the Isonzo.

As regards Italy, over 20,000 Czechs surrendered voluntarily on the Italian
front up to 1917, and 7000 during the last offensive on the Piave in June,
1918. Of recent cases we need mention only the "treachery of Carzano,"
where, on September 18, 1917, some Czech officers went over to the
Italians, communicated to them the Austrian plans of campaign and led them
against the Austrians whose front was thus successfully broken through.
This incident was not the only one of its kind. It has been repeated
several times by Czech officers whenever they found an opportunity of going
over to the Italians. During the offensive of June, 1918, the Austrian
press openly attributed the Austrian failure to "Czech treachery,"
asserting that the plan of the offensive was communicated to the Italian
headquarters staff by Czecho-Slovak officers. This the Austrian military
authorities themselves admitted later, when they published the following
official statement, which appeared in the German press on July 28:

"On the morning of June 15, we started a vigorous offensive on the
whole front between the Tyrolese mountains and the Adriatic, with a
power that can be attained only by complete co-operation of all the
units and with an accurate execution and a common and uniform action.
But, just at the beginning of the attack, it became apparent that the
enemy were making a counter-attack according to a well-defined plan, as
in the case of a projected vigorous offensive. It was also found out
that the enemy was perfectly aware of the extent, the day and the hour
of our attack. The intended surprise, so important for the success of
an offensive, has thus failed. In due course Italy also obtained, from
documents which some deserters handed to the Italian high command,
information which gave her a sufficiently precise idea of our
dispositions. English, French and Italian officers and men captured by