THE SUXDAY OREROXIAN. PORTLAND, OCTOBER 25, 1914.
4 &T5 :rt-;--?
3
.''."it- :
'v v i
General Baron KurokL
General Count Marosuke Nogi, the Brave and
Successful Besieger. of Port Arthur. With His
Wife He Committed Suicide on the Occasion of
, the Late Mikado's Funeral, in Accordance with
Samurai Tradition.
rom tlx Graphic
Field Marshal.. Uarquis Oyama.'
Commander Tovotomi HidevoshL
. From "A Hbaay of Jim by Hhhe SaKa.
IpiWlbH Krcxa. rani. Trescb. Trabaer .
Loodon.
N
BY RICHARD Q. CONOVER.
HuBb! Llstenl My BOUl, my sward!
Am I. too, woundca to death?
A'liat matter? My foot can spurn
Bis body; the fox that Bkulked,
That killed In the dark. I earn
Remembrance for loyal love.
For vengeance unto death
And this Is a glorious way
Kor a man to yield his breath,
His life, for life of my lord!
O fighting; man as -wonderful as
the Japanese soldier has ever
borne the burden of battle. Apply
every Bort of militant test to this
sweeping; pronouncement and the realm
of Dal Nippon will meet it- squarely,
up to the extreme limit of critical com
parison. He is all that is best in every
other soldier of the nations, with a
plus of peculiar animating: impulse
that is his incomparable inheritance.
The mighty battle of Mukden Illus
trates the vast difference between the
Japanese soldier and the Russian. This
final and greatest battle of the Avar be
tween Russia and Japan lasted from
February 20 to March 10, 1905, cover
ing; a constant conflict of nearly three
weeks. Nlgrht fighting was as general
as day fighting. The historian reports
the, undevlating practice in the brief
lulls of the Japanese soldier, with his
comrade, drinking to their mutual
death on the morrow or within the next
hour of assault. When the cup of water
used in the death toast was raised to
the lips the sentiment - expressed was
not "Success to our arms and may God
watch over your life." Instead, these
olemn words were spoken:
"May you experience the ecstacy and
the exquisite privilege of being killed."
The Japanese soldier, in brief, is en
vious of death. He feels that his slain
comrade has achieved preferment and
has been made his superior. He craves
the distinction not of returning safely
home but of falling on the field of bat
tle. Then shall he be gratefully re-
1
V
Repulse, of the Mongol Tartars, 1?79 (From a Paintina ty a Japanese Who Had Studied Under, a Dutch Master)
Frai The Xllkads's Empiry BT winlsa EUbsl .GrtrOs. Cpyrishtfcy Harper Brstbera.
Publisbed hr E I E 7
Mongolian Ship Attacked by Japanese,
frost -A HIsterr at Japsn," t-T Hbho rUo
Krtss. PsaL Trcoch. Trabner Co,
If
Arcner on Casue Rampart, i2in Century. From
a Native Drawing.
rnm "He Mlkmilos Kmpire- Br wiuisa) Ettot OrifflsJ
. Oprright by Harper ft BrotVrm-
rrmi:---::-S.t. JH i v fit. S!3vl
.j-,.-'rtJ.---!;
Famous Archer' Minamoto
Tametomo Defying the Tara
Men After .Sinking Their Ship,
About 11 85. Drawn trjr a Native
Artist .
rrom "Tite Uiluii
ytr wniusi
Cepricnt by Harper
Commander Minamoto Yoritomo (End of 12th
Century).
rV" HstfoFT of Juimii." hr Hitio Suite. IM1lslK4 t
Krjtii, Tsui, Trmch, Tn.fcnpr V Co, Londoa, '
husky Russian. -On March
cavalry crossed the frozen
galloped up Its western bank.
1 Nogi's dental to this great feud the Minamoto
Liao-ho, leader was the great Yoritomo. 'He
drove a conquered many rebellions, making a
membered In the worship of brave and brigade of Cossacks before them, campaign to the 37th parallel and re-
lllustrlous ancestors. The Moslem eol- dashed Into Eln-min-ting, seized . the turning "all-victorious." In 1192 he
dler was promised something if he died railway station and captured an enor- was made Sei-i . Tal Shogun, a title
In battle. But the "if" was not suf- roous quantity of supplies destined for and office that- existed until 1868.
ficient to make him walk willingly and Kuropatkin's army. Anciently all generals were called
gladly to death. The Japanese soldier This was only one of many evidences shoguns, but with new emphasis added
is promised a sacred glory if he dies in ot tne Japanese soldier's dash and ef- "the" shogun finally acquired such
battle, and he embraces the opportun- ficiency. Day by day he closed in on , power that many supposed, in the fol-
his foe always the attacker, always lowing centuries, that he was tne real
taking: the initiative, although he num
bered no more. March 7 Notu attacked
the Russian center on a tip from KIu
rokl that he felt, the resistance slack
ening there- The Japanese infantry-
ity for Immolation.
Frederick the Great is reported to
have cried to a brigade many times re
pulsed, "What, would you live forever!"
And Henry V. is made by Shakespeare
say, unce more unto the breach.
. Commander Tokugawa leyasu, 1600.
.Frera -A Hlsterr of Japan.- ttr Biaao Saito. Pafciisae by
Kegas. Taul, Trpnch, Tnibner V Co, Looob.
es fcmpinf. If I
Rliot GrtHai 111. 1
to
ruler of the nation. Yoritomo Is re
garded as one of the ablest generals
of medieval Japan.
The famous archer Minamoto -Tame
taino took a prominent Dart in
Battle xA the 'Minamoto and Taira, 1185.
Frunt "A HbT..ry of Jjrjwn, liy Utxbs SCttiiu. 1nli.ii(hnl by
. Kfptn, I'nttl.. Trtiii-h, TrtrllitfT A
SrtilM.
Fortress in Nagoga (Tokugawa. Period).
m aaisiory M apan. ny IJSbQ cMitSi
Published by
Samurai at the End of the
Tokugawa Period.-
rVom -A Hbttor of Japan. hr RlaW
PsMiahed Kegas, I-ssl. Tmca.
jruooer ti Co, Losdos.
placed him permanently in a fighting
niche of the very highest. After a long
diplomatic duel between Tokio and St.
Petersburg relations were broken off.
Within 60 hours Kurokl led two di
visions of the Japanese soldier toward
Corea. Port Arthur was besieged and
fell, but not before the fighting man of
Japan had performed unparalleled feats
and had eagerly sacrificed bis life
thousands at a time in the explosion
of mines by the Russian defenders. Xjo
Yang, after a pitched battle engaging
half a million men, was entered by the
Jap. Then came Mukden. These history-making
events were crowded lno
the brief period between February i,
1904, and- March1 10, 1905. Two great
sea fights won by the Japanese sailor
clinched the triumph.
. Although the Japanese soldier had s
fowling piece placed in his hands as
early as 1543, there were only a few,
and the sword and spear were held the
weapons for men. A military . scnooi
suited in carnage and butchery beyond was established in 186S, and from that
description, according to the old ac
counts. Thousands unscathed commit
ted hara-kiri. More than 25,000 heads
were cut off by the victors and stand
in a pile, still well outlined and dis
tinguishable. All Japan submitted to
Iryasu. He was created Sei-i Tai Sho
gun in 1603. He founded the line of
Shoguns that exacted until the .entire
military system of the empire was
revolutionized, more than 250 years
later.
During the war with China, in 1894
1895, the Japanese soldier, no longer
restricted to the Samurai type, won
manx brilliant victories. An army was
sent Into Corea to bring about admin
istrative reform and check murders and
uprisings. China hadn't done It, so ths
Mikado's government set about the job.
The fighting Japanese, after a hard
strusrsrle. won a. sweeping; victory-
date the fighting man of Japan took a
fresh start in the art of war. In three
closely following bounds from 1872 he"
landed in the front rank of modern sol
diers. How long will he continue the most
wonderful soldier? Well, he's the new
est of the fighting fraternity, and con
sequently the least stale. He may de
cline presently, but are the soldiers of
the rival nations likely to- mount as ha
descends? What will be the animating
impulse to bring this about? What the
Japanese has done in so short a time
makes it seem plausible that he can do
still more. He has given a convincing
earnest of high performance. '
The courage and spirit of many of the
nations' soldiers are traced back to re
mote periods. Tradition Is said to be a
Dotent lmoellinsr factor to hardy con-
ax duct .in the field. Well, the Japanese
dear friends, once more; or close the man went forward there, took the fa- feud fight. C-n the strand of Oshima death called them home with Corean Corean campaign, the other.
y- i v BATaomKo.. iKDj anH li-ir has a Quiver full of tradition, and when
- e, --. . , .- , . ,,, ,
the 10-000 Coreans were killed. Hldeyoshi'a and Tokugawa Iryasu, a general of the July 1 the Chinese had abandoned Corea " t' a mi lit ant-
wall up with our English dead." But.
supposing something akin to this oc
curred, it will be noted that the Prus
sian and the English soldier had to be
urged on to the sacriflcal point The
Japanese soldier commences with him
self and woos death without urging.
And it must not be thought that the
f ighting man ,of Japan ia careless with
his fighting because he would rather
die than not. It Is considered dis
graceful by him not to have inflicted
all the damage possible before being
killed. He must use everv art and
moua fortified lines on which 100,000
men had toiled for months. Three days
later Mukden was entered. The Rus-
The Governor's faction had 128.000
men, Tokugawa Iryasu 75.000. Can
non were used, but the most destructive
work was with the sword and spear.
At noon the conch-blowers and drum-
he sped a shaft that pierced the frame envoys to make peace. This campal
of the enemy's junk and sank It Then, was -made shortly after 1586.
shouting defiance, he shut himself up The battle of Seklgabara. fought
sian official report admitted 96,600 in in his house and set the dwelling on October 1, 1600, decided the condition
killed, wounded, missing or prisoners. Ore. of Japan for over two centuries. It
The Japanese stated their loss in killed The Japanese soldier fought with was Japanese soldier against Japanese
and wounded at 41,222 officers and desperate courage at the battle of soldier, the governors of the son of
men. The killed alone were estimated Dalzalfu. In the Seventh Month of 1279. Toyotoml Hldeyoshl leading one faction
at 15,000. He beat back a Mongolian- Tartar In-
But as it was the Samurai who was vaslon so decisively that China never
Japan's sole soldier for centuries, he again attempted to venture toward Dai
may be dwelt upon pertinently for a Kippon sol,
paragraph or two of detail. lHs bust- There were 100,000 Chines and
ness was to "samurau," or serve, the Tartars and 7J00 Coreans, with an
every muscle to destroy the enemy. To Emperor whence the name Samurai, armada of 3500 Junks. They were
npri-ih whii rtnino- en i v,. ln" "is neyaay tie nad luiiy developed a equipped wiin European engines or
Sf ,. . - - . !h.e a-m? -f dress, coiffure and custom entire! his war. bronchi to China bv the Vene- 1 the sea fights which the warships gines will receive the most severe test.
den to see how the Japanese battles owa 11 a-stinct product of his era. He tians, hurling great stones. But the Great Britain and France will en
living, despite his preference for death Bhaved nis temples and midscalp to Japanese soldier daringly swam out in gage in aga'inst Germany the various
His officers were willing to risk mur' keeP hls hair out ot hls eyes. He tied groups of 30, boarded the Junks and engines of war wll receive a supreme
derous losses at any time to gain an nd Pomatumed his queue until it lay beheaded the enemy. But he fell by test '
adequate object But thev were lust' Sa "trunhammer and ramrod style" on scores at .other points where the foe Claims and controversies which have
as particular ta in.r.nrt tmatiii hl crown, his topknot fitting Into and in larger Junks prepared for his engaged the attention of naval experts
.j V nln H Vnla 1,1- V n.
and keen their ranks full i. miirha K. -'ve -
mers beat a final charge and the how quickly he had modernized mm
Iryasu army advanced along the en- tantly.
tire -line. A hand-to-hand fight re-
the Nippon battler can boast a militant
chronology of fable unsurpassed. In the
domain of the superwarrior his daring
demlfrods are quite as mighty as the
shadowy heroes of the rival nations.
But where he stands unique among
soldiers is in his keen relish for death.
What are you going to do with a fight
ing man like the battler of Japan, who
considers it a piece of rare good for-
Then came the war with. Russia that tune to be killed?
altogether. He stormed and took Fort
Arthur November 21. -and his daring
and bravery won Wei-hai-wel January
81, 1895. He overran Formosa after
capturing the forts in the Pescadores,
and made Europe sit up a bit to note
NAVAL TEST IS SUPREME
Present War in Europe Will Settle Many Big: Questions.
Mark this laconic utterance of the
Japanese officers when instructing
their men how to overcome the disad
vantage of charging and fighting in
the dark: "The Russians are tall; we
are short. Run any tall man through
that you meet" Prior to this Instruc
tion white bands had been worn, on
sleeves to aid In recognizing friends.
The attackers always stole out In si
lence. All of the charges did not prove
forlorn tiopes. Their very audacity
made some of them successful. After a
two days' bombardment with high ex
plosive shells Wang-fu Pass was car
ried by storm February 27. In another
two days Kau-tu was taken after a
series of desperate hand-to-hand con
flicts In which the smaller Japanese
soldier grappled undismayed witv the
He car- coming. He attacked again and again, for many years regarding ships, guns.
ried two swords one for battle and and In the -midst of the great' battle a armor, etc., may at last be settled In
the-other to' disembowel himself In da- typhoon arose and wrecked the armada, the greatest naval fight In all history,
feat Harl-kiri was a Samurai prlvi- Thousands of survivors took refuge There will be the question of the big
lege. Common" folk were decapitated, on Taka Island and began building battleship against the smaller, the ar-
The Samurai ode indicated an exalted boats to escape to Corea. They were mored cruiser or battle cruiser against
ideality to be followed, on one side the all slain or driven Into the sea by the the unarmored cruiser and oil fuel
shield. On the other It was ferocious fighting men of Japan, except three, against coaL The Important question
down Since 1910, most of which are in
commission. In maneuvers the - work
of the French submarines -has been
classed as very successful and the ex
tended operations gave . a wide expe
rience to officers and men.
The 12 German destroyers of 1912-13
have, been completed. The designed
The torpedo-boat destroyers blass of speed of all the recent boats is 32.5
vessels particularly and also the sub- knots. The boats have been kept very
marines are expected to play a far actively at. work. The submarine boats
more important part in this war than completed number 30. During 1913 24
they did In the Russo-Japanese war. submarines were kept in commission.
In the British navy no less than 20 new The six Austrian destroyers of 800
destroyers were commissioned last tons have been completed and have
year, against IS the previous year, steamed on trial from 32.5 to 33.5
Most of these vessels have a length of knots. Fourteen submarines are in
260 feet and most of them have a speed the list, of which six are of the 230 to
of over 29.5 knots. In the design of 300 tons type.
British destroyers special regard is The Russian destroyer Novlk, of 1200
given to the attainment of high speed tons, made a speed of 37.3. Several sub
on heavy seas and thus in comparison marines have been launched In the
and brutal. This has more particular . spared to take back the news of the of fleet communication by day and with vessels of the same class in for- Black Sea. Great progress has been
reference to the earlier days. Later disaster to their emperor. nighfand the Increased use of wire-
the Samurai took up letters and be- Under the great war captain Toyo- less will be among the important ele-
came the intellectual ' u well aa the tomi Hiaeyosm tne Japanese soldier menu or tne struggle. mea me oav
elgn navies the true test would not be made in the air service for both the
fair weather steaming at the rate pos- army and navy. The government pro-
sible with a North Sea gale blowing.
marched to the Invasion of Cores. This tie airships, mine-laying and scouting One or two of these vessels attained a
sea speea or nearly sv Knots, lu me
case of submarines, nine new vessels
military bulwark of the nation.
The feud between the Minamoto and leader had -nut- down manv nnrtine- lrhlM. axanlanes and aeroplanes will
the TtUra families of Japan the and .&g known aa a Tailant man. The be given-ample opportunity of demon
TKnSot'm1 dream of his life had been the conquest strating their value, but as we have
periods of Dai Nippon. It ended in a r Corea. At the last moment, owing stated many times previously, we be
mighty battle in 1185 near the -modern to the infirmities of his 60 years, he lieve their principal value will be for
town of Shimonoseki between rival had to remain behind. But the fight- observation. The anti-aircraft gniis
fleets of war Junks. The house of ing man of Japan went to Corea, fought aboard ship and the aircraft guns will
Talra was annihilated. a number of battles. In one of which, probably come into play and the va
in a number of land battles lncl- before the capital Kenkltai was taken, rious auxiliary vessels and turbine en-
' ' " . - h
gramme Included 330 aeroplanes. Army
and Navy Journal-
were commissioned last year. These
latter are of various designs and range
" A Decoration to Be Pro aid Of.
The American Boy.
You would be very proud indeed if
up to vessels of considerable size. The you had been given the Victoria Cross.
details are kept secret You have, of course, heard a great
During 1913 six large destroyers were deal about it, and know that men who
added to the French navy, all over 30 have won It must be of the bravest
knots. Twenty submarines were .laid Ton would, be proud to win. the Iron
Cross of Germany, or the Cross of the
Legion of Honor of France. But how
about the Medal of Honor which the
United States sometimes bestows on
its heroes? Do you know1 anything
about it? Not a great deal, we are
sure, and yet It is rarer and harder to
obtain than any of the others. In 40
years more than 5,000 men won the
cross of the Legion of Honor, 40,000
men won the Iron Cross during the
Franco-Prussian war alone, but in 50
years since Its creation, only, 3088 men
have been considered as worthy to
wear the Medal of Honor. . To win it
a man must have "distinguished him
self conspicuously by gallantry and in
trepidity, at the risk of his life, be
yond the call of duty." So, you see.
we Americans need not hang our heads
when England and France and Ger
many speak of their decorations for
heroism.. There are less Medals of
Honor, not - because there are fewer
heroes.' but because our standard of
heroism is higher.
Extreme Loyalty.
(Washington Star.)
"Are you in favor of votes for wo
men?" "Yes." replied Mr. . Meekton. '"with
certain reservations. I think nry wife
ought to vote, but I don't want to see
anybody that she might disapprove of
voting without her permission.