The Penn's Grove record., 1904-02-12
|IAPAN'S CRUSHING
BLOW TO RUSSIA
Wins First Great Fight on Sea, Grip
ping the Cars Navy in the Far
East---Three Battleships and
-Four Cruisers Disabled
at Port Arthur.
laps LAND TROOPS IN KOREA

naval power in the Far East.
The battleships Tsarevitch and Ret
vizan and the cruiser Pallada now lie
hopelessly crippled on the mud flats at
Port Arthur as the result of d night at
tack by the japanese.
In a second engagement the next
morning two more Russian ships were
disabled.
But w and above this decisive
stroke at Port Arthur, it is stated from
two or three sources that the Japanese
have also captured the first-class cruis-
er Variag and a smaller vessel at Che
mulpho, Korea.
These reports, although, unlike the
Port Arthur disaster, they lack Ad-
miral Alexieff's confirmation, are cir
cumstantial. They state that a strong
Japanese torpedo division, escorted by
cruisers conveying transports, sudden
ly arrived off Chemulpho on Sunday.
A number OF foreign vessels lay at an
Choir, including the Variag and the tor.
pedo gunboat Korietz.
Apparently they did not expect an at
tack any more than did the somnolent
beet at Port Arthur. for when the Jap.
anese commander summoned them to
haul down their flags they were com.
Dletely surprised, and in view of the
overwhelming strngth of the Japanese
they had no alternative but to comply,
which they did, say the reports, with
cut firing a shot.
Cheefoo.-Japan has won the hOnors
of war OF sea, which gives her assur-
ance of victory on land. In a battle
fought outside Port Arthur the first
class Russian battleship Poltava prac-
tically was destroyed, and the protect
ed cruiser NOvik also was Shelled be-
tow the water line, thus making her
useless. for the remainder of the war.
The Poltava has two holes below the
water line. This battle, lasting from
IL a. m. until near II, resulted in no
known damage to the japanese squad
ron, while the official information from
Port Arthur, signed by the Russian
Chief of Staff, admits that on their
side two officers were wounded, nine
men killed and forty-one wounded,
while on the shore batteries one man
was killed and three wounded.
This battle, outside Port Arthur fol-
lowed the destruction in part the night
before of the Russian fleet. which was
t%orpedoed by the advance boats of the
Japanese navy. In the night action
not a gun was fired by the Japanese,
and the first warning that the Russians
had was when their first-elass battle
ship Retyizan was ~torpedoed. An
alarm instantly followed. Search
lights We're thrown from the sixteen
Russian warships and from the batter
les on land, but nothing could be seer
Of the Japanese fleet. The first-class
battleship Tsarevitch and the first
class cruiser Pallada also were hit
with tofpedoes and practically de-
strOyed. This much is admitted in an
official dispatch from the naval author
tiles in Port Arthur. but in addition,
there is a well authenticated rumor
that there was great loss of life on the
Pallada, and that she is sunk in the
channel entrance 10 Port Arthur.
Brit the Russian position on sea has
been made still wOrse by the practical
capture in the harbor of Chemulpo of
the two cruisers Variag and Korietz.
1t seems that on Sunday Japanese
transports landed 5000 soldiers in Che
mulpO, right under the guns of the Va
riag and Korietz. The Russi ms knew
aOthing of any declaration of war and
the Japanese did not attempt to de-
strOy them owing to the presence of
the soldiers on the transport. After
the army had landed the warships of
Japan sailed across the Bay of Korea
toward Port Arthur, but after the bat
tie seven Of them returned toward Che
mulpo and seven others put in within
seven miles of here at night, making
signals which were answered from the
hills.
The German, French and English
officers on the ground here say that
these triumphs for the Japanese navy
practically decide the war. Japan will
not now have to keep any of hei. army
reserves at home, as there will be no
possible danger of invasion. AS a re-
suit she can at once dispatch her entire
active army of 1871. 900 men with Off
GERS, and If necessary can call on the
reserve, consisting of 10000 men and
lie guns, leaving uncalled on what is
known as the territorial army of 300,-
600 men,. Even should the reserves
not be sent from Japan, the perma-
nent army of 100000, with its base alb
solutely protected, can be thrown into
Manchuria now without delay, part OF
it to seize the China and Eastern Rail-
way, cutting off Port Arthur from
Mukden, and the remainder to proceed
up the north bank of the Yalu River.
forcing the Russians to give battle at
some point in the triangle Of which
Mukden, Hardin and Vladivostok are
the points. That the operations on
land will be as rapid as those on sea
was made certain in the news brought
by a dispatch boat from Chenampho,
Korea, announcing that the Japanese
had landed altogether 90, 900 men. with
six battalions of heavy artillery and
four battalions of mountain artillery
at several points ON the Korean coast.
st. Petersburg, Russia.-The latest
returns of warships in the Far East
total ninety-four, including eight bat
tleships, sixteen cruisers, seven gun
boats and fifty-six torpedo-boat de-
stroyers and torpedo boats. Three
more battleships and nine torpedo
boats are to go to the Far East in the
spring.
Washington, D. C.-Secretary Hay
has addressed 2 note to the Powers
that participated in the suppression of
the Chinese rebellion suggesting that
they unite in insisting that the integ.
rity Of the Chinese Empire shall be
maintained and that the field of hostil.
tiles shall be localized.
Mr.. Hay proposes military operations
shall be confined to the territory north
of Shan-Hai-Kuan, which is on the
west shore of the Gulf of Pe-Chi-Li
and at the point where the great wall
begins, and at all that portion of the
peninsula of which Port Arthur is the
southern point nd of the Gulf of Pc
Chilli north of Ta-Lien- Wan. which Il
some miles north of Port Arthur.