Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1904-10-28

Details of Charge by Japanese
officer and His Men on One of the
Strongest of the Russian Positions.
His Death on the Field-A Corpo-
rails Devotion.
The Hills Like the Outspread Fin
gers of a Hand Is what the Chinese
call the range which interrupts the
plains, like an immense irregular
breakwater, five miles in front of Lao
yang. The hero of the taking of those
hills is Major Tachibana. once cham
berlain to the crown prince. says the
special correspondent of the New York
Post, writing from Liaoyang under the
date of Sept. 16.
We net him on outpost duty south
of Anshun. He was genial beyond most
Japanese officers. We spoke of it after
ward. He nearly emptied his field
boxes treating a score of us to beer.
1t was he who handed about the old
fashioned Yankee candies, those "con-
verSation lozenges" of our childhood,
on which in pink there We're printed
such phases as, May | sit on the
fence and see you go by?" and Il can
never live without you" and do you
love me as | love your To receive
these nearly forgotten sweets in the
middle of Manchuria was somehow
more impressive than for soldier near
hA tn .rix n
parching day almost the last bottle
of beer that he had
We remembered him and spoke of
him. thinking of the lozenges and of
what pretty primary romances they
recalled. One day as we We're going
over the Shusanpo battlefield. seeing
our first Japanese and Russian dead,
Lieutenant Sataki said: "Oh, you recol-
lect the officer who entertained you
at the Anshan outpost? He died in
the charge this morning. He was over
there on that hill"
We had often asked for something
about him. He seemed like friend,
and not many do in the far east. Not
till today did we learn the circum-
stances of lis death. They were gal
liant and soldierly. They have made
him the hero of the fight of the Hills
Like Outspread Fingers. He was
there commanding the first battalion
of the Thirty-fourth regiment of the
ment and the division which did the
most gallant service of those forty
eight hours They had no beer and
no candy then. they had some hard
crackers and Il pint of rice each dur
ing two days and two nights.
This report of his conduct comes
from Corporal Seichi Uchida, who at
tended his wounds.
On Aug. 30 the center of the Rus
sian forces was on the hill to the right
of the pass. 1t was the best defended
place No progress could be made
against it. There was no cover for an
approach, as the tall millet had been
prrposely cut away by the Russians.
That night some Japanese crawled
on their bellies till they came close to
llc lilII > DdSc. l uty Sldyet tueIc III
the morning, 200 yards from Russian
trenches, in holes they dug with their
finger nails and sword bayonets be-
hind comical Chinese graves. They
saw the gray balloon rise high above
the hills and felt it was perceiving
everything.
Some survived to return and tell
what sort of obstacles had to be over
come. Wire crisscrosSed between
posts and set below the surface, and
under the wired areas round smooth
sided holes ten feet deep, from tie cen
ter of each of which rose a pointed
wooden stake to impale those who
tumble in There We're spaces not so
entane ed. very narrow. If men tried
to approach that way they would be
mussea in small passages, the range
of which the russians had and on
which they kept steady watch.
The Thirtyfoulth moved up. Major
Tachibanas battalion was in the first
line. 1t made some Of the obstructions
ineffective. 1t rushed at the enemy's
intrenchments like angry waves. The
intrenchments part way up the slope
at length were carried. The Russians
climbed back to the earthworks on the
crest. These also were attempted, the