But, my friends, we must prepare ourselves with hearts free from preoccupation for the tasks which await us. To-morrow it is probable, almost certain, that the formidable burden of the direction of a modern State will be on our shoulders. And it will be on the shoulders not only of a few men, it will be on the shoulders of the whole of Fascismo.
Towards a more Glorious Destiny. And millions of eyes, many of them malicious, and millions of men, many of them beyond our frontiers, will be looking at us. They will want to see how we are organised, how justice is administered in the Fascista State, how honest people are protected, how we deal with the problems of the school and the army. And the wrong-doing of any man, his error and his shame will react upon the whole organisation of the State and of necessity upon Fascismo. Have you, my friends, realised how formidable is the task which awaits you? Are you spiritually prepared for it? Do you think that enthusiasm alone is enough?—because it is not enough. It is necessary, because it is a primitive and fundamental force in human nature, it is impossible to do anything not inspired by intense passion or religious mysticism; but that is not enough. Together with these must work the reasoning forces of the brain. I think that in the case of a general crisis Fascismo would have all that was necessary to impose itself and to govern, not according to the ideas of demagogism, but according to the ideas of justice. And then, by ruling the nation well, by leading her towards a more glorious destiny, by conciliating the interests of all classes without increasing the hatred of one and the selfishness of another, by uniting the Italian people to face the world-task, by fulfilling with patience this hard and cyclopean task, we shall inaugurate, thus, a really great period in Italian history. Thus will our dead be made immortal and their names written in the gold book of the Fascista aristocracy. We shall point them out to the rising generation, to the children who are growing up and who represent the eternal spring of life. We shall say: “Great was the effort and hard the sacrifice, and pure was the blood that was shed; and it was not shed to safeguard the interests of individuals, class or caste, it was not shed in the name of materialism, it was shed in the name of an ideal, of all that is most noble, beautiful and generous in the human soul.” With the example of our dead before you, I ask you to remember to be worthy of their sacrifice and to examine daily your own activity. Friends, I have faith in you. You have faith in me. In this mutual trust is the guarantee and certainty of our victory. Long live Italy! Long live Fascismo! Honour and glory to the martyrs of our cause! (Loud applause.)
“THE MOMENT HAS ARRIVED WHEN THE ARROW MUST LEAVE THE BOW OR THE CORD WILL BREAK!”
Speech delivered at Naples, 26th October 1922.
At this, the final stage of the pilgrimage of the ever-swelling ranks of Italian youth, where the first trench is dug in preparation for the imminent assault of the “black shirts,” Mussolini in the morning, as politician, hurls his vehement reproach against “the three black souls,” the ministerial exponents of anti-Fascista reaction. In the afternoon he shows himself in the guise of a warrior, and, wearing the colours of Rome on his breast, contemplates thoughtfully his fifty thousand faithful crusaders in Piazza Plebiscito, who shout with one insistent voice, “To Rome! To Rome!”
Fascisti and citizens! It may be, or rather it is almost certain, that my eloquence will disappoint you, accustomed as you are to the impetuosity and rich imagery of your own orators. But since I realise my incapacity for rhetoric, I have decided to limit myself, when speaking, to plain necessity.
We have gathered together here at Naples from every part of Italy to perform an act of brotherhood and love. We have with us our brothers from the borderland of betrayed Dalmatia, men who do not mean to yield. (Applause, and cries of “Long live Italian Dalmatia!”) There are also the Fascisti from Trieste, Istria and Venezia Tridentina, Fascisti from all parts of Northern Italy, even from the islands, from Sicily and Sardinia, all come together to affirm quietly and positively the indestructibility of our united faith, which means to oppose strongly every more or less masked attempt at autonomy or separatism.
Four years ago the Italian infantry, made great through twenty years of work and hardship, the Italian infantry in which the sons of your country were so largely represented, burst from the Piave and, having defeated the Austrians, surged on towards the Isonzo, and only the foolish democratic conception of the war prevented our victorious battalions from marching through the streets of Vienna and the highways of Budapest. (Applause.)
From Rome to Naples. A year ago at Rome, at one time, we found ourselves surrounded by a secret hostility, which had its origin in the misunderstandings and infamies characteristic of the uncertain political world of the capital. (Hear, hear!) We have not forgotten all this.
To-day we are happy that all Naples—this city which I call the big safety-reserve of the nation—(Applause.)—welcomes us with a sincere and frank enthusiasm, which does our hearts good, both as men and Italians. For this reason I request that not the smallest incident of any kind shall disturb this meeting, for that would be a mistake, and a foolish one. I demand also, as soon as the meeting is over, that every Fascista not belonging to Naples shall leave the town immediately.