The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1917-10-21

cavour. There are a dozen different
scenes In color scattered through the
recreation buildings. each picture re-
cording a dramatic moment In that
proud period OF the Risorgimento. Each
one OF the thousand soldiers In each
one OF the i40 huts IN thus able TO take
heart for his present hght. because OF
the vivid emblem OF what his people
once did. Thus. Soldato Antonio For
siotti. soldato Colombo Ohe clever col
on.i did not omit 10 point out the slg'
nificaneo OF the nanso 20 an AmcftesnL
and ssoldatos Bruno Carlo and Winner
cati Angelo Il copy names ! SAW are
fortunate In having such background
made plain 10 thon.
In Grancxza. in the pine forest where
there was once only an inn. there ~
now "a soldiers village Of barracks. and
In the mids; OF them a recreation hut.
with cinema. and reading and writing
room. The place was bright and green
In the sun OF the roadway. and then In
moment we ntcppcd into the gloom
and loneliness OF the forest and We real
lied ll,tl. what Aim would mean In
the long evenings of the ncvcr-cndlns
war. And still more We gaw that the
work o: thu Casa" vas good. when the
thick wet mists d,if,ud In and hung ON
the trees and flooded III. caves. One
would IKE 10 meet IN the winter for
cs,s ~ the Tfentino.
There was recreation hut, eight
thousand feet above sca level. under
the Trefanl din the Dolomitesl. At
congestcd point there are five huts In
n radius OF five kilometers.
We came 20 n village where the hut
had become varied plant with an
equipment FOR interesting | 800 men at
"A time. There were rifle range. bowling
alley. photograph gallery (thc soldier
likes TO cheer the folks at home with n
picture Of himself "woll and hGppy'),
cinema house. a ball range. In this. the
figures to bc hit are fantastic medieval
scarlet figures Of devil. king and queen
mot THE King and Qucen> Tho Same
recreation center had a gymnasium and
football field. u would take "A sour
critic to suggest any improvement for
the outfit.
In another hut. in the reading room.
| noted that In one month Dante's Dr.
vine Comedy had been drawn out by
thirteen private soldiers. (the ink record
gave the rank of the readerl. This hut
had a bandstand and. II must be said,
a lottery Chance is a popular lady In
the war zone. where tomorrow may not
come for you with the sureness Of the
sun. This was the place. indeed. where
we called on Friday. and the shell had
broken the next building on Thursday.
And these huts are not a hole in the
ground in low, wet, dreary country.
They are In great forests. and on the
high hills. by rivers hurrying as they
near the Adriatic, and IN villages. once
quiet and still beautiful. They share In
scenery unsurpassed in Europe. and one
feels that the men who crowd them
must D. littlc giaGder ot their long
watch in The landscape tha: ID never
,awdry. The I'ritl,h and French often
have had to practice heroisni in mean
places, where vermin Is thick and mud
deep. and the dreary' level Of the laiid
answers the rlorotony OF tho long en-
dulnncc hut the Italians have suf-
fercd and dared in noble scenery. the
worthy settinE Tor men abou, TO die.
The wounded are ignobly mud'splattcT-
ed on covered with clouds of dust and
flies in the iiats Of Flanders. But the
wounded Of Italy are rolled down the
winding roads of the mile-high noun
tains with some beauty Of vcrdure still
green on the TANKS. There must he
good, even 70 diinmed eyes,
in the sigh, OF high place and a wide
green glacier river. and perhaps even
death IS less bitter there.
One thing is certain. The faces Of
these Italian soldiers are still alert; their
talk and gesture are vivacious, II was