are sure
to be rejected by the majority, and even the Socialist leaders realize
that Nationalism is a vital force which has to be reckoned with, and
that a sane Imperialism and efficient military policy are as necessary
in the interests of the masses as in those of the classes. In Italy, on
the other hand, where even the bourgeoisie took but a lukewarm interest
in the wider questions of world policy, the Socialist leaders conducted
an avowedly anti-patriotic propaganda against every form of national
sentiment, against the very existence of Italy as a nation, and they
achieved considerable success. By representing patriotism and the army
as the causes of low wages, and war and colonial Imperialism as the
result of purely capitalist intrigues because it is only the
capitalists who profit by such adventures, they met with wide-spread
acceptance among a large part of the working classes.

Thus a general feeling got possession of the Italian people that war
was played out, and that even if it were to occur Italy was sure to be
defeated by any other Power, that nothing must be done to provoke the
resentment of the foreigner, that the only form of expansion to be
encouraged was emigration to foreign lands, and even the export trade
which was growing so rapidly was looked upon askance by the Socialists
as a mere capitalist instrument. This attitude, which was certainly not
conducive to a healthy public spirit, was reflected in the conduct of
the Government, which felt that it would not be backed by the nation if
it gave signs of energy. The result was that Italy found her interests
blocked at every turn by other nations which were not imbued with such
"humanitarian" theories, and that she was subjected to countless
humiliations on the part of Governments who were convinced that under
no provocation would Italy show resentment.

Gradually and imperceptibly a change came over public feeling, and the
necessity for a sane and vigorous patriotism began to be dimly
realized. One of the earliest symptoms of this new attitude was the
publication, in 1903, of Federigo Garlanda's _La terza Italia_; the
book professed to be written by a friendly American observer and critic
of Italian affairs, and the author regards the absence of militant
patriotism as the chief cause of Italy's weakness in comparison with
other nations. Mario Morasso, in his volume, _L'Imperialismo nel Secolo
XX,_ published in 1905, opened fire on the still predominan