The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. WEDNESDAY, NOV. 18th., 1925 MUSSOLINL

Hokitika Guardian, 18 November 1925, Page 2

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. WEDNESDAY, NOV. 18th., 1925 MUSSOLINL

,\n Italian writi*r in a recent publicat ion lias revealed something of the sec rot of tin*, power of .Mussolini, flic* patriot of Italy. It is his roalisin and tlio readiness to lako n-ks. In tito I'our-o ill Ids work, tin' writer siis tlio recital of tlto iloods and jiofsonality of Signor .Mussolini have inado liitn otto ol the most famous figures in the world, and this volume of intimate biography, translated front the Italinn of a fervent disciple by Mr Frederick Whyte, will he eagerly read by his thousands of admirers in every country. Mussolini litis written a half-humorous preface, in which lie says: ‘‘l am perfectly resinned to my lot as a public man. To fact. I am enthusiastic about it. Not just on account of the publicity which it entails that phase til vanity lasts only from olio’s twentieth year to one's twenty-fifth; not just for the fame and glory, and. perhaps, the bust tn which one may he entitled in the market-plate of one's native village. No, it is the thought, the realisation, that I no longer belong merely to myself, that J belong to all- loved by all. hated by all that I am an essential element in the lives ol others. This feeling has mi one a kind of intoxiealing effect. And then, when one belongs to all, one belongs to none ! As someone has said already, you may attain the rostfulness of solitude in a crowd even better than in a desert.” This preface serves admirably to introduce this vivid account of Mussolini’s life and achievements. The main facts of his life tire well known, how he was horn of humble parents in 1883, hoiv at the age of only 20 he was appointed editor of the Socialist paper,

“Avimti,” how lie was expelled from Switzerland, imprisoned in Trent, and then deported from Austria, and how for many years he lived on a mere pittance. Then came the great awakening of the war, and Mussolini's .soul was stirred to its very depths for love of Italy. He joined the Army as a private and eventually reached the rank of sergeant. He kept a war diary which Signora Sarfatti calls “one of the most memorable of war hooks.” And then, when the war was over, Mussolini ami his hand of followers began to see till that they had fought for slipping through their fingers. The earliest manifestation of Bolshevism in Italy occurred at Milan, on February 18th. 1010, four months after the Armistice, when our glorious victory had its wines clipped on the opposite shores of the Adriatic. That manifestation was answered a month later, when on March 2-'ird. at the same place, there was hold the first meeting of the “Fused" (fascia—band which holds a bundle of faggots together). In a small hall of tin old nature, hired for tnc occasion. there met together a hundred and forty-five persons all told, good, sound fellows for the most part, though of no particular ability or distinction. Among them all there were perhaps 8 or 9 well-known names. It was in this humble way that the Fascisti came into being as a definite force for order and progress. Mussolini still had much opposition to face. At one time he was thrown into prison by the then Prime -Minister. Nittii however, dared not proceed further. After the arrest he was frightened at the storm he had raised. The next day Mussolini was released. Mussolini was now a figure to reckon with and in Octolier 1922 he was offered the post of Minister without portfolio. “A Minister without a portfolio, like poor Bissolati: solidarity without autonomy, responsibility without power!" remarked the chief caustically. On Octolier 30th. the almost bloodless march on Pome of the Black Shirts had triumphed, and Mussolini left the Quirinal as Prime Minister of Italy, a post he has held ever since. Signora Sarfatti, the ftutjiorese.

tells us that Mussolini’s ‘‘chief asset is hi- severe realism, his insistence on obedience and his willingness to take risks,” and she adds: “Lenin knew this and remarked : [Mussolini ? A great pity lie was lost to us! He is a strong man .who would have led our party to victory.” These were his words in addressing a. deputation of Italian Socialists who visited Russia in 1019 and 1920. Trotsky spoke in the same vein: ‘Aon have lost your trump card the only man who could have carried through a revolution was Mussolini.” Well, it is fortunate for Italy, and. .indeed, for the world, that Mussolini's patriotism and sense have led him to restore, not to ruin, his l>eloved land.