Eureka Reporter | 1904-11-18 | Page 2 | Ready to Surrender

READY TO SURRENDER SOLDIERS AT PORT ARTHUR HAVE HAD ENOUGH but general stoessel though conf confred ned to hoop hop tal issues orders to men to D e at posts rather than surrender I 1 latest advices from port arthur are to the effect that a wound received by general stoessel has necessitated his confinement in the hospital that he re fuses to the command coin mand of the garrison and that he has issued or ders to the troops to die at their posts rather than surrender it is said that the spirit of the rus rua sian troops has been dampened by con sinuous work the lack of supplies and the hopelessness of their ability to make any successful defense of the fortress it is said further that many of tho the russian soldiers are ready to der but that they are kept at their posts by officers who threaten them with revolvers and that several sol diers who were suspected of a desire to desert have been shot as a warning to other would be deserters the japanese now believe that the garrison arrison has almost reached the limit 0 of f human endurance spies and russians who have sur rendered leport that rations in the fortress have been reduced the wounded found by the japanese are emaciated russian artill artillery ry shells partly filled with wood and m which aich would not ex blode have been found this shows a that the russians are short of material for malting making heavy ammunition the capture of the eastern fortified ridge will mean the surrender of the fortress in a couple of weeks unless the garrison there retires to the iso fort this seems improbable however and cold weather and the lack of foci and ammunition render desperate resistance unlikely