The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1904-04-23
ALEXIEFF GETSOUT
VICEROY OF RUSSIA IN THE FAD
EAST RESIGNS.
Resignation Said to Be the Direo,
Result of Internal Jealous;as
Among Those High i'm Councils
of War---Lately Has Been To-.
nOred by the Gar.

st. Petersburg, April 2O.-Vicerov
Alexieff has applied by telegraph to
the emperor to be relieved of his posi-.
ton of viceroy in the far East.
1t is expected that the request will
be granted. While no official announce.
ment has yet been made, there is rea.
son to believe that the above statement
is correct.
The resignation of Alexieff is the di.
rect result of internal jealousies among
those high in the councils of war. in.
dications of which have crept out from
time to time sisnce the war began.
On the eve of the war Alexieff an.
parently still had the confidence of the
car, but the lack of preparedness of
the Port Arthur fleet as shown in the
cases of the battleships Retvizan and
Czarevitch called the attention of the
emperor to the slackness Of the naval
administration in the far East.
The anti Aleixef party in st. Peters.
burg held that Vice Admiral Stark,
who was the viceroy's representative.
was responsible under him for the first
reverse at Port Arthur
Viceroy Alexief recommended the
appointment of either Vice Admiral
Doubasof or Vice Admiral Makaroff to
command the fleet in succession to
Vice Admiral Stark. The emperor Sc
lected Makaroff, and at the same time
issued special ukase making him alb
solutely independent This was the
first blow publicly given to Alexieff.
The second was the appointment of
General kurOpatkin as commander-in-
chief of the army in Manchuria. Ku-
ropatkin sided with Count Lamsdorff.
the foreign minister and M. White
against the policy of Manchurian an
nexation, and stated to the Chinese
minister to Russia, Hoo Wei Teh, that
the whole trouble originated with AL
exieff
That there might be no doubt of Ku-
ropatkin's exact jurisdiction, the en-
peror issued another ukase defining it,
and gave the former minister of war
comdlete control of military operations
in the far East.
When the Petropavlovsk was sunk,
Alexieff started from Mukden for Port
Arthur, telegraphing to the emperor
on his arrival there that he had hoist
ed his flag on the battleship Sevasto-
pol, and would direct the operations of
the fleet until a new commander was
sent out.
1t is said that no answer to this was
sent by the emperor. Without consult
ing Alexieff' s wishes, and without con-
sidering Admiral Doubasoff, whom he
had originally recommended, the en-
peror telegraphed Vice Admiral Skryd-
loft to proceed to Port Arthur via st.
Petersburg and assume command of
the fleet. 1t is asid that not even this
fact was communicated to Alexieff,
and he was allowed to learn of it
through the press dispatches. Alexief
considered the matter for three days,
at the end of which he is said to have
reached decision to apply for leave.
Skrydlof has not hesitated in talk
ing to his friends charging Alexief
with responsibility for the disasters to
the Pacicfi squadron, by his division
of the fleet, which segregated four ar
INQUIRED cruisers at Vladivostok and
stationed the Variag and Korietz at
Chemulpo.