The Winds of War

Wolf Stoller:
There are certain conversations that have to be forgotten. And in Germany we have a phrase for such delicate matters. We say, "under four eyes."

Victor 'Pug' Henry:
I believe I've heard that phrase.

Wolf Stoller:
What transpires next is under four eyes. You and Armin had a conversation about this lend-lease bill. Did he make sense to you? You prefer not to say, eh? Of course. You are a diplomat.

Victor 'Pug' Henry:
I'm a gunnery expert, misplaced in diplomacy, and hoping to get the hell out of it.

Wolf Stoller:
A man of honor wants to serve on the field. [offers him a cigar] Would you?

Victor 'Pug' Henry:
No, thank you.

Wolf Stoller:
That you sympathize with England is only natural. I do. I love England. After all, I spent two years at Oxford. But we know that in your Army and Navy, there is serious opposition to this lend-lease giveaway. Which will strip you of armaments, by the way. No, in war plans, you will be in a key position to foster this wise and patriotic opposition. Frankly, Germany needs friends in influential positions, to offset the Morgenthaus and the Lehmans.

Victor 'Pug' Henry:
Herr Stoller...

Wolf Stoller:
Please, please. You promised that you would hear me out. Now, Victor; and remember, this is under four eyes; we do have such friends. Not many, but a few. Patriotic Americans who see the realities, and not the propaganda of the Jews and of Churchill, who is just an adventurous megalomaniac. We hope that you will be another such friend. Now, you are aware of my connection with Herman Goerring. To me, one of the great figures of European history. His practical grasp of affairs still astounds me. Now, Herman Goering has established in Switzerland, some anonymous, untraceable bank accounts. After the war, these will be the rewards of Germany's honorable friends who said the right word in the right place. It will be a time of simple gratitude among men of honor. A sharing of benefits in the day of victory. If our friends want these accounts, they will be there. If not... [Shrugs] So, Victor, I have spoken my piece, and after you have said yours, this conversation will be as if it had never existed.

Victor 'Pug' Henry:
I find that interesting. Extremely interesting. But I must ask you, what made you, or General Von Roon, or Reich Marshal Goering, so sure that I might be receptive to this offer? Now, this is highly important to me.

Wolf Stoller:
Armin von Roon knows nothing about it.

Victor 'Pug' Henry:
OK.

Wolf Stoller:
As for the Reich Marshal, he remembers your visit with the banker Gianelli, and his purpose now is exactly the same as Roosevelt's was then: to avoid any future useless bloodshed. He thinks you can help. And I have confidence that you will.

Victor 'Pug' Henry:
Well, that is a very clear answer, and now here is mine, under four eyes. You tell Reich Marshal Goering from me, that he can stick his Swiss bank account up his fat ass.

Wolf Stoller:
I remind you, Captain Henry, that you have not yet left the Third Reich. You're still in Berlin. Reich Marshal Goering is second only to the Fuerher.

Victor 'Pug' Henry:
I am an officer of the United States Navy, and unless I misunderstood you, or you care to withdraw it, you have asked me, in his name, to commit treason for money.

Adolf Hitler:
So, what is new in all this?

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
Fuhrer, is is the army's final position. Case Yellow cannot proceed.

Adolf Hitler:
Why not?

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
Because of the military fundamentals, as stated.

Adolf Hitler:
Such as?

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
The season, to begin with. The meteorologists predict continuous soaking rains for weeks.

Adolf Hitler:
It rains on the enemy, too.

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
Fuhrer, even the supply of artillery shells is totally inadequate.

Adolf Hitler:
Who says so?

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
General Thomas, my chief of economics and armaments.

Adolf Hitler:
Do you know how many artillery shells of all calibers we have in the staging areas? Right this minute?

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
No.

Adolf Hitler:
How many are in the reserve dumps in the west?

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
It's up to my staff to re...

Adolf Hitler:
What the monthly annual production of shells is? Or the projected rise is in production, for the next six months, month by month?

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
Who keeps such figures in his head?

Adolf Hitler:
I DO! The supply is adequate. I tell you so, and I am a field soldier who depended on artillery for four years to protect his life. Check with your staff. If one of those figures is wrong, you can postpone Case Yellow. Otherwise, YOU MARCH! And next time you come to see me, KNOW what you're talking about!

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
If we... if we march, unprepared as we are, defeatism will run rampant. It will destroy the Wehrmacht and the Fatherland. The morale of the army was low even in the Polish campaign against an enemy in collapse...

Adolf Hitler:
You're questioning to me? TO ME? The courage of the German soldier?

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
I am talking facts.

Adolf Hitler:
WHAT FACTS? Back up this monstrous assertion!

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
Well, I...

Adolf Hitler:
In what units was morale low? What action was taken? How many death sentences were handed out for cowardice? Speak up! I will fly to the front and pass the death sentences myself! Name one instance of failure of nerve! One specific instance!

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
I... instances... It was common knowledge.

Adolf Hitler:
COMMON KNOWLEDGE? What IS common knowledge is that Army Headquarters at Zossen CRAWLS with cowards. You opposed me on rearming the Rhineland. You opposed me on the Anschluss with Austria. You opposed me on Czechoslovakia, until the British came crawling to me! You dirtied in your trousers, you heroes of Zossen, at the idea of marching into Poland! Well... have I once been wrong? Have you once been right? ANSWER ME!

Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch:
Mein Fuhrer...

Adolf Hitler:
I know your go-slow tactics! I know your Zossen tricks, your Zossen schemes, your Zossen ideas! Tell everyone who signed this insubordinate Zossen rubbish... TO BEWARE! I will ruthlessly crush EVERYBODY, up to the rank of a field marshal who DARES to oppose me! [Hitler turns to face the window, then stands next to his chair] You don't have to understand me. You only have to obey! The German people understand me. I am... Germany.