Waterbury evening Democrat., 1907-12-10
THE STOESSEL CASE
Final Hearing in Famous Court Martial-0fficers Were Moi
 Together.

SI IeltIoDuIS, DeC IO.-DcloIc o brilliant assemblage of his old com rades in arms, Lieutenant General Stoessel to-day was placed on trial to answer with his life and reputation for the loss of Port Arthur on the first of January, 1905, and in firm tones and with confident manner the general pleaded not guilty to the charge of needlessly surrendering the fortress and thereby humiliating the Russian army.
 The trial was in the auditorium of the army and navy club. Among the judges, spectators and witnesses at the courtmartial were General Kuro- patkin, General Linevitch, General Rennenkampf, Vice Admiral Wiren and scores of other prominent leaders in the Russo-Japanese war. There were also present POO officers and soldiers who had been at Port Ar thur and who to-day were clad in their full dress uniforms blazing with stars and decorations.
 St Petersburg, Dec 10.-The court martial of Lieutenant-General Stoes- sel, Major-G General Reiss and Lieu tenant Generals Fock and Smirnoff for their responsibility in connection with the equalization of Port Arthur, entered upon it's final stage in this city to-day. The indictment revealed complete absence of cooperation among the officers entrusted with the defense of the famous stronghold and draws the conclusion that there was no justification for General Stoessel's surrender of Port Arthur on January 1, 1905, having regard to the strength of the garrison, the state of the defenses and the reserves of ammunition and supplies. The long series of charges against Gen eral Stoessel includes one of direct perversion of fact On December 29, 1904, in order to vindicate the ca pitulation, he te!egraphed to the em- peror that "by occupying fort No Ill the Japanese have become mas ters of the whole northeastern front, and the fortress can only hold out for few days. We have hardly any ammunition.
 The great majority of the military council at Port Arthur considered it feasible to continue it's defense and was in favor of holding out. A reso- luton was adopted to that effect, but was ignored by General Stees- sell who negotiated the capitulat; 2n sofs-S = -%1,rtress with General NogiHs Tan additional! charge against General Stoessel is that he did not share the fate of the garrison and accompany his men into captivity. The sum total of the accusations against the general is comprised un- der ten heads. The graver charges are: 1, disobeying General Kuro- patkin's order to hand over the com- mand of the fortress to General Smirnoff; 2, suspending the con- struction of the second and third lines of defense; 8, countenancing ironical and often abusive reports written by General Fock concerning various officers in charge of the de- fense; 4, sending false reports to General Kuropatkin and Admiral Alexieff regarding the battle. of Tsin Chau, May, 1904.
 General Fock, according to the in. dictment, displayed thorough inca pacity and want of judgment. He is charged with disobeying General Stoessel's orders to defend Tsin Chau to the last extremity.
 General Reiss. as chief of the gen. eral staff, is charged with cognizance of General Stoessel's intention to surrender Port Arthur, with urging the uselessness of further resistance and advocating equalization.
 The indictment charges General Smirnoff with failing to remove Gen. eral Fock from his command, al though he suspected the agreement between Generals Stoessel and Fock to surrender the fortress. Instead of preventing the equalization, General Smirnoff contentcd himself with tele- graphing to General Kuropatkin ask ing him either 70 confirm him in his appointment as commander of Port Arthur, or to remove him from the post and it's attendant responsibility.