Show he has not appreciably changed his position biats in movements of a general character continues to be broken by sharp skirmishes the disquiet occasioned in st pet kersburg by the failure of scouts to locate Kuroki earmy has been allayed by the definite information that the japanese general has not appreciably preci ably changed his position along a line from to lull in movements of a general character continues to be broken by skirmishes mukden reports that the days are fine and warm but that the night arc growing bitterly cold an official report from tokio giving an account of a skirmish contains the announcement that the state of affairs at the front of our army remains unchanged tokio oct 4 the following boffl caal report has been issued the manchuria headquarters reports by telegraph that a body of scouts sent by our advance detachment on october and 2nd consisting of a company of infantry and a troop of cavalry attacked and routed a detachment of tho ene mys cavalry sixty strong occupying pao using tun thirteen miles north ot bao yang and nine miles of the mukden road while further re in the vicinity a force of russian cavalry strong at tacked the e scouts after fighting for some time the japanese retired the loss was about thirty we sustained no casualties the state of affairs at the front of our enemy remains unchanged SHARP skirmishes mukden oct 4 the complete lull in operations was broken oct 2 by a skirmish a few miles cast of the bridge over the river where a company of japanese came up and exchanged shots with the outposts and then retired carrying off their killed and wounded the weather on the whole Is good the days are fine and warm but the nights are bitterly cold snow has fallen a Hing chang the chinese corn which has been a splendid ally of the japanese is being harvested rapidly kuroki LOCATED st petersburg oct 4 again today no news of fighting comes from the front but some relief was manifested at the war office by the receipt of information which definitely locates general army according to which he has not appreciably changed his position along the line from to general still occupies the yen tai hills and general oku is to the west of the railroad the russian outposts are as far south as the river 15 miles from mukden field marshal oyama la reported to be with tho fourth army which at one time was understood to have attained considerable proportions it now decma to be a small affair not much over a brigade and apparently patently ly Is not destined to play an important role its mission probably is only to cause a demonstration on the russian left JAPS ARE AGITATING disturbances IN CHINA london oct 4 reports have reach i ed london from official sources that many japanese have appeared recently in the big centers of northern china and that they have begun an agitation the result of which it is feared may precipitate disorders in the caselt the russian successes in manchuria which might lead to the intervention of the powers it Is eaid hero that russia is anxious to avoid such intervention JAPS CARRY HIGH HAND st petersburg act 4 A special dispatch from mukden dated october ard 3rd says tho population of that place has been greatly increased by the arrivals from all quarters chinese who have fled from the south say the japanese aro administering affairs in southern manchuria with a high hand and many complaints of ill treatment of the natives by them are made th ero is a great scarcity of provisions among the chinese population navigation TO CLOSE vladivostok oct 4 the town la quiet and many families which fled to the interior earlier in the seabon aro returning it Is an excellent fishing beason but there is a considerable scarcity of fealt navigation ou tho amur will celoso this WITNESSED operations AT PORT ARTHUR tokio oct 4 10 a m aleut gran ville Por tesque an american who was with the besieging forces at port arthur has arrived at tokio en routs to washington he will sail on the steamship doric fort the operations 0 august and september at port arthur he la returning home on account of expiration pi ration of his leave he is pledged to relative to in observations at port arthur pending tho fall of the fortress A number of american nurses will sail from nagasaki to san francisco october PUTTING UP RATES ON RAILROAD MATERIAL new york oct 4 marine underwriters hero are putting up rates on steamers carrying railroad material for japan the rate recently current has been three quarters of ono per cent this premium has now been raised to 2 12 1 2 per cent for a steamer to go by way of the cape wilh and locomotives on board this change in tho insurance situation has caused several of the china and japan lines from thi sport to announce that they will japan altogether or refuse railroad material it the steamers make japanese ports WILL distribute ORIENTAL PRODUCTS new york oct ii an arrangement has been concluded between the various lines operating between new york and the far east on the ono hand and the trunk line railroads on the other hand whereby new york Is expected to resume according to the journal of commerce a considerable part of its business as a direct distributor of oriental products especially tea matting and hemp the arrangement so far concluded applies only to tea and natt ipg but negotiations arc still in progress regarding hemp and other articles which are understood to promise a the agreement will go into effect on october it takes the form of a radical reduction in carload rates from new york to chicago on both tea and matting on tea the carload rate will be forty cents per pounds compared watt the present rate of 75 cents while matting has been reduced from 40 cents to 25 cents importers assert that the pacific routes still have a distinct advantage in that while a rate of 40 cents ia named for tea from new york to chicago rate eastbound from chicago to new york is only a trifle over 18 cents the importance of this agreement lies in the fact that it is practically the first distinct move taken by new york importers to check the change in the course of trade which set la about three years ago |