Six months on the Italian front

by Julius M. Price

We had only just been remarking on the extraordinary quiescence of the Italian guns which had not fired a shot since we had been up here, when scarcely were the words out of our mouths than suddenly, as though the limit of patience had been reached, with a terrifying crash, all the batteries near us opened fire.

The result was positively magnificent, and roused one to the pitch of enthusiasm. We could see the shells bursting along the crest of a hill some two thousand yards away with such accuracy of aim that in a few moments there was probably not a yard of the ground that had not been plastered with high explosives; and anything living that was there must have been battered out of existence.

The Italian Commander had no intention of wasting ammunition, however; he only wished to show he was allowing no liberties to be taken with him; for in less than a quarter of an hour the Italian fire ceased with the same suddenness it had started, and notwithstanding that the Austrian guns were still going it as hard as ever.

There was no use waiting indefinitely for the chance of getting away in quietude, so we started off on our return to Sagrado. We had extra passengers in the car now, three officers having asked us to give them a lift part of the way. One could not very well refuse, but it made it a very tight fit.

The road was downhill all the way, and there were one or two awkward turns. The effect of the heavy firing was visible all the way. There were big shell-holes and stones everywhere, so it was impossible to go at any speed, much as we should have liked it.

The only thing to do, therefore, was to sit still and trust to luck. One or two shells burst quite close by us, but we managed to get out of range safely.

We passed some motor ambulances full of serious casualties from the plateau round Doberdo. Even when there was no actual battle proceeding never a day passed I learned without a constant stream of wounded coming down. The promiscuous shell fire of the Austrians continually taking toll somewhere and helping to keep the ambulances busy and the hospitals full.

I was told in Udine that the wounded coming in from the Carso are usually found to be more seriously injured than those from any other Front; the explanation of this being that owing to the peculiar character of the rocky surface the effect of a shell exploding is, as it were, magnified several times.

Wounds, therefore, are caused as often by the splinters of rock flying upwards, and ricochets, as from the actual fragments of the projectile itself. It is certain that the majority of the terrible facial injuries are more frequently caused by re-percussion than by direct hits.

As will have been gathered, therefore, the soldiers of Italy in this region of desolation are fighting against two enemies, the Austrians and the Carso.