Valentine Democrat. (Valentine, Neb.) 1900-1930, 1904-12-29
WAR IN THE ORIENT.
COLD WEATHER PREVENTS
ACTIVE OPERATIONS.
Both Armies Occupy Substantially tho
Positions They Have Held for Weeks
-P"ogrcss of the Baltic Fleet-Next
Battle May Be on the Sea.

Battle May Be on the Sea.
A Mukden dispatch says that 1.-The
extreme cold keeps things quiet along
the front" When the thermometer is
| below zero one cannot look for active
| and continued military operations.
| There are reports of movements Of
| Russian and Japanese flying columns,
| particularly on General KurOpatkin'S
| left flank, but both sides occupy sub
| stantially the positions they have held
| for weeks.
| If it be the intention of the Japanese
| to take their time henceforth about
| the reduction of Port Arthur it will
| be in their power to send Marquis Oya-
ma strong reinforcement. The low
| est estimate of General StOeSSelss force
is 1000 men. That probably is too
low, but if he should have three times
as many the Japanese can safely send
away Il considerable portion of their
| Port Arthur army.
In the opinion of the Chicago Trib-
une, if Marquis Oyama, after having
been REINFORCED from that quarter,
does not take the offensive speedily he
| probably never will His army will
have reached the highest point of eff
| cheney after the arrival of the trained
! soldiers who have been lighting under
| General NOgi The men whom he may
receive from Japan will not be Of so
! good quality. On the other hand, the
! troops now reaching General KurOpat-
kin are drawn from the garriSOnS on
the western frontier of the empire and
are superior to many of those previ-
OuSly sent to him. before long Cen
eral KurOpatkin should have at his
disposal all the troops the carrying ca
pacity of the TranSSiberian railroad
will permit him to keep supplied with
provisions. The road is constantly be-
ing made more efficient by the con-
struction of new sidings and the sub
stitution of iron for wooden bridges.
/ 1t would not be surprising to hear
that the Japanese have given up the
plan of assuming the aggressive for
policy less prodigal of the lives of the
coluiClo. LII lhdI tNCuL MAI Wy u
ma could choose between holding his
| present position after fortifying it
more extensively, or he could fall back
| upon some point nearer his base and
await his enemy there.
| 1t is admitted that the Russian ships
at Port Arthur are destroyed, or are so
badly damaged as to be unserviceable.
The japanese ships which have been
blockading Port Arthur have gone
home to refit and get ready to meet
an advancing Russian fleet, which,
though superior on paper, certainly is
inferior in personnel. Naval officers
| Of all nations have turned their eyes
to the orient and are waiting eagerly
! for the result of the impending con-
| test between great fleets of armored
! vessels. They have professional in
terest in the matter aside from the
general interest felt by all.
! General StOessel has given General
Nogi a map showing the positions of
the hospitals in Port Arthur, so that
/ they may be safe from Japanese fire
ITOSreSS OF the baltic Fleet.
1t is almost three months and a halt
since the Baltic fleet was officially de-
clared to have sailed from Cronstadt
for the far East However, the feet
fingered at Reval and Libau for over
month after that, and the real be-
ginning Of its voyage must be dated
from Oct. 16.
1t covered the first 900 miles of
its II ,5OO-mile journey at the average
! speed of about four miles an hour.
Then, at Tangier, it divided into two
squadrOns, one of which, under Vice
Admiral Rojestvensky, started around
the Cape of Good Hope and the other,
under Rear Admiral VOelkersam, went
, by way of the Suez Canal.
Rojestvenskys squadron is now
coasting along German Southwest AT.
RIGA. In forty days, since leaving Tan
gier, it has covered about $500 miles,
at the average speed of five and a half
miles an hour. Voelkersam's squadron
has left Jubutil, in French Somaliland,
! with a speed record up to date of
| about three miles an hour.
| The Chagos Islands in the Indian
! Ocean are generally assumed to be the
rendezvous for the fleets. At the pres.
ent rate Of speed Admiral Rojestvens-
! ky should be there about the 10Th of
January, the distance he has to cover
being something less than 1000 miles.
! Then, assuming that the second squad.
ron has arrived and that third squad
| ron which left Libau in November has
| caught up, he will be ready to take uu
the serious part Of his adventure.
| 1t is 5000 miles from the Chayos
Islands to Vladivostok by way of tho
Tsugaru Straits. or, for a fleet aver.
| aging five and a half miles an hour.
about fifty days steaming. The feet