The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1904-08-05
Russians Driven Back to the
Last Line of DefenCes.
KUROTATKIN IN BAD WAY
If Defeated in the Next Engage.
ment the Russian General
Must Surrender.

! LONDON, Aug. 5.-Advces from
Newchwang say that General Kurokl,
with 100000 men, is now behind the
Russian forces; General Oku, with an
army of 10000 men, is on their front,
while tianking them on the left Is Gen.
eral Nodzu, with his divlsionlo of $4,000
! men.
If General Kuropatllin is defeated in
this battle he must either move west
| ward or surrender.
The foreign military attaches are
with the second army IN route for the
| front TO witness the battle.
japanese troop ships are expected
mere with re-enforcements for General
| Kurok
The Russian troops at Port Arthur
| have been driven back to the last line
of their defenseS. The japanese attack
ing force has $50 guns in action
General Oku has reported to Tokyo
that the enemy is retreating continu-
ally.
The japanese army has occupied Hal
cheng and Newchwang, situated thirty
miles northeast of the open port of the
same name.
The capture Of Halcheng by the Jap
anese has caused vivid disappointment
at ST Petersburg. People there had
been led to believe that n strong stand
would be made by General Kuropatkin,
who was personally in command.
While few details are given concern
ing the casualties. from reliable
source it is learned that more than a
thousand Russian prisoners We're tax
en-. This does not ut all harmonic with
the official hackneyed phrase, "Our
forces retired in perfect order"
A dispatch from Anshanshan, half
way between Haicheng and Liaoyang,
says that the Japanese advance is be-
ing continued with great energy against
the southern army. The Russian main
forces continue their retirement. but
the cavalry has checked the japanese
flank movement.
General Sacharoff has reported to st.
Petersburg that twenty-nine officers
and over a thousand men were killed
or wounded and that six guns were
captured by the japanese in the en-
gagements at Simoucheng and Hal |
cheng.
Tokyo reports say that Field Marshal |
Oyama, who has taken over command |
of the japanese forces in Manchuria, |
and General Kodama, his chief of staff, |
have left Kaichow and established |
headquarters in the field with the |
army.
General Yuen, the Chinese command |
er in Manchuria, who has his head
quarters in Mukden, has sent dis
patches to his officers in charge of the
Chinese troops west of the Liao river
instructing them to prevent the Rus
slams, in the least offensive manner
possible, from violating the neutrality
of Chinese territory by crossing the
river. in case they should be driven
back by the Japanese from their pres
ent positions.
General Kuroki's' right is within
twenty miles of Liaoyang on the north
east. His advance guard is in action
with the Russians daily.
1t is reported that 10000 Japanese
troops have landed at Yinkow, the port
OF Newchwang and are advancing rap
idly in the direction of LaOyang.
Marching from Yinkow, they would
take the Russians on the right flank.
The suggestion that General Kuro-
patkin may relinquish the idea of Sc
riously defending even Liaoyang
where enormous stores have accumu-
lated, receives support from the latest
reports, which say that large num-
ber of troops have evacuated Liaoyang
and are retiring on Mukden.
A rumor is current at st. Petersburg
that great battle is in progress north
nf HaichpnO