The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1898-03-31


the regular government pilot.
The United States consul general at Ha-
vana had notified the authorities at thai
place the previous evening of the intended
arrival of the Maine.
THE DISCIPLINE EXCELLENT
2. The state of discipline Oh board the
Maine was excellent: and all orders and
regulations in regard to the care and safety
of the ship were strictly carried out
AL ammunition was slowed away in &C.
cordance with instructions. and proper
care was taken whenever ammunition was
handled
magazines or shell rooms which was not
permitted to be slowed there.
The magazines and she'll rooms were al:
ways locked after having been opened: 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 8
o'clock.
The temperatures of the magazines and
she'll rooms were taken daily and reported
The only magazine which had al undue
amount of heat was the after ten-inch
magazine and that did not explode at the
time the Maine was destroyed.
The torpedo war he ads were all slowed
in the AMER part OF the ship. under the
ward room. and neither caused nor partici.
pated in the destruction of the Mine.
The dry gun cotton primers and deton.
atOrs were Stow"' in the cabin aft and re.
mote from the scene of the explosion.
SPECIAL CARE WAS TAKEN.
The waste was carefully looked after on
board the .:aine to obviate danger. Spe.
cial orders in regard to this had been given
by the commanding officer.
Varnishes. dryers. alcohol and other com.
bustibles of this nature were slowed ON
board the main deck and could not hav,
had anything t. do 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 wer,
stored below in any OF the other store
rooms
AS TO The COAL BUNKERS
The coal bunkers were inspected OF
those bunkers adjoining the forward mag
azines and shell rooms four were empty.
namely: B3. b. B5 BIG. AIS had been in
use that day ana A16 was full of New River
coal. This coal had been carefully inspect.
ed before receiving 1t Oh board. The
bunker in which it was slowed was Access
sible on three sides at all times. and the
fourth side at this time. on account Of
Bunkers b and BIG being empty. This
by the engineer officer on duty.
The fire alarms in the bunkers were In
working order and there had n EVER been D
case of spontaneous combustion of coal on
boarl the Maine
AFTER BOILERS WITH LOW PRESSURE
The tw, after boilers of the ship were in
use at +he time of the disaSte-. bli for aux.
Hilary purposes only. W. tn a comparatively
low pressure of steam and being tended b.
a reliable watch. Those boilers cO1ld not
have caused the exp!o ion of the shi-. The
four forward boilers have since been found
b. the divers. and are in 4 fair condition.
On the night of the destruction of the
Main, everything had been reported secure
for the nj ,ht, at O'clo k. by reliable per-
sons. through the proper authorities to the
commanding on1cer. At the time the Maine
was destroyed, the ship was quiet and,
therefore, least Nabl. to accident aused
by movem .nts from those on board
8. The destruction of the Maine occurred
at 9:4O p m of the 18th day of February,
1893 in the HarbOr of Hav ina, Cuba being
at that time mOOred to the same buoy to
which he had been taken upon her arrival.
There were two explO 'iOns of distinctly
different character. with very short but
distinct interval between them. and the for
ward part of the ship was lifted to marked
degree at the time of the frs: explosion
THE FIRST EXPLOSION LIGHT
The first exolos' On was more in the ma
ture OF a repor like that of a gun. while
the second explosion was more OPEN. pro-
longed and of or eater voluE.. This second
explosion was. in tbs opinion of the court,
caused by the partial explosion of two or
more of the forward magazines of the
Maine
Condition of the wreck:
1.-THE evidence bearing on this being
principally obtained from divers did not
enable the court to form a definite conclu-
sion as to the condition of the wreck. al
though 1t was established that the after
part of the ship was pra ;tically intact and
sank in that condition very few minutes
after the destruction of the forward part
The following facts in regard to the for
ward part of the ship are however. estab- |
ished by the testimony:
WHAT THE MAGAZINE EXPLOSIONS DID
THAT portion of the port side of thu pro. |
tective deck which extends from about |
frame 81. to about frame ~ was blown ur |
aft and slightly over 10 starbOard. folding |
the forward part of the middle super
structure over aud on top of the after part |
This was. in the opinion of the court, |
caused by the partial explosion of two or |
more of the forward magazines of the |
Maine.
S. At frame II. the outer shell of the ship |
from a point eleven and one half feet from
the middle line of the ship and six feet |
above the keel when in its normal position. |
has been forced up so as to be now about |
four feet above the surface of the water: |
therefore about thirty-four feet above