nine o'clock
Of the evacuation of Manchuria by Russia , which should have been _ completed _ on the 8th of the preceding October , there was still no sign ; on the contrary , everything pointed to a determination on the part of Russia to make her occupation permanent . Actions , it is said , speak louder than words , and while the diplomats on both sides were still engaged in an apparent endeavour to settle matters amicably , the action of those on the Russian side was characterised by systematic procrastination and delay which admitted of but one interpretation , namely , that Russia had no intention to quit Manchuria until she was compelled to do so by force . This being the state of affairs , I interpreted Baron Yamamoto 's order literally , leaving Tokio by the first available train . This took me back to Yokohama , where I only quitted it because I found I could proceed no farther until nine o'clock that night . At that hour , then , I made a fresh start and , not to dwell unduly upon this part of my story , reached Sasebo late in the evening of 26th January , having been delayed upon the road owing to the congestion of traffic caused by the war preparations . Sasebo was a very hive of activity , to such an extent indeed that I had the greatest difficulty in finding quarters . All the hotels were packed to their utmost limit , and indeed I do not know how I should eventually have fared had I not luckily encountered an unmistakable Briton , whom I halted , and to whom I confided my plight , asking if he could direct me to some place where I could find accommodation for the night .