"The defense of our empire depends upon this action. You are
expected to do your utmost."

Northward drove the Russians, drawn up in double column. The day moved
on until noon was passed and the hour of two was reached. A few minutes
later the first shots came from the foremost Russian ships. They fell
short and the Japanese waited until they came nearer before replying.
Then the roar of artillery began and from both sides came a hail of shot
and shell, thundering on opposing hulls or rending the water into foam.
From two o'clock on Saturday afternoon until two o'clock on Sunday
morning that iron storm kept on with little intermission, the huge
twelve-inch guns sending their monstrous shells hurtling through the
air, the smaller guns raining projectiles on battle-ships and cruisers,
until it seemed as if nothing that floated could live through that
terrible storm.

Never in the history of naval warfare had so frightful a cannonade been
seen. Its effect on the opposing fleets was very different. For months
Togo had kept his gunners in training and their shell-fire was accurate
and deadly, hundreds of their projectiles hitting the mark and working
dire havoc to the Russian ships and crews; while to judge from the
little damage done, the return fire would seem to have been wild and at
random. Either the work of training his gunners had been neglected by
the Russian admiral, or they were demoralized by the projectiles from
the rapid-fire guns of the Japanese, which swept their decks and mowed
down the gunners at their posts.

This fierce and telling fire soon had its effect. Ninety minutes after
it began, the Russian armored cruiser "Admiral Nakhimoff" went reeling
to the bottom with the greater part of her crew of six hundred men. Next
to succumb was the repair-ship "Kamchatka." Badly hurt early in the
battle, her steering-gear was later disabled, then a shell put her
engines out of service, and shortly after her bow rose in the air and
her stern sank, and with a tremendous roar she followed the "Nakhimoff"
to the depths.

Around the "Borodino," one of the largest of the Russian battle-ships,
clustered five of the Japanese, pouring in their fire so fiercely that
flames soon rose from her deck and the wounded monster seemed in sore
distress. This was Rojestvensky's flag-ship, and the enemy made it one
of their chief targets, sweeping its decks until the great ship became a
veritable shambles. Admiral Rojestvensky, woun