Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1905-06-23

even discovered its designs. Next
morning Togo, lying thirty miles away,
under cover of a thick mist, sent in a
weak cruiser squadron TO tempt the
Russians out. They came boldly in pur-
suit, and when they had steamed out
fifteen miles a wireless message was
sem to Togo, who moved forward to
engage the enemy.
U~nluckily for him the mist lifted: the
Russian squadron saw him In time and
steamed back to port, but. as they en-
tered, their flagship. the P~etropay-
lovsk, carrying Admiral Makaroff, his
whole staff, n a crew of $50 men,
struck a mine n Immediately found
cred. A few men were saved. including
the young Grand Duke Cyril, but the
gallant admiral was drowned.
Kuroki lnvades M~anehuria.
Once more the interest in the war
centered upon Kuroki's army. BY April
26 kuroki had completed the concentra-
ton Of the first army at Wiju. and be-
gan his preparations to force a passage.
Misleading the Russian commander,
General Zassulitch, as to his real inten-
tions, by a feint In the direction of An
tung, six miles below Wiju, Kuroki
threw a division across the river. four
miles above the town, on the night Of
the 18th, and turned the left OF the
Russian line.
On the Goth a great artillery duel
took place, in the course of which the
Russian artillery was completely sub
dued and put out of action. During the
night the other two divisions of the
First army crossed the Yalu.
On May / General Kuroki attacked
the Russian position at Chuliencheng
on the right bank. and inflicted the first
land defeat of the campaign on the
L L. l~AN A~-A Y, = MN - -
and men killed and wounded, prisoners.
and t~wenty-nine field and machine
guns. The Russians retreated in con
fusion, evacuating the strong position
at Fenghauncheng, which was imme-
diately occupied by the japanese.
The first trial of strength by land had
ended like the first sea fight, in a strik-
ing victory for Japan. She had won by
reason Of three things-by the strength
of her artillery fire, by her owe of
concentrating strong forces where the
defense was weak, and by rapidity and
reckless bravery in attack. 1t was sig
nifcant that the Russians believed
their enemy to be possessed only of field
artillery, and had made no preparations
for anything heavier, nor even taken
care to mask their guns.
Five days after the victory on the
Yalu the Japanese landed in force on
the Liaotang peninsula. Closely follow
ing the precedent Of 1894, they chose
Pitsewo for their place of disembarka-
ton: a spot some fifty miles to the
north OF the narrow neck which joins
the little peninsula of Port Arthur and
Dalny to the mainland. Pitsewo is a
bad landing place, for the ships have to
lie off at a distance OF three or four
miles, and, as the first party of sailors
began their operations at low tide, they
had to wade ashore for a thousand
yards in water breast deep. A Russian
battery of quick firers might have made
the achievement almost impossible,
but there was no battery and no oppos-
ing force except a few patrols, which
quickly disappeared, and by night Adj
miral Hosoya had succeeded in landing
10000 men, the formidable vanguard OF
the Second army.
Kuroki, with the First army, was
meantime advancing northward, n
occupied Fenghuancheng. On the road
to Liaoyang, and the whole plan OF
campaign began to be clear to every
one, even to the Russians. About this
naoment the Russians began to leave
Newchwang, hastily anticipating what
happened only some weeks later-the
landing OF another army in that quar-
ter to cooperate with Kuroki in his
advance northward.
Raid by VIadivostok Fleet.
At sea, however, during these weeks
two great misfortunes befell the Japa-
nese. Some Russian cruisers and tor
pedo boats under Admiral Jensen. COM
ing south from ~Vladivostok, met the
transport Kinshiu Maru on the way TO
Gensan. attacked it, n sank 1t, only
the oolies and crew being saved. The
soldiers, in obedience TO the rigid Japa-
nese code Of honor, refused to surren-
der and sank with the vessel, the Off
GERS having committed suicide, and the
men, according to the most credible &C
counts, being mostly shot down by Rus
sian rifles and quickfires.
This was a disaster, but ii was not
NEARLY SO seriou as that which followed
on May Is, when the battleship Hatsuse
and the cruiser Yoshino were lost off
Port Arthur. The cruiser was rammed,
il so happened, by n of the w ships.
the kasuga, that had been built at
Genoa and delivered to the japanese
] only a few weeks before the outbreak OF
the war; While the loss of the tiatsuse
was caused by striking on a floating
mine ten miles from shore-a fact
which caused much perturbation among
shipowners all over the world, and not
a little among international lawyers.
Battle of Nanshsn Hill.
These events on land and sea brought
~ ILlts GOttl1lGN ~ LIN ' h1 1-N
Gus. hard fought battle OF the war. BY
May q General Oku, in command OF
the second army was ready TO attack
the Russian position at Kinchau, on
the narrow neck of land that ties the
Liaotung peninsula to Manchuria.
General Stoessel had fortified the 18th.
mus. and especially the high ground OF
Nanshan, with works nearly of a per.
manent nature" in front the ground
was mined and covered with wire en-
tanglements the defenders had about
10. 900 men In position n some eighty
guns The japanese army under Gen.
eraf Oku was far more numerous, BIZ.
the task set them was such as no other
troops in the world could or WOULD
have performed in the same way.
General Oku attacked the Russian po-
sitions at Kinchau nd Nanshan or
MAY 26. Desperate fighting continued
ing repeatedly repulsed. AT length 6
picked body of troops, belonging to the
First division, forced its way
which the Russians had protected theil
trenches and carried the position a
the point of the bayonet.
Sev~enty-eight guns were captured
and enormous losses were inflicted or
the Russians. But the Japanese paic
a high price for their victory, the killed
and wounded amounting TO over $500
officers and men.
The battle of kinchau, or Nanshan
was followed by the retreat of tn
Russians within the defenses of Por
Arthur and by the immediate and un
~--~-- - ..lL -.