The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-12-26
LIFE IN PORT ARTHUR
Experience Of Lieutenant McCully Of
the Navy.
(William +. Curtis in Washington
StarA

was sent over IN fGofHafy, iSV4s
I he says, "to go with the Russians as
an observer for the navy department.
went via St Petersburg and the
! Great Siberian railroad 10 Liao-yang.
and reported at the headquarters of
/ General KuTopatkin. ! was delayed
there for two weeks, trying TO get a
permit TO go 10 Port Arthur, and fin
ally obtained it Just as the Japanese
were landing to begin the siege. On
the 4th or 9Th of May l started for
Port Arthur with scouting party Of
liPrimorsh dragoons-from a Russian
province of that name. which means
by the sea. They were under com
| mand of Captain Boutakoff, a cousin
Of the present naval attache of the
! Russian embassy here. The railway
had been torn up in places. The Jap
anese had blown up a bridge to pre-
vent the Russians from using it. while
the Russians had torn up a lot of
track to prevent the Japanese from
using il. So we had 10 90 on horse
back until We reached the lower end
OF the line. which was still I'm working
order. We We're three days on the
march. All | had was the clothes 1
wore camera and canteen. but
got part Of my baggage a few days
later. The dragons drove the Japan
csc off so as 20 let an ammunition
train through. and my friends at Lao
yang had put some of my baggage on
one of the wagons. / got the rest of 1t
six months later. They sent it back
to headquarters and kept it carefully
Cor me until my return.
Life in Pert Arthur.
Upon arriving at Port Arthur
was assigned quarters in a Chinese
house near the navy yard, with two
Germans-Captain Hopman and Lieu
tenant Won Gilgenheim-and the
French observer, Viscount CuverviIIe.
l had good room, and We took our
meals at the Naval club. There were
no Americans or English in Port Ar
| thur at the time. Hector Fuller, the
newspaper correspondent, came in
while / was there, but ] did not see
him or know anything about him I'M
III after he had been sent away. I re-
manned in Port Arthur from May TO
Aug. IL
1--WE were reasonably comfortable
and had nothing 10 complain OF. Ev-
erybody was very polite TO US and
( there was plenty Of timed goods 10
eat and plenty of tea TO drink but very
! little fresh meat or vegetables. We
were allowed to go around the hills
and up and down the beach, and could
see a good deal l visited all the ships
in the harbor, bH they would not let
me so out with them when they went
TO meet the japanese fleet. ] did not
expect they would, because IL is not
customary 10 permit foreigners 10 ac-
company ships OF war into action.
The blockade was not very strict
/ before the eth OF July l saw the
fleet go out on June % and Aug 10 for
those two fights, as a fleet; and single
ships or squadrons of battleships and
cruisers frequently went out to engage
the enemy. They would exchange
shots and then return 10 the harbor.
The Russian officers were friendly and
talked freely. but would not give us
any official data They gave US every
opportunity, however. to see their
methods of laying mines and taking
them up, and the effect of the mines
upon the enemy. | did not see the
Japanese cruiser Hatsuse blow up. but
got TO the top of Gold hill a few mo-
ments afterWard. while the japanese
were still picking their men out Of the
water. ! could see the Yashima limp
ing out TO sea very painfully after she
struck q mine. She sank the same
night. I remained on Gold hill most
of that night and saw the searchlights
OF the Japanese feet playing around
the Yashima. They were trying to
save her and after she sank they were
picking up the crew. I saw the torpedo
attack of the japanese upon the Rus
sian fleet on the night of June %. 1t
gYaf il, oil serbA \
up tOrpedOes ali over the beach the
next day. but they had not touched a
Russian ship.
After the Battle of Aug. 10. -
II could not see the naval battle of
Aug. 10" continued Lieutenant Nc
Gully, because il took place a hun
dred miles away: but l saw the fleet
come back the next day one Of the
battleships was very badly battered,
but the rest did not seem to have suf-
fered much damage, The torpedo
tights were the most interesting They
occurred nearly every night The Jap
anese torpedo flotillas would come in
for an attack, the land batteries
would open up on them and the Rus
sian guard boats would engage them
and chase them away. II was like a
theatrical performance. Gold hill was
platform from which we could see It
al. The Russian fleet was in the fore
ground: the Japanese fleet on the hori-
ION. and its ships would come I'D four
at time and discharge their batteries
and retire: then another four would
come up, sometimes nearer than the
others, fire and retire. The Russians
constantly responded. both from the
ships and land Notifications, keeping
W continuous cannonade The tor
pedo boats and destroyers. would be
playing around, trying 10 get I'm their
work. ! saw half a dozen OF these
duels, but comparatively little damage
was done by either side. More was
done by the mines than by the artil-
lery. IN one of the battles the japanese
cruiser Chiyoda struck mine and was
towed off badly injured.
In the meantime, the japanese army
was surrounding the city, and the
bOmbardment began in earnest on
Aug. Z. The first shot struck only a
few feet from the Office of the Russian
commander-in-chi The shells struck
all parts of the town. The gunners
were evidently aiming for the navy
yard, but they had 70 shoot over the
hills that lay between and could not
see where their shots fell. There were
a great many killed and a good deal
Of destruction. but il was mostly out
side Of the town, among the outer
lines of defense. Only about twenty
people We're killed in the city while I
was there. The firing became monot-
onous after a while, and, as the Jap
anese closed In around the town we
We're forbidden TO go anywhere or see
anything, and our usefulness was
practically ended. We knew that the
Russian feet was going to Vladivostok
at the first opportunity. It went out
twice with that intention The first