The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1904-03-16
RUSSIA'S ARMY IN THE FAR
EAST NUMBERED 10000 MEN
Beginning of the War Found Her Unprepared.
Failure to Complete Trans-Siberian Railway
Around Lake Baikal Hampers Russia Now.

/ rearmament of a foreign artillery. The
] new pattern 3-inch quick-firing Russian
! field gun is in process of manufacture,
| and the exact number of batteries is
sued to the troops is not known. The
same remark applies to the new Ari-
| saka quick-firing field gun of Japan, at
| present under construction at the Osa-
/ lxa arsenal. 1t is, however, probable
| that each side will make superhunan
| efforts to bring the largest number of
| these new guns into the field, and this
| fact may account for the rumors of the
movement of Russian batteries from
: garrisons like Lodz, on the German
| frontier which would naturally have
| been the first to receive the new ma
| terial so long as there was no danger
of war in the East, We must remenl-
| Der, however, that a wholesale change
! in the artillery armament entails the
transport of not only the new guns, but
of the ammunition and all the vast inn
pedimenta of ammunition columns and
parks. Even when such change is eff
fected, the old personnel must either be
replaced or trained in the efficient use
of the new material, and, whether one
solution or the other is preferred, it is
a work requiring time.
The technical details made public re-
specting these two models are at pres
ent insufficient to enable us to institute
a close comparison or to draw any final
conclusion, but it would seem that the
new Russian gun has greater initial
velocity and a longer range, and can
fire with more rapidity. In the older
classes of field guns the Russians also
seem to have the advantage, and in
case of war the first duel of the rival
gunners will be watched with an inter-
est not untinged with anxiety by the
friends of Japan.
The information of the Peking corr
respondent of the Times differs some
what from that given by other authori-
ties in relation to frontier troops, or, to
give them the more correct Russian
title, defensive guards The Peking
correspondent of the Times places the
frontier guard infantry at 1881 and the
cavalry at fifty-ive squadrons, pre-
sumably Cossack sotnias, which at war
strength would give nearly 10000 men:
adding the six batteries of frontier
guard artillery we should find a total
of between $4,000 and $4,000 men told off
for the guard of the line of communi-
cations along the railway. On the last
occasion when an accurate estimate
was made by a competent observer the
figures We're $4,000, but it was believed
that a steady increase of these num-
Ders was taking place and that it was
to raise them to $4,000.
It may be noticed that the five Cos
sack voiskos in East Asia, presuming
ali classes liable to serve are called
)ut, can supply $4,000 men and nearly
jO,0Oe troop horses; certain categories
# the reserve and of the opolchenie, or
l. ;&<.,-s
would also give an additional number
o be drawn upon in case of emergency,
without calling up fresh troops from
he West
One of the points of greatest interest
n the Picking telegram is the proof it
ppears to afford that a smaller num-
,er of Russian troops has been de-
patched from the West than was be-
eyed. Confirmation of this is given
Y the Times correspondent on the
.ussian side. whose letter Of January
?, from Khailar. an important station
n the Manchurian railway, makes it
lear that he has so far found little
vidence of special preparation for war;
no he states that he learns on excel
mt authority that only 10000 men
ave passed eastward since June last,
nd that several thousand time expired
zen have been sent home. All this
ives the measure of the amount OF
.liance we can place on statements
hich have been made in the Continen-
Il press respecting the flow of Rus
an troops eastward and serves to con-
nm the impression that Russia has
either desired nor intended to make
ar 1t is clearly her interest to avoid
ar at almost any cost until the rail-
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