The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-03-15
KUROPATKIN
 GAINS TIME
(Continued from Page one.)
Order to Retire.

reserves already engaged 1t became im- possible to meet the danger in those 1.-two sources, which was imminent and lcritical, and at o'clock in the even- ing the order to retire to Tie Pass was given. Through the narrow boot leg passage, scarcely five miles wide. ldensely packed mass of transports pressed northward. coming under the fire of a small squadron of Japanese cavalry and four mountain guns which earlier in the battle had managed to dart across the Russian line of commit nication and conceal themselves in the mountains to the eastward. The forces of General Tserpitzky began an orderly Iretirement from the boot toe and dur
 ing March 10 General Kuropatkin suc- cessfully held at bay the Japanese who
 wwere trying to interrupt the railroad. On the night of March g Mukden Sta tion presented a remarkable scene. Shortly after o'clock came the order to complete the evacuation of the sta
 tion and city with directions that move- ments of trains .northward must be Icompleted by 5 o'clock in the morning.
 The enormous task was completed in nine hours, including the nasty embark ation of the wounded, who crowded the station platform and occupied the hos pitals. Many had already left in the
 morning when the private trains of Ku- ropatkin. Kailbars, Sakharoff, Bilder- ling and Zabelin departed, but thous- ands remained.
 At $40 a. m. the first string of eight trains was dispatched and a call was sent to Tie Pass for thirteen locomo- tives. The forwarding of these loco- motives without interrupting the northward movement of trains was a delic piece of train dispatching but the worked railroad staff accom- phsh> it successfully. At 8 o'clock the string was started northward and 9:45 the last train of the third string
 of sixteen departed. All the trains
 had fifty-two to fifty-five cars. Three trains contained the ammunition of the park of artillery which had been dis patched the evening before in 54S cars;
 another train carried warm clothing; one was coal laden and enc was load
 ed with Red Cross supplies, one with
 engineers depot supplies, three with Icommissariat freight and the remaini- CT with wounded. The last train out
 was the service train with all the em- ployes of the railroad. property and
 station papers
 Invaluable Service.
 The skill, exertions and devotion of this little band of civilians rendered service the importance of which can not be over estimated for the future | of the Russian army It saved thou | sands of wounded soldiers. an immense amount of ammunition and millions of dollars worth of property and cash. It
 must be remembered that five miles north of Mukden an unceasing fight was | in progress. Trains earlier had been
 bombarded with Shimose shells and
 the railroad was damaged. The trains travelled unlighted, and without whist ling, under eight minute headway. All
 about fires blazed in gigantic rings, burning straw, coal, wood. corn and biscuit. Occasionally boxes of cart
 ridges exploded with disagreeable
 rattle or rockets rose and burst in clusters of stars. The flames had
 plenty of material as there were over $500 car loads of corn and biscuit.
 This was only the reserve commissia-
 riat and other stores that was de- stroyed.
 The wounded crowded the station, ! filled every vacant place in the cars | and the brake beams, buffers and roofs were occupied while others were hang | ing to the step. The last train pulled
 out as General Tsperisky's troops be- | gan to pass the station, shortly before | the explosion which wrecked the Hun River bridge.
 On the platform remained eight tel | egraphers who had volunteered to stay at their keys until the arrival of the | Japanese. In the hospital of the IL vonian division of the Red Cross and
 medical staff were 1,050 severely wounded, including 364 Japanese, the | Chinese governor of Mukden giving his word to defend them until Mukden was
 occupied by the Japanese. How many
 wounded reached the station after its 1 evacuation is not known.
 Of the military railroad all but 125
 miles was abandoned and the wagon
 cites destroyed. Ten thousand boxes
 of ammunition were abandoned. but most important of all from material point of view Is the loss of the Flu
 shun coal mines, which supplied the road with coal.
 The trains were heavily bombarded, but came through safely.
 The retirement of the wagon trans port was twice imperiled by panic on
 the morning of March 10. A Japanese
 squadron and guns concealed in the
 mountains opened fire and the drivers,
 who were undisciplined peasants, unac-
 customed to the sound of Japanese
 shells. began to desert their carts and wagons, cutting loose the horses or throwing the stores fronS the wagons. Confusion became rampak Hand spread | to terror-stricken civiliA and even gunners. and was comf hicated to some infantry troops. mxe Japanese