was a sturdy little
closed-in engine and boiler, the smoke from the latter issuing from the
unusually big chimney of her galley stove, while the engine worked a
small but powerful set of pumps which strongly sucked in water through
her bows and discharged it equally strongly from her stern, under water,
of course, giving her a speed of seven knots in smooth water. And when
I sought further information with regard to this mysterious craft, I was
informed by Ito, who seemed to know all about her, that she had been
purchased by the Japanese Secret Service Department, fitted with her
engine, boiler, and pumps by an ingenious Japanese engineer, and that
her business was to go to and fro between Port Arthur and "a certain
place," ostensibly as a trader, but in reality that her skipper, a
particularly bold and clever spy, might obtain information for the
Japanese.

The spy's name, it appeared, was Hang-won,--a rather ominous name, I
thought, under the circumstances,--while the name of the junk was
_Chung-sa_. She had arrived from Port Arthur about midday, and this was
Hang-won's first essay in Japan's service. But he had brought from Port
Arthur two items of news that were likely to prove most valuable to us;
one of them being, that the Russian destroyers were being sent to sea
every night to reconnoitre, and that upon their return they always
showed a white light above a red, to indicate that they were Russian;
while the second item was to the effect that that day, 8th February,
happened to be the name-day of Madame Stark, the wife of the Russian
Admiral, and that in honour of the day a great banquet was to be given
at nine o'clock that night, at the Admiral's house, which was to be
followed by a special performance at a circus which chanced to be in the
town.

The moment that this information was communicated to Togo, he recognised
the magnificent possibilities offered by the occasion. For it was
morally certain that, between the banquet and the circus, most of the
officers, and possibly also a good many of the men, of the Russian fleet
would be ashore, that night; and what better opportunity for an attack
upon it was likely to offer? The chance was very much too good to be
missed, and a signal was at once made for the captains of all craft,
destroyers included, to repair on board the _Mikasa_.

I was one of the last to reach the flagship, for the destroyers were
anchored outside the rest of the fleet, and when I ar