hing town of about 5,000 inhabitants, but important on
account of its strategic situation, was occupied by the Italians with
no great difficulty. Grado lies at the head of the Adriatic, and is
twelve miles from Trieste and sixty from Pola. The waters of the
lagoons in this neighborhood were valuable to the Italians as a safe
shelter for submarines and other small war-craft, and as a base for a
prospective attack later upon Pola itself. The inhabitants, most of
whom preserved their Italian traits and sympathies, although the town
had been under Austrian rule since 1809, hailed the conquerors
enthusiastically. Cannon and military carriages were decorated with
flowers. Thousands of Italian flags appeared as if by magic. The
entering troops were greeted with shouts of "All our lives we have
been waiting for this moment when we can cry 'Viva Italia!'" The
possession of Grado gave the Third Army virtual control of the mouth
of the Isonzo, but the main Austrian position of defense at Gorizia
remained apparently unweakened.

Scenes like those at Grado were witnessed at Ala, the first Austrian
town of any size and the first railroad center captured by the
Italians in the Trentino. Ala was occupied May 27, 1915. Three days
before this the Italian light infantry had massed behind the boundary
line, and when they began their advance along the main highway their
first act was to pull down the yellow and black pole that marked the
frontier.

The next day, May 28, 1915, the commanding general with his chief of
staff and two guards motored to the spot, cut a passage-way through
the barricade, and, encountering no opposition, kept on until they
reached Ala, seven miles beyond.

The Italian troops were ordered to advance next day, May 29, 1915, and
as they marched into the town, officers shouted: "Open your windows.
Long live Italy!" The Mayor of Ala called out his townsmen and set
them at work removing the barricades on the main road.

In the midst of these rejoicings the sharp rattle of musketry was
heard, and the Italians rushed to cover. A reconnoitering party
reported that the Austrians were intrenched in a large villa beyond a
stream outside the town. The Italian troops began an attack upon this
position, and a skirmish party sought to take a position in a house on
a near-by hill commanding the villa held by the enemy. Although the
way to this house was exposed to the Austrian fire, the Italian
officer decided to risk an attem