The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-09-19

ship that excludes exploitation of gen.
erals would be with certain other
armies is appreciated by correspond
ents who have accompanied those
armies. General KurOki is a quiet and
unassuming gentleman, rather the
Moltke type than the theatrical gen.
eTal who rides about eXhorting and
cursiug his men. His type is apparent
ly the prevailing one in the Japanese
service. Sometimes it appears that he
has worked out his plans Of battle so
perfectly before the event that he can
sit down confident of its fulfillment.
and takes little further interest in the
proceedings. During the critical hour
of July 81, when his infantry was adj
vancing across the valley TO charge
the Russian entertainments on the
heights, he sat in the court yard of
Chinese temple chatting casually with
members of his staff. A court painter
could have made no battle picture
there. General Kuroki's force partakes
of his character. 1t might be described
as the silent army.
The Russians have their regimental
bands, which play at sunset hours and
on the march and during battle and
their soldiers advance to the sound of
drums. They chant their evening hymn
around the soup kettles, and sometimes
the roar of patriotic chorus rolls
through the hills from the Russian
camp fires TO the ears Of the Japanese
pickets. But in this campaign, al
though the infantry carry bugles by
whose notes they march in peace times.
I have never heard the sound OF a
trumpet near the front. No war songs
are suns. The band of the imperial
guards has been with headquarters oc-
~ eli q nj
in memory of the dead at Feng Wang
Cheng was concluded with q ringing
benediction of trumpets. But music
has no part in the soldiers daily life.
Their enthusiasm is displayed 10 the
ear only in moments of victory by that
weird and stirring cheer "BanZaii'
with which they charge.
Nor is this n convivial army. The
few camp followers, whose presence
near the front is sanctioned, sell cigar
cites, fans. handkerchiefs. towels, soap,
tooth brushes, writing paper and en-
velopes. The nearest shop where a
bottle of salli or beer can be bought is
at Feng Wang Cheng, fifty miles to
| the rear. and that means that the Of
feers get very little, and the soldiers
none.
: Tea, cigarettes and fanssa are the SOL
/ diers' luxuries. fishing writing letters
| and reading newspapers their amuse-
( ments. The field post carries an
( enormous amount of mail every day be
! tween Antung and the front. Riding
| about the camps one always sees hun
/ dreds of soldiers sitting cross-legged
/ under the trees painting artistic epis-
! ties TO relatives, with brushes on rolls
of thin paper. The greatest indul-
| gence of the officers is the big iron ket-
/ ties. carried in netting. two on a pony,
which are used for heating water for
| hot baths as wen as to cook the COM
pany mess Of rice. 4 few squares Of
! straw mating TO construct a bath
house. fire and an immense stone jar
for tub, spell comfort.
Fans for soldiers seem, an anomaly.
particularly for soldiers so far removed
from suspicion Of effeminacy as the
japanese. Yesterday a battalion of
| infantry toiled past. perspiring through
the sandy corn fields under ans almost
tropical sun. and every man was plying
a paper disk. The fans and tea kettles
dangling from saddles and from sol
| diers' packs have surprised some OF
the conservative European attaches
| But they are the concessions Japsn's
! Europeanized army makes to old
! Japan. and since they contribute to the
J content of the soldiers out of all pro-
| portion TO their weight there seems no
valid argument against them. An
4 other souvenir OF home life which the
soldiers have brought into Manchuria is
] a fishing line in every knapsack- From
! the commanding general Kuroki, down
to the humblest coOlie who trots after
his masters horse, they are disciples
OF the rod. Seeing these mild-eyed
boys sitting for long hours by the banks
| OF mountain streams waiting for q
! shree-inch ninnOw TO bite at an angle
worm, it is hard to realize. them as
the same fighting men who storm rocky
| enlbankneents. under showers OF
shrapnei and bring back the huge Cos
sacks OF aweseme regulations dociIs
captiveA failst