Mexico weekly ledger., 1918-07-25
MEXICO AUDRAN COUNTY MISSOURI THURSDAY JULY Is 1918
MUSIC HATH CHARMS"
ON THE ITALIAN FRONT
A Night in the Front Line Trenches
and Several Little Incidents Which
Are Typical Of the Life
MOONLIGHT sPOILs A RAID
Fighting Stops as Native and National
Hymns Are Sung in Melancholy
Tones by the Soldiers.

ITALIAN FRONT, June 2S.-The
devastated landscape Of the Highlands
lies whitened in the glare of the
moon. The advanced post Of the en-
emy is near, behind pile Of stones
which hides the dugout in which the
Austrian pickets are concealed.
In our own trenches, brief, dry or
ders are whispered by voices made
raucous and hoarse by long suppress
sion or disuse. For the first time they
are given in a language not Italian. Il
does not matter, because the spirit is
the same as ours. We have the same
enemy in common. Only to the men
in gray he gives no quarter, and he
visits the death penalty among them
who falls into his hands.
A blonde young officer gives the or
der "away" in Slav, and the squad
passes out of the opening cautiously.
On all fours the men crawl over the
rocky escarpment in front of our lines
for a raid on the little redoubt. The
object is to seize the post and cap
ture its defenders to learn their ma
tionality.
Beaten by Moonlight.
But the splendor Of the moonlight
endangers its success. The smallest
shadow is projected endlessly over the
white magnetism background. The
first explorers are quickly espied by
the enemy. A salvo of hand grenades
dots the white ground around the edge
Of the redoubt with sparks of red. 1t
is futile to continue the exploration.
The squad cannot go through that suf-
locating fire.
In reply, explorers throw few
bombs against the nearest of the en-
emy, but they have given up. The ele-
ment of surprise is lost. One after
another, they steal back to their start
ing point. The young officer orders the
national hymn, Conan, 0nam," to be
sung. On the night again plunged in
to silence the melancholy notes, sung
in minor key, float softly over the
sector:
"Onamo "a brda ona
Giovare, da je razoren dvor,
Mojega cara onamo vele,
Bio je negda jimacki zhor,"
cover there, over there, behind those
mountains
The ruins of royal palace they say
exist.
There my own king was once upon a
time,
They say that heroes now are gath
cred there"
The other stanzas follow. They call
for the restoration of the invaded ter
ritory and of suppressed liberty. The
magnificent night inspires the sing
ers, who are sad and grave as priests
performing patriotic rites. The first
song is followed by the Bohemian
hymn: "Where Is My Country? 1t Is
Where the Brook Ripples Through the
Fields"
Music Wins a Victory.
In the neighboring trenches our owl
soldiers seem touched by the soulful
meaning of those songs Of grief Blu
they listen more intently over in th'
Austrian front. A movement is noticed
behind the heaps of stone. Men leap
ing to their feet and separating them
selves from the rest come out--othe
heads begin to rise and show their pro
files along the trenches. But what
they are not the same enemies who {
moment before received the squa'
, with hand grenades. AS in the days o
mythology, song has been more eff
! cacious than fire.
. The enemy listeners stand as if spell
!! bound by the enchanting strains of tn
! melancholy melody Of the opposin
singers. No shot rings out, no hoars
noise of war breaks in on the affectin
beauty of the solemn hour. The sing
! ing ceases and the enemy for that ev
ening go back into their lines. PEI
haps they must pass German patro
, or perhaps a Hungarian officer. III
! next night the epilogue Of the witcaer
occurs.
Austria knows that part Of til
; C2ech-Slovah rational army are figh+
ine on our front. The pact Of Rom
eytinguishel the outbursts of dou(
and difference which Austrian polio
had known how to stir up for year
Only one thing tr uLles few Of ii
e new recruits. 1t is the feeling thi
they have not yet won their spur
though offering their lives in sacrifiC
against the common foe. Other doub'
), are now dissolved. Many have had II
idea of a false Italian Imperialism,
a purpose to oppress, Of a desire Il
conquest; intentions all of which Au
tria and, unconsciously, some Of OF
: own friends, attributed to the Italia
policies before the pact of Rome bu
led such malicious calumnies forever