The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1898-07-01
Terrible Effect
or Spanish Shell Which Tore
Through the Battle Ship Texas. 2

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On board the United States Bat
tlesbip Texas, Guantanamo Bay,
June 23, (via Enquirer Herald dis
patch boat, Iune 29.)-When l
wrote my description of the land
ing OF the army at Baiquiri yester-
day I mentioned incidently that
the Texas took part in the strate-
gic movement intended to cover
the landing. The duty assigned to
the ship was that of shelling of the
western batteries at the entrance
to Santiago Harbor. This duty
was undertaken singlehanded and
In half an hour the batteries had
ceased to reply.
In the hurry of catching the mail
steamer I had not time to ascer-
tain whether any of the enemy's
projectiles had hit the Texas, and
besides, 1 was 10 miles away to the
eastward. Today the Texas came
into Guantanamo Bay to transfer
eight wounded men to the hospital
ship Solace, and 1 then learned
that for once the Spanish gunners
had made hit. They had sue
ceened In planting a shell on board
the Texas. The projectile killed
one man and wounded eight others
and did considerable damage to
the vessel herself.
By the courtesy of Captain Phil
lips 1 was permitted to go on board
the Texas and see the effect of the
Spanish shell. The Texas, it may
be mentioned, is second-class
battle ship, built with some modifi-
cations to designs prepared by Mr..
Laird Cloves in competition with
other naval experts. The vessel is
one Of the best fighting ships in
the United States Navy, and is
quite generally admitted to be the
best sea boat under the flag.
AS proof of this Lieutenant
Haslar, the chief officer, told me
that they have never yet used
"fiddles"-those denominations to
the landsman-on board the vessel
Lieutenant Haslar himself con-
Quoted me over the ship and point.
ed out the havoc wrought by the
Spanish shell. The projectile was
a steel six-inch she'll, fred, it is be-
lieved, from one of the high power
ships guns that have been mount.
ed on the Santiago Notifications
since Admiral Cervera's fleet was
blockaded in Santiago Harbor. 1t
struck the Texas on the port bow
between the gun deck and the spar
deck, bursting in the forward com.
partment, where there are six six.
FOUNDER guns, three on either side
the crews of all these guns were q,
quarters and there were besides a
number of other men in the com.
partment at the time.
1t is miraculous that only one
man was killed and eight wounded
The part of the ship hit is outside
the central citadel and above the
protected deck. The sides of the
ship at the point of impact con.
sists of steel plate one and 9
quarter inches thick. The shell
pierced this like so much paper, hi
a metal stanchion amidships ano
exploded about seven feet from the
plating on the starboard side. A
noteworthy feature OF the stee
plating was that it affoi ded NJ
splinters or debris to carry in board
1t was torn into ribbons and foldeC
back In a way to give the impres
sion of the impact and passage O
the projectile. The shock, however
was not sufficient to explode the
shell, and had it missed the stan
chion it would have passed through
the starboard side and possibly ex
ploded outside the ship.
Unfortunately the stanchIon wa,
directly in the path of the shell, anC
the heavy metal column offered
enough resistance to explode it. Th'
effect was terrific. Although tn,
shell was only a small one, six inche
In diameter, and therefore not weigh
ing more than 70 pounds, 1t practi
cally wrecked the big compartment
in which it burst, while the smoke
from it forced itself down the am
munition hoists and into the forwvrt
compartments of the ship, so tina
for few minutes the crew were al
most suffocated. The stanchion was
shivered into atoms for two feet o
it's length, and the fragments OF tn,
burst shell, flying forward agains
the starboard side, bulged the stou
steel plates outward Ito depth o
of three inches. Just at this poin
one of the big double-headed angl,
irons Of the ships frame was situat
ed. This great rib of steel, nearly
twice as thick and heavy as rail
road rail was cut through in tXt