Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-05-17
they're FIGHTING.
CONTINUED from page ~
termined resistance from the Russian
cunners. who swept their adversaries

| til the Russians, finding further night
ing impossible, rendered their guns
useless. and, waving aloft white flag,
surrendered. Promptly after the battle
| the Japanese cavalry followed up the
fleeing Russians. The Japanese in this
part of the battle lost 300 men.
The division swept southwark and
entered Antung, from which place the
Russians had previously fled after
burning the bridge. The Japanese fleet
had shelled the town from the south on
Saturday night.
| Immediately after the great battle I
crossed over the Yalu into Manchuria
and gazcd on the scene of conflict. The
battlefield presented dreadful spec
tacle.
Field hospital surgeons were deity
patching up wounded, men who Dor.
their sufferingS with most heroic sto-
| icism. There a Polish lay moaning
"Meine Liebe," not once but hundred
| times until near the end when his
breath went out from him in NUT
| tered prayer. There Il Russian officer
strove with set teeth to suppress his
groans as the surgeons raised his shat
tered leg, while a fierce mustached
| COssack lying wounded on the ground,
raised his clinched fist in agony TO
| heaven.
The Russians, judging from their d.
| shevelled appearance, had been III lle
trenches for several days. The Japanese
are showing the greatest Kindness "
their wounded prisoners. TINS Is es-
| pecially noticeable at the field hospltdl
base, where surgeons ever leave Jap
| anese "Tommies'' to attend TO Rus-
SLAMS. Captured Russian officers are
treated by the highest japanese OIL
GERS as respected guests.
| "These are good foes exclaimed
Japanese infantryman; they are ut
terly unlike the Chinese. They are op-
ponents worthy of out steel. These
Russians shoot well and entrench we'll.
Some companies of the Japanese 18th
| Regiment had three-quarterS of their
men killed or wounded in the frontal
attack at Kiuliencheng. The heaviest
casualties occurred when the troops
were crossing the river.
After the battle the dead lying on
the river banks were gathered together
into a little hill of bodies. 1t was a
moving, a terrible sight.
In another dispatch, written on the
battlefield in the midst of what he de-
scribes as a tremendous wind storm,
caused by the heavy firing" and which,
apparently, greatly delayed the trans
mission of his dispatch, Mr.. Mckenzie
gives a thrilling account of the opera
tions on Friday and Saturday, April 20
and 30, in the great battle on the 4alu
river.
THE Russian position" he says, eff
properly held, should have been i'm
.pregnable, except with the sacrifice of
10000 men. Yet it has been turned with
a trihing loss" Dealing with the ma
tural fighting, he continues:
Making a dctour around Win, l
rode on Friday afternoon, to the ad-
yanced Japanese earthwOrks north of
Win. Here I found all preparations
in progress for Immediate battle.
"rhe Russians held the face of the
mountain to the north of Win and the
village at the foot of the mountain.
while the japanese occupied the island
of Kurito, which is separated from the
base of the mountain by narrow
stream. The Japanese had pushed their
infantry forward during the afternoon,
while exchanging rifle fire with the
Russians.
batteries opened terrific shrapnel fire
on the face of the mountain opposite.
1.-The Japanese infantry, creeping
closer TO the Russians, poured heavy
rifle fire in the villages. The Russians
were overwhelmed and. although they
struggled CALAMITY, were soon forced to
leave the houses. They went straight
I'D the mountain side on n gray stream,
10 toll n
breath on the precipitous slope.
"Shrapnel, with awful precision,
played over them. saw our prOjectles
bursting into conical hills of smoke and
squirting perpetual blasts Of flame
above the heads of the Russians. until
the mountain-front seemed covered
with their glare.
after some delay the Russians bat
teries at Kiuliencheng and behind Ii
ger Hill awOke to the situation.
Great shells came shrieking, with
piercing screams. around, before, be-
hind us, and threw up earth and sand
in all directions. They came plump in
to a Japanese bettery, but many
dropped harmlessy into the soft earth
of the valley beneath.
Darkness brought silence, but not
rest. During the night the Japanese
column silently crossed tie river some
miles north of Win. To the south the
Japanese hauled their howitZed and
field batteries into position behind the
SHELTER of the trees on Kinteito island.
directly facing Kiuliencheng. Day.
break found the guns well concealed.
Meantime the superb japanese infantry
were marching southwark along the
river bank in Manchuria territory to-
wards the unsuspecteing Russians.
While masked guns were entrenched,
the troops faced the main Russian posi-
ton.
"A light mist now came down. Firing
began at o'clock, when the Japanese
commenced to search the Russians
position in the valley with shrapnel. A
duel followed between the guns of the
two armies. the Japanese mainly she'll
ing the Russians around Tiger island.
Meanwhile the Japanese were steadily
advancing southwark concealed by the
hills and marching silently in single
file.