'But, sir,' said the Colonel, 'I shall want more than two men to lay the charge in every chamber. For 1,200 yards of wall I should want not less than 500 chambers--that is, about 1,000 men--and anyhow, even if you give me the men, it is impossible to do the work _at once_.' The answer was amusing. 'There's no time to talk, Colonel; you must please go and carry out General Stössel's order.' Jerebtsoff left by rail that night, but the train was unable to proceed beyond Inchenzy, as the line was fired at by the enemy's gunboats. He therefore had to ride from there to Nangalin, whence he again proceeded on by train. But he never even reached the position at Kinchou, for it was already in the enemy's hands. Without understanding the rôle of sappers, Stössel during the whole siege threw the Sapper Company about like a ball from hand to hand. It was within this period put under the orders of four separate officers, without rhyme or reason. This anomaly of passing a most valuable technical unit from one officer to another was not only not called for, but did absolute harm, as it enabled people who were totally ignorant of its duties, qualifications and capabilities to issue to it utterly irregular and impossible orders. That the organization of the sappers in the Fortress in the event of war was not sufficiently thought out and foreseen is shown by the fact that this company, though 'a Fortress Company,' was allotted to work not only in the Fortress, but in the whole district (which was the reason it was not called the 'Port Arthur' Company). It was therefore given a civilian complement, which put it on a different footing to other fortress companies--_i.e._, it consisted of a field sapper company supplemented by a telegraph detachment of half the strength of a field telegraph company. In consequence, when hostilities commenced, there were neither fortress nor telegraph sappers in the Fortress itself. The Sapper Company also affords an example of Stössel's system of bestowing rewards. These men had done many gallant deeds, and by May had won thirty Crosses of St. George. When Stössel learnt this, he said to the commanding officer: 'You have got too many crosses in your company: I shall not give you any more.' Despite many gallant actions done by the sappers at later periods of the siege, and the recommendations made to him, Stössel kept his word: not a single cross was given to the sappers. With regard to the question of rewards in general, space does not permit of a description of the general system of their disposal by Stössel, but to give some slight insight of his methods, the following extract of a letter written to his relations by an officer when a prisoner of war in Japan is quoted. After describing his feelings and the hardships he and his companions had undergone, he continues: