A Modern Naval Engagement. How the Chinese Fleet at Foochow Melted Away Under the French Fire—Destructive Work of Torpedo Boats.

Te Aroha News, Volume II, Issue 80, 13 December 1884, Page 5

A Modern Naval Engagement. How the Chinese Fleet at Foochow Melted Away Under the French Fire—Destructive Work of Torpedo Boats.

A naval officer on board the United States ship Enterprise, which was anchored in the Mm River, below Foochow arsenal, thus describes in a letter to the Pittsburg "Despatch" the engagement between the French and Chinese fleets, in which the latter was destroyed : "The vessels in both fleets prepared for action. Three English men-of-war, this vessel, and four or five merchantmen were anchored about half a mile down the harbour, giving a clear space to the opposing forces. At 1.55 p.m. a single shot was fired from one of the French vessels, and in a few seconds the battle commenced. It is supposed that in the first minute anda-half fully 10 shots were fired, most of them from modern breech-loading guns. "The French fleet consisted of the Volta flagship ; Aspio, Vipire, D'Estange, Lynx, Deugay, Trouin, Villard, and later, the Triumphant. The Chinese fleet consisted of nine sloops-ot-war, two gunboats, and eleven war junks. At 1.56 o'clock the flag ship Volta opened fire from her tops, when general engagement followed. At 2 o'clock the Chinese flagship was blown up by a torpedo. At 2.08 a Chinese gunboat was blown up. At 2.45 a Chinese sloop-of-war on fire drifted down the harbour and sank abreast of us with colours flying, while another Chinese sloopof-war on fire grounded on a flag island near us and blew up at 4.51. At 3.30 another Chinese sloop-of-war on fire, with the French colours flying, drifted down the channel. "The French kept on bombarding the navy yards and forts on shoi^e, which took an active part in the engagement. During and subsequent to the engagement fire-rafts and junks came floating down the river. "The destruction of Yung Wo, the Chine&o flagship, will show what a torpedo can do when properly handled. As soon as the fight commenced a torpedo-boat darted toward the ill-fated vessel, and in an instant there was nothing left of the stately craft bub some drifting timber and broken spars. The Yung Wo was built at the navy yard in this place. She was a full-rigge I ship of about two thousand tons displacement, and was a beautiful vessel. Her destroyer, the torpedo-boat, was about fifty feet long, cigar-shaped, very low in the water, and capable of steaming about 20 miles an hour. i "After her terrible work she drifted down the harbour and anchored near us. We could see that some of her crew were wounded, as well as her commanding officer. Our vessel sent surgical aid to her as soon as international law permitted it. "As far as could be seen, only one Chinese vessel made a determined fight. This was a gunboat commanded by a young Chinaman who had been educated in America. His gunboat was the target for a great many French guns, but he -went down gallantly, his flag flying, and just as his vessel was sinking he fired a parting shot. " The rapidity of the French fire completely demoralised the Chinese, and the French gunners' markmanship was excellent. The machine guns did frightful execution. One of the Chinese vessels that sank shortly after the fight commenced was a terrible sight. Her decks were covered with blood and the mangled remains of her crew. The Hotchkiss revolving cannon of the French ships kept up a steady fire. One of these guns properly managed is enough to clear the deck of any ship. (f Only two of the Chinese vessels were afloat after the engagement. They escaped by getting up the river into shoal water. One of these vessels sank shortly afterwards on account of injuries received in the fight, and the other one is now aground with her back broken. The French fire continued until night. They shelled the batteries on shore, and drove the Chinese from them. The navy yard and arsenal were shelled, and a great deal of damage done to Government property. " At night fire-rafts and "burning junks came down the river, but the French gunners succeeded in sinking them. With but one or two exceptions, the French vessels are uninjured. The Volta had been hit once near the water-line. The D'Estange had two shot-holes near her rail. The loss of life on the French side was only six, besides the pilot of the Volta, who was an Englishman. The Chinese loss of life is reported as being nearly 2,000.