. The war, the Russian Revolution, and the post-war developments have combined also to disillusion vast numbers about Socialism. It is literally true that, like Christianity, Socialism has conquered the world bv defeating itself. The Socialist parties now run or help to · run most of the European governments, but the people do not believe any more tfiat they are different from other bourgeois regimes. They feel that Socialism has failed and is bankrupt. In like manner have the Bolsheviki proven that Marxian dogma and Leninist principles can lead only to dictatorship and reaction. T-o the Anarchist there is nothing surprising in all this. They have always claimed that the State is destructive to individual liberty and social harmony, and that only the abolition of coercive authority and material inequality can solve our political, economic, and national problems. But their arguments, though based on the agelong experience of man, seemed mere theory to the present generation, until the events of the last two decades have demonstrated in actual life the truth of the Anarchist position. The breakdown of Socialism and of Bolshevism has cleared the way for Anarchism. There is considerable literature on Anarchism, but most of its larger works were written before the World War. The experience Olf the recent past has been vital and has made certain revisions necessary in the Anarchist attitude and argumentation. Though the basic propositions remain the same, some modifications of practical application are dictated by the facts of current history. The lessons of the Russian Revolution in particular call for a new approach to various important problems, chief among them the character and activities of the social revolution. Furthermore, Anarchist books, with few exceptions, are not accessible to the understanding of the average reader. It is the comlllon failing of most works dealing with social questions that they are written on the assumption that the reader is already familiar to a considerabk extent with the subject, which is generally not the case at all. As a result there are very few books treating of social problems in a sufficiently simple and intelligible manner. For the above reason I consider a re-statement of the Anarchist posi,tion very ll'!uch needed at this time-a re-statement in the plainest and clearest terms which can be understood by everyone. That is, an ABC of Anarchism. With that object in view the following pages have been written. 8 B1bhotecaG no Bianco
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