Chapter II: Part 2

The “warship Naniwa-kan,” as she used to be called in England, in defiance to all explanations to the effect that the affix “kan” simply meant “warship,” attained a good deal of celebrity while under construction. The British Navy had then no ships like her, and the Mersey class, then building, though more heavily gunned on about the same displacement, were popularly considered very poor substitutes, since their biggest guns were 8-in. pieces only, against the Naniwa’s 10-in. The big gun had at that time a very great hold on popular imagination.

Details of the Naniwa, and her sister, the Takachiho, are as follows:—

Displacement 3700 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 300 ft.
Beam 46 ft.
Draught 20 ft.
Armament Two 10-in. 32 cals. Krupp.
Six 6-in. B.L. Krupp.
Two 6-pdr. Q.F.
Fourteen smaller Q.F. and machine.
Four torpedo tubes.

(Elswick 6-in. Q.F. have lately been substituted for the old 6-in. B.L.).

The big guns are generally described as Elswick pieces, but they are not, although Elswick built the ships.

Engines (Hawthorn, Leslie & Co.) Horizontal compound.
Horse-power 7120.
Speed on trial 18.7 knots
Sea speed (_circa_) 15 knots.
Screws Two.
Coal (normal) 350 tons.
” (maximum) 800 tons.
Radius with full bunkers (_circa_) 5000 miles.
Complement 357.
Search-lights Four.

Protection is afforded by a steel deck 3 ins. on the slopes, 2 ins. on the flat. The engine hatches have a 3-in. glacis. The conning-tower is 1½-in. steel, and the loading stations of the big guns have a similar protection.

(_This is the cruiser that sunk the Kow-shing._)

=Note.=—The sinking of the Kow-shing will be found described in the chapter on the Chino-Japanese war. Special interest attaches to the Naniwa on account of the fact that during this war she was commanded by the present Admiral Togo.]

As originally rigged, the Naniwa and Takachiho carried a top on each mast. After the war, in which they did not exhibit the best of sea-keeping qualities, these tops were lowered, and light platforms erected where they used to be, as in the illustration. The old rig, which is tolerably familiar, will be noticed in the illustrations dealing with the war. The Naniwa and Takachiho both took part in the first engagement at Asan; the Naniwa subsequently made her name familiar to the world over the Kow-shing affair. Both ships participated at Yalu and Wei-hai-wei. The Naniwa was launched on March 18, 1885, at Elswick, the Takachiho on May 16th in the same year. In appearance the two craft are almost absolutely identical; for convenience, and to enable their own officers to distinguish them, the Takachiho has a red band round her instead of the orthodox black one. As a further guide, she carries a couple of signal yards on the main, in place of the single yard carried there by the Naniwa.

Meanwhile China continued to have ships built in England and Germany, and in 1886 there was launched at Stettin a small cruiser, the Tche-Yuen (Tsi-Yuen is a more familiar spelling), which was destined to be taken over by the Japanese at Wei-hai-wei in 1895. Her details are:—

Displacement 2300 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 246 ft.
Beam 33 ft.
Draught (maximum) 18 ft.
Armament Two 8.2-in. Krupp, forward in an
armoured turret.
One 6-in. Krupp aft.
Four 4-pdr. Gruson Q.F.
Two Gatlings.
Four torpedo tubes.
Horse-power 2800.
Speed on trial 15 knots.
Screws Two.
Coal (normal) 230 tons.
Radius (_circa_)1000 miles.
Complement 180.

This ship represents an application of the Italian Lepanto idea to a small cruiser. She is provided with a steel protective deck, 3 ins. thick on the slopes; the hull is otherwise unprotected, but the fore turret, containing the 8-in. guns, is heavily armoured with 10-in. compound, thus rendering it proof against any of the 10-in. guns afloat in the Japanese Fleet at the time she was built. Indeed, at Yalu there were only three guns present in the Japanese Fleet against which the Tche-Yuen’s turret armour was not proof. However, the possession of a little impenetrable armour is of small service to a warship—the odds being always against any one particular spot being hit. At Asan, in which the Tche-Yuen suffered rather severely, none of the Japanese guns against her were able to pierce this forward turret.

In 1879 Japan had already had four torpedo boats built for her at Yarrow’s. These craft displaced only 40 tons. In 1886, however, Yarrow’s built the first-class twin-screw torpedo boat Kotaka. This boat is remarkable as the first armoured torpedo boat ever constructed. She has 1-in. steel plating all over her machinery compartment, and the subdivision of the hull is, for a torpedo boat, singularly complete. In her way the Kotaka was the forerunner of the destroyers, being larger than the run of torpedo boats even now. Full details of her are:—

Displacement 190 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 170 ft.
Beam 19½ ft.
Draught 5 feet.
Horse-power 1400.
Speed on trial 19 knots.
Screws Two.
Coal carried 50 tons.
Torpedo tubes Six.
Armament Four machine guns.

The torpedo tubes are thus disposed: two forward, firing right ahead, a pair amidships, and another pair a little abaft of them. The Kotaka made a name for herself in the war, and previously to that was a successful craft. However, for some reason Japan had no more boats from Yarrow, or, indeed, from England, for the next ten years, the next, a batch of fourteen, being ordered from Creusot. These were launched in 1889. The Kotaka, after being built, was sent out to Japan in sections, and there put together again. The Creusot boats were sent out in similar fashion, while a further seven were put together entirely at Kobé, in Japan. All these boats were small ones of 56 tons, 114½ ft. long, 10½ ft. beam, and 6 ft. draught. With 525 I.H.P., they made 20 knots on trial. They have two torpedo tubes, carry two 1-pounder Q.F., a complement of 16 men, and are single screw. One of them was lost off the Pescadores in December, 1895, and a couple at Wei-hai-wei in February of the same year.

Japan still continued the construction of other craft, having launched the Maya[11] at Onohama in 1886, the Akagi[12] at the same yard in 1887, the Atago[13] at Yokosuka in 1887, and the Chiokai[14] at Tokio in the same year. The Maya and Chiokai were, as before, composite, but the other two are noteworthy as being constructed entirely of steel. A large proportion of the material for them was imported, and the building was rather a case of merely putting together.

[11] Pronounced Maï’yà.

[12] Ak-à-gēē.

[13] At-à-go.

[14] Tchio’ka’i.

The dimensions, etc., of all are identical, and are as follows:—

Displacement 622 tons.
Length 154¼ ft.
Beam 27 ft.
Draught (mean) 9¼ ft.
Horse-power 700.
Trial speed (_circa_) 12 knots.
Screws Two.
Coal supply 60 tons.
Complement 104.

JAPANESE FLEET AT SEA. FUSO LEADING.]

In appearance and armament they vary much. The Maya carries a couple of 6-in. Krupp’s, with two 3-pounder Q.F. and a couple of machine guns; the Chiokai and Atago are armed with one 8-in. Krupp and one 4.7-in. gun and two machine guns; the Akagi carries two special French guns of about 4.7-in. calibre. These guns are the only ones of the kind in the world, and singularly powerful pieces—Hebrieu guns. The objection to them is that their lives are short. They proved too powerful for the little Akagi, and shook her up badly on trial. They were afterwards fired with reduced charges, except at Yalu, where they proved very useful, owing to their power.

The Akagi has a raised forecastle, the other three have not. All used to be schooner-rigged, but just before the war a fighting-top was fitted to the Akagi’s foremast, and a crow’s-nest to her main. To distinguish them, the Maya has a black band, the Chiokai a red one, the Atago yellow. The Akagi’s band is black, but her forecastle and fighting-top distinguish her. In addition, she has a rather elaborate green scrollwork on the bow. She has also sponsons for her machine guns. At Yalu this ship lost her mainmast, and the damage was left unrepaired for a long time in deference to naval sentiment; it has, however, been replaced lately.

Reference has already been made to the transfer of torpedo-boat building from British to French firms. M. Bertin was at that time naval adviser to the Japanese Government, consequently French design for large ships secured a similar victory in the year 1887-8. With such ships as she now had, Japan was beginning to be able to stand alone, many English instructors were dispensed with; but she was yet some distance from her present independence. French enterprise saw its chance and took it; all the foreign-built ships of the new programme came from France.

These were the Itsukushima, Matsushima, and Hashidate (this last put together in Japan), the Unebi, Tschishima, and some smaller ships (laid down in Japanese yards), Yayeyama, Oshima, and Takao.

The ships built in Japan during the Bertin _régime_, 1887 to 1890, are distinctly French in design and appearance. The first to take the water was the Takao, launched at Yokosuka in 1888. Particulars are:—

Displacement 1778 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 229 ft.
Beam 34 ft.
Draught 14 ft.
Armament Four 6-in.
One 4.7-in. Q.F.
Two torpedo tubes.
Horse-power 2300.
Speed on trial 15 knots.
Sea speed (_circa_) 12 knots.
Screws Two.
Coal supply 300 tons.
Boilers Two cylindrical.
Engines (made at Yokosuka) Two sets horizontal compound.
Complement 220.

She is fitted with military and searchlight tops on both masts. The four 6-in. guns are in sponsons in the waist, the 4.7-in. is carried right aft. There is no protection of any sort to the machinery. She was the first steel ship built in Japan.

About 1887 Japan definitely decided to draw all her Q.F. guns, 6-in. or 4.7-in., from Elswick, and all heavy guns from Canet. Krupp’s pieces were discarded. This resolution was adhered to till 1902-03, so far as Elswick was concerned, but Canet guns were given up some years ago. Elswick guns were, in 1890, shipped to France for the Itsukushima and her sister. At present (1904) new guns are on the Vickers model.

Following the Takao, Yokosuka launched the despatch vessel Yayeyama in 1899. She was designed by M. Bertin. Her dimensions, etc., are:—

Displacement 1605 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 315 ft.
Beam 34½ ft.
Draught 15 ft.
Armament Three 4.7-in. Q.F.
Six machine guns.
Two torpedo tubes.
Horse-power (forced draught) 5630.
Speed on trial 20.7 knots.
Screws Two.

The engines were provided by Messrs. Hawthorn, Leslie & Co. of England, and, instead of the horizontal compound previously fitted in Japanese-built ships, are horizontal, direct-acting, triple expansion. The boilers are of steel; there are six of these—cylindrical.

Over the engines and boilers a ½-in. steel deck is carried, affording, in conjunction with the bunkers, some slight protection.

The Onohama Yard laid down a vessel in this year, the Oshima. She was launched in 1890. Particulars:—

Displacement 640 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 233 ft.
Beam 25½ ft.
Draught 15¾ ft.
Armament Four 4.7-in. Q.F.
Eight 3-pdr. Q.F.
Horse-power (forced draught) 1200.
Speed on trial 16 knots.
Screws One.

THE UNEBI (NOW LOST).]

There is no protection to the machinery. The engines were built at Yokosuka.

Meanwhile, shipbuilding abroad had been proceeding apace, but disaster attended both the earlier vessels. The first, the Unebi, a cruiser of 3650 tons, with four 6-in. Q.F. as her principal armament, mysteriously disappeared while on her way out to Japan[15] and still in the contractors’ hands. Her loss was officially attributed to instability, and seems to have inspired the Japanese authorities with a profound distrust for French shipbuilding; at any rate, the Chiyoda, a vessel generally resembling the lost Unebi, was given to Thomson Yard at Clydebank for construction. She will be described in due course later on.

[15] It was currently reported, and for a long time believed in Japan, that the Unebi had been captured by the Chinese and taken into one of their harbours. Another report was to the effect that the Chinese had waylaid and destroyed her—a not impossible incident. A typhoon is, however, a more likely cause. It may be remembered that our gunboat Wasp mysteriously disappeared in Far Eastern waters, and nothing was ever heard as to how she perished.

The second French-built ship, upon the same general plan as the French Milan and Japanese Yayeyama, was the Tschishima, of 750 tons displacement. In appearance she was nearly identical to the French Milan. She met with disaster in the Inland Sea almost immediately after the Japanese took her over (1892), and all her crew were drowned. The Tatsuta was ordered from Elswick to replace her.

The Itsukushima, the first of the “Bertin cruisers,” so-called after their designer, was launched at La Seyne in 1889. Captain Ingles, R.N., naval adviser to the Japanese, had strongly persuaded them against ironclads; they had been advised against the big gun also. However, they were bent on mounting a gun able to pierce any armour in the Chinese Navy or in foreign warships likely to come to the Far East. By the irony of fate, these big guns contributed nothing to the victory of the Yalu; however, the decision of the Japanese to have them cannot be condemned, in view of the fact that naval construction everywhere in ’88 was based upon the big gun. Having a full idea of their requirements, the Japanese settled upon the Italian Lepanto as embodying the most useful type of ship for them, and the Itsukushimas were ordered on that principle.

Particulars of the Itsukushima are as follows:—

Displacement 4278 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 295 ft.
Beam 50½ ft.
Draught (maximum) 21¼ ft.
Armament One 12.8-in. Canet.
Eleven 4.7-in. Q.F. Elswick
of 32 cals.
Five 6-pdr. Q.F.
Eleven 3-pdr. Q.F.
Six machine guns.
Six torpedo tubes (bow,
stern, and four on the broadsides).
Horse-power (natural draught) 3400.
Trial speed (natural draught) 15.7 knots.
Horse-power (forced draught) 5400.
Trial speed (forced draught) 16.5 knots.
Screws Two.
Engines Triple expansion.
Boilers Six cylindrical.[16]
Furnaces 18.
Coal supply 400 tons.
Complement 360.

[16] Now Belleville.

For protection there is a steel deck 1½ ins. thick on the slopes. With this is associated a cellulose belt and coal protection. The total protection, so far as penetration is concerned, is not, however, more than equivalent to what a 6-in. belt of old iron armour would afford, and it would keep out nothing above a 4.7-in. shot, and that only at long ranges. Over the engine hatches is a patch of thick steel armour.

The heavy gun barbette is a strip of 12-in. Creusot steel, with a 4-in. steel shield over the breech of the gun. There is an armoured hoist that affords some support, but, speaking generally, the gun is more or less at the mercy of shell bursting underneath it.

The Hashidate was built from the same designs at Yokosuka, and is practically identical with the Itsukushima, save that the battery guns aft are in small unarmoured sponsons, and obtain thereby a slightly greater angle of fire. She is further distinguished by a red band; the Itsukushima, being the first of the class, has, of course, a black band.

Grave doubts were soon entertained as to the seaworthiness of these two ships, and the Matsushima being a little more behindhand than the others, her design was altered. She carries the big gun aft, which makes her a better sea boat. The battery is shifted forward in the main deck. In place of the single 4.7-in. that her companions carry in the stern, the raised fok’s’le of the Matsushima contains two of these pieces, firing through recessed port.

Her small quickfiring armament is also different, there being sixteen 3-pounders.

All three ships have a single tripod mast abaft the funnel, with a couple of tops on it. Each now carries three signal yards.

The Itsukushima was launched on July 11, 1889, and commissioned in Japan in 1891. The Matsushima, launched on January 22, 1890, went out in 1892. The Hashidate was not launched till March 24, 1891, but early in 1893 she was in commission.

It had been hoped that these ships would attain speeds of 17.5 knots; none of them, however, ever reached it.

TORPEDO BOATS. 1891.

In 1891 Japan had built for her by Normand at Le Havre a 75-ton torpedo boat, 118 ft. long, two tubes, and a trial speed of 23 knots. She is a twin-screw boat.

Two other boats, 90-tonners, were also launched in Germany at Elbing. Length, 128 ft.; trial speed, 23 knots; one screw; armament, three tubes and three 1-pounder Q.F.

China in 1890 launched a home-built diminutive of the Itsukushima, the Ping Yuen. The Japanese took her at Wei-hai-wei, but she has never been of any use to them, and she now does duty as a gunnery hulk. Particulars of this craft are:—

Displacement 2600 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 200 ft.
Beam 40 ft.
Draught 19 ft.
Armament (originally) One 10.2-in. Krupp, 25 cals.
Two 6-in. Krupp.
Eight 3-pdr. Q.F.
One 1-pdr. Q.F. (in the top).
Four torpedo tubes.

The old 6-in. Krupp are now replaced by a couple of 45-calibre Elswick 6-in. Q.F. for drill purposes. The old 10-in. gun remains, and, being always cocked up in the air at an extreme elevation, is the most noticeable and characteristic feature of this ship, which every Japanese regards as a standing joke. An enormous dragon adorns each broadside. Japanese officers who come to Portsmouth always, by the way, christen our Hero “the British Ping Yen.”

The Ping Yuen was begun as a 16-knot, 2850-ton ship, a copy in fine of the Stettin-built King Yuen. In an early stage of construction, however, her length was much reduced, _for economical reasons_. She appears to have had much the same machinery as the King Yuen originally. This, however, was tinkered in fitting, and some of her boilers were stolen, or otherwise dispensed with! On trial she made 10.5 knots for a short period, but, after being taken care of by the Chinese, soon sank below that modest speed. It is doubtful whether she made as much as 6 knots at Yalu.

There is a 2-in. steel protective deck in places; amidships and under water there is a small patch of 8-in. compound armour. The barbette is a 5-in. strip of armour; the conning-tower has the same thickness. A thin shield—removed during the war—covers the big gun.

On June 3, 1890, the third-class cruiser Chiyoda, built to replace the lost Unebi, took the water at Clydebank. Particulars of her are as follows:—

Displacement 2450 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 308 ft.
Beam 43 ft.
Draught (maximum) 17 feet.
Armament Ten 4.7-in. Q.F. 40 cals.
Fourteen 3-pdr. Q.F.
Three Gatlings.
Three torpedo tubes (of which one
is fixed in the bow).
Horse-power 5600.
Trial speed 19 knots.
Engines Two sets, triple expansion.
Boilers Belleville.
Complement 350.
Coal supply 420 tons.

She was the first ship in any navy to be fitted with water-tube boilers, which were barely coming into existence in those days. Hers are of the Belleville type.

For protection she depends on a 4¼-in. chrome steel armour belt, 200 ft. long, amidships. Forward and aft of this is a protective deck 1½ ins. thick on the slopes. Throughout the entire water-line is a cellulose belt, and she is divided into 84 watertight compartments. The guns have no protection beyond the ordinary shields. They are, however, very well disposed.

In 1898 she was practically re-boilered, the old tubes being replaced by some specially large ones, in order to enable her to burn Japanese coal, which sooted the ordinary tubes.

In 1890 the Akitsushima was laid down at Yokosuka. It was at first supposed that she was a sister to the Matsushima. The Yoshino was contracted for at Elswick towards the end of this year. Both were launched in 1892, and commissioned just before the war with China.

The Akitsushima was the last ship to be built in Japan with imported material. She is practically a small copy of the U.S.S. Baltimore. Details of the two, for comparison, are as follows:—

AKITSUSHIMA. BALTIMORE.
Displacement 3150 tons. 4600 tons.
Material of hull Steel. Steel.
Length 302 ft. 328 ft.
Beam 43 ft. 48½ ft.
Draught 18½ ft. 23 ft.
Armament Four 6-in. Q.F. (D). Four 8-in. 25 cals. (C).
Six 4.7-in. Q.F. (E). Six 6-in. (D.)
Ten 3-pdr. Q.F. Eight small Q.F.
Four torpedo tubes. Five torpedo tubes.
Horse-power
(forced draught) 8400. 10,060.
Speed on trial 19 knots. 20.1 knots.
Engines Vertical triple Horizontal triple
expansion. expansion.
Boilers Cylindrical. Four double-ended
Scotch.
Screws Two. Two.
Coal (normal) 500. 400.
” (bunker capacity) 800. 900.
Armour deck on slopes 3-in. (_e_). 4-in. (_d_).
Other protection Cellulose belt and
cofferdam.
Complement 330. 395.

AKITSUSHIMA.]

The Akitsushima mounts 6-in. guns in the foremost and aftermost sponsons; four 4.7-in. are carried amidships, the fifth on the forecastle, and the sixth astern. She has thus a broadside fire of two 6-in. and four 4.7-in., against two 8-in. and three 6-in. in the Baltimore. Assuming that ship’s guns to be now replaced by Q.F., the Akitsushima would bring the equivalent of a 6-in. gun less.

The Yoshino, when new, was the swiftest cruiser in the world, and very few ships are equal to her yet. Particulars of her are:—

Displacement 4150 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 350 ft.
Beam 46 ft.
Draught (maximum) 19 ft.
Armament Four 6-in. Q.F.
Eight 4.7-in. Q.F.
Twenty-two 3-pdr. Q.F.
Five torpedo tubes (one of them
fixed in the bow).
Horse-power (forced draught) 15,000.
Trial speed 23.031 knots.
Engines (Humphrys, Tennant & Co.) Vertical triple expansion.
Boilers Cylindrical.
Screws Two.
Coal (maximum bunker capacity) 1000 tons.
Complement 360.

The normal coal supply, at 4150 tons displacement, is about 400 tons. Bunkers are disposed amidships in the usual fashion above the armour deck. Amidships this deck is 4½ ins. thick on the slopes (= _c_) and 2 ins. on the flat. Allowing for the additional resistance of the coal, nothing under a 10-in., or modern 9.2 or 9.4-in., could penetrate to the engine-room, and then only with solid shot. The watertight compartments are exceptionally numerous. With natural draught the ship has made 21.6 knots.

The 6-in. guns are thus distributed: one on the forecastle, one on the poop, the other two in the foremost sponsons. The other broadside guns are 4.7-in. and 3-pounders. The bow and stern chasers have an arc of fire of 270 degrees, the 6-in. guns in sponsons fire 3 degrees across the bow and 60 degrees abaft it.

YOSHINO.]

The aftermost 4.7-in. fire 3 degrees across the stern and 60 degrees before it. The broadside guns have an arc of about 120 degrees. Each of the fighting-tops carries a couple of 3-pounder Q.F., four on each bridge, two under the forecastle forward, two under the poop well aft, the remaining six between the guns amidships.

Towards the end of 1893 a violent agitation against the Navy filled the Japanese newspapers. The existing types of ships—particularly the Chiyoda and Itsukushima class—were unfavourably criticised. The _personnel_ was not free from these attacks; it was in some quarters demonstrated useless and inefficient. In the midst of these attacks the war with China loomed and broke out. After that war nothing further was heard on the subject of the _personnel’s_ “defects.”

The primary result of the agitation was a new shipbuilding programme. The only ships actually under construction at that time were the Suma, building at Yokosuka, and laid down in March, 1893, and the Tatsuta, ordered to replace the lost Tschishima, building at Elswick. The new programme embodied “two first-class battleships of the most powerful type,” a cruiser at Yokosuka of the Suma type, and a sloop Miyako, laid down at Kuré in 1894. This programme was also a subject of attack in a portion of the Japanese press.

Before, however, anything could be done, the battle of Asan and the affair of the Kow-shing precipitated the war with China. Consequently, on the outbreak of war, the Tatsuta, launched at Elswick on April 6, 1894, and hastily completed in August of the same year, was stopped as contraband on her way out at Aden.

The Tatsuta is a torpedo gunboat. Particulars as follows:—

Displacement 875 tons.
Material of hull Steel.
Length 240 ft.
Beam 27½ ft.
Draught (mean) 9½ ft.
Armament Two 4.7-in. Q.F.
Four 3-pdr. Q.F.
Five torpedo tubes (one fixed in
bow, the others in pairs—
a pair on each quarter).
Horse-power (forced draught) 5500.
Trial speed 21 knots.
Engines (Hawthorn, Leslie & Co.) Vertical triple expansion.
Screws Two.
Coal supply (normal) 188 tons.
” ” (maximum capacity) 200 tons.
Complement 100 men.

CHAPTER V THE WAR WITH CHINA

Japan was not long in finding uses for her navy.

The massacre of some shipwrecked Japanese in Formosa led to the despatch of a punitive expedition, the expense of which was paid by China, the suzerain, without any too much goodwill.

In 1875 Koreans gave trouble, by attacking a Japanese steamer that had visited one of their ports for coal and provisions, and in the midst of wild excitement a fleet was despatched, which, however, accomplished its object without bloodshed. A commercial treaty was concluded, and Japanese influences once more begun to gain ground in the Hermit Kingdom.

Mention has already been made of the Satsuma clan, whose anti-foreign sentiments had brought them into conflict with the British ten years before. A large portion of this clan were still violently conservative, and Saigo, the then head, having retired from Tokio, set up military schools, which something like 20,000 young Samaurai entered. Owing to his known reactionary ideas, Saigo was naturally viewed with some suspicion, but it is questionable whether he was at first imbued with anything but a strong imperialism. Amongst other things, he advocated the seizure of Korea, which, at that time, could have been done without much opposition, if any, from Russia, then busy over her war with Turkey. The Russian danger crusade was not, however, taken seriously by the people at large, and Saigo, in preaching war with Russia, was regarded as a visionary, crying “wolf” where no wolf was to be found.

On the other hand, war with China was a foregone conclusion for a long time before it occurred. Both China and Japan wanted Korea, and while China claimed a suzerainty over Korea, Japan insisted that it was an independent State. On account of this, strained relations were continual.

In the spring of 1894 an insurrection broke out in Korea, and China, to indicate her suzerainty, despatched troops to quell it. At the same time she sent a Note to the Japanese Government, notifying her intentions, using the term “tributary State” for Korea.

Japan replied by a Note, refusing to accept the “tributary State” expression, and a little later announced her intention of sending 4000 troops to Korea—claiming this as her right under the Chemulpo Convention—which specified that if China sent troops to Korea, Japan might do the like.

China protested, and, after the exchange of many Notes, despatched ten transports full of troops from Taku between July 21 and July 23. She also sent to Asan in Korea the small cruiser Tche Yuen and the gunboat Kuang-ki.

THE BATTLE OF ASAN (PHUNG-DO).

On July 25th the Chinese warships Tche Yuen (Tsi Yuen)[17] and Kwang-Yi (Kuang King), coming from Asan in Korea, with awnings up, and generally unprepared for action, encountered off the island of Phung-do a portion of the Japanese flying squadron, consisting of the Naniwa (Captain Togo),[18] Yoshino (Captain Kawara), and Akitsushima (Captain Kamimura), the Yoshino flying the flag of Rear-Admiral Tsuboi.

[17] Now the Sai Yen.

[18] Admiral in command of the main fleet in February, 1904.

Many accounts of this action have been written. The one I give here differs in many details from the narrative currently accepted; however, it is based on the personal narratives to me of officers of the Japanese ships engaged, and appears to me to afford by far the most reasonable explanation as to how the fight came about.

The Tche Yuen was never a good steering ship, and her steering-gear, which had been for some time in a state of neglect, broke down just about the time the Japanese ships were sighted.

This caused her to alter her course, and she bore down upon the Japanese, coming nearer and nearer. The idea went round that she purposed torpedoing.

Every gun in the Japanese fleet was thereupon laid upon the Tche Yuen’s conning-tower, red flags hoisted, and the Chinese ships ordered to keep off. This the leading vessel, Tche Yuen (Captain Fong), was unable to do, and she pressed so closely on the Naniwa that Captain Togo turned and headed towards her.

The Tche Yuen hoisted a white flag, but still continued to approach. Thereupon the Naniwa opened fire, the other ships following suit. The Japanese version, that the Tche Yuen fired a torpedo first of all, while under the white flag, generally credited, is, on the evidence of Japanese officers, quite incorrect. No torpedo was fired; they expected one—that is all.

The conning-tower of the Tche Yuen was hit five times at the first discharge, the first lieutenant and a sub-lieutenant, who were inside, being killed, though the captain, who stood beside them, was unhurt. He vacated the tower, and gave orders to clear for action. In the circumstances he made a very passable fight for it, despite the subsequent Chinese allegations of cowardice. Caught unprepared, his fighting did not amount to much; but that was a natural sequel to his unpreparedness.

Long before the Chinese could reply, the Japanese, at 3000 yards, had practically put the ship _hors de combat_. A large shell hit the armour-deck, and glancing up, struck the fore-turret, disabling one of the 8-in. guns. All men on deck were killed, wounded, or driven away, and in a little while the fore-turret was again hit and the gun’s crews killed. A shell burst in the funnel base, killing or wounding men in the stokehold, and all the upper works were riddled.

At about this stage the Tche Yuen did what she should have done long before, got the hand-steering wheel going, and, this done, she made off for Wei-hai-wei, keeping up a mild fire on the Japanese ships from her after 6-in. gun. This retreat was the only thing she could do; to remain would have been madness.

The Japanese attempted no pursuit, despite Chinese stories to the contrary. They believed that the Chinese battle-fleet was near by, and were chary accordingly. The only hit obtained by the Tche Yuen was on the Yoshino’s bridge, and this did little harm. On the other hand, the Tche Yuen, though she lost three officers and thirteen men killed, and twenty-five wounded, was not seriously damaged structurally, for within a week she was repaired. She, however, looked a fearful wreck; and an idea obtains that the Japanese thought that the sight of her would have a strong moral effect on the Chinese, which to some extent it did. If so, it was no unwise move; the ship, sound or damaged, could never be a serious enemy to them.

While this was going on the Kuang-Yi, disregarding orders to retire, attempted to charge and torpedo the enemy.[19] In this, of course, she failed, and, being on fire, most of her crew killed or wounded, she ran ashore. What was left of her crew—eighteen men all told—reached the land. The Naniwa, which had engaged the gunboat, continued to pound her, till a torpedo in the stern-tube blew up, and practically destroyed her completely.

[19] See Appendix for Chinese version of this affair.

JAPANESE FLEET IN LINE ABREAST OFF CHEMULPO DURING THE WAR.]

This battle, save that it began the war, was a quite unimportant event, and has never been regarded in the Japanese Navy for more than it is worth. It is chiefly interesting on account of the pluck exhibited by the Chinese captain of the Kuang-Yi, and for the fact that in it Togo of the Naniwa first came to the front.

SINKING OF THE KOW-SHING

The Battle of Asan began at 7.5 a.m. on July 25, 1894. It was well over when, at 8.30 a.m., the British-owned transport Kow-shing was sighted in the distance, and at 9.15 a.m. the Naniwa fired two blank charges at her and signalled to her to stop.

The Kow-shing was perfectly well known to the Japanese, Lieutenant Kuroi, of the Intelligence Department, having informed his Government on July 14th that she was chartered as a transport for Chinese troops. She was commanded by Captain Galsworthy of the British mercantile marine, and had on board, besides her officers and crew of 64 men, 1100 Chinese soldiers and the German Von Hannacken, who was in the Chinese service.

The Naniwa ordered the Kow-shing to follow her, and to this capture the captain assented, but the Chinese on board insisted on returning to Taku instead. Four hours were spent in negotiations, at the end of which time Captain Togo advised the Europeans in the Kow-shing to leave. Before this was complied with the Chinese were in a state of mutiny, and Togo, dreading the arrival of the Chinese battle-fleet, gave the order to open fire on the transport. At 1.10 p.m. he fired a torpedo, which missed, and a broadside that hit the Kow-shing in the engine-room. Five minutes later she began to sink, and at 1.46 went under.

Most of the European officers jumped overboard, and the majority were rescued by the Naniwa’s boats. The Chinese on board the sinking ship opened a heavy rifle-fire on everything and everybody. The story that the Japanese fired on the men in the water does not appear to have any foundation in fact. The statement that they did so rests on the authority of the German Von Hannacken, who was hardly in a position to observe the exact facts as he swam to safety. It is probable, and, indeed, to be presumed, that the men on the Naniwa’s tops fired at the Kow-shing, in order to keep down the fire which the Chinese soldiers directed at the Japanese boats sent to pick up the European survivors.

About half the Chinese were picked up by a French gunboat or escaped to the islands; no attempt to save any was made by the Japanese. For this they have received stronger condemnation than they merit. To risk being killed by one lot of the enemy in order to save another lot is not a necessary act in war ethics. This was Captain Togo’s view, situated as he was in a position of considerable danger, owing to the supposed propinquity of the Chinese fleet. From panic, or the idea that the Japanese would give no quarter, the Chinese had to all intents and purposes gone mad _en masse_; and whatever theories armchair critics may evolve, the amount of blame actually due to Captain Togo is of a trifling nature. He had to choose between two evils, and chose the least.

The legality of the attack on the Kow-shing was hotly contested; but in the end it was established that Japan was inside her legal rights. As to the ethics of the matter—well, the moralist who objects is apt to fail to realise that the Kow-shing carried 1100 of the best soldiers China could put in the field, and they had been destined to fight the Naniwa’s countrymen. To allow them to proceed would have been a splendid exhibition of legal-mindedness, but it would also have been a criminally stupid act from the patriotic standpoint.

SUBSEQUENT OPERATIONS

After this there was a lull. The Chinese battle-fleet, led by Admiral Ting in the Ting Yuen, put to sea searching for the Japanese. Ting was anxious to fight, and his _personnel_ was in a good state of efficiency; his _materiel_ was otherwise. Still, at this early stage, had he encountered the Japanese fleet, he was far more likely to have destroyed it than he was later on.

He had, however, to reckon with Li Hung Chang and Loh Feng Lo. These presently ordered him not to cruise east of Wei-hai-wei and the Yalu river; and this order practically put the Chinese fleet out of the operations. It has been stated many times that Li Hung Chang was bribed by the Japanese to give this order, and it is possible that he was. It is more probable, however, that for the Chinese to be defeated was a part of his own peculiar policy.

For some time, therefore, nothing happened. The Japanese feinted at Wei-hai-wei and Port Arthur, but for a good six weeks they spent most of their time in sea work—drilling and preparing for battle. The Chinese ships, on the other hand, lay inactive, steadily deteriorating morally, as inactive ships must.

It was stated in Japan that British cruisers at this time acted as Chinese scouts, giving information as to Japanese movements. It is a difficult matter to authenticate or even to refer to. I have seen Chinese official reports (translated ones) in which two cruisers are specifically mentioned, but a Chinese official report is not necessarily confirmation. There is no question whatever but that the Chinese spread the rumour of British sympathy and benevolent neutrality; it is fairly clear, too, that now and again they obtained information as to Japanese whereabouts from British men-of-war. But it is not proved that this was anything more than in the course of ordinary conversation, and there is no reason whatever to believe that the British Government had a hand in the matter.

VI THE BATTLE OF YALU (HAI YANG)

Japan, having been as good as presented with the command of the sea, swiftly moved an army into Korea. This went on till, in September, China began to realise that if she wished to hold that country she must use the sea as transport. At Ping Yang her land forces had suffered a severe defeat; reinforcements were urgently required. Ting was, therefore, ordered to convey these to the Yalu River.

On Sunday, September 1st, at 1 a.m., Ting sailed from Talien Bay, having with him the Ting Yuen (flag), Chen Yuen, Lai Yuen, King Yuen, Ping Yuen, battleships;[20] and the cruisers Chin Yuen, Chih Yuen, Tche Yuen, Tchao Yong, and Yank Wei; two gunboats, Kuang Kai and Kuang Ping; four “flat-iron” Rendel gunboats; four torpedo boats; and five transports, carrying a thousand men each.

[20] Except in the case of the first two, only by courtesy so called.

Reaching the mouth of the Yalu on the same evening, he sent the transports, under convoy of the Ping Yuen, Kuang Ping, and torpedo boats, up the Yalu River, anchoring twelve miles out with his main fleet.

Early next morning the smoke of the Japanese, burning Takashima coal, was observed on the horizon.

It has never been clearly demonstrated whether the meeting was accidental or designed. The balance of evidence, to my mind, is in favour of the theory that Admiral Ito calculated that the Chinese would, after Ping Yang, send ships to the mouth of the Yalu, conveying troops. That certainly was Admiral Ito’s theory.

The Chinese lay with banked fires. On seeing the Japanese smoke, they got up anchor, and adopted the prearranged battle-formation—line abreast _en échelon_, the centre strong, the wings weak. Line abreast was the best formation for the Chinese fleet, which was best in bow fire, but the weak ends of the wings were a serious error. In addition, the Yang Wei and Tcho Yong were slow at getting up anchor.

The Japanese came along in line ahead, the flying squadron leading the main astern of it.

The rival squadrons were as follows:—

Japan: 8 cruisers, 1 old battleship, 1 old “belted cruiser,” 1 gunboat, and 1 armed liner.

China: 4 battleships, 3 cruisers, 3 gunboats, with (coming from the Yalu) 1 battleship, 1 gunboat, and 2 torpedo boats.

The Japanese fleet fought by signals throughout; the Chinese fought without signals, on a prearranged plan. In _materiel_, so far as ships went, the fleets were about on a par in fighting value. Actually, the Japanese were superior—in part from the possession of Q.F. guns, in part because the Chinese were very badly supplied with shell. Had they had a good supply of shell, there is little question but that, with their preponderance of large calibre guns, they would have destroyed the Japanese fleet, especially as Admiral Ito made a considerable error at the outset.

JAPANESE FLEET.

----------------+-----+--------+-----------------------------+------
Ship. |Tons.|Captain.| Armament. | Speed
| | | | in
| | | | 1894.
----------------+-----+--------+-----------------------------+------
Knots.
Flying squadron.
Yoshino[21] | 4150|Kawara | Four 6-in. Q.F., | 20
| | | eight 4.7-in. Q.F. |
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Takachiho | 3650|Nomura | Two 10-in. Krupp, six 6-in. | 15
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Naniwa | 3650|Togo | Ditto | 16
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Akitsushima | 3150|Kamimura|Four 6-in. Q.F., | 16
| | | six 4.7-in. Q.F. |
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Main fleet.
Matsushima[22]| 4277|{Omoto |One 12.6-in. Canet, | 14
| |{Dewa | twelve 4.7-in. Q.F. |
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Chiyoda | 2450|Uchida | Ten 4.7-in. Q.F. | ?
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Itsukushima | 4277|Yoko-o |One 12.6-in. Canet, | 14
| | | eleven 4.7-in. Q.F. |
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Hashidate | 4277|Hidaka | Ditto | 14
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Fuso | 3718|Arai |Four 9.4-in. Krupp, | 11
| | | two 6-in. Krupp |
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Yei | 2200|Sakurai | Nine old 6-in. | 9
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Out of line.
Akagi | 615|Sakamoto| Two 4.7-in. Q.F. | 8
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Saikio-maru[23]| 2913|Kano | Two light guns and | 10
| | | some small Q.F. |
----------------+-----+--------+-----------------------------+------

[21] Rear-Admiral Tsuboi.

[22] Vice-Admiral Ito.

[23] Vice-Admiral Count Kabayama.

CHINESE FLEET.

(From starboard to port.)—

+-----------------+----+------------+--------------------------------+------+
| Ship. |Tons| Captain. | Armament. |Speed |
| | | | | in |
| | | | | 1894.|
+-----------------+----+------------+--------------------------------+------+
|Battle-line. | | | |Knots.|
| Yang Wei |1350| — |Two 10.2-in., four 4.7-in. Krupp| 6 |
| Tchao Yung |1350| — | Ditto | 6 |
| Ching Yuen |2300| — |Three 8.2-in., two 6-in. Elswick|14 |
| Lai Yuen |2850| — | Two 8.2-in., two 6-in. Krupp |10 |
| Chen Yuen |7430| Lin | Four 12-in., two 6-in. Krupp |12 |
| Ting Yuen[24] |7430|Lin-Poo-Chin| Ditto |12 |
| King Yuen |2850| — | Two 8.2-in., two 6-in. Krupp |10 |
| Chih Yuen |2300| Tang | Three 8.2-in., two 6-in. Krupp |15 |
| Kuang Chi |1290| — | Three 4.7-in. Krupp |10½ |
| Tsi Yuen |2355| Fong | Two 8.2-in., one 6-in. Krupp |12½ |
| | | | | |
|Inshore. | | — | | |
| Ping Yuen |2100| — | One 10.2-in., two 6-in. Krupp |6 or 7|
| Kwang Ping |1000| — | Three 4.7-in. Krupp |10 |
| One torpedo boat| 128| — | Three tubes |15 |
| ” ” ” | 69| — | Ditto |16 |
+-----------------+----+------------+--------------------------------+------+

[24] Admiral Ting.

The first shot, which fell short, was fired by the Ting Yuen at 12.30. A moment later the battle was general.

The sea was smooth—almost glassy—the sky dull. There was, however, a growing breeze, and this blew towards the Chinamen, so that the black smoke from the Japanese cruisers acted as a helpful screen.

The Japanese came on, and passed right across the Chinese front, turning in succession eight points to port, when they opened on the Chinese at 3000 yards. This passing across the front was dangerous, and the Chinese nearly succeeded in cutting the Japanese line. They lost station in doing so, masking each other; and to this the Japanese fleet owed much, and only their tail was endangered. The Fuso was badly hit. The Hi Yei, in danger of being rammed, had to alter her course. She passed between the Chinese battleships at short range, getting badly hit as she cleared them. The Akagi was badly knocked about; the Saikio alone passed on unhurt.

The Chinese had by now half won the battle, but they were in such a muddle with their ships that the advantage was never followed up. At this time the flying squadron, which had cut off the two old gunboats to starboard of the Chinese line, was masked by the remaining four vessels of the main fleet; and an inspection of the plan of the second stage will show how near victory was for the Chinamen had their fleet only been in hand. Overwhelming heavy gunfire was theirs.

They lost the opportunity, however, and the flying squadron, after a short engagement with the Ping Yuen division, circled and came round on the Chinese front, while the main squadron, also turning, assailed its rear. The Ping Yuen devoted herself to a fruitless attempt at chasing the main Japanese fleet, while the bulk of the Chinese wasted effort in an attempt to complete the destruction of the little Akagi. In doing this they came under fire of the flying squadron, which sank both the King Yuen and Chih Yuen with its 10.2-in. guns.

Attempts by one of the torpedo boats to sink the Saikio-maru failed; she also survived a fire from the Chinese battleships. The Lai Yuen was by now ablaze; the Ching Yuen was no better off. Both battleships were also on fire. The pendulum had swung round, and everything pointed to a complete victory for Japan.

Matters were thus when, at 3.30, the Matsushima was put out of action. The incidents enabled the battleships to recover, and they took, without much serious harm, a hammering from the entire Japanese fleet that remained.

This stage continued till nightfall, when the Chinese got into line and steamed away, followed for a short distance only by the Japanese.

Both sides claimed the victory; as a matter of fact, it was a drawn battle. When the length of time the battle took is considered, the damages were relatively small. In detail, they were as follows:—

JAPANESE FLEET’S DAMAGES.

The Japanese flagship, Matsushima, went through the battle without any particular harm for a considerable while, when one of the Chinese ironclads fired a 12-in. common shell at her, which hit her, making a big hole. It went in and wiped out practically the entire battery, disabled two or three guns completely, and exploded some spare ammunition. Altogether 100 men were killed or wounded by that one shell, and she had to be hauled out of action. When that 12-in. shell hit, the majority of the men were in working dresses, in cotton things and so on, and a great many of them were men with beards, and a Japanese officer who was on board the ship at the time tells me that every single one of these men with cotton dresses was set on fire, and all the men with beards and long hair also had their beards and hair set on fire, and were rushing all over the ship, whereas several officers, who happened to be in serge uniform near by, were comparatively little hurt. The ship was set on fire to a certain extent, but a few buckets of water very easily put the fire out.

This ship was also hit by a 10.2-in. shell a little earlier in the action. It hit her torpedo-room, glanced up, and knocked up against the barbette; but as the shell was loaded with cement its burst did not do very much harm.

The second ship in the Japanese line was the Chiyoda. She was also hit by a 12-in. shell, but that was another cement or coal-dust shell, so did not burst. It went through just above the belt. Had it hit the belt it ought to have sunk her; above, it simply made a large hole through and went out again, and the ship was none the worse; there was not a single man killed or wounded.

The Naniwa was hit by an 8.2-in. on the water-line, which went into the coal bunkers, but it did no particular harm there. The shell was afterwards picked up and pieced together, and a photograph taken of such sections as were got. Twenty-seven pieces were recovered, and they say there must have been a great many more. But that 8.2-in. shell practically did no harm whatever to the ship. The coal bunkers acted very efficiently.

In the Itsukushima there were shells in the torpedo-room, but none of the torpedoes exploded—if there were any there with war-heads, which is rather uncertain. There was also a shell in the engine-room, which, curiously enough, did no harm.

The Hashidate had a 6-in. shell burst right up against the barbette of a big gun, which was not hurt at all by it.

The Hi Yei, an oldish ship, was raked by a 12-in. common shell, and also by some smaller shells, which set her on fire and practically blew the ship to pieces.

The Sakio-maru was quite a small vessel. She was hit first of all by a 12-in. common shell, which, in theory, ought to have blown her to atoms. It disabled her steering-gear and wounded one man. She altogether got eleven hits from pieces of 4.7-in. or over. Of these, four were 12-in. shell, of which two burst inside; and the net result of those eleven hits was to wound eleven men, to kill nobody, but to make the ship leak a bit. The torpedoes fired at her missed, as has already been stated. The reason was that the boat fired as she turned, and the torpedo went under. Two others fired at longer ranges missed badly. The torpedo boat was not hit. The Chinese version of the affair runs to the effect that the Japanese on board the Saikio deserted their guns in panic at the attack. This statement rests, of course, only on the Chinese assertion.

The Akagi was hit by a 12-in. common shell, which struck the mainmast and sent it overboard, and killed the captain. The peculiar thing about it was that all the hits took her about that part; there was not a single hit forward, but the bridge, which stands somewhere aft, was continually swept, and the second in command was wounded almost immediately after he went on the bridge. The third officer, Lieut. Sato, then went up, and was hit by a fragment of shell that scraped the top of his head off, and he went down below. A fourth man went up; he got wounded, and the third man went up again and carried on. She was able to steam and go home quite comfortably after the battle.

A gun shield, about two inches thick, was struck, and the shell that hit it is supposed to have been a 6-in. common. It simply scooped out the shield about an inch or so, and did no harm to the men inside, who were just round the corner, and did no harm whatever to the gun.

One shell burst on the upper deck, wrecked everything, made a tremendous mess, and riddled the deck all over, but the harm was practically _nil_.

The old battleship Fuso was hit more than any other Japanese ship, but every hit upon her has been kept confidential. Still, so far as can be guessed, the Japanese opinion of the result of the fire on this ship was that armour under the peculiar circumstances of the Yalu tended to aggravate hits rather than the reverse, and it is certainly interesting that this ship, with an armoured battery, completely armoured belt, and fairly thick armour which could not be penetrated by any of the Chinese 6-in. shell, should have been one of the most damaged ship of any.

CHINESE FLEET’S DAMAGES.

The Chinese flagship was an ironclad of 7000 tons displacement, the Ting Yuen. The first thing that hit her was a big ricochet which flew up and knocked the mast, carried it over the side, and killed all the men in the fighting-top. She was peppered all over by the Japanese, and hit something like 300 times, the result of the 300 hits being 14 men killed and 25 wounded. She was set on fire practically continuously all through the action. As soon as one fire was put out she was set on fire again in another place; but the Chinese managed to get these fires out without any bother, and no harm was done to her that way.

The second principal Chinese ship was the Chen Yuen. She was hit 400 times. The photograph of her in dock is how she appeared shortly after the battle. The funnel was peppered over everywhere. All the men in the fighting-tops were killed. The fore 6-in. turret was hit; it is only about an inch thick, and this shell went through and killed or wounded the gun’s crew, but did not hurt the gun. The only gun that was disabled at all in the battle was one of the 12-in., and it appears to have been disabled by something very big—probably one of the Japanese 12.6-in. shell hit the barbette of the ship, and the concussion upset the training gear of the guns in some way. Nothing could be done with them for about ten minutes. After that they were got in working order and fired again: This ship was also set on fire all over the place, but was perfectly able to fight when the battle was over.