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One who retreats cuts a poor figure beside a rear-guard that stays behind and fights. We crossed the Isonzo at Peteano, and took a short cut across the fields to Farra. In the crowd and the dark we were jostled by some Italian Infantry. We hailed them and found that they were our old friends, the Lecce Brigade. The Major made our men stand back. "Pass, Lecce," he said. "Good luck to you!"

The redoubt on the summit fell within an hour and the chase went on along the crest and down the sides, straight to the Isonzo, the pursuers everywhere gathering up prisoners in droves. In spite of the most stubborn resistance the Austrians had to give way gradually. On August 7, 1916, the Austrian troops on Monte Sabotino were withdrawn to the eastern bank of the Isonzo.

The first blow was struck by Austria on the day that war was declared. On that day bombs were dropped on Venice, and five other Adriatic ports were shelled from air, and some from sea. The Italian armies invaded Austria on the east with great rapidity, and by May 27th a part of the Italian forces had moved across the Isonzo River to Monfalcone, sixteen miles northwest of Trieste.

If they could drive their masses through the Italian lines between the Adige and the Brenta, and enter the Venetian Plain, taking Verona and Vicenza, all the Italian forces to the eastward along the Isonzo would have to retreat and might be captured.

A second, framed as an order of the day, spoke of victory and the planting of the green, white and red banner on the Adige, and forward to the Isonzo. "I can hear nothing of Carlo Alberto's victory," Beppo said; "no one has heard of it.

Throughout the theater of operations bad weather limited, however, artillery action on the Isonzo, which was active only near Tolmino and the heights northwest of Goritz. Severe fighting took place on March 26, 1916, at several points. At the Goritz bridgehead the Austro-Hungarians captured an Italian position fronting on the northern portion of Podgora Heights, taking 525 prisoners.

These lines of trenches followed without interruption from the banks of the Isonzo to the summit of the mountains which dominate it; they formed a kind of formidable staircase which had to be conquered step by step with enormous sacrifice.

The brilliant dash into the Isonzo Valley and the capture of Austrian positions in the Trentino which were chronicled during the months of June and July, 1915, marked an advance which was not equaled by any achievements in the months that followed.

Forty years later Theodoric took the lordship of Italy from Odoacer on the banks of the Isonzo, and in 552 the citizens who had returned were again driven away to the deltas of other rivers by Alboin, who was, it is said, called from Pannonia by Narses to wreak his vengeance on the son of Justinian. Christianity was planted in Aquileia in apostolic times.

From Monte Nero to the Adriatic the distance is, in a straight line, some 35 miles. Allowing for the curves of the actual line, the length of Front is between 40 and 50 miles. This portion of the Italian and Austrian lines is commonly spoken of as the Isonzo Front.