THE RUSSIANS AT PORT HAMILTON.

Press, Volume XLII, Issue 6246, 25 September 1885, Page 3

THE RUSSIANS AT PORT HAMILTON.

The foUowing extract from a letter from an officer in the Flying Fish, giving an account of the hoisting of the British flag on the latest of our possesions, ia taken from the "Army and Navy Gaaatto:— " We returned to Manilla for coals, Ao., about April 2nd, and found two urgent telegrams from the Commander-in-Chief, ordering us up to Hong Bong at full speed. The only inddeat worth mentioning on tbe passage up was righting a Russian irondad (the Mmm) just outside Hong Kong. The captain sent for the first lieutenant, and ordered him to clear for action, r.marking, * It's most unfortunate, but we must make a running fight of it.' You can imagine the 64-pounders (two in number) being loaded, hen coops, Ac, shoved out of the way, and the poor old ' Fish ' trying to imagine herself a fighting - ship. However, ;we were not molested, but . got to our journey* end in peace and safety. On arrivd at Hongkong we found things had simmered down a bit; however, in a day or {two a fresh scare took place.and we got telegraphic orders from tbe Comman-der-in-Chief to hoist out chart-house, cookhouse, steam-Jaunoh, Ac, aad replace our two 7-in guns, which we accordingly did, working day and night, aad making life unbeatable. As soon as the job was over, and we expected to get a rub of paint and settle down as part of the Hongkong defence, we suddenly got orders to be ready for sea next day. They filled us up bdow and on deck with mines, electrio cables, and torpedo stores. During our refit Booper and Lyne had gone through a ten days' Whitehead course, fondly imagining that they would hare oharge of some of the torpedo-boats in case of war, but they were sent off aU the same. The ship was provided with a tender in the snaps of a big steam launch, purchased from the Hong Kong Government. Of course our orders were seded, but it Was soon an open secret that we were bound for Port Hamilton, which we eventually fetched, having only encountered one gale of wind en routs, which compelled us to run in shore to rescue our tender. At Port Hamilton we found four or five small craft and a lot of timber sent over from Nagasaki for the de fence of the port. The flagship was at Nagasaki, so we found ouradvea senior officer, andat once setto work to lay down the mines and build the boom wherewith to block the smaller entranoe. I was told off with the oaptain of the Merlin and an ex-gunner to fit aud lay the mines; and, thanks to the first-rate gunner and amateur torpedoist, we got on first-rate. Gunn made us a plan and - sounded out the mine-field on a 20iu scale, and we had a Corean junk refuge, with commodious Bail-rigged houses to sa-lter our mines and oabUs, aU conveniently situated on a smaU island handy by the main entrance. One night we had a grand scare. A Bteamer was seen oomfeg in about 9 p.m., and on being boarded proved to be a Busaiaa transport, put in (as her captain, a naval officer, said) on account of leaky boilers. He (the oaptain) also wanted to land and look round; but aa he might have had a Busaian ensign in .bis pocket, was advised not to until he had called on the senior officer. Meanwhile.aU the five fimaU craft and our own powerful vessel hid been oiearea zor action in.accordance with private signals which we' bad niade, and in the dead of night three parties were landed to hoist Union Jacks, so that to the morning the summits cf the three islands were decorated with ouz glorious flag, and a sentry looking after each of them. The Baskie came on board in the morning andean-, gratulated our captain on the latest British possession, and not' setting much change out of him, he and a Japanese man-of-war cleared out to inform their respective Governments, and we were left to continue our operations in peace for a day or two* Another transport arrived two days after with more mines and cables; so aU hands had plenty to do, what with the booms, coaling, landing stores, Ac. But onr proud position was not of very long continuance, for one morning the Champion arrived with orders for us to dear immediately for Nagasaki. She brought up King Herman, the flagship's torpedo lieutenant, bo I was kicked out of my billet more quick. However, I had the satisfaction to find that he approved of and adopted my plan of laying out toe mines, and extending it with the new gear brought up from Hong Kong. We sailed for Nagasaki next morning In company with two Chinese Armstrong gun-boats, with an admiral and a Corean Embassy on. board. The Embassy bad descended on us to object to the annexation of the Corean King's dominion. Would you be surprised to learn that the gunboats run ua hull down in about five minutes, in spite of a strong fair wind and fuU steam and sail P However, we managed to get in first, as John Chinaman 'nocaree* to go into harbor in the dark. The admiral didn't give us much time to enjoy .the delights of Nagasaki, as he Bhovedu. off for -Cong Kong the second day; and a nice old time we bad ol it, digging out against the monsoon with lower yards and topmasts down, the temperature going up daily, till now it is only lOdeg. lower than Hades. We are at present to Kowloon Doekuodering a spell of purgatory. The smell, heat, mosquitoes, and the hammering of 1000 Chinamen combined, is enough to drive a man to drink or a lunatic asylum. The guns have disappeared, and the deckhouses once more grace the upper deck. Of cur future movements we know nothing, but now peace seems assured the plan of our commissioning the Glen Ogle, an armed cruiser here, is abandoned. '