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Show i; :MEtl::Al:MA!Dt:CAF!IAt X Startling Figures on Cost of War to Russia; Japanese Activity in China Is Caus- ; ing rJuch .torm. : ' 7 .' :." ' BTJLLETTN. ST. PETERSBURG, March 25, 1:50 p. m. Gen. Iinevitch continue ' the retirement ef th bulk of his army northward. . The general staff now declares it la certain that Field Marshal Oyama has been compelled to relinquish the idea of pursuit in force for the present. pres-ent. The Japanese force en the Russian flanks are too light to constitute a serious danger, and a lull In heavy . fighting for weeks, if not months, is predicted by nam of the correspondents. ... , .; ' j bulletin. . . . ; ST. iPSTXRSSUBQ, Starch 83, C p. m. The information contained In these dispatches for over a week regarding the change in Emperor Nicholas' Nicho-las' attitude concerning the adrisability of making a pacific proposal to . . Japan, is fully confirmed, and in Tory high quarters peace within six weeks is regarded as certain. - The poaltiveness with which this is afflnned would indicate that the Government is alrrjady in possession of information as to : the. Japanese terms, which indicate a basis to which Russia can agree. . . ; BTJixrrnr. "TXl'iiarcjrssT It is said in qusrtst liaTfngrmeAni nfinf drma-' tion, that Buaaia's steps toward peace hare already taken a tentative form at a private conference held within recent days at one of the small capitals capi-tals of Northern Europe. The purpose pur-pose of this appears to hart been to , bring together personages represent-, ing both sides, neither having credentials creden-tials to discuss formal terms of peace, but to informally ' learn what each ' t aids expects and what tentative basis ' ' seemed possible.. The nature of this exchange does not warrant its being considered a definite peace) movement, but it is understood to have given each side an opportunity to judge the view of tha other, and it has clearly shown Hessian disposition toward ' peace. ' 1 ST. PETERSBURG. March 25. Stung- by. the wholesale criticism lately peeped upon te.,wef.crf(rJ,As; un-prepared'neiT un-prepared'neiT ahTlncepaclty la prorid-Ing prorid-Ing the Manchurlaa-army with men, guns and munitions, 'the Government today lays bare what has been done Since the opening of hostilities, giving the exact figures. - From these it appears that up to March 12 the war office had dlspstched 13.087 officers, -71.47 --men. 146,308 horses. 1521 guns and 111.321 tons of munitions and supplies to the front, declaring the transportation strained the Siberian railroad to Its utmost capacity. ca-pacity. " . . Unprepared ,f or War. f The army organ admits that the army ar-my in - the- far - East when the war opened, wM hardly worth the name, (no figures being , gteen).-but It Is known that the troops did not exceed W.OOO men. practically defending this because the Emperor deeirad, to avoid war and. therefore, - refrained from sending- reinforcements re-inforcements whichsurely would have provoked It. The criticism of the war office failure to adequately supply Port Arthur, is met by the ststement that it was provisioned pro-visioned for a garrison of twelve battalions, bat-talions, the decision to put thirty bst-tallons bst-tallons there being tsken" so late that the original calculations could not ba remedied. New Pattern of Guns. While affirming that the quick-firing guns snd field guns of the Russians are superior to those of the Japanese, the war office explains .that the misfortune In the Insufficiency of the mountain guns was due to the fact that when the war broke out Russia was Just adopting a new pattern. It Is denied that the war office was deceived In regard to the available strength of the Japanese army, or tho organization of the Japanese reserves, but the army organ frsnkly admits thst the talents of the officers and the wonderful won-derful spirit of the sqldlers were miscalculated. mis-calculated. Article Causes Sensation. The publication of this article has created a sensation among- military men. and in public circles many of the former are censuring the general staff for disclosing valuable military secrets and the latter finding from the figures a practical admission that the war has cost almost 500.000 men In killed, wounded, prisoners and sick, ss the whole effective srmy In the far East Is now believed not to exceed 500,000 men. |