Letter 19

March 13 ’33 – Berlin-Charlottenburg

Today I had a flute lesson and of course, as I hadn’t practised, it went like a lame cat on hot bricks. It is one of those days when I felt that I ought to have taken up rabbit farming rather than the flute. However I thought I would probably regain my vanity in orchestra. Beethoven’s 6th Symphony, but you never heard such a piteous rendering. The end of the matter was Professor Pruwer up and said “there’s no sense in conducting unless there’s an orchestra to conduct. Children! You may go home!” The children went

Tomorrow I should be ready at 6.45pm in my best bib and tucker and my silver shoes, and Werner will fetch me for to go and dance at Frau Professor Damlow’s.

Sat. morn

It was great fun, my party – and you never saw such a variety of dress. I was in fullest evening dress – there were some in betwixt and between, and some in tea-gowns – some, even, in ordinary afternoon. First of all we ate quantities of Wurstchen with potato salad and drank unlimited glassfuls of a, luckily for me, very innocuous bowl. And then we danced and danced and danced. Afterwards three people saw me home – yesser, three people and we all thought each other charming – and still do.

Today I tried to take Grattan to see the modern pictures, but of course the place was closed. Instead we strolled over to the Reichstag where we were much intrigued to see a long snake-like queue being marshalled in masterly fashion by whole armies of busy little Nazis. Grattand and I stood giggling at the sight – when up dashes a Nazi – seizes us by the shoulders and roars “Schliessen Sie Sich Hier an!” So we found ourselves part of the queue. At the end of about a quarter of an hours winding walking over the Platz in front of the Reichstag we landed actually in the building itself, where we were hounded at a breathless speed through the lobbies and passages and finally past the gutted central hall – a mere lumber-hole of crumbling charcoal. It was all quite thrilling.

Why where the Nazis so busy processing through the streets? There was a colossal army of them in Unter den Linden and more coming from the Potsdamer Platz. Grattan wants to walk out in his red shirt – but I hope he won’t – it really might be risky. Everywhere they were selling little pamphlets entitled “Awa with the Jews”,