The Washington times., 1935-10-04
BY FLOYD GIBBONS
copyright, 1888. BY International
News Service)


Copyright, 1888, By International
News Service)
WITH ITALIAN G ERAL
HEADQUARTERS IN THE
FIELD, Oct. 3 CThursday), (filed
via Asmara at $50 p. m. Thurs
day and received in Rome at 1:25
D. m. Friday 1T was unreal
unnatural, uncanny-the opening
this morning Of the italian Of
fensive against Ethiopia.
After witnessing last nights
wild war demonstrations in the
streets Of Asmara, we correspond
ents suddenly were bundled into
speedy autos at 100 a. m. and
rushed through the night for an
unknown destination.
We were invited to see, but we
did not know from what ohserva-
ton point.
Very Weird Ride
At 400 a. M, after dashing
through darkened towns and vii
lagos over dust-laden roads and
clinging precariously to rock sides
Of mountains and cliffs, we were
deposited in the front row Of new
white huts in a hilltop camp
and advised to be ready to move
again in five minutes.
Back into the cars, and then
more speeding over roads Strewn
with boulders and five-inch-deep
stone-dust pulverized from rock
with the crushing effect of
thousands Of cannon.
Up a narrow one-way path
through ghostly roads of barbed
wire defenSeS we entered portals
of another fort. and stepped
down into a wide cleared space
which looked like reddish clay
Just as the Eastern sky began to
show the morning light.
Fifty yards across the cleared
space we approached low para
pet of white SandbagS, beyond
which was ghostly darkness with
the impression Of greater depth
and distance.
Nothing But Darkness
AS the light increased 1t
seemed we were looking out over
q vast sea of mist and clouds
extending dinly onward for miles
to the south. where black, saw
toothed peaks and ridges cut a
jig7Saw line against the sky.
The silence was weird and un-
canny. Not light was showing
on either mountainSide or any
where beyond over that sea Of mist
which showed lightly against the
blackneSs Of the night.
One hundred and ten thousand
fighting men were submerged
thousands of feet below that sea
of mist. They were ready to move
with violence across that border
line and invade a neighboring peo-
pie.
Again that breath-taking silence.
We spoke in whispers as soldiers
placed tables and maps and long
ranged telescopes and range-tlnd-
ers all along the parapet.
Came the Dawn
Sunlight escaping above the far
eastern horizon splashed tints OF
rose and pink on white-faced
clouds.
The light grew and dawn came
somewhere below that ominous
parapet Of white sandbags.
A COW mooed lazily as though
disturbed in sleep. and then came
the chirp Of an awakening bird.
Then the sun appeared.
Stretched out there before us
for 40 miles in any direction was
q vast panorama of the African
theater of war. It all seemed so
much like theater scenery, princi-
pally, suppose, because there are
few points in the world where one
pair Of eyes can look out and
down upon so much of Gods
glorious real estate at the same
time.
It seemed theatrical also be-
cause of the growing colors. It
was just as scenic a set as a
theatrical back-drop because in all
those hundreds of square miles Of
tumbled mountains and ridges and
red.brown rock there was not iv-
ing thing or a light seen.
Above it all, silence that made
us whisper to one another.
give o'clock. They have
crossed the river. They are in
Ethiopia. The war is on"
This is the strangest war I have
ever seen.