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would we have done if we had had 156 socialist congressmen, if they,teamed with some liberal Democrats, had gotten possession of themachinery of Congress, if the Red flag flew over the steel and heavygoodsmills of Pennsylvania and Illinois?In the midst of all these events Benito Mussolini, whose smallFasci di azione Kevolutionaria had vanished with the war, now calledanother meeting. Somewhere between 45 and 145 men attended in aroom in the Piazza San Sepolcro. They were mostly persons of completeinconsequence. Mussolini himself was then the editor of a smallnewspaper—Poþolo d'ltalia—since his expulsion from the Socialistparty- Here again he organized a fascist fraternity which he calledthe Fasci di Combattimento. Why he did this, how he did it, andwhat relation it had to the dark events that were to follow we shallnow see. And as we see this audacious man put together his fascistorder in the light of the events and circumstances that have beendescribed here, we will see with clarity precisely what that fascistorder is made of.Mussolini was admirably formed to do the job. He was a completeopportunist. On one occasion, after he had established the fascistorder, he said: "Fascism has no armory of theoretical doctrines.Every system is a mistake and every theory a prison." Signora Sarfatti,his adoring collaborator and biographer, relates how one dayshe found herself surprised at some statement of Mussolini and said:"But yesterday you said " Mussolini interrupted: "Signora, yesterdaywas yesterday. Very well. But today is today." It is a fairstatement to say that when Mussolini organized his little fascist bandin the Piazza San Sepolcro he had in his mind no picture of the kindof society he would finally organize.The second important point in his character was that his chiefaim was power. In pursuit of that object he was completely unmoral.As he was imprisoned by no theories of government, neither washe constricted by any principles of public morals. He went the wholeway with Machiavelli. In an essay which he later printed he wrote:I affirm that the doctrine of Machiavelli is more living today than it wasfour centuries ago. If the external aspects of life are greatly changed noprofound modifications are perceptible in the merits of individuals or races.44