Evening star., 1934-01-28
BY COUNT CARLO SFORZA.
Former Italian Minister for Foreign Affair

Former ltallan Minister lor forelgn hNalrs
TINE first weeks Of 1884 have been
rich in incidents which doubt
less some day will appear to
i have been symbolic omens Of
the future.
In Germany there was the behead-
| ing Of the poor idiot, Marinus van der
Lubbe. on the charge OF setting fire to
the ReichStag Building at Berlin. In
France there was the scandal Of the
s31 900 900 collapse of Stavisky'S pawn
shop. And in Italy there was the order
that Italian children are to be armed
with rifles All members of the Balilla
between IL and IA years of age are to
!! be formed into the Balilla Musketeers
and each child will be given musket
bearing the name of an italian soldier
, who fell in the World War.
Dealing as it does with the future OF
an entire genera ton. this Italian order
NAV we'll be one of the most serious
symbols of the day. If it should come TO
mean the conservation of the coming
generation to new wars.
What has impressed me most IN my
visit to Italy has been to see an atmos-
phere which recalls that OF old Prus-
sia"-so Herr Won Papen, the vice chan
cellor of the German Reich, wired to
the italian premier after short trip 10
Rome.
Is the compliment-if compliment 1t
be-based on real facts or on external
impressions? Let us try to see the reality
of things, with the strictest mental de-
tachment.
What strikes foreigners most, when
they go to Italy to study these PROB
lens. Is the Balilla Association. the Of
fetal aim of which IS as follows TO
insure between the generations which
fought the war and rising youth con-
tinuity of thought and attitudes which
will preserve the boldness OF their
elders" One sees here the basic mill
tary spirit Of the body to which the
Italian state intrusts the pick OF lts
youth.
Meaning in Name Balilla.
The very name of the Balilla Asso-
citation, to which millions of Italian
children belong. explains the mentality
and the ideals of the organization.
Balilla is the boy hero devoting HIM
self to his country. In 174o Austrian
soldiers at Genoa, painfully dragging
heavy mortar, asked some lookers-on TO
help them. The Genoese. when they
refused were beaten with the butt enos
of the soldiers guns. But then cnllo
of 10. Gian-battista Perasso, nlcknamed
Balilla, suddenly picked up stone and
threw it at the oppressors, shouting:
rs it not high time to have done with
these strangers?"
This was the signal of revolt: the
men were ashamed to have left the first
action to a child. Street fights began.
The Austrians defended themselves
dauntlessly: but by the time evening
came popular frenzy had got the better
of the army of the most powerful en-
pire of Europe, and the Austrians
evacuated Genoa.
The education of children and Adde'S
cents in Italy, as it was conceived ana
applied in Italy by 'Fascism is-or
should be. which is not quite the same
thing-a complete and continuous sys-
tenn, adapting itself to the various
phases of the development OF the ADO
lescent, laying hold of the children from
their earliest years up, when they enroll
In regular formations which gradually
bring them to full citizenship.
The Balilla organization aims at
STRENGTHENING the foundations on which
! the Fascist system is built and at shar-
ing in the armed defense of the party.
It is. in short, a physical. moral and
political novitiate of Italian youth under
the doctrine aud interests of Fasclsm.
The child belongs, before everything. to
the state. The state is alone entitled to
assume the entire education OF the
young generations to mold. IN the man
ner it thinks fit, the mind and body OF
the Italian of tomorrow.
At first sight this may seem legitimate
and even. from the standpoint OF ma
tional efficiency. useful. But the risk is
this: That (granted Fascist organization
dc IN,
minds) a new religion would be created
one which would have the intolerance
of all new religions and which. despite
the lip-service still paid to the Christian
| faith, might once more make Of Italy a
pagan nation. and, chiefly. nation
entirely devoid of critical sense.
Words in Newspapers.
If one reads the Fascist newspapers
especially those written for the young
one notes in every column titles like
the following ones: Santa Italia (Holy
Italy), la divina Italia (the divine
italy, and so on. The leader of the
Fascist party is frequently spoken Of in
those papers as il nostro dio (our god),
i! dio di une magnifica fede (the god
Of beautiful faith.
The undersecretary Of state for edu-
cation said In speech to an assembly
of young men: Humanity does not
matter to us, for our hearts are not
big enough to be moved by all the
millions OF men who live on this earth"
Such, one may say, is the cold and
realistic philosophy of Fascist educa-
ton.
This philosophy is the opposite of the
thought of the loftiest Italian minds.
They always preached-even during the
heroic days of the struggles against the
German invasion of the first half of the
nineteenth century-a feeling of affec-
ton and esteem, even toward ones enc
mics.
The Fascist education seems to have
destroyed all Of this beautiful tradition.
Its iron system, narrow and exclusive,
which plans to discard the influences Of