The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-12-09
ITALIANS MADE
 GALLANT FIGHT
Continued from Page D

OILY 10 De CTlVGL1 OH Dy the Q6S" perate fire of the Italian garrison.
 Would Not Surrender
 After the third attack the Greek commander called on the Italians to surrender. He told them that Ar gyrokastron was surrounded, that they had no chance to escape. The only answer was a salvo of fire from the light Italian guns in the towns fortress.
 Early yesterday the fourth assault was made by khaki-clad Greek reg ular troops and armored cars. The troops crept up to the town, taking cover as they went and the armored cars blasted at Italian pillboxes and snipers on the roofs of the white washed buildings.
 "The Italians fought like madmen" a Greek officer told me. We entered the town from three sides. Those who stayed behind to defend Ar gyrokaStron never had chance to escape"
 When I came into Argyrokastron yesterday afternoon the ngnting was just over. It was still raining. Water filled the cobbled gutters and over- lowed into the muddy streets. Is dripped from the caves of the square built houses.
 I saw the rain falling on the bodies of the Italian soldiers who lay in the streets and in the pill uoxes where Greek fire had moved them down. Ambulance men and women volunteers bandaged the wounoed with strips of linen torn from sheets and petticoats. Too Young to Die Many of the women cried as they came up from the cellars where they had huddled while the battle ragged and saw the Italian bodies strewn in the streets. They were those of young men in their early 20's for the most part. They were cleancut, good looking boys.
 I heard one woman sob as she tore strips of linen to make bandages for the wounded. They're too young to die," she said. She said that over and over like refrain.
 Greek officers told me that the Italian troops were member of the Fascist Praetorian Guard-the Ar diti-and that they had fought bravely and well.
 Townsfolk were helping the Greeks bury the dead and tend to the wounded. I watched parties of Greek forage troops collecting guns and ammunition that the Italian left behind. They stored the supplies in the central fortress over which the blue and white flag of Greece had been hoisted.
 Boys Seek Souvenirs
 In the streets hundreds of small boys Swarmed up from enforced con- f1nement in the cellars. They hunt ed for souvenirs-dangerous souve- nirs such as unexploded hand grenades and shellcaps that lay everywhere.
 The town did not appear badly damaged despite the fierce battle. It sprawls over three hills and the heavy rain had quenched most of the fires set by the main force of Italians to destroy their supplies be- fore they retreated to the north.
 But on the main street the houses showed hundreds of pockmarks where Greek machine gun fire had swept the buildings in which Italian snipers and machine gun nests were set up.
 An old street peddler stood over the body of his dead mule on the outskirts of town. The mule, laden with vegetables, had been caught in cross-fire from the Greeks and Ital- ians.
 MussOlini Posters Destroyed
 Some of the small boys dashed about tearing down great posters of Mussolini which had been plastered by the Italians on the walls of build ings.
 Argyrokastron was occupied by regular line regiments of the Greek army, rather than the picturesque skirted Evzone mountaineers.
 Today'S mass of thanksgiving was held at 8 a. m. in the Greek Ortho- dox Cathedral which came through the battle virtually without damage. Archbishop Spiridion who is held in almost superstitious awe by the Greek peasants had doffed his plain khaki army chaplain's uniform for the gorgeous ceremonial robes of the Orthodox archbishop.
 He was accompanied by Governor Philosofopoulos of Epirus. After giv- ing his blessing to the Greek troops and civilians at the doors of the cathedral, the bishop went among the Greek and Italian wounded, of-