Evening star., 1918-01-23
TRAITORS AID PANIC
IN ITALIAN R0UT
f'AI Is Lost" Shouted Men in
Uniform-OtherS Cut
Wires.
NO RESISTANCE is MADE
BY HERBERT COREY.

BY HERBERT COREY.
PARIS, Dec. 14.-Things happen sud
denly in war. It was only yesterday
that we read of;British generals in Pc
jamas fighting before Cambria But
nothing has ever happened more sud
denly or moro unexpectedly than the
italian collapse of October 23. 1917.
I'VE knew that the enemy was pre-
pairing an offensive" said ono of the
most alert journalistic Observers "But
that meant nothing to us. onensives
are always being prepared"
So that on October 81 he left head
quarters to take a sightseeing 1aunt to
Venice. and was never able to get
back. Another as vaguely knew that
late on the fateful morning and did
not get the warning In time. He
walked twenty miles through a pour
ing rain. Another got the warning and
barely managed to get out that night
on Red Cross ambulance, leaving all
his belongings behind.
Skilled Reporters Caught Mapping.
There were perhaps a score of skilled
reporters of war at headquarters when
the crash came. Most of them sus
tanned confidential relations with mem
bers of the staff. Yet not one of them
had an advance warning. Even mem
their clothes behind. Maps, papers
books of great value to the enemy
were left to him. The traditional sights
OF night from an endangered city
through the mud barefooted, after their
satin slippers had been pulled off. Men
and women and children died by the
Some OF this has. no doubt, been told
In America, but am going to disclose
some Of the mechanism Of the enemy
s.roke The first smash came at the
Tolmino bridgehead, which was held hv
Calabrian regiment. There is no eues-
sion OF the gallantry OF these men. They
after time in the past year. Yet they
gave way with no more than a pretense
OF resistance. Some few fired unon III a
enemy when they discovered the ruse
ot which they had been made victims.
But the greater part seem to have fied
They had gone ION strike"
Far behind the places which were re-
CelVing the first onrush of enemy troons
elsoruer, which is plainly attributable
= 20 .leacneTy. became manifest Mon
dressed IN Italian uniform began to cry
that all is lost" The usual shout that
they had been sold to the enemy went
up. Italian officers ordered their nan
~ aoanuon defensible positions. No
hoa5 oa5s many or these men lost their
neads. Equally without doubt MANY of
them were traitors.
False Phone Messages Given.
The telephone wires wer, c,,+ ~,
ialse messages put through one gal
iant major In command OF an in,Sor-
tant telephone center went completely
berdjnaies 10 pieces. he defended his post as
fore beginning the defense he cst Nc
leiephone wires in some confused idea
OF tnereby hampernig the enemy. ms
iurther crippled headquarters. In siy
eouaa, tlme the retreat became an en-
,orced one, Tor the enemy had gained
KEY positions. Then 1t became roI,t
Austrians made their way along de-
MES which were impregnable to anv-
1ning snort of siege without being
nred on A squad of high school girls
with pair of machine guns could bays
neid some OF these runways. They
galloped over hilltops in uIain vjew
without being fired on. Almost the
whole OF the second army was cut off
and taken prisoners The rout became
a wild, insensate. bowling panic. with
all the accomplishments Of a panic in
time of war. '''
1es tnese men who ran away were
ANYTHING but towards. They have ali
have proved 1t since and are nroyina
1t as these lines are being written
In many instances running was the one
sane thing to do. and after having out
run Ine men who tried to cut them off
the Italians turned on their pursuers
and fought viciously. without food or
water or blankets, until thew reformed
| their own lines almost without aid a
regiment of Bersaglieri caught in a
dehle ran the gantlet Of Austrians who
they got to an opening climbed the
Mills and drove their pursuers hack
A score OF similar instances might he
told. 'e
Retreated for a Week,
This frenzted rush of moh >or
safety lasted for week. varied by
innumerable instances Of heroisn, The
British managed to save all their runs
~ th sheer doggedness. No doubt most
same thing. except that the underly-
| ing conditions were different. The ig-
| norant-but always courageous-Italian
peasants had been bewlldered by a
told later. Above all, when once the
rout began the italian felt himself he
| trayed. Thousands threw down their
rifles. packs. blankets, to tighten their
| mud in hammering rain. Others held
on to these things with the grim In
tention of fighting again another day.
Some units held together perfectly.
Others dissolved completely when tie
first shot was heard
When holding ground was finally
reached the innate courage of the
italian began to show itself These
dtsordered units came together in a
fighting line. With what guns had
been saved and what rifles they had
and what scratch equipment could be
gathered up they began to hold the
enemy. 1t may as we'll he admitted
that the enemy at the moment could
go no further. He was forced to wait
for the arrival of his own artillery and
subsistence trains Practically all Of
the cannon used upon the fleeing
Italians had belonged to the Italians
themselves a few days before.
But after the new line was once
reached the Italians defended it nobly
in spite Of their antiquated and almost
ridiculous artillery equipment. Most of
the best guns had been captured by
the enemy. The censor would not per-
init me to say these things, because
the chief use Of the censor is to save
face" The enemy knows them very
well. indeed. That line was held until
the French and British reinforcements
reached the Italian battle-ground. They
were epahle6 unhurriedIy +o