line of the Danzig, which we were to take to sea, we steamed from the
harbor into the Pacific, followed by the cheers of all on board the
Wright and the waving of ladies' handkerchiefs till lost in the
distance. We desired to pass the fourth, or Amphitrite, channel of the
Kurile Islands; the weather was so thick that we could not see a
ship's length in any direction, and all night men stood with axes
ready to cut the Danzig's tow line in case any sudden danger should
appear. The fog lifted just as we neared the channel, and we had a
clear view on all sides.

We cast off the Danzig when fairly out of the Pacific. During the two
days the Variag had her in tow we maintained communication by means of
a log line and a junk bottle carefully sealed. Casting our bottle on
the waters, we allowed it to drift along side the Danzig, where it
could be fished up and opened. Answers were returned in the same mail
pouch. One response was in liquid form, and savored of gin cocktail,
fabricated by the American captain.

An hour after dropping the Danzig we stopped our engines and prepared
to run under sail. The whole crew was called on deck to hoist out the
screw, a mass of copper weighing twenty-five thousand pounds, and set
in a frame raised or lowered like a window sash. With strong ropes and
the power of three hundred men, the frame and its contents were lifted
out of water, and the Variag became a sailing ship. The Russian
government is more economical than our own in running ships of war.
Whenever possible, sails are used instead of steam. A few years ago a
Russian Admiral was transferred from active to retired service because
he burned too much coal.

The Variag was 2100 tons burthen, and carried seventeen guns, with a