The difficulty for the Italian artillery was, we learned, to locate the emplacement of the Austrian guns, as they were hidden in caves and all manner of unwonted places on the mountain side. Still, they were gradually being discovered and silenced, and at any moment the _Alpini_ might be called upon to try and repeat their previous deeds of valour by scaling the mountain and capturing the position _à l’arme blanche_. Meanwhile the artillery duel between Rombon and Svinjak proceeded without intermission. At the foot of the mountains, in the valley on the right bank of the Isonzo, at its junction with the Koritnica, one could just distinguish the first house of the town of Plezzo and its fortress. Through one’s glasses you saw that little but ruins now remained of what had been one of the most picturesque and prosperous towns in the Carniola. Plezzo was now but a sort of “no man’s land,” and though practically in the possession of the Italians, was for the moment uninhabitable, being directly under the fire of the guns of Monte Rombon. The Austrians, with their customary “kultured” amenity were continually bombarding it in order to prevent the Italians from installing themselves there, with the result that the town was slowly but surely being wiped out of existence. As a matter of fact, at that time it would have been impossible for the Italians to have attempted, except at very heavy and needless sacrifices of life, any thing but a “Moral” occupation of Plezzo, as although the Austrians had evacuated the town they were very strongly fortified and entrenched on several of the surrounding eminences. The whole situation here at the moment, however, was, so far as one could gather, dependent on the success of operations being carried out in the direction of Tolmino. So that it could be safely left to work itself out here, and there appeared to be no doubt whatever from what we learned that everything was developing as satisfactorily as possible. We then returned to Udine via Savogna and Cividale. Another excursion we made to Gradisca was also particularly interesting, and very exciting as well. Gradisca, at that time, had only recently been abandoned by the Austrians, and a somewhat similar state of affairs existed there as in Plezzo. That is, it was continually under fire from the Austrian batteries on the Carso, and many houses had already been destroyed. There was, however, this difference, that there were soldiers in the town, not many, perhaps, but sufficient for it to be considered “occupied.” It is only a short run of about 30 kilometres from Udine. En route we drove through Palmanova, a delightful old semi-French town, dating from the time of Napoleon I, and which reminded me a little of Vitry-le-Francois. Its star-shaped setting of old ramparts with moat and drawbridge and archways entrance, with big doors, presented a strange contrast to the up-to-date military traffic passing through.