ant conditions. Thick weather would baffle the Japanese scouts and
lookout stations, and rough seas would keep their torpedo flotillas at
anchor.

Out ahead were the fast cruisers of the scouting division, the "Svietlana,"
"Almaz," and "Ural." After these came the main body of the fleet in line
ahead in two columns, the heavy armour-clads on the starboard (right side),
the rest of the armoured ships and four cruisers in the port line. Abreast
of the leading ships each flank was guarded by a cruiser and two torpedo
destroyers. After the fighting lines and between their foaming wakes
steamed four store-ships and two repairing ships. Last of all were the two
steamers fitted as hospital ships. The arrangement is best shown by a rough
diagram:--

_Svietlana_.

(Cruisers.)
_Almaz_. _Ural_.

PORT LINE. STARBOARD LINE.
(Cruiser.) (Cruiser.)
_Jemschug_. _Imperator Nikolai_. _Knias Suvaroff_. _Izumrud_.
2 torpedo _Admiral Senyavin_. _Imperator Alexander_. 2 torpedo
destroyers. _Admiral Apraxin_. _Borodino_. destroyers.
_Admiral Ushakoff_. _Orel_.
{_Oleg_. _Ossliabya_.
Cruisers. {_Aurora_. _Sissoi Veliki_.
{_Dimitri Donskoi_. _Navarin_.
{_Alexander Monomach_. _Admiral Nakhimoff_.
5 torpedo destroyers.
_Anadir_. }
_Irtish_. } Store-ships.
_Korea_. }
_Kamschatka_. }
_Svir_. } Repairing ships and tugs.
_Russ_. }

_Orel_. _Kostroma_.
|_______________________|
Hospital ships.

In this order the great fleet steamed slowly through the rain and darkness.
On board the great battleships there was much grumbling at "Nebogatoff's
old tubs," though they themselves could not do much better, for poor coal,
inefficient stoking, and weed-grown bottom-plates handicapped even the
newest of them. The next day, 26 May, was the eve of the greatest naval
battle in all history. "The clouds began to