Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-07-19
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

tory and how-instead Of being sealed
in ponderous. unreliable volumes-it
Immediately became the concrete re-
form and was adopted as the daily
rule If life
One the leaders of opposition to
Fascism was Giocomo Matteotti; he
was kidnapped in the streets of Rome
and murdered. but before that crime
he had written a book entitled "The
Fascist Exposed" In this book he
said: mo government has made such
extensive and deplorable use of decree
laws as the Fascist government
laws made in council and not by the
assembly.
He quotes from a speech by Mus.
solini, made at Milan, November IL,
1919-the first anniversary OF the
armistice:
Zone Of the principal demands CT
the Fascist program is the decima-
ton of wealth, conflscation of wartime
excess profits and a drastic levy on
capital"
Referring to the labor situation,
Matteotti said: THE free organizations
have in practice no right Of striking"
In July, 1923, the free organizations of
the Roman Bricklayers' Union pro-
claimed a strike, but the police and
Fascist INTERVIEWED; ESQ workers were
arrested and over $50 made to leave
Rome.
ION the other hand, members of
the Fascist Corporation can always
strike; or, rather, the strike is not cali
ed on their initiative. but ordered by
the Fascist leaders. Not only this,
irnff fn% tod
very invasions of estates, and occupa-
lions of factories, steamships, etc. for
which so much execration was hurled
at the Bolshevists.'
The cooperative labor situation Is
illustrated by the following announce.
ment by Postiglione, head Of the Fas-
cist co.operatives:
1--WE will repeat once more: The CO.
operatives which have been burnt
down have been we'll burnt down, for
only in this way was 1t possible
definitely. to make sure that elements
in the cooperative movement were
not serving as blind tools Of an anti.
national party"
Matteotti added: 1.-THE projects and
authorities have interviewed every
where to close down the non-Fascist
co.operatives. Even the great COOP
tive Alliance of Turin, etc., have had
to submit to government Intervention.
The conditions imposed for allowing
Co-operatiyes Of Reggie to continue
to exist included this: The managers
shall be replaced by men approved by
the prime minister
In the public service, according to
Matteotti. the reduction Of employees
has been only S per cent in 1923,
another per cent in 1925 and a
third per cent to be reduced in
1928.
"There has been imposed ON the EN-.
ployes an oath not to belong to any
Of those parties which Fascism finds
it convenient to qualify as 'anti-na-
tional.'
italy is a member of the League of
Nations, but when she was threat
ening Greece in 1928, Mussolini. in an
interview given q representative OF
the London Daily Mail, said:
Should the League OF Nations de-
clare its competence in the matter,
the question will arise for Italy
whether to remain in the League or
to leave it. have already decided for
the second course in that eventual.
threatened the League Of Nations. de-
spite the provision that a years notice
must be given before any resignation
can take effect and that other pro-
vision alleged to qualify the League
to intervene to stop wars even be-
tween non-members.
The National Militia, which sue.
ceeds the Guardia Regia. is composed
of 100000 Fascists, In addition to
Gardeners (67,000), and Mussolini is
in command of both forces and also of
the navy. The Fascists, who alone
are members of the National Militia,
are permitted to carry pistols. even
when off duty, but all "subversives" -
that is, all non.Fascists-are prohib-
tied from carrying arms.
Matteotti concludes:
ITO sum up, membership Of the
Fascist party Is a second and more
important form of Italian citizenship.
To be without it Is to forego civil
rights and to lose the liberty of vot-
ing. domicile, movement. assembly,
work, speech and even thought"
-. (couyrasAt. 1897. b.. GarJ ". Celliaa.A