Preview in Pescara

The Reds had sized up the Pescara election issues admirably. In World War II, the city's railroad station, a frequent target of Allied planes, attracted a rain of bombs that rocked Pescaresi homes. The people wanted a new station built outside the city limits; the Christian Democratic government had refused. The Reds promised to move the station.

The promises had paid off. In their first local warm-up for the national elections on April 18, the month-old Socialist-Communist "Popular Democratic Front" elected 21 (eleven of them Communists) to the 40-man municipal council. The Socialist-Communist share of the vote had jumped from 39.7 to 48.7%.

The Communist Unita, quick to make national political capital out of the Pescara results, crowed triumphantly: "The Front has shown itself to be an instrument capable of drawing together and organizing all Italians without difference of class. . . ." Following up their advantage, the Front pointed to other promises. Moscow favored Italian trusteeship under the U.N. for Italy's prewar African colonies; if the Front won power in the April elections, a way might be found to bring Trieste back under Italian control.* What, asked the Front, could Premier de Gasperi offer? The Front's answer: only more U.S. meddling in Italian affairs; the threat of involvement in a new war.

Supporters of De Gasperi's Christian Democrats candidly viewed the Pescara preview as a warning of the Front's Strength. Warned Risorgimento: "A typical town . . . that represents a good crosssection of the Italian population has given almost half its vote to the Front. . . . There can be little illusion that unless something is done, the national political elections will have similar results. . . ."

* This promise was misleading. The Free Territory of Trieste was set up under the Italian Peace Treaty. Since its independence is assured by the U.N. Security Council, there could be no change in its status without agreement among all Big Powers.

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