May 29, 1915. 
LAND AND WATER 
though public opinion still needs that informa- 
tion. 
The heavy piece decides. And what the for- 
tunes of Italy may be in the next few days or 
weeks is a question almost certainly to be 
answered in the words that answer the question 
of Russian resistance upon the line of the San 
and the supreme question about what fate will 
attend the ultimate offensive in the West. It is 
the answer to the question why the enemy swept 
Galicia as he did. It will be more and more 
the answer to every remaining problem in this 
war. 
Given the proportion of heavy guns, and of 
shell between two combatants at such and such a 
critical moment (and shell in the case of heavy 
pieces nearly always means, of course, high ex- 
plosive shell — everybody has known that except 
a few sensational journalists), and you can with 
fair certainty predict the result. 
The Italian State has had many months in 
which to prepare. She has had even more time 
than since she first began to interfere with 
German supplies in December. She has had 
time to produce new heavy pieces in great 
number. Her engineers are the most skilful in the 
world; her modern industrial power in the north 
is formidable indeed. 
Whether full use has been made of all the 
opportunities thus present, particularly in this 
crucial matter of the heavy piece, the immediate 
future alone can show. 
One last point must be remembered in con- 
nection with the entry of Italy into the war : it 
limits the avenues of enemy supply to the North 
Sea, and the North Sea is now at last strictly 
guarded. It eliminates the only Great Power in 
Europe concerned as a neutral to trade with the 
enemy. It is true that Italy had ceased to send 
war munitions through since December and 
January last. But now we know that nothing 
will go through. The neutrality of Switzerland 
is, indeed, guaranteed, but in the matter of com- 
mercial supplies Switzerland will have to be 
(whatever ofiicial term may be used) rationed by 
the French and the Italians, for Germany will 
give her nothing. 
(P.S. — As the above was written on Tuesday^ 
evening the news came through that the Italian 
covering troo-ps had advanced toioards the line of 
the Isonzo wpon Monday, the 2Mh, meeting hut 
little resistance, hut nothing had develo'ped at th« 
moment of going to press worthy of comment.) 
THE BATTLE OF THE SAN. 
We knew last week, by the latest advices 
upon which the article in these columns was then 
written, that the Russian retreat to the San and 
the Russian proposal to hold the line of that 
river, the continuation of that line northward 
through Russian Poland, and southward to the 
Dneister, had in part failed and in part suc- 
ceeded, as follows : 
(1) The enemy had managed to cross the San 
upon a sector about eleven miles in length, begin- 
ning at Jaroslav and going up to Lezachow. 
(2) The Russians had determined to hold on 
to the very dangerous salient of Przemysl — why, 
it was dangerous and the consequences of thu* 
holding it we shall see in a moment. 
(3) Upon the extreme south of the line the 
Russians had advanced over a belt of about eleven 
or twelve miles between the Dneister and the 
Pruth. They had there inflicted very heavy losses 
upon the Austrians in this region, but had not 
succeeded in going further than the Pruth. 
(4) They had a similar success upon the ex- 
treme right or northern end of their line in 
Russian Poland, aHvancing by a belt of about 
similar width from the river running through 
Opatow (I do not know the name of it) to the 
parallel river running through Iwaniska. 
5» at 
Sketch of thz Advaace of Russian Rtght Wing: 
North of "V^stoU in Russian Poland, 
