The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-12-03
GREAT BURDEN
FOR THE CHAR Is THE ARMY IN
 MANCHURIA.
Which Has To Be Supplied Befere lts Repatr1atfon Is C0DDleted-Camps
 at Front Are HIaintalned.


 Repstriafien Ia Co1plefed-Csmps
 at Front Are Maintained.
 
 The treaty of Portsmouth sivei Russia eighteen months to withdraw her army from Manchuria. and 1t will require all of that time to move more than 100000 troops and equipments and their munitions of war. writes Wm. B Curtis in the Chicago Record Herald The treaty was signed in August. but scarcely a regiment has left the pro- vince so far. and the two great armies still occupy the entrenchments above and below Mukden, under the strict est discipline, as if 1t was only a tenn porary truce and not permanent peace that has been arranged. between the two nations. Even if Russia could ship a thousand soldiers day by the Siber- ian railroad 1t would require four hun dred days to send the army home; and 1t Is scarcely possible that the move ment can be so rapid as that. If they average five hundred men day the Russian authorities will be doine well. The Siberian railroad, with its Dtngle track, has all 1t can possibly 10 to bring supplies to the idle army. and the task of maintaining 100000 men is enormous.
 I A private letter from Newchang says that the Russian authorities are try ing to induce as many of the soldiers as possible to take up land and remain in Siberia. and thousands of them will doubtless do so. Large numbers will remain in Manchuria also. es the inc ducements offered there for intelligent settlers are much greater than in Rus- sia. It Is part of the policy of the government to Russianize Manchuria by settlement. and neutralise the in- fiuence of the Japanese, who will also remain in large numbers.
 The fact that the Russian army re- mains in the position that it occupied at the time of the armistice requires the Japanese to maintain their lines of defense also. and their government will be subjected to the expense of keeping their large army in Manehuria through the winter and probably for two years more. The Japanese, how and it is the intention to reduce their force to about 100000 men. There Is no possibility of renewal of hostili- ties. and it Is believed that number will be sufficient to protect the Chinese from plunderers and preserve the dig nity of Japan.
 The removal of Russian prisoners of war from Japan has already begun. and Yokohama newspapers received state that vessels carrying the German. English and Japanese flags. have been chartered by the Russian government to transport the prisoners from Japan to the most convenient Russian ports.
 When the latest mail left eleven of these steamers were coaling at Naga- safSi, eight at Kobe and five at Yoko- hama. It is estimated that they will require an average of 2.000 tons of coal each. or ss.000 tons altogether. which Is good thing for the coal miners of Japan.
 The charters of these vessels allow them s250 for every officer and $f50 Tor every non-commissioned officer and private for transportation to the near sst Russian port. The German steam srs will go to the Baltic and the others 10 Odessa. They can carry an aver age of 1.o00 men each. but that will accommodate only 2 little over half the prisoners now in Japan. who number f4.222 (sfck and well). including sew sral women aud six babies. who were captured at Port Arthur. The total number of prisoners of war taken at Port Arthur was 41.e41, including sevss snteen generals. lieutenant generais md major generals. and five admirais About 5000 of the captured men were
 
 Russia, most of them being commiss- oned and on-commissioned officers. By the latest returns 12,S17 Russian prisoners are still in Japanese hospit- lis, but many Of them are convalescent md are detained only as a matter of Very few will be unable Q make the voyage home when the final call Is made. for it will require .wo trips of the forty-four transports O move the entire body. It will take 1t least forty days to make the voyage rom Japanese ports to Odessa, and 'ixty days to the Baltic and the same in1e for the steamers to return, so that he last prisoner is not likely to be Ihipped until late in the spring.
 The cost of returning the prisoners will be more than q million dollars for transportation alone. There are about 0,000 officers Cat $250 each), and 64,000 'rivates Cat $150 each), which makes li,1f0,000. It is understood that the Japanese will send e bill to Russia for 50. 100000 yen ($125. .000, ,000) for main aiming these prisoners. although that las not yet been settled
 It Is characteristic of the Russian of the war that the au- horities at St. Petersburg have been to admit that they do not rnow how many. Japanese prisoners ave been taken or how many remain n their hands or where they are or about them. Indeed, the Jnited States embassy at St. Peters 'urg has been unable to ascertain any, hing of importance to guide 1t in look ng after the release of these prison- ITS. either combatants or non-combat- .nts. The. Japanese government can ell to a single man just how many are in its hands and where hey were got, how long they have been and where they have been ept. There is a complete and accurate ecord of every individual, from Admir- RoJestvensky down to the humblest cal passer or private. and when 1t be- omes necessary. under the treaty of 1 eace. to calculate the cost of maintain | az the captives and sending them back | 0 their homes 1t will be able to rem | CT an exact account down to the very | ast kopek.
 The Russians have never furnished | he Japanese government with com lete information concerning the pris- ners captured by them either by land | r sea, and the latter has knowledge of | nly 1,421 prisoners. including 371 nom who have been arrested by | russian authorities as spies or for giv- lg aid and comfort to their govern lent in Manehuria, Siberia and else- fhere Among the military prisoners re seventeen officers of the army and wo officers of the navy, thirty-four oncommissioned officers of the army nd three warrant officers of the navy,
 na..- Al