Wounded soldiers on their way to hospitals at Dalny

Wounded soldiers on their way to hospitals at Dalny

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These men were some of the lightly wounded of the fight of October 29, 1904, and were photographed by Mr. Barry the day after, as they were on their way through a Chinese village to Dalny, where they would receive proper medical and surgical attention at the well-appointed hospitals. With all the help to the wounded that modern science provides, can it be said that modern warfare is more humane than that of ancient days? During the terrible days before Port Arthur, when the Japanese soldiers lived in the trenches, unable to succor the wounded, preyed upon by stenches from the dead, until battle in which they neither asked nor gave quarter was a welcome relief, could it be said that they lived "humanely"? Or the Russians, driven into a trap, half starved, night and day expecting a sudden rush of a sleepless enemy, confronted by overwhelming numbers, with certainty of no relief, yet defending a lost hope with lives easier lost than continued? Could either be expected to be "humane" under such circumstances?

1 stereograph. 2 photomechanical prints on stereo card : halftone, stereograph, color ; 9 x 18 cm

1905 Ingersoll, T.W.

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