Arizona republican., 1904-12-08
Another dreat Feat by the Japanese.

Another Great Feat Dy the JaPdnesS.
 According to the reports from Tokio issued by the Japanese government, the besieging army at Port Arthur has accomplished within the last few days one of JapaE's great objectives in this war. The Russian fleet at Port Arthur has been destroyed, for all practical purposes. by shells from the long-range guns mounted on the hills captured last week.
 The battleships and cruisers which returned to the protection of Port Ar thur after the disastrous battle with Admiral Togo will no longer be a men, ace to the Japanese fleet. Henceforth the .Japanese navy has to reckon only with the Baltic fleet, now on its way to eastern Haters. And as the two fleets will be on almost equal terms, the Jap- anes,e vriu await the issue of battle with confidence.
 At this distance it seems that the Russians have committed another in- excusable blunder in permitting their eastern fleet to be destroyed while ly- ing at anchor. The men and guns talk en from the guns to reinforce the gar rison have served merely to delay the fall of the fortress; they cannot pre- vent it. And when the Japanese army does take Port Arthur it will have accomplished a feat without parallel in warfare. It will have broken the en- emy on land and sea with an army on land. To be sure, some of the Rus sian ships remaining may be able to stagger out to sea and engage the Jap anese Earghips in dying desperation, but tho opportunity is gone, apparent ly, foY striking a dangerous blow at Iapan's power on the sea. Ships which might have gone forth and badly crip- pied the waiting fleet of the mikado, have remained at anchor and have been shot full of holes from the land- And. St is probable that after Nogi has captured Port Arthur Japan will be able to raise some of the Russian shipss from the bottom of the harbor, FepatF them, and make them an ef- fecttVr fighting force against the Rus sians. just as was done in the case of tho sunken Spanish ships in the har- boz of Manila by the American govern nent. Hlndsight being better than Russian foresight, the Russians will be surTy that they did not send their ships 10 ees suF another fight, where at least they might have been sunk beyond hsps of recovery.
 AS eeson as4it is known that the ships in the harbor are definitely out of calculation, the Japanese will with draw the fighting craft of their block ading squadron and will make haste to get everything in fine repaIr and first class shape for meeting the Baltic feet And while the coming battle be- tween Togo and Rojestvensky will be the most momentOus sea fight since the battle of Trafalgar-the whole issue between Russia and Japan waiting largely on the outcome-there need be little apprehension that the Japanese will be swept from the. sea. The Rus sians have had it all figured out to their satisfaction. They have figured that upon the arrival of Rojestvensky in the Yellow sea he would be joined by the ships from Port Arthur and YIadivostok, would destroy the Japan csc navy, and thus force the Japanese army in Manchuria to surrender to Kuropatkin. It is a fine scheme, on paper. If Japana's navy could be cap tured or destroyed, the Japanese army would be helpless within few weeks, or months, at most. A Russian block ade of the coast would cut the Jap anese from their base of supplies. Food and endorsements could not be fur nished to the armies of Generals Nogi, Nodzu, Kuroki and Oku, and it would be necessary, merely, for Kuropatkin 10 fortify his position and await re- Inducements until the Russian army vas overwhelmingly superior, and then force Field Marshal Oyama to surren- der Japans land forces.
 Japan's very existence as a great power is at stake, therefore. in the :. hands of her navy. That stake has been made much more secure by the ron. When Rcjestvensky's fleet arrives on the scene his ships will be foul and slow-sailing from their trip half around the world They will find the Japanese navy in the pink of condition, and if the fight takes place the chances are that Russia will find herself without a navy, instead of having Japan at her mercy.
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 One of the candidates fer president