The herald., 1898-03-29
AENIAI[ M[SSl6f
(Conitnued from Page one.)

sumPtioa u .tuo' tOu8-lnteEtupkeu lukor-
course. So noticeable was this imnisdi-
ate erect ~that' tine presence OF our ships
In Cuban waters should be kept up by re-
tanning the Maine in Havana. or. In the
event Of her recall. by sending another vss-
sci to take her place.
Y THE EXPLOSION
(, At forty minutes past nine, on the even
ing of the 18th of February, the Maine was
destroyed by an explosion by which the
evtire forward part Of the ship was utter
ly wrecked. In this catastrophe two Of
fictsrs and two hundred and sixty Of her
ere " perished, those who were lot iilied
out. ught by the explosion being penned bo.
twesm decks by the tangle of wreckage and
drow ned by the immediate sinking of the
hull. Prompt assistance was rendered by
the nttghboring vessels anchored in the
harbor, aid being especially given by the
Spanish cruiser Alphonso XII and the
Ward L end steamer City Of washinrton,
which la.k not Ear distant. The wounded
were generously cared for by the authors
ties of HaEana, the hospitals being freely
opened to- them, while the earliest recov-
cred bodies of the dead were inferred by
the municipality in the public cemetery In
the city TheI tributes Of grief and sympa-
thy were offek,ed from all official quarters
of the island.
The appalliiag calamity fell upon the
people of our country with crushing force
and for brief time an intense excitement
prevailed. which, In a community lest Just
and self-controlled than ours, however,
must, have led to hasty acts of blind re-
sentiment. This sepirit, however, soon gave
way to the cab ner processes of reason
and to the resolv . to investigate the facts
and await the mat erial proof, before form
ing Judgment a. . to the cause, the re-
sponsibility, and, II the facts warranted
the remedy due. This course necessarily
recommended itself from the outlet to the
executive, for only in the light Of dis
passiDnately ascertt tined certainty could
it determine the nature and measure Of its
full duty in the ma tier.
The usual procedure was followed. as
in all cases of casualty or disaster to ma
tional vessels of any maritime State.
THE FORMAL INQUIRY
A naval Court of inquiry was at once
organized. composed cf officers we'll quail
ified by rank and practical experience 10
discharge the onerous duty imposed upon
them. And by strongeforce of wreckers
a thorough investigation on the spot, .m
ploying every available means for the I'M
partias and exact determination Of the
causes Of the explosion. Its operations
have been conducted with the utmost de-
liberation and judgment, and while inde-
pendently pursued, no source of informa-
tion was neglected and the fullest oppor-
tunity was allowed for simultaneous in
TT
The finding Of the Court of Inquiry was
reached after twenty-three days Of con-
tinuous labor on the 21st Of March. and,
having been approved on the 23d by the
Commander-in-Chief Of the United States
Naval Force on the North Atlantic sta
ton, was transmitted to the Executive.
1t is herewith said before Conerees, to-
gether with the voluminous testimony
taken before the court. Its purport is In
brief as follows:
When the Maine arrived at Havana
she was conducted by the regular govern
ment pilot to buoy No. 4, to which she
was moored in from five and one-half to
six fathoms of water.
The state of discipline on board and the
condition Of her magazines, coalers. bunk
ers and storage compartments are passed
in review. with the conclusion that ex-
cellent order prevailed and that no in
dication of any cause for an internal, ex-
plosion existed In any quarter.
At forty minutes past nine o'clock the
vessel was suddenly destroyed. There were
two distinct explosions with brief inter-
walls between them. The first lifted the,
forward part of the ship very perceptibly;
the second, which was more prolonged, is
attributed by the Court to the partial ex-
plosion of two or more of the forawrd mag
azines.
The evidence of the divers establishes the
fact that the after part of the ship was
practically intact and sank in that con-
dition within a very few minutes of tho ex-
plosion. The forward part was complete
ly demolished.
THE COURTS FINDING
Upon the evidence of concurrent exter-
nal cause, the finding of the court is as fol-
lows:
"At frame II the outer shell of the ship,
from point eleven and one-haH feet from
the middle line of the ship and SIX feet
above the keel, when in its normal posi-
ton, had been forced up SO as to be about
four feet above the surface of the water;
therefore, about thirty-four feet above
where it would be had she sunk uninjured.
1.-The outside bottom plating is bent into
a reversed w shape. the after wing of
which, about fifteen feet broad and thirty
two feet in length Qcom frame II to frame
25) is doubled back upon itself against the
continuation of the same plating extending
forward.
"At frame IS the vertical keel is broken
in two and the keel bept into an angle SINH
lar to the angle FORMED In the outside
plates This break is about six feet below
the surface of the water and about thirty
feet above its normal position.
'In the opinion of the court this effect
could have been produced only by tie
explosion of a mine Situated under the
bottom of the ship, at about frame 49, and
somewhat on the port side Of the ship"
The conclusions of the court are: That
the loss of the Maine whs not in any way
due to the fault or gllgence on the part
of any of the officers or. members of her
crew. That the ship was destroyed by
the explosion of a submarine. mine, which
caused the partial explosio of two or
more of her forward magazines. And, that
no evidence has been obtaiHable fixing the
responsibility for the destruction of the
Maine upon any person of persons.
ACTION TAKEN
l have directed that the finding of the
Court of Inquiry and the views of this gov
ernment thereon be communicated to the
government of Her Majesty, the Queen