The Bismarck Tribune Newspaper, August 19, 1918, Page 2

* “pe WATCHING) Sg A THE MOVEMENTS (OF. HIS TROOPS DURING A CAT ILE Aa Hamilton Holt Interviews Victor Emmanuel at the Front, Where He Lives Rugged: Life of a Soldier. { \ By GARRET SMITH, | ‘An, alliance with Republican France in.the world war for Democracy Is per- fectly understandable to every citizen of the United States, In the case 67 our other chief Allles, however, there are atill left some old-fashioned Amer- ait puzzled to find the country of a “king-rldden” mations of Europe, To he snre, even these bewildered oven have come to admit grudgingly of dute that Cannda“Is a pretty democrat fc nation and that: sonichow it has come about that the King of England has’ little or no authority in the Em- pire, But Italy still sticks In the men- tal crops of many—Italy offspring of the Caesars, ultimate symbols of royal tyranny to their minds, Italy till late- Jy ally of Germany and Austria, Ttaly still ruled by an old-fashioned king, something of a good fellow personal- Jy, they are told, but still a King, But it seems he. {sn’t an old-fash- foned king at all! I asked on Italian army officer about it recently, “Why ds it,” I sald “that you Ital- Jang, the.spiritual descendants of Ma’- ‘zint and Garibaldi, don’t live pp to your traditions and make your coun- @ republic?” King Would Be President. “The answer ig simple,” he replied. “We don't do it because we have a re- public already in everything but the Dame, and our King {s our chief repub- ican, It-1s reported that the King once said that whenever ‘his people} wished him to abdicate tite throne and change ‘the kingdom into a formal re- public he would be the first to favor the request and he would like the hon- OF of being elected-Italy’s first presi- dent.” : r This view of Victor Emmanuel as a royal. Gemocrat is strikis interpret- ed by Hamiltot Hott, cytor of The Independent, who bus just returned from ‘Italy, where he had epgual interview with Flis Majesty. Mr. Holt went to.tialy asthe repre. sentative of the Italy America So- ciety at the time of the celebration ofthe third anniversary of Itaty’s en- trance into the war, He was received in- Rome with much ceremony, ~ He represented the United States at the great celebration at the Augusteum, the Prince of Wales representing Eng- land, Minister Jules Simon, France, gnd Premier, Orlando, Italy, on the same occasion. He had formal inter- rge Washington lined up ‘with the : most un- |] RL) «i EST FRONT WITH THE. Pt portant officials, But nowhere was the head of the nation In \evidence. these formalities were over,” Mr, Holt told me, “I was conducted up through the northern provinces to the hills just behind the battle line, We stopped at a little “Finally, after villa belonging io a small wine- merchant, which lad been requisi- tioned for government’ use. ‘Nhere were two or three sentinels about the grouvds and as many orderlies within. That was all, no other evidence that it was a post of any great Iinportance. icans, fed on the king-baifing «school An officer led me up to a bed-chamber ang day, as. hard as any-other person histories ‘of a generation ago, who are on the third floor and knocked. ii Royal Headqua:.... ..vuest, “Inside I was cordially” greeted by} a modest, middle-aged little man in ‘a plain uniform that I could scarcely’ distinguish from that of a common soldier, no epaylets, gold braid or medals, nothing but a ribbon showing years of service such as any soldier might wéar. After a-hearty hand-], shake, he Invited me to be seated.” That was ‘the King of Italy as one Yankee saw him, “There was not the slightest hint of royal ceremony about our) meeting,” declared Mr, Holt. “He simply ushered me Into his apartment ana invited me ‘to sity down, *as any private citizen would receive another. And it was a very simple little‘ apartment with no hint of luxury abgut it. There was a simple bed, washstand, bureau and two or three little stralght-back chairs —chairs that looked as though. they might he of maple. I'remarked on the simplicity of his quarters and he said they were much better than some he had occupied. < ‘ No Pose of Royalty, © “In five minutes’ time I had lost all sense of being in the presence of roy- alty, You know that ordinarily court etiquette demands that a private citt- zen shall not speak to a king In the course of an interview except to an- swer His-Majesty. Before I realized It 1 had forgotten all about that con- vention and we were chatting freely, asking and answering questions back and forth and actually swapping yarns In good old Yankee fashion, He kept me talking for three-quarters of om hour and, of course, I.had nothing. to do with the length of the call, as I nat: urally “followed custom to the extent of waiting for hiin to terminate the In- terview. The King speaks q_ perfect English, has a good sense of Ifinior, enjoys telling a good story and, enjoys listening to one, In fact the only ait. ference upparcnt to me in our status as I look back on it was that such an interview was a’very unusual expert ence for me, while It was notvat all un-/ usuat.for the King, and I forgot to be conscious or that at the time, “Victor Emmanuel impressed me as a sort of combination of Colone¥ House andthe lute Pfank'R, Stockton, He ts aman of simple ané charming manner, without pose, who las thrown himself ‘with the Premier and other ‘m- | hing, the scenes while doing {t.”.4 of x representative of the American effect,’ is clearly evident. from) Mr. villa for his headguarters on account every -part of the battle-line. morning te rises early, eats a simple spends the day visiting some point on and talking with the soldiers, learning for the following day and never retires without sending a letter to, his family, ehttdrén”—never of “the Queen” or “the Prince and the Princesses.” heart and soul into the cause of his} how niuch the bombardment was cost [eountey and fs working for it ulgtt : JS A FAMILIAR FIGURE IN THE TRENCHES: in Italy. But he prefers to ‘stay be- A Hard-Working Monarch, ‘That this uncéremonious reception Democracy was no pose for theatrical Holt’s’ report of what he obseryed and learned of the King’s daily routine. The Monarch has selected this little pf its location in convenient reach of Each breakfast, has a light luncheon put up for him, gets into his automobile and the line, conferring with the officers their needs tirst hand and :{1spirjng them by his presence and his counsel.| At bight hefstudies the plans of battle to whom he ts .passjonately devoted. He diways speaks of his “wife and Crown Prince Humbert, in one of his letters, asked. the King when he would return home to his boy. Victor Ewmanuel replied that he could not leave while thoysands of bis “boys” were risking thelr lives: In. fuct, dur- ing the whole three years Im which Italy has been Ip the war the King has taken only a two-weeks’ furlough each year to visit bis home, like\any soldier in the ranks, Does Not Ayoid Danger. He has made observations of the battletleld from dirigibles and aero- planes. At one time in 1916 he climb- ed to the snow-covered crest of Bauch. koe] Mountains when the temperature was below zero In order that he might congratulate the :Alpine. troops whe had Just captured several Austrian po sitions, The ascent was dificult: and hitherto has been undertaken only by hardy and experienced mountaineers He has frequently. been under fire, On one occasion when he was visiting an out-post. with ghe General Stall while 16 inch shélls were exploding In every direction, some within a little over 100 yards from where the King and the officers. were standing, His Majesty counted the projectiles as they fell and then sat down-on the grass and pencilled down an account to show “Inthe course of dur conversation,” NG BY. Stoit, “he gave me a praphic deseription of hig Aperiente in one town near the fréntfer. The Austrians discovered. his presence in “the, town and began bombarding it. The King immediately withdrew from the town in order that, as he told me, he might hot unnecessarily imperil “the dents, What he did not tell me was that he departed from the town open- ly, for he was evidently much more concerned for the safety of the people than he was-over the peril to his own life. : resi- Interest in War Mechanics, “He is very much ifterested-in the mechanics of wirfare, He described graphically the barrage drill of the Itallan troops as he had witnessed it. It seems that in the Italian army thisy drill differs from that. tn\ any. of the other Allied armies in that a real bar- rage fire is employed, It Js according- ly a very dangerous performance, Hey also described in great.-detail a sub- marine lstening device he had tested. His; explanations of Italian aerial bombing methods were very interest- Ing. He sald that one.important reason why his airmen were not bombing Aus- trian cities was that the towns within practical reach hada great many Ital- idm -residents. It requires. so much gusoline for planes to reach the pure- ly Austrinn towns fab away, he ex:|— platned, that they cannot carry a big enough weight of bombs to make it worth while, “When I was at-the front I was\al- lowed to fire one of the 75 centimeter guns at the German Hnes, 1 told ,the| King of this experience, and he enger- ly asked ff1 thought I had killed any Germans, He declared that f didn't look like a very bloodthirsty fellow, . “He showed me with great glee a German cross from a captured air- plane he had framed and hung on‘the wall of his. room, He described ,the different designs he had seen painted on German planes and was particulgr- ly amused at ope which had the destgn of a Teddy Bear.” _ His Democratic Traditions. The King’s ability toyplay his pres- ent role is the regult both of his demo- cratic inheritance from his Savoy an- vestors and: his Spartan upbringing. He was (tored by a stern, old army. volonel, who, at the direction. of the royn! father, tredted him in ev- Ing the Austrians, ef ery way like the son of a private citl- zen, He hys ever since preferred sim- ing d a WHO. HAS JUST BEE woe KING VICTOR EMMANUEL AND THE GROWN: PRINCE ple, rigorous living. ( voete pastiines, g Though he was somewhat delicate as a boy, Mr, Holt reports hin tatlay a straight, upright figure with a broad, full chest denoting grent ph strength in spite of his “ny ature, Nevertheless, his face shows. ,the strain of the war, siderably ag compared with the pic- tures taken of him previous to hostili- ties.. He is only 49 years old, but looks older. e “What did he jave to say about the political .and military situation?’ 1 asked, x He has aged con- “You must remeniber,” Mr, Holt re- plied, “that ove. cannot quote a King directly. phases of the situation very freely, 1 would not be at liberty to give a ver- batim repost of hts opinions. In fact, he was careful In talking with me not to express himself positively om mat- ters of state policy. When ‘I en- croached on such ground, hee would generally counter by asking me What they told me in Rome about it. While we discussed various N UAn Admirer of America, “For Instance, I asked him tf. ff was true that Italy desired America to send military ald to her, He asked if they told me that in Rome, Yes! U replied, ¢ “The King sald -that’ was right— Italy did want our aid, “He sald we could help pardcularly by sending then steel and coal, “He expressed a great deal of Inter- est In American affairs and the / meri- cah attitude toward the war and kept me busy answering thoughtful ques- tions about them, He expressed the greatest. feeling of friendship towards America and appreciation fbr what we have alrendy done in the war, He thofight our efforts already made were innrygous, aan “He/ was greatly interested in my account: of the formation of the: Italy, America Society, of which Charles KE.) Hughes ts president, -He askdd after former Ambassadors Henry White and O'Brien and spoke warmly In praise of the Ambassador, ‘Thonias “Nelson Page. “rhe King enjoys tcltilg angedotes, and he tells them well, We syapped a wumber of yarns in the course of our talk. iy “One of the King’s stories illustrat: ed the ingenuity of Italian war prixon- ers In Austria in commijutcating with present American WLM! Wore yal Hunting - and mountain climbing are among his ta SEAL KING VICTOR’ FROM OBSERVATION STATION _\HIS' TROOPS: ATTACKIN NGRATUL ATING A SOLDIER DECORATED FOR VALOR . wroie Lome fromsan Austrian prison describing at great length the splendid Hment he was Lite qua ty recaving, comfort ters and clothing; food and Jplentitul food, nothing bug kindnes from the guards. though I were Laptista.’ “The austrian censor-supposed he referred to John the Baptist asa clhnax of eulogy and readily passed the letter, s “Baptista, It seems, was the name of a mangy old cur suffered to live in an outbuilding of the soldier's home and subject to general neglect and abuse. “I.can well understand, after meet- the King of Italy is the ideal of his army and the ideal of his people. Americans need have no hesitation in feeling that the royal head of Italy is doing his bit and a big bit toward making the world safe for Democra- cy.” Italian Morale High, - ~The morale of the Italian people 18 now at the top notch, according | to Holt. He sald that the mischief which reached its climax with the Austrian invasion last October, had been un- done, In the course of his tour of the country he found every one, from the King. and Premier down to the/com- mop soldiers and the peasantry, thor- oughly deterntined to push the war to the last Hit of their resources and perfectly confident ‘of ultimate victory over the Hun, is One of the efforts of the German propagandists which was meeting with considerable success a yeaR ago was the attempt to bring about a feeling of. estrangement between, the Italign and ‘American peoples. Mr, Holt de- clures that: whatever progress this effort of the Teutonic propagandists may have had, it has been overcome> At the- present time he finds every- where a feeling of the utmost cordial- ity towards the American people and supreme confidence In the disinterested motives of our Government and. its ability to aid the Allied cause, “Any impression that the Italian people are suffering from extreme pri- vation and are on the verge of demor- alization is utterly erroneous,” declar- ed Mr, Holt, “Of course, the condl- tion everywhere in Europe is bad to- day. Every. nation that has been in the war for thrée years is suffering and suffering acutely. But nowhere emocrat- i] ger in the ‘present situation’ is that ‘In short, he con- danger. cluded, they theat me in every way assicns of the most cordial appreciation ing him under such conditions, ‘why ¢anization that the first effects of. the that Lwent did I see Indications of ex- it would end in overwheli treme destitution nor did L find any-]out to do, It is therefore to ug that where among any class of people any-| they are now looking more thansto apy thing but determination to push the} other one nation for future relation: war to the end and a firm belief that of friendship that will help place Italy | liming victory tiroily on her feet in the community their families; Qne Italian privets afar Ltaly and her Allies, Lec Ve ‘OSH ae / “I was particularly impréssed with the statements of some of our own troops on_the western front who arg stationed in ,contact with the Italian Expeditionary "Force there, Our boy report that the Itajian privates ai eager to get at the foe, They express impatience with .their officers when they are not allowed to charge the ' German lines, ‘This same ‘spirit ex- ists among the troops in northern Italy. “They feel-that the only critical dan- Germany, fought to a’standstill on the western. front, y leave enough men there to hold the line for the time.be- ing and turn her attention to Italy with the purpose of putting Italy out of the war and then, reinforced by Austrian troops, ‘ be able fo defeat France and England. In, the event that Austria, aided by Germany, should make any considerable inroads into Italy there 1s some danger. that the Bolshevik . spirit in Italy might be aroused and considerable disorganiza- tion result. mi: Confidence in American People. ‘4 “But the LItallan pedple have /su- preme confidence’that America 4s:com- ing to the rescue in time to avert this Everywhere I found expres- of what America has already done and has promised to do for the Alliea cause, There !s no question now but what Italy looks upon the United States as a devoted fflend. President "Wilson is a popular hero’ in Ttaly. ‘They believe that our. motives are’ en- tirely. disinterested, ‘ “They are particularly. delighted with the work of the American Red Cross in Italy, It was through this ur- ° American alliance was felt there. I found that in many districts of Italy the thange of sentiment towards. the United States was due almost entirely to the magnificent services: of the American Red Cross, F “Officials and people nlike are urgent = that the United States send troops to Italy. They look upon this not merely as a tinal proof 6f American friendship and a means of furthering’ the uulity of the Allied forces, but usa needed / reinforcement by troops’ for whose ability as fighters they hay. the profoundest respect, : Wants U. S. Commercial Aid. “But it is not merely for aid while the war. ison that Italy. ts logking to Ameri Germany during the years of the ‘Triple Alliance had spread her economic roots throughout, the whole industrial and commercial. fabric of It-- aly.to such an extent that despite thé three years of hostility and the effort that have been put forward to,tear out those roots, many of them still re main, When it comes to the period of” rehabilitation after the «war ltaly hopes that the United States will take’ the-place of Germany-in her industrial, commercial and financial life, Her great need from this country is raw materinis. Business men in Italy with whom I talked predictedthat™ unless the United States dill come tothe res- cue In this way after the. war the re- maining roots of. Teutonic ecouomie Penetration waquld revive and that there would be a reaction which would tend once more to put Italy under the eco- Nomie thralldom of the Central Pow- ers, which she has been working so hard to throw off. aa, ' “Italians look upon Americans ag economic magicians, They belleve we can, accomplish anything that we set - ” of a WM Eee An 1 es Bee