Show II af mona Won mon Q i r tr tri a 0 0 v. v r rK ri K 0 r if V r rV fy S ff f v 3 f f 0 y i Y 1 C 1 t o 3 t F 37 Y r ae Sr 5 S l 2 r lr w p s. s M i f rl a 1 TN 1 4 HE recent abortive attempt at a aJ J general strike In Italy has hils resulted C o be he colossal colos colas In what now appears to a 0 sal disaster for the Italian socialist socialist social social- 1st government writes Louis D D. o Kornfield from ft-em Home Rome to the tile NCi New Net NewYork I tj i York Times Proletariat organizations organizations which had been dragged Into t the strike against their will wiIl for no not t other object than to assist a political political po po- maneuver which the s socialist socialist social social- 1st deputies In 10 n the chamber endeavored without success to effect are now suffering for their Indiscretion indiscretion In in- discretion In the dismissal and suspension from employment of thousands of their members Distrustful of the the- leadership which pro provoked oled this calamity they are withdrawing from the Italian Italian Ital Ital- ian Labor alliance and are passing Into new syn syn- combinations which the socialist party for forthe forthe forthe the purpose of future proletariat action will find difficult to control The situation points clearly to a dissolution of the Italian socialist structure and a n movement toward ne new v foundations ns Even more Important than the actual fact of ot the socialist rout Is the manner In which It was brought about A resort to armed force by tho the bour bourgeoisie produced the debacle n not t. t the armed force of the government but the force which the bourgeoisie created of at Itself and for Itself In the In short armed bourgeoisie a phenomenon phenomenon phe phe- novel to modern democracy Is Italy's most recent and special contribution to the sel science ence of class war It Is a method of ot action which cannot fall fail to stop strikes and crush any move of the proletariat toward bolshevism An armed bourgeoisie takes socialism Marxian at Its word accepts class war a a. a a reality and at every opportune moment actually takes tales the offensive It rushes In III where the hesitant angels of democracy fear to tread and nod by swift organized organIzed organ organ- strokes drives the enemy to cover or cover or Into the hospitals hospItals and and thus restores order discipline and Industry An armed bourgeoisie presupposes of ot course complete neutrality and noninterference on the part of the government that Is to say unlimited freedom of action during the period of f the crisis In 10 fact It temporarily supplants government go In Italy the government conveniently took tool n a a vacation vacation vaca vaca- tion until the classes In opposition Mad had settled their dispute For disinterested observers the Italian experiment ment of August 1 to August 5 could not fall to produce the conviction that given an nn army of Its own Independent of government authority such as the Italian middle and upper classes have developed de tie- eloped In the l the bourgeoisie of any country need never nave fear the success of general strikes or rr r Bolshevist agitations By lly reason of ot superior Intelligence ence superior leadership superior freedom of action and resources an armed bourgeoisie bourgeoisie bour bour- ge can always win Con Consider lder to begin with the Fa movement movement move move- ment A leade leader thus defined It t to the writer The Thi movement Is the awakenIng awakening awaken awaken- ing o or of Italy to a full sense of Its own greatness and destiny us a nation Its appeal Is essentially and to the patriotism of the Italian people as ns an Italian people and It proposes at any co cost t. t even at the cost of democratic conventions to crush any tendency that may threaten to rag the Italian people into the morass of socialism bol- bol bolshevism old and Internationalism I Except for the fact that It specifically names socialism In Its Indictment this program is as ns old old- as Italy Itself One naturally marvels that so old oldan oldan oldan an Idea could have hate aroused so sa great a n r In hi Ina a people so JOC recently emerged from the sophisticating cating flames of a n European war tear The answer Is to he be found In the new generation generation genera genera- tion of Italian youth the youth that had Just missed the war and yet et had sniffed the fumes the youth that found Itself upon tit the declaration of pence peace lene hunting for r or organizing animating ani muting mating Ideal such us wars wars' or revolutions produce such as us youth u al always os hungers for futo something for which to shout light fight and und die If necessary But the cause of proletariat revolution re In Italy had not then and und has hns not yet et developed a 11 spokes spoken spokesman man sufficiently eloquent and dramatic to capture the Imagination of th the Italian youth Upon Iff iti vision Islon at nt Flume four years emos a ago o there dud there did burs burr a n skyrocket of great reat brilliancy but hut It In n soother another r direction DAnnunzio UA hud bud no new Ideal to offer He hind had an nn and p d tl d Ideal Ideal Viva Viva Italia which which he Ile made seem nw mtv n- n w through the force of his own Imagination fI fer firor ur and magnetism And Anti the youth of Italy r 10 ed cel This fresh outburst of patriotism found in tn objective e In bolshevism and from the contact of the two ho hostile tIIE for forces o bourgeois nationalism ind Hul proletariat Internationalism was Irn In ever every stage of Its hs development r J rall rally encountered the bitter opposition of the socialists This opposition reached a n critical ct stage tn e In July last st when the liberal democrat r tJ o elements elements ele ele- ments joined forces farces with the socialists In de' de In tug Ing suppressive measures against l Ill the ground that however patriotic In 1 Ts s s In Intentions In in- laid hud nd adopted a n program of action fiction openly of law ins productive of Internal and aud In direct contradiction to Q all nIl the Il p sad Mud Ideals of ot democratic government government V e i d g 6 r 2 S r r Y J v rk S. S is 1 r q y r V t y J u J JUn Un U fy rr 2 o I t o z 1 O. O f e en n To Io od-o od o ilder I A Not to compromise Itself In hi either direction the first government there did nothing but utter feeble admonitions against subversions of at law lawand lawand and make a vague ue Incoherent threats of at disciplining ing offenders whoever they might ht be But by hy no such safe middle course however could the government government government gov gov- soh solve e the problem of pacification The government announced late In JUl July a deficit in the national budget of six billion hUllon lire fire It was desperately trying to draw the of ot the chamber to a financial program that was to be based largely on faith hope and charity when a band of Irresponsible youngsters oun w wearing black shirts and calling themselves amused ed themselves In Cremona one afternoon by eUing etting fire to the homes of two socialist deputies An uproar ensued In the chamber led by socialists socialists social social- and und supported by the democratic factions In Inthe Inthe Inthe the cent center r The burning of the abodes of the two socialist deputies was a n veritable outrage What was the government going to do about it The government decided the time hind had come clime to act It therefore announced that It would In e Investigate tI the Cremona scandal nm anti and punish the culprits as soon as they could be apprehended Then the popular party from the center of the chamber unexpectedly unexpectedly edly and without warning out nit of whim purely political In motive mauve anti and totally unrelated to the Issue of the hour swept s to the support of the socialists on an order oreter of the da day o and left the ministry without a n majority In the ch chi Imber The ministry collapsed automatically For u about nut nine days Italy days Italy had hud to get along wIthout without with out n a ministry It got gat ot along surprisingly I well The king called upon Orlando to form a n new cab onet net et lIe He fall failed 11 De Nava and and Meda In ha succession endeavored to procure a more or nl less similar solution so so- lution hut hint the they In turn had no better hetter success than Orlando The bankruptcy of Italian statesmanship assumed as ns- as- as the character of a n national scandal The fhe king recalled Orlando anti and again ug he lie failed The ling king finally called coiled Into consultation for an nn exchange e of views the socialist leader The conference of July Jul 20 21 was ryas acclaimed h by the tile Italian press ns ng historic It lasted fOlot forty 0 minutes min min- utes however ho merely utilized his Inter view with the king as s an nn exceptionally dramatic moment In 11 which 1 to hurl huil the socialist ultimatum Either Immediate steps step should he be taken en to form a government n that t would crush or the socialists would call the general strike The king declined d t to a hUrl hedge budge e. e On th the following day August Aug I the Labor nil alli fined ance at ut Genoa Issued the tall rail to n a general g strike r In the face fuci of this national national danger danger r th the nen tary f factions were wore frightened Into the tile popular the tho party deserted socialists socialists' Facto was tens recalled to tf power Before Defore time tile day clay was over aver Facto had bad formed rl n a second ministry with Ii few can changes es In personnel nut but with no no change n a whatever In political complexion It ri was oR he same sonic go that tint had been overthrown with the same to the tIll right had played oed his trump card anti and had lo lost t. t The scene of conflict t now passed from om rain parlia ment to the country mn received the order to march The Tho marvelous pot potency nc of an on armed bour bourgeoisie revealed Itself armed organized ot anti and led leel at nt once Fascist encamped In tn squares n anti and d principal streets trets of the big cities For Por such an or organized demonstration the Italian of or hos has proletariat W was vas j pared 1 The call to strike Itself hail had utterly e Imp taken n the proletariat by surprise The response of ot the working classes on the fir fin t da was sporadic dl dJ die organized and lacking In leadership Without losing time the Fascist launched a at offensive e with three specific objectives The first firs was to keep the railroads and other Instrument of public service In operation by taking up M win elements clements of their own the work abandoned bj bi strikers the second was to crush the proletariat v press the socialist municipal administration wherever they existed the operative co union and other othel working class organizations fros rat which the strike might derive moral or material energy the third was to terrify the strikers into InU submission by the application of armed force torce and execution of drastic reprisals against any attempt to revolt The centers of ot strike activity were Genoa Ml bit Ian Parma Ancona and Ravenna eight Forty hours after the strike was wag called realized he was licked To save SR as much muchas muchas as he could from the ruins rushed to and offered to call the strike off If It Fatty would promise that the government would talethe tale take the strikers back gave the socialists the required assur assur- ance ante On the following day day August A August 3 the 3 the Labor federation called cuBed upon the strikers to return to their posts announcing that the proletariat had achieved ed Its object But ut If the socialists were through the Fascist were not They had a definite program to tom com cor and they proceeded to complete It In M MIan Mi Milan Ian lan they drove the socialist lIst administration out oat of power and und took tool possession of the Palazzo M Ma Mar rino vino On the following day clay they attacked the thi Avanti th the leading socialist newspaper In is Italy put the editors to night flight and set fire to the plant In lu Genoa they suppressed the publication of the oro Ln and anti marched In force upon the Palace of ot ofSan ofSan San Glor Giorgio lo where the socialist consortium ot 01 o. o J the port was located The Fascist demanded the surrender of the consortium and when sur sun surrender 10 render was refused they seized It by force In Ravenna nn they seized and suppressed tM B elaborate which has hat co operative organization served servert as ns a n model of socialist co operative co-operative deft devel development opulent for fOl students from all parts ports of ot the tho world In Ancona the they destro destroyed oed the printing plant of the socialist or organ an La and set fire to the headquarters g of nil all the principal labor organizations thins Including the Federation of ot Railway Work Wort- el etSo s the Society of Soviets and the Chamber 0 ol of Labor They marched Into Parma strong anti and took tool possession of the city They destroyed destroy the lie printing plant of the Piccolo and disrupted the operative co unions Considering the violent nature mature of ot the r reprisal 5 t or occurred n against the working classic there I. surprisingly little blood shed the of c of th the strike On Un Au August 5 when hen It was all nl over the go govern gores ern mut m. came to life and confided to military control contro the tho cities of Genoa Milan Ancona an and Ih o. o la In n th the special terms h by which the an anthe and ana d the victory tw tM socialists defined claims of both bath by the fc facto ts were 0 ifs vio Wl the meant victory of either faction tort for the nation n na at as asa ata Italian people and for the time a t whole WU was a n questin which seemed to l' l concern net neither bar of the opposing forces When Indeed Indeed- t In his declared that second ural thaI Itay y could be he ruined d by hv such a victory LUP the leader In ti tie e chamber responded i with a 1 challenge which Indicated that If r civil Y war tear I was ns not yet ar nL actual fact In Kal It c. c could uld any day b become com fI one oze e. e rl |