The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-02-17
THE DEsTRUcTIoN OF THE MAINE.

THE DESTRUCTION or THE MAINE.
The destruction of the United States bat
tie snip Maine is one of the most shocking
marine disasters on record, and, if it was
an accident, by far the worst that has ever
occurred in our navy. In fact, if it was an
accident, nothing approaching it in loss Of
life and property and completeness of de-
struction has occurred in a long time in any
navy. 1t would be a heavy naval engage
meYt that would result in the complete de-
struction of such a ship as the Maine with
the loss of more than two-thirds of her
crew. II the ship alone had been wrecked
or destroyed there would be reason to regret
the heavy loss of property, but in this case
the loss of brave and valuable lives over
shadows all other considerations and makes
the disaster one of the most tragic and de-
plorable on record.
There will, of course, be strict and
searching investigation as to the cause Of
the disaster, though from present appear
ances it will be very difficult to discover.
AT present opinions are divided as to whetli-
er it was purely an accident or the result
Of hostile plot or attack, and. unless the
cause is very definitely ascertained, this
difference of opinion will continue. There
is room for both conjectures- A modern
battle ship is a very dangerous machine
outside of her fighting powers. Carrying a
large amount of fixed ammunition. dyna-
mite, torpedoes and gun cotton, with cleo
trio wires traversing every part of the ship
and the ever present possibility of fire. there
is always more or less danger of an acct
dental explosion. On the other hand, every
effort is used to avert the possibility of ac-
cdents by the careful adjustment of ma
chnery, the safe disposition of explosives
and the enforcement of strict discipline at
all hours of the day and night. Yet. human
ingenuity and foresight cannot always avert
accidents. AS no other battle ship of any
navy has ever been destroyed by an acciden-
tai explosion, it is evident the chance of
such an accident is very remote, yet the
chance does exist.
On the other hand. the peculiar circum-
stances of the case inevitably suggest that
the explosion may have been due to some
hostile act. If it had occurred in any other
than a Spanish port, or if it happened at
Havana to a battle ship of any other nation
than the United States, no such suspicion
would arise But in the present case cir
cumstances justify the suspicion, and I'M
less entirely removed by an investigation it
will continue to exist In estimating the
probabilities for and against this theory it
must be remembered that it would be very
kind. The ship was under strict guard day
and night, and no suspicious looking craft
could approach her. Not many visitors were
allowed on board, and it would scarcely
have been possible for one to have deposited
an explosive where it would do the work.
The discipline of a man-of-war is not easily
evaded. There are no torpedoes in the har-
Dor. and it would not have been possible to
have placed one under the hull of the ship.
Remote as was the chance of accidental ex-
plosion, that of hostile attack seems still
more so. The fact that the explosion oc-
Cured in the forward part of the ship.
where gun cotton and other explosives were
stored, favors the theory that it was due
to an accident and would also account for
the fact that a much larger proportion OF
men than of officers were killed.
1t may be difficult to remove the mystery
that now surrounds the affair The ship
seems to have been shattered and to have
sunk very quickly If there were simply
hole in her bottom or side expert divers
could easily decide whether it was due to
an explosion from within or from without.
but if the hull is blown to pieces it may be
impossible to fix the locality or nature of
the shock
Finally, whatever may have caused the
explosion, it will excite apprehension among
all naval powers to discover that a powerful
battle ship can be wiped out of existence
so suddenly Whether the explosion was
due to accident or design the Maine is at
the bottom of the sea. and any other battle
ship might go the same way. Perhaps 1t
is time for naval engineers, architects and
ship builders to inquire whether in evolving
a great fighting machine they have not
evolved a man trap.