Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1905-08-23
ARMIES IN RETREAT.
SOME OF THE FAMOUS RETRO
GRADE MOVEMENTS.
SAP3LEoS's RETREAr FROM MOSCOW
A FATAL BI.s1aDEE-NosT DIsAs-
TRoCs ExAMBLE IN HISTORY.

nc Aretsffst4t Vt esNtK ~-S<sFN- 3 &ekssl stti
army and c0aauctlnS mastery ~
treat IS one II tie noss asfncnl,. Il not
I the most difficult. that general IN tie
/ field has 70 meeg. Before every great
/ battle such contingency is planned
I for. but when the test comes many
/ new things are constantly being
I brought before the commander In chief
/ which must be- decAie8 on tie instant
and the right move chosen If a rout IS
10 he avoided The general who has
beea worsied must aot only geS his
tre9gss away from tie enemy but his
g,lns and stores as weIi Tie supplies
for the army must be seat Is the rear
FIRST for without taem The soldiers
would have - a-bt iSngrg and the
WOUNDED - without proper attention
Tie s2,ns aasi army fssiJw the supplies.
and tae tzFnat ~ Else dgarIue and a
cssnee 70 via nal2eh glory fan on the
rear sEard
General kuroratSin conducted a
mastery retreat fram Liaoyang TO
SlcEt.eu ard de s-3yed what stores be
c0u.d act re1sore froia the doomed city.
lie was fo.lowing ia the footsteps OF
other Russian generals. for Russian
trv3ps have made some wonderful re-
rrsgrade movements which have ulti-
ma sely been crowned with success. bat
il must De remembered that be was
aided ly a railroad. which was not the
case Of many another In his preiica-
ment. StiIl. kar0patkin's retreat from
I.iaeyoug will rank well with the
famous retreats OF history
Napoleon was the worlds master at
war, yet be lost more men In bis fatal
retreat from Moscow than be did on
the fieId Of Waterloo. With q vast ar
NV OF 10000 men he crossed the Me
men in June and later fought OF Boro-
dino. where his losses were heavy.
Thea came the march 10 Moscow, the
Russians retreating before him and
destroying everything as they marched.
In the cold Of the northern winter be
turned his back on the burning city.
into which the eagles had been borne In
triumph, and began the most disas-
trous retreat in history Famine. cold
AaAA NAAG fA0NHi2kAN VA AS A@e&s4GH 4sAiA
rear cut down his soldiers as they
plodded, finally barefooted. through
the snow. and the army melted away
as IL crawIel over those GOO miles OF
dreary waste. Al Napoleon could tell
the anxious people at Paris was, My
health is good He succeeded In saw
ing practically nothing as be fed
Nearly q century before Napoleon In
yaded Russia Charles XII. of Sweden.
with 1900 men at his back. marched
over much the same route and shared
much the same 81 fortune. After
stoFnling the Russian lines at Goloy-
tehin he plunged into the Nahis Ia pur-
suit OF the retreating Russians and
lost many men and guns In his haste.
But he kept mis- face toward Moscow
and reached smolensk at last. but
there changed his plans and marched
for the Ukraine, with Car Peter lur-
Ing him On Then the Russians con
fronted him with 10000 troops at Pol
tava. where Charles was wounded and
charged at the head OF his troops borne
in a litter and was defeated, being
forced 10 retreat with his handful of
men into Turkish territory in anything
but a dignifed manner.
One OF the most mastery retreats in
history was made by Sir John Moore
In Spain in 1s0s-o9. He marched his
force between Astorga and Coruna in
month and beat back Souits army at
the edge of the sea before his troops
sailed away for home, leaving the body
OF their dead commander behind. TO be
buried without the walls, on the field
where he fell. Soult retreasd from
Oporto. IN Portugal, In the same war.
and Beresford drove him across the
mountains into Spain after taking the
city. Wellington caught the French
again In the same war. driving the ar
my from Talayera, but the French re-
treat was good, and the Iron Duke lost
his advantage through Cuesta's blum
der, and be in turn led clever retreat
before the advancing French.
The most fatal retreat In all history
was that of the English army under
Lord Eiphinstone from Kabul. in
Afghanistan. and 1t and It's preceding
events will always be a dark blot In
Engiand's military annals. In 1871 the
British authorities In Afghanistan lost
their light grip on the natives, and Sir
Alexander BurBes, a high official at
Kabul, was murdered in his home. The
10000 English troops were scattered
In forts outside the town under the
command Of Elphinstons, who remain
ed inactive in the face OF such crime.
AkbaT Khan was at the head OF the
natives, and the English stopped 10
double dealings with him In order 10
get their army to Jelaiabad In safety,
but We're outtrlcked. although prornis-
ed safe retreat. They started for
Jelalabad Jan. 6, 1872. leaving all
their cannon and military stores at
Rabul. The natives followed on their
TANKS. and the conditions were so bad
that the English officers gave them
selves up 10 Akbal Khan as hostages