INSTANS TYRANNUS

Not the least of the evils of dictatorship is the hostility which it frequently manifests toward academic freedom. The new Fascist oath, by which Italian professors are compelled to swear loyalty to the existing regime and all its works, is a pertinent instance of that evil. The action of the Harvard professors who have requested the League of Nations to intervene in the case, is a well-timed protest against an act of tyranny.

It is currently believed that Fscism applies forms of pressure which would not be condoned outside of Italy to maintain its power. In the present case, the fact that college professors alone in the department of Italian education are required to take the oath is particularly injurious. It confirms the suspicion that the intention is not merely to insure support of Fascism, but to throttle the free investigation of political theory in the classroom.

It remains to be seen whether the League of Nations, acting upon the petition of the various professors, can prevail on Mussolini to withdraw the oath. Fortunately, unlike the dictators of past ages, he cannot be wholly indifferent of foreign opinion. Expediency may persuade him if other arguments fail. The Spanish Revolution indicates that the hostility of universities is no negligible factor in the fortunes of absolutism. But in any case, the petition of the Harvard professors, together with the protests of various European scholars, are admirable instances of the internationalism of genuine scholarship. Whether successful or not, such a gesture of sympathy and cooperation is distinctly worthwhile.