Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-03-28

down Spithead. they were joined by a force
of nine Spanish sail mostly very small,
consisting of torpedo gun-vessels, all I'M
armored
Thus In this new Armada, the Spaniard
and the EngliShman and the American, III
strange neighborhood, fought side by side.
There could be no doubt as to the day,
or even the hour, of the final forward step
of the yellow races. Already, at two of the
previous night, it was known in London
that incalculable masses Of men had put of
from Dunkirk. Calais, Boulogne. st. Val
cry, Treport, Dieppe, all along that coast,
borne mostly IN flats with single paddle
wheel astern. in French-barge fashion-the
most elementary form of steam notion
requiring from eighteen to twenty hours
to attain the nearest point of the English
coast.
The front of this floating host must,
therefore be upon British soil at some al
most calculable moment during the after
noon.
They We're, as a matter of fact retarded
by an event which. though normal, came
upon every one with the effect of 4 sur
prfse-the air, which for six days had SEEM
ed settled in a thick stagnation at about
ten IN the morning. moved A sensible
breeze sprang up from the NV. driving
tie sea-surface in sharply lined ovais be-
fore it.
And at once there was a slight Tightening
of the murk OF the atmosphere.
Near noon a brief meeting of captains
took place at Government House. Hardy
had little to point out, except that the bat
tie upon which they were about to enter
was with men of different less nice, morale
than ordinary European saiors-clever apes
ISLANDERS. yet real foreigners on board
western ship-of-war. He tossed his hand,
and added: 1T Is true they are flushed with
a consciousness of power, gentlemen and are
greatly superior in metal and numbers
But that will not weigh too much with
you"
He also said that when definite orders
a jY1r1n n linz Of +,,o
test, 1t was his will that his purposes
should be explained by captains and COM
manders to every person in the fighting
fleet.
He also said that they would be wasting
their energies in this battle unless one
man. whom he had reasons to think would
be there. were killed captured; and ne
himself undertook to discover. without
fail, in which ship that man was borne.
Immediately move was made by cap
tains toward their ships in the port. and
few minutes after II the signal weigh"
went up.
A the same time a great hustle Of prep
aration was taking place within the har-
Dor itself Dark smoke left particles of
SCOT on tapping sail. host of boats
fitted to and fro. Never did Gosport. Port
sea, Portsmouth. Southsea, and the forts
around them and the still harbOr between
them, hear so widespread rumor of rat
Ting chains and hurrying feet. and
shouted GOd-speedS, and ordering voices.
Cumberland and Southsea Castle Forts
hooted a volley of blessings and farewells
as the warship fleet slipped down the flood
tide. A few minutes later the nine Span
iards hove in sight.
The fleet was also augmented by the
Hero, the Nile the Sfax, the two gunboats
taken in the battle of the Channel. patched
up now, and three French composite gun
vessels captured during a Mediterranean
battle.
They made up a respectable fighting
power; the nine captured ships being con-
siderably the most powerful of the Japa-
nese navy, and the Hirosaki the most
powerful of ships.
Yet it was only the audacity of Hardy
that would, with any hope, have led this
force against, we will not say the weight,
but the numbers, opposed to him; and the
havoc which overlook his comparatively
little fleet in the battle that followed
would certainly. had his judgment been
absolutely cool, have been foreknown to
him-or perhaps was foreknown.
Since the year 1892 Japan had placed
orders with firms all over the world for
hundred and seventeen new ships, making
an aggregate of some hundred and fifteen
thousand tons, half to be completed by
1902 and half by 1906. AT the period of
this new program she already possessed
a very respectable navy, and at the time
of the outbreak of the European war, more
than a quarter of the new ships were al
ready in her hands.
Hardy therefore opposed a feet of forty
three ships all told fonly eleven being
ships of a high class) to Q feet of 1879 sail.
including the Chinese vessels, mostly of
extreme modernity, and high fighting
power.
His main dependence at this time seems,
as he said to have been upon the com
parative morale of the two crews. He
commanded fleet manned except for the
Continentals. wholly by British gentle
men and American marksmen; the enemy
We're imitators, acquainted with tactics
recommended In books, incapable. he con-
ceived of originating. incapable of COM
batting originality. He guessed. too. that
small as was his force he happened to
have a superiority in one weapen-not
in general very reliable one-the tor
pedo.
Perhaps trusting to one or both of these
things, he contrived to give the impress
sion Though 1t is questionable If he was
Is sincere as usual) that on starting
from port he was without suspicion that
he might now fail to account fer Asia as
he had accounted for Europe.
The breeze freshened, but the air,
though lightened. continued murky: there
was some difficulty in deciphering signals;
and to facilitate messages. by trumpet
call, the ships moved onward in close for