New-York tribune., 1918-06-25
The Italian Triumph
wv re HAVE as yet too little infor-
w nation to enable us to measure
By Frank H. Simonds

mas Deen won can no longer De HllSCaheH'
The question which remains to be settled
is whether the beaten Austrian army can
rally at the Piave or will have to go back
to the Tagliamento. or even to the lsonzo.
The offensive has failed; the question OF
to-day is whether the defensive can be
reorganized.
To the Italians belongs the credit for
having won the first great victory OF
the campaign of 1918 and having made
the great contribution to Allied morale
Of the current year. Hardly more than
six months ago an Italian collapse pro-
duced the gravest pessmism OF the
war. Now the Italians have redressed
the balance by winning a victory as
important for the Allied cause as Yer
dun, and perhaps only a little less i'm
portant than the Marine.
1t must be a matter of congratula-
tion to all Italians that Italy, practl-
cally unaided = for Allied contingents
in Venetia are light - has redeemed
the defeat of last year by victory
which, even in it's present proportions,
must count as the greatest battlefield
achievement in the history Of the 1tal-
ian people since their liberation.
We have seen in this contest the clear
shock of two great nations. Had the
Austrians prevailed at the Piave it
may be questioned whether Northern
Italy could have been defended or
Italy could have maintained the strug-
gle and the collapse of Italy would in
fallibly have released Austrian divi-
sions for service on the Western front.
In spirit and in strength the Allies
would have been put to it once more
had Italy failed on the Piave.
But, so far from failing, Italy has
smashed the Austrian offensive. The
Austrian armies are retreating in
something which must resemble rout,
and this great disaster has come at a
time when the domestic condition of
Austria has become acute almost be-
yond eXaggeration. To escape from
domestic evils, Austria under German
impulse, staked all upon the possibility
of achieving a foreign victory. Her
failure has been complete, and the re-
action upon her home populations must
be enormous.
1t would be mistake to assume that
Italy has won an easy victory. All the
accounts that we yet have of the Battle
of the Piave indicate that the Austrians
fought with great courage; that their
attack was made with skill; that they
were supported by tremendous artil-
lery, and that, SO far from being easily
beaten, their preliminary gains were
large and, in one or two places, threat
ened to be decisive. The first stage of
the Austrian attack was unquestiona-
bly, successful; the subsequent failure
was due to the skill and the promptness
with which Italian reserves were
handled and to the state Of training
and morale of the Italian troops them
selves.
For Italy, the Battle of the Piave
has at once the value which the Battle
of the Marine had for France. 1t saves
the fertile and highly industrialized
regions of the northern provinces of the
Savoy kingdom. 1t removes the peril
to Venice and the only less immediate
peril to Milan and Florence. 1t should
definitely close the period of Austrian
penetration of Italian territory.
There remains the possibility of the
intervention of German reserves. But
these can be used promptly only on tic
narrow front of the Trentine Hills be-
tween the Asago Plateau and Lago di
Garda, where the Italian line is most
strongly held and the difficulties of at
tack are greatest. Moreover, a victor
ious Italian army is bound to offer a
far more formidable resistance than
did the under-manned and disorganized
forces responsible for the disaster of
Caporetto last year.
In their retreat from the Piave, if
the Austrians are unable to stand on
the east bank of the river, they will
be threatened by no such peril as hung
over the Italians in the first stages of
Caporetto last year. Possession of the
Alps covers the flank of the beaten
Austrians, and they will be able to re-
tire along lines of communication which
will not be threatened by flank or rear
attacks. The sole question will be
whether the retreat degenerates into a
flight, or whether, at the Piave, or the
Tagllamento, or even at the Isonzo. the
broken lines are reorganized and the
front reestablshed.
Looking backward now to the anxiety
and apprehension with which the AL
lied publics have regarded the Italian
front for more than six months, recop-
nlzlng the extent to which Allied conf
dence has been temporarily weakened
by German successes ON the West front,