Six months on the Italian front

by Julius M. Price

It generally happened, therefore, that you attracted as much attention amongst the well-dressed habitués of the place as if you were “got up” for a fancy-dress ball.

At times, when one came back after a surfeit of horrors, it almost seemed unjustifiable to be sitting down to a civilised meal in a cheerful restaurant.

Of course it goes without saying that Udine was not by any means inclined to be light-hearted, and usually the sole topic of conversation everywhere was “la Guerra” and the operations on the different Fronts.

There was an entire absence of excitement at all times, in spite of the daily thrills provided us by the local press, and the arrival in the evening of the big daily papers of Milan, Rome, etc.

When things were quiet at the Front, life in Udine was stagnant, and I often used to wonder what the Italian correspondents could find to write or wire about every day, for they always seemed to be hard at it, even when the communiqués were of the very briefest character.

Meanwhile events were undoubtedly shaping well, and day by day one heard of minor successes in Trentino, and steady Italian progress all along the line.

It was only what we all expected, but there was nothing yet of a sufficiently startling nature going on anywhere to induce one to start on motor trips to witness long range artillery duels.

Moreover, you had got to know every mile almost of the road leading to the front lines, and it ended by becoming as monotonous as it had been interesting at first, as you seldom saw any change.

The guns were always booming in the distance, the “drachen” hung motionless in the still air, and Taubes came over and were fired on assiduously but generally without result by the anti-aircraft guns.

Fresh subjects for one’s sketch book became more and more difficult to find. It was a period of comparative suspense so far as one was able to judge, and as combined with this, it was a summer of unusual heat even for Italy, a good deal of superabundant energy was necessary to rouse you to activity when there was so little to call for it.