November 9, igib 
LAND & WATER 
to the north upon the line of crosses marked I, I, upon the 
foregoing Sketch II. This Hne passed through the foothills 
of San Marco, beneath the mountains which rise on the east 
of Gorizia. It included Sober in the plain, just touching 
the low hills which near Sober diversify that plain, and 
rising on to the Carso passed through the rocky summit 
called Pcchinka, went east to Segcti across the road 
between Oppochiasella and Castagnevizza, nearer the 
latter of the two points, and struck the Adriatic some- 
where near Duino. 
In this first blow 4,731 men were taken prisoners and 132 
oflicers, two heavy pieces and 18 field guns. It was a 
complete destruction of the second line of defence which 
the Austrians had thrown up after their first heavy defeat 
of the summer. 
But the remarkable thing about the action was the way 
in which the advance could proceed the next day. Though 
reinforcement was pouring in on the enemy's side, the 
Italians upon Thursday, November 2nd, carried the line 
up to the positions marked 222 with a broad black 
line on the accompanying sketch. The characteristic 
of this advance was "that it reached the dominating 
summit of the Faiti, which stands about 1,500 feet 
above the plain of the Vippacco. It is a most excellent 
observation point for the whole region. It is not 
the best or completely dominating point. That 
lies two or three miles off to the east in the shape of 
the Tristelj rock, which is 400 feet higher still. 
But it commands all the neighbourhood of the present 
lighting, and has a view stretching right down to the sea 
upon the southern side. It has been correspondingly 
strongly fortified and the carrying of it was a signal proof 
of the ascendancy the Italian troops have acquired. 
On the Friday the weather somewhat changed, and 
on the Saturday there was a heavy fog upon these high 
hills, rolling in from the sea. But when on this day the 
full total of prisoners could be counted it was found they 
had increased to no less than 8,()86, of whom 270 were 
officers. While the Italian authorities announced at the 
same time that the total of prisoners since the first great 
offensive stroke of three months ago, was no less than 
40,471, of whom 1,008 were officers. 
This success was due at once to the superiority of our 
Ally's heavy artillery and its munitionment— for in the 
west that superiority is getting clearly evident every- 
where. But it was also due to the inability of the 
Austrian command to furnish the proper quality of 
troops for this vital sector. The numbers are still kept 
up. What is gone is the homogeneity of the organisation 
and the solid human material of the earlier part of the 
war. All testimonies as to the type of prisoner taken bear 
witness to this, and it is particularly significant that the 
Italians discovered among their prisoners such a very 
large proportion of Croats. 
It is not so long ago that all the strength of this front 
depended upon the Hungarian regiments, but the revolu- 
tion of the whole character of the war which has followed 
Brusilov's great success of last June, has been particu- 
larly conspicuous in the exhaustion of the Austrian 
forces and the consequent degradation of the human 
material available even for so vital a point as tlie sector 
covering Trieste. 
The Somme 
The British and French forces upon the Somme have 
taken, but in part lost again during the present week, 
two positions, the final holding of which would be very 
perilous to the enemy and the recapture of which he 
has therefore attempted to effect — and partially succeeded 
in effecting at heavy expense. 
These two positions are, upon the British front, the 
island or Butte or hill of Warlencourt, and upon the 
I'Vench sector the ruins of Saillissel. 
The value of the Butte de Warlencourt is not only 
that it is the last high land before Bapaume and com- 
mands the two roads converging upon that town, but also 
I think that it gives the first view of that shallow valley 
in front of Bucquois, which I described a fortnight ago. 
I cannot remember whether the view from the highest 
part of the Butte commands enough of this valley to dis- 
cover the gun positions hitherto concealed in the folds of 
its southern slope, but I know that it gives some view 
of the lower part of the depression. The full view is not 
obtained until one is across the brook 2,000 yards further 
to the north-east upon the edge of Loupart Wood, and if 
such a position is obtained the results upon all the enemy 
salient beyond the Ancre will be immediately felt. 
At any rate, the presence of British pressure, which 
was advancing upon the slope of the Butte and according 
to the account, was for a moment on its summit, constitutes 
such a menace in the eyes of the enemy that a counter- 
attack delivered with great force and at. great expense 
in the course of last Monday, partially succeeded in its 
object, and recovered a section of the more advanced 
trenches here which had been reached the day before. 
But on all the rest of the line the British advance of the 
week was maintained. 
The German counter-attack upon Saillissel had the 
same motive and much the same result. It will be re- 
membered that the presence of the French upon the 
summit of the ridge dominating the valley of the little 
Tortille river gives them a view upon the gun positions 
behind the hill of St. Quentin, and that hill, as was 
described in detail a fortnight ago in these columns, is 
the co\er and position which renders possible the German 
seizure of all the positions south of the summit as far as 
Barleux. 
It was the German gun positions behind the hill of St. 
Quentin, for instance, which gave the enemy the power 
to bombard and rush the section of the most advanced 
French trench on the land which falls from the Maisonette 
farm to the Somme. It is therefore of the utmost im- 
portance to the Germans that the French should not reach 
this ridge. They have heavily reinforced the sector in 
front of the " Epine " of Malassise, where the best view 
of the mount St. Quentin position could be obtained, and 
temporarily checked the French advance from Buchavesnes. 
The most advanced French trenches are here from 400 
to 500 yards from the summit, if I am not mistaken 
But the French will also have a complete, though much 
^Boucqiuy 
t Quentin. 
'NNE 
o J I 3 i S 
MiUs 
