Naval battles of the world

by Edward Shippen

When about 4000 metres distant the Chinese Admiral and some other of his vessels opened fire, but the Japanese waited until the distance had decreased to 3000 metres before making any reply. Even then they fired but a few shots, after which Admiral Ito, seeing that the Chinese retained their peculiar and very disadvantageous formation, signalled to the van squadron to attack the enemy on the right and the rear squadron to attack the left. At the same time he ordered the Akagi and the Saikio to get on the port or outer side of the rear squadron, for safety. The presence of the two large and heavily plated German-built battle-ships in the Chinese fleet convinced Admiral Ito that he would have to fight the battle under full steam, and, by attacking the Chinese on their flanks, break their formation and throw them into confusion. Seeing that he was exposing first one wing and then the other of his fleet to a concentrated fire which he could only partially return, Admiral Ting now tried to get his vessels into line, and a tremendous cannonade ensued, at a distance varying from a mile to a mile and a half. The ocean fairly shook as the ships swept on, rapidly firing pieces of heavy modern ordnance. The Chinese vessels presented a strange appearance, for not a moving man could be seen upon their upper decks, nor were there any boats at their davits or on their decks. It was said that they had purposely left their boats behind to prevent their crews from deserting.

At first the Chinese fire was fairly accurate; but that of the Japanese, coolly handled, and with the newest pattern of guns, had a terrible precision. The wheeling movement of the Japanese on the right and left flanks, and the terrific effect of their rapid-fire guns, seemed to throw the line of their enemies into disorder and to demoralize their gunners.

During this tremendous and incessant fire one of the Chinese vessels, the Lai-Yuen, an armored cruiser, was badly injured, and the Japanese particularly concentrated their fire upon her as well as others of the Chinese fleet which seemed to be damaged. The Lai-Yuen then began to get low in the water, but her gunners continued to fire almost to the last, when she sank, stern foremost. As her stern went under, her bows rose out of the water, and she is said to have remained in this position for about a minute and a half before she finally disappeared. This fine vessel was sunk by shot, as not a torpedo had been discharged. Then came the turn of the Tschi-Yuen, which showed signs of being in trouble, and with a concentrated fire directed upon her she soon sank, with every soul on board.

While the rear of the Japanese main squadron was turning the left of the Chinese the Hi-Yei came so close to the latter that, to avoid receiving their fire broadside on, she left the main squadron and steamed straight for the Chinese line, passing between the two large ironclads, the Ting-Yuen and Lai-Yuen. Both these great floating forts fired at her as she passed, and also launched two torpedoes, both of which missed, and on went the Hi-Yei, cheering and firing from both batteries. She had a great number of killed and wounded, but had passed more than half-way through, without serious damage to hull or machinery, when a shell from one of the battle-ships hit her aft, about three feet above the water line, and shattered her mizzenmast and killed her paymaster, both her surgeons, all the medical attendants, the men at the spare steering-gear, and many of the powder division. These were all in the ward-room, which was the surgeon’s quarters in action. Besides this damage the shell set her on fire, and her commander, named Sakurai, was obliged to run out of the line of fire until he could subdue the flames.

The Saikio, which was only a steamer of commerce turned into an armed vessel, had a somewhat similar experience with the two great Chinese ironclads. A shell from the Ting-Yuen struck her and destroyed her steering apparatus, so that she had to withdraw from the line of battle, steering as well as she could by means of her screw propellers. It was evident that the Chinese thought she was trying to ram, for the two steered apart and made an opening through which the Saikio passed, escaping the torpedoes launched by the Chinese. During these exciting moments the fire slackened a little on both sides, but was renewed, as soon as the little vessel was safely out of the way, with greater force than ever.

By this time the Chinese cruiser Tchao-Yung had become disabled in her machinery, and was forced onto a reef of rock; but she continued to use her guns vigorously against two of the Japanese fleet which had closed with her, the effect of whose fire was such that she soon went down by the head and slipped off to sink in deep water, leaving about two-thirds of her masts above the surface. All of her crew who could do so took refuge in the rigging and raised pitiable yells of distress. But the fighting was still going on so desperately that no assistance could be rendered to these unfortunate people. Then another Chinese ship came to grief, the Yang-Wai, which retired slowly from the battle, evidently hard hit and rolling heavily, while dense masses of smoke came up from her.

Seeing that she was hors de combat, the Japanese did not pursue her. Indeed, the fight was too close to permit them to detach any of their ships. Although they had not suffered so much as the Chinese their damages were very considerable. A shell had struck the Matsushima which had dismounted her forward rapid-fire gun and killed and wounded a number of her crew. The gun was thrown across her deck with such force as to damage the hull of the vessel very considerably. Indeed, as flag-ship, the Matsushima had been the object of particular attention from the Chinese ever since the battle began. She had her commander and her first lieutenant killed and one hundred and twenty of her ship’s company killed and wounded. Yet, in spite of the treatment she had received, she seemed in no danger of sinking.

But Admiral Ito needed a flag-ship in better fighting condition than that to which the Matsushima was reduced, and so he had a boat lowered, and accompanied by his staff passed to the Hashidate and hoisted his flag there. The Japanese cruiser Yoshino bore a very conspicuous part in the engagement; and when her captain perceived that the Hi-Yei was disabled, he manœuvred his ship in such a way as to cover her withdrawal, and then taking her place, attacked her enemy with the greatest vigor. She was struck many times and her forward barbette and gun were seriously damaged, but the damages were promptly repaired, and she was not forced out of action.

During the battle the Chinese tried to use torpedoes several times, but the Japanese kept a good lookout for them, and not one made a hit. The captain of the gun-vessel, Akagi, stationed himself in the foretop and followed all the movements of the Chinese, so that whenever they prepared to launch a torpedo he signalled the fact. But at last a shot struck the mast, cut it in two, and, as it fell to the deck, it killed the captain and the two signal-men who were aloft with him. The first lieutenant assumed command, cleared the wreck, and continued the fight until night put an end to it.

As the evening drew near a dense smoke arose from the ironclad Ting-Yuen and from two of the Chinese cruisers, and they were supposed by the Japanese to be on fire, especially as their batteries had very much slackened and only fired intermittently. But they still held their ground, and it was not until sundown that they were seen to be in full retreat.