Norwich bulletin., 1915-06-04
THE WAR PRIMER
BY National Geographic Society

"Goerz, an important Austrian rail-
way center toward which a great Ital-
ian army is reported to be developing
a powerful offensive, is a key position,
commercial and military, to the Aus
trian provinces around the head of the
Adriatic'', says statement issued to-
day by the National Geographic So
Ciety, which continues: "Goerz is the
capital of the Austrian crownland of
Goerz and Gradisca, a combination of
commercial and military center and OF
paradise. Goerz is called the Nice OF
Austria; for it's climate is mild, its
skies are clear and soft, and it's vge
citation is luxurious. This city has
become one of the favorite winter re-
sorts in the Dual Monarchy.
1T is about twenty miles from Goerz
to the italian frontier. The place is
a center of trunkline railways to the
Italian cities of Venice in the south
west and Undine in the northwest, and
to the Austrian cities of Triest in the
southeast and I<lagenfurt in the north.
1t is about twenty-five miles from the
Gulf of Triest and 800 miles by rail
southwest of Vienna, and serves as the
distributing center for the merchan-
disc needed by the Friuli district. 1t
is upon the main railway line connect
ing Triest with the interior and is
about thirty-five miles north Of that
city.
THE situation of Goerz is pictures
que one, greatly enhanced by the rare
pleasure gardens that have been called
into being by the winter guests, who
have given a season as splendid as that
of the American Palm Beach or as that
of it's Mediterranean neighbor, French
Nice. Goerz has an ancient air, as do
most of the cities in southeastern Eu-
rope, where the modern civilization of
machines, uniformity, monotonous eff
ficienCy. and daily rush are tolerated
as an element of their life, but by no
means allowed to become a back
ground.
''The valley in which the city stands
is an extremely fertile one, rich in
flowers, fruits and vegetables. Goerz
is built on the left bank of the Isonzo
River strange little river that rises
in the heights and zigzags rapidly
through the province for distance of
10 miles to the Adriatic Sea. The
worn rocks of the old castle ruins of
the Counts of Goerz dominate the city
from the hillside. The castle is now
used partly as a barracks and partly
as an arsenal. The cathedral, built in
the 14th century, is another interest
ing monument to the city's past.
"Goerz is the export point for the
products of the province. These con-
sist mainly in vegetables, early fruits,
candied fruits and wine. A significant
part of the fancy fruits that appear on
lIe letplSS VI Inc N1SIlACSO W0oA|hJ Oh :
supplied from the F'ruih district and
are handled through Goerz. During
recent years, stimulated by the steady
progress of the port of Triest. the in
dustries of Goerz, and of the whole
Austrian region around the head of
the Adriatic, have been surely expand
ing.
I'm population. Goerz is an italian
city, more than two-thirdS of its $4,000
inhabitants being Italian-speaking. A
large part of the remainder are Slo-
venes, and the sprinkling Of Hungar-
ians and Germans, the dominant Dual
Monarchy races, is an insignificant
element. However, at one time it was
almost solely populated by Germans,
but the Italian and the Slav have
pressed north, and the German has
been gradually displaced"