Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1905-05-31
TOGO DEFEATS RUSSIANS
Japanese Admiral Practically Annihilates NJ
of thesczar N
lgats@ to the STATE Dep

.
'Nagasaki May 2S.-Jabanese sWfiR
the Russian battleship Borodino and
four more warships and a repair ship"
The other dispatch read as follows:
"Tckio, May 27.-Japanese met and
engaged the Baltic squadron this af
ternoon in the Straits Of F'ushima.
which was held. Cannonading was
heard from shore
From information which has been
received in Washington ii is believed
that two of the Russian ships reported
to have been sunk in the Korean
Straits by the Japanese are the Orel
and her sister ship. the Borodino.
They are battleships of $4,000 tons.
Three other vessels reported sunk are
believed to have been cruisers, the
remaining one being repair ship.
The Orel and Borodino are of 1856
tons displacement each. heavily armed.
well protected. and were designed to
make is knots. They measure 39z feet
by 76 feet, with 26 feet draught, and
both have lofty spar deck fully 80
feet above the water line. extending
from the bow to the quarter deck. For
ward is mounted 4 pair OF 12.4-inch
guns in turret protected by eleven
inches Of krupp armor. Another pair
There are thirty other guns on the in
termediate battery, the vessels carry
two submerged torpedo tubes and two
above the w2ts?. \ special feature of
the vessels is their verdical longitude
nal bulIheads Of inch armor. running
throughout the whole length of the
snip al distance Of nine or ten feet
inboGrd from the ships sides designed
to locali2e the effects OF blow from
a torpedo.
Failed to Mislead Togo.
Chefoo. BY Cable.-Priv2tc tele-
grams from Korea to the Japanese
consul here state that battle was
progressing Saturday afternoon at or
near the Korean straits. between the
main portion of the Russian squadron
and the Japanese fleet under command
of Admiral Togo.
kilograms almost Identical with the
above have been received here, and
announce that large portion OF the
Russian fleet was sighted approach
ing the Korean straits Sunday, head
ed for the channel between Tsu Island
and the Japanese coast.
According to the best information
receievd here recently. the main por-
tion of Admiral Togos feet has been
almost constantly at Masampho bay.
Advices from reliable quarter re-
ceived here are 20 the effect that three
Russian battleships. three armored
cruisers and several GOLFERS were off
Shanghai Friday. 1t is believed that
Vice Admiral Rojestvensky sent suffi-
cient ships to the vicinity of Shanghai
in order to induce the belief that his
main feet was there. while the major
portion of it pushed on toward the Ko-
rean straits.
Sinking of American ship.
Washington, Special.-Confirmat
has been received here from Shanghai
of the press report that the Russian
warships have sunk an unknown Amer
lean merchant ship off the Chinese
coast. Heavy gun fire is plainly heard
to the northward.
st. Petersburg. BY Cable.-Nothing
is known at the Admiralty of the re-
ported sinking of an unknown Ameri-
can steamer off FCvmosa by Vice Ad-
miral Rojestvenshy. 1t is recognized at
the Admiralty as quite possible that
RoJestvensky may have been com
PEELED by military necessity TO destroy
q neutral. II he feared that to allow
IL TO proceed and report the where
abouts and direction of the Russian
Meet would endanger his strategic plan.
ne had no other alternative except to
take off the crew and sink the ship
Such an incident is unfortunate. but
every naval officer must admit that the
risk in such crisis is too great to
take any chances. If the ship was un-
justifiably sunk from the standpoint of
international law, Russia, OF course
viii have to foot the bill; but any cost
Is cheap If it furthered Rojestvenskys
mission"