Norwich bulletin., 1916-06-13
THE WAR PRIMER By National Geographic Society

The Isonzo front is the subject of the National Geographic Society's war geography bulletin, issued today from it's Washington headquarters, which says:
 Contrary to pupular belief, the ISonzo River, along which the Italians made their first attack against Aus tria and where their lines have held more firmly against the vigorous Teu- tonic offensive of the last ten days than on the Tyrolean front, is not the boundary line between the two coun- tries, but lies wholely within Austrian territory, from two to twelve miles from the border. Its source is near the juncture of tEre Carnic and Julian Alps, on Mt. Terglou, the lotiest peak of the latter range, and it follows a tortuouS channel for seventy five miles, emptying into the GuR of Tri- este. So turbulent are the Isono's wa
 ters that the river is practically un- navigable, except for the few miles of it's estuary, where it's course is through 9 rapidly extending delta. On it's way
 through the al1uvial plain it is known
 as the Soobba, whose mouth is less
 than 20 miles from the important
 Austrian port of Trieste, lying to the
 southeast.
 'sThe Isonzo is the principal river of
 the county and crown-1and of Gorz and GradiSca, which have an area
 about equal to that of Rhode Island.
 This principality and two other crown
 lands, Istria and Trieste, constitute Austria's Kustenland (coast land).
 Before the devastation wrought by the war the valley of the Isonzo was a highly productive region, agricul-
 ture and vine growing being the d1ief occupations of that part of the popu- ! lation (uaihIy Italian) which was not
 engaged in silk-worm culture.
 '"The leading city of the 1sonzo val | ley is Goritz (Gorz) with 30,000 in- habitants, known as the Nice of Aus tria, on account of it's popularity as a fashionable resort. Its growth coin cides with the decline of Aquileia, now an insignificant town of less than | 5000 people, situated to the southwest, 1 six miles from the sea, but which was feckoned the ninth city of the Roman empire and a great seaport during the closing years of the fourth century. The fighting which is now occur ring on the Isonzo recalls the great l battle of the Isontius (Isonzo) in the | fifth century, where the Roman em- peror Odoacer met signal defeat at the l hands of Theodorfc, the Ostrogoth. The vanquished leader was driven back to Ravenna, where, after a pro- tracted siege a truce was agreed up- 1 on. During the barley Odoaeer fell ! before the treacherous Ostrogoth who clcve his enemy from shoulder to flank with a broadsword.
 l "One of the most interesting natural l phenomena of the Isonzo district is the short Timavus River, which empties | into the Gulf of Trieste five miles from the mouth of the larger watercourse The Timayus g1Ishes from a noun | taia-side fuII-foFmed, in three streams | of sufficient volume to float small ves- sels at the very source. In -ViTgiIE day, according to the description ir 1 the Aeneid. the Timavus rushed from l the rocks in nine streams. The river I is supposed to be a continuation of the I equally unique Rela, whose waters | disappear in the grottoes Of Sanli Kanztan. some twenty miles @outt-
 east of the mysterious Timavus..