Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-01-07
ON TO C0RIzIA
| SYMBOL IN ITALY
Center Of Great Fighting Area Made
Famous in History Of War
Stands for Italian Bravery.


Headquarters of the Italian Army.
Northern neutrality-suspicious. of
The Associated ss.)-Gorizia is
symbol. ION the Gorilla" was the cry
of the Duke of Aosta's soldiers IS they
pressed through the little town of
Lucinico a few months ago, fighting
their way down to the 1sonzO river,
then across the western bridge lead
ing to the city, when the cry changed
to Gorilla at last"
Then, a week ago, this was reversed
when the overwhelming invading force
of Austro- Germans took up this same
cry, "On to Gorilla" pressing down
from the north, across the northern
bridge to the city, and ending with
"Gorizia at last"
Thus Gorilla has become a symbol
of the huge change which has occurred
within the last ten days. 1t was one
of the furthest points forward on the
Italian line, the center of a vast arc
of fighting front stretching from
Plezzo. far in the north, down to the
Adriatic at Montefalcone, and it was
the most populous and important city
in the great crescent Of territory which
the Italian army has sliced off south
western Austria-some six hundred
square miles in all. And SO Gorilla
| was symbolic of that entire region
which has twice changed hands in
this war, and Of the furthest advance
in the first Italian campaigns.
/ visited Gorilla just nine days ago
! and saw the city on the eve of its
agony. It was the last visit made
j there by anyone outside the military
before the retreat began The rear of
the great Austro-German offensive al
| ready had commenced, though for the
! moment it was taken for spasmodic
renewal of the cannonade which has
been going on TO rweeks. Within "a
hours the enemy had crossed the Ison-
20 Is miles further north, turned the
Italian loft wing, beaten back the
second army under General Capello,
threatened to envelope the third army
under the Duke Of Aosta, 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.
! The visit was made by invitation of
the supreme command with a staff
editor from headquarters as escort.
AS we sped along the road in the big
army auto l noted there were no
troops along the road and bordering
fields as one sees approaching Verdun
or in the Somme or Flanders. This
absence of troops in the rear was part
of the system adopted, it was explain
ed. 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-
ian frontier and entered Austria. The
frontier was marked by an empty river
as the mountain current had run dry.
There were scrub trees along the
bank and our escort noted the strange
fact that bears were quite numerous
in these parts and back to the Julian
Alps. Near the frontier bridge was a
party of soldierst going home for two
/ weeks leave; they looked very happy
and were quite unconscious of the es-
cape they we're making from the crash
to occur a few hours later.
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 claims that all
this section was racially Italian. Al
this town, too, was statue of the
Archduke Macmillan which had just
passed through queer experience
Some Italian soldiers passing through
the town had seen the statue, and not
being familiar with Macmillan they
had taken it for the great Genose
navigator, Christopher Columbus
i With true Italian fervor they had deco
rated the statue, and there stood Maxi
milan with garlands about his neck
placed there by Italian soldiers.
The cannonade began to be heard
for the first time ten miles west OF
Gorizia-a low rumble to the north and
east with now and then the muffled
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
had been increased from 120 battal-
ions to $50 battalions.
I AS we passed through the town oil
} Lucinico, far-out suburb of Gorilla
it was seen to be half destroyed. Along
the main street ran rows of battered
, buildings, with walls half down ant
shell holes making ugly gashes. Bu
business was going on, men were a
the cafes, and women and girls stroll
} ed the street unconcernedly. Now
the automobile turned up the steep sid
| of Padgera Hill, one of the outer de
lenses of Gorilla where bloody hand
to-hand fighting occurred. One coult
see the old trench and wire system
now grass-grown. All this hill hat
been swept bare by shell-fire, but ma
ture had kindly obliterated the scar:
ana the hillside was again smiling
with its yerdure The sound of firing
had now increased to an ominous roal
as we passed Padgera Hill.
: Turning the corner Of a shattered
wall, We saw the Isonzo river lyinf
. ahead, and on the further side Gorizis
rising in terraces with the huge battle
ments of the citadel towering on tn,
right. The river looked about tn,
, width of the Potomac at Washington
but with swifter current from tn,