The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1918-02-03
LOSSES IN ITALY
DISMAY ENEMY
Austrian Units Decimated b.,
Fire From Batteries Of
Allied Forces.
MORALE MUCH IMPAIRED
Entente Military Machine Is
Under Perfect Control.
Officers Agree.

TrALIAH ARMY HEADQUARTERS. Feb >
Heavy losses. amounting TO from 30
to % per cent. OF the men engag ID.
nave been inflicted uron the Austrian
forces during the week in the fighting
west OF the Brom:a River. wlere the
Italians recently have won notahic
success. The magnitude OF the Austrian
losses Is due to the triple artillery fire Of
the Allies. main,a. med at times for forty
Consecutive hours, often crosstir.ns from
'wo or thre. directions simuhaneously.
An unusual feature Of the ARTILLERY
action has been the complete unity
b,oush. about among the Italian.
FrenG, ard British bat,e,lss This was
. marked tha, one Of the chiefs OF the
arti:lery staN exclaimed At last Va
nave realized unity OF command, right
In tie fac Of the enemy fire.
The exten, o. the enemy losses IN the
nshting early this week Is known to be
larger even than the first accounts In
d.cated the fuller details making this
evident An observer w@o has arrived
from the field OF tn. fighting rerorts
having wen and talked with a number
Of the captured officers anu nlen as they
were brought back for Interrogation.
They were a miserable ioe-;ing lot. he
says. many of them wearing Italian uni
forms taken during the invasion Of the
Fruii region
All the prisoners agreed as 10 the
furious nature of the fighting and the
exceptionally heavy Losses caused by .hc
concentration OF the fire of the italian.
French and British batteries. The
trenches were level,.d and the links
between the forward and "ca: lines
swept away. thus stopping al COM
munications and preventing II" ofilcer"
from obtaining coordination in the worG
Of the artil,~rr and the infantry. The
few trenches remaining were Uttered
with dead and the survivors we're found
fo- the most part on thei" l"sss hys-
:e.ically crying or praying
ThOnsn nds Ont Uf Action.
In :ae Twenty FIRST Rife DIVISION of
TIE Austrian forces 1000 men were nut
gu. Of action. or about 20 pc" reLt OF
It's fighting fore, B:'gades OF the
Eisntepn;l and Saith Austrian divisions
had casualties amounting to approx =
inateiN 80 per cent. But the mos
terrible loss was inflicted on the l60th
l.andsturm. which Of several thousand
men in line has only Il few hundred left,
IS an illustration OF the destructive
nature % the triple artillery fire il may
be racordcd that an enemy battery with
four monster 80 millIneter guns was
destroyed The enemy was using an Old
church as one Of his principal ammuni-
;lon depots ard when the ,aurch was
blown up he was cut off from supplies OF
ammunition IN that sector. In conse'
uuehce all the enemy batteries around
Toza and several othsg points remained
Si''nt.
The whole acton disclosed unusual
decentralization and confusion IN the
ereny lines. While this was due chiefly
to the artillery concentration II also in
dcated that. owing to internal condi-
,ions, the enemy forces have fallen far
hr.ow their former Standard Of cHi-
cheney.
RiA~ EeIIs AirpIane.
While a CONVOY of prisoners Was beng
taken 70 the rear an enemy airp'anc, Ny
ing low, sought to interrupt II progress.
There were no aNti-alrcraf guns aroIrd,
la, the machine finally was brought
.iow'n by 4 rlnc THIS vas said to hc Il
rare instance Of the b"irgng down of
m airp,ane by a rifle.
Interrogation OF prisoners gave con-
hrmat!on Of reports that the Germans
have moved troops fron IN. Russian TO
the French front during tho period 81
the arnnistirc. This Na> accomplished
Indirectly BY granting leave to the best
troops on the Russidn front, The places
Of these men we're filed from the Ia
valid class. and they were not t?E"n
back to that front,