The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-12-10
HELD LIFE CHEAP. Nv
TAKZVG RUSSIAN FORTS
Jnbauese Sacrificed Men Regardless Of Number
in Recent Desperate Efforts to Get DEATH
'~'-' -, GRIP OF, Port A,t1tar:

o o'clock in the morning, when the Rus
tured the trench, which was piled with
dead bodies. For over thirty yards be
tween the treLches there was q verl-
table shambles. The last attacks and
counter attacks were made over the
bodies of the slain.
the northern portion of Kee-kwan noun
tain was made at l CLOCK in the after
noon, when the assaulters swarmed up
the rampant wall from the moat and
met with an awful fire from within and |
from the Chinese wall in the interior
of the fort. When the Russians saw 1t |
was the intention Of the Japanese to
rush the fort, they moved consider
able force from the Chinese wall to the
gorge to the north and east.
Russians Shot Those Who Ran.
During the four assaults which the
Japanese made upon the fort, some of
ever the rear ramparts, but they. were
fred upon by the Russian forces in the
gorge. ,.4s.
AS the result Of the first assault, the
rampant walls were black with bodies.
In the second assault TIE Japanese sue
ceeded in gaining 9 foothold in the in
terror, where the defenses were bomb
proof, with raised lines Of protected
trenches in the rear of the fort, where
the machine guns swept the front Of the
fort and the walls.
The assaulters attacked this bomb
proof maze, where the lighting was
AIDES.
T At O'Clock in the morning the Jap
anese established trench line within
the rampant, which they still hold. TIL"
first sections of the maze, Of bomb
proofs were smashed and piled with the
The rush for tie interior of the fort
proved failure, but portions of the
Notifications were temporarily oc-
cupied. The defenders were annihilated,
or were unable or unwilling to retire,
and fought to the last breach.
Small Force Annihilated.
. Another attempt was made to pierce
} the principal line of Notifications sur
rounding the rear Of the eastern part
:: of Pan-tung mountain, where, after four
! furious attempts, small body of Japan
csc succeeded in getting thru the wall
and in establishing themselves on the
lower slopes Of Wantai hill The Rus
slams rushed the supports with machine
. guns from the upper slopes of the Wan
tai hill forts, and the small party of
> Japanese was practically annlhllated.
= L
at this point.
The last efforts of the assaulters were
made at midnight, assisted by artillery,
which covered the slopes of Wantai hill
; with an avalanche Of shells. The Rus
slams fought with tremendous courage,
engaging the Japanese with bayonets
and grenades when they came to close
/ lished trench line five yards in front of
o the line of Notifications, which they
: now occupy.
Q The forces are engaged in throwing
e dynamite grenades at each other.
In the first assault against the fort
J. on the eastern part of Rlh-lung noun
e tain, the Japanese. were unable to gam
foothold, tho their artillery made the
e interior Of the forts seething caul
:, dron Of bursting shells.
IT Walls Black With Dead.
10 The attempts which were first made
Il, to rush the western part of Rihlun&
T. mountain, officially called Sung:sh'
mountain, also ended in failure. III
0. Japanese reached the parapets from tn
h moat, but fed as fast as they came from
IL the fire within the fort. The wall
were black with the assaulters, Wh
were deluged with shells from the Tor
on An-tse mountain, across the gorge
2 Of the Shui-shi valley between the ivy
- fortified ridges and from fort immedi
ately in the rear, called the supporting
fort Of Sung-shu mountain.
At 9 O'Clock at night force Of 2,O0'
volunteers from the right division, LEI
by a general, started from point south
west of Shui-shi village, pushed up Tn
gorge between the two fortified ridge
and attacked the supporting fort
Sung-shu mountain, which is a. shor
distance outside the western confines
port Arthur, with the intention Of en-
veloping the city from the west, an
also for the purpose Of assisting tn
assaulters of two Rih-lung mountal
Hand, to Hand Fighting.
This force reached the fort hill an
engaged strong force of Russian
upon it's slopes in hand to hand 81
counter which lasted for two hours.
At the same time the Japanese
saulting the east and west Rlh-lun
forts made desperate attempts to rus
the interior of the forts. They game
the ramparts, inside which they esta
The interior defenses Of both for
are the same as those on North Re
kwan mountain, but the east Rih-lu1
fort is the largest and strongest OF II
three forts It has upper and low
levels. The lower levels were the see
Of the most awful struggle, viii
lasted from 10 o'clock until midnigl
Under cover of darkness the Japane
poured over the ramparts and furious
attacked the first section Of BON
proofs. The defenders received the
With bayonets and dynamite grenad
while the machine guns on the uSr
levels poured a deadly hail into t
ranks of the Japanese. ~
Oorpses Piled Up.
The struggle was absolutely hand
hand. The defenders Of the grea1
part of the bomb-proofs on the low