February 13. "Communists have been arrested by thousands, ·and the reason is that we have no love for half-measures. : . . Where they prove to be innocent we shall release them at once. . . . in the Marches we have released 200 who had been arrested as a precautionary measure. But we shall keep in gaol those who are a danger to the State. As to the plot, we can say nothing at present" (and nothing was ever discovered !) . Finzi, Under-Secretary in the Ministry of the Interior, in an interview. March. '' In Russia and in Italy it has been proved that it is possible to govern outside, above and against all Liberal ideology. . . . ''It may be taken as axiomatic that any sort of Government action provokes discontents. How will you avoid the growth of this discontent into a flood which constitutes a danger to the solidity of the State? You will avoid it by means of force, by accumulating the maximum of force. By making use of this force, inexorably, when it prpves nec~ssary. . . . Now, Fascism throws on the rubbish heap all these anti-vital theories. When a group or a party is in power, it is its duty to fortify its position and to defend itself against all comers. . Men are, perhaps, tired of Liberty. · "Let it be realised, then, once for all, that Fascism recognises no idols, adores no fetishes; it has already passed, and, if necessary, it will turn again and pass once more, over the more or less decomposed body of the Goddess of Liberty." A1ussolini, in Gerarchia. M.arch 7. '' Some may ask, why all this shouting and arming? "I declare that I wish to govern, if possible, with the consent of the majority of the citizens; but while we are waiting for this consent to develop and feed and grow strong, I am accumulating the maximum of obtainable force. 75 Biblioteca Gino Bianco
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