“Czech peasants were offered compensation for their food products but at entirely inadequate prices.
“Rural Germanization, apart from Germanization pure and simple, aimed at pauperizing as many well-to-do Czech nationals as possible.
“The Nazis did their utmost to squeeze as much as possible out of Czech agriculture. Here too their aim was twofold: On the one hand to obtain as much foodstuffs as possible, and on the other, to carry the process of Germanization as far as possible.
“Farmers were turned out of their farms to make way for German settlers—entire agricultural districts were in this way cleared of Czechs. Agricultural co-operative societies in control of production were transformed into auxiliary organizations and were gradually germanized.
“The looting of property and wealth was followed by the pillaging of products of the soil. Heavy fines and frequently even the death penalty were imposed on Czech peasants for intentional failure to comply with orders regarding production, delivery, and rationing.
“B. Expropriation of banks and their funds.
“In Czechoslovakia industrial undertakings were directly financed by the banks, which often owned or controlled the majority of shares. Having obtained control of the banks, the Nazis thus secured control of industry.
“(a) After Munich.
“After Munich, two important German banks, the Dresdner Bank and the Deutsche Bank took over the branches of Prague banks, situated in the ceded territory. Thus among the enterprises taken over by the Dresdner Bank were 32 branches of the Bohemian Discount Bank and among those taken over by the Deutsche Bank were 25 branches of Bohemian Union Bank.
“As soon as these two banks obtained control of the branch banks in the Sudetenland they also endeavored to gain influence on the respective head offices of these banks in Prague.