u Maru_, was peculiarly unfortunate, in that she
struck a mechanical mine, just outside the harbour, and went down with
all hands. The last ship, the _Asagao Maru_, was scarcely less
unfortunate; for a shell struck her rudder as she neared the harbour,
and rendered her unmanageable, so that she went ashore close under
Golden Hill, and her crew, refusing to surrender, were killed, to a man.

"Just after this last happening, a fog came driving in from seaward and
swallowed us all up, so that the Russians lost sight of us; and then the
firing ceased. Shortly afterwards, our fast cruisers came looming up
through the fog, to cover our retreat; and about nine o'clock in the
morning Togo himself joined us with the battle squadron. He was most
anxious to know the result of the night's operations; but,
unfortunately, none of us could afford him more than mere disconnected
snatches of information. I think I possessed more information than
anybody else; but of course mine was by no means complete, and the
Admiral was most anxious to know exactly how matters stood, for great
things hinged upon the measure of our success; I therefore offered to
take in a picket boat and attempt to obtain all the information
required, and my offer was accepted. I steamed in under cover of the
fog, which was so thick that it was impossible for us to see more than a
few yards in any direction; so thick, indeed, that we actually found
ourselves among the masts of the sunken craft before we really knew
where we were. There were two or three shore boats groping about the
wreckage already, but they took no notice of us, imagining, perhaps,
that we belonged to one of their own ships; and we were therefore able
to complete our examination and to definitely satisfy ourselves that at
last the harbour was entirely blocked. Learning this, the Admiral
wirelessed a message to General Oku, informing him that he could safely
move, since the Russian ships were now effectually bottled up; and the
result of that message is the fleet of transports that you see yonder.
And now, my dear chap, I must be off; the doctor told me that I must on
no account weary you by talking too much; and here have I been yarning
for the last half-hour or more. Good-bye! Hope to see you about again
soon."

"Here, stop a moment, old chap," I cried. "Having told me so much, you
may as well tell me the rest. Where is Oku going?"

"Ah!" answered Ito. "That is a secret. But I think