• Signor Mussolini went on to refer . to the speech
of Herr Held, the Bavarian Prime Minister, which, we agree, was most unfortunate: ..Herr Held said. of "the spirit of Locarno "that like all hypocritical things it would plvve tobe evanescent and intolerable, and he then disposed the problem Of Southern Tirol in a manner that was designed to be hurtful to Italian feelings. Next, Signor Mussolini recalled what Germany would have done if Italy had been beaten in the War. She would, he said, have given all the Italian Trentino to Austria and would have forbidden the Italian language and suppressed all the centres of irredentism. As though to justify a good deal of what had been said in Germany Signor Mussolini then use1 these words (we quote from the Times): "I must most clearly state that the Italian policy in the Upper Adige will not be modified in any detail. The laws will be applied with the cold tenacity of Fascism. The district must and will become Italian." Finally came the thrcat that if the German Government accepted responsibility for I-1 er Held's sentiments they must understand that Italy v‘ ould carry the Tricolour across the Brenner if necessary.
