Evening star., 1917-11-19
ITALIAN OFFENSIVE
ON ASIAGO PLATEAU
PUSHES BACK FOES
Continued from First Page. !,

while the Italians were without search
lights. 1t was only by the flashes of
tne Austrian machine guns that the
Italians could direct their fire.
At Daylight yesterday the enemy still
held his position at the cemetery The
situation began to look serious and for
time 1t appeared as though the Ital-
lans would have to fall back. But now
the famous Bersaglieri brigade was
brought up. fresh after its heroic rear
guard defense Of the main army as it
retired on the field. Some Of the other
troops were from nearby towns. and
they were stirred to last desperate ef-
fort to save their homes.
The Italians charged shortly after
daWn. their line moving straight up the
hill to the cemetery. Against machine
gun fire and guns on the bank the Italians
norea nn1na with bayonets. grenades and tor
spired by love OF home and country which
WIN live always. and 1t was irresistible.
! me enemy wavered and broke just as the
Italian artillery on a nearby height got
the range Of the cemetery. But the main
nghting was hand hand with the
enemy being pressed back steadily to the
| riNer. where they were cut down,
drowned. baynoted or captured BY ID
o'clock yesterday all had been swept
away except a few struggling groups: by
noon not one OF the enemy's force was
leit on the western bank.
Teutonic Losses Heavy.
In addition to some 1900 killed. the
enemy lost $500 prisoners. including two
colonels and some thirty officers. All the
Austrian machine guns were cantured
and are now being used by the Italians.
The fury of the fighting is shown
by the fact that the old Sega mill. on
the rivers brink. was taken and re-
taken SIX times during the ebb and
flow. The mill Is full Of bullet holes
but shows no evidence of shellf1re. indi-
eating that the fight was entirely a,
close quarters
Italian stretcher bearers did noble
, , service yesterday afternoon in caring
for the great number Of Austria e
wounded who lay along the shore Two
or these stretcher bearers waded on,
to the sand bar In midstream, where
several seriously wounded Austrians
had dragged themselves. They were
| brought back ard cared for care
fully by the Italian Hospital Corps
one OF these Austrians was wounded
seriously in the leg and he was sup
ported between two Italian soldiers
on the way to the receiving station
OF them at the waters edge. One gun
ner was found hanging ltfeless over
his machine gun. This summarizes
most desperate fight to preserve the
In the northern line and along the
piave river above Zenson the fight
ing has assumed extreme severity
The enemy. whose forces exceed the
Italians on the northern line, now
i has thrown fresh divisions into the
battle In a supreme effort to break
through The Italians are RESISTING
with desperate tenacity. using hand
grenades to meet the infantry rushes
following artillery and machine gun
fire. 1t Is one of the bitterest strupgIae
OF the war and the losses are heavy.
Trying to Drive Wedge.
Where the front turns westward from
the flaEe river across the As,aee
plateau, Gen. Ritter Won Krobatin FOR.
mer Austrian minister of war. is driv.
ing his Austrian forces. together with
one Hungarian division, in an attack
, which may be the turning point Of the
whole operation. 1t is here that the
Ptave front and the Trentino front meet
and Gen. Won Krobatin is throwing ali
OF mis- pressure on this meeting noint
SO as to force wedge between the
two Italian armies. What his success
would mean Is fully realized, for should
this wedge come through 1t would NOT
only separate the two Italian armies
but would require the consideration
OF retreat from the Piave river as il
would not be possible to maintain a
position on the Piave with the Left
flank thus menaced
The italian navy is doing splendid
service. seconding the army in the bonn
bardment of enemy positions toward
the mouth of the Piave river. The
navy. which held the coast front from
the mouth of Izonso to Grado sayed
all of its material and cannon and
these now are being trained on the
enemy at the mouth of the river and
for some distance up. where the water
is deem a nd