Evening star., 1943-07-19
Naval Guns, Mules
Aid in u. 5. Capture
OF Ancient Agriigento
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
AGRIGENTO, Sicily, July 16 De-
layed. - Agrigento, key city of
Southern Sicily and one of the old
est in Europe, fell to the American
7th Army early tonight-but the
United States Navy and a regiment
of long-faced Sicilian mules had a
share in the victory.
The fleet guns bombarded the
high-towered old town, which has
seen many invasions through the
centuries, and hundreds of mules
were drafted from the surrounding
countryside and put to work for Un-
Gle Sam packing food and ammuni-
ton boxes across the hills to crews
of 155-millimeter Long Tom" rifles,
which broke up a last-minute at
tempt by the Italians to bring up
reinforcements for counterattack.
The defending garrisons found
the cross fire from the sea and land
batteries too hot and capitulated,
surrendering by the thousands as
creeping artillery barrages smoked
them out of their defenses.
Bring ReinfOrcementS.
In a melodramatic effort to regain
control of the city, which is a main
road and communications center,
the Italian commander rushed into
the battle zone two battalions of re-
inforced infantry from Aragona,
northeast of Agrigento.
Long Toms" promptly took them
under fire as they were detrucking.
Heavy shells rained into the area,
exploding with terrific power. No
enemy troops in North Africa had
been able to stand up against the
battling might of this long -mouthed
gun and neither could these Italians.
Remnants of the units jumped back
into the trucks and sped away to-
ward Aragona without firing shot
Success of the 155-mm. batteries
In breaking up reinforcement bat
talions climaXed a three-day artil-
lery duel in which the Italians were
taught lesson No. l in a branch of
warfare in which they are acknoWl-
edged to be no slouches.
The seizure of Agrigento, a city of
$4,000 whose crumbling gray build
tngs are perched on a great hill and
protected on three sides by cliffs,
assured Allied control of Porto EN-
pedocle, one of the few good harbors
in Southern Sicily. The heights of
Agrigento overlook and command
the port.
Was Well Defended.
A naval cruiser and two destroyers
began shelling the ancient city-now
shrunken from its former glory in
the Roman Empire period when the
Italians made it the keystone of
their defneses in that zone. 1t was
a tough nut to crack because of the
huge number of gun emplacement,s
and concrete pillboXes along the
coastal road from Licata.
The American general in COM
n1and shrewdly abandoned this nat
ural military route and after an
enveloping action began to drive
from the north.
The town of Favara fell last night
and with this hurdle out of the way
the artillery was able to concentrate
on Agrigento itself.
The infantry wedged through as
the American artillery systematic
ally blasted the Italian strong points
one after the other.
600 Prisoners Taken.
BY midafternoon more than 600
Italians, the majority of whom were
artillerymen, struggled back from
the front as prisoners of a single
regiment. AS dusk fell the engage
ment became rout and the attack
ers embraced the city where those
residents who had not fed to the
hills had lived in terror for three
days
Within two hours the entire Ital-
Ian front ringing Agrigento broke
and reinforced infantry regiment
took the city.
Before swinging around to Join
the troops attacking from the north
we tried to reach Agrigento along
the coastal road and 90 within sight
of the city when we were stopped
by fire from hidden Italian ma
chine gun and an antitank gun
ahead.
AN Army major with us was
killed and a lieutenant wounded
by shell burst while we were re-
connoitering the other side of the
bridge" said 1t. Comdr. J. K. VAR
daman, jr., of Chesterfield, Mo, who
led naval party ashore which in
cluded 1t. Paul Alfleri. the Bronx,
N. Y. and the driver of their COM
mand car, Ed Seeno. carpenters
mate, first class, of Pittsburg. Calf.