New-York tribune., 1917-12-23
Italy Our Ally
Bu Arthur Gleason

Of tho Serbans saved by the italian navy
and by the civil population Of Southern Italy:
OF Infantry ............ ........l .l36,0Oo
Artillery ......,.....'...'''' lE'VVV
Horses .............. ....... lV,OOO
Austrian prisoners (taken by
Serbians and brought to the
coasD ............. .........' ZS,VOV
Also civilians and Montenegrins.
These Serbians. soldiers and civilians were
transported by the Italians distance OF
from forty 70 six hundred miles, from Du-
razzo to the coast Of Apula, even to Tunis.
They were maintained by the Italian popula-
ton for an average of six months.
have shown that the ancient Italy was
disappearing even before the war. The mod
ern mind was taking possession Of Italy, as
of the other nations. But war has sharpened
that change in the peoples of Europe. a
shifting Of the balance Of civilization IS tax
ing place. In France the peasant class and
the cultured artistic class have suffered over
whelming losses. The industrial townbred
class has in part remained in the munitlon
factories SO the France Of the next two
generations will be reared from the urban
industrial class, while the great peasant
foundation and the imaginative elements will
be weakened This will give new France
Of quite other constituents than the France
known through centuries. In less measure,
but to some degree, the same process or Sc
lection is at work in Italy, where the peasant
and the university student are at the front,
while the factory worker is busy on muni-
tons.
The Italian Army
The Italian army Of all grades Of service
numbers over 100000. OF these about
100000 are, in the words of our military
conductor, actually hurting stuff at the
enemy" The Italian army is using platoon
Of about 80 men each, a company Of about
25O men. battalion of about three and four
infantry companies, with a machine gun
company making total Of about 1000 men
in battalion, three battalions in q regiment Of
about 1900 men, two regiments in brigade,
two brigades of infantry in division, two
or more divisions in an army corps, and
TIVE, three or four corps in an army. There
are, in addition to these infantry "cadres,"
groups of cavalry, engineers, machine guns,
artillery, sappers and pontooners.
Let us hold fast to our faith that is based
on fuets. The Italian soldier is brave, en-
during and effective. His morale is firm.
Accustomed to obey priests and psdrone, he
has transferred his habit of obedience to his
officer. Italy has not failed US and will rot
fail US She might have been hostile. She
might have been neutral. She has stood up
to her two years of war and held 100000
Of our common enemy. Were there not
claims ard counter claims in Italy, as in the
United States? Was there not German goldY
She deserves our sympathy. But at this mo
ment. beaten back on Venice, she deserves
our admiration. Let us give her thousand
recreation huts for her soldiers-"casa del
soldato." 1t will be only tiny token Of the
gratitude we owe her. She is a veteran in
the struggle, where we are in the beginning
OF our novitiate.
Those huts will be hand piekings-a bou-
ouct With gesture. Then let US back il
with the punch. The moral effect of march
ing one regiment of American soldiers
through Naples on the way to action will be
immense.