The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-02-20
Some Famous Fighters, at Whose
Head Stands Gen. Kouropatkin,
the Right-Hand Man of Gen.
Skobeleff.
New York Sun.

New York Sun.
The late Archibald Forbes. the war
correspondent, was fond Of telling how
he met Skobeleff, the Russian general,
after. one of the fercest of the many
desperate fights before Plevna.
II was sitting in my tent writing a
dispatch, said Forbes, when the flap
was suddenly drawn aside and in
stalked the most terrible and awe-in-
spring object 1 have ever seen in my
life. It was kobeleff, whom l knew
we'll, but I had to look twice before I
recognized him. "
His smart generals uniform was
torn into shreds and stained with
blood and gunpowder from head to
foot His sword, which he held in his
hand, was simply smothered in blood.
and great drops Of it fell on the floor
of the tent as he greeted me.
There was a terrible cash across
the top of his forehead, and his eyes
still blazed with the fierce excitement
of the hand-to-hand fight which he
had just had with hundreds of Turks
"While he stood there telling me
about the battle, his favorite captain,
away to decide about the disposition
of some of the prisoners. Kouropat-
kin looked even more like a god of
war fresh from the scene of carnage.
'He was bleeding from half dozen
wounds, but he stood as steady as a
rock when he saluted Skobeleff. The
latter suggested that he had better go
into the hospital, but he CURLY re-
piled:
Ono, general. There is work to be
be done.
Il heard afterward that Skobeleff
and Kourcpatkin had fought side by
side thruout that bloody day, and had
clio in, hn
Their exploits formed the themes of
many story told beside the campfires
Of both armies turnout the campaign
Captain kourOpatkin, who was the
right-hand man Of Skobeleff all thru
the fight at Plevna, is now General
Kouropatkin, the cars minister of
war, and the most noted of all the
Russian fighting men.
File was trained in a harder school
than most modern generals, and went
gest glutton for adventure. After one
of the bloody fights in the Shipka Pass
he was left for dead upon the field.
All night he lay there, sore wounded
and unconscious. It was in the bitter
cold of a Balkan night, and he might
almost entirely covered by the body of
a dying Turk, who had fallen across
him after he sank to the ground with
the agony of his wound.
In the morning Kouropatkin recov-
cred consciousness, crawled from I'M
derneath the Turk, and made his way
slowly and painfully to the Russian
camp, where his comrades received
him as if he were a ghost
Kourpatkin became the hero Of the
Russian army, second only to his great
leader Skobeleff, by his bravery and
fine generalShip at the capture of Cock
| Tepe in 1882.
| When the Russians, baked in their
dreams of winning Constantinople by
the Berlin congress, were making their
great swoop thru Central Asia to the
gates of. Herat, Lord Salisbury told the
British public not to be alarmed for
| the safety of India.
! They will not be able to conquer
1.-THE Turkomans." he declared 1.-The
Turkoman barrier will last for our life
] time at least
General Tergoukasoff, the Russian
commander in Central Asia, disagreed
that the Turkomans might be con-
quered by three years hard fighting.
That is too long said the car.
He recalled sTergOukasoff and sent
j Skobeleffs to command the troops.
Skobeleff promptly secured Kouro-
1 pdIk1n TOT MS 5Cnl0I 51lSuIonan Tx To-
igether they performed in a few weeks
the. task which the British premier
had declared would take a lifetome
Cock Tepe, the great stronghold of
i the Turkomans, was carried by as
sault after a months siege. The brunt
i of the attack fell on Kouropatkin, who
commanded a body of light troops
4 from Turkestan.
1t was a great victory, but it sui
lied the reputation of both the Rus
4 sian leaders. They ordered their
4 troops to give no quarter to the Turko-
mans of either sex, and all the hor-
rors usual when such orders are Civ
4 en- were perpetrated.
4 Spectators say that even when the
i Turkomans fled in disorderly mob
4 across the desert, men, women and
4 children mingled together, no mercy
i was shown to them. Artillery and
lcavalry followed in their rear and
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