The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1904-01-28
IApAN AND PORT ARTHUR.

IN tne OTlSlI, as ~ W." 49, ,
wears ago. When the Japanese army
moved into Corea and Manchuria
and drove the Chinese army before /
If il was said that Japanese pro-
gress would be stopped at the great
fortressss of Port Arthur and Wei'I
Hai-Wei. *
These we're spoken Of as the Glib
raltars of The Chinese empire Port
Arthur, located at tine southern ex-
tremity of the Laotung peninsula Pc
tween Corea bay and Pechili gulf,
was the great arsenal and fortress
guarding approach to Pekin. Wei
Hai-Wei, across the gulf on the pen,
insula to the south, was the great
naval fortress Of China.
Taa first Japanese, army, after
driving Chinese troops out OF Corea
desA southern Manchuria, advanced
e he hden and Cline nS0ittss TO tne
,sand 49, snssis,s .-..ds s snv Iafoes
4 On Mule. and
south. A 2esay that tt,aIiso,1 saEs. IL Il rLos q
i ed early in September, 1894, on an
island forty miles northwest of Port
i Arthur. and a month later effected a
landing on the main line, sighty-1ye
miles northeast of Port Arthur.
The fortifications at Kin Cnau
j We're captured Nov. 4, the six forts at
Il Talien Wan were captured Nov. 6.
and the Japanese army, 10000 strong,
i invested Port Arthur Nov. 49,. All
the fortifications were in the hands
! of the Japanese by Nov. %.
4 Early in 1895 the forts at Wei-Hai
Wei were captured in the same sort
of campaign by the third Japanese
army, and the way was open to Pc
kin. The property, including public
works, military and naval supplies,
at Port Arthur had value of $70,.
100000, and when Wei-Hai-Wei was
captured the japanese were in a po.
sition to dictate terms to China. In
the treaty ratified by both govern
ments Por Arthur and the greater
!. part of the Laotung peninsula, with
4 certain districts in Manchuria, were
ceded to Japan. Russia, Germany
and France protested, and they were
] re-ceded to China.
A little later Port Arthur and a
district with an area OF 800 square
miles was leased for a term of fifty
years by China to Russia. Germany
|, leased Kiao Chau on the same terms,
and England leased Wei-HatWei on
the same terms.
This arrangement put the strong.
est fortresses of China in the hands
= of Russia, England and Germany, but
: Russia, more than any other power
q proceeded at once to improve and
T fortify the territory leased to her
Port Arthur was made a Russian
naval and military port and the ter
y minus of the Trans-Siberian railway
4 The city of Dalny, thirty miles from
s Port Arthur, at later date was
> made the commercial terminus OF
o1 the great railway, and an open port
but Port Arthur and part of Talier
Wan bay were kept closed to all ex
. cept Russian and Chinese vessels.
! 1t is known that Russia has spent
!. hundreds of millions in improving
!. and strengthening Port Arthur, ant
Americans who have visited the city
say IHdJ II 10 ldCb lu6 W
the East The Japanese, however
!. know more than any other people ex
cept Russians, of these improve
ments. They have had spies, proba
bly,, in Port Arthur from the begin
2 ming. They know that such a cam
paign as they conducted against Por
Arthur ten years ago could not bt
successful now, because the LIANT
!, approaches are as strong as the sci
3 approaches.
p If they could make dash on Por
: Arthur and have such measure O
success as they had in their campaign
? of 1894, they would injure Russia a
a most vital point in her strategi'
line in the East and gain an immeas
n urable advantage In war. but Russia
A by the concentration of stronl
d army on the Corean frontier, by tn
J. massing Of heavy bodies OF troops a
d every point on the Manchurian rail
I, way accessible to attack, and by th'