d, shook it
with such energy that good little Peach-Blossom felt constrained to
spring hastily to her feet and rescue me from his too strenuous
demonstrations of joy. At her vigorous remonstrances, however, he
dropped my hand as though it had burnt him and, sinking into a chair by
my bedside, proceeded to apologise with almost abject contrition, and
would not be comforted until I had assured him, not quite truthfully, I
am afraid, that he had not hurt me. Then, in answer to my questions, he
proceeded to tell me what he knew of the matter.

It appeared that at the moment when the explosion occurred, the
_Akatsuki_ was so close to the _Kasanumi_ that the two craft were all
but touching each other, although, from the _Kasanumi's_ bridge, where I
was then standing, I could not see the other destroyer. It also
appeared that at the moment when I ordered the course of the _Kasanumi_
to be altered, the _Akatsuki_ was close astern of us, and broad on our
port quarter, the consequence being that the shifting of our helm
carried us so close athwart her bows that she all but touched us when
crossing our stern. It was at this moment that the explosion occurred;
and Ito, instantly divining what had happened, at once manoeuvred his
craft in such a fashion as to lay her alongside the fast-sinking
_Kasanumi_, so that the crew of the latter were able to transfer
themselves directly from one ship to the other without using boats.
Meanwhile, the helmsman and signalmen on the _Kasanumi's_ bridge had
seen me tossed over the rail by the force of the explosion, and,
although themselves severely shaken, had instantly flung themselves down
upon the turtle-back, where they found me lying bleeding and insensible.
To pick me up and carry me aft was the next thing to be done, for they
realised at once that their own ship was sinking, and they did it,
transferring my senseless body to the _Akatsuki_ the moment that she got
alongside. I was at once taken below and temporarily patched-up, while
the crew of the _Kasanumi_ were being transferred, together with such of
their belongings as they were able to save, my cabin steward with the
utmost devotion concentrating all his efforts upon saving the most
valuable of my belongings, regardless of the loss of his own.

It was at first thought that possibly the _Kasanumi_ might be saved, and
Ito did his utmost in that direction, working for more than half an hour
upon the stricken craft. But the damage