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 CHAPTER III

SUPPLIES FOR KUROPATKIN'S ARMY

N the return from my trip to the capital I arrived at Harbin in the spring of 1905 and, though I heard the stories of the destruction of the Russian warships at Port Arthur, I found the general sentiment everywhere excellent. People still had faith in the ultimate victory of Russia and expected much from the new regiments constantly arriving from the west.

In the meantime, having completed the organization and equipment of my laboratory, I had a great deal of accumulated work upon my hands. Orders from the General Staff directed me to search out some local supply of oil for use as a lubricant in the artillery, for the transport wagons in the field and for the axles of the railway carriages, as well as for the manufacture of soap. The problem was shortly resolved by the discovery in the oil extracted from the soya bean of the qualities necessary for these purposes. Also these beans were produced in such a really fabulous amount in northern Manchuria that the question of quantity production for military purposes was thus taken care of. After having worked out a new method of manufacture, I organized and opened a factory at Harbin which turned out all sorts of oils and soaps by a cold process that was very simple and quick, and in such quantities as to meet all the needs 26