The Savannah morning news., 1904-10-31

lombard us for all they were worth.
The unceasing roar of artillery made
one dizzy. There was no getting away
from the horrid din. 1t pursued one
everywhere. By 3 O'Clock the sky over
clouded and rain began to fall. The
ground, which had not yet dried from
the previous downpour, soon became
converted into a veritable bog, over
which the ambulance carts creaked,
splashing mud, on their way back to
their positions for a further batch of
wounded.
Sept. 1.-At o'clock this morning
Kuropatkin, accompanied by all his
staff left to ride around the positions,
and meanwhile his train was brought
on to the main line and proceeded first
to the station and afterwards, when
the commander had returned and en-
tered his carriage, three versts from
Lao Yang, the train was drawn on to
a siding.
COrpses I'm Rows.
On riding through the town just be-
fore the departure, l stopped near the
church. A sad picture presented it,
self to my eyes. On the other side
of the enclosure, in a tiny, hollow, lay
ten corpses placed side by side, and
covered with sheets from under which
one could see their feet, looking hid
eously dirty, covered with black earth.
Some of them still wore their boots,
but the majority were barefooted. The
aged priest and his deacon with a few
choristers selected from the non
combatants, we're hurriedly reading
the burial service. While the service
was being read over some of the
corpses, bearers were hastily bringing
others and unceremoniously fiinging
them on the ground.
Up to 2 o'clock in the afternoon the
Japanese left us alone; it was said
that they were placing siege guns to
lombard the city. Our armies retreat
ed beyond the line of forts and took
up very well entrenched positions. In
describable tumult prevailed at the
railroad station-trains were rapidly
formed, loaded with wounded, with
artillery ammunition, with commissa-
riat stores, and hurriedly forwarded.
The refreshment room at the station
was thronged mostly with reserve Of
ficers and commissary officers, as well
as doctors and sisters Of mercy, all
hurrying to satisfy their hunger as no
one knew when he would next have
meal.
The hum of many voices filled the
air; the noise was literally deafening.
Suddenly, just at O'Clock, the we'll
known kissing sound Of shell was
heard above the station roof and the
projectie burst alongside the build
ing. An awful crash for the mo-
ment obliterated all other sound; then
came the rattle Of falling glass and
stone. the crowd rushed hither and
thither-a piercing Shrek rent the
air; IL came from a sister Of mercy
who had been struck by splinter as
she was crossing the platform. She
fell covered with blood. Then came
another shell, bursting a little to the
side near the water tower; third
fell beyond the station at spot where
the foreign military attaches lived.
The bombardment of Lao Yang had
begun.
The wounded in Tents.
Along the whole length of the rail-
road from the Red Cross Hospital Of
the Georges Sisterhood stretched
line of tents where lay the wounded,
whom II had been impossible to place
in the railway carriages. Here they
were dressed, sorted out and entrained.
AS the carriages were filled up the
trains moved off one after another,
northward. The sun was westering,
night was at hand. In some places
Ire broke out: some stores which had
not been removed were burning. Shots
re-echoed on all sides. The flare Of
innunerable discharges OF artillery was
to be seen here and there. Above
everything glowed the flames OF the
fire and the heart was filed with the
bitterness Of a vague affront. Only
now could /. to some extent, realize
what our ancestors had felt in leaving
MOSCOW, since the abandonment OF
such an Insignificant and even foreign
place as Lao Yang causes heart
ache. To-day Il is still In our hands.
but tomorrow or at least the day aft
err, the Japanese Will enter.
All night long the Japanese poured
a stream OF shot and shell into Lao
Yang. centering their fire upon the
spot where stood the headquarters OF
the commlesariat depots. The latter
however. had almost all been emptied.
This senseless, futile bombardment