The semi-weekly messenger., 1904-04-15

St Petersburg, April 11.-Excep-
tonally reliable information regard |
ing the Russian military plans con- |
firm the repeated announcements |
made by The Associated Press that
these plans will not mature until
late in the Summer. They are Of
far greater magnitude than is gener-
ally believed abroad, and take into
account all possible contingencies.
General K uropatkin, remembering
the experience of Russia during her
war with Turkey, when the Russian
army of 10000 placed in the field at
the beginning had to be more than
doubled, has insisted that the men
and guns to be placed at his disposal
shall cover the extreme limit required
to settle the fate OF the campaign.
The Russian p ans are predicated
upon Nepoleon's dictum, that God
fights on the side of the heaviest
battalions,'' and they aIe being
worked out and timed SO as to apply
to a superiority of numbers on land
and sea simultaneously. The army
is designed to attain the enormous
total of half a million at the time
scheduled for the reinforcement of
Vice Admiral Makaroff's fleet with
the Baltic squadron The seven
teenth and tenth army corps, now
drafting, are expected to reach Man
churia by the middle of June. The
mobilization of four other corps, at
lease two of which will be from the
Volga, will be announced by the mid
die of next month, and will start
eastward a month later, reaching
their destination at the end of Au-
gust.
Rear Admiral Rojestrensky will
hoist his flag as commander of the
formidable Baltic squadron early in
July. and will sail Immediately for
Port Arthur with the following YES
-Sels: the battleShipS Slava, Borodino,
Orel. Kniaz, Souvaroff Alexander
I'LL and Osliabia, the last named be-
ing now en- route here from Cher
burg; the cruisers aurora, Dmitri,
DonskOi, SHETLAND, Almaz, Jemt-
chug and Izumrud, and the trans
ports 9mtschatka and Ocean, each
carrying 1000 tons of coal. The con-
veyors ordered in the United States
are expected soon, and they will ena-
bic the squadron to coal at sea. The
last possible difficulty regard the
passage of the Suez canal disap-
peared last week with the signing of
the Anglo-French colonial treaty, by
which Great Britain adheres to the
convention of 1888, concerning the
free passage of the canal.
.Japan's First Army Landed in Korea.
Paris, April 11.-Official advices
received here by the French govern
ment confirm the dispatches an
nouncing that Japan's first army
consisting Of four army corps, is now
completely landed in Korea, and that
the second army, consisting of a sim
liar number OF corps, is about to
start. The points of debarkation of
the second army are not known.
More Exchanges OF Shots.
Paris, April IA dispatch to the
Temps from st. Petersburg to-day
says some further exchanges of shots
have occurred between the Russian
and Japanese forces along the bor-
derS of the Yalu river. Vice-Ad-
miral Makaroff, the dispatch adds, is
inspecting the outlying defenses of
Port Arthur.
"a =
Port of New Chwang Closed to Com
merce.
Che Foo, April III p: MA
Chinese steamer has just returned
TI-OHl NE" SIt"6IES, LIlS pOTN pklOuS
would not respond to her signals
from there to take the vessel up the
river. Two British steamers found
themselves in the same predicament-
The port Of New Chwang is practi-
cally closed to commerce.
Protests Against Presence Of Chinese
Troops
London. April 12--The Tfen Tsin
correspondent of The Standard says
that Russia has again protested
against the presence OF Chinese
troops on the Manchurian frontier,
and has demanded their withdrawal
within a five mile limit of the great
wall
| EREy,& |