Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1904-06-23
HEROIC JAPANESE
AND THEIR LOYALTY
LETTERS WRITTEN HOME BY THE
SEA FIGHTERS.
FAREWELLS MOST TENDER
MissiVes, Translated by Yone Noeuch
from Various Toxic Newspapers,
Breathe Spirit of Fiery Patriotism
Like That of Greeks Before Going
Into Battle.

! Yone Noguchi III Boston Transcript
-Toratora Akamatsu. of the battle
ship Fuji, afterward one OF the hardy
party who undertook the terrible work
of bottling up Port Arthur, wrote 10
/ his father from Saseho before starting
| for the first Port Arthur lombard
ment:
1T is great honor to be a Japanese
and greater honor to be sailor, and
the greatest honor to be sent to the
front at the beginning. In my thought
there is nothing but Dear Japan My
ancestor died on the battlefield, as you
told me in my childhood when | used
to sit on your knees; and so may /,
To die gloriously and to leave my
name in the history of the Japanese
navy is my. desire, and | believe it
would be the right way to pay back
your kindness, which is bigger than
Full Yama, far deeper than the Japan
sea. And also, / believe that my Sam
urai ancestors would be glad to hear
| it in hadcs. Burt to die is easy, and to
! live gloriously is the hardest-which
win try. Perhaps l shall see you, my
beloved father, again, being adorned
with the greatest military honor, after
the complete defeat of Russia. You
often said that If | do not die at the
time when | should die, it would be a
greater shame than DEATH Death
do not want--even a coward could die
oftentimes. Above everything, | will
J ,I,o
duct | will never practice. Tomorrow
is the day when our warship will start.
Pray, father, think to yourself that
died for our country's sake. And If
come back alive, you will have
| double joy in seeing me born again.
/ Repeat your prayer to our household
/ shrne-not for my own humble self,
but for our great Japan's Victory!
Your devoted son, Torataro."
Kenji Inatso, of the torpedo destroy
er Kasumi, who is now lying in the
/ Saseho Naval Hospital, having been
! shot through the temple and thigh in
the battle of the tenth of March, wrote
to his father as follows, with the date
of March IA
] we uOl1DdTu6u 1Oll al Iuut. HC
battle on the tenth, which began at
early four o'clock, was of the bitterest.
/ The cannon balls fell like rains, by
/ which | was shot Father, are you not
/ glad to hear that | was wounded for
my country's sake? If | we're not,
somebody else might have been: l re-
ceived the wound which | welcomed
with joy. | understand that my
brother was also in the front with the
army You must be glad to have your
two sons serving for our emperor and
country. And how is my little sister?
Is she helping you as usual? If my
mother were alive! Poor sister, she
must be your obedient daughter as
well as your housekeeper, Give her
my lots of love! Pray, don't worry
about mel"
Lieutenant Commander Yoshimoto
Masaki. the hero of Port Arthur at the
attempt of blockade, wrote his parents
under the date of Feb. 81 as follows:
my dear father and mother, this
little letter may be my last in this
world. Our great admiral appointed
me for the greatest work, which is to
bottle up Port Arthur, and which is
the greatest honor ever given to any
seaman. Dear parents, your kindness
for my lifetime of thirty odd years will
be repaid from the other world-from
hades. My life is wholly given to our
emperor and country. | will do my
best, dashing bravely and straight. To
] = 4 Two fold
everything to my wife before starting
to the front, who will bring up my two
boys properly as | trust. After my
death you will give her your especial
attention.
And he wrote again with the date of
March Is:
Dear father, you are great Samura
yourself and you perfectly understand
that Life and Death are written in the
holy book of God. and they do not
come as We wish. Here is one who
will return alive after accomplishing
glorious thing. And there is one also
who will be killed while hiding, !
promised myself that l would die glor-
iously this time, as | said in my last
letter. Father. | have returned again
with my life and much strength re
naming in myself. And | feel shame
to tell you that our hardy attempt was
not so successful as We wished But
remember that our party did our best
under the circumstances. Ny promise
that | will die gloriously for our coun-
try's sake will be fulfilled in a future
battle. And | wish to see your face
saying that your son died bravely, and
that he was honored by the emperor.
Il believe you are told by the news
papers that we have been bomhard.nr
continually. | know you must be m
natient for some final victory. Pray
be patient. father,
Not Only myself father, all on"
sailors and officers are promising 10
dash along the road of Death with
laughter and swords 1t is my eternal
regret. however. that | could not ex-
press my filial piety in my life. But