Project Gutenberg's Under the Ensign of the Rising Sun, by Harry Collingwood

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Title: Under the Ensign of the Rising Sun
A Story of the Russo-Japanese War

Author: Harry Collingwood

Illustrator: Savile Lumley

Release Date: January 27, 2009 [EBook #27910]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK UNDER THE ENSIGN OF THE RISING SUN ***

Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England

Under the Ensign of the Rising Sun, by Harry Collingwood.

CHAPTER ONE.

DISMISSED THE SERVICE.

"Well, good-bye, old chap; keep a stiff upper lip, and hope for the
best; the truth is pretty sure to come out some day, somehow, and then
they will be bound to reinstate you. And be sure you call on the Pater,
and tell him the whole yarn. I'll bet he will be able to give you some
advice worth having. Also give my love to the Mater, and tell her that
I'm looking forward to Christmas. Perhaps I may see you then. Good-bye
again, and good luck to you."

The speaker was young Ronald Gordon, one of the midshipmen belonging to
H.M.S. _Terrible_, and my particular chum; and the words were spoken as
we parted company on the platform of Portland railway station, Gordon to
return to his ship, while I, an outcast, was bound for London to seek my
fortune.

Yes; after doing splendidly at Dartmouth, heading the list at the
passing-out exam, and so at once gaining the rating of midshipman; doing
equally well afloat during the subsequent three years and a half,
qualifying for Gunnery, Torpedo, and Navigating duties, serving for six
months aboard a destroyer, and everywhere gaining the esteem and
goodwill of my superiors, here was I, Paul Swinburne, at the age of
seventeen and a half, an outcast kicked out of the Navy with ignominy
and my career ruined, through the machinations of another, and he my
cousin!

He, Bob Carr,--like myself, a midshipman aboard the _Terrible_,--had
committed a crime of a particularly mean and disgraceful character--
there is no need for me to specify its precise nature--and with
diabolical ingenuity, knowing that discovery was inevitable, had
succeeded in diverting suspicion so strongly toward