Part 8 (2/2)
We had not long to wait. We saw some signalling going on between the flags.h.i.+p and the three craft that had come out to meet the fleet; saw the trio fall into line in rear of the retreating fleet; and then, while our gla.s.ses were glued to our eyes as we watched the procession of great s.h.i.+ps sweeping majestically toward the harbour's mouth--from which they were then little more than a mile distant--we suddenly beheld a tremendous flash of fire envelop the bows of the _Petropavlosk_, the flags.h.i.+p, which was leading the way into the harbour. The flash was accompanied by the upheaval of a gigantic cone of water and an outburst of thick yellow smoke which at once told us that one of our mines had got in its deadly work. Instantly a great exultant roar of ”Banzai Nippon!” burst forth from the throats of the eagerly watching j.a.panese, but it was as instantly checked when they began to realise the full magnitude of the disaster that had befallen their enemy. For even before the sound of the shattering explosion reached our ears we saw her fore topmast fall, saw long tongues of flame leap up from her decks, saw her-two funnels whirl over and fall, one after the other, while her bridge, pilot-house, and foremast soared high into the air; and so tremendous was the force of the explosion that actually one of her 6-inch gun turrets was torn bodily from its strong fastenings and hurled some twenty feet aloft, to crash downward again upon the hapless s.h.i.+p's deck, while a great burst of flame, probably due to the explosion of her boilers, shot up where her two funnels had stood a moment before. A series of heavy explosions followed, seeming to indicate the explosion of her magazines, and then the doomed s.h.i.+p became enveloped in a thick haze of green smoke, in the midst of which played great streams of fire.
Through that terrible green haze we were just able to see that she had taken a heavy list to starboard; then her bows dipped, her stern rose until her two propellers were lifted out of the water, a great mushroom-shaped pillar of smoke shot up from her, and--she was gone!
And all this had happened in the short s.p.a.ce of two minutes, during which sh.e.l.ls from our battles.h.i.+ps were falling thick and fast about the Russian s.h.i.+ps, which had stopped their engines when the explosion occurred, while some of them lowered boats, in the hope of being able to render a.s.sistance to the unfortunate flags.h.i.+p.
With the disappearance of the flags.h.i.+p, the Russian fleet resumed its way toward the harbour, the _Pobieda_ now being at the head of the line.
But scarcely had she started her engines when an enormous pillar of flame, water, and smoke enveloped her amids.h.i.+ps. She, too, had come into contact with one of our mines, but, fortunately for her, with much less disastrous results than those attending the destruction of the _Petropavlosk_. She instantly listed, showing that she was severely damaged, but beyond that nothing further happened, so far as we could see, except that the second explosion appeared to have created a perfect panic among the Russians, who immediately opened a terrific fire with every gun, big or small, apparently at random, for we could see the shots throwing up great jets of foam in the water all round them.
Later, we learned that when the second explosion occurred, some one aboard one of the s.h.i.+ps yelled that the fleet was surrounded by j.a.panese submarines, discharging torpedoes; hence the frantic firing at the water. Of course the a.s.sertion was groundless, since, as a matter of fact, the j.a.panese had no submarines; but it is not very surprising that, with two disasters, one following so closely upon the heels of the other, the Russians should jump to the conclusion that they had been attacked by submarines; for it must be remembered that we had carefully educated them into the belief that our mines were quite harmless.
The loss of the _Petropavlosk_ was a terrible misfortune for the Russians, for she was one of their most formidable s.h.i.+ps; being armed with four 12-inch guns of the most recent design, mounted in pairs in her two big turrets; with, as a secondary battery, twelve 6-inch quick-fire guns, eight of which were mounted in pairs in four small turrets placed, two on either beam, behind 5-inch steel armour, while the other four were in casemates similarly protected. She had six torpedo tubes, and we conjectured that she probably had a torpedo in each tube which exploded at the time of the disaster.
As for the _Pobieda_, our spies were able to ascertain that the mine which damaged her had breached three of her big compartments and some smaller ones, so that it was only with the utmost difficulty she was got into harbour and beached in time to save her. Also one set of her Belleville boilers was so severely damaged as to be rendered useless.
Consequently she, too, was put out of action for a considerable period.
Thus, at one fell swoop, the Russian fleet was reduced in strength by two battles.h.i.+ps. But their worst loss was their Admiral; for it is indisputable that Makarov was the most able, energetic, and enterprising naval leader they possessed.
Two days later, more mines were laid in Port Arthur roadstead, and another attempt was made to entice the Russian fleet to come out and fight us; but the attempt was a failure. As a matter of fact, it afterwards transpired that, upon receipt of the report announcing the loss of the _Petropavlosk_ and the damage to the _Pobieda_, the authorities at Petersburg had telegraphed orders to the effect that the Port Arthur fleet was on no account whatever to leave the harbour until the arrival of Admiral Skrydloff, Makarov's successor.
Failing in this, Admiral Togo dispatched the cruisers _Niss.h.i.+n_ and _Kasuga_ to Pigeon Bay, to make a high-angle fire attack upon the fortress and the s.h.i.+ps in the harbour. I was not engaged in either of these attempts, the Admiral considering that I had well earned and was deserving of a few days' rest. Besides, he very properly wished to give some of his other officers a chance to distinguish themselves. But I understood that, with the exception of silencing a new battery which the Russians had built commanding the bay, the bombardment was not attended with any very important results.
On the following day our little Admiral, whom some have named the j.a.panese Nelson, dispatched a squadron of ten cruisers, accompanied by a torpedo flotilla, to attempt to bring the Vladivostock squadron to battle. This squadron was accompanied by a cargo steamer named the _Kins.h.i.+u Maru_, loaded with coal and spare stores for the use of the squadron while away from its base; and the expedition was placed under the command of Vice-Admiral Kamimura, with the cruiser _Idzumi_ as his flags.h.i.+p. I had now had a little rest, and as there seemed to be no immediate prospect of serious fighting at Port Arthur, I volunteered for the expedition, and was temporarily attached to the _Idzumi_ as a supernumerary.
We left our base among the Elliot Islands on the 16th of April; and after an uneventful cruise of a week's duration arrived at the port of Gensan, on the eastern coast of Korea, about two-thirds of the distance from the Elliots to Vladivostock.
There was a j.a.panese consul at this place, and upon our arrival off the port he and the Commandant came off in a steam launch and, boarding the _Idzumi_, requested an interview with the Admiral, which was at once granted, and the pair were conducted to Kamimura's cabin, where they remained for the best part of an hour. At the close of the interview the visitors entered their steam launch and returned to the sh.o.r.e. Some ten minutes later, Kamimura sent for me; and when I entered the cabin I found him poring over a chart of the east coast of Korea. He welcomed me with the usual elaborate courtesy of the j.a.panese in their intercourse with each other as well as with strangers, and invited me to approach the table.
”I am particularly glad that it is my good fortune to have the pleasure of your honourable company, Captain Swinburne,” he began; ”for an occasion has just arisen upon which I think your services may prove of the utmost value. You see this little place--Iwon--on the chart. The two honourable gentlemen who have just visited me--the Commandant of Gensan and our j.a.panese consul stationed here--inform me that rumours have reached their ears of certain suspicious occurrences at Iwon which seem to point to the possibility that the Russian Government may be contemplating the dispatch of a large body of troops to Vladivostock by rail, their embarkation there for Iwon, at which spot they may land, march across Korea, and take our troops at Port Arthur in the rear. To tell you the truth, I have not much faith in the idea, the only point in its favour being that such a movement would be wholly unantic.i.p.ated by us. But in view of the information which I have just received, it is my bounden duty to investigate the matter; and I therefore propose to dispatch the _Kins.h.i.+u Maru_ on a reconnoitring expedition to Iwon, to ascertain what foundation, if any, there may be for the suspicion. As of course you are aware, she carries a small detachment of troops, who may be very useful, should any opposition be met with. These troops will, of course, be commanded by their own officers, while Captain Yago will continue to command the s.h.i.+p. But, being a merchant seaman, he has had no experience of landing troops; and that is where your services will prove of value, especially should any resistance be offered. I therefore want you to change over temporarily to the _Kins.h.i.+u_, still as a supernumerary, but with my authority for you to take charge of and superintend the landing and subsequent embarkation arrangements. I am afraid this will mean a certain amount of disappointment for you, since as soon as you have started I shall proceed in search of the Vladivostock fleet. But you must endeavour to console yourself with the reflection that I may not find them, or be able to entice them to come out and fight me.”
It was true, I certainly did feel a bit disappointed, for I most earnestly desired to see what it was like to be engaged in a regular pitched battle, even though it were only between a couple of hostile squadrons; but I was where I was, to lend a hand where required, not to pick and choose what I would or would not do; in any case I was not going to make occasion for it to be said that an Englishman had unwillingly accepted any duty offered to him; therefore with as much cheerfulness as I could muster, I expressed my perfect readiness to do my best; whereupon Kamimura gave me my written instructions and dismissed me to pack up such few of my belongings as I thought I might need. However, as I had only brought a very limited kit aboard the _Idzumi_, I decided to take everything, since it would all go into a small portmanteau.
Meanwhile, the skipper of the _Kins.h.i.+u_ had been signalled to have a cabin prepared for me, and for him and Captain Honda, the officer in command of the troops, to repair on board the _Idzumi_ to receive their instructions. They of course came at once, had a short interview with the Admiral, and we all left together, Honda doing the honours of the s.h.i.+p, welcoming me on board the transport, and introducing his fellow-officers, all of whom seemed very jolly fellows, with but one desire, namely, to get to grips with the Russians.
We left Gensan that afternoon, escorted by the 11th torpedo-boat flotilla under the command of Commander Takebe; the cruisers weighing at the same time and heading east, in the hope of seeing or hearing something of the Russians.
Unfortunately for us, we had not been under way a couple of hours before we ran into a dense fog which delayed our progress to such an extent that we did not reach Iwon until the morning of the 25th. We found there a long, roughly constructed wooden jetty running far enough out from the sh.o.r.e to give a depth of about six feet alongside its head, at low water, which greatly facilitated our landing; and, ash.o.r.e, we discovered certain artfully concealed field-works of such a character that, armed with a few heavy guns, they might have pretty effectually covered a landing, unless interfered with by a very powerful force. But our visit was evidently quite unexpected, for we only found a small body of Russian troops--about a hundred or so, with a squadron of Cossacks-- in possession; and a few sh.e.l.ls from our torpedo-boats sent them to the right-about in double-quick time. We destroyed the earthworks, and the jetty, as a precautionary measure, and, having reconnoitred the country for several miles in every direction without discovering anything very alarming, returned to the s.h.i.+p the same night, without casualties of any kind.
It was now about six o'clock in the evening. During the greater part of the day the weather had been beautifully fine; but toward three o'clock in the afternoon a heavy bank of dark, slate-coloured cloud had gathered in the eastern quarter of the sky, so quickly rising and spreading that, by five o'clock, the entire firmament had become obscured, the wind dropped to a dead calm, the light dwindled to a murky, unnatural kind of twilight, there were a few flickerings of sheet lightning, low down on the horizon, occasionally accompanied by a low muttering of distant thunder, and the mercury was dropping with rather ominous rapidity.
I confess that, for my own part, I felt a bit puzzled; I did not quite know what to make of the weather indications. It might be that nothing worse than a violent thunderstorm was brewing; but against this theory there was to be set the sudden and ominous decline of the barometric pressure. We had fulfilled our task, and were preparing to get under way, when Takebe, who was in command of the torpedo flotilla, came aboard to consult with our skipper as to the advisability of going to sea, in the face of such threatening conditions.
Unfortunately, our escort was composed entirely of torpedo-boats; and although they were staunch enough little craft of their kind, they were nothing like such good sea boats as our destroyers. The latter were, under able management, capable of riding out practically any weather, but with the torpedo-boats it was rather a different story. Some of those that we had with us were small and rather ancient, their engines were not to be too implicitly relied upon, and their boilers were nearly worn-out; indeed, they would never have been detailed for the service, had it been thought that there would be any likelihood of real righting.
If by any chance they should happen to be caught at sea in anything like a heavy gale, and anything should go wrong with either their engines or their boilers, the probability was that they would founder, taking all hands with them.
It was these considerations that were weighing upon Commander Takebe's mind when he came aboard the _Kins.h.i.+u_ to consult with Captain Yagi; and it was evident from his first words that he was all in favour of adopting the prudent course, and staying where we were until it could be seen how matters were going to turn out. But Yagi and he looked at things with different eyes. In the first place, Yagi did not believe that the portents indicated anything more serious than, at worst, a sharp thunderstorm, while at the same time his instructions from Kamimura were that the reconnaissance was to be executed with the utmost dispatch, and that, this done, he was to immediately return to Gensan, so that he might be on the spot in the event of the cruisers needing to re-bunker. And in any case, should it come on to blow, as Commander Takebe seemed to fear, he had no apprehensions concerning the _Kins.h.i.+u_; she was a good st.u.r.dy little s.h.i.+p, and would weather out the worst that was at all likely to happen.
The two discussed the matter together for quite half an hour, occasionally referring to me for my opinion; but both of them were considerably older than I, and had had a much more varied experience than myself of the somewhat peculiar weather conditions of the Sea of j.a.pan; I therefore said as little as possible, and did not attempt to offer a word of advice to either of them. Finally, the matter ended by each of them having his own way--that is to say, Yagi decided to leave for Gensan forthwith, unescorted, taking such trifling risk as there might be--which, they both agreed, amounted practically to none at all-- while Takebe determined to study the safety of his command by remaining where he was and awaiting developments. Accordingly, as soon as the Commander had gone, the order was given to get the anchor; and about seven o'clock we steamed out to sea.
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