The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-07-17
HEAVY LOSSES IN WARS.

lnOSe losses heretofore, and, ~ tn
figures as given are correct, the won
der is not that the secret of these losse
has been kept so long. but that the fig
ures are made public at all. It ha
losses Of both Russia and Japan il
that war were something fearful A!
the Portland Oregonian saws (from
which we get the figures the parable
Of them can be found only in the rec
ords Of the ancients, "whou battle.
were fought man to man and resulted
in wholesale slaughter of one or the
other parties.'
Thus, the total losses Of the Japan
ese IN their campaign against and cap
ture of Port Arthur are stated to have
been more than 10000 men, or So
! per cent of the total assaulting force
Again it is stated that in the first
army assembled to capture that post
Japan lost rs per cent of its men, and
an entire new army was sent to con.
tinue the siege. To capture 203. Metre
Hill alone cost Japan 10000 men. On
the other hand. Russia had $4,000 men
at Port Arthur when the siege began.
but only $4,000 men remained at the
surrender, and Of those only 5000 were
able to march.
The battle of Mukden lasted seven
days, with a total loss on both sides in
killed and wounded Of $4,000 men
A summary of the total losses in
action of both Russia and Japan in
the entire war gives these at $4,000,
out of total force on both sides of
$4,000 men.
Our Portland contemporary, con-
trasting this with the Union losses dur
ing our Civil War, states that our total
losses in action during that war were
not quite 100000, "out of a total Of
3,37s,504 engaged" and its summary
is: Russo-Japapese losses in war of
less than two years were 80 per cent;
Civil War losses in four-years' war
were per cent. 4" The Oregonian well
says that "those who lightly incite
Japan to war know not what they do -
The losses given in the Russo.Jap-
anese war, frightful as they undoubt-
edly were, appear in fact to be over
stated in these enormous figures, Still,
If they are official or approximately
accurate. they merely illustrate anew
the recklessness of life of oriental
commanders. 1t has always been char
acterlstic of commanders Of oriental
armies to waste the lives of their men
without mercy. This has been a rule
from the time of Ghengis Khan to the
present time. The waste of life in
wars conducted By Tartar or Mougolian
commanders is dreadful thing to CON
template.
But the computation made between
the losses in our Civil War AS compar
ed with the losses in the Russo-Japan.
ese war is faulty in this: that the num-
Der of men engaged in our Civil
War is enormously overstated, while
the Russian and japanese array is I'm.
derstated; for we believe that the Jan
anese alone had as many men in that
war as are given for both Russia and
Japan. But on our part, it was al, |
ways difficult for any Federal com
mander to get together more than
about 100000 men for any battle. At
Gettysburg, the great battle of the war.
The Union army comprised but little, if |
any, more than 10000 men. At the
same time, Grant had about $4,000 men
al Vicksburg, Rosecrans had 10000 |
men in Tennessee and Burnside about |
$1,000 men in and about Knoxville, No |
Union army existed anv.
where except at these points; which |
would fix the total Union fighting
strength at that time, when il was
about its maximum, at something like |
225,O0O men. IT is true that there were
small forces in different parts of the
some at New Orleans, some
llong the Atlantic coast, and some west
IF the Mississippi, but if we should
olace the total Union fighting strength
1t 10000 men, that would be as many
is could have been mustered for all
purposes and at all places at anv one
1me during the Civil War. Reducing.
therefore,, the number of men engaged |
n our Civil War to about one.tentb |
# the number stated by the Oregoniau
is engaged, our losses amounted to
70 per cent in place of 6 per cent. This.
Iowever, should be subject to tbe
notification, that as the losses in the
arly battles of the war were replaced Il
" fresh troops, the early losses should
e added TO the fighting total as given
bove. But these losses were not very
erious, except to the Army of the Po. n
omac, and it would be entirely fair TO |
ay that in our four years Civil War. II
ur losses amounted TO as great n per |
eutage of the men actually engaged as
ne 40 per cent losses stated in the two |
ears wal between Russia aud japan.
We trust that the practice NAV NOT n
ecome general that it is reported an Q
astcrn wife has introduced of hiding
er husband IS collar button in her