when a
crossing was made to the mainland, the left flank was unsupported, as
the Italians did not cross the river, and thus the 23rd Division had its
flank exposed. A belief is entertained that the Italian cavalry is one
of the best in the world; evidently it is not the best, for on that
Piave front, where thousands of Italian cavalry were available, the only
ones who put in their appearance early in the battle were three hundred
very war-stained Northampton Yeomanry.

"The record of the Italian troops in the field renders unnecessary an
assertion of their courage," says Mr. Anthony Dell;[2] "for reckless
bravery in assault none surpasses them." But when you have said that you
have nearly summed up their military virtues, for discipline is not
their strong suit, and they have little sense of responsibility. On the
other hand, we must remember their admirable patience, but the great
mass of the people have not attained the level of Christianity; they are
savage both in heart and mind, with no outlook wider than that of the
family. It is the Italian proletariat which is judged by the Yugoslavs,
whose otherwise acute discernment has been warped by the unhappy
circumstances of the time. Indifferent to the fact that he himself is a
compound of physical energy and oriental mysticism, the Yugoslav has
become inclined to contemplate merely the physical side of the Italian,
and for the most part that portion of it which has to do with war. The
Italian long-sightedness and prudence and business capacity are ignored
save in so far as they delayed the country's entrance into the Great
War. The sensitiveness and artistic attributes of the Italians, who gaze
with aching hearts upon the glories of a sunset, are but rarely felt by
Serbs, who gather brushwood for the fire that is to roast their
sucking-pig and who sit down to watch the operation, haply with their
backs turned to the sunset. The Yugoslav, especially the Serb, is a man
from the Middle Ages brought suddenly into the twentieth century. With
his heroic heart and his wonderful strength he fails to understand those
people who, on account of one reason or another, have no passion for
war. And as the military deeds of the Italians have had such effect upon
the minds of the Yugoslavs, we have alluded to them at a greater length
than would otherwise have been profitable. The Yugoslavs despise the
Italians. Also the Italians, who concern themselves with diplomacy, are
conscious tha