The San Francisco call., 1905-03-18
RUSSIAN ARMY
IN BAD PLIGHT
Hordes of Chinese Bandits Said
to Be in Rear of Harbin.
Task Confided to Linevitch By
Car Is a Desperate One.

ST. PETERSBURG. March 17.-With
the japanese hanging on the heels and
hanls Of the remnants OF the broken
and defeated Russian army, General
Kuropatkin, the old idol of the private
soldier, has been dismissed and dis
Eraced, and General Linevitch, COM
mander OF the First Army, is appoint
ed TO succeed him in command Of all
the Russian land and sea forces oper-
sfing against japan The word dis
grace is written in large letters in the
laconic imperial order gazetted, which
contains not q single word of praise
and also disposes Of the runor that
KurOpatkin had asked to be relieved
The Russian military annals contain
no more bitter imperial rebuke- While
II was known that the War Council
had already decided TO supplant Kuro-
patkin after the Mukden disaster, the
decision to confer the task of saving &
the remainder Of the army on Line
witch in the very midst Of its flight.
although bruited last night, came as a
surprise
1t trsnspires that Emperor Nicholas,
upon the advice Of General Dragomiroff
and War Minister Sakharoff. deter
mined that the step was necessary
AlGl II became dDpdICl
morning that kurOpatkin while con-
cenrrating for a stand at Tie Pass
seemed unaware that the japanese had
worked around westward again and
practically allowed himself TO be sur
prised- Old reports brought by Cen
eral Grippenberg regarding Kuropat-
kin's falling mentally also had infiu-
ence-
Under the circumstances, therefore. II
was considered imperative, in view Of
The exceedingly perilous position of the
army, 10 turn over its command to
Jinevitch. who alone had been able 10
bring off his army in order after the
battle Of Mukden- His record during
the chinese war had also demonstrated
his capacity as a commander
Kuropatkin viii return TO St Pet
ersburg forthwith.
RUSSIANS IN SAD PLIGHT.
The task confided to Linevitch of
Withdrawing what is left Of the great
army Of $4,000 men to Harbin is a
desperate one He is hemmed in on
ali sides General Kawamura pre-
Snmably is pressing northward
through the mountains eastward,
ready TO swooD down, Generals Nogi
and Oku on the west Of the Russian
forces, the whole line of the railroad
is threatened, if not already cut, and
Chinese bandits are even reported TO
be in the rear of Harbin- A consum-
nation Of the Mukden disaster is
feared.
Napoleon's plight in the retreat
from Moscow with kutusofs Cos
sacks harassing the starving, freezing
Frenehmen was hardly as bad or dan
gerous-
Nothing further has arrived from
the front. but il is feared that the dec
ipated battalions which had hardly
recovered from the decentralization of
the Mukden retreat have again been
thrown into confusion by Field Mar
shal Oyamas relentless. merciless
pursuit
The War Office greatly fears that
more of the siege and field guns which
Kuropatkin managed TO save at Muk-
den have been sacrificed in the hur-
ried flight from Tie Pass. The ques-
zion Of ammunition and food is also
vital, as it is known that the Russians
We're compelled to burn further stores
at Tie Pass. where the commissariat
was only beginning to feed the half
famished troops when the new retreat
wss ordered
NO SIGNS OF YIELDING.
But even in the face of the possibiI-
ity OF the complete loss of the army
Sno the admitted fact that Vladivostok
Is already possibly lost, the Emperor
still shows no signs Of yielding. Prep
srations for continuing the war on a
larger scale than ever are proceeding.
The dictum has gone forth that an
other army Of $50, 600 is 10 be dis
patched to the Far East and in order
.Dx-r-r,r,