The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-20
City of Triest, Adriatic Sea- port, Is Rich Prize
 Sought by Italy
ALPINE BORDERS
 MUST BE RESTORED
Control of Trentine Region Gives Austria An Easy Access to Italy and Is to Be Taken at
 Any Sacrifice

Rome. November 31.-(Correspondence of the Associated Press )-Italy has 100000 men engaged in the war and is preparing to add another million. About a million men are on the fighting line, stretched along the mountains from Trentino in the west to the Austrian stronghold of Gorizia in the east. Another million is in re- serve. for emergencies, and to i'll gaps at the front as needed, or for operations in the Balkans. The third million is repre- scented in the additional classes in process of being assembled during the coming months as the scope of offenive and de- fensive military operations may become enlarged.
 The Italian military campaign-what it has done and proposes-is well understood by every Italian. But the outside world has had only a vague understanding of the meaning of these operations as dis closed by official communiques, with a maze of obscure geographical details about the Isonzo, the desperate scaling of Alpine peaks and bombardments among the snows, and countless predictions that Gorizia will soon fall.
 ITALIAN OPERATIONS
 The military operations and what Italy has accomplished are best understood by taking a map of Italy showing the north ern frontier The Alps sweep in a great semi-circle from the French frontier on tO tier on the Adriatic. This sweep of the Alps from west to east is sort of nat ural bulwark or boundary of Italy, sepa- rating it from the nations and races to the north now, as it did in the days of ancient Rome. But in two places this natural sweep of the Alps is dented deeply to the southward, first in the Trentino re- zion in the west and then in the Triest region of the upper Adriatic. Thus the natural boundary on the Alps is broken at two vital points and Austria has stretched down at both these points and firmly established her political control, her control of Trentino dating from the time of Napoleon and of the Triest re- zion from the war of 1866.
 The first object, therefore of Italy s campaign is to get back the two pro- Vfnces which dent the natural frontier of the Alps, thus regaining former Italian territory, and re-establishing the great mountain range as the strategic defense against the nations of the north. This main objective has necessitated dividing the campaign into two parts, one in the west with Trent as the center, and the other in the east with Triest as the chief object. Between 100000 and 900 men are engaged in the western operations centering at Trent and about 60O,O0O men in the eastern operations directed toward Triest-in all, about 100000 men, with another 100000 in reserve. These two ob- jectives toward Trent in the west and Triest in the east, are really two separate campaigns. Both are, however under the supreme direction of General Cadorna commander-in-chief and recently com- munication has been established along the mountain ranges between the troops in the west and the east. Yet they are engaged in two essentially different opera tons.
 N., DRIVE TOWARD PRIEST
 The Italians main drive has been toward Triest the great Austrian port of the Adriatic, just across from Ven ice This rich prize of Triest is hardly more than 10 days march from the Italian frontier, Also there is a stretch of level country 15 miles wide around the upper Adriatic, making it easy marching from the frontier to Triest. And yet the war has been go- ing on for six months-since May 23 and the Italian army is nowhere near Triest. The military leaders say Triest could have been taken any time in Is days, but it could not be held as the carso mountains sweep around back of Triest and form a circle 15 miles back from the Adriatic, with Austrian batteries posted at every crest of these encircling mountains The Italian commanders, therefore de- cided that instead of taking the rich prize of Triest it was a military neces- sity first to control all the approaches and mountain defenses sweeping around Triest. That in reality has beer the campaign going on during the last six months, with its maze of geograph- ical names and mountain passes all tlfese being small accessories in the vast natural defenses around the Triest region and necessary to be conquered before Triest itself can be held.
 IN ISONZO REGION
 Most of the fighting in this resior has been along the 1sonzo river witt the Austrian town of Gorizia as tho main point of attack. The Italian troops made rapid progress at first sweeping through small towns. But a. they moved up the Isonzo river to- ward Gorizia they found the Austrian batteries on the mountain tops Ant then began the slow and tedious pro cess of first gaining control of all tn, elevated positions which could serv, the Austrians before pressing forward on Gorizia and Triest This has re quired the movement of troops alont mountain roads and transportins heavy guns to great heights by mean! of special machinery devised by al Italian automobile concern. Each da, has brought communiques recording small points taken, passes cleared an, further advances toward Gorizia Bu all of 'this is merely the prelimnar.