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Show Cxar's Forces Are Preparing to Quit Mukden, Which Means Abandonment Abandon-ment of Southern Manchuria. A dispatch from Mukden, under date of Scptembor C, sayB preparations for tho ovacuatlon of Mukden aro proceeding proceed-ing with hasto, and that tho Japaneso forces' nro within thirty miles of that placo. A St. Petersburg dispatch, dated Tuesday morning, snys It Is Imposslblo to obtain any statement from tho authorities au-thorities regarding tho reported preparations prep-arations for tho abandonment of Mukden. Muk-den. This Is tho first Intimation that such n course Is contemplated. If it turns out to bo truo, It means tho abandonment of tho whole of southern Manchuria and tho winding up of tho present campaign. In fact, should Mukden bo evacuated, thero would' bo no point for wintering the army of a quarter of a million, with Its many wounded, short of Harbin. On tho other hand, the evacuation of Mukden would glvo Field Marshal Oyama commodious winter quarters and tho practical control of two lines of railway. The Klnchou-Slmmlntln lino, tapping rich Chlneso territory, stops little short of Mukden, with which It Is connected by a good wagon road. Tho report of tho prospective ovacuatlon of Mukden, If well founded, would Indicate that tho crippling effect of tho Llao Yang fighting on Kuropatv kin's army Is more serious than has as yet been Intimated. A surAmary of the war situation to dato shows that tho wholo Russian army, or at least tho main portion of It, Is already above Yon Tal station and is pushing on toward Mukden. Flold Marshal Oyama's entlro army has crossed the Taltso river and part of It Is hanging onto Kuropatkln's flank. A strong flanking column on tho cast Is pushing rapidly north, in an effort to head off tho Russians. Against this column Genoral Kuropatkln Kuro-patkln has sent out a strong cavalry division to tho northeast, which, It Is1 belloved, Is already In position to check tho Japaneso flankers, while to tho westward Kuropatkln Is moving a division toward Slngmintln, thirty miles west of Mukden, to meet any interference in-terference that may bo attempted BATTLE NEAR LIAOYANG. WXAKSEATG MA9 TJTJZJtH KVKOKIXrrtCKZD 55Sr 1 rtuur CBfTxx from tho direction of Ylnkow or New-chwang. New-chwang. Oynma's advance Is reportod to bo engaging tho Russian rear, but it Is not expected to dovolop anything more serious than a scries of rearguard rear-guard actions, tending to harass Kuropatkln's Ku-ropatkln's retreat. |