THE FALL OF MONASTIR

Grey River Argus, 3 February 1917, Page 7

THE FALL OF MONASTIR

ITALIANS' GREAT MARCH. The war correspondent of the "Secolo" with the Italian forces at Monastiv. telegraphs a despatch describing the part played by the Italian troops in the fall of the Macedonian ' capital and the conditions they found prevailing there. Starting out on the morning of November 11th from the base at Ekshisu. the Italian column accomplished a ! brilliant march of 6s miles across bleak mountain wastes in a tempest of blinding sleet, and on the eteninjr of November 13th took up the positions assigned to them, stretchingfrom Cradesnica. on the margin of the Monastir Plains, across Kisovo Hill and 8 1 82-metre Mountain, as far] as the sector occupied by the French west of Lake Prespa. General Sarrail warmly congratulated them later on havincr performed this feat twenty-four hours in advance | of the period of srace allowed them. Though terribly fatigued, and altocre- ; ther without shelter or any sort of food until the eveninjr of the following dav. they attacked and dislodged the Bulgarians from the formidable "Red Trenches" at df.vbreak. They then proceeded to clear the enemy . horn the famous Dente Peak south at Ostrec. and from the towering cresta west of Rahovo, amidst a raging blizzard, with the thermometer 18 degreeg below freezing- point.. They found all the roads leading into Monastir marked with bi-rmgual signposts in the Bulg-arian and German tongues, two of the main arteries .being named Mackensen and Prinz Borisstrasse. Although the . retreating army had time to loot but few shops' stores, the utmost misery prevailed in Monastir. Bread, which was very scarce and or bad quality, was selling at 61b for is. Su«ar and coffee were three times as dear, while petroleum cost 16s a litre—i 3 pints— and candles iod each. The Bulgarians paid the tradespeople m nothing but pieces of paper, which they said would be negotiable at the end of the war. The value of gold llas so risen that a 20-franc piece— l6s Nd — fetched 45 Bulgarian francs or German marks (vis). - 1 1 I