My last letter reporting the proceedings of my squadron was written from
Colombo on my arrival. I left that harbour on the morning of December
2, and proceeded to sea at easy speed, leaving destroyer 'No. 1' to
await the arrival of the two Patagonian destroyers left behind at Aden,
and destroyer 'No. 2' to keep touch with the third destroyer if she
attempted to leave harbour within twenty-four hours of my departure.
They both rejoined me on 5th December at full speed, and reported the
arrival of the two destroyers six hours after I had left, and that they
made no immediate preparations for sea. After recoaling 'No. 1' and
'No. 2' from the _Sylvia_ store-ship, a process which occupied seven or
eight hours on account of a strong breeze and a slight sea, I proceeded
at thirteen knots, and reached Singapore without further incident,
anchoring in the outer harbour.
Here I was met by a collier, chartered in Cardiff under sealed orders,
and am at present completing the coaling of my squadron.
I have determined, after the incidents of the dynamite cartridges on the
way out to Gibraltar and again at Malta, to take no more coal from
shore, and have arranged for a collier to meet me at Hong-Kong. Our men
will alone handle the coal, so there shall be no further chance of foul
play.
The man Hopkins is still under close arrest, and I consider that this
course will be more conducive to the safety of the expedition than
handing him over to the civil authorities, with my proofs of his
complicity not yet substantiated. The fact also that he is an American
citizen would open up many legal difficulties, and after the lengthy
diplomatic representations as a result of Parker's opening fire on the
Patagonian, it is advisable to steer clear of these shoals in future.
This morning I received a wire from Colombo informing me that the
Patagonians had not yet left, and that one was still undergoing repairs.
I shall leave to-morrow, and, as the monsoon is fairly strong, I have
dismounted the guns and the search-lights of all three destroyers to
lighten them as far as possible.
The mail is just leaving, and by the time you receive this letter I
shall be slowly punching my way against the monsoon. I hope to be in
Hong-Kong not later than the 22nd.
Both Dr. Fox and I shall be very glad to renew our acquaintance with you
there, and to talk of old times and adventures when we all three were
much younger.