Arriving in Port Arthur, I established myself at the Hotel l'Europe
and with prospecting spade, botanical trowel and butterfly net, I
sallied forth around the hills of Port Arthur. The first thing which
struck me was the enormous number of Chinese and Chunshuses (bad
Coolies) employed everywhere. I came to know that they were not all
Chinese Coolies and that almost every tenth man was a disguised
Japanese. To an observer, trained in the facial characteristics of
the Oriental, it was not difficult to pick out the Japanese from the
mass of Coolies. They fairly swarmed in Port Arthur right under the
very noses of the Russians. As Baron Huraki had told me during our
passage on the _Bayern_, his countrymen were actually employed in the
building of the Port Arthur defenses! These Japanese w ere later able
to give invaluable information in directing the Japanese batteries.
Numerous other alleged Coolies were acting as servants to Russian
officers. I also found that on the Lioa Teah Shan Railway and at
Pidgeon Bay the very porters were Japanese. In fact, the entire
Russian stronghold was infested with them.

This carelessness, lack of knowledge or suspicion, with a total lack
of belief on the part of the Russian officers, that the "little monkey
men" would ever dare attack, is in my opinion the chief cause of the
comparatively quick fall of Port Arthur. For even with the
incompleted defenses the place was tremendously strong. Everywhere I
could see the most elaborate plans incomplete. For instance, as I
wandered through the hills seeking my botanical specimens, I found
that the chain of forts on the hills of the Quang Tong peninsula south
and west of Dalny, were totally unfinished and that the Kuan Ling
section of the Port Arthur and Dalny railway was not even adequately
protected from capture by a hostile force. The lack of adequate
supervision and the general slovenliness prevailing made it easy for