Excerpt from ATTACKS
By Field Marshal Erwin Rommel

A few dashes brought us uninjured to the safety of a bend in the road, safety at least from hostile fire. Unfortunately, the machine gun platoons in Dogna caused a good deal of trouble even here. They blocked the highway bridge at Pirago. I had only a few of my mountain troopers with me. Part were already back in the direction of Pirago, but a considerable number were still up front near the barricade.
Strangely enough, the enemy ceased firing. Shortly after, the sound of voices came from that direction and came rapidly nearer. They were not mountain troopers. It was strange that none of the detachment came back. I hurried back to Pirago. On the way, I overtook a few mountain soldiers, among them a man with a flare pistol. I found no one at the bridge in Pirago. My orders to halt there had not been received.

A group of howling Italians came down the road and I did not know whether they were attackers or prisoners. I had no idea of what had become of my leading elements (3d Company and the machine-gun company of the 26th Rifle Regiment). I decided to use a couple of flares and clear up the situation.

I fired them just to the right of the highway bridge near the low wall leading to the mill and, in their light, I saw a closely packed mass of handkerchief-waving men rushing toward Pirago. The head of the group was a scant hundred yards away and the light of the flares made me an excellent target. The shrieking Italians did not fire a shot as they approached, and I was still undecided regarding their status.

The four or five riflemen with me were insufficient to stem that mob and the rest of the detachment seemed to have gone back in the direction of Fae. I ran down the road intending to catch up with the bulk of my unit, face them about and stop the onrushing horde.

A few minutes later I gathered about fifty men together near a group of houses, three to six hundred yards south of Pirago.

Lieutenant Streicher took one half of the men and occupied a house on the right of the road, the remainder were used to bar the road. The men lined up with their carbines ready. Lieutenant Schoffel was on the left against the rock wall; Technical Sergeant Dobelmann and I were on the right by the house. The riflemen were instructed to fire only on my command. There were no flare pistols or flare ammunition. The enemy masses were unable to turn off to the left and darkness and lack of time prevented us from determining how things stood on the right where we assumed the Piave to be. We only had a few seconds to complete our preparations. The howling mob drew closer.