The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1927-01-14
, Mussolini, Premier of Italy

ny aitO Mussolini, Premier of Italy
~ Morgan, Rome Manager of the
- W United Press.
" .M "a, 1927. by United Press Asso-
g. All rights reserved. Reproduc-
Wn whole or in part prohibited in
ARTS of the world.)
8 is the ninth of a series of articles
daily lie and work by Benito =, MUS,
of the United Press. Each article
Dseries has been personally revised,
Fected and approved by Premier Musso-
In many ways, am a monastic.
YEven though my life has been full Of
= adventure and struggle, it has never
been spent in extravagant living The
desires of the body have received
scant consideration. Somehow,
have managed to live above the mere
satiation of the cravings of the flesh
and to dwell on those things which
might lead to substantial and bene-
fetal achievement. Indeed, I doubt
whether many in the monastic orders
adhere so closely to their chosen
rules Of life, as my severe but self
imposed asceticism forces me.
fast twice or thrice a month, 1
lice, In solitude and do not smoke or
drink.
Fasting carries with 1t an ines
Unable spiritual good as well as a
physical. I can readily appreciate
why monastic orders have been given
to fasting for it quickens spiritual
fervor and seems to lift one above
the mundane influences with which
we are surrounded. New avenues of
thought, outside those Of our every
day routine, open and we live in an
atmosphere which transcends that of
the common intercourse below.
For these two or three days every
month, dring only a glass or two Of
sugared water. This serves to keep
down the pangs of hunger when they
remind me at midday that it is time
to eat. Besides, it keeps the ordinary
processes in working order while the
absence of nourishment allows the
system to free itself of misused and
decayed food. The rest to the organs
is Of potent assistance in restoring
them to efficient functioning and in
bringing about a general adjustment
of the system. When one has COM
pleted the fast, he cannot but be i'm
pressed by the sense Of cleanliness
which rules the body and the mind,
as well as by the genuinely healthy
feeling which comes with it. During
the abstention from food, follow my
usual daily routine without taking
any special rest, attending to the af-
fairs of the government as if it were
an ordinary day.
And this occasional fast, keeping
the body and mind in q somewhat
special plane Of health and thought.
serves also to keep it free from use
less and reduant tissues which
might burden the physical and men
tai operations. I cannot but see
impeachment to these operations opera
lions when surplus tissues are al
lowed to accumulate. / detest fat.
+ am unrelenting in that. I give no
quarter to those who allow their
bodies to become laden with rolls OF
burdensome and unnecessary flesh.
have no compassion on them. My
own brother, Arnaldo, is excessively
rotund but he finds no sympathy in
me for that. In the rapid pace
which fascism is setting for all Ital-
fans, it is necessary to be 1.-THE and
athletic. Though I have great affec-
ton for Arnaldo, If he eats too
much, he must pay the penalty. He
can readily reduce in the same man
rtyaicr1,f Inv
rigid, disciplined self-control and
self-denial.
One day during a fascist march in
honor of the poet Oriani, now dead
but living in our doctrine, some one
said to me that my brother was not
able to continue the fast pace I was
setting. i replied.
II have no pity on fat men. This
l say to all of you. In reality, I Ia.
ment them sometimes, and then
again, they amuse me and put me in
a good humor. Fat you cannot be. "
A fat woman is even a greater
abomination. l cannot endure great
rolls of flesh on what might have
been, the frame of a great beauty.
Italian girls to the age of 20 are sur
passing loneliness, but often beyond
that, they get careless with diet. eat
macaroni and begin to take on flesh.
Then, the lines which once marked
them as the embodiment of grace,
begin to bulge and swell and the
once great bauty becomes a mon
strosity.
Each must look to his own problem
to keep thin. Some get fat on the
meagerest diet, others can eat the
day long and still remain thin. Each
must study that which best fits him