With the fleet the admiral retained only the hospital and repairing ships and those laden with naval stores for the Vladivostock dockyard. On the evening of the 25th the fleet stood out to sea heading for Tsu-shima. The weather was bad, with a probability that it would be worse. There was a rising wind and sea with cold rain that made a blinding haze, but the Russian staff officers were rather pleased than depressed at such unpleasant conditions. Thick weather would baffle the Japanese scouts and lookout stations, and rough seas would keep their torpedo flotillas at anchor.

Out ahead were the fast cruisers of the scouting division, the "Svietlana," "Almaz," and "Ural." After these came the main body of the fleet in line ahead in two columns, the heavy armour-clads on the starboard (right side), the rest of the armoured ships and four cruisers in the port line. Abreast of the leading ships each flank was guarded by a cruiser and two torpedo destroyers. After the fighting lines and between their foaming wakes steamed four store-ships and two repairing ships. Last of all were the two steamers fitted as hospital ships. The arrangement is best shown by a rough diagram:—

Svietlana.
Almaz.(Cruisers.)Ural.
Port Line.Starboard Line.
(Cruiser.) (Cruiser.)
Jemschug. Imperator Nikolai. Knias Suvaroff. Izumrud.
2 torpedo Admiral Senyavin. Imperator Alexander. 2 torpedo
destroyers. Admiral Apraxin. Borodino. destroyers.
Admiral Ushakoff. Orel.
Cruisers. Oleg. Ossliabya.
Aurora. Sissoi Veliki.
Dimitri Donskoi. Navarin.
Alexander Monomach. Admiral Nakhimoff.
5 torpedo destroyers.
Anadir. Store-ships.
Irtish.
Korea.
Kamschatka.
Svir. Repairing ships and tugs.
Russ.
Orel. Kostroma.
Hospital ships.

In this order the great fleet steamed slowly through the rain and darkness. On board the great battleships there was much grumbling at "Nebogatoff's old tubs," though they themselves could not do much better, for poor coal, inefficient stoking, and weed-grown bottom-plates handicapped even the newest of them. The next day, 26 May, was the eve of the greatest naval battle in all history. "The clouds began to break and the sun shone fitfully," says Captain Semenoff,[23] "but although a fairly fresh south-westerly wind had sprung up, a thick mist still lay upon the water." Rojdestvensky meant to pass the perilous straits in daylight, and he calculated that by noon next day the fleet would be in the narrows of Tsu-shima.

Behind that portal of the Sea of Japan Togo was waiting confidently for his enemy, who, he knew, must now be near at hand. Never before had two such powerful fleets met in battle, and the fate of the East hung upon the result of their encounter.

That result must depend mainly upon the heavy armoured ships. In these and in the number of guns of the largest calibre, the Russians had an advantage so far as mere figures went, as the following tables show:—

ARMOURED SHIPS
Class.Japan.Russia.
Battleships0408
Coast-defence armour-clad—03
Armoured cruisers0803
——
Total1214
HEAVY GUNS
Quick-firers.
Guns.12-inch.10-inch.9-inch.8-inch.6-inch.4.7-inch.
Japan1601—30160—
Russia2615040810230[24]