The San Francisco call., 1896-11-10

gave the alarm. and the steam siren
whistle was blown, the signal to close
water-tight bulkheads. Then the gongs
sounded the call to general quarters and
the men came up on the run.
Captain Glass took personal command.
The order to close The bulkheads was
obeyed by the men as though they had
been at drill and it was executed in two
minutes and twenty seconds. The
water continued to pour in un-
til the starboard engine compart-
ment was completely flooded. The
longitudinal bulkhead dividing the en-
gine- rooms has several small openings in
it and the water leaked through and soon
flooded the port engine-room, but the
cIosing>-of the transverse bulkheads pre-
vented it from reaching any other part of
the ship.
When the Texas came to a stop on
the bottom of the river her bow
had sunk five feet and the stern
little more. Captain Glass re-
ported to Commodore Sicard, the COM
mandant of the navy-yard, and report
of the accident was at once forwarded to
Secretary Herbert at Washington. Then
the work OF raising the ship was begun.
Wrecking tugs steamed alongside and a
diver was sent down in the starboard en-
gine-room 70 try TO plug the injector and
make il possible for the water
to be pumped out Late in
the afternoon the divers succeeded
in fitting big wooden plug into the end
of the injector and then the pumps began
to make an impression on the water in
the engne-room.
At $3.50 o'clock the ship righted, and
soon after that she was f1oated.
She was launched from the Norfolk
Navy Yard on June 2s 1892, and
went into com mission in the spring
OF mishaps, several of which have
been of more serious nature than her
present accident. She has had more acci-
dents than all the rest OF the North At
lantic squadron put together.
WASHINGTON, D. c., Nov. 9.-secre
tary Herbert ordered the following court
of inquiry on the accident to the battle
ship Texas:
Commodore J. N. Miller, now command
ant of the Boston Navy-yard; Chief En-
gineer w. w. DUNCAN, the senior officer of
his corps, now inspector of machinery at
Cramps, and Naval Constructor J. f.
Hanscom, with lieutenant B. T. Walling
as Judge advocate. The court will meet
at the navy-yard. New York. at / p. M,
Wednesday.
The only additional information the
Navy Department has received is con-
tanned in the following telegram from
Commodore Sicard:
A section OF the starboard main Injection
pipe was removed for repairs and the pipe to
seaward was blanketed off just inside OF the
main injectionva just above the floor
plates. This morning about o'clock
the yoke through which tine stem to the
injecti on-valve passed broke under the
pressure OF the water outside and the sea
water Fl led the stsrboard engine compartment
and thence leaked through the closed water
tight doors and gradually flooded the port
engine compartment. The ship is not flooded
in other parts. The ship settled down upon
the soft bottom, beading south. and now lies
easily at high water In, TWENTY-FIVE feet oil
water on the port side and twenty-nine on
the star board side, secured to Cob dock. iust
south of the verinont's stern, and listed about
six degrees to starboard.
Two tugs of the Chapman Wrecking Com
pany are alongside pumping. and a diver is
down in the starboard engine room endeayor-
ing to stop the leak. The Narkeeta is in at
tendance; the Nina9s boilers are repairing
cannot be used Drydock No. 2 is being pre-
pared to receive the Texas as soon as the less