New-York tribune., 1904-09-07
TENSION IN ENGLAND.
Belief, Hoceuer, That Kuropatkin's s
Retreat Is assured.


the situation in the Far East is not much in
fuenced by General Kuropatkin's reassuring dis
patches. For several days 1t has been held her
! that the Japanese efforts to envelop the Russian
force had failed, and st. Petersburg's jubilan
relief over that failure is scarcely noticed in th
continued and rather critical desire to know th'
degree of disintegration in which it is assumed
| here Kuropatkin must reach Moukden.
Almost all of the difficulties Of the retreat re-
! ported in the latest Russian dispatches have
been fOreseen by the English military observers
and. indeed. the Russian confidence following SC
| closely the period of what regarded here as
| exaggerated depression, combined with complete
japanese silence regarding the pursuit. leads
THE Daily Graphic to believe that the Jap
anese generals "have not yet given up all hopes
| of infiicting a crushing blow the Russian
| main army
THE Daily Mails Mouleden correspondent.
teegraphing under date of September B. appears
to sum up the situation impartially, saying that
the relative positions of the opposing fotSes
are just the same as before" The enemy is ad-
vancing from the south and threatening the
Russians at the same time from the east, but
the decisive battle is still to come.
From the British point of view, the excite
ment grows rather than diminishes, and wheth-
er the japanese are fast enough and strong
enough to develop the running fight into great
battle with definite result is a question still
aasked on all sides. The Russian official dis
patches themselves dispose OF the apprehension
hitherto expressed by several English critics
that the Japanese would be so exhausted by
their long fighting, or that their ammunition
would become so depleted that they would be
unable to carry on the pursuit.
The Standard which comments upon what
1t terms st. Petersburg's attack OF nerves" and
It's not altogether surprising readiness to be-
lieve anything. however disastrous, thinks that
II the Russians can get to Harbin there will be
long pause in the Whether Kuropatkin
can get to Hardin is says THE Standard" "a
hypothesis which must not be put forward too
confidently until we see what the next day or
two may bring forth" The same paper has no
/ doubt that the Japanese will follow their enemy
there as they did to Liao-Yang. but it does not
think that the pursuit be carried out as far
as Hardin until after the winter season.
The Daily Telegraph says:
Kuropatkin has won the race, and saved the
greater part OF his army by of the mastery
retreats Of military history. Few things in the
| record of war have been finer than the energy
and determination with which the Cars COM
mander in chief prevented the victors from con-
verting defeat into catastrophe, and the re-
suit will have the most farreaching influence
upon the whole future OF the war. Combined
with the stolid staying powers OF Ivan Ivano-
| witch, the tactics which saved the situation
| after Liao-Yang and again at Yentai saved 1t
once more at the Hun River, and protected the
crossing of the bulk OF the forces.
At what cost this was accomplished. and
whether the Japanese have been yet wholly
thwarted OF their prey" THE Daily Telegraph"
says will not be known for some days: but as
Stunning that Kuropatkin had 10000 men at
Llao-Yang, the paper says that he will be com
paratlvey fortunate II he leads 10000 men TO
Telling TO Moukden, and that number will
be sufficient to save prospects for the immediate
future"
Though KurC atkins resource meets with such
praise. The Daily Telegraph" declares that the
Japanese triumph from every point of view is
one OF the most extraordinary feats Of arms
| ever performed by any people. and vindicates
the claim Of the Japanese TO be regarded as q
great power, treating on equal terms with the
foremost OF Western States and counting. with
the British Empire and Russia. one of the
| three permanent decisive factors in the des-
tinies OF Asia"
The Times" doubts whether Kuropatkin has
entirely extricated himself especially in view OF
the report that the Japanese are north of Yentai.
1t dismIsses suggestions of intervention base
less The Times" follows up it's editorial the
military situation with long and striking re-
view upon the results of the gigantic struggle
In Manchuria, the greatest piece OF history
making that this generatiorb has seen"
In summing up the effects which the Japanese
victories must have for Europe and the United
States The Times takes as the uppermost
theory that OF the yellow Peril" In concluding,
1t says:
II remains to be seen whether victorious
Japan would desire even il she had the power.
TO lead or drive China i'm the way she herself
has done. On this point we have strong doubts.
and that China will ever spontaneously enter
q III l.
izatIon for which. unlike Japan. she has laid no
solid foundation we doubt even stronger.
The same papers military critic. in a review
the keynote OF which is six months OF war
against a military empire of 130.OO0.000 of peo-
pie and not one solitary defeat on land or on
sea-" maintains that the japanese might long
ago have been in Moukden but that they delib-
erately held their hand until Kuropatkn was
strong enough 10 give battle. All along, says
this authority. the Japanese foresaw the event
ual Russian retreat to Harbn but they did
everything to lure Kuropatkin into postponing 1t
until after general action. and he adds that
''Port Arthur has exercised no serious influence
upon the prosecution OF the attack upon the
main Russian army"
1TF YTFFE 1T III 1DpTAT