Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1898-03-31
THE MAINE REPORT
President Sends the Famous
Document to Congress.
ANIME DESTROYED THE SHIP
There Was No Lax Discipline on
Board the Vessel.
CAPTAIN s1esBEE ExoNERArED.

There We're Two Explosions, Says the
Report, the First of Which Lifted
the Big Vessel-The Investigators
Unable to FIX the Responsibility Fol-
the Disaster-The Presidents Mes
sage to Congress on the Report.
The following is the full text of the
report of the court of inquiry appoint
ed to investigate the disaster to the
Maine at Havana:
Rate. Key West, Fla, Monday,
March 21, 1898.
After full and mature consideration
of all the testimony before it. the court
| finds as follows:
/. That the United States battleship
Maine arrived in the harbor of Havana,
Cuba, on the 25th day Of January, 1898,
and was taken to buoy No. 4, in from
FIVE to six fathoms of water, by the
regular government pilot.
| The United States consul general at
Havana had notified the authorities
at that place, the previous evening, OF
the intended arrival of the Maine.
g. The state of discipline on board
the Maine was excellent, and all orders
and regulations in regard to the care
and safety of the ship were strictly
carried out.
All ammunition was slowed in ac-
cordance with prescribed instructions,
and proper care was taken whenever
ammunition was handled.
Nothing was slowed in any one of the
magazines or shell rooms which was
not permitted to be slowed there.
The magazines and shell rooms were
always locked after having been open
| ed, and after the destruction of the
Maine the keys were found in their
proper place in the captains cabin
everything having been reported secure
that evening at s p. m. The tenn
peratures of the magazine and shell
room were taken daily and reported
The only magazine which had an un-
due amount of heat was the after ter
inch magazine and that did not ex-
plode at the time the Maine was de-
stroyed.
| The torpedo warheads were all stow
ed in the after part of the ship under
the ward room, and neither caused
/ nor. participated in the destruction Of
the Maine.
The dry gun cotton primers and de-
| tonators were slowed in the cabin aft
and remote from the scene of the ex-
plosion.
Waste was carefully looked after or
board the Maine to obviate danger
Special orders in regard to this had
been given by the commanding officer
Varnishes, dryers, alcohol and other
combustibles of this nature were stow.
| ed on or above the main deck and
could not have had anything to dc
with the destruction of the Maine.
The medical stores were slowed aft
under the ward room and remote from
the scene of the explosion.
No dangerous stores of any kind were
slowed below in any of the other store
rooms.
The coal bunIkers were Inspected daily
OF those bunkers adjacent to the for.
ward magazines and shell rooms -four
were empty. namely, B 3, B4. B 5. B s
/ AS had been in use that day, ant
A 16 was full of new river coal. This
coal. had been carefully inspected be
fore receiving it on board. The bunker
In which it was slowed was accessible
/ on three sides at all times. and tht
fourth side at this time on account oi
bunkers B and B being empty Thi.
bunker, A is, had been inspected Mon
day by the engineer officer on duty.
The fire alarms in the bunkers were
in working order, and there had never
been case of spontaneous combustion
4 of coal on board the Maine.
The two after boilers of the ship were
i in use at the time of the disaster. but
for auxiliary purposes only, with /
comparatively low pressure of steam
and being tended by reliable watch
These boilers could not have caused
i the explosion of the ship. The foul
forward boilers have since been fount
by the divers and are in fair con
dition.
On the night of the destruction o
the Maine everything had been re
| ported secure for the night at p. m
1 by reliable persons. through the prope
| authorities, to the commanding of
Rcer. At the time the Maine was de
stroyed the ship was quiet. and there
fore least liable to accident caused b.
movements from those on board.
8. The destruction of the Maine oc
Cured at $40 .. m. on the 18th day 0
] February, 1898. in the harbor of Ha
vana Cuba, she being at the tim
moored to the same buoy to which sh
had been taken upon her arrival.
There were two explosions of dis
tInctly different character. with yer.
short but distinct interval betweel
them. and the forward part of tn
ship was lifted to a marked degree a
the time of the first explosion.
i The first explosion was more in tn
nature of a report, like that of CUR
while the second explosion was NOR
| open, prolonged. and Of greater vol
Il ums. This second explosion was. ii
the opinion of the court. caused by tn
Il partial explosion of two or more o
the. forward magazines of the Maine.
4. The evidence bearing upon this, be