living through the intensest time of crisis and re-establishing itself—an opportunity of which it took every advantage.
Nevertheless, the present situation offers valuable opportunities to the workers to overthrow the Fascist tyranny. The middle class is disillusioned. Bankruptcies among the smaller trading sections of society are rapidly increasing. House rents and the cost of education are rising. While the salaries of higher State officials have been raised, the lower civil servants have had their pay reduced and their conditions of work generally worsened. The general economic situation is bad. The lira remains low in the exchange. The cost of living rises. Wages are falling. The peasants are dissatisfied owing to increased taxation and the fall in the price of wine; many are faced with ruin and armed risings against the Government have occurred in the south.
The opposition to Fascism among non-proletarians is thus at its height. The Matteotti crisis gave expression to this general discontent. But the petty bourgeoisie cannot for the moment smash Fascism. The latent indications show that Mussolini considers his position once more strong enough for him to move to the right, and he proposes to establish a still more autocratic form of government.
In these circumstances there is a clear need for strong and definite action by the workers against the Fascist tyranny. The masses have thrown off their adhesion to Fascist ideas; in spite of the electoral wangle, the 1924 elections gave more votes to communist and socialist candidates than the socialists secured in their "peak" year of 1919. Fascism, notwithstanding its appearance of strength, could be smashed by a united attack from the workers. And the first Step towards developing such an attack is the formation of working-class unity for this specific purpose. Co-operation among the sections of the working-class movement to shatter this temple of capitalism could succeed, and it would have the very desirable effect of binding together the active political elements of the proletariat for the final conquest of power in Italy.
Co-operation with the bourgeoisie is a policy whose harmfulness is now manifest. The working-class antagonism to Fascism needs to be clearly differentiated from that of the Liberals, for this, if it succeeded, would result in the establishment of a petty bourgeois government indirectly controlled (instead of directly like the Fascist government) by Big Business and the landlords.
In this task of smashing Fascism, it is not for any one section or party among the workers to act alone, but for the whole proletarian movement to co-operate. But, while all should unite for action, there must be no confusion as to objective. No question of class collaboration can be thought of; that way lies the destruction of
