The Italians inundated the region and
sealed all the entrances into the gulf by mine fields. The gulf,
therefore, was converted into an isolated sea. Over this inland waterway
the conflict raged bitterly. The Italians had a "lagoon fleet" ranging
from the swiftest of motor boats, armed with machine guns, small cannon,
and torpedo tubes, to huge, cumbersome, flat-bottomed British monitors,
mounting the biggest guns.
The Italian vessels navigated secret channels dug in the bottom of the
shallow lagoons. Only the Italian war pilots knew these courses. Even
gondolas straying out of the channels were instantly and hopelessly
stranded. Not only this, but as the muddy flats and marshy islands did
not permit of artillery emplacements the Italians developed an immense
fleet of floating batteries. The guns ranged from three-inch fieldpieces
to great fifteen-inch monsters. Each was camouflaged to represent a tiny
island, a garden patch, or a houseboat. Floating on the glasslike
surface of the lagoons, the guns fired a few shots and then changed
position, making it utterly impossible for the enemy to locate them. The
entire auxiliary service of supplying this floating army was adapted to
meet the lagoon warfare. Munition dumps were on boats, constantly moved
about to prevent the enemy spotting them.
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