Portartur. 1940. Boris Trofimov
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I do not remember. On the way I woke up. Medics stand and smoke. I hear their conversation:
“Sold out,” one says hoarsely. – By all means. Look, you put the battery on. Bay, Japanese! And the rest of the guns sent away.
– Really?
– Is it possible to let the whole battalion through an open area without a reservation? Where have you seen it? The Japs with the ceremonial march were allowed to enter, but they did not beat them. There were no cannons, they were held in Nangualine, the orderly wheezed.
– They are what! They only have money for their pleasures and clothes.”
– I could not stand it and turned. A terrible pain pierced my bullet punched hand, and I again fell into oblivion… We should find this youngster. I recognize him by a hoarse voice.
– Do not try! – exclaimed Pushkov. – There are thousands, tens of thousands! This morning I laughed at the reasoning of the soldier… He see, he would have done things quite differently than his superiors. “I would, he says, attack the Japanese at night. Each company would give a plot: study it during the day before the arrival of the enemy, consider what everyone should do during the battle. All the grooves, all the pits would know my arrows. Then he would lure the Japanese to this position and strike on them. So much so that none of our people dare to go beyond their limits, so that, therefore, they cannot touch their darkness. And in advance to take artillery a sight. And as soon as the enemy trembled – a signal to her, she would have showered them with shrapnel.”
“Here common sense is heavily seasoned with fantasy,” the staff captain chuckled.
– But, they say, the gunner of the second battery a few days ago puzzled his response to our divisional general. Fock, in his habit of making fun, asked the gunner what he would do in this position. And he is calm: first go to the spurs of Samson. The Japanese will press on the right flank – they need a mountain to observe and lead the battle at Kinzhou. Six guns should be set to shoot at an invisible target, and two from each battery to push, but not for long. They will attract the attention of the enemy, he will reveal his batteries, and then shoot the rest. Dexterously! Imagine how much savvy the people!
– And what?
– He was very pleased with the answer. And, apparently, this advice wanted to use today. Fock ordered the “bullish” battery to become exactly in a place from which she could demonstrate. But there was confusion. Some speak about the guilt of the orderly, others – the adjutant… There are voices also because the general himself hastily mixed up the names of the stations… They say that Fok is very afraid of the landing south of Kinchzhou and therefore keeps impressive reserves there.
So it really was. The critical situation in which the third battery was located during the skirmish on May 3 sowed bewilderment among the soldiers. Over the past few days, gunners have often discussed senseless battery losses. The Russian troops of the Kvantunsky fortified area for the first time began to worry about the integrity of the fortress, with which, after the break of the path and the landing of the enemy landing, they were firmly connected. The enemy persistently attacked, but they did not detain him, he was given to quietly land on the shore, without using stormy weather, and even at night.
In the evening of the twelfth of May a strong wind blew. The second field battery received orders to leave the village of Nanguin and settle down on the Tafashi Heights. Move slowly. Either one or the other of the front end of the cannon run up to the high edges of the grooved roads. The gunners jumped from their seats, supported the gun or charging box.Chinese country roads always brought trouble to the gunners. Riding on antediluvian carriages, wind and rainwater turned them, once lying on the same level with the surrounding fields, into deep ditches with sheer walls. Try here to roll or disperse with the counter! Roads-ditches go into a wide path only on passes through elevations. At the entrance to the ditch-like section of the path, the drivers click their whips and scream, suggesting wait on extensions. But it is not always possible. Those who are confronted first have long disputes about who to return back to, and then one of the sides harnesses the horses and wraps the shaft.
The sky was dark, without stars, a thunderstorm was expected. About eleven o’clock in the morning, not reaching the village of Mondzy, the battery stopped on the Mandarin road. On the left was clearly heard the surf of the sea. Ahead rumbled guns. Lightning flashed – and the searchlight rays hurried along the mountain slopes and the ridges.
On this day, the enemy strenuously bombarded the city of Jinzhou and the batteries of our fortified position. Even during the daytime, two enemy gunboats with six destroyers entered the Jinzhou (or Kinzhou) Bay and became outside shots. From the bay of Ker moved Japanese infantry. The location of the Japanese batteries could not be precisely groped, although they let in a kite. But the enemy could perfectly target our batteries, crowded at the same height.
After examining the side roads, the second battery’s guns moved left to the sea to a selected position on a low hill protecting it from enemy shelling from the sea, and charging boxes and a spare carriage were put on arable land in a hollow behind one of the Tafashi heights.
Arrows of lightning fell menacingly from the sky. Thunder rumbled. Rare raindrops hit the charging boxes. The command was given to settle down for the night, but without setting up tents. Hit a shower. Gunners and riders sat down at the front, some climbed under the charging boxes, trying to escape from the rain. But it did not succeed. Jets of water flowed from the caps by the collar. The ground has become slippery and viscous.
Tired of the day’s work, Podkovin escaped from the rain at the reserve gun carriage. After removing his overcoat, he hung it on the right seat and sat down under a kind of umbrella. His knees were wet, but his head, back and chest were well protected from rain.
Half an hour later the rain stopped. The shooting subsided. Anxiety subsided. The gunners got crackers and, chewing on them, they chose places where they could lie down more comfortably.
For a long time, Podkovin could not find a dry piece of land for himself even under the charging boxes. There was sticky and fluid dirt all around. Having trampled at the spare carriage, he lay down at the wheel, right on the damp ground.
Clouds flew low. Stars glittered here and there. Mount Samson in the dark seemed lonely. Rays of searchlights constantly glided over the hills. To the right there gleamed the Hunuez Bay; he seemed like a big quiet lake. The sea rustled to the left. Terrible and inaccessible Nanshan clouded by fog. For a few minutes, guns and rifle volleys fell silent. There was silence, ominous and painfully heavy.
3
Everyone, not only the soldiers, but also junior officers, considered the Kinjaw position as impregnable, reliable and believed in its invincibility. What did this position represent?
Sixty-two versts north of Arthur, the Liaodong Peninsula has a width of about three versts with a group of heights (Nanshan), which, strengthened by the Russians, became known as the Kinzhou position. To the north of the heights lies a plain, surrounded by inclusive heights, and from the east – the Samson mountain range. The southern slopes of the position merge with the Tafashinsky hills.
The Nanshan fortifications consisted of fourteen batteries located at the top of the position, with three strong points and a common trench around. The belts of the fields of the fortifications were pushed seven hundred steps forward and connected to a common trench. For the message of the center position with the lower tier, the message moves were made and numerous deep ravines were adapted for the same purpose. Between the individual batteries and the fortifications was a telephone. Telephone communication was available with the bay of Ker, Dalny, Jinzhou, Taleenwan and Arthur.
On the advice of Admiral Makarov, two batteries were prepared on