JAPAN AND RUSSIA.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7978, 6 April 1904, Page 1

JAPAN AND RUSSIA.

♦ AN IMPENETRABLE SECRECY. PREPARING FOR A GREAT LAND FIGHT, KOURAPATKIN'S CONTEMPT FOR THE JAPANESE. JAPAN'S NEW CRUISERS. CONDEMNED BY BRITISH OFFICERS. [From Omv War Correspondent, MR W. H. DONALD.] (Copyright.) TOKIO, Japan, February 20. THE 'NEW SHIPS A DOUBTFUL BARGAIN. So far I have^ unfortunately, been unable to see the new cruisers, or lo secure any photographs of them. They are, at present, pown at Yokosuka, the naval headquarters. There they are being rapidly prepared *or petion. Such work, it is calculated, will take half the month, and then the Nisshin wilL be attached to the Maizuru station, tod- the Kasuga to the Kure station. Whether Japan has such a bargain .in the new ships as she. imagines, however, is ignestionabfe. They were sold by the Argentine Government with considerable puffing, and at theirs speed trials put up twentyone knots per {hour, a satisfactory performance to all intents and purposes. A Kfpeed trial though is somewhat different from actual service at sea, and it was during the voyage just over that the capabilities of the vessels -were thoroughly put to f*et with the imminence of war. When, they left Genoa, and with the presence in their wake of a young -squadron of Russian efrips of war, it was necessary for them to get every knot of the guaranteed twentyone per hour out of them. The engineers, however, found the task utterly impassible. ■Strive as they might, they could n°t reach the trial test figures, and the greatest average that they could get from the engines was fifteen knots per hour. There is a •big discrepancy between that end the speed wnich the Japanese 'believe the ships are capable of. It is certain that, if tnena- • tion knew of the actual results obtained , Shere would be universal disappointment. The matter has not been touched upon by the local newspapers, .and the inforanation t ihave on the subject comes first-hand; from one of the British officers who came out on the Nisshin. GUARANTEED SPEED UNOBTAINABLE. He informed me, too, that the ships will aever. do their guaranteed speed imless- the engines are changed, and that is a task thet cannot be undertaken uuder the present oircumstances, and it would be porbioularly costly under any conditions. It is to be hoped that the cruisers' aggregate strength is more in accordance with the specification than the speed, for, if it is not, arid they get -into action, they will be liable to meet with disaster, if pressed closely. When it was found that, even in en emeT«gency, the cruisers could not get up any great speed, Captain Paynter} of the Kasuga, and Captain Lea., of the Nistfhin, decided to change their course. They came to Japan in a round-about way, and missed any Russian boats that might have been keeping a lookout for tEem between Formosa and v and Nagasaki. The people have not asked any questions a'bo?it the boats as yet, and in that respect, though theydo in certain 1-h ings show the result of Western influence, they differ from Australians. RUSSLVS PLANS. According to all reports, the Russian forces have advanced well into Korea, having crossed Yalu and travelled as far 'south as Chongju, on the west coast of the peninsula. Some have even peached Hwangju, . further south, and have succeeded in destroying telegraphic communication between that place and Chongju. On the other hand, it is stated that Russia, unprepared as she is for a big struggle, will endeavour tq avert exhaustion, which must surely follow strenuous initial resistance, by adopting tactics similar to those which won for her success against the Napoleonic adVance on Moscow. Some declare that she is quite ; prepared to leave Port Arthur and Vladiroslock deserted, and perhaps in ruins, retreating northward and resting until such time as she could afford to launch her forces against what she regards as the insignificant, pigmy soldiers' of Nippon. The suooess of such a scheme, however, would be doubtful, for the army of Japan is not 1 like the tired army of Napoleon, and, fur- , thermore, her soldiers are hardy enough to pndure all the snows that the Siberian skies /eel disposed to heap upon them. They ire, in addition, sufficiently skilled in jtrategy to take full advantage of every opportunity offered them to fortify themselves, and since Russia recognises that she is not likely to give them an opportunity of becoming firmly entrenched. feORT ARTHUR EXPECTED TO FALL EASILY. It is well known that there are designs upon Port Arthur, and it is expected that that place will fall very easily. Visitors Recently arrived from there have, told me . jhat whilst the fortresses look formidable, they contain many dummy guns, and many of the serviceable guns are unmounted, and

that generally the stories of the great strength of the fortress have been fashioned on fiction, and not on iact. No doubt the Japanese will, when they are ready, make a combined attack by land and sea, and if they do, the Russians will be given just as much employment to defend themselves as they will care to have. Once having swept the* whole of the southern portion of Manchuria clear of Russians, Japan will continue the campaign northwards, and he? progress in that direction will just depend upon the character of the Russian defences, and the number of men ready to hold them. ATTITUDE OF THE KOREANS. So far as the Koreans are concerned, it ia ilmost certain now that they will remain quiet, though in several portions of the peninsula, bands have taken charge of districts, and have murdered Japanese travellers and residents. Such a thing is only natural with men of the barbaric nature of the Koreans, and, though there is considerable ill feeling towards Japan, it can almost be taken for granted that there will be no general hostile movement directed against her. Russia lias done much in an endeavour tq buy Korean sympathy and support, but the disarmament of her forces has robbed her of all chance of help from that quarter. The Emperor, who has been ready to fly to any spot where a refuge offered, has been encouraged by tlie initial success 'of the Japanese. Over Korea, indeed, flies the flag of Japan, and having captured the princi-' pal seaport on the \restern coast, she holds in her possession the key of the southern position, and with Russian men-of-war caged in Port Arthur; she will probably be able to work her will upon th€ni. FRENCH FEELING AGAINST JAPAN. The one, thing noticeable in the East is the strong anti-Japanese tone of the French Press. They lose no opportunity of attacking Japan, and laud Russia on every occasion. The French residents, too, re« frain from assisting Japan in any way, and that is particularly noticeable in the matter of the fund for the Red Cross Society being raised- by the foreigners. Every nation but France is represented either on the subscription list or on the committee, and large sums of money are coming forward freely from all. GREAT LOYALTY OF THE JAPANESE. Generally the war fund is rising with, leaps and bounds, and opportunity has been given for inspiring a display of that fine sense of loyalty which seems to permeate the Japanese nation. From the Palace of| the Emperor to the hovel of the poorest subject the most cherished of personal treasures are being, handed to the banks for war purposes, and there is a sacrifice of valuables now being made-, the equal tof which has probably not been seen in any other parfc of the world before. The idea of realising upon bullion, gold coins and curios was mooted by a prominent banker of Tokio, who yielded the collection o| years to the mercilessness of the meltingpot, and his example was promptly emulated by the Emperor himself, and by many of tbe noblest families in the land. This free offering of costly charms is a glorious thing to see, and is but another evidence of the distance non-combatants are prepared to go to help their nation to victory. From every trade and profession .volunteers are passing forward to take up arms and swelling the ranks of soldiery. This bodes well for the honour and glory of Japan, and whilst the best the nation has is offering she need fear no foe. THE SINKING OF THE NAKONOURA MARU. February. 24. — Just as the mail closes an opportunity is given to secure some interesting details of the sinking of the Japanese steamer Nakonoura Maru, by the Russian Vladivostook squadron, on February 11. The survivors of the ship have just reached here, and I have been able to obtain an account of the method used by Russia to. wreak revenge on Japan for the attacks at Chemulpo and Port Arthur. The Russian assault on the defenceless steamer is almost on all fours with other atrocities, of which, she has from time to time been guilty, and J it is sufficient to &how that whereas she has not been ashamed to open fire on the harmless trader, the story is worth giving, as showing the mean tactics to which Russia will stoop in such a. great war as the one in which she is engaged. In' » previous letter I mentioned that the Vladivostock squadron had sallied forth in search of what it might devour, and that it had sunk a steamer. The name of the vessel was not then known, but since that time it has transpired, and the story of the captain will speak for itself, without any purple trimmings being necessary. THE CAPTAIN'S STORY. The Nakonoura. Maru, he says, left Sakata, in the north of Japan, for Ofcaru, on the tenth instant, at 10 a.m., carrying, besides cargo, four passengers, two men and two women. At 6.30 o'clock next morning she found herself five knots off the Nyudoski lighthouse, and at t«n o'clock reached a point ten knots distant from Cape Henashi. • At about half-past ekven, four warships were descried some four knots off the port side. "At that time a thick fog covered the surrounding sea, a strong southeasterly wind was blowing, and the waves ran hiirh, so that the newcomers fcould not be identified. The nearest port of refuge was twelve knots distant, which fact rendered void ail.hope of escape from th-a Russian warships. Assuming them to be such, all the crew were gathered upon the upper deck and the. vessel boldly took a course onward. She thus drew nearer the warshipa until at length it became clear that they were actually Russian. Abating speed the Nakonoura Maru kept sailing on, when one of the Muscovite warships fired a blank | charge. At the same tims she successively i signalled to the Japanese steamer to " come J parallel with ns ; we will not fire. Leave I your ship within fifteen minutes." | The captain of tlie Nakonoura Maru im- ' mediately ordered the boats to be lowered, at the same time signalling a request for relief, if such conld be rendered. The Rus- ] sian vessel, which had then passed the Japanese steamer, veered so as to face her, and signalled a reply : "We are .going ts| i rescue you." . A TREACHEROUS ACT. This signal given, all the Russian warships opened fire on the helpless steamer, which they surrounded. Boats were lowered from the port side of the Nakonoura Maru, and the passengers, and half of the crew rowed out in them, but the sea beins: very rough, the vessel was veered so as to bring the starboard side leeward, thus facilrtataig the lowering of bqats from that side. During this process the ship was struck by several shells, by which Tsuneymon Murata and another eailor were hit, and, falling into the sea, ! were drowned. The rest, far from being j able to rescue their comrades, barely sue- i ceeded in getting into the boats. The per- j sonal effects of the individuals were necessarily lost. The boats leaving the sinking ship behind them were going to make for shore, when the armoured cruisers. Rossia ■ and Gromoboi steamed' forward and' fired on the little craft from both sides, flight being thus rendered impossible. The boats turned round and rowed up to the Russian ■warships, from which ropes and rope-lad-ders were let down. All sailors and passengers were thus taken aboard the Russian ■" . . t

i warships, and, a,v a. result- oi the examination of their personal "belongings which followed, were all relieved of money,. Yvavches, and whatever valuables they had with them. An hour later the Nakonoura Maru foundered stern downwards. The steamer Zensho Maru appeared to the crew of the unfortunate vessel to be placed In a similar situation, but they could not know what had become of her. As to tbe treatment of the rescued Japanese, four passengers were given one cabin, while tbe captain and crew, thirtyseven in number, were placed in three separate cabins, all of which were locked and sentinelled, and nobody was allowed out except on unavoidable occasions. LOCKED IN A PRISON-LIKE ROOM. They were given brown bread to eat and tea to. drink. About two o'clock in the afteTnoo;i of the same day, February 10, the Russian warship sailed away from the scene of the disaster, first talcing a west ?nortb.- west course, and afterwards south-west-south. The squadron- continued its cruise' till February 14, at 4 p.m., when it returned to Vladivo- . stock. The next day, after breakfast, all the Japanese were given overcoats and shoes, and were ordered to land at 10 a.m. On land they — forty-one in -all — were put promiscuously into a prison-like room and locked up. They were even left without tiffin, and were made unbearably sick by the offensive odour that filled the room. Unexpectedly, however, ut a little past two in the afternoon, an official came and aimmonea all the inmates, and informed fuem that they would be sent back to Nagasaki by the German steamer Stolberg, leaving Vladivostock at 3 p.m. The steadier, however, postponed her ' departure, owing to the darkness, and it was only on February 19, at 10 a.m., that she | left for Japan.