Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1904-11-16
VAR FOR A WEEK.
SEVEN DAYS HISTORY OF The
EASTERN STRUGGLE.
Thrilling Stories of Bravery and Hero.
ism Come from Russo japanese Bat
tieiields = Desperate and Prolonged
Seige of Port Arthur.

During the week the world received
| the two most thrilling acco lnts of the
operations of the present war which
have yet been published The first
was the story OF the attie of I.iao-
yang. told by Frederick Palmer in col
her's Weekly. The other was the ae-
count by the Associated Press CORE.
spondent OF the operations about Port
Arthur DURING the last three months.
Both of these stories will hereafter
rank among tine classics of war CORE
spondence.
The Port AutdDmr story leaves one in
voluntarily with the feeling that war.
though horrible and brul n thing. is
yet redeemed from part of its ugliness
by the lustrous her0isnl,, self sacrifice
and devotion of it's Victims. Was there
ever more wonderful story :uid ,e
fOrgetfulness of self and Lowe of coun-
try than this account of tlse Japanese
soldiers who fell mortality wounded on
the slopes of Port ArthuU's soEts, smfI-
ing because they feat they had done
their part well? Or was there ever a
practice of cooler daring, tilaa that OF
the Japanese pioneers whu,. sent for
ward TO cut the entanglemenfs which
prevented the infantry cliasgsss. tunl-
BLEED over as dead before tha wires,
where they waited until night fall,
then stealthily crawledi on their Btseks
o the barbed wire and Dipuedl it with
their pincers?
The enthusiasm among the priw@tes
and under officers was Brought eut in
the great charge without orders. Two
attacks had been repulsedioa the lnnU1-
ing OF Aug. 21 Gen. Negi was ia a
auandary. He called his officers to-
gether. The troops We're left tn their
swn devices, and spontaneously by
tens aud twenties rushed up the blood
stained hill. Twice they were rolled
back, but the third time made their
efforts good 81
1t seems as if each Singlet Japanese
soldier is the stuff of which martyrs
are made, and is glad to dice for. his
religion, which is Japan.
What sort of men, then. must, the
Russians be, who. for over five months,
have hurled the Japanese troops reel
ing back time after time; who have
met Japanese cunning with equal cum
ningr who have met japanese bravery
with equal bravery; who have met
Japanese persistence with equal per.
sistene@2 In the fighting on the rip
of the I1Sotung peninsula each side.
has acquitted itself 50 creditablyl that
for hundreds of years there will be,
inspiration TO the people of both coun-
tries in the word Port Arthur
oyama and Kouropatkin still face.
each Other across the Shakhe. Artil-
lery dueIs are not infrequent Skin
mfshes are occasional. But neither.
side has yet shown any purpose OF
taking the real initiative.
The japanese authorities have az
knowIedged that in the early part, of
June their first-class battleship, the
Yashtma. 1890 tons struck a mine
and sunk The fact ryas reported. at
the time HnOfficially, but was officially
uenietl by the Japanese government.
The denial was justiiable, for STRATEGY
cal deceit is legitimate in war In the
battle of Aug. 10, therefore, Togo had
but four battleships against the Rus
slams six, and was outnuInbered. How
ever. he whipped the Muscoyites badly.
scattering some of them and driving
five Of their battleships back to Port
Arthur, where they have since been
Il oil hx-f 70 FRI Of
Nogt's guns. If the fleet attempts am
other sortie it will be far easier work
for Togo than it was on Aug. 10.
In their statement about the Yashi-
ma it would not be surprising If the
laps had been guilty of another gen
tie little deception. Though the va
shima was sunk in June, by this time
it may have been raised and repaired.
When Rojestyensky reaches the far
east he should not be at all surprised
if he meets five tirst-olass battleShips
under Togo. But whether Togo has
four battleships or five. he probably
will not have much trouble with Ro-
jestvensky and his cavalrymen.
The Seige of Port Arthur.
General Nogi announced to his army
Oct. % that there would be a bouI-
bardment of the whole eastenu ridge
of the Port Arthur defenses prelini-
nary to an attempt at its capture. This
bombardment began the next day, and
under cover OF the fire the Iapanese
regiments drove the Russians out of
their trenches on Sangshu. md Rihlung
Mountains, and on the southern part of
Pohsian Mountain. The artillery prac-
tice continued for three days longer.
and on the night of the twenty ninth
the japanese reserves were moved up
thrnl1nh the network Of trenches ia