in the development of the Storm Detach¬ ment.
The occupation of the Ruhr, which did not come upon us as a surprise, gave good reason for hoping that we should cease our cowardly policy of sub¬ mission, and that the defence associations would now have something definite to do. It was likely that the Storm Detachment as well, which contained several thousand strong young men, would not be deprived of a share in this national service. During the spring and summer of 1923 its transformation into a fighting military organization took place. To this were due, in great part, the later developments during that year, as far as they concerned our movement.
The events at the close of 1923, though they appeared disgusting at first sight, yet, when looked at from a higher plane, were almost a necessity, since they put an end at one blow to the conversion of the Storm Detachment, which was now doing harm to the move¬ ment. At the same time, however, these events opened a possibility of one reconstructing at the point at which we had been forced to divert from the straight course.* In 1925 the National Socialist German Workers’ Party was re-founded, and it will have to re-construct and organize its Storm Detachment on the principles mentioned in the beginning. It will have to return to its original sound principles, and will have to regard it as its highest duty to make the Storm Detachment into an instrument for defence and strengthen the fight for the world-theory of the Movement.
It must not allow the Storm Detachment to sink to the level of a secret organization ; it must rather take steps to make of it a guard of 100,000 men for the National Socialist, and thus deeply nationalist, idea.
•The allusion is to the failure of the Hitler Putsch in November, 1923.