The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-08-20

a close watch of the war; and the con-
 tinuous victories of the Japanese ar- my nave wrought them up to an in- | tense pitch of enthusiasm, as they come to market in the morning and as they go home at night the old farmer wo-
 men stop before the bulletin boards | mat hang along the roadway and get
 the latest information, and they invest
 their hard earned coppers in brilliantly |colored Autographs illustrating inci- | dents of personal bravery and other
 episodes of the war. Of course these
 pictures are pro-Japanese to the ex- l treme. In every representation of a l battle the Russians are five to one, and
 that one valiant son of Nippon is cut | tlng their heads off or running them l through with his sword as rapidly as l possible. while on their knees they plead for mercy. These Autographs are pasted on the walls of houses and are passed from hand to hand among the peasants as accurate presentations of
 actual events, but that is no more of
 deception than Is practiced by the
 newspapers In their highly colored ac- counts of the campaigns. few of the English newspapers publish the truth as closely as they dare, and fortunate iy everything thus far has been so much in favor of Japan that 1t has not been unsafe to do so. but if reverses should come. if the Russians could possibly manage to win a battle or recover part of their lost prestige or territory, do not know who would dare communicate that fact to the peo-
 pie of this country. They are so in-
 flated with patriotism and glory and
 their own prowess at present that they
 would not listen to bad news.
 The war is the theme of all the the
 atrlcal performances The play writers
 or Japan are busy adapting the incl dents of the campaign in Manchuria to the stage: so eager Is the enthusiasm Of the people that they are not willing 10 witness anything else. Most of the plays are preposterous. They repre- sent the humiliation of Russia and the glory of Japan by absurd and impossi- ble situations, but that is exactly what the people want. and the theatrical managers give to them in large doses. When beardless Japanese boy cuts his way through a column of bewhisk- cred Russians to rescue a wounded comrade, and carries him to safety amid the clashing of sabres and the roar of musketry. the audience is touched in the right place. and re- spends with applause that endangers the roof. And when some innocent ""PtHFSS HndiueI ulSCOVerS a secret Of Russian diplomacy that Is vital to the interests of her country and murders five or six Russian statesmen and score of military guards and police in order to make her escape the crowds that witness the spectacle are satisfied that they are getting the real thing. And they will tolerate nothing else.
 Capt F.. R. Smith. an old veteran of our Civil War, who has been a look cron in Japan for several months tells mo that 1t reminds him of what hap pencd in New England in 1861. His soul had been stirred by the enthusi- asm and patriotism he has witnessed, but he says they haven't yet begun to realize what war Is. It will require a good many funerals he thinks before they will be able to estimate the i'm
 portance and the significance and the awful consequences of the struggle they are now engaged in. But the con