Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-03-15

ally on March 9, to the north front, and
threw them on the flank of the Japanese.
who were attacking Santaitse and endeav-
oring 20 cut the railway. The scale of
weight was all on the Russian side. The
Japanese then retired, abandoning bat
terry of eight guns. success apparently
GROWING the Russian arms.
At this moment two sets of reports were
received, the first that a column of Japan
csc was moving farther north around the
right flank, and the second that the Jap
anese on the Hun river had taken advan-
tage of the storm, which was blowing the
dust in the Russians faces, and OF the
breaches in the positions on the Hun. to
thrust a column through at Flu Pass and
Kyouzan, the instep of the boot. Here
the fords were defended by only three COM
panies of the Barnaul Regiment and COM
pany of the Irkutsk Regiment which were
forced to retire before the japanese cavalry
and four mountain guns.
Order for General Retreat.
With the entire Russian strategic reserves
already engaged, it became impossible to
meet the danger in these two sources.
which was immediate and critical and at 8
o'clock in the evening the order to retire to
Tie Pass was given. Through the narrow
bootleg passage, scarcely five miles wide, a
densely packed mass of transports pressed
northward coming under the fire of small
squadron of japanese cavalry and four
mountain guns, which earlier in the battle
had managed to dart across the Russian
line of communication and conceal them
selves in the mountains to the eastward.
The forces of General TserpitZly began an
orderly retirement from the boot toe and
during March 10 Kuropatkin successfully
held at bay the Japanese, who were trying
to reach the railroad 5
The night of March 9 Mukden station pre-
sented a remarkable scene. Shortly after 8
clock came the order to complete the evac-
uation of the station and city, with drec-
tons that the movements of trains north
ward must be completed by o'clock in the
morning. The enormous task was COM
pleted in nine hours, including the hasty
embarkation of the wounded. who crowded
the station platform and occupied the hos
pitfalls. Many had already left in the morn
ing. when the private trains of Kuropatkin
Kaulbars, Sakharoff. Bilderling and ZabeliI
departed, but thousands remained.
At $40 pm. the first string of eight trains
was dispatched and a call was sent to Tie
Pass for thirteen locomotives. The forward
ing of these locomotives without interrupt
| ing the northward movement of trains was
| a delicate piece of train diSpatching, but the
| overworked railroad staff accomplished il
successfully. At am. the second string
was started northWard, and at 9:45 am. the
| last train of the third string of sixteen de-
| parted. All the trains had fifty-two to fifty
| five cars.
| Three trains contained the ammunition Of
| the park of artillery, which had been dis
| patched the evening before in $40 cars; an
other train carried warm clothing, one was
| coal laden and one was loaded with Rec
Cross supplies, one with engineers depo
supplies, three with commissariat freights
and the remainder with wounded.
| Last Train Out Of Mukden.
The last train out was the service train
with all the employees of the railway prop
erty and station papers. The skill, exer
| lions and devotion of this little band o
! civilians rendered service the Importance
| of which cannot be overestimated for the
| future of the Russian army 1t savet
| thousands Of wounded soldiers an Immense
| amount of ammunition and millions of dol
| lars worth of property and cash.
| 1t must be remembered that nVe mile.
| north of Mukden an unceaSing fight was il
| progress. Trains earlier had been bonn
| barded with Shmose shells and the rail
| road was twice damaged. The trains trav
eled unlighted and without whistling unde
| eght-minute Roadway. All about fire
| blazed in gigantic ring, burning straw
! COAL wood, corn and biscuit. OCCASIONAL.
| boxes of cartridges exploded with dis
! agreeable, dry rattle, or rockets rose an,
| burst in clusters of stars. The flames hat
| plenty of material, as there We're over 3,6O
| carloads of corn and biscuit, and over BIB
| coo cubic feet of coal, straw and millet
| This was only the reserve commlsSar1a
| and other stores that was destroyed.
the wounded crowded the station. fllet
! every vacant place in the cars, and tn
brake beams. buffers and roots were occu
| pied while others were hanging to the step
| The last train pulled out as Genera
| Tserptzky's troops began to pass the sta
| ton, shortly before the explosion which
| wrecked the Hun river bridge. In the hos
| pitfalls of the Livonian division of the Rel
| Cross and medical staff were 1.050 severel.
| wounded, including 364 japanese. the Chi
| nese governor of Mukden giving his wort
to defend them until Mukden was occupied
| OF the military railroad all but f25 mile.
: was abandoned and the wagonettes De
stroyed. Tens OF thousands of boxes OF
portant of all from a material point OF
view is the loss Of the Fushun coal mines
which supplied the road with coal
Trains Heavily Bombarded.
The trains were heavily bombarded, but
came through safely
The retirement, fof qthe wagon transport
was twice imperiled by panic the morning
| of March 10. A Japanese squadron and
guns concealed In the mountains opened
| fire. and the drivers, who were undiscip-
lined peasants. unaccustomed to the sound
of Chinese shells, began to desert their
carts and wagons, cutting loose the horses
and throwing the stores IRON the Wasons,
Confusion became rampant ana spread u
terror stricken civilians and even gunners,
and was communicated to some infantry
troops. The gray-clad crowd, without IN
| formation. hidden by dust, surged on. Inc
| Japanese, however, soon ceased firing ano
order was restored. Troops following the
wagons carried off few cannon. put were
unable to gather the abandoned property.
Soldiers broke open officers boxes and port
manteaus. and ransacked them FOR valu-
ables.
Just before dusk another panic occurred
| at the station of Santaitse, where an enor-
NOUS collection Of carts had halted for the
| night. A column OF Russians advancing
| were taken for Japanese. and the cry OF
| Japanese cavalry" was raised. The I'M
1 .--.s.S S.,..~.. ronncod RI fee while