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summons by violent measures which could not be called civilized. Hedid not have a majority in the Chamber. He had to function with acoalition cabinet containing a socialist and a member of the Popolari.It was in every sense a parliamentary government that he headed.Few looked for the absolute dictatorship which ultimately developed.As usual men were deceived by their own inveterate optimism andthe words of politicians. One of the most exasperating features ofpolitical movements in the last twenty years has been the habitualuse of meaningless words by the Machiavellian leaders.There has always been a tendency among politicians to juggle withwords. But in the last dozen years, when the art of propaganda hasbeen developed to a high degree and all sense of moral value hasevaporated from public pronouncements and documents, leaders ofdemocratic countries make statements so shockingly at variance withtheir convictions and intentions that the casual listener is almostwholly defenseless against them. It is difficult to believe now thatMussolini ever prattled about democracy. Yet he did. Only twoyears before he took power he boasted that the Great "War was avictory for democracy. Of fascism he said, when he took office,"that a period was begun of mass politics and unqualified democracy."Mussolini had been an anti-monarchist. When first named tothe legislature he, with-some of his colleagues, remained away fromthe Chamber on the occasion of the King's speech as a gesture ofdisdain of the monarchy. The year before he assumed power hedeclared fascism was ready to co-operate with the liberal and socialistgroups. He urged freedom of speech for the socialists who, hedeclared, were no longer dangerous to the state and should be permittedto carry on their propaganda. Ivanoe Bonomi, who precededhim as Premier, says that he tried to recall his party to its originalrepublicanism and that he insisted the use of force must be abandonedagainst the organization of the proletariat. Mussolini's partyshowed its distaste for these attitudes at the party congress in November1921. But these were taken as an indication of Mussolini'sown position.It is also possible that Mussolini himself, though he was hungryfor more power, did not believe he could attain to absolute power*It seems probable that he underestimated the feebleness of the politi-59