e line of battleships, was the
cruiser _Novik_--easily distinguished by her three funnels with a single
mast stepped between the second and third funnel--and seven destroyers.

Up fluttered a signal aboard the _Mikasa_, and scarcely had the flags
broke out when away went our destroyers at top speed, like hounds
released from the leash, to attack the enemy. And a stirring sight it
was to witness their dash, for it was now blowing quite fresh and a
nasty, choppy sea had arisen, through which the plucky little boats
raced, like a school of dolphin chasing flying-fish, now throwing a
third of their length clean out of the water, and anon plunging into an
oncoming wave until the water foamed and hissed over turtle-back and
bridge and poured in torrents down upon the main deck and overboard.
But the Russian Admiral was not going to tamely submit to a torpedo
attack in broad daylight; he allowed the boats to get well within range
of his guns, and then opened a brisk fire upon them, driving them off
for the moment. Nevertheless, although the boats never actually scored
a hit that day, they were of the utmost assistance, hovering on the
enemy's flanks and rear, dashing in upon him from time to time, and
distracting his attention at many a critical moment.

Encounter Rock now bore north-west from us, seven miles distant, and was
broad upon the port beam of the Russians, at about the same distance;
and had both fleets held on as they were then going the Russians must
very soon have cut through our line--provided, of course, that we had
permitted them to do so. But the attempt evidently did not appeal to
Vitgeft, for the _Tsarevich_ suddenly starboarded her helm and led away
from us in a north-westerly direction, while Togo, perhaps afraid that
this was the preliminary to a retreat on the part of the Russian fleet,
feigned a nervousness that he certainly did not feel, and shifted his
helm, heading South-South-West, at the same time forming his battleships
in line abreast. The result was that, for a time, the two fleets were
actually steaming away from each other, the Russians being upon our
starboard quarter. After steaming a short distance in this direction,
our formation was altered back to line ahead, and the course was changed
to South-West, apparently with the object of getting the ships well in
hand.

It was close upon one o'clock in the afternoon when our Admiral, having
put us through one or two further manoeuvres an