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Show ' ' 1 11 - " " t ; ( - , . Allied Troops Assist in ' Capture of Monte Di Valbella After Bitter Struggle; 800 Prisoners Prison-ers in the Cages. AMERICANS ROUND UP 36 INVADERS French Make a Brilliart Charge on Front of Nearly Two Miles and Gain Possession of Ridge in Ourcq Valley. (By the Associated Press.) Attacking the Austro-Hunsarian lines on the Asiago plateau, the Italians have taken Monte di Valbelia, captured prisoners and have held .it against repeated re-peated counter-attacks. This turn to the offensive came as a surprise to tile laymen of the allied world, for it -was believed that General Diaz would be content to hold his lines in the mountains against a new offensive, in-tende3 in-tende3 by the Austrians and Germans. Italian attack was not limited to Monte di Valbella. On the left bank of tho Brenta - they captured the height of Sasso Rosso, just north of the village of Yalstagria. These actions may explain the failure of the Italians to pursue the Austrians across the Fiave, when, on June 2C, the enemy fled from the west bank with a haste that indicated something of demoralization. de-moralization. ITALIAN GENERAL MAY NOT ADVANCE. General Diaz probably has expected the heaviest enemy blow along the mountain front, whk'h is the key to the Italian situation. In attacking he has carried the right to the foe, gained strong positions at vita points and broken up some of the preparations made by the enemy for an offensive. It is not believed that General Diaz plans to go further than local objectives, but if he should make much progress on the ""Asiaso plateau he would be able to take under his artillery fire the railroad paralleling the battle line and running along the Brenta river east of Lake Caldonazzo. This line is the connecting link between the Plave and Adige fronts, and, if the Italians could dominate it, tho Austrian systen of communications would be seriously impaired. FRENCH CONTINUE NIBBLING TACTICS. The French are continuing their "nibbling" "nib-bling" north of the Marne. Friday tbey swept the Germans from the environs of Villers-Cotterets forest, southwest of Soissons. Saturday night they attacked the German lines a little to the north of the Clignau river and just to the left of positions held by Americans. A lonn ridge between the villages ot Mosloy and Fassy-en-VaJois was occupied and 265 prisoners taken. Near yt. Pierre Alglc, the French positions were improved by a local attack. The British repulsed an euemy assault near Merris, near where the Germans were driven back, east of Nieppe forest, on Friday. The British official statement mentions heavy German artillery fire before be-fore Amiens, near Albert; north of the Scarpe, near Arras, and in the region of Festubert, northwest of Lens, The offiiia! statement issued at Berlin says that artillery tiring has increased between be-tween the Yser and the Marne, which Includes In-cludes virtually all of the active battle zone. There is a report that Alexis KomajiolT, (Continued on Paga Two.) mm posts TMfi BY ITALIANS (Continued from Page Two.) c son of the f'Trmr Russian emperor. !s alive. no:wnh landing i is patches teiHng ol his recent death. ITALIAN TROOPS, AIDED BY ALLIES, TAKE POSITIONS RCOFE, June 20. Italian forces, supported sup-ported by allied troops, attacked Austro-; Austro-; Hungarian positions on the Italian mountain moun-tain front Saturday and captured Monte di Valbeila after a bitter struggle. The Italian war office announces that more t lian S00 A us tro-Hungarians were taken prisoner. ; Strong enemy counter-attacks throughout through-out the day and night were repulsed hy the fire of tiie Italian infantry, artillery and machine guns. The text of the official statement reads: On the Asiago plateau, where our heroic resistance on June 14 crushed , the impetus of preponderant enemy forces, and where, in dairy acts of bravery, Italian troops have become united in action and in glory with the British and French allies, fighting yesterday began anew. At dawn our troops, sustained by an intense artillery lire and supported by sorties resolutely carried out by their allies, attacked Monte Di Valbella and succeeded, after a bitter struggle, in wresting it from the enemy. During the day and night large enemy masses were launched to counter-attacK and to slaughter? but were repulsed by our infantry and decimated by concentrations concentra-tions of artillery and machine-gun fire from airplanes. The position carried car-ried was victoriously held by us. Twenty-one enemy officers and 7S8 soldiers of other ranks, belonging to four different divisions, were made prisoner. Cannon, trench mortars and numerous machine guns were captured. Farther east,-between the Frenzela valley and the Brenta river, one of our "parties took by assault a well-fortified well-fortified observation point on the southern slopes of Sasso Rosso, capturing cap-turing two officers and thirty-one men. On the remainder of our front our artillery carried out 'effective and . harassing bombardments. At Capo . Sile patrol operations brought us some prisoners: -In the Lagarina and Su-gana Su-gana valleys enemy railway establishments estab-lishments were bombarded by our airmen. |