Page:Giuseppe Bianchini - The Work of the Fascist Government and the Economic Reconstruction of Italy - tr. Luigi Villari.pdf/43

 tive data on which to base their opinions. Italy buys and is an excellent and sought-after customer. She must secure her supplies of wheat, cotton, wool, coal, metals, etc., abroad and she orders and pays punctually. Our goods reach foreign markets, and our competitors appreciate their quantity, quality and price; they realize the importance and progress of Italian trade with an accuracy which no amount of mere words, even if put into print, can contradict. There are many branches in which our productive organization is admittedly of the first class. I need only mention textiles, natural and artificial silk, motor cars, the electrical industry, felt hats, etc. With a territory insufficient to support the population, rich in sunshine and natural beauties, but lacking in raw materials, we have yet managed to overcome these drawbacks and to counteract our unfavourable situation by a magnificent effort to turn our labour to account. Both the intelligence of the leaders and the virtues of the people have contributed to the result; let us be properly proud of this effort, but we should not forget that we may not rest on our laurels. We live on the margin as it were, in a