The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-05-08
HOW THE HARB0R
WAS CLOSED UP
Graphic Recital of the Feat of
the Japanese Fleet
OFFICIAL REPORT OF TOGO
MANY LIVES lost BUT WAR
SHIPS UNINJ URED.

mira1 Togo's official recital OF this
latest engagement on Port Arthur.
which was received here today, shows
that the japanese have blocked the
entrance TO the harbor.
On Tuesday morning. after the block
/ aiding hotilla had been scattered by
gale and the commander Of the hodHa
had signalled ina vain that the attempt
be abandoned pending the moderation
Of the storm. the crews OF the separated
ships, in no way daunted BY the wealth
er which Isolated them from their com
/ panions, proceeded TO the work on
their own desperate initiative. They
/ forced their way in the face Of tina
[ russian fire. which was more deadly
than ever before as d result OF the Inn
proved Russian defeaces, over the
neld Of mines. Many of these expl7d-
/ cd yet hve out of the eight Japanese
J oiockading ships were damned into the
/ inner channel and now prevent sereza
( from the harbor TO ali craft excepting
! small boats.
Desperate Courage.
/ This attack exceeded all ITS prede-
/ cessors in desperation and the courage
/ -ehfafAJSA ~ L1AC FDAAILEEL crews
] equal TO that shown in any event iu
the war history of the world. Al
/ though Vice Admiral Togo again
/ avoided damage to q single one OF his
( vessels, the attack proved TO be ex-
/ pensiye IN lives.
! The blOckading fotiIIa consisted Of
! eight stone-laden merchantmen. They
/ We're escorted by the gunbOats Akagi,
/ commander Fugimoto, and Choikai.
I commander Iwamurs; the second tor
! pedO boat destroyer fiOtilla. under the
{ command OF Commander Chida; the
/ third torpedo boat destroyer d0tilla.
commander Tsuchii the fourth f0tiIla.
4 commander ManO; the ninth torpedo
( boat hOtilla, Commander Xashima: the
! tenth torpedo boat h0tlIa, Commander
/ Otali, and the fourteenth torpedo boat
/ houlla, Commander. Sakurai.
! The blockeding vessels and their es-
cort left the main squadron for Port
Arthur on Monday evening. They en-
Icountered a southeasterly gale, and by
/ II o'clock at night the seas were noun
/ famous. and it was found impossible
/ to keep the steamers together. Com
mandeT Hayashi, who was in command
{ OF the expedition. observed the impos-
sibility of keeping the dotiua intact
( and signalled it to abandon the att
] tack
Steamed Boldly la.
( These signals were repeated until
/ O'Clock i'm the morning. but they failed
+ to reach the vessels of the expedition.
/ which were swept apart by the Ceul-
/ pestuOus seas. and proceeded separate
/ " for the mouth Of the harbor. Upon
arriving there the AikaWa 1Iaru, one
+ Of the merchantmen, saw that the
enemy was firing upon the fourteenth
torpedo boat fOtiLa. The men on
board the MikaWa Garu thought the
other steamers had reached the har-
( Dor mouth and they steamed boldly I'm.
/ She was followed closely by another Of
/ the merchantmen, believed to be the
SakuTa MaTU.
+ The Russians had fires burning at she
mouth Of the harbor and they used
also many powerful searchlighJs- on the
/ invading japanese vessels They
poured in an ineessant fire into the
channel
/ Lieutenant Sosa, who was in com
imand of the Mikawa Maru uuhesitat-
/ ingly forced his ship into the channel
rammed his way through the boOms
I and reached the center of the inner en-
/ trance. Here he anchored his vessel
/ and then blew her up. She sank imme-
/ diately.
Mines Began 10 Explode.
/ Another steamer, supposed TO be the
Sakura Maru. then came 70 anchor
/ near a projecting rock a Z the mouth OF
1.-THE harbor and sank. Following the
! Sakurs Maru came the TaJomi Marur
the YedO Maru, the Otaru MaTu, the
; Sagami Maru. the AIkoku MaTu and
( the AsagawO Maru- These six steam
/ ers advanced TO the mouth of the Har-
Dor. The Russian IRE now became
/ highly effective, while a number -or
sunk mines which were struck By the
/ steamers, began to explode. These eS-
/ pIosions caused heavy casualties among
/ the japanese on board the blockadlnE
vessels The Tat0mi Maru cOllided
with a boom This turned her stem TO
/ eastward and sffe sank athwart the
+ passage, blocking nearly oHe-han Of
( the entrance to the harb0r
When the Yedo Maru reached the
mouth Of the passage and was lowering
1 her anchor her captain, Commander
B Takayaugi, was shot through the stom-
ach and killed Sub-Lieuteuant Maya
/ ia succeeded to the command lie an-
! chored the Yedo Maru and sank her.
/ Two othe- stone laden steamers, be-
lieved to be the Otaru Maru and the
! Sgami Maru. then entered the outer
1 harbor and sunk.
! The Aiko Maru then struck a mine
! five cable lengths from the mouth OF
J the passage which exploded anu caused
her TO sink. The lieutenant of this yes
] sci. Uchida Chief Engineer Aoki and
/ eight men are missing.
] A steamer thought To be the Asas-
aWo AIaru. which appeared TO have had
her rudder broken, blew herself up at
/ the foot of Golden Hill and sank there
Many Men Killed
Vice Admiral Togo, lin his report
/ says
This undertaking, when compared to
/ the last two, resulted in greater cas-
ualties to our side. Owing TO the iu-
/ clement weather and the increased
! preparations for defense completed by
the enemy. we could save none OF the
! officers or the crews of the 0taru Maru,
! the Sagmi Maru, the Sakura Maru Gr
the Asagawo Maru. lit is TO be regret
ted that nothing particular could be
/ learned concerning the brave dis
charge of their duties. but the memory
OF their exemplary conduct viii remain
! long in the imperial navy
/ THE destroyer and the torpedo boat
fOtilas, besides resisting the enemy
bTavely, fought against wind and wave.
The torpedo boat hotilla approached
close TO the mouth of The haFbOr ana
! rescued more than half the men. Tor
pedo boat No 81 had q steam pipe
/ broken by q shell and was Disabled,
but consOrt, torpedo boat Nc. 30, went
TO her assistance and t0Wed her away.
Three OF the crew OF 40. 81 were
/ wounded.
THE destroyer Astaka had her lor-
! beard engine damaged by shell aud