the expedition was organized, shipped across the Mediterranean, and
landed in Africa, the discipline, _moral_, and gallantry which both
soldiers and sailors displayed, were a revelation to everybody and gave
the Italians new confidence in their military forces, and made them
feel that they could hold up their heads before all the world
unashamed. A new Italy was born--the Italy of the Italian nation. In
the words of Mameli's immortal hymn, which has been revived as the
war-song of the Nationalists,

"Fratelli d'Italia, l'Italia s'e desta,
Dell' elmo di Scipio s'e cinta la testa."

The actual operations of the war were too one-sided to be interesting
from the military viewpoint. Turkey had no navy which could compete for
a moment with that of Italy. Hence the Turks could dispatch no troops
whatever to Tripoli, and its defense devolved solely upon the native
Arab inhabitants. These wild tribes were brave and warlike and
fanatically Mohammedan in their opposition to the Christian invaders.
But they were wholly without training in modern modes of warfare and
without modern weapons. Their frenzied rushes and antiquated guns were
helpless in the face of quick-firing artillery.

The Italians demonstrated their ability to handle their own forces, to
transport troops, land them and provision them with speed and skill.
That was about all the struggle established. On October 3d the city of
Tripoli, the only important Tripolitan harbor, was bombarded. Two days
later the soldiers landed and took possession of it. For a month
following, there were minor engagements with the Arabs of the
neighborhood, night attacks upon the Italians, rumors that they lost
their heads and shot down scores of unarmed and unresisting natives.
Then on November 5th Italy proclaimed that she had conquered and
annexed Tripoli.

The only remaining difficulty was to get the Turkish Government to give
its formal assent to this new regime, which it had been unable to
resist. Here, however, the Italians encountered a difficulty. They had
promised the rest of Europe that they would not complicate the European
Turkish problem by attacking Turkey anywhere except in Africa. In
Africa they had now done their worst, and so the Turkish Government,
with true Mohammedan serenity, defied them to do more. Turkey
absolutely refused to acknowledge the Italian claim to Tripolitan
suzerainty. True, she could not fight, but neither would she utter any
words of surrend