The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-01-07

one Of the interesting contributions
70 the book world is a thrilling story
of the Japanese-R Russian war by Fred
erick Palmer, a well known war corre-
spondent, which the Scribners have
just published.
The title is with Kurold in Man
churia' and a writer in the Chicago
Tribune writes Of the book and his
comments are Interesting
It was Kuroki says he, that led MS
army through snow and flood over ice
and bog. through storm and stress, me
dreary length of Corea- It was hurokl
whose brilliant strategy at the du
made the Russian veteran Zassultch
look like a novice. It was kurofU VINO
led his army from the Yalu, through
the mountains, through two battles IN
Molten pass. 1t was kurClU VINO len
on Kouropatkin's flank at Liaoyang.
And when for three days the fortune
of battle Wavered it was kuroh who
threw his divisions across the Ialtze
river and for three days longer heat on
Orloff, beat off Stakelberg, routed Rem
nenkampf, and even held kouropat-
kin's whole army in check until Nodzu
could throw his weight en- the other
side.
It is Kuroki, always Kuroki, who
goes ahead, who scars and seams the
Manchurian landscape with battle, and
against whom KOurOpatkin is constant
" sending his ablest generals and his
strongest legions.
Frederick Palmer is a painter of bat
tie scenes with which the reading pub
lie is happily familiar. He is one OF
the few writer's who know how to feel
a battle. OF course no man can really
'ssee'' a battle The war CORES pond
ent hears the crash of guns, the scream
ing of shrapnel, the bursting of shells,
but he cannot see the guns. He can
hear the incessant splitting Of infantry
FIRE but he rarely can see the soldiers
themselves. He can only see a land
scape Of steep hill or level plain, COW
cred with the verdure of trees or the
confused cOlOrlessness Of rocks. Against
this background he may catch glimpse
now and then OF a dim, wavering patch
of dusky broWn-like lchen clinging
to a rock. That patch of brown is a
regiment Of Russian soldiers. Against
the side of a. distant hillside, covered
with verdure, there will seem to ap-
pear a haze of blue-a company or u
battalion of japanese infantry. There
are no masses Of men marching to the
double quick in a charge-nO clouds Of
dense smoke hanging over the battle
field, none of the "pomp and circum-
stance of glorious war" as revealed IN
stories OF battles Of Napoleon's day.
Mr.. PaImer's description of the battle
Of the Yalu. when kurokf first invaded
Manchuria, is like a collection of etch-
ings. He makes you see the battle just
as he saw it. In the three chapters de-
voted to that battle you can see the
dust cOlOred line of the Russian
army on the plain below, like a long
fence hung with blue" You can see
that army, in a visible line four or five
miles long, charge across two miles of
sandy plain, then up, and up, and up
the heights to the crest where Russians
who had swept the advancing hosts
with volley after volley were waiting
for the final struggle with the bayonet,
in which the Japanese won.
After that charge came the Russian
retreat and the japanese pursuit Let
us go with them. Along the old Pekin
road marches the Russian regiments,
with their guns, their soup boilers, their
heavy transportation carts-an equip
Inent wholly out of place-winding and
Flooding over the stony, rutty. crooked
mountain highway. The band with all
its instruments is along. No f1ankers
are in the hills. With 10000 victorious
moving just as a vegetating Siberian
garrison would move from an old to a
new post.
Then the Japanese reserves attack
front, right left. and rear. From that
moment the drama is not war. 1t is
slaughter. The Russians form around
their guns and try to charge. Bullets
that miss the infantry catch the artil-
1ery horses. The fire from the jana
nese on the hills is as steady and re-
morseless as an electric current along
wire. Out of the melee a Russian
priest leads the remains of one regi-
ment, charging through a bullet swept
space.
The rest have made the sacrifice that
a soldiers honor demands Further re-
sistance is futile. A white handker-
chief comes out of an officers pocket.
The Japanese descend from the hill in