ogether. And even
now, when Admiral Dayton's fame reaches beyond the seas and the name of
James Dayton is in every sailor's mouth as the savior of his people,
yes, even now, he will tell you how at the moment when, outside the
Straits of Magellan, he crushed the Japanese cruisers with his
cruiser-squadron, thereby once again restoring the Star Spangled Banner
to its place of honor, the vision of that grinning row of faces exulting
in the degradation of a severely damaged American torpedo-boat appeared
before him. It is only such men as he, men who experienced the horrors
of our downfall to the bitter end, who could lead us to victory--such
men as Dayton and Winstanley.

[Footnote 1: Perry, the American commodore, with a fleet of only eight
ships, forced Japan to sign the agreement of Kanagawa, opening the chief
harbors in Japan to American trading-vessels, in the year 1854.]

_Chapter XII_

ARE YOU WINSTANLEY?

The bow of the English freighter _Port Elizabeth_ was plowing its way
through the broad waves of the Pacific on the evening of the fourteenth
of September. The captain and the first mate were keeping a sharp
lookout on the bridge, for they were approaching San Francisco. The
steamer had taken a cargo of machinery and rails on board at Esquimault
for San Francisco, as was duly set forth in the ship's papers. In
Esquimault, too, the second mate enlisted, though the captain was not
particularly eager to take a man who carried his arm in a sling. Since,
however, he could find no one else to take the place of the former
second mate, who had gone astray in the harbor saloons of Victoria, the
captain engaged the volunteer, who called himself Henry Wilson, and thus
far he had had no cause to regret his choice, as Wilson turned out to be
a quiet, sober man, thoroughly familiar with the waters along the
Pacific coast.

Wilson was in the chart-room, carefully examining the entrance to San
Francisco; suddenly he turned and called through the open door to the
captain on the bridge: "Captain, we are now eight miles from the Golden
Gate; it's a wonder the Japs haven't discovered us yet."

"I should think they would station their cruisers as far out as this,"
answered the captain.

"After all, why should they?" asked Wilson, "there's nothing more to be
done here, and the allies of our illustrious government can scarcely be
asked to show much interest in an English steamer with a harmless
cargo."

Wilson joined