The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1904-09-08

ed here, but not yet confirmed, that
kuropatkin was obliged to abandon 200
guns at Lao Yang. Some of them were
damaged in the fighting and the rest
were disabled by kuropatkin's orders.
st. Petersburg, Sept. 6.-The feeling
of natioral grief and disappointment
caused by Kuropatkin's unsuccessful
attempt to make a stand at Lao Yang,
deep and bitter as it is, is somewhat
tempered by the development of the
fact that the Russian co~mmander-in-
chief had removed the bulk of his
stores northward before the battle,
leaving a mere shell at Lao Yang, and
that he succeeded in e~xtricating his
army, especially S~takelberg's corps,
from the clutches of the japanese.
The war office here believes the bat
tie Virtually ended II that Kuropat-
kin'S line of retreat is open. While al
hitting that K~uropatkin sustained a
severe reverse, the war Office consid-
ers the failure of Field Marshal Oyama
to hold n cut off kuropatkin is a
strategic defeat for Oyama. The Rus
sian military authorities figure that
Oyama had a numerical superiority of
SO, 600 men in the operations against
kurOpatkin.
The exact position of the Russian
right flank is not known at the war Of
flee, but it is not believed the Japanese
can now develop enough strength to en-
danger it's retirement. The war office
does not expect a renewal of fighting
for several days, which they think the
japanese will employ in recuperating,
While Kuropatkin will collect his army
preparatory to pushing the troops
InOrthWard.
According to the military authorities,
] n IL 80 .1,.n,, / to- 49, ~,,I ,,1N,,r 60,
victory We're dashed by the wonderful
celebrity With which Oyama's right
pushed nOrthward after crossing the
Taitse river. Here kuropatkin's infor-
nation evidently was faulty in believ-
ing that he had before him the whole
Of the Japanese forces which had
crossed over to the right bank. He had
already completed a preliminary bonn
bardment OF Kuroti's force on Fri
day, and was about to strike him, when
he discovered that another Japanese
column had crossed the river further
up the stream and had worked around
still further northward. The latter
column was marching with great rap
idity westward to cut the railroad and
close the door on the Russian retreat
to Mukden. Just at this point there is
n hiatus in the reports, n whether
Kuropatkin actually attempted to de-
liver his blow against Kuroki is not
clear. At all events if he did he was
compelled to desist upon the discovery
of the northerly Japanese column. The
latter tool him by surprise.
General Orloff's division, which suf-
fered so severely, has just arrived from
European Russia. Although this divis-
ion was thrown into confusion and lost
4 %frightful number OF men, the tenn
porary check it was able to give to the
Japanese probably saved the railroad
for K~uropatkin.
He has a double track railroad and
the high road. When the fighting re-
commences it is expected here that it
will be in the nature of a series of rear
guard actions, as the final withdrawal
Is effected.
In the meantime Kuroki. freed from
Kuropatkin, marched hastily westward
to intercept Stakelberg, who was cross
ing the river from the left bank. 1t
was hen hat Kuropatkia thought
Stakelberg's corps was lost, and SO re-
ported to the war office. But Kuroki
was too late. Stakelberg not only sue
ceeied in getting his corps across, but
marched, at high speed, thirty miles
to Yentai. actually arriving in time to
come to the support of the hard-pressed
Orloff.
The war office processes ignorance of
the losses Of guns n men sustained
by the Russians, but there is no doubt
many thousands have fallen. The re-
treat Of Kuropatkin has evidently
thrown everything into confusion at
the front and the reports received are
meager and incomplete. The military
expert Of the Novoe Vremya says the
chief question Of the moment Is
whether Kuropatkin will succeed in
collecting all his forces from Lao Yang
and effecting a retirement to Mukden,
in view of the thanking position taken
UP by the Japanese.
"Reinforcements," the paper says
'are undoubtedly arriving at Yentai
from the north. Our main hope lies
in the possible exhaustion Of the Jap
anese after the bloody and I'M
precendentedly long and sever fighting
which practically continued day and
night from August "a to September g."
The emperor has undergone a great
strain during the past week, his main
fear has been that Kuropatkin would
be cut off. Like his subjects, the en-
peror has taken Kuropatkin's defeat
greatly to heart, but the preservation
of the army organization has been a
great relief, and his answer to the bat
tie of Liza Yang will be the mobiliza-
ton OF 'Wo more army corps. So far
as can learned the emperor shows no
disposition to blame Kuropatkin. All
classes of the population are waiting
with intense eagelness the receipt of
details OF the battle, and estimates and
particulars of the losses.
The accounts Of the battle published
in the newspapers here are very in
complete. h cry of the papers is
that the war must go on until Russia
is victorious, If not this year Their next
year.
A dispatch to the Official Messenger
FLED ar Mukden Sunday says:
"The commandment of Lao YAM,
which commenced last Thursday, con-
tined Friday and Saturday. On those
days the forts surrounding the town
witlstood the heavy fire of artillery
and a brilliant assault by the japanese
infantry. All the attacks were re-
pulsed, mines playing an important