Evening star., 1939-04-30

series OF 1Ueekly articles 1uhich
DiU appear in The Star by
Thomas L. Dammann and his
Dite Harle. These tDo yOung
people are travelling in Europe
and 1Uriting as they go OF 1Dhat
they find interesting, and The
Star prints their articles as the
impressions OF ttUo young Amer
leans. Mr., Dammdnn, q HARVARD
graduate, UaS business manager
OF the Hdrpdrd Crimson and
gained experience as reporter
in Chicago and Nashville. He
and Mrs. Dammann has traU-
eled ,Uidely.
BY TOM AND HARLE DAMMANN.
ROME.-Italians frequently COM
plain freely about their government.
Quite openly they tell us how Fas-
cism, with its ever-mounting taxa
ton, is running business; how the
Rome Berlin axis, which they call
political but not popular" is very
unpleasant headache indeed when
Hitler is the only one who gains
by It,
But recently, as we have watched
the almost carefree acquiescence of
our friends to the call of the colors,
we have wondered just how impor-
tant. how significant their COM
plants and criticisms are.
We were sitting in cafe one eve
ming when our old friend, Peppino
Renieri appeared dressed in the
smart gray uniform of lieutenant
Of the Italian infantry.
$50, they've called you up. too"
laughed Antonio Galietti, another
friend who was sitting with us. He
jumped up and clapped Peppino on
the shoulders. Poor boy! When did
you get your little red card?"
Insists on His Sleep.
Peppino made wry face.
"They came last night after I had
gone to bed. They tried to make me
get up and go then, but told them
to 60 away and I'd come in the
morning. We had bit of tiff, but
they finally agreed with my logic"
well, If they've got you. it won't
be long before they'll be calling us.
Guess we'd better get the old rags
out Of the mothballs. eh. Romano?"
Antonio turned to the fifth member
Of our party.
"Oh, it won't be so bad" Romano
grinned. We'll be sent up to Wit
terbo and all the old gang will be
there"
We first knew these three in Ma
pies two years ago when they were
finishing the military service re-
quired OF all young Italians. They
had been living together while
studying law at the University of
Rome.
All three are Roman, with the
black wavy hair, the flashing eyes,
cleaning white teeth, dark complex
ions and aquiline noses which dis
tinguish their type. They come from
old, average, middle-class families.
Antonio's father Is an engineer as
ISOLATED with large insurance COM
pany, Peppino's father is musician
Of modest reputation, and Romano
Apreda is the son of a lawyer.
In the days at Naples each one
was ardently Fascist apd member
Of the student organization of the
party. Antonio and Peppino had
served II months in the Ethiopian
war and were full of the glories of
imperial conquest They couldn t
boast enough of Fascist triumphs.
No Longer in Accord.
TO-
the university and hard at work.
Antonio and Peppino are practicing
law privately, but Romano has a
position with one of the social agen-
cies in the government. They are
still firm friends and do everything
in their spare time together.
But we are not in accord any
longer" Romano told us when we
first saw him this year. Il am
Fascist, but the others . :"
Once we asked Peppino why Ro-
mano had remained the only good
Fascist of the three
'It's in his blood-he loves Fas-
cism more than he does his moth
er," he replied. Its all right for
Romano, too; he works for the state
But it's different for us who work
for ourselves. Antonio and I have
very hard time. The government
puts so many taxes on people who
have lawsuits and other litigation
that people just don't get involved
IN legal matters any more. If we
do manage to get client it's al
ways difficult to collect our fees,
because after he has paid his taxes
he has nothing left to pay the poor
lawyer. But we have to pay our
taxes on the fees we charge all the
same, even if the client never pays
us.
Taxs, Taxes, Taxes.
'The young fellow with an idea
hasn't much chance these days." he
continued. "If I should want to
start a small business I might have
enough money to do so, but I Ger
tainly wouldn't have any more than
just what is necessary, because as
soon as I became an employer, a
capitalist, they would heap taxes on
me-income taxes, unemployment
taxes, bachelor taxes, war taxes,
sickness insurance taxes, taxes :.
taxes :.
II wonder why the Communists
and Socialists attack Fascism so
much. Nobody has done more for
the poor people, the workingman,
than the Fascists. But for us -.
"Ot course, I could borrow money