The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-08-20
RUSSIAN WAY
OF TELLING IT
WAR NEWS PRINTED IN ST.
PETERSBURG PAPER.
Delicate Phraseology Breaks Sad
News Lightly General Kurolxi's
Veracity Impugned-Russian Refu-
gees from Port Arthur Tell How
They Cursed Up the Corre-
spondents.

James S. Bell knitted his brows as
he glanced at paper which came to
his desk in the Washburn-Crosby of
fee yesterday afternoon. 1t was
large, poster-like sheet, covered on
only one side with mysterious hero
glyphics, some large, others small. Mr..
Bell turned it every which way,
hopeless case and handed the paper
to Journal reporter.
M. M. Dillon came to the rescue.
Mr.. Dillon has served in the Russian
army and is conversant with the Ian
guage. The paper, he said, was an
afternoon extra or supplement- of
the st. Petersburg, Gazette, morn
ing paper, issued on July 20: In large
paper, six wide columns, the summary
is given in the following appeasing
language:
Not End Until 3 CLOCK in the Morn
ing.-False Report of General Ku-.
Skirmishes of the
Russian Artillery-A Squadron of
Russian Cossacks Annihilated Every
ADVANCE Guard of Enemy-Big Losses
of Japanese
Pestered by Reporters.
Among other things the extra con
tains a continuation of narrative Of
two Russians of high standing, refu-
gees from Port Arthur, who were try
ing and succeeded in getting thru
TERRITORY occupied, by japanese, one
and the other as an Englishman. The
two men state that at the hotel in
Chi-fu where they had arrived they
were encountered by a lot of foreign
newspaper men, who after finding out
that the two men were refugees from
Port Arthur, were, SO anxious to get
news from that place that they sur
prairie wolves. ("
awe told the correspondents, ;,
said one Of the refugees, that we had
arrived from Inkow and didn t know
anything interesting to say. But we
couldn't get rid of them, especially
one who spoke in French, saying that
he knew we were from Port Arthur
and that it wasn't kind of us to keep
them until we cursed them up in
our own language.
There are many Japanese in Chi
flu. On the Goth Of May we boarded
little Chinese steamer, the captain
of which, an Austrian, after knowing
we had come from Port Arthur, was
very kind to us, giving us the two
best staterooms on the steamer. In
Tien-tsin. We were surprised to see
in what fine condition their railroad
equipments were and we really felt
as tho we were on a frst-class Ameri-
can express
Breaking the News.
One Of the kilograms dated from
Mukden, July l8, is characteristic. It
says:
''On the night of the 18th of July
our outposts secuted the pass on the
vance guards had a little skirmish and
found the enemy much stronger than
our forces there. For that reason we
started to retreat to our former posi-
ton by Tha-woo-an. Tho there was
real battle we have lost over 1000
men killed and twice that many
wounded. The skirmish lasted until 8
O. clock in the morning."
-, In another place, q telegram from
ter fifty days on horseback eight Rus
slams and fifty Chinese have arrived
here from Port Arthur. They say
that 1000 Japanese took on the 28th
and 10th of June one of the forts on
the eastern part of Port Arthur, but
Ine Russians TOOK 1t back on the same
day, killing every one of the Japan
csc officers and soldiers in that Skin
mish.
"The battle started at O'Clock in
the morning. The Russians had only
ont battalion Of infantry and one
squadron Of Cossacks. By IL O'Clock
the Russian strength was about one
regiment of infantry, one squadron of
Cossacks and four guns. When the
Russians started to retreat the Jap
anese opened fire, following it thru
the line in intervals. General Kuroki
. after the battle reported that the
Russians had two divisions of infan,
try, outside Of cavalry and several
batteries of artillery, and that was the
cause of his great losses.0
Mr.. Dillon explained that as all tele
the Russian Associated Telegraph
Union, and are censored before they
can be printed, no news from the wal
that is not desirable for publication
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