BRITISH FLEET AT HONGKONG.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIV, Issue 109, 8 May 1903, Page 5

BRITISH FLEET AT HONGKONG.

When the mail left Hongkong the harbour there must have presented a striking' sight as it contained no less than 19 ships of the China Squadron. They were' the first - class battleships Glofy, Albion, Goliath, 1 and Ocean, 'the first-class four-funnelled cruisers Ainphitrite, Argonaut, arid Cressy,' and 'tLa two-funnelled cruiser Blenheim, the second-class cruisers Eclipse and Talbot, third-class cruisers; Pique and Fearless, the gunboats Britomart arid Rambler, .the sloops Rinaldo and Vestal, arid the torpedo-boat destroyers Janus and Whiting; This, combined with the: despatch vessel Alacrity, made a grand total of 19 sail. All sorts of rumours were afloat as to the reason for sue- a gathering, most people" apparently thinking it had some connection with the approaching, advent of the Russian Squadron coming out to the Far East, the principal vessels of which are the battleships Retvizan and Pobieda, of 12,700 tons displacement each;, the; cruisers Bogatyr, of 6750 toi_s; % Pallara and Diana, of 6630 tons: each; and the, Boyariri, of 3200 tons. Several torpedo boats accompany the fleet. V -