Evening star., 1932-08-19
Mussolini's Eulogy Of War .
Taken Lightly by Americans

solini idea. He is still saving wood In
exile"
1--WE think of Napoleon" remarks the
Omaha World Herald, "as the most
blood-thirsty of all in carrying on wars,
and yet, his conflicts sum up to be the
scraps of a piker, in view of later costs.
Even the American Civil War totaled
more than Bonaparte' e's-eight billions
in all. The greatest cost is found IN
the conflict of 1914 to 1918, when
200 billions of dollars were shot away.
OF that considerable sum, the cost TO
the United States, from the time OF
our entrance into the war until Con-
gress declared 1t at an end in 1921,
IS stated by the Treasury Department
to have been $26, ,361 ,096. .001. SO. That
would give Napoleon pause, even though
the 90 cents were stricken on. That
cost was only the beginning, not the
end What with veterans payments
and interest on the debts and hospitali-
zation and other items. the cost OF the
World War, for the United States, up
to June 80 of this year had increased
to S39, L 158, ,649 ,009.57. No need to think
of Napoleon any more. As a footnote
to Mussolinis remark about nobility one
may we'll consider the little news item,
cabled from Thiepval, France, the other
day, when President Lebrun of France,
the Prince of Wales and a thrCng OF
commoners were gathered together.
Their business was to dedicate a shaft
TO the British soldiers who died at the
battle of the Somme. AS they gathered
there for the ceremony, it is significant
that neither President Lebrun nor Eng
lands next king found anything to say
that resembled Mussolini's comment.
Walo he dnY1Iu
any nation is to be found in the peace
and prosperity of the whole world Le-
brun called upon Europe to cooperate
in peace Perhaps the fact that they
were in the presence of the spirits Of
no less than 1887 British soldiers who
died in battle there suggested their re-
marks"
"FasciSm is to be credited with saw
ing Italy from the chaos of Bolshe-
vism, but it has contributed nothing
new to political science, and 1t will be-
ance of the exigency and a strong
man." is the belief of the Louisville
Courier journal. The Port Huron
Times Herald looks upon the premier's
utterance as about the last stand in
the effort to find excuses for war; The
Providence Journal offers the opinion:
I'm the light of terribly SOLDERING ex-
pertenceS during the world war and In
the aftermath, which still harasSes man
kind, there are reasonably limits to
the glorification of fighting for fight
ing's sake" The Ashland Daily Inde-
pendent holds that history offers no
democracy whose tyranny compares
with the egregious tyrants of mon
archy."
In this country" asserts the Wall
Street Journal, I'VE have staked our
all on popular government In Europe
there are France, Switzerland, Britain,
Holland and Belgium which still MAIN
tain 1t in forms more or less plausible.
Elsewhere there is dictatorship or its
equivalent in greater or less degree. In
Italy and in Russia 1t is dictatorship
complete, each with complete 'philoso-
ply behind it, and both philosophers
sharply in contradiction to ours, such
as 1t Is. Both, however, call for the
same thing-a homogeneous state with
single idea to which its nationals
are committed body and soul That
kind Of state is like a fanatic-or
a martyr-with an idea for which he
Is at any time willing to die. Such
men are very troublesome and DIM
cult for community to control when
they take TO the warpath, and they
have q knack Of attracting discipIes.S