The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-11-02
DARK DAYS.
Forebodings OF Disaster Over
shadow st. Petersburg.
1t Is Now Realized That Port
Arthur LIS Doomed.
ITS FALL LOOKED FOR.
The End Is Expected az Early
as Tomorrow.
A National Holiday I'm Both
Russian and Japan.
IT'S FALL LOOKED FOR.


Russian and Japan.
ST. Petersburg, Nov. 2-12:46 P. M
The official reports from Toxic de-
scribing the desperate assaults on Port
Arthur beginning October g. have Gre
ated visible depression at the war Of
flee. The sustained character of the
bombardment with siege guns and the
preaching of the walls by underground
mines, but above all the fact that the
Japanese government after weeks of
silence regarding the operations of the
besiegers has given out these reports
before actual success has crowned their
efforts. convince the military authori-
ties that after long preparations Gen.
Nogi is not only making a supreme eff
fort to carry the fortress but feels so
confident of success that the result of
the preliminary operations has been
made public. They believe the assault
was timed for the announcement of the
fall of the fortress to be made upon
the birthday of the Mikado tomorrow,
which by a strange coincidence is the
tenth anniversary of the accession OF
Emperor Nicholas and>a great Russian
holiday. Tomorrow therefore is expect
ed to be marked by Fate for day of
immense rejoicing either for Japan or
Russia, according the present as
sault succeeds or fails. The war Of
flee is trying to buoy up the Russian
hopes with reference to the long and
successful defense Lieutenant General
Stoessel has thus far conducted, but
things have now reached such pass
with the garrison and the character OF
the present attempt upon the fortress
is evidently so determined that the
authorities frankly admit they would
not be surprised if the end was at
hand.
In the face of the gloomy reports di-
rect from Toxic. the Invalid Russ, the
army organ today announces that the
storming operations ended with a re-
pulse of the Japanese on Monday but
the paper fails to give its authority for
this important statement. No official
report warranti<@ It has been received
by the war office.
August Operations.
Toxic New. 2.-The official reports of
the Port Arthur operations since Au-
gust l. form a recital of almost contin-
uouS fighting of a desperate nature.
The Russians first struggled desperate
ly to block every Japanese advance and
then met the concentrated artillery nre
of the Japanese with it's kind. Latterly,
since the Japanese began running par
allels and traverses and extending
mines the Russians have been constant
ly making SOrtieS. They rushed into
the japanese trenches and engaged in
ferocious struggles with the engineers
and pioneers. With desperate courage
the Japanese continued to close in on
the fortress progressing stage by stage.
The Japanese infantry never failed to
respond when asked to make an as
sault almost impossible positions
and when the troops gained a foOthOld
they generally held it with untiinching
The reports commencing August 1, re- |
cord the assault and capture of Takhu
d general advance following and then
a general bOmbardment, opening Au-
gust 10 and August 20, an attack on
mountain. Electric wire en-
tangIements protected the latter posi-
ton. The japanese artillery first shell
ed the Panlung fOrt1hcatiOnS hercely |
and then on August 21, the japanese in
fantry charged and were beaten back
owing to the deadly fire from the Rus
sian machine guns and the insufficiency
of the preliminary destruction of the
wire entanglements. The Japanese were |
also forced to abandon a fort southeast !
of Keekwan mountain which was cap
tured after desperate fighting, owing to
the enfilading fire of the neighboring
forts. During the morning of August
%, the Japanese troops forming the CEN |
ter army charged the east fort on Pan |
lung mountain and by noon had cap
tured two-thirds of it. The Russians
continued to hold the Keep, resisting
aided by the fire of esfhe |
west fort and forced the Japanese to |
Japanese center Immediately reformed, |
stormed, captured and held the west |
fort forced the abandonment by the |
Russians of the east fort and mastered |
the entire position.
On the night of August 90 the Jap
anese center with the right co-operat- |
ing, attacked the heights northwest of |
Wangtai and the north front east of |
Keekwan mountain, but the troops |
were forced to abandon the attack on |
account of the heavy losses sustained |
from machine gun fire from every di- |
rection.
slams continued their artillery fire, at |
tackled the entire Japanese line and !
were repulsed. Until the end of the |
month and the first week in September, |
the Russians continued to attack and |
shell Panlung mountain. They man
aged to seriously damage the new Jap
anese works there and to hamper the |
operations of the Japanese miners.
By September the Japanese mines
had reached with about 40 yards of |
Fort Kuropatkin and about 200 yards
east of the northern forts of Keekwan
mountain and some fifty yards from
September - the japanese discov-
cred that the Russians were endeavor-
ing to mine Panlung mountain.
The afternoon of September g the
Japanese, using siege and naval guns |
opened a general bombardment, and
It 6 o'clock in the evening made as
;aults on Forts Siushiying and Kuro-
oatkin and on Russian position on
,O3-meter hill. The attack was con-
.inued at dawn September 20, with the
'eSult that the Japanese occupied Fort
during the afternoon of
hat day. They also captured four
additional forts south of Suishiying
and two forts southeast of
L74-meter hill. infiicting serious cas-
lalties on the retreating Russians. The
Ia paneSer attacked 203-meter hill from
he east, north and west during the
hight, and a company of japanese
to reach and secure a foot
hold on the northwest point of the