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About Valentine Democrat. (Valentine, Neb.) 1900-1930 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 27, 1904)
BsJl % F v'7 The great battle of last week took place on a line between fifty-five and sixty'miles long , and the line oC battle proper , where the fighting was most severe and continuous , was twenty- five or thirty miles Ions. The Hun river on the north and west and the Taitse on the east and south mark out the field in a general way. The Schili river , frequently mentioned in the dis patches , bisects this field on an east -and west line , and most of the fighting thus far has been south of it. The bat tle may possibly b-j known as the bat tle of the Schili river. ( Jen. Kuropatkin brought into play < ? very"pound of military strength that Russia has available in the far East. Since the battle of Liaoyang he has "been re-enforced by the First and Sixth corps , and possibly also by the Fourth Don Cossack division. A low estimate of his strength is 200,000 men. It may be 230,000. With all that he baa been gradually but surely beaten back , and the chances are greater now than they were at a corresponding stage of the battle of Liaoyang that his army Avill "be partially dismembered. Then his divisions were closely concentrated for mutual support. Now they are much jnore widely spread out. On the last day of September corre spondents at Mukden made note of great military activity , but their pre diction of a movement southward was not credited. Oct. 2 Gen. Kuropatkin issued his famous order for the ad vance , though it Avas not till a week later that Europe learned of it. In the meantime the Russians bad been en gaged in pushing in the Japanese out posts. This preliminary stage of the struggle culminated with the driving of the Japanese outposts out of Bent- siaputze. The small map gives a roughly ac curate idea of the battle field strategy. Three heavy black lines are to be seen -on the map marked ' 'Oct. 8 ( Jap screen ) , " "Oct. 10 , " and "Oct. 14. " ZDDYJXGS OF THE BATTLE OF YFIfTAI. These lines indicate the respective po sitions of the hostile armies at differ ent stages of the battle. The jagged triangle including Yentai. Liaoyang -sind SykAvantun marks the heart of Ova ma's position , the tlir' e points be ing heavily fortified and garrisoned. > "ortb of bis triangle Oyama bad ad vanced a heavy line of outposts at the position indicated by the line of Oct. 8. But he was not north of Yentai in .groat force. The Russian advance from Mukden l.egan on Oct. C . Two days later it came in 'contact Avith the Japanese outposts. In two days' fighting the .Japanese scouts Avere forced back to ward their main positions. At the same -time re-enforcements were sent for ward from the triangle. The retreat- Ing outposts and re-enfojx-ements met * t the line marked "Oct. 10. " On the follOAving daj * the beaA'y fighting be- We can most easily get an idea of the fighting by considering the Kuroki. Nodxu and Oku armies separately. Ku- roki has the right , occupying the re gion at the bend of the Taitse , where that river turns from a southerly to a westerly course. Nodzu is in the cen ter , holding the region from the Yen tai station on the railroad. Oku is west of the raihoad , holding both sides of the Hun river. Monday Kuropatkin in full force crossed the Hun river where it flows easterly just south of Mukden. His advance guards on the same day cross ed the Schili and attacked Yentai. but wore driven back in the evening. Tues day a larger force crossed the Schili , ftnd the fightins that day was very so * rere to the north of Yentai. Gen. Danieloff receiving his wounds in that engagement. Gen. Noilxu took the of fensive tbat same day and began to force the Russians back. The strug gle was extremely fierce here every day , and probably the great part of the JOSPCS are in this region. Farther to the east Gen. Kuroki mot the main force of the attack at bis chosen positions near Renishti. The Russians attempted to outflank him. howcAer , or at least made a feint of that nature , by sending several thou- " \VarNe\vsj in ISrieF. Gen. BiWerling lost nearly a whole Brigade out of his corps. The Dowager Empress has broken down on account of Ut-d Cross work. The Japanese have withdrawn troops from Ncwchwang and sent them to Liao yang. The contraband question reached an acute stage at St. Petersburg , but has cased up. Gen. Kuropatkin had a narrow es cape from being 'tilled with his whole taff by a Japanese attack on his head- SCENE IN A RUSSIAN HOSPITAL CAMP. sand men across the Taitse farther north to work around to the Japanese rear. Gen. Kuroki seemed to expect to bag this expedition bodily , but if he did it no report has yet arrived. The country here is broken Avith small hills , and there seems to have been a large number of separate engagements on Tuesday and Wednesday. On Wednes day Kuroki received re-enforcements , and Thursday he sent a strong force under Prince Kanin to cut off the Rus sians north of Benslhu. This force formed a wedge between the Russian left aid center , but the left seems to haAe escaped from it , and the center was too hard pressed itself to strike a counter blow. West of the railroad the fighting Avas more distinctly faA-orable to the Japan ese. Here it Avas that thirty-five Rus sian guns Avere captured. West of the Hun Gen. Oku seems to have cleared the country of Russians to a point within ten or twelve miles of Mukden. In the number of men engaged , in the casualties of both sides , and in the decisiveness of the Japanese victory the battle at Yentai surpasses that at Liaoyang. But it does not anyAvheiv equal the first conflict in interest. Liao- yanc : AVI * ? the first squirtstand up fight on a big scale Aith equal num bers and modern Avcapons between tht yellow men and the white. When the OEXEn.VI . , Japs AA-on that fight the great lesson was ' taught that education , study , training and patriotism Avill achieve just as great results for a yellow man as for a Avbite man. OVER 60,000 FALL IN BATTLE. Appalling Slaughter Leads to Demands for the War's Kiul. Field Marshal Oyama , in a report to the Mikado , estimates the number of Russians killed in the battle south of Mukden at 10.000. Other reports from the Japanese headquarters in the field estimate the total number of killed and Avounded on both Mdes at GO.OOO. but this is considered too low. The railway yards at Mukden are congested Avitli the-trains bearing the Avoundcd from the battle field to the quarters. lie v.is obliged to flee bul- dti.Iy. The r.nltic fleet was Supported by the Emperor at Rovnl , and will sail in a few days for the Pacific. Japs are reported to have crossed the Hun river re.uly to attack the Russians in the rear , when they arc driven across it. The Russians arc supposed to have lost from 20,000 to 30,000 in the six- days' fighting. There were 4oOO dead in front of oirc Japanese army. Russians are offering fabulous prices hospitals at Harbin , and it would not be surprising if Kuropatkin had lost nearly one-fifth of his army in killed and Avounded. Complete figures are lacking on the Japanese losses , but they Avill be large , although smaller than those of Russia. The extent of the slaughter has shocked both Japan and Russia. In Toldo the appalling tragedy is consid ered to be a strong appeal for peace. The Japanese , usually quick to cele brate victory for their arms , are re ceiving the ncAA-s in a subdued spirit , although it contains the report of a SAveeping success for Oyama's forces. A member of the diplomatic corps makes a strong argument In faA'or of an adjustment of the conflict. In Russia the defeat of Kuropat- kin's armies is making the Avar more unpopular than ever , and fears are ex pressed openly that Japan's success will cause China to abandon her neu trality and come out openly in faA'or of the Japanese. RUSSIANS LOST 25,000. Almost Routed by Japanese in First Battlevvitli Conditions Equal. The seven days' battle north of Yentai v.as the heaviest blow yet struck the Russians by the Japanese , so far as loss of life is concerned. The left Japanese army during the Aveek buried 4,100 Rus sian dead left in front of its lines. A village in front of the left Aving contains many Russian dead , hut the shell fire of the retreating Russians prevents the Japanese from reaching them. Conserva tive estimates place the Russian casual ties at not less than 23,000. Probably many more dead are on the field in places not yet searched. The Japanese report their total casualties at a little over 3,000 killed and Avounded. The principal Russian casualties occurred in determined counter attacks on each vil lage captured by the Japanese. The Russian attacking parties were inmany cascfl entirely annihilated. For the first time the Russians met the Japanese on an equal footing , not having strong defense positions to de pend upon , and lor the first time they attacked the Japanese in their OAVII trenches. The Russians everywhere fought bravely , but they Avere unable to drive the Japanese out or to hold their own positions against fierce charges. Almost in every case the Russians re tired from their positions at the first charge , then made repeated attempts to iccapture them. The Japanese left army , with a front of nearly ten miles , moved forward about five miles , fighting over every inch of ground. The final retreat of the Russians was almost a rout. The Japanese extreme left adA'anc- ed , driving the remnant of Russians ahead. The Russians covered their re treat Avell Avith artillery and carried away much baggage and many wounded. The Japanese 'soldiers were practically the same that fought before Liaoyang. Chinese report that heavy works ore ready for the Russians along the Him river. The Japanese are undecided Avhere the ne t stand will be made. Details of the operation of the right and center armies are not obtainable. Baron ITayashi sees no probability of anything being done1 towards peace in the event of a victory for the Japanese , but thinks Avhen Port Arthur falls there may bo some hope. to got supplies ? : : iLi > Port Arthur. Gen. Sioesaol admits that serious damage ia being done : : nd things are AViarm there. A mail pouch for the cruiser Cincin nati vra-s oized by Russians from Oal- chas , and opened and afterwards return ed. The government will make a strong protest. Over in Japan they call the war dis patches from Chefoo chefooleries. Those that come from Shanghai they call Shanghai "bunders , " meaning that the news is created on the huud , or river trout , of SU-anghai. BLAME IS FIXED. ! Commisaios on Slocnm Horror Makes I Itb Keport. 1 The national Slocum committee haa ' spared nobody. It has struck at the head of the steamboat inspection service. Per emptory orders have been issued to dis charge from the service of the United States these officials : Robert S. Rodie , supervising inspector of the Second District , with headquarters in Albany. Gen. James A. Duraout and TJomas H. Barrett , local inspectors in charge i > f the port of New York. They are held directly responsible for deadly laxity and neglect. It is ordere-1 that their succeesors in office at once conduct a thorough exam ination of the entire inspection force of the port of New York , with the object of weeding out all the men whom such examination shall shoTV to be unfitted to perform he very arduous and responsi ble duties of their positions. Changes in the regulations of an ex tensive nature must be made ( Cor it is BO ordered ) , designed to prevent a repe tition of the General Slocum disaster in the port of New York , when Qoo died and 17o were hurt out of I,25S. Con- ' struction of flimsy steamboats of the Sloi i cua kind will be guarded against. The owners of the Slocum and their ex ecu- ( live agents are declared to share largely ( in the moral responsibility for the whole sale destruction of life. Captain Van Scha.Tck and the pilot are also condemn nl. The commission declares : "The com ! mission , therefore , believes that the mas- { ter .had . knowledge of the fire before the ' steamer passed the eastern end of Ward's Island. The commNs'on , there fore , believes that the master knew of the fire in time to have beached the ves sel either in Little Hell Gate , to the j westward of the Sunken Meadows , or in the Bronx Kills , to the eastward of the Sunken Meadows. " ! A fearful rebuke is given to the ofifi i cers and crew , save Assistant Engineer ' BrandoAV and Chief Engineer Conklin. who nre commended ns heroes. Pilot Van Wart showed bad judgment and lack of skill in beaching the vessel , giving little opportunity of wading ashore t ( , those who could not swim. The fire fight Ing apparatus is sharply criticised , and as to the rotten life preservers the con demnation is supreme. Laws to confer greater power on the inspection service to enforce its commands are strongly urged. All the regulations must be enforced by order of President Roosevelt , who ha ; written a letter to Secretary Victor II. Metcalf of the Department of Commerce and Labor , directing 'him ' to carry into effect the regulations of the commission CAMPAIGN WARMING UP. Its Last Days May See Some of the Old Time Enthusiasm. The remaining days of the campaigi of 190-1 will occupy the public mind pret ty much to the neglect of everything else. The voters and those who read the newspapers , the Utica Globe says believe two weeks is plenty as it has been impossible to arouse enthusiasn at an earlier stage and a herculean ef fort has been put forth to start it evei now. now.This This campaign differs from others ir the absence of accessories the uniform- ' ed inarching clubs , the big meetings , ami the things which contributed to move ment and color. When the spectaculai feature is omitted , the distinguishing mark of the presidential canvasses sine' | the GO's , the life is gone. W < hen it is left to the press and the spellbinders to importune support for the candidates the glory of electioneering has departed In the old days the cost of carrying 01 a campaign was small compared to now In 18GO the Wide Awakes and the Littl * Giants wore an oil cloth cap and cape costing 40 conts and this placed it withi i , the reach of everyone. Now the unifonm ' cost all the way from $10 to $23 and onlj the few can afford them. A battalion oJ 200 dressed this way in one month ex pend from $4,000 to $7,000. The old fashioned torch has been superseded bj an expensive lantern , and musicians whc received $1.50 per night now ask $4 and $5. The increased cost has had a good deal to do to make this campaign th i listless one it has been up to the ove almost of election. While the omission of the spectaculai has disappointed the boys and girls it has served a good purpose iii that the heated arguments , the bitterness aroused among the parties to them , has not manifested itself in anything like the proportions of ye olden time. The discussion of plat forms and candidates has been carried with respectful deference in nowise cal dilated to anger those who seek enlight eument. This is tus it should be and is a distinct gain over the old way of nbuso and villification which marred so many campaigns heretofore. The "Wursf : Ever. The bologna sausage makers employed in 1G3 wurst shops in Chicago agreed the other evening to strike for recognition of their union. Eleven hundred men , ex pert in separating sausages from their bark , joined in the movement. The meeting decided fin linked action against the manufacturers , whose trade agree ment with the ; ii " MI has expired. The , employers decided to run open shops. The union wants the shops closed tight I as the bologiias. The wurst is yet to i come. Noted Horse Sold for $7OOOO. One of the la-rgest sums ever paid for a horse in this country was that given ' by Harry Payne Whitney at the sale of the stable of his late father , William C. Whitney , in Madison Square Garden , New York. Monday night. The price was $70,000 , and the horse was the noted stallion Hamburg. James It. Keene , the famous hor-oman and Wall street operator , \ > as Whitney's only com petitor in the bidding , he offering $ 'JO.- 000. The Vote in November. It is estimated that 15,000.000 VO will be cast for President in November. The vote in 1SOG was 13J.37S , and in 1000 it was 13,901,500. If the estimate of l'5,000000 votes should prove correct , over a million more votes will be c.vit j this year than were ca't four y * s.i * ncro. | j There has been a large increase in t'uo j number of votes , and there will proba bly be no larger number or" &Lay-.it-home voters this year than there was in 1900. A well-to-do man Is often hard to do. \ I Wi v yjL A L.ZL&-J % jy SL JL JY The Trusts and T abor. "When the late Senator Hanna took up the fad of the Civic Association and tried to arbitrate all disagreements be tween capital and labor , he made some of the principal labor leaders believe that the concentration of business in the hands of the trusts was for the benefit of organized labor. There was to be the trust for the masters , with the protective tariff to enrich them , and a combination of labor to force up the wages of the workingman to keep pace with the increased cost of living. As long as the "business boom" continued 'the Hanna plan worked to perfection , and both the trusts and the labor leaders thought they had at last reached a Utopian existence. All tbat was necessary was to "stand pat" and "let well enough alone. " But the con sumers , who have to pay trust prices , find the effort beyond the reach of their pocketbooks and have been com pelled to resort to economy. The Steel Trust and other large trusts and the railroad combines discovered their earnings decreased and many mills and workshops have been shut down. Wages have been cut and strikes have become epidemic and the inflated pros perity bladder is punctured. The rail roads had advanced their rates , but soon depressed wages. The Coal Trust advanced prices , but the miners re ceived no increase. The Beef Trust "boomed" beef , but cut wages and low ered the price of cattle and hogs. Oth er trusts acted on the same hypothesis , that they could continue to plunder the consumers and reduce their expenses and pay big dividends upon watered stock. The trusts did not kill the goose that laid the golden egg , but they have so maltreated her that the eggs dwindled in size and value. The numerous strikes that have resulted from the wage cutting has brought about the combination of manufacturers for the 'open shop. " The manufacturers' trust must be preserved at all hazards , but the labor combine must be disrupted. Everyone with a vestige of common sense is demanding some kind of tariff revision , to stop the trusts from plun dering the consumers and especially to hinder the trusts from selling cheaper to foreigners than to the American peo ple. A strong minority of Republicans clamored for reciprocity and tariff re form , but the leaders said , "Stand pat. " President Roosevelt was for some time in doubt about tariff reform ; he vacillated between "revision" and a "commission. " The Protective Tariff League threatened to defeat his nom ination and the trusts declared they would put up no money for the cam paign , so what could the poor man do but succumb to those mighty auxil iaries of the Republican party and "stand pat" So there is to be no relief from pro tection , no escape from the plundering trusts , no reciprocity , if President Roosevelt and a Republican Congress is continued in power. Parker and Davis ! Retrenchment and Reform is the only hope for the people. No Promise of Kcform. Since the Republicans have been confronted with the unquestioned fig ures that the administration of Presi dent Roosevelt has cost $211,000,000 more than McKinley's and $883,000,000 more than Cleveland's they have con stantly been trying to explain away this extravagance. But the glowing fact remains that before these unrea sonable expenditures were shown up , not an effort was made for economy. No promise of reform , or retrenchment , or economy was made in the Republi can platform , nor in President Roose velt's speech of acceptance did such words occur. But public opinion has become so aroused that in his letter of acceptance the President tries to cor rect this omission by not only mention ing economy but defines it. He boldly claims that "the expenditures have been managed in a spirit of economy , " although he does not attempt to ex plain why the expenditures for the year ending June 30 , 1904 , were great er than the annual average during the four years of McKinley , including the cost of the Spanish Avar. The voters Avho pay most of this vast increase should remember that the surplus is being wiped out with a rapidity that will compel new taxes if the present spendthrift administration is continued in power. The deficit for the fiscal year ending June 30 , 190-1 , Avas $41,079G01 , and already for this year , up to Sept. 28 , the deficit is $18- 792,300 , Avhich , if continued for the balance of the year , in the same pro portion , will make a deficiency of OAer $70,000,000. This mismanagement of the financial affairs of the government cannot con tinue ; there must be a change. Either the Avasteful appropriations must be decreased or more taxes must be im posed. The only way Avith govern ments , as with indiA-iduals , is to make both ends meet. To borrow , by issu ing bonds , is only a temporary make shift , for interest must be added to oth er expenditures , and the principal must be eventually paid. This is the in- evitable condition that frauds , graft ing and extravagance have brought us to and that the voters must consider when casting their ballots. If they conclude that their official servants liaAre mismanaged their affairs , they c Avill refuse to give them another lease * of power. ' Kami Produce and Protection. The farmer who has been beguiled into believing that the protcctiA'c tariff' helps him obtain an enhanced price for his produce , should remember that the farmer is an exporter and not a man- , ufaeturcr threatened with imports. The farmer must have markets abroad , for he raises more than the home mar-k ket can consume , lie does not fear , j any competitor from a foreign coun- . try , so what protection can a tariff on farm products give him ? No one Isj going to send wheat , or meat , or corn.i or cotton here to compete with hini.j After he has sold all the American peo-j pie can consume the surplus must lind a market abroad in competition AVlthJ the surplus of other countries. Near-j ly always , the price' that the surplus brings abroad fixes the price at home. What the farmer needs is not a pro tective tariff , but protection from the- trusts , elevator combines and corpora tions. High freight rates and high- trust prices for all the farmer buys eat up his profits and these high freight rates and largely increased cost of all be buys is mainly caused by the pro- , tectivo tariff. Steel rails and nearly eA'erything the railroads use are in creased in cost one-third by protection , and of course the farmer pays his- , share of the bills. Farm machinery , tools , barbed wire , building material , clothes and many more articles that might be mentioned are protected by the tariff , so that the manufacturers can charge a great deal beyond a rea sonable profit. All this , and more , the farmer pays , and still some otherwise- sensible farmers A-ote for the party Avhich is openljin league with those * Avho plunder them. Remember that the Republican national platform and ; State and congressional district plat forms pledge the candidates to uphold the protective tariff , so no relief can b expected from a Republican Congress or a Republican President. Good Reasons for a. Change. Republicans AVIO detest Roosevelt- ism , but do not like to ally themselves with the Democrats , should take cour age from the examp.e of DeWitt Clin ton Overbaugh , president of the Grand Hotel Company of NOAV York , a life long Republican. lie Avas a member of the famous Committee of Seventy Avho * overthroAV Tammany , and is president of the North Side Board of Trade. His reason for his change of heart he declares to be , that he dislikes the- methods of Mr. Roosevelt and cannot trust him to settle the vital questions of national importance , such as mon opolies , strikes , investigation and pun ishment of dishonest public officials , squandering uselessly the public mon ey and the rich trust combines which are eating like a cancer into the A'ery life of the nation and the tariff to bo adjusted properly. LEAVE CAMEL FAR BEHIND. Several Animals Can Go Witliout Water for Remarkable Xionj ? Periods. Several other creatures besides the camel are able to get along for extend ed periods Avithout drinking. Sheep in the Southwestern deserts of America go for forty to sixty days in AVintco : without drink , grazing on the green , succulent vegetation of that sea son. Peccaries in the desert of Sonora live in little dry .hills , Avhere there is no nat ural water , for long periods. They can not possibly find Avater in fact , foe months at a time the moisture they can obtain comes from roots and the fruits of cacti. But the most extraordinary case is that of the pocket mouse , one of the common rodents of the desert. This little creature , by the way , has a genuine fur-lined "pockcit" on the outside of his cheek. When it is hun gry it takes food from this pocket with its paw , just as a man AA-ould pull a ham saiidAvich from his pocket. One of these mice has been kept for three years AA'ith no other food than thu mixed bird seed of commerce. Daring this period it has not a taste of either water or green food. Other experimenters have found , in fact , that these mice in captiA'ity refuse such treats , not seeming to know that water is good to drink. The bird seed put before this mouse contained not more than 10 per cent of moisture , which is less than is neces sary for digestion. Stuff so dry as this cannot even be swallowed until it is moistened by saliva. Yet this remark able mouse gave nothingbut his time to the interests of scicmce. He suffered nothing in health of spir its during his captivity. The "abso lutely abstemious age" of Avhich Ed- Avard Lear Avrote is completely out classed. The question is seriously raised whethcir this mouse is provided AA'ith a condensing apparatus by which it is able to absorb moisture from the at mosphere. At night , and in the bur rows , the humidity is much higher than in the daytime above ground , but it never reaches the dew point. These interesting facts of natural history suggest possibilities in the way of cures for the incorrigible inebriate. Have the courage to doubt and your , eyes will besin to open. '
