The North Otago Times TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 1917. ITALY'S FATEFUL HOUR.

North Otago Times, Volume CVI, Issue 13983, 20 November 1917, Page 4

The North Otago Times TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 1917. ITALY'S FATEFUL HOUR.

I ■ . Illimitable Sir George Iteid, the onetime favourite of Australian j -public life, -is equally entitled t( I pose as a war prophet as the othei | exalted and .insignificant 'peoph | whose forecasts have been falsified i by'tjie bewildering'•development. l I of a war full of surprises. There ] arc, however,' riV V'ifs" ■ and j "buts" about Sir George's proI phecy. He expresses his definite j opinion that the war will end in j twelve-months,'because, he says, i the present enterprise against Italy | J will end.'the Austrian debacle I The ilambitoyant, Kaiser,' on | the contrary, is quite sat I isfied that the Austro-Gcr | man armies, aided by thcii | spiritual ally, have been entrusted | with the heaven-born task: of adi ministering salutary punishment ! to the Italians for their impudent ! refusal-to trail on the apron I strings.of (lie Teuton bully. When j in two or three days, the batteringj blowjivliich the 'enemy hurled j against Italy's eastern defences, i wrested from our ally the hard- | fought victories of two years' I strenuous, campaigning, military i and' political. commentators Jmj: mediately jumped to the conj elusion that the disaster suffered | by' the Second and Third Italian I Armies would very considerably j prolong the war.' ■ But the Angloj rench military commanders have I not been caught napping. At the j moment the first waves of the'barj barian flood swept across the Ison- ! zp, British and French masters of | strategy and geniuses for'organis- | ation brought into operation their ! long-thought out plans, and Ausj tro-Germany's evil designs against j 'ltaly were shattered, ' 'No longer does the enemy fight the 1 armed forces of Italy. The cause i of .the Allies is at stake along the scowling bastions in the Trcntino, ; and in the historic Venetian Plain! The Austro-Germans face an entirely different and more difficult '■■' proposition to-day than .when they brought disaster to Italy, by their subterranean political methods and military smash. -T,he military might of Britain, France and Italy .'arc,marshalling in hot haste to ; meet the ruthless,invader. .French and British troops are pouring, into Italy in ever-increasing numbers; across-Hie snow-clad Alps, the indomitable soldiers of France are marching to help our stricken Ally; by rail and by sea men, guns and munitions are being hurried forward. The Allien appear to have chosen the battleground for a decisive fight—from the Asiago Plateau along the Piavo 'River to the sea. J The. military experts are viewing with some measure of anxiety the terrific 1 onslaughts the enemy is hurling against the Italian positions in'tho Trcntino. Momentarily the Piavc front is

1 1 " •< f Hot ofimportance. Jf'the Austro-Gejm&ns,could forcej;the XrOiitinb jaiid surge down Venetian plain, cast of- th¥ Astico river towards Venice, the defences •along the Piave; river would fall like a house ' built oij-.cards;, and ( 1 only .the jin,ost, rapid retreat' would?saye jtlie t remnants of the Second and;Third,ltalian Armies an<Jlilie. Angjo-Pi-encli troops" and thoir giins, from disaster and capture. With the fall of the Treutinb liastionsj ;\vould crumble tlie ; nety defensive' lines -the Allies arc building up on the Piave against the barbarian ipvasion. . It, may be; talten for; granted ' that' that master of strategy, General Focli is taking every possible precaution. If the Allied command succeed in holding the Trentino by inflicting defeat upon the AustroGerinans, it is not unlikely the' "present adventure against Italy" as.Sir George Reid designates it, " will end ■ in an -Austrian debacle.'\ Never, 'before in any .of their campaigns have the German - High Command faced such a difficult problem. Indeed it is quite conceivable that the long and somewhat insecure lines of communication behind the Austro-Germans, and the mighty effort the British and French commands will make in conjunction with a re-united Italy will result in:a crushing military defeat being inflicted on the enemy, .