New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-08-27
Cadorna Advances North
of Gorilla on Twelve
Mile Front
Captures Are Heaviest
Made So Far in War
Italians Taking Foe Prison
er at Rate of 5000
a Day

on more tndn lWelNe-Hllic iioHb pc-
yond the newly captured crest Of Monte
Santo. the Italian armies have swept
forward, and in places have driven the
Austrans over ten miles east of the
Isonzo River. As thus delineated IN
the official statement from Rome to-
day the victory is rapidly becoming
the greatest won by General Cadorna
in the war, and has added another
large part OF the Austrian crownland
of Corr and Gradisca to the Italian
gains.
The captures thus far announced are
the heaviest, both in men and material.
the Italians have ever made. and there
is no indication that the limit has been
reached. More than 600 Austrian ofh-
GERS and $4,000 men have been passed
to the rear. seventy-fve cannon have
been counted, an undamaged airplsne
has fallen TO the victors and large
number of machine guns and trench
mor.ars have been recovered. while
a huge quantity of other booty. includ-
ing several thousand horses and sew
eral motor tractors. loaded with NUM-
tions. is being listed. Semiofficial dis
patches from Rome estimate the en-
emy losses thus far as 100000 of al.
ranks while the .Austfiaa war corre-
spondents place the attacking force at
$4,000.
The official bulletin from Vienna to-
day, the first received in several days,
admits n retreat on the Bainsizza
plateau, where a new line of defence
was established ION account of the
situation created By the combats in
this place" 1t says the Italians strong
ly shelled the evacuated positions and
then advanced into "the empty places"
The loss of Monte Santo is not men
toned, but Italian attacks south OF
that peak, near San Gabrielle, are said
to have been repulsed, the assaulting
Palermo Brigade leaving countless
dead and wounded" on the field. vi
emma reports that British and French
fiiers are assisting the Italians, but.
despite this superiority, twelve Allied
machines have been brought down.
Apparently the Austrian account Of
the battle only carries the fighting up
to August %. At that time $50 Italian
officers and over 5000 men had been
captured in counter attacks. The stu
alton on the Carso is reported to be
comparatively calm.
5000 Prisoners a Day
Since the hrst rush Cadorna's men
have been taking about 1000 prisoners
a day. The results of the battle are
beginning to approach those achieved
by General Korniloff in his Galician
offensive, though there is little danger
that the Italians will be driven back
by a counter offensive as they are
gradually forcing the Austrians of a
high table-land into e. river valley.
Trieste is in no immediate danger, but
the first OF the two steps necessary 20
take il has been achieved. II Csdorna's
forces can outhank Mount Hermada,
on the Carso Plateau, as they did Monte
Santo, above Gorilla, the great Aus
trian seaport will fall.
The Rome communique to-day makes
is possible to trace the campaign in the
north-or, as the Italian War Office puts
it, "the battle is beginning to reveal it.
self in all its vastness." /. appears
that on the night Of August 1919 the
second Italian army, under the COM
mand OF General Capello, threw four
teen pontoon bridges across the Isonzo
River in the neighborhood of Anhovo.
On the east bank of the stream they
attacked the Austrian defences with
ferocity both from the front and on
the flank.
Finally, after advances which had
not proved decisive, the Austrian line
between Vrh and Volnik was broken
and the Italian troops are now nearing
the eastern edge Of the Bsinszza
Plateau and the valley of the River
Idriza, which flows into the Isonzo from
the southwest. The ground is broken
and difficult and the enemy is putting
up stiff resistance with machine guns
and light artillery to cover his retreat.
but the Italian troops have maintained
ceaseless contact with the defeated
army and are steadily pushing it east
ward.
Austrian Retreat Cut on
The great dent thus created, in the
Austrian line automatically carried the
Italian divisions past Monte Santo and
cut off the retreat of the enemy de-
tachments defending il. A position
which could probably never have been
stormed by a frontal attack was out
hanked and rendered untenable.
The sector Of the advance was com
pletely devastated by the opposing ar
tilleries and left practically without
communications. But the difficulty OF
supplying the victorious Italian troops
was partly overcome by the use Of the
abandoned Austrian supply depots.
On the Carso, Rome admits that the
battle has temporarily come TO n stand
still, but the new Italian line has been
rectiied in places, and all Austrian at
tempts at a counter offensive have been
crushed by the storm Of fire from Ca
dorna's guns. Probably the Austrian
line in the south will feel the effect OF
the reverse in the north. and new Mt
tempt, TO storm or flank Hermada and