The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-07-27
TRICKS IN WAR PLAYED BY LAPS.
Reports of U. s. Army Watchers are Just Beginning to Reach
 Wash1ngtOn.

Washington.
 Washington Special to New York
 World.
 How the Japanese have invariably whipped the Russians is being disclos- ed by American oficers sent out to observe the operations. whose reports are just beginning to come in.
 The war has been in progress eigh- teen months. but 1t is only within a month that the American observers have been able to send in reports that were of any value. Japanese com manders stopped reports of any value, though they let through reports of operations that did not differ from the usual methods.
 Now that the Russians are suing for peace the Japanese are permitting the observers to forward despatches that make American officers open their eyes.
 Never before have SO many army boards been engrossed by so many war studies of prime importance. Every branch of the Japanese army has been heard from except the engineers. Major Kuhn is still in the field and unable to get through reports of worth to American engineers.
 LiEhtest Marching Order.
 The Quartermaster Generals depart ment is one that has found most to think about in the reports. The ex- traordinary mobility of the Japanese troops, of course, is a fact which all the world has been speculating about wondering how the cat-like moves were accomplished by men supposed to be weighted down by the customary camp accoutrements. The quartesinaster' s department has satisfied itself that the Japanese march extraordinarily light do not carry half as much weight as Americans would.
 Every piece of metal in a Japanese soldiers carrying outfit is aluminium. He carries an aluminium canteen. an required in the way of buckles that light metal Is used. His haversacks Is made of lightweight materials and his gun Is lighter than an American sol- dier would have to pack with him. Everything Is reduced to a minimum of weight.
 Because his general accoutrements are light weight, each Japanese foot soldier is able to carry entrenching tools; that is. a pick and shovel That Is a fact not generally known, and 1t accounts for the comparatively small mortality on number of fields in which the Japanese apparently fought without cover.
 Examination of the fields at Liao- yang and Mukden show that In every advance the Japanese army practically entrenched itself. The first line of skirmishers thrown out dug very shall low trenches. The second line oc- cupied them and the first moved for ward. The third dug them still deep CT and the fourth completed them.
 But In trenching the Japanese show ed a new trick. They dug their trenches as If they were preparing to bury huge telegraph poles. each bear Ing as many cross-arms as possible The trench in which the pole was to lie led back to the ammunition carts and the reserves. The tranverse or arm trenches extended paralled with the front of the Russian positions. The ammunition servers passed through the long trench running from rear to front, and were never exposed to rifle fire at all. Shrapnel fire might reach them. but 1t did not often.
 Trap for the Enemy.
 After having constructed the elabo- rate entrenchments in the face of the enemy's fire, the Japanese were ready to show another trick. That was to fall back from the trenches nearest their enemy and thus invite him to charge forward. only to be met by the whole strength of the organization making the attack in the last trench. into which machine and mounted guns had been hurried as soon as 1t was completed. When the Russians reach ed the last trench the galling fire was too much for men entirely exposed and they went down by the thousands.
 Another thing about their field work Is that there is no blind firing; no shooting simply because the Russians are known to be in a certain direction; Rn tolr up the Russians and the distance is accurately measured with the best scientific instruments the Japanese Government can buy.
 The men with range-flnders go out with collapsible extension ladders They pop up all over the debatable ground, take measurements and telephone the result to the men who do the shooting Each range-finder operator has a tele- phone receiver strapped to his ears and a transmitter in front of his mouth. and he never takes observations beyond the end of his coll or insulated wire. This range finding work is done not only for artillery but for infantry
 But the most starting fact Is that the Japanese forces never change bivouac until the medical corps has ex- amined the site of the proposed camp irfg place and agreed that 1t would not endanger the health of the mon. The doctors are from twenty-four to seven ty-two hours ahead of the army. After them come the quartermasters to assure a supply of water fuel and forage for the horses before the fighting men ar rive.
 By such precautions the army oper- ated In Manchuria without having more than one per cent of the men In hos pital on account of sickness.