It is not my intention to discuss Japanese gunboats, but I believe shots
of this ship (seen somewhere on the Yangtze and taken by my Grandfather)
should be noted. I cannot imagine how this ship found itself in this predicament.
This must be either the Atami or the Futami (Note: given the difficulty
in translating Japanese names, I have seen the Atami's sister ship sometimes
listed as "Hu Tami", instead of "Futami"). .
These shots may give some indication of how the water level changed on
the Yangtze and the obstacles that existed just below the surface. The
Atami and Futami only had a three foot draft which was shallow for most
gunboats, but still such predicaments could easily occur.
BELOW: For identification purposes, the shot below is reported to be the
Atami.
BELOW: Jean-Pierre Malsagne of www.canochine.com (an excellent site on China gunboats) spotted the shot below of the same
incident. The tarp is probably for protection from the sun.
