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Show II ROME, Oct 29. The Italians are checking the advance ; of the Austro-German troops in the plains of northern Italy, ! the war office announces, n The Italian troops are fulfilling their duty and all move- f- ments ordered V the general staff are being carried out, the ' statement says.' :gpm& The announcement follows: I All orders of the general staff arc being carried out quite regularly and the troops which are opposing the enemy are fulfilling their duty by keeping in check his advance into the plains." LONDON, Oct. 29. Steps already have been taken for ; rendering the fullest possible assistance to the Italians. l PETROGRAD, Oct. 29. The Germans have evacuated the Werder peninsula on the Gulf of Riga where they made I a landing recently, the war office announces. : "Werder Manor has been burned and provisions have been stolen. "No fighting has taken place in the Gulf of Finland but trawlers arc active there." mH Review of War Situation fj9 Italy's soldiers have failed to check fH l ho onrush of the Austro-Germans and 'PBiifcn. i he entire line of thelsonzo is threat- r-ncd with annihilation. Sweeping gMfe&i down from the mountains into the flf plains of FriuM, the invaders have captured Cividale, 100,000 prisoners ; and 700 guns. Great Britain and France are re- 91 ported to be taking steps lo give the shattered Italian army prompt and jH l full support. What form this aid will take has not been disclosed. The Trench cabinet met last night to de- ; cide upon the manner of co-operation Ion the Italian front. Germans Forging Ahead ; , When General Cadorna will make a : L stand is not yet clear, but two posi-. posi-. ' tions, capable of defense are avail- able. The Germans have reached the lowlands and are but nine miles from ! Udine, Cadorna's general headquarter, headquar-ter, ters. The railroad running north and alj south through Udlne might make a dc-rMfc dc-rMfc ! , fensive line but the T.aglianien'.o riv-(joS riv-(joS - er 1S miles west of Udine, probably ''-jjjji would offer a stronger defense. f4B ! The fall of Gorizin is a serious men-fyht men-fyht nce to the Italian troops holding the ar.fis f Carso line southward to the head of the Adriatic but General Cadorna still - .j would be able to offer stout resistance lgl?4I 011 a lino running through Tolmezzo. GVjfijV Gemona, Udine, Buttrio and Gradisca. bofflp' Tho capture of. Gradisca by the Teu-Vaj Teu-Vaj 4 tons, however, would make a retreat from the Carso inevitable and also .'.fi somewhat of a difficulty. The line of rfouS I tne Tagliamento river, it appears, SPA I would give the Italians the better nal-2iwl nal-2iwl ! ural PQsiUon from v.'hicli to hold the igajw 1 Germans from tho Venetian plains and ,proj the over running of northern Italy. . iva?fl Whole Line in Grave Danger While tho whole Isonzo line is in "t'oL if grave danger there Is also a serious lffdp threat in the Teuton drive to the Ital- , $ ian line in the Carnic Alps and even v in the Dolomites, north of Belluno. Ap- nta parently Field Marshal von Macken- snjnfl t- sen is endeavoring to drive a wedge lnflSiJ 1 between the armies on the Carso front ifl and those in the mountains northwest mM of Udlne. Sorao of the advanced Ital- inslS ian positions' fn" the Carnic Alps prob- Jf! ; ably have been abandoned already. If -iSjSl , this should prove true the Tagliamcn- cnanjj to river seems to offer General Ca- i frow dorna his- first defensive line unless flrinu his armies stiffen greatly and hold the invaders within a few miles of their i ' present positions, se Operations carried out by the Bel- i . gians and French looking toward the elimination of Iloutholst forest north of Ypres are progressing favorably. .The entire Merckem -peninsula, south of Dixmude, has been captured by allied al-lied troops who have also taken Merck-em Merck-em and several other villages west of the forest The British held the southern south-ern side of the forest and a continuation continua-tion or the Belgo-Freneh advance will make the German position untenable. A German retirement between War-noton War-noton and DIxmude to straighten out the line and eliminate the Ypres salient sal-ient is not unlooked for in German military mil-itary circles. One leading German critic. Major Mora lit. says the front is untenable and that the Germans will have to retire to a new line. Such a line probably would run through Men-in Men-in to Roulers to Thorout and thence lo the sea. German Withdrawal. I On the northern Russian front the Germans have extended their withdrawal with-drawal movement to include tho force that recently was landed on the Werder Wer-der peninsula after the Oesel and Moon! islands in the entrance to tho Gulf of Riga. This landing was viewed at tho time as a threat against Reva!, the Russian naval base on the Gulf of Finland and as a possible prelude to even more extensive land operations by the Germans in the direction of Pe-trograd. Pe-trograd. j The withdrawal leaves the Germans I without a foothold on the Estbonian coast, attempts being made bv them to follow up the original landing bv putting troops ashore at points both north and south of the peninsula having hav-ing failed, according to the Russian reports. There has been somowhat prevalent assumption, however, that there was never any intention-by the Germans to push their Riga operation much beyond the naval stage this fall, the view being that the threat against the Gulf of Finland mav weH have been a diversion for political effect in Russia or lo distract attention from operations in preparation elsewhere. The artillery battle is being continued con-tinued in Flanders and in sections of the Aisne front and In the Verdun region. re-gion. Tn Iho last named the Germans attacked spiritedly last night between Chaume wood and Bezonvaux, east of the Chaume wood and won something more than 500 y.ards of advanced trenches. The French In an immediate counter-attack recaptured tho. major portion of the lost ground. |