CHINA. 



127 



and Tokio to join with the British ministers in 

 an offer of mediation. The British were anx- 

 ious to preserve the status quo, and would like 

 to have brought about European intervention, 

 which they could not safely undertake single- 

 handed for fear of involving themselves with 

 European powers. All the powers agreed to the 

 British proposal so long as they were confined to 

 platonic counsels. Italy joined with Great Brit- 

 ain in a special appeal, and Russia repeated its 

 wishes for peace in concert with Great Britain. 

 The United States, which was willing to inter- 

 mediate independently, declined to act in con- 

 cert with Great Britain or with all the powers, or 

 to accept the office of mediator at their instance 

 or as the result of pressure brought upon the 

 combatants. None of the powers would enter- 

 tain suggestions- of forcible intervention, thrown 

 out by Great Britain, which feared the success 

 of the new naval power and even the impetus to 

 China's military energy that either victory or 

 defeat might give, as English prestige in the 

 East depends so largely on the belief in the na- 

 val and military superiority of England. 



Naval Engagements. After inducing the 

 Korean King to reject the Japanese programme 

 of reform by promises of military assistance, and 

 after presenting its ultimatum and receiving the 

 defiance of Japan, the Chinese Government has- 

 tily prepared for war, chartering from British 

 shipowners steamers to serve as transports, for it 

 had no troop ships of its own, and raising recruits 

 for a campaign in Korea; for Li-Hung-Chang 

 was unwilling to send more of his seasoned 

 troops, except a few hundreds for the instruc- 

 tion and discipline of the others, who were 

 mostly coolies armed with obsolete weapons. Be- 

 sides the forces that were to go by sea, a large 

 army set out from Manchuria to enter Korea 

 by the northern frontier, partly consisting of 

 trained and well-armed troops. 



On July 20, the day that the Chinese ultima- 

 tum expired, a detachment of the northern 

 squadron of China sailed from Taku convoying 

 a fleet of transports carrying 12,000 troops to 

 Korea. The Chinese Government had made a 

 formal demand that Japan should withdraw her 

 fleet from Korea by July 20, otherwise Chinese 

 forces would be landed and a sea advance would 

 be made. Japan agreed in principle to the 

 evacuation of Korea on the acceptance of her 

 conditions, which were known to China and the 

 powers seeking to bring about an agreement, 

 but declared at the same time that if the threat- 

 ened Chinese invasion was made on the 20th it 

 would be regarded as a menace to Japan. The 

 Chinese transports had landed most of the troops 

 at Asan. On July 25 the Japanese cruisers 

 " Akitsushima," " Takachiho," and " Naniwa " 

 appeared in Prince Jerome Gulf and met the 

 " Chi Yuen " and the dispatch boat " Kootsu " 

 convoying the transport " Kow Shing." The Chi- 

 nese vessels made hostile signals and opened 

 their ports to fight. While her companions 

 turned their attention to the war vessels the 

 "Naniwa" went in pursuit of the transport and 

 signaled her to stop. She was owned by an 

 English firm, to which the Chinese Steamship 

 Company had transferred its vessels at the ap- 

 proach of hostilities, and was flying the English 

 flag and being navigated by English officers. 



The Japanese commander had sent some officers 

 aboard the transport to demand that it should 

 go with him as a prize into a Japanese port. 

 Col. von Hanneken, who was going to Korea to 

 supervise military operations, argued that it was 

 a British ship, and that the flag should be re- 

 spected and the ship escorted back to China. 

 The troops declared that they would die rather 

 than be made prisoners. The Japanese officers 

 boarded the vessel a second time and tried to in- 

 duce the Englishmen to come off, but the Chi- 

 nese generals would not let them, threatening 

 their lives. After the Japanese had returned to 

 their own ship they signaled to the English cap- 

 tain to quit his ship, and Capt. Galsworthy and 

 his officers leaped into the sea as soon as firing 

 began. While they were swimming away the 

 Chinese soldiers shot at them. The Japanese 

 opened fire with their broadside battery and 

 machine guns, clearing the decks of the trans- 

 port, and then fired 2 torpedoes, both of which 

 exploded, killing many men and causing the 

 vessel to heel and fill rapidly, carrying down 

 with her most of the 1,700 men on board. The 

 rest were drowned, except 150 who were rescued 

 by a German war ship, 1 boat load, 41 who were 

 picked up by the boats of a French man-of-war, 

 Capt. Galsworthy and another Englishman, who 

 were taken aboard the Japanese cruiser and sub- 

 sequently released, and Col. von Hanneken, who 

 escaped by swimming. The Chinese continued 

 firing at the Japanese till the ship went down, 

 some aiming too at their own people struggling 

 in the water, saying that all should die together. 

 The Japanese fired at and sank the boats of the 

 " Kow Shing." 



Meanwhile the " Akitsushima " and " Taka- 

 chiho " engaged the " Chi Yuen " and " Kootsu." 

 After fighting 'stubbornly for over an hour the 

 former displayed a signal of surrender. The 

 Japanese vessels ceased firing and approached 

 her, when suddenly she discharged torpedoes, 

 which the Japanese were able to dispose of. 

 The engagement began again more hotly than 

 before, and finally the " Chi Yuen " turned and 

 made off at full speed, escaping the Japanese 

 cruiser, which pursued for over 100 miles. The 

 " Kootsu " sought to escape by running into 

 shoal water, got aground, and was captured by 

 the Japanese. 



On the same day a battle was fought at. sea 

 between the Japanese cruiser " Yoshino " and 

 the Chinese cruiser " Chih Yuen " and her con- 

 sort, "So Keang," off Fontao island. After a 

 Japanese shell had disabled the turret and the 

 steering gear of the " Chih Yuen " she fought 

 with her 15-centimetre stern gun, sweeping away 

 the bridge and disabling the Japanese craft, 

 which would have been captured had not other 

 Japanese vessels appeared in sight, upon which 

 the " Chih Yuen " made for Wei Hai Wei, bat- 

 tered and shattered in the fight, which lasted 

 over four houis, having lost 12 killed and 30 

 wounded. The troop ship " To Nan," with 1,100 

 recruits on board, was sunk, and the " So Keang " 

 was captured by the Japanese. 



The Japanese Government expressed regret 

 that the commander of the " Naniwa " had fired 

 on an English ship in ignorance of its nation- 

 ality, and offered to make reparation if it should 

 turn out that a wrong had been committed. 



