Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1904-05-19
CURRENT EVENTS.

The curtain has again fallen behind
the columns of the Japanese armies ad-
vancing northward in Manchuria, but
il has become known that the Russians
are not disputing the passage of the
mountain passes by the Japanese, and
it is thought that their next stand will
be at the railroad town of Liao Yang,
though they may fall back to Mukden,
fifty miles further north.
The perfect confidence of the Japs is
shown by their deliberation, attention
to every detail of warfare and, also by
their distribution of seed corn to the
native farmers; and, on the otherhand,
the desperation of the Russians is shown
by the destruction of the docks, piers
and warehouses of Dalny.
Military experts are now predicting
the complete defeat of the Russians IN
EASTERN Asia, and all can surmise as to
the probable effect of this on both the
Chinese and Russian empires.
The English expedition into Tibet
was. at last accounts, liable to come to
grief, as Col Younghusband and his
command were besieged at place call
ed Gyang-Tse. Reinforcements were
being hurried forward from India, but
there were doubts as to their arriving
in time.
The fighting going on between Bra
lillian and Peruvian forces in the Purui
region is contest over the possession
of rubber territory. The Purus rive
is tributary of the Amazon, flowing
towards it from the southwest. TIT
region is the most western portion oi
Brazil and the boundary lines hav'
never been settled. Bolivia; Peru
Ecuador and Colombia have conflicting
claims as to jurisdiction, all of which
have some basis in the Spanish provin
cial DEGREES which underly the terrific
rial rights of the present South Ameri
can states The Spanish allotments o
territory. to the various provinces over
Tapped in a way that has left abundan
material for disputes. The present coz
fiict is due to the fact that Peru has 81
exhausted her own rubber forests tina
she has been pushing out into new ter
ritory and has thus entered the Puru
district which is claimed by Brazil
During the past week news arrived tina
a Brazilian force which had gone int
the country to expel the Peruvians, hat
been defeated and compelled to retire
At present Peru holds the country, bu
Brazil is making active military prepar
ations and unless the matter is submit
ted to arbitration war will ensue.
The supply of wheat in this countr
at present is unprecedently low owing
to the demands of other countries.
Winter wheat will be small crop, and
theloss will be made up in corn, the
acreage Of which planted this year will
probably be the greatest in the history
offhe country.
An increased amount Of our manu-
fsctured goods Is also going to foreigr
countries. Commercial affairs showed
but little change. excepting in furthel
decline in steel stocks.
There are plenty of people in thi
country who bought the stock of thu
great steel company at high prices. the
preferred at nearly par and the com
mon above 80 and up to 55. The pre-
ferred is now worth little more than 81
and the common is worth little more
that one seventh Of the top figure. Th'
total reduction in the market price o.
the two classes has amounted to about
t470, 600. 900, or more than one-half the
funded debt of the nation.
THE Japanese war-loan was subscrib
ed for five times over in this country
and the forty millions paid to France
by this country for the canal was loan
ed to Russia. w