The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-06-15
The MAYNARD DISASTER.
Fourteen of the Victims Buried-How the
Explosion May Have Occurred.

The MAYNARD DISASTER
Fourteen of the Victims Buried-How tho
Explosion May Have Occurred.
SAN Francisco June 1.-the fourteen
sailors of the United States cruiser Boston
who were killed by an explosion in one of
the magazines at Mare Island navy-yard,
yesterday were buried in the naval cemo-
terry at o'clock this afternoon. John BrIs-
coe. the only one of the party of fifteen
which was engaged IN filling the shells in
the magazine not killed. is still living. but
1t is doubtful whether he will survive his
injuries. He is native of Phila-
delphIa. nineteen years old. and
enlisted IN December 1887. When the re-
lief party picked ND BrscOe he besought
them To kill him and end his agony. He
repeated this request again and again.
When they lifted MIN he beat them with
his fists and tried to escape so he could
they held him and bore him to the hospital
with j. III. Hutton. the seaman
apprentice. who lived for several
hours. Dr. Lewis and his assistants
Immediately bound the unfortunate man
from head to foot In bandages saturated
with olive oil and applied other necessary
remedial agents. The doctors found that the
men had been burned the worst about their
Heaub lEeIT Sc4lpS uau Deen ScOFcneu OH
and their skulls were exposed. Briscoe's
eyes were badly damaged, and his face
was putfed so that the flesh had to be
drawn down to enable the doctors t o reach
his eyes.
Gunner johnson. in charge of the mag
azine, furnishes theory which seems the
most reasonable advanced as TO the cause
of the accident. The powder Is brought
from the magazine" he said. "in quanti-
ties Just sufficient for immediate use. At
a VI
the filing room. where the men
were charging six-inch copper shells
with three pounds AMI "a quarter of
powder each. The fine. black explosive IS
poured into the small opening at the apex
of a shell, through n copper funnel The
small copper rod Is kept constantly moving
up and down through the spout OF a funnel
opinion Is that the powder stuck.
and the man who working
the copper rod became impatient
and damned it down hard. the
course, exploded with sufficient force to
fire the rest of the powder in the room.
The conclusion caused the shells to burst
and then fusillade began. The most ex-
traordinary thing is that after the flames
were extingulshed, there were found
several cases of brown prsmatic powder
with the Outsides all charred and burn ed.
yet the intense heat had not been suffi-
The filling house, in which the explosion
occurred, was structure probably twenty
feet long and eighteen square. Three sides
of it were of brick. while the back was of
frame The roof was OF terra Gotta. Had
not the wooden part of the room permitted
the force OF the explosion TO expand itself
In that direction the Men would have been
even moro horribly mangled and the walls
would have been scattered far and wide.
AS 1t was they were thrown apart and out
ward.
A verdict of accidental death was found
for all The inquest was held in VAL
bodies had been taken. George Hit
finger. the gunner. who was killed. was
ayOung man i'll the service, and during his
short stay at this station became a favOrIte
In local society, both of Mare Island and
Vallejo. lie began duty on the Boston,
Feb. =, 1891, to make his first cruise at sea.
being appointed from Pennsylvania, OctO-
Der, 1850.
Dropped Into Lonesome Hollow.
MIDDLEsBORO. Ky. June IA freight
engine with six teen loaded box cars. on the
X. c., NJ. ~ G. +. railroad, went through q
bridge spanning Lonesome Hollow and
fell distance OF 20 feet.
Four persons were killed and six hurt
The north bound passenger train. with
saved by being behind it's schedule time.
Among the killed are Frank Sargent fire.
man; Henry Slater and conductor Duck
worth and Thomas Allen.
Locomotive Boiler Expiodes.
PORT HURON. Mich. June 14-All Grand
Trunk trains were late to-day owing to q
terrible accident at Climax. near Battle
Creek. The boiler of the locomotive haul
ing a heavy loaded freight train, blew up
Mt that point this morning. Engineer
Wood. fireman smith and brakeman
Parker, all of Battle Creek, were seriously,
and. IL is feared, fatally scalded. The
track was torn up and fifteen cars hurled
from the rails
There Victims of Kerosene and Fire..
LII L