"Jabbering-Box"

Swagger Adolf Hitler's brown-shirted Fascists scored so heavily in the recent German elections (TIME, Sept. 22), that Europe watched uneasily last week as Austria voted.

In Germany, Austrian-born Herr Hitler is not even a citizen. In Austria his close friend Prince Ernst Rudiger von Starhemberg is Minister of Interior--and in most European countries it is this ministry which, controlling the electoral machinery, is said to "make the election." On the eve of polling Prince von Starhemberg, as leader of Austria's Fascist Heimwehr, appeared to possess every electoral advantage.

When ballots were counted only eight Heimwehr Deputies were found to have been seated. The Christian Socialist (Catholic) Party with which the Heimwehr is associated won 66 seats, seven less than at the last election. In contrast to this meagre Fascist showing, the old guard Socialist Party of Austria, the Social Democrats, won 72 seats, one more than they held in the last Parliament. Finally the party groups aligned under grand old Austrian State Police Chief Johann Schober, whom the Catholic-Heimwehr forces ousted as Prime Minister six weeks ago (TIME, Oct. 6) won 19 seats, the chamber totaling 165.

Obviously these returns mean that Austria, if her Government is to remain Constitutional, must continue under a coalition Cabinet of some sort, probably a new one, since the prestige of Catholic Chancellor Karl Vaugoin was badly tarnished by his party's losses. What really mattered, however, was the possibility that Prince von Starhemberg and his Heimwehr would attempt a revolution. Apparently they made no real effort to win at the polls. In the arrogant words of the Prince himself: "We are indifferent to the people's mandate. We intend to rule Austria from outside the walls of Parliament --that jabbering-booth!"

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