Witch's halloween: a complete guide to the magick, incantations, recipes, spells, and lore 2nd editi
Witch's Halloween: A Complete Guide to the Magick, Incantations, Recipes, Spells, and Lore 2nd Edition
Visit to download the full and correct content document: https://textbookfull.com/product/witchs-halloween-a-complete-guide-to-the-magick-inc antations-recipes-spells-and-lore-2nd-edition-dunwich/
More products digital (pdf, epub, mobi) instant download maybe you interests ...
“This book should help the world to understand the ways of our Pagan ancestors and bring renewed respect for their traditions and beliefs.”
Ellen Evert Hopman, Druidess and author of People ofthe Earth: The New Pagans SpeakOut
“Gerina’s delightful book brings you all the things you wished Halloween could be! As filled with magick as the witches’ cauldron of your imagination!”
—Rev. Paul Beyerl, author of The Master BookofHerbalism
“Well written, enlightening, and lots of fun.”
—Raymond Buckland, author of Buckland’s Complete Bookof Witchcraft
“Gerina Dunwich has again proven herself to be one of the world’s pre-eminent authorities on Pagan history and lore. This little gem will join her other works as a must have for all serious students of Wicca and Paganism in general.”
George Hiram Derby, Master Practitioner, former director of operations, Panpipes Magickal Marketplace
“Gerina Dunwich is at the height of her creative powers. The very best book of its kind available anywhere. A classic of its kind!”
—Lee Prosser, author of Running from the Hunter and Desert Woman Visions: 100Poems
ALSO BY GERINA DUNWICH
CandlelightSpells
Circle ofShadows (poetry)
The Concise Lexicon ofthe Occult
Everyday Wicca
MagickPotions
Wicca Ato Z
The Wicca BookofDays
Wicca CandleMagick
Wicca Craft
Wicca Garden
Wicca Love Spells
Wicca Spellbook
Wiccan’s Guide to Prophecy andDivination
YourMagickalCat
The Modern Witch’s Complete Sourcebook
Exploring Spellcraft
HerbalMagick
The Cauldron ofDreams
AWitch’s Guide to Ghosts andthe Supernatural
Dunwich’s Guide to Gemstone Sorcery
Phantom Felines andOther Ghostly Animals
A WITCH’S HALLOWEEN
AComplete Guideto the Magick, Incantations, Recipes, Spells, andLore
This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher; exceptions are made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.
The Provenance Press® name and logo design are registered trademarks of F+W Publications, Inc.
Published by Adams Media, an F+W Publications Company 57 Littlefield Street Avon, MA 02322 www.adamsmedia.com
ISBN-10: 1-59869-340-9
ISBN-13: 978-1-59869-340-9
eISBN: 978-1-44051-664-1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Dunwich, Gerina.
A witch’s Halloween / Gerina Dunwich. p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN-13: 978-1-59869-340-9 (pbk.)
ISBN-10: 1-59869-340-9 (pbk.)
1. Witchcraft. 2. Halloween. I. Title. BF1572.H34D86 2007 299’.94—dc22 2007002931
Printed in the United States of America.
J I H G F E D C B A
This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.
—From a DeclarationofPrinciplesjointly adopted by a Committee of the American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations
Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their product are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Adams Media was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.
WITH AN ABUNDANCE OF LOVE AND GRATITUDE I DEDICATE THIS BOOK TO THE MEMORY OF MY MOTHER; TO MY HUSBAND; AND TO ALL MY SISTERS AND BROTHERS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD WHO STRIVE TO KEEP THE OLD WAYS ALIVE. AND A HEARTFELT merci beaucoup TO STEPHANY EVANS, ANDREA NORVILLE, BARBARA SHELLEY JAMES, LEE PROSSER, AND JAMIE WOOD FOR HELPING TO MAKE THIS BOOK POSSIBLE.
Contents
Preface
Shadowfest(poem)
CHAPTER ONE
THE HALLOWED BEGINNINGS
CHAPTER TWO
RITUAL AND REVELRY
CHAPTER THREE
HALLOWEEN: A PAGAN PERSPECTIVE
CHAPTER FOUR
THE SYMBOLS OF HALLOWEEN
CHAPTER FIVE HALLOWEEN LEGEND, LORE, AND TRIVIA
CHAPTER SIX
HALLOWEEN HERB LORE
CHAPTER SEVEN SUPERSTITIONS AND OMENS
CHAPTER EIGHT DIVINATIONS AND INCANTATIONS
CHAPTER NINE
THE WITCHES’ SABBAT
CHAPTER TEN WIZARDRY AND ENCHANTMENTS
CHAPTER ELEVEN A TRADITIONAL HALLOWEEN COOKERY
Season ofthe Crone(poem)
Appendix: Conducting a Séance
Bibliography
Preface
On the last day of October, when the darkness of night drapes the sky like a shroud and the crisp air grows sweet with the aroma of fallen autumn leaves, magick and mystery abound. This is the night when the shadow realm beckons and the veil that separates the world of the living from the world of the dead grows most thin. The Great Wheel of the Year has once again completed its cycle, and the time of endings and beginnings has arrived. This is Halloween.
Known by many names—Samhain, Shadowfest, Old Hallowmas, All Hallow’s Eve, Festival of the Dead this special night of the year is the most important of the eight annual Sabbats, which are holy days that revolve around seasonal transitions and agricultural observances celebrated by pagans and witches throughout the world. It is a time when the spirits of deceased loved ones and friends are honored, as well as a time to gaze into the world of things yet to come.
To the average person, the most common images associated with Halloween are monstrous and macabre. But it may surprise you to learn that to many modern-day witches and pagans, this jack-o’lantern-lit night is the most sacred night of the year and a time to momentarily put aside one’s troubles and enjoy some good, oldfashioned pagan mirth and merriment.
If there ever were a “Season of the Witch,” it would have to be Halloween.
In the Middle Ages, Europeans believed that on Halloween witches took to the sky to celebrate their Sabbat until the rising of the sun. Hundreds of years later, modern witches and pagans still gather every October 31 to celebrate the holiday with rituals, chanting, song and dance, sacred bonfires, traditional pagan feasts, and various methods of divination especially those of an amatory nature.
For pagans the world over, Halloween is, among other things, a night of ancestors, a harvest festival, a time of magick and mirth, and a New Year’s Eve celebration. Halloween’s roots are undeniably pagan; yet, Halloween and its celebration should not be restricted to witches and others who identify themselves as neo-pagans. Halloween is a festive holiday that can, and should, be enjoyed by all, regardless of age, cultural background, or religious point of view.
As a new era begins, the pagan path is shining its light on more and more people who are experiencing a growing spiritual need to reconnect with Mother Nature and the ancient ways. Individuals throughout the world are discovering that Wicca (an earth-based religion embraced by many contemporary witches) is a positive, nature-oriented spiritual path, similar in many ways to Native American shamanism. No devils are worshiped and no evil spells are employed to bring harm to others. Instead, most witches seek to live in harmony with the forces of nature and work positive magick to help, heal, and shape a better world for themselves and their children.
Halloween has always been my favorite time of the year, and I can remember as a youngster looking forward to this special day with far greater anticipation and excitement than I had for Christmas, summer vacation, or even my own birthday. Although I was not fully aware at that time of its pagan origins or of its cultural and religious significance, I still sensed, and was intrigued by, its occult energies and otherworldly essence. I instinctively knew that Halloween was more than merely a day devoted to costumes and candy.
It was in my teen years when I began to develop a serious interest in witchcraft and the world of the occult. As I matured I began researching, practicing, and, eventually, writing articles and books about the Wiccan religion and the spellcasting arts. Halloween began to take on new meanings for me, and I have since celebrated it as a sacred day and a special time when magick abounds and invisible doors to other dimensions and worlds stand ajar.
Although I am a priestess of the Old Religion (or, in other words, a practicing witch), I designed this book for pagans and non-pagans
alike. Within its pages you will find a treasure trove of history, folklore and myth, magickal spells, authentic witches’ recipes, divinations, a complete ritual for a Sabbat celebration, Halloween superstitions, and much more. It is also my sincere hope that this book will help put to rest the misconceptions that many people have about Halloween. It is not a Black Mass or a night of evil, and its origin, celebration, and symbols have no connection with the Devil of the Christian faith or diabolical rites.
May A Witch’s Halloween guide you well on your path to magickal mysteries and spiritual enlightenment, and may the gods and the goddesses of old bestow upon you their blessings of darkness and light. Craft thy magick with love, for love is the law of the Craft. Blessed be.
SHADOWFEST
Moon of magick, Blood for fertility, Druid fires blazing bright.
Spirits roaming, wail of the banshee, Otherworld shadows drape the night.
Raven soaring, wings of sorcery, Eyes like darkness midnight gaze. Silhouettes gather, moment of mystery, Born again the ancient ways.
by Gerina Dunwich
CHAPTER 1
TheHallowed
Beginnings
Halloween has a long and rich history, originating in pagan Ireland as the festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in), and becoming All Hallow’s Eve in Christian times. A unique holiday, abundant in folklore and fable, as well as in magick and the mystical, it has survived the ages to become the multi-faceted holiday we celebrate today.
More than two thousand years ago, the Celtic people who inhabited France and the British Isles observed a calendar that began and ended with their New Year’s Eve festival every October 31/November 1. This festival was called Samhain (a word that means “summer’s end”) and it marked the “death” of the old year and the “birth” of the next. It was also regarded as a day of the dead, a night devoted to the practices of magick and divination, a time when fairy-folk and gods were especially active, and a festival to celebrate the harvest.
The ancient Celts believed an invisible veil existed that separated the worlds of the living and the dead. At sundown on the last day of the year, this veil grew to its thinnest point, allowing the living and the dead to make contact with each other.
ON OCTOBER 31, THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT
CHANGES FOR A BRIEF SPAN. TIME, THE FOURTH DIMENSION, CEASES TO EXIST, AND A DOORWAY OPENS INTO A FIFTH DIMENSION
NORMALLY INACCESSIBLE TO MAN—THE SPACE THAT IS THE OTHERWORLD.
—Diana Ferguson, TheMagickalYear
Every Samhain, a deity known as the Lord of the Dead was said to gather together the souls of all men, women, and children who had died during the previous year, and had since been confined in the bodies of animals while waiting to enter the underworld. With their sins expiated, they would be set free to begin their journey to the Celtic underworld of Tirna-n’Og, whose open gates awaited them.
In addition, homesick spirits were free to roam the mortal world and return to their old earthly homes to seek the warmth of the hearth fire and the company of their living kin. Families prepared offerings of fruits and vegetables and hilltop bonfires, which illuminated the night sky with an eerie orange glow and served as a guiding light for the souls of the dead. These fires were kept burning throughout the night to frighten away any evil spirits that intended to harm the living.
DRUIDS AND SACRIFICIAL RITES
In Ireland, the priestly caste of the Celts, known as the Druids, are believed to have performed gruesome sacrificial rites on the eve of Samhain. They constructed giant wickerwork cages in the shapes of men and animals, which were used to confine prisoners of battle and condemned criminals. The cages would then be set ablaze by the priests, and their hapless victims burned alive. Sometimes animals— especially horses and oxen—would be sacrificed in addition to the human offerings.
The Samhain sacrificial burning of horses (which were said to be sacred animals to the Celtic god of the sun) was practiced in Britain as late as 400 a.d. After the pagan temples were consecrated to the worship of the Christians’ patriarchal god, oxen were often led down the church aisle to the altar before being sacrificed, continuing the practice of ritual slaughter at the feast of Samhain. Evidence of this exists in a sixth-century letter from Pope Gregory the Great to Abbot Mellitus, which states, “that the sacrifice of oxen in pagan worship
should be allowed to continue, but that this should be done in honor of the saints and sacred relics.”
The 1959 edition of The World Book Encyclopedia states that the Druid priests believed cats were at one time human beings who had been changed into feline form as punishment for committing evil deeds. And as a result, the Druids regarded the cat as a sacred animal and “involved them in their idol worship.” However, according to Edna Barth’s Witches, Pumpkins, and Grinning Ghosts, the Druids supposedly dreaded domestic cats because they believed they were human beings transformed into animals by evil powers. Each year on Samhain, the white-robed priests would round up as many cats and kittens as they could catch, lock them in wickerwork cages fashioned in the shapes of various animals, and cast them into the bonfires to be roasted alive.
The Druids’ sacrificial rites of Samhain possessed a twofold purpose: In addition to appeasing the Lord of the Dead, they offered the priests important omens of the future, both good and bad. These signs were said to have been read in the ways that the victims died, sounds emitted from the fire, shapes of the flame, the color and direction of the smoke, and so forth.
Interpreting the omens for the coming year was an important function of the Druid priests. It was traditionally carried out at Samhain because the psychic climate of the season was ideal, and the widespread fear associated with the approaching long, dark winter and its hardship demanded it. However, in later times the divinatory aspect of Samhain grew to be more personal, particularly for the purpose of predicting future marriage partners. (See Chapter 8, Divinations and Incantations.)
GOBLINS AND FAIRY-FOLK
The inhabitants of pre-Christian Ireland also believed that Samhain was a time when a strange dark-skinned race of goblin-like creatures with occult powers emerged from their secret hiding places. Resentful of the human race for taking over the land that was once
theirs, they delighted in creating as much mischief as possible. Some were merely pranksters, while others were more evil-natured and regarded as dangerous. According to legend, every seven years these creatures would steal human infants or small children and then sacrifice them to their god.
One theory asserts that these creatures were the Stone Age people of a wide area of Britain. When the Celts invaded their country from Europe around 500 b.c., they took to the forests and camouflaged themselves with green foliage, which may explain the myth of the “little green men.” They frequently raided their enemies’ homes under the dark cover of night to supplement their sparse rations and frighten and harass their foes. Many a fearful Celt resorted to leaving offerings such as bowls of cream and oatmeal outside their dwellings at night before going to sleep to keep those of the “conquered race” from becoming spiteful and wreaking vengeance. In Scotland, a libation of milk known as the Leac na Gruagaich (“Milk to the Hairy Ones”) was poured on a special stone each Samhain as an offering to the fairy-folk. If this ritual were not carried out, the Little People would express their anger by injuring or killing a families’ livestock or beloved pet.
Because Samhain was a night on which the fairy mounds (also called the sidhe mounds or faery burghs) stood wide open, all manners of fairies, mostly baneful, were free to walk the earth. Also, any person careless or unfortunate enough to step upon an open mound (at Samhain or any other time during the year) would fall victim to permanent enchantment by a fairy spell and either succumb to madness or waste away from a mysterious and incurable illness. However, according to Celtic folklore, on Samhain night, when neither human nor fairy needed any magickal password to enter, an open fairy mound could, like quicksand, pull an unsuspecting mortal into the world of the fairies, where he or she would be doomed to remain forever.
There were hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of different types of fairies who inhabited the ancient Celtic lands, but in Ireland (where it was once believed that all cats were actually fairies in
disguise) it was the Pooka (or phooka) that was particularly feared on Samhain, when it took great pleasure in tormenting humans. The supernaturals of the night possessed the power to shapeshift, and they were known to often take on the disguise of a black horse with hideous features. It was important for farmers to gather all of their crops before October 31 because whatever remained unreaped in the fields was believed to be either destroyed or contaminated on Samhain night by the Pooka.
The Celts devised numerous charms to protect themselves against the Little People. The ringing of bells (especially church bells) and the hanging of iron horseshoes above doorways were two methods believed to be effective in keeping spiteful fairies at bay. Many people in various parts of the world still believe that iron is a metal that repels and protects against all manners of fairies. It is commonly used in the making of magickal amulets and talismans for protection.
Possessing the power to bewitch or bedevil humans with their illusions, known as glamours, fairies gradually found their way into the myth and folklore of many European cultures.
Samhain was more than a night when spirits walked the earth. Like the other great festivals dominating the old Celtic calendar (Imbolc, Beltane, Lughnassadh), Samhain was also connected with the fertility of the earth and its animals. It was a time when the final harvest was celebrated and when farmers throughout the land brought their livestock down from the pastures and made preparations for the coming winter.
Witches have long regarded Halloween as the Third Festival of Harvest—the first and second being Lughnassadh (August 1) and the Autumn Equinox (approximately September 21). The pumpkins, apples, and hazelnuts that play a part in so many of Halloween’s customs reflect this holiday’s early link to pagan harvest rites and fertility magick.
CLAUDIUS CAESAR AND THE ROMAN EMPIRE
In the first century b.c., Britain and Gaul (as the country of France was called at that time) were invaded by Roman armies and forced to become part of the Roman Empire. The Romans had their own festival to honor the spirits of the dead (called “Manes”), and it was known as Feralia. It was originally celebrated on the twenty-first day of February (the last day of the year, according to the old Roman calendar), and its main purpose was to give rest and peace to the departed. This was accomplished through the recitation of special prayers and the placing of offerings and gifts on graves.
The Romans also celebrated a festival each November to honor their Goddess Pomona, who presided over fruits, orchards, and gardens. Special prayers and rituals to give thanks to this beautiful Goddess for good harvests would be performed, followed by a joyous celebration that continued throughout the day and well into the night and included various games and races.
During the following four centuries that Rome ruled the Celtic lands, some of the customs from Samhain and the Roman festivals merged. But neither the Romans who chose to remain in the British Isles nor the conquered Celts seemed to mind very much.
In the year 43 a.d., the Roman Emperor Claudius Caesar outlawed the Druid religion and the sacrificial rites associated with Samhain. In the fifth chapter of The Twelve Caesars, the Roman biographer Suetonius writes, “He [Claudius] utterly abolished the cruel and inhuman religion of the Druids among the Gauls, which under Augustine had merely been prohibited to Roman citizens.”
In the year 61 a.d., under the command of Roman military governor Suetonius Paulinus, the Roman army invaded the Island of Anglesey (in present-day Wales), which was a center of Druidic practice. In the bloody massacre that ensued, the Druids were slaughtered and their sacred oak groves burned to the ground. Although the history books teach that the Druids were completely eliminated, there are some people today who suspect that a small number of them managed to escape death at the hands of the Romans and went underground, where the Druid religion has been secretly active, in many different forms, ever since.
CHRISTIANITY VERSUS PAGANISM
In the fourth century a.d., the Roman Emperor Constantine declared the new religion of Christianity to be the lawful religion throughout the Roman Empire, thus declaring a holy war on paganism and all of the rites and symbols associated with it.
The early Christians did not understand the old Celtic beliefs. They erroneously associated the Celtic underworld with the Christian concept of hell’s fiery pit of punishment and damnation, and believed that the Celtic Lord of the Dead was actually the Devil, despite the fact that the two mythos were not related in any way and shared nothing. Because the old Celtic New Year was a day devoted to the dead, the Christians assumed that Samhain was the incorrect pronunciation of the Semitic name Sammael, which means “god of the underworld.”
It was no easy task for the Christians to convince the Celts that their gods and goddesses were evil, their beloved dead were ghouls, the fairy-folk were all demons, and the fertility religion they had practiced for many centuries was now the work of the Devil. The Celts, like many people, were slow to embrace the Christian faith, and many were simply not willing to give up their pagan holidays and folk practices, which clearly posed a threat to the new religion. Although their priests were gone, they continued to light their sacred hilltop bonfires each Samhain, divine the future, and welcome the returning spirits of the dead.
Although it was not uncommon for religious conversion from paganism to Christianity to be accomplished through violent means, the most effective method used by the Church to eradicate the rival practice of paganism was to Christianize it. This was done by giving new names and meanings to the old rites and symbols, including the cross the very symbol of the Christian faith and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ which, prior to the fifth century, existed as both a pagan religious symbol and magickal tool.
In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV introduced All Saints’ Day to honor God and the early Christians who had died for their
religious beliefs. This festival of the Catholic Church was originally observed on May 13, but in the year 900, Gregory III changed the date to November 1 in an effort to supplant the old Samhain festival of the dead. All Saints’ Day was also called All Hallows’ Day and Hallowmas (Hallow means “holy”), and the evening before it (October 31) was therefore known as All Hallows’ Eve. Eventually it evolved into the word Hallowe’en (later spelled Halloween).
In England, All Hallows’ Day was abolished by the Reformation, largely due to its pagan overtones. Communion with the beloved dead and with other spirits was not, in the Church’s opinion, a practice suitable for good, God-fearing Christians. However, it was formally restored in the year 1928 on the assumption that the pagan practices associated with Halloween had long before ceased.
Along with other festivities, Halloween was largely forbidden among the early American colonists. (And, interestingly enough, New England Puritans also disapproved of the holiday of Christmas, and were effective in banning its celebration in Boston from 1659 until 1681.) But by the 1800s, festivals that marked the harvest and incorporated elements of Halloween began to develop.
IT WAS NOT UNTIL 1928 THAT THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND FORMALLY RESTORED ALL HALLOWS TO ITS CALENDAR, ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT THE OLD PAGAN ASSOCIATIONS OF HALLOWEEN WERE AT LAST REALLY DEAD AND FORGOTTEN; A SUPPOSITION THAT WAS CERTAINLY PREMATURE.
Doreen Valiente, AnABCofWitchcraft PastandPresent
HALLOWEEN SETS S A IL FOR AMERICA
The Irish Potato Famine (also known in Ireland as the “Great Famine” or the “Great Hunger”) played a key role in the establishment of Halloween as a secular holiday in the United States.
Back in the nineteenth century, the potato was the primary food source for most of the population throughout Ireland. Therefore, when a devastating and widespread potato blight ravaged Ireland in the 1840s, it resulted in an estimated 500,000 to 1,500,000 deaths. This prompted over two million Irish people to flee their native country, which resulted in over 700,000 men, women, and children immigrating to the United States. They brought with them their old Halloween customs of jack-o’-lanterns, costumes, and mischief.
Finding pumpkins to be more plentiful in the autumn season than were turnips, the Irish immigrants adopted the pumpkin for their Halloween jack-o’-lanterns, and a new tradition began. Although the tradition of carving lanterns from turnips and other vegetables is centuries old in Ireland, Scotland, and England, the term “jack-o’lantern” first appeared in the year 1837 in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic story, “The Great Carbuncle,” from Twice-Told Tales: “Hide it under thy cloak, say’st thou? Why it will gleam through the holes, and make thee look like a jack-o’-lantern!”
Needless to say, the distinctly pagan roots of Halloween ruffled the tail feathers of many religious groups after the holiday’s arrival in North America during the nineteenth century. However, its popularity, especially among the young, outweighed the chagrin of its opposition, and all early attempts to have its celebration banned in the United States proved to be futile.
Today, Halloween continues to rule the thirty-first of October, casting its spell over young and old alike even though many of its original customs have long been claimed by the cobwebs of the past. It remains the most sacred night of the year for witches, modernday Druids, and other neo-pagans, and perhaps the most entertaining one for children of all ages and cultural backgrounds.
What began long ago as a Druid festival may hold different meanings for different people, but one thing that most can agree on is the fact that no other holiday is as magickal and mysterious as Halloween.
CHAPTER 2
RitualandRevelry
Halloween did not find a place on the American calendar until after the great Irish immigration to the United States, which followed the potato famine of the 1840s. With the arrival of the Irish to the new world came the traditions of carving the jack-o’-lantern, performing love divinations, and guising (which eventually came to be known as “trick-or-treating”). They also brought with them their old Halloween folklore. Following are some of the myths, practices, and legends that are inherent in the celebration of Halloween.
TRICK-OR-TREAT
Every year on Halloween, many children throughout the world dress up in costumes and go door to door in a ritual known as trick-ortreating. Dressed up as witches, devils, ghosts, and every type of monster imaginable, they collect candy and money and enjoy a night of spooky fun unaware that their innocent masquerade was actually the remnants of a Druidic religious practice from times most ancient. The Druids believed that the spirits of the dead returned to the world of the living each year on the eve of November 1. Many of these spirits were mischievous in nature, while some possessed a genuine evil streak and delighted in bringing harm upon vulnerable humans. For protection, the white-robed priests who led the sacred rites of Samhain would wear masks upon their faces to disguise themselves as spirits. This would usually trick the wandering dead into thinking that they were of their number and not flesh-and-blood mortals. Safely camouflaged, the priests could then gather in the night without becoming the victims of ghosts, fairies, or demonic
supernatural beings. The general populace, fearful of being recognized by the spirits of the ancestors, would also disguise themselves, often by wearing clothes belonging to the opposite gender. This confusion would prevent their ancestors from taking them back into the otherworld at the end of the night.
Some people believe that in the mid-fifteenth to early eighteenth centuries, during what is now known as the “Burning Times” the dark period in history when untold numbers of women, children, and men (and even cats and other animals) were routinely executed throughout much of Europe for heresy or witchcraft masks and dark-colored robes began to be worn by practitioners of the Old Religion when they gathered in forests and fields on Halloween night to celebrate the Sabbat, work powerful magickal spells and healing charms, and perform divinations. Their attire concealed their identities from the spying eyes of those who might turn them over to the local witch-hunter, and scared away any unwelcome inquisitors whom they might have encountered on their way to the Sabbat. This is one explanation as to how the custom of wearing masks and costumes on Halloween originated. However, it can be argued that no firm evidence exists to fully support this theory and, as author David J. Skal points out in his book Death Makes a Holiday: A Cultural History of Halloween, there exists little primary documentation of Halloween’s masquerading in Ireland, Britain, or the United States prior to 1900.
Many historians agree that trick-or-treating, as we know it today, actually has its roots in the old custom known as “souling,” which originated in the British Isles during medieval times. The Encyclopedia Britannica supports this view, stating that trick-ortreating is “thought to have derived from the British practice of allowing the poor to beg for food, called soul cakes.”
Dressed in masks and costumes to disguise their identities, those who went about the countryside souling (or “guising,” as it was called in Scotland and the North of England), were known as “soulers” or “guisers.” They would offer prayers to a family’s departed loved ones in exchange for soul cakes (little oatcakes or
square pieces of bread containing currants) or a handout of apples, nuts, or copper coins. The more gifts they received, the more prayers they would promise to recite in order to expedite the passage of the deceased relatives’ souls from limbo to heaven.
The Church approved of and encouraged the practice of souling because it saw it as an effective method of replacing the old pagan custom of leaving food and wine on the doorstep at night to appease the hunger of wandering spirits.
But traditions have a way of changing as they pass down from one generation to the next. By the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, souling had evolved from a religious custom into nothing more than a whimsical masquerade for children, who would go door to door on Halloween night, begging for apples and nuts and singing traditional Halloween folk songs, such as the following one, which was once popular throughout the English county of Shropshire.
Soul!Soul!Asoul-cake!
Ipray, goodmissus, a soul-cake!
Anapple orpear, aplum or a cherry.
Anygoodthing to make us merry.
One for Peter, two for Paul.
Three for Him who made us all.
Up withthe kettle, anddown withthepan, Give usgoodalms, andwe’llbegone.
If the beggars were refused a “treat,” they would retaliate with a prank of some sort known as a “trick,” hence the term, “trick-ortreat.” Traditional Halloween tricks in England included blowing smoke through keyholes, stopping up chimneys with pieces of turf, and smashing glass bottles against walls to simulate the sound of windows breaking.
In the new millennium, trick-or-treating remains a popular tradition among many youngsters in the United States, Canada, Ireland, and other parts of the world. And due to American
influence, it is beginning to find popularity in Australia and New Zealand. However, some people “Down Under” reject it as being part of a foreign culture.
In Scotland, children continue to put on masks and costumes each year at the end of October and go guising, which differs a bit from trick-or-treating as we know it in the United States. In Scotland it is customary for guisers to perform a “trick” (such as telling a joke, singing a song, or reciting a humorous poem) before receiving their “treat.” Unfortunately, in some parts of that country, the popularity of guising is waning and the tradition is being replaced with the American version of trick-or-treating.
MUCK OLLA
In Ireland, the soft glow of lanterns fashioned from turnips once lit the way for an annual procession of costumed men who blew on cow horns and went from door to door demanding tribute in the name of Muck Olla—a shadowy mythical figure said to be the ancient Celtic equivalent to our modern day “bogeyman,” and represented by a horse’s skull atop a pole. Known as the Lair Bhan (which means “white mare”), the leader of the procession would wear a white robe and hide his face behind a mask in the shape of a horse’s head. According to D. J. Herda in Halloween, at each farmhouse the Lair Bhan would recite “a long string of verses that told the farmer that his good fortunes were due to the goodness of Muck Olla.” To ensure prosperity in the coming year, the head of each household was required to “open his heart and his purse strings to Muck Olla.”
Fearful that a displeased Muck Olla would punish them with drought, famine, or the illness or death of livestock or family members, most folks willingly donated what they could to the messengers of Muck Olla. Those who were wealthy would give gold coins, while poorer families would make a donation of simple food items such as potatoes, corn, butter, cheese, and eggs.
Some believe that the name “Muck Olla” is a perversion of that of a long-forgotten pagan God, perhaps Macalla. Some sources make
reference to Muck Olla as “a legendary boar of monstrous size.” Others claim him (or it) to be an early Celtic or Druidic solar deity (presumably due to the horse being a sacred symbol of the Druids’ sun god), despite the fact that insufficient evidence exists to support this.
THE STRAWBOYS
Long ago, there was a curious custom that took place each year in Ireland on All Hallows’ Eve. Young, single men would adorn suits made of white straw and disrupt the homes of those who kept their eligible daughters from the company of bachelors.
Known as “strawboys,” they would carry out such pranks as unhinging gates, dismantling carts, and stuffing chimneys so that the smoke backed up into the house. Strawboys would often force their way into the kitchens of spinsters, where they would demand a dance (a pantomime of procreation) and steal a bit of food.
In some districts, the strawboys custom was observed on Beltane (May 1), Saint Brigid’s Day (February 1, also known as Candlemas Eve or Imbolc), and the Quarter Days: Spring Equinox, Summer Solstice, Autumn Equinox, and Winter Solstice.
THUMP-THE-DOOR NIGHT
In the early part of the twentieth century, Halloween was called “Thump-the-Door Night” on the Isle of Man. It earned this curioussounding name because groups of young men would go from house to house on Halloween night and, with cabbages and turnips, bombard the doors of those who refused to give them money. As might be expected, the mischief-making got a bit out of hand at times, resulting in arrests and lawsuits. The tradition, much to the relief of homeowners, eventually fell out of favor.
APPLE AND CANDLE NIGHT
In the Swansea area of Wales, Halloween is also known as “Apple and Candle Night.” This name refers to a traditional game (also known as “spinning the apple”), which is played each year on October 31.
To play “Apple and Candle,” a stick with an apple attached to one end and a burning candle on the other is suspended from the ceiling. In order to win, a player must bite into the apple without using their hands and without getting burned by the hot wax of the swinging candle. To make the game even more of a challenge, players sometimes cover their eyes with blindfolds and the stick is spun around prior to the start of the game.
APPLE SNAPPING
This is an old Halloween game that was once popular in England and is the remnant of an even older divination rite to determine who would be the first to marry. It is played in the following manner: A coin is partially inserted into the side of an apple that is suspended from the ceiling by a string. With hands tied or clasped behind their backs, two people at a time attempt to retrieve the coin from the apple, using only their teeth. The one who succeeds wins the game.
PUNKIE NIGHT
In some parts of Somerset, England, a local variation on Halloween known as “Punkie Night” is celebrated every year on the last Thursday in October. After the sun sets and evening’s darkness falls, children carrying “punkies” (lanterns fashioned from hollowed-out pumpkins or, in earlier times, mangel-wurzels) parade through the villages in rival bands, calling at houses to collect money, and singing the traditional Punkie Night Song: “It’s Punkie Nighttonight.
It’s Punkie Nighttonight.
Give us a candle, give us a light, Ifyou don’t, you’llgeta fright.
It’s Punkie Nighttonight,
It’s Punkie Nighttonight, Adam andEve wouldn’tbelieve,
It’s Punkie Nighttonight.”
A mangel-wurzel is a large root vegetable, Betavulgaris,which is related to a beet and cultivated mainly as cattle feed.The term “punkie” derives from the word “pumpkin.”
WASSAILING
Many people in parts of Ireland and England still carry on the ancient tradition of “wassailing” apple trees at Halloween. This is a custom that involves the ritual pouring of cider on the roots of a tree and the tying of bread or toast to its branches as an offering to the spirit of the tree. Special songs are also sung and tunes played to “awaken” the tree and to scare off any evil spirits that may be lurking nearby. In olden times wassailing was carried out in orchards in the belief that it would ensure a bountiful harvest in the coming year.
The following is an English wassailing rhyme from the Middle Ages:
“Wassaile the trees, that they may beare You many a plum and many a peare: For more or lesse fruits they will bring, As you do give them Wassailing.”
Another wassailing rhyme, which was popular in the nineteenth century and carried with it a bit of a threatening tone, goes like this:
Another random document with no related content on Scribd:
The Project Gutenberg eBook of Six months on the Italian front
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.
Title: Six months on the Italian front
Author: Julius M. Price
Release date: October 11, 2023 [eBook #71851]
Language: English
Original publication: New York: E. P. Dutton & Co, 1917
Credits: Peter Becker, John Campbell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SIX MONTHS ON THE ITALIAN FRONT ***
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE
There is only one Footnote in this book, on page 166 This Footnote has been moved and placed directly under the paragraph that has its anchor [A] .
New original cover art included with this eBook is granted to the public domain. Some minor changes to the text are noted at the end of the book.
S I X M O N T H S O N T H E I TA L I A N F R O N T
WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR
FROM THE ARCTIC OCEAN TO THE YELLOW SEA
THE LAND OF GOLD
FROM EUSTON TO KLONDIKE
DAME FASHION
MY BOHEMIAN DAYS IN PARIS
MY BOHEMIAN DAYS IN LONDON
The Author in San Martino del Carso.
From a snapshot by Robert Vaucher. Correspondent of the Paris L’Illustration.
SIX MONTHS ON THE ITALIAN FRONT
From the Stelvio to the Adriatic 1915-1916
By
Julius M. Price
War-Artist Correspondent of the “Illustrated London News”
PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY THE WESTMINSTER PRESS
411A HARROW ROAD
LONDON W
T I M A
in recognition of the courtesy and many kindnesses extended to me during my six months’ work with the glorious Army of Italy.
NOTE
I am indebted to the Directors of the Illustrated London News for their kind permission to reproduce in this book the sketches and drawings I made for them whilst on the Italian Front, a great many of which have already been published.
PREFACE
As the reader will discover for himself, I have no pretensions to pose as a Military Expert. This book is the result of a few hasty impressions gathered over a period which, with all its minor inconveniences and little daily worries, I look back upon as among the happiest and best filled of a somewhat varied career. I have not yielded to the temptation to be interesting at the expense of veracity; to that fact the indulgent reader will, I trust, attribute many of the dull pages. If in the latter half of the book I have laid particular stress on the operations leading up to and culminating in the capture of Gorizia, I hope I may be forgiven, as I had the good luck to be the only foreign correspondent on the spot at these scenes of Historymaking. In my dedication I have paid a humble tribute to the many kindnesses I received at the hands of the Military Authorities, from His Excellency General Cadorna downwards. I can only repeat it here.
J M. P .
21, Golden Square, London, W. January, 1917.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I: PAGE
Marching orders—I leave for Rome—Paris via Folkestone and Boulogne in war time—My campaigning kit—The war-correspondent’s list—Quaint item—Travelling “light”—A box of choice Havanas— Boulogne to Paris; well-intentioned ladies and their “Woodbines” The one and only cigarette Paris to Turin Curious order on train Method and prescience Few soldiers on route Arrival in Rome A cheap room No sign of excitement in streets 23rd May Excitability of the Italian no longer noticeable Rome unruffled The declaration of war On the Corso Umberto that evening The Café Aragno National stoicism The Day Business as usual The general mobilisation A triumph of organization At the War Office 3
CHAPTER II:
My credentials The War Zone Italy’s preparedness The Press Censorship General Elia’s advice Disappointment A pipe in the Pincio An inspiration I leave for Venice Venice in war time The lonely pigeons of the Place St Marc The Doge’s Palace The bronze horses Interior of St Marc, strange spectacle First act of war between Italy and Austria Aeroplane bombs Venice French Aviators Treasures of Venice Everyday life in Venice during daytime After nightfall—On the qui vive—Extraordinary precautions—Dangers of the streets—Spy fever—Permis de séjour—The angry crowd—Defences against air attacks—Venice not a place forte—Nearest point of the Front The British Vice-Consul, Mr. Beak A good Samaritan The letter of credentials The Commandant of Venice More advice New Rescript of the Generalissimo Reference to Correspondents Decide attempt go to Udine The language difficulty The waiter at the Hotel Danielli His offer to accompany me Make arrangements at once Introduced to Peppino Garibaldi Amusing incident 15
CHAPTER III:
From Venice to Udine Reservists rejoining Interesting crowd
Delays en route Endless procession of military trains Drawn blinds
The Red Cross train Arrived Udine Scene on platform In search of an hotel A little incident The well-dressed civilian The obliging guide My suspicions Awkward questions The best hotel in Udine
A little “Trattoria” close by A cheap room First impressions of Udine
At the Police Office The permis de séjour The Carabinieri and the local police—The fascination of the big guns—The “Military Commandant of Udine”—A difficult proposition—The luck of the undelivered letter—My guide has to leave me—I change my quarters—
The Hotel “Tower of London” Alone in Udine An awkward predicament A friend in need Still more luck Dr. Berthod I am offered a studio I accept The delight of having this studio in Udine
CHAPTER IV:
The wonderful system on which everything was worked Udine “the Front” The commencement of hostilities The 24th May The first day of operations auspicious for Italy Redemption of the province of Friuli New Italian Front Cormons The inhabitants of Italian origin
A good practical joke The moral of the troops Unpretentious attempts at wit High spirits of the men The road from Udine to Cormons Wonderful sight Italian flags everywhere A mystery where they came from Wild triumphant advance of the Italian troops
Women kiss the ground But a lever de rideau Italians cross the Isonzo Austrians on Monte Nero Monte Nero The capture of Monte Nero Incredible daring of the Alpini The story of the great achievement Number of prisoners taken The prisoners brought to Udine—Their temporary prison—The tropical heat—An ugly incident— Austrian attempt to re-take Monte Nero—Success follows success— Capture of Monfalcone and Gradisca; Sagrado and Monte Corrada— Commencement of the attack on Gorizia Subjects for my sketch book
Touches of human nature High Mass in the mountains The tentes d’abri Cheerfulness of men in spite of all hardships
CHAPTER V:
Udine the Headquarters of the Army The King His indefatigability His undaunted courage A telling incident The King with the troops Love and sympathy between Victor Emanuele and the men Brotherhood of the whole Army A pleasant incident Men salute officers at all times Laxity shown in London Cohesion between rank and file The Italians of to-day The single idea of all Udine crowded
37
49
with soldiers The military missions of the allied nations Big trade being done Orderly and sedate crowd Restaurants The food The market-place The Cinemas Proximity of the fighting The Café “Dorta” Pretty and smartly-dressed women An unexpected spectacle The Military Governor The streets at night Precautions against “Taubes” The signal gun Curiosity of inhabitants No excitement Udine a sort of haven I remain there six weeks A meeting with the British Military Attaché, Colonel Lamb—My stay in Udine brought to an abrupt ending—The police officer in mufti—Am arrested—Unpleasant experience—An agent de la Sureté—At the police station—The commissaire Result of my examination Novara Magic effect of the undelivered letter again I write to General Cafarelli My friends at the “Agrario” General Cafarelli His decision The third class police ticket for the railway Packed off to Florence The end of the adventure
CHAPTER VI:
Florence in war time War correspondents to visit the Front I receive a letter from Mr. Capel Cure of the Embassy Return to Rome Signor Barzilai, Head of Foreign Press Bureau I am officially “accepted” Correspondents to muster at Brescia Rome to Brescia via Milan The gathering of the correspondents Names of those present Papers represented The correspondent’s armlet Speech of welcome by General Porro Plan of journey announced Introduced to officers of Censorship To leave war zone a conclusion of tour of Front “Shepherding” the correspondents Censorships established at various places Correspondents’ motor cars Clubbing together Carparties My companions Imposing array of correspondents’ cars National flags—Cordiality amongst all correspondents and Censors— Good-fellowship shown by Italians—Banquet to celebrate the occasion 63
CHAPTER VII:
Brescia—Rough sketch of arrangements—A printed itinerary of tour— Military passes—Rendezvous on certain dates—The “off-days”—Much latitude allowed We make a start Matutinal hour First experience of freedom of action Like schoolboys let loose In the valley of Guidicaria First impression of trenches on mountains A gigantic furrow Encampments of thousands of soldiers Like the great wall of China Preconceived notions of warfare upset Trenches on summits of mountains A vast military colony Pride of officers and men in their work Men on “special” work “Grousing” unknown in Italian Army Territorials Middle aged men “Full of beans” Territorials in first line 71
trenches Modern warfare for three-year olds only Hardy old mountaineers Heart strain The road along Lake Garda Military preparations everywhere War on the Lake The flotilla of gun-boats The Perils of the Lake A trip on the “Mincio” gun-boat I make a sketch of Riva A miniature Gibraltar Desenzano Nocturnal activity of mosquitoes Return to Brescia Something wrong with the car Jules Rateau of the Echo de Paris Arrange excursion to Stelvio Pass —A wonderful motor trip—The Valley of Valtellino—The corkscrew road —Bormio—The Staff Colonel receives us—Permits our visiting positions—Village not evacuated—Hotel open—Officers’ table d’hôte— We create a mild surprise Spend the night at hotel
CHAPTER VIII:
On the summit of the Forcola We start off in “military” time Our guide Hard climbing Realize we are no longer youthful Under fire Necessary precautions Our goal in sight An awful bit of track Vertigo A terrifying predicament In the Forcola position A gigantic ant-heap Unique position of the Forcola A glorious panorama The Austrian Tyrol The three frontiers Shown round position Selfcontained arsenal Lunch in the mess-room Interesting chat The “observation post” The goniometre Return to Bormio Decide to pass another night there An invitation from the sergeants Amusing incident
CHAPTER IX:
From Brescia to Verona Absence of military movement in rural districts Verona No time for sightseeing The axis of the Trentino Roveretto, the focus of operations Fort Pozzachio A “dummy fortress” Wasted labour Interesting incident Excursion to Ala Lunch to the correspondents Ingenious ferry-boat on River Adige The Valley of the Adige Wonderful panorama “No sketching allowed”—Curious finish of incident—Austrian positions—Desperate fighting—From Verona to Vicenza—The positions of Fiera di Primiero— Capture of Monte Marmolada The Dolomites Their weird fascination A striking incident The attempted suicide The Col di Lana Up the mountains on mules Sturdy Alpini Method of getting guns and supplies to these great heights The observation post and telephone cabin on summit The Colonel of Artillery What it would have cost to capture the Col di Lana then The Colonel has an idea The idea put into execution The development of the idea Effect on the Col di Lana
An object lesson The Colonel gets into hot water The return down
85
97
the mountain Caprili Under fire We make for shelter The village muck-heap Unpleasant position A fine example of coolness The wounded mule An impromptu dressing
CHAPTER X:
Belluno Venadoro in the heart of the Dolomites A fine hotel Tame excursions Visit to Cortina d’Ampezzo Austrian attempts to recapture it 305mm guns on the Schluderbach Long range bombardment Austrian women and children in the town Italians capture Monte Cristallo Aeroplanes and observation balloons impossible here Tofana in hands of Italians Serenity of garrison Cortina d’Ampezzo—General invites us to a déjeuner—Living at Venadoro—Delightful camaraderie—Evenings in the big saloon—From Belluno to Gemona Description of Front in this Sector Our excursion to Pal Grande The road On mules up the mountain A warning Rough track Peasant women carrying barbed wire up to the trenches Pay of the women Much competition for “vacancies” The climb from Pal Piccolo to Pal Grande A wonderful old man “Some” climb The entrenched position on Pal Grande Spice of danger Violent artillery duel The noise of the passing shells Magnificent view Timau The Freikoffel Its capture by the Alpini Wounded lowered by ropes Capture of Pal Grande Presence of mind of a doctor A telling incident Extraordinary enthusiasm of the troops Food convoys
The soldier’s menu Daily rations Rancio; the plat du jour Officers’ mess arrangements An al fresco lunch on Pal Grande The “mess-room” “Pot Luck” A wonderful meal A stroll round the position An improvised bowling alley Use is second nature In the trenches—A veteran warrior—The pet of the position—Gemona—The list of lodgings—My landlady—Good restaurants in Gemona—The Alpini quartered there—The military tatoo in the evenings—Reception by the Mayor A delightful week 115
CHAPTER XI:
Gemona to Udine Final stage of official journey Regrets Arrival at Udine List of recommended lodgings My room My landlady an Austrian woman I pay my respects to General Cafarelli My friend Dr. Berthod My old studio at the Agrario The Isonzo Front Many rumours Off on our biggest trip; 245 kilometres in the car Roads excellent and well-looked after A great change Cormons quite an Italian town Same with other towns in conquered territory Observatory on Monte Quarin A splendid bird’s-eye view The plain
131
of Friuli Podgora The Carso The hum of aeroplanes The Isonzo Sector The immense difficulties Received by the General A pleasant goûter Lieutenant Nathan, Ex-Mayor of Rome The Subida lines of trenches Explanation of Italian successes everywhere Caporetto via Tolmino A desolate region Road along the Isonzo The mighty limestone cliffs of Monte Nero The great exploit of its capture recalled One mountain road very much like another Nothing to sketch—Perfect organization—The fog of dust—Caporetto—Not allowed to motor beyond—Important strategic operations—Monte Rombon—Difficulty to locate Austrian guns—A glimpse of Plezzo—The situation here Excursion to Gradisca via Palmanova, a semi-French town Romans Curious rearrangement of cars Only two allowed proceed to Gradisca under fire The Italian batteries at work The deserted streets The “observatory” room The iron screens View of Monte San Michele being bombarded Stroll through the town A big shell Excursion to Cervignano, Aquileia and Grado Peaceful country-side Grado the Austrian Ostend Fish-lunch at a café The town continually bombarded by aircraft Arrival of Beaumont, the French airman Conclusion of official tour of Front No permission given for correspondents to remain Success of tour Comments on organization, etc
CHAPTER XII:
Conclusion of Correspondents’ tour of Front I return to London Awaiting events Brief official communiqués Half Austrian Army held up on Italian Front Harrying tactics Trench warfare during the winter Recuperative powers of the Austrians Gorizia a veritable Verdun Italian occupation of Austrian territory—Many thousand square miles conquered—A bolt from the blue—Serious development—Awakening Austrian activity—400,000 troops in the Trentino—Front from Lake Garda to Val Sugana ablaze Totally unforseen onslaught Towns and villages captured Genius of Cadorna Menace of invasion ended I go and see Charles Ingram with reference going back to Italy His journalistic acumen My marching orders Telegram from Rome My journey back to Italy Confidence everywhere Milan in darkness Improvement on the railway to Udine Udine much changed Stolid business air Changes at the Censorship Press Bureau and club for correspondents The Censorship staff Few accredited correspondents Remarkable absence of Entente correspondents Badges and passes Complete freedom of action given me I start for Vicenza en route for Arsiero Scenes on road From daylight into darkness Hun methods of frightfulness Arsiero Its unfavourable 149
position Extent of the Austrian advance Rush of the Italians Austrians not yet beaten Town damaged by the fire and bombardment Villa of a great writer Rossi’s paper-mills The town itself The battlefield Débris of war A dangerous souvenir for my studio
CHAPTER XIII:
The fighting on the Asiago plateau Brilliant counter-offensive of General Cadorna I go to Asiago Wonderful organization of Italian Army Making new roads Thousands of labourers The military causeway Supply columns in full operation Wonderful scenes Approaching the scene of action The forest of Gallio The big bivouac—Whole brigades lying hidden—The forest screen— Picturesque encampments—The “bell” tent as compared with the tente d’abri Our car stopped by the Carabinieri “Nostri Canoni” We leave the car The plain of Asiago The little town of Asiago in distance The Austrian and Italian batteries and Italian trenches Hurrying across The daily toll of the guns Asiago in ruins Street fighting Importance attaching to this point An ominous lull Regiment waiting to proceed trenches Sad spectacle The quarters of the divisional commandant His “office” Staff clerks at work Telephone bells ringing The commandant’s regret at our coming Big artillery attack to commence A quarter of an hour to spare A peep at the Austrian trenches A little, ruined home All movements of troops to trenches by night Artillery action about to commence Not allowed go trenches Adventure on way back Attempt cross no man’s land at the double My little “souvenir” of Asiago Bursting shells Ordered to take cover The wounded soldiers and the kitten Anything but a pleasant spot
The two Carabinieri—Cool courage—In the “funk-hole”—An inferno— My own impressions—Effect on soldiers and our chauffeur—The wounded sergeant—We prepare to make a start back—Irritating delay
A shrapnel My companion is wounded Transformation along road
Curious incident 163
CHAPTER XIV:
Slow but certain progress on the Trentino front An open secret The mining of the Castalleto summit Carried out by Alpini Recapture of Monte Cimone: also by Alpini Heroic exploits Udine one’s pied à terre An ideal “News centre” The Isonzo Front The old days of the war correspondent as compared with the present conditions Well to be prepared Returning to Udine for lunch Attracting attention
Unjustifiable Things quiet at the Front Unusual heat of the summer
