The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1904-07-20

Pressed and Heavy Fighting is On-No
Decisive engagements Reported.
Toxic. Japan.-Admiral Togo has
sent a report OIL the naval engagement
off Port Arthur. when on Russian wan.
ship was sunk and two others were
damaged in an attempt of the Russian
fleet to escape from the harbor. The
report follows:
ION receipt Of a message sent by
wireless telegraphy from a picket ship
off Port Arthur, that the enemy's fleet
had emerged from the port, I advanced
to meet them with all my feet except
vessels on special mission.
1.-THE enemy consisted of six battle
ships. five cruisers and fourteen de-
stroyers, which apparently attempted
to move southwark. but at nightfall
they stayed outside Of the port.
THAT night a majority of our de-
stroyers and torpedo boats attacked
the enemy'S fleet outside of the port
and sank at least one battleship of the
Peresviet type and damaged seriously
one battleship of S%evastopol type and
one Of Diana type, which were towed
into the port the next morning.
ION our side the waadroom Of the
destroyer Shirakumo was damaged and
three men were killed and n surgeon
and two men were wounded. Torpedo
boat Chidori received one shot in the
aft engine room. but there were no cas-
ualties. Torpedo boats Cd and &c were
slightly damaged"
Rome, Italy.-A dispatch from Toxic
to the Giornale d'Italia says the Rus
sian Admiral, Prince Uhtomsky, and
$50 men were drowned when the bat
tleship Peresviet was %torpedoed and
sunk.
The Japanese lost six killed. Four Of
the Japanese torpedo boats We're dam
aged.
Newchwang. - It is becoming clear
that the two great armies 10Y practi-
cally facing each other have in their
recent engagements sought to win only
a position for the decisive battle that
cannot now be far away. The sharp
assaults of the Japanese east and west
of the railroad near Kaiping and north
of that city near Tachichao undoubted-
ly had for their purpose a plan to force
General Kuropatkin to fight south Of
Hatcher. and to fight without delay a
battle which, in the event Of defeat.
would have made his retreat perilous
if not impossible, because of the
forces which General Kuroki has to
the northeast threatening Liau Yang
and Mukden.
But the Russian forces under Stakel.
berg on the railway line and Mist
chenko to the east Of Stakelberg's left
flank are persistently fighting a rear
guard series of engagements, hoping
with the advantage Of the mountain
Gus country to get safely north OF Hal
chen. The Russians, retreating on
three roads, must be fighting continu.
ously, as the ambulance trains prove,
and in two days march of them, at
Hatcher, is General K%uropatkin's main
infantry and artillery force. ready to
90 south if necessary, but for strategy.
cal reasons preferring to make the act.
ual battle ground between Hachen and
Liau Yang, where formidable entrench.
ments and fortified roads would serve
greatly in defending a naturally strong
position. The advance of the Japanese
and the threatened destruction of the
Russian forces south of Hatcher may
force the Russian commander to fight
on ground selected by the enemy. The
situation is clear only to the strategists
on the two sides, ard the only thing
plain to all is that the Japanese con-
tinue to pursue S~takelberg's army,
Mistchenko's Cossacks bravely fighting
to keep the line of rereat clear by pre-.
venting a junction Of the japanese
forces from the southeast with those
under General Oku on both sides OF
the railroad running north.