Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-21

slxty-pound rails. In addition to the troops
the railway had to haul their equipment,
their horses, ordnance, tools for building
Notifications and all kinds of military
equipments and impedimenta. Fortunately
they did not have to transport much food.
THE troops that first came were from
Siberia, because they were most available
and could be brought in quickest, and they
did most of the fighting. The railway was
completed as rapidly as possible under the
direction of Prince Hillkoff, minister of
communications in the czars cabinet, who
was educated on the Pennsylvania railroad
and is very appreciative of the opportuni-
ties he enjoyed in this country. During this
war he has given us the most remarkable
exhibition of transportation skill in all his
tory. The problem he has had to solve
was infinitely more difficult than any that
ever came UP during our civil war or during
any other war. Very few accidents hap
pened. Very few detentions occurred. The
entire line was given up to military pur-
poses. All trains ran ten miles an hour on
fixed schedules, the only exception being
one express train between Moscow and IT.
kutsk, which ran each way three times a
week at the usual speed Even the mail
trains were kept down to the ten-mies-an-
hour schedule. Prince HillkoH adopted the
slow but sure policy; he sought safety
rather than speed.
A Stupendous Undertaking.
THE construction of the tracks around
and was carried on with the utmost vigor
and skill. The lake is the crater of an
immense extinct volcano, and the noun
tains come down sheer to the water. The
only way to get around 1t was to cut
shelf 16O miles long on the edge of the
rock, and thirty tunnels were required in
that distance, very much like those on the
swiss railroads. and on the Corniche road
along the Riviera The tunnel through the
Kinghau mountains. two miles long, was
completed at the same time, and a large
number of sidngs and stations were added
to those already existing. All this time,
during all this construction work, you must
remember. the mobilization and the for
warding of troops, and even the fighting
was going on. This movement of troops
has been almost continuous since the be-
ginning of the war. The road has scarcely
been day idle. A continuous procession
of trains only two or three hours apart
has been passing east and west, day after
day and month after month without ces-
sation, and the manner in which the move
ment has been conducted Is an extraordi-
nary object lesson of transportation
How long will 1t take to send back the
million and more men who are now in
Manchuria?" / asked
There will be no difficulty in sending
them all home during the eighteen months
ailowed by the be- treaty. of peace. replied
eighteen months from last faii-that is thew
will have until year from next spring to
evacuate-and l suppose they will send a
portion of the army home by sea- / as
sumo that they Will send the Siberian troops
home first That would be the natural pro-
gram. although, far. as / am aware, 1t
has not been announced Those that have
seen the longest and hardest service are
likely to be sent first.
Army's Magnificent Condition.
''The army is in magnificent condition. !"
said Col. IIoff, and 1t Is composed of splen-
did lighting materiaI-typical Russian peas
ants, illiterate, ox-like, stupid stolid en-
during. but docile and good-natured. They
are easily susceptible to discipline, obedi-
emit to their officers and their priests, loyal
to their religion and to their car. sThey
are men of large stature and perfect phys
fcal development, good constitutions accus-
toned to privation. hardened to fatigue and
capable of handling weapons with skill
What effect has the war had upon
them?'
They have been transformed from UNI
sophisticated peasants into seasoned SOL
diers and are much more intelligent beings
than when they were first brought out
They were all conscripts. They were.forced
into the service. They had to go, and they
went reluctantly. They had never heard
of Manchuria and did not know anything
about Japan. They had no knowledge OF
the causes of the war and most of them
had never been outside of their native vii
lagos, but during the last year and a half
they have learned lot of things have de-
veloped into good soldiers and are very