As to the movements of our main squadron and the cruiser squadron, they arrived off Port Arthur at eight a.m. The cruiser squadron at once proceeded towards the front of the mouth of the harbour and supported our destroyer flotilla, as above stated.
The main squadron also approached Liaotishan, from ten a.m. until twenty minutes to two p.m., and made an indirect bombardment against the harbour. The enemy’s forts intermittently returned the fire, but no damage was inflicted upon our ships. A detached squadron of cruisers went to Dalny, and destroyed the enemy’s buildings on the San Shan Islands.
The Takasago and Chihaya scouted the western coast of the entrance of Port Arthur, but no enemy was seen.
A Russian destroyer, which had been sunk in Pigeon Bay in the last battle, is found to be the Vnushitelni, of which now the upper parts of the masts and funnels are seen on the surface. All our ships discontinued the battle at two p.m., and retired.
Subsequently an attempt was made to block Port Arthur harbour with sunken ships. It was also hoped to destroy the Retvizan by exploding ships near her, but the attack was completely foiled by the defence.
There was a second bottling expedition of March 27th, which again failed. It led to the death of a valuable officer, Commander Hirose. The official report ran as follows:—
The united squadron again left for Port Arthur on Saturday.
On Sunday morning at half-past three it commenced blockading the harbour entrance. The four steamers to be sunk, escorted by a flotilla of destroyers, advanced to the entrance, facing the enemy’s searchlights.
At about two miles from the entrance they were discovered by the enemy, and exposed to fire from the fortress on either shore, and also from the enemy’s ships on guard.
Braving these dangers, the four steamers ran into the waterway at the mouth of the harbour. The Chiyo-maru anchored at about half a chain from the shore, to the west of Golden Hill, and blew up. The Fukui-maru, passing to the left of Chiyo-maru, advanced a short distance, and was about to anchor, when she was struck by a torpedo from the enemy’s destroyers, and sank. The Yahiko-maru went to the left of the Fukui-maru, and blew up herself.