"soya" (callsign jld) was originally the russian cruiser "varyag". the ship was badly damaged during the russo-japanese war of 1904–05 and scuttled. after the war, she was salvaged by the imperial japanese navy and extensively repaired. she was renamed the "soya" and served initially as a training ship. she was equipped with telefunken wireless telegraphy apparatus and visited australia in 1910 as part of the visit of the training squadron.