Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1905-01-05
ARMIES In RETREAT
TOME Of THE FAMOUS RETRo6RApE
MOVEMENTS IN WAR,

knpoleon's Retreat From Moscow =
Fatal mundcr-The Most Disastrous
Example In History Made by the
English Gcaerai EIphinstone.
The problem OF %eStricating a defeated
army aud conducting a mastery re-
treat Is one of The most difficult, II not
the most difficult, that a general In the
| field has 10 meet. Before every great
battle such Il contingency IL planned
for, but when the test comes many
new things are constantly being
| brought before the commander In chief
| which must be decided Oh the instant
and the right move chosen IL n ront IL
ia be avoided. The general who has
been worsted Elust not only get his
troops away frcm the enemy, but his
guns and stores as well. The supplies
for the army must be sent TO the rear
first. for without them the soldiers
would have to fight hungry and the
wounded 90 without proper attention.
The guns and army follow the supplies,
and the brunt of the fighting and u
chance to win much glory fail On the
rear guard.
General Kuropatkin conducted d
mastery retreat from Liaoyang TO
Mukden and destroyed what stores he
could not remove from the doomed city.
He was following in the footsteps OF
| other Russian generals, for Russian
troops have made some wonderful re-
trograde movements which have ulti-
mately been crowned with success, but
1t must be remembered that he was
| aided by a railroad, which vas not the
case of many another in his predica-
ment. Still. Kuropatkin's retreat from
Liaoyong will rank well with the
| famous retreats OF history.
Napoleon was the worlds master ut
war, yet he lost more men in his fatal
retreat from Moscow than he did on
the field of Waterloo. With a vast ar
my of 100000 men he crossed the Me
men in June and later fought ut Boro-
dino, where his losses were heavy.
Then came the march to Moscow, the
Russians retreating before him and
destroying everything as they marched.
In the cold of the northern winter he
! turned his hack on the burning city.
into which the eagles had been borne In
triumph. and began the most disas-
trous retrea in history. Famine. cold
and the Russians on his tanks and
rear cut down his soldiers as they
plodded. finally b%arefooted, through
the snow, and the army melted away
as it crawled over those COO miles Of
dreary waste. All Napoleon could tell
the anxious people at Paris was, MY
health is good" He succeeded in saw
ing practically nothing as he fed.
Nearly a century before Napoleon in
vaded Russia Charles MI. of Sweden,
with $4,000 men at his back, marched
over much the same route and shared
much the same i'll fortune. After
storming the Russian lines at Golov-
tchin he plunged into the Vabls In pur-
suit of the retreating Russians and
lost many men and guns in his haste.
But he kept his face toward Moscow
and reached Smolensk at last. but
there changed his plans and marched
for the Ukraine. with Gar Peter lur-
ing him ON. Then the Russians con-
fronted him with 10000 troops at Pol
tava, where Charles was wounded and
charged at the head Of his troops borne
in a litter and vas defeated, being
forced to retreat with his handful Of
men into Turkish territory in anything
but a dignitied manner
One of the most mastery retreats in
history was made by Sir John Moore
in Spain in 1SOS-09. He marched his
force between Astorga and Coruna in
q month and beat back Soult's army at
the edge OF the sea before his troops
sailed away for home, leaving the body
Of their dead commander behind, to be
buried without the walls. on the field
where he fell. Soult retreated from
Oporto, in Portugal, In the same war,
and Beresford drove him across the
mountains into Spain after taking the
city. Wellington caught the French
again in the same war, driving the ar
my from Taldvera, but the French re-
treat was good. and the Iron Duke lost
his advantage through Cuesta's blum
der, and he in turn led a clever retreat
before the advancing French.
The most fatal retreat in all history
was that Of the English army under
Lord Elphinstone from Kabul, in
A~fghanistan. aud 1t and It's preceding
events will always be a dark blot in
England's military annals. In lS4l the
British authorities in Afghanistan lost
their light grip on the natives, and Sir
Alexander Burnes. a high official at
kabul, was murdered in his home. The
10000 English troops We're scattered
in forts outside the town under the
command of Elphinstone, who remain
cd inactive In the face of such q crime.
Akbar Khan was at the head of the
natives, and the English stopped to