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the practical men and that the world of scholarship remained aloof,ignoring the dark currents that were rushing beside it eating awayits foundations, as one fatuous American writer has asked us to believe.Far from being the work of the practical men, it was muchmore the achievement of a certain crackpot fringe—the practicalmen coming in only when the work of confusion was well underway. They came in on the tide of confusion. As for the scholars andpoets—remote from the evil smell of politics and economics—Italy'sforemost philosopher and historian, Benedetto Croce, had long beforecreated a tolerance for the syndicalist ethic in Italy. He wrote approvinglyof Sorel. He went so far as to say that the Inquisition maywell have been·justified. Certainly Mussolini and Gentile believed upto 1925 that he supported fascism. Later he was to have his houseburned over his head when the practical politicians took the scholarat his word.If there was a second to Croce among the scholars it was GiovanniGentile, who became Mussolini's Minister of Education. It was Gentilewho brewed most of the nasty draughts which were offered to thelips of the scholars—such as first taking the fascist oath and laterjoining the Fascist party under compulsion. Mussolini himself, saysBorgese, stood reluctant before these proposals for two years becauseof his awe of the mysterious world of the mind and theacademy, since he yearned to be thought of himself as an intellectual.But Gentile finally persuaded him. And when the professors werepresented with the demand to take the oath and join up, of all thethinkers and teachers in Italy, only thirteen refused. After that,having taken the first step, caught in the spiritual necessity of defendingthemselves in the forum of their own consciences, theyproceeded to out-fascist the fascists in their fabrication of ethicaland philosophical supports for the new order.No one will wish to mitigate the dark colors of this evil episodein the history of our civilization. But it will not do to say it is justthe work of bad men. Too many men who lay claim to being calledgood citizens have proclaimed their approval or at least a warmtolerance for the performances of Mussolini. Mussolini's black shirtshad clubbed socialists into flight and the timid into submission. Onemight suppose that the use of the cudgel would have called at least69