The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-01-29

OVER HALF. MILLION in FIELD
How the Silent Japs Fightt---Tlll,e
Russians aitd Their Pocket
Testament,
BY Frank G. Carpenter.
Especial Correspondence OF The Times
b III lIE5 E sts SDispntch.) siLa-s. III gsl l

N give you day IL Chat With ono ol ttlc
live workIngmcn Of the United States
army I, young officer, who for the Enst
year has beeilsin the thlckest Of the fight
5iingSn Ntanchuria As onesuf ourSmilitaiy
n attaches, he was assigned by the war.
Department to the japanese army 10 re-
4 port Upon Its operations inSthe ficlt. M ie
went to japan, and from there jonA
General Kuroki This was last February,
\ and 4llc has been with that branch OF the
Il Japanese forces until a little more than
Z q month ago, when he started back nome.
5f8S ON OF UNCLE SAM s I1SPlI4TS
s The man I refer TO is Captain Peyton
j Conway Mnrch, who graduated ut west
q Point In 1SSS, who commanded the Astor
$ Battery during the Cuban war until y u
wns mustered out and who then went
4 to Luaon and led the American forces in
the famous battle in the clouds" In
that battle General Gregorio del Pillar
+ was Killed, and at about tho same time
n General Conception, Aguinnldo's chief OF
4 staff, and Agunaldo's wife were captured.
In another engagement Captain March
4 was commended by the President for his
gallantry, and for other services lie was
made colonel Of the United States Volun-j
Steers. AT the beginning of the Japanese
X war he was one Of four officers chosen to
+ report upon the fighting to tho War De-
partment. a Il 81
NV talk with Captain March relates to
II the little things rather than the big ones e.
II Of the campaign. The stories Of the bat
\ ties have been told in the papers as far
as the censorship would permit. This
matter comes fresh from the field, and
Is, it seems to me, full OF fish and blood
# interest. II
100000 FIGHTING MEN.
wv asked Captain Marcn as to the nuns
!$ber OF men now actually fighting in
Z Manchuria. 1Ie$replied i
There are ut least GOO, 900 soldiers inithe
r. two armies. Tho Japanese have 90, oOO
y and the Russians almost as many. lie
81 forces are lined up almost facing each
q other, They are& on the two sides &off q
little river known as the Sha, or al It'll IS
Il more commonly called the Sha-ho, the
word no meaning river. The soldiers are
\ stretched along both sides OF that river
FOR a distance of about thirty miles, In
some places they are not more than two
a hundred yards apart antr IN others s
much as two thousand yards. Each army
N has dug entertainments and put up toftl-
+. fications,f and is waiting for the other8to
Y charge Now and then there Is IL sally q t
different places along the line, but when
u I left there October 10th, theylEweres still
waiting to fight. They We're Waiting De-
ce11:ber 10th and arc waiting still.,naosa |,
$t.a AIUKDEN AND THE y A FANlESEsa
Are they near Mukden r $50
5sft One end of the line. i should say. 1s
"a not more than fifteen miles from Mukden
!. The other is perhaps fifty miles away
81 They are, you know, pretty far t1lt's n
Manchuria. They are so near Mukden
g8that.we could take our glasses pnnd I eST
anime the towers over the gates leading
through the walls. They are about Is
far away from Mukden as Rockville is
y distant from Washington, fifteen or SIX
teen miles is not much. @
II "Nlukden is a very important place, Is
Y It not? s & 81 81
Politically, yes, strategically mo- q re-
4 plled Captain March. SIT Is important us
Tie capital}of Manchuria, and in that If
!, It falls into the mands Of tho Japanese
II Will impress the Chinese and the Man
churians. and they may think that the
Japanese tho the more likely to be $Yic-
Il torious. AS to its advantages ASA war
Il base they are comparatively little. The
& mos, important point is Hardin, ut the
junction or the Chinese Eastern Rail-
way and the siberian Railway,
where one brach runs off to Yladlvoatok.
Hardin has a. rich country surrounding
at, which raises endrmous quantities OF
grain. 53 f, 81
s There arc FIGURING mills there which are
supplying the Russian army, and also
z the great warehouses of the Russians
Not far away is n rich cattle and horse
country, so that altogether the place is
S exceedingly valuable. It Is toward tina
point that the japanese are working, i
they could capture Hardin and discon
meet the two lines Of railway shutting of
9 eastern Siberia from the west, and, at tht
& same time get possession Of these error
nous mills and supplies, they would per
h;ps be much nearer peace than they arr
III now. sSl
.'But is there any possibility that the.
4 can do that?"
in war everything Is possible" spi'
~ Captain March. II am note prophet AM
do not care to predict. You must re
member, however, that the campaign Q
sa%tn Japanese, as their armies move 70
" ward the north, becomes more diillcul,
while tho campaign of the Russians !
to a great extent less so. The Japanes
nre moving away from their base Inc
* have to carry all their provisions ammu
milton and other supplies farther OF
whereas the Russians are falling bac
to6where their supplies arc.
sit Is something Of an undertaken
to carry the food and supplies of 5000
IA men, to say nothing OF their arms an
munitions Of war" continued Captai
az March. you must remember that u
japanese have as many men now station
ed along the sha-ho as there are mel
# women and children in Washingtol
"a Every one of them has TO have his thrf
meals day. and good ones to wthstar
the cold. Every one has to have war
clothing, and If possible a place TO siee
at night, In the winter the thermomet
gets down TO or below zero ~ Manchurl
il Ia YOU see that war like this has ON
problems than those of mere fightin
INC same problems confront the Ru
SLAMS"
What the Soldiers Eat.
"Where do the soldiers get their foo
capiain2t ] asked,
"rhe japanese nre living chiefly on RI
and meat. The rice is IN raw sta
lust as you find II In our grocery store
M and 1t must be cooked before y can
eaten. This necessitates water and IN
and makes It a bad field ration think Q
#. Japanese arc discovering that. i Vs. u
like our hard tack, which can he sgfrt
Ia the field and eaten III any time! IH d