The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-09-14

lase and the stone fort of Kwangtuns. with the division forming the rishs division on the left at a bend of the , Taitse river The right and center Of General Kurokis line were fighting ! with determination and gaining every | foot of the advance at great cost. Artillery Fights Duel.
 The morning of September l, the Japanese artillery wps. close to Kwangtung. It advanced several times during these two days. shifting ! low bluffs. During this time the Rus
 slams shelied the Japanese artillery I fnriously. Their fire was concentrat- ed principally on the batteries located near Kwangtung. but 1t never disturb 1 ed the Japanese gunners. who contin- | ued coolly to man their pieces.
 l With the advent of darkness Septem- | Der ?. the right division of General Kurokfs army had occupied some hills | which the Chinese aptly named the Five Headed Hills," situated five miles l to the north of Kwangtung and over looking the railroad station at Yentai. | which is two or three miles to the west | of them. One brigade on the extreme | right had gained a position a mile or two further north and to northwest of Cial Mine hill. where foreign buildings could be seen. The Japanese center division held a long low hill five miles to the west of Kwangtung, and above
 the village of sukwantung.
 Between Kwangtung, where from Msnchu stone fort on a bare and rocky hill General Kuroki observed the con-
 fiict for four days. exposed meanwhile
 LA Af t> ux>A
 hills which formed the Japanase ad-
 vance line beyond which they gained but
 little, ground until the night of Sep
 tember {. here lies a rolling country,
 with several low ridges of hills and
 many groves giving cover to both
 armies.
 Under Fierce Fire.
 The Russians had cut away the grain
 and trees from in front of their en-
 trenchments on the hills. leaving the
 approaches open and bare. In the
 advance movement over this section,
 the Japanese troops were under fire constantly and they worked forward
 only by digging successive rows of trenches.
 The suffering was great The men,
 already. exhausted by several days of
 the hardest kind of fighting and march
 ing. were obliged to work unceasingly
 with their rifles or with the trenching
 tools. They were unable to cook ra-
 tions for fear that their fires would dis cIcse their positions to the enemy. The taking of these hills, particularly the one at Heiyingtai. cost the Japan ese heavily. After cannonading this hill during the day of, September 1, and gradually forcing back the Russian in-
 fantry on the plain without being able to dislodge them, the Japanese again re- sorted to their favorite operation. night attack, and drove the Russians
 out at the point of a bayonet They also stormed the "Five-Headed Hills"
 to the northwest, during the afternoon of September g.
 Demonstration Against Hill. While this engagement was going on. the left division made a demonstration against the high hills at Sywanktun. to
 the south of Heiyingtaf, and facing a
 bend in. the Taitse River where tnt.
 Russians had strong Notifications ard batteries. t -
 Part of the left division supported by the fire of the batteries on the plain at tempted to advance in extended forma- ton across the wide graveled flats south of the river and bordering the fields. They came under a heavy fire from the Russian guns. The only pos sible protection was the depression in the flats and their ranks were rakeu by the enemys shrapnel
 The Japanese soldiers lie flat on their faces and were under the Russian fire
 until o'clock that afternoon at which
 hour the movement was suspended. A member of the staff described this movement as a demonstration. It prob
 ably was intended to support the ad- vance of a part of the center division on the same hills.
 One of the bloodiest affairs of the
 entire war developed that night on the lower ridges of the same hills. Parts
 of the Japanese center division was to make another night assault. On ap-
 preaching the Russian trenches, they encountered an unexpected defense. The Russians had strung along the
 ground heavy wires. highly charged with electricity. and as the Japanese soldiers ran against the wires in the
 darkness they received severe shocks. Slaughter of Japanese.
 In addition to this the Russian troops
 defending these trenches threw hand
 grenades, or shells. among the storm
 CTS. The effect was terrifying. and
 many of the Japanese were wounded The attempt to seize this hill, which
 was an important vantage ground to either army, was not successful. One Japanese. battalion which fought its way into the trenches exhausted its | ammunition. It attempted to cut It's
 way out with the bayonet. but 1t was almost exterminated.
 September the Russians withdrew and the Japanese occupied these posi- tions in the evening without opposi- ton. The fighting which took place | the night of September 2, along the entire line was the forecast of the whole battle. The Russians were de- | termined to retake Heiyingtai hill, which was necessary for the protection
 of the railroad All day long two or
 three Russian batteries had enveloped
 the trenches on the hill with a contin-
 uous rapid fire, shrapnel and common shells bursting along the summit and
 western slope.
 l The trencehs were deep and the sin gle Japanees regiment occupying them
 stuck to its position and withstood and repulsed two or three infantry as- i saults.
 1 Toward dark the Russians attacked
 in great force and for two hours there
 followed steady and hard fighting. | During most of the time the combat | ants were so close to each other that
 the artillery could not be used.
 Throughout that night the tenure of ! the hill hung in the balance. The Rus- ! sians made two assaults and once the Japanese were driven from the trench
 es down onto the near slope. They re- | fused to yield and returned to the struggle. finally succeeded in driving | the Russians away. The slaughter in l this fighting was great on both sides. 1 In the meantime, the Russians at