The departure order placed Folkestone first, SS St Vincent de Paul second, and Birmingham astern as the three vessels passed the Japanese cruisers. All three Japanese heavy cruisers trained their guns, while Birmingham aimed at their bridges and the naval headquarters ashore. An account cited in the discussion has Folkestone turn its single four-inch gun toward Ashigara despite its limited fighting power. Ashmore could see only part of the scene from aboard the merchantman, so Brind's and Admiral Percy Noble's accounts are needed to reconstruct the full three-cruiser standoff. The encounter resembled a naval checkpoint confrontation in which hesitation or a single shot could have opened a war months before the invasion of Poland.
Chapter · 47:21-50:50
The historical escape under trained guns
Folkestone, SS St Vincent de Paul, and Birmingham left Tsingtao in that order while Japanese and British guns were trained across the confrontation, yet no shots were fired.