Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-02-18
Russo-Japanese Strategy.

10 the Editor of The Evening Star:
I should hesitate to criticise the military
operations of the Russo Japanese war but
Mr.. Young's critique in Tuesdays Star pre-
sents fair mark. From his point OF OBJ
seryatfon Gin Massachusetts) he can find no
evidence of stra tegic skill on the part of the
Japanese, and no general capable of leading
an army has been developed thus far in the
prosress OF the war The night attack on
the Russian ships at. Port Arthur did not
rise above the level of trickery, because an
army was not on hand to invest and storm.
the Notifications from the land side. On
the other hand, the Russians have made a
truly strategical move in taking position on
one bank of the Yalu.
Well the Japanese are credited with
certain amount of,reticence about their plan
OF campaign, and it seems to me that a
military critic should have imagination
enough to suspect them of planning some
thing little less crude and a little more
practical than the investment of Port Ar
thur by land and sea at the very beginning
OF hoStilitieS. One obvious result of the
night attack and Gripping of the Russian
navy has been to render much safer the
passage of troop ships from Japanese PORTS
to Yougumpho, Chemulpo and other pIa ces
in Korea, where 1t is designed to land them.
This may. not rise to the level of strategy
but there would seem to be a good deal of
common sense about It, The reports indi-
cate that in returning to the attack of the
Russian fleet at Port Arthur and in seeking
!nGustrious)y for the Russian ships in all
the neighborng seas, the japanese are pur-
suing definite design. and the military
critic who overlooks or disregards that de-
sign at this stage of the game is rash and
evidently lacking in the representative
faculty.
1t was all right for the Russians to take
position on the Yalu but that alone certain
~ is not strategy. They were right there
or near there, and they were expecting the
enemy to come there, and they accordingly
lined up on their side of the river and on
the very borders of the province that they
are to defend from invasion. Now. this is
where my magination is at fault / fail to
see any brillancy in that. No doubt the
Russian generals have their plan of cam
paign, but just now they are only hurrying
troops to the front by the shortest routes.
This, too, is common sense, but not strate-
gy. -
1t is suggested that real act of general
ship in the present situa tions would be the
massing of an army on the banks of the
Yalu. Can there be any doubt that this is
they not secured promptly possible
their bases at Seoul and Masampho, and
will it not be the business of the japanese
commander to feel his enemy all along this
line and strike at it's weakest point? Port
Arthur and 1oalney are safe enough for
the present. 1t would be folly to waste
time and men on them now. The demon
stration there in force has probably served
It's purpose. II Japan can make a success
full invasion of Manchuria. her advance will
be directed toward Hardin. and when she
holds that point the Russian army in Man
churia will be cut off from Europe There
may be no great general in command of the
japanese forces, but there seems to be some
one there who has not made any mistake
so far. This is the way the situation looks
to a man in Washington d. e..
WILLIAM WALLACE !CHILDS.