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vast extent of the movement and the shortness of the time that had elapsed must be borne in mind. No impartial observer can deny the visible effort and will to reach a normal state of things, in spite of the resistance provoked by the violence of the enemy's attacks, so that the task of those whose duty it was to restore order was rendered far more difficult. We must consider the shortness of the time. Two years, less than an instant in the life of a nation, and yet in this short space how much work has been accomplished, what important results achieved!
The whole structure of the State had to be rebuilt. The nation's finances had to be restored—you remember that party leader and ex-Minister of Finance who declared that a budget deficit was inevitable for an indefinite number of years.
The Army had to be spiritually and materially reconstituted—you remember that the Prime Minister Giolitti justified the occupation of the factories on the pretext that it was impossible to count on the troops.
The bureaucracy had to be reorganized—you
