The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1905-06-22
JAPANESE LOSSES.

If we are TO give full credit 10 the
official report Of the Surgeon-General
of Gen. Oku's army. science has sue
ceeded in robbing war of much of its
terrors. Just how many men are in
Gen. Oku's army cannot be definite
ly known at present, but report gives
him all the wav up TO 100000. In all
these who were campaigning in
foreign country, enduring the rigors
of harsh climate and subject 10 ex-
traordinary hardships, there were
only 24,642 cases of diseases. of which
but 40 resulted fatally. This seems
amazing, because it shows the army
to have been a very much healthier
place than home, siuce more than 10
men would have died at home in the
seven months from May to Dec. |.
OF the 24,642 hospital eases, 1878, or
three out of four, recovered, and p
COG were sent home. Probably large
proportion of these died, which will
help explain the Surgeons Generals
low death rate in the field. There
Were only 1913 cases of typhoid and
342 OF 6Yseutery, which shows that
there must have been rigid regula-
tiops in regard TO drinking water
and that these regulations We're scru-
pulously obeyed by all. The most
serious aiIment was that OF beri. beri,
of which there We're 300 cases. No
statement is given as to the deaths
resulting from this terrible disease,
and probably it was much larger
than the japanese care to publish.
The report show what great strides
have been made in the sanitary
science, and what can be done by care
full attention to camp hygiene, TO
whitehall of this surprising result is
The Surgeon-Generals report of
the casualties is highly interesting.
He saws that from May 6 to Dec. Is
the battle losses in the whole army
were 21O officers and 4,917 men killed
and 743 officers and 20, 337m men wound
ed, with but four officers and 402 men
missing This would make total
OF 26,2 POI The Union loss at Gettys-
burg in three DAYS fighting from
about G7,000 men, actually engaged,
or from one-half to One-third of the
number under Gen. Oku. was 2,S34
killed, Is, 100 wounded and G,d43 miss
ing. Total 23,1S6. i large number of
those reported wounded We're actually
killed. There We're enough Of these
to raise total killed up to about 5000,
or almost exactly the same number
that the japanese lest in their seven
months campaign. Also a large por-
ton Of those reported missing were
wounded, aud many died. Also, ap-
parently, the japanese lost about as
many in seven months out OF their
from 10000 to 100000 men as $4,000
Union soldiers lost in two days at
Chjckamaugua, or in one day at An
tietam.
In giving the history OF those struck
by bullets, We tiud the result of adj
Yanced sanitary science TO be quite
as striking as in the treatment of
diseases. Only 16 per cent O: the
wounded died and - per cent
recovered in the field. About G5 per
cent, or two-thirds, We're so severely
wounded as TO be sent home to
Japan for convalescence.
The old story is repeated as to the
proportion of hurts inflicted by the
different arms, since s. per cent of
the wounds, or eight and one-half
out of every 10, were inflicted bv bull
let's, only eight per cent by artillery
and but seven per cent by bayonet
and saber. The PERCENTAGE of bayo-
net and saber wounds. is somewhat
larger than is usual in war, showing
that there were occasionally parties
who came close enough together to
use steel. These collisions must have
been quite rare, however, and prob
ably resulted in the victors massacre
ing all the men they captured, a sup
POSlLIOn WHICH, Is UOTle OUT DN the
small number of the missing. Prob
ably all of these bayonet and saber
wounds We're made when small par
ties were surprised. overcome and
massacred. That the Japanese Off
GERS fought in the ranks with their
men, the same as is the custom in the
American army, is shown by the re-
markable likeness of the proportion
of officers killed and wounded to the
men, as shown by the same statistics
of the American armies. For exam
pie, the japanese lost 210 officers
killed to 4.617 men. The Surgeon
Generals report Of the losses at Get
tysburg give 2G4 officers killed to 20,-
800 men. The japanese report 753
officers wounded to 20, S37 men. The
Surgeon-Generars report of Gettys-
burg give l, AS officers to 1884 men.
The higher percentage of American
officers is 11a partially +o tho fo c+