The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1918-02-26
Correspondent Sees Shell Bat
tered City lust Before the
Italians Reiterated.
PAINTS PICTURE OF ruin
Newspaper Men Have Narrow Escape
as They Watch Artillery Battle
Outlines of City Still There,
but It Is a City Slowed by
Bombardment.


duke of Aosta's soldiers as the!
pressed through the little town of Lu
chico few months ago, fighting theil
way down to the Isonzo river, theT
across the western bridge leading t.
the city, when the cry changed to go
ritz at laSt!'
Then this was reversed when the
overwhelming invading force Of Aus
tro-Germans took up this same cry
ION to Goritz!" pressing down from
the north, across the northern bridge
to the city and ending with "Goritz at
last! %
Thus Goritz has become a symbol OF
the huge change which has occurred.
It was one of the furthest points for
ward on the italian line the center OF
q vast arc Of fighting front stretching
from Piozzo, far in the north, down to
the Adriatic at MontefalcOne, and 1t
was the most pOpulOus and important
city In the great crescent Of territory
which the Italian army had sliced or
southwestern Austria-some six hun
dred square miles in all. And so Go
ritz was symbolic of that entire region
which has twice changed hands in this
war, and of the furthest advance In
the first italian campaigns.
1 went to Goritz and saw the city
on the eve of it's agony. 1t was the
last trip made there by anyone outside
the military before the retreat began.
The roar of the great Austro- German
offensive already had commenced,
though for the moment it was taken
for a spasmodic renewal of the cannon
ade which had been going on for weeks.
Within twenty-four hours the enemy
had crossed the Isonzo Is miles further
north, turned the Italian left wing,
beaten back the second army under
General Capello, threatened to envelop
the third army under the duke of Aos-
ia, brother of the king Of Italy, and put
In execution that gigantic hammer
stroke by which they hoped to finish
Italy and cripple the whole entente.
Roads Left Clear.
My trip was MADE by invitation OF
the supreme command, with staff edi-
tor from headquarters as escort. AS
we sped along the road In the big army
automobile I noted there were no
troops along the road and bordering
fields as one sees approaching Verdun
or in the Somme or Flanders. This abb
sence of troops in the rear was part OF
the system adopted, it was explained.
All the reprovisioning Of the army was
done at night and the roads were left
clear by day most of the time.
Ten miles out we crossed the Ital-
frontier and entered Aus.
tria.
At Commons, an Austrian village on !
the road, the signs above the shops
were all in Italian, showing the Ital-
ians were right in the claim that all
this section was racially Italian.
The cannonade began to be heard
for the first time ten. miles west of Co
rita low rumble to the north and
east with now and then the muff1ed
boom of great gun. Day by day the
fire was getting heavier, said our es
cort, who knew the ground by heart
and he added that the enemy forces
lad been increased from 120 battalions
% $50 battalions.
AS we passed through the town OF
lucinico far-out suburb of Goritz it
vas seen to be half destroyed. Along
he main street ran rows of battered
buildings, with walls half down and
hell holes making ugly gashes. But
BUSINESS was going on, men were at
he cafes and women and girls StrOlled
he street unconcernedly. Now the au
omobile turned up the steep side OF
'adgera hill, one of the outer defenses
f Goritz where bloody hand-to-hand
ghting occurred. One could see the
Id trench and wire system, now grass
rown. All this hill had been swept
are by shell fire, but nature had kind
7 Obliterated the scars and the hillside
vas again smiling with its verdure.
he sound of firing had now increased
} an enormous roar as we passed Pad
era hill.
Turning the corner of shattered
all we saw the IsonzO river lying
head and on the further side Gorit2
sing in terraces with the huge battle
ents Of the citadel towering on the
ght. The river looked about the
idth of the Potomac at Washington
1T with swifter current from the
ountain feeders. Along the edge OF
e river ran rows of Shell-tOrn walls
it'll gaping windows. This whole wa
r front had been torn to pieces, and
It many of the demolished remnants
thn huiIdinpS wprn Occ1nind and
ork along the river wharves was pro
eding.
Old Bridges Replaced.
The Isonzo river was crossed by the
ooden bridge which Italian engineers
tilt after all the old bridges had been
own up. On one side lay the wreck