The River Falls times. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1894-1933, 1898-03-29

downright, 1893, by Associated PresS.)
Washington. March 29.-The, Associ-
oted Press presents herewith a com
uIete abstract of the report of the
court of inquiry which investigated the
wrpcking of the battleship Maine. This
abstract is made from the report itself,
access to which was obtained despite
official secresy unparalleled in the
handling of official papers. The report
is made up of eight parts, as follows:
First-The court finds that at the time
of the explosion the battleship Maine was
living iii five and one-half TO six fathoms
Of water.
Second-The discipline aboard the ship
was excellent; everything slowed accord
ing to orders-ammunitOn, guns, stores,
etc. The temperature of the magazines
at s o. m. was normal, except in the
after ten-inch magazine, and that did
not explode.
Thiru-The explosion occurred at 9:40
o'clock on the evening of Feb. ID. There
we're two explosions, with very short
interval between them; the ship lifted
On the first explosion.
FOurtn-lDS court CAN IOlIiI 1O uSHAllIS
opinion of the condition of the wreck
from the divers evidence.
Fffth-TechniCal details of Wreckage
from which court deduces that a mine
was exploded under the ship on the port
side
Sixth-The explosion was due to no
fault of those on board.
Seventh-The explosion of the mine
caused the explosion of two magazines.
Eighth-The court declares that it CAL
not find evidence to fix responsibility.
The Report Is Unanimous
and is signed by all the members of the
court. 1t does not refer To the existence
or existence of the mines in the har-
Dor of Havana, except in the specific
finding that a mine was exploded under
the ship and the opinion that the eXpIo-
sion of the two magazines was caused by
the explosion of a mine.
The report as whole is a formal, dis
passionate recital of facts, and bears the
stamp of that strict officialism which
marks naval procedure. 1t is brief, not
exceeding eighteen hundred words, and
among the eight parts goes to the great
est length under the second heading
which deals with the discipline and order,
of the ship. This the court specifies with
extreme minutenesS, the least detail of
the satisfactory condition of everything
on board being given. The normal tenn
perature OF the large forward magazines
at o'clock-Only an hour and forty min
utcs before the explosion-disposes of the
question of accidental combustion within
these magazines. While the court holds
that these magazines did not explode
from internal causes, they nevertheless
are of the opinion that
An Explosion of a Mine
under the port side Of the ship caused the
explosion of the two magazines This
Will explain the remarkable destruction
wrought, the explosion thus being shown
TO nave combined the force of a mine
without and two magazines within. The
nndlng that the ship lifted on the first
eXplt sion indicates an external source
and one of tremendous power to be able
10 lift battleship of thousands of TONS
The character Of the wreckage, technical
~ described in the fifth part of the re-
port from which the court deduces that
. mine was exploded under the ship on
the port side, sLstains the view taken by
some experts shortly after the disaster
that the force of the explosion was ex-
erted from port to starboard.
The feature of the report of deepest in
terest to the navy is the complete exon
Grafton of Capt Sigsbee and all on board
contained in the second finding, setting
forth the perfect order and discipline pre-
Vallln% on the ship. and more directly
stated IN the sixth finding, which de-
cares the disaster to be due to no fault
~ those on board. The inability of tho
court to find evidence to fix responsibility
as stated in the eighth part, makes the
report SO guarded in expression of blame
mat neither Spain nor the Spanish are
mentioned throughout