Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1898-03-29

bottom on the starboard quarter at a
point about opposite. the poop capstan
and ABOUT seventy feet from it. The
chief engineer thought the strainer was
from the firemen's wash room. 1t was
not a strainer in the ships side.
Near the piece of outside plating to
which witness referred above, he said
there were pieces of red, shellaced
planks. On these planks was bolted a
composition track two inches wide and
an inch thick.
The StarbOard Turret.
Ensign Powelson then said that a g.
| inch powder tank that he saw appeared
to be an empty tank broken by the ex-
Y.lcsion, as it was not badly dented and
merely ripped the length of the seam
A 10-inch tank was badly battered out
OF any conceivable shape. Continuing,
witness said the divers up to the night
before he was then on the stand had
not been on the outside of the shin,
| The mud was too deep for them to walk
on the bottom. What is the condition
| of the starboard turret?" witness was
asked.
ITO my knowledge 1t was not found,
sir" was the reply.
He understood something had been
| found under the place where the tur-
ret formerly was, but its exact charac-
ter had not been determined.
| What impression is produced upon
your mind by the reports as far as you
have quoted theEl?" Ensign Powelson
| was asked.
| From reports alone. or from the ap-
pearance Of the wreck?" n
| Either from such reports or the conf
ditions which you believe exist"
| THE impression produced upon me-"
replied the witness, lis that an explo-
sion took place well to the port of the
midship line and at a point in the length
about opposite the coming tower"
No Weight to Morgan's Statement.
| Witness. in reply to further questions.
said his opinion was based upon the OBJ
servation of things above water He
| gave no weight to Mr. Morgan's state
ment about falling into a hole on the
port side because Morgan might have
been mistaken about it. Referring to
his notes made Of things on the Maine.
| Ensign POwelSon said that the arc Of
the engine room telegraph and the
shaft of the steering gear coming down
| through the armored tube turre) was
bent from port to starboard. The port
side Of the protected deck was covered
| with a greasy deposit, the Starbcard
side being comparatively free from it.
The forward smoke pipe, between the
main and superstructure decks, did not
show signs of the internal pressure of
| gases. On the main deck, forward of
the coming tower, where the fore and
after angle bulb beam was located. the
planging was blown off on the only re-
naming plate Of the main deck on the
| port side, while the wood was still at
tached to that part on the starboard
side. between the coming tower base
and turrets. What witness saw would
indicate that the pressure lifted the
protective deck up on the port side,
| and the protective deck on the star
board side. and the protective deck on
the starboard side held fast and bent
that deck downward. Witness here ex-
hibited two sketches to the court show
ing diagram of various parts of the
sunken ship and explained them to the
court.
Could See the Plate.
The witness evidence about the stri,
on the starboard side Of the outside
plating of the ship which was folded
and rolled back was recalled to him
and Powelson said he could see plate
underneath it was bent Outward. as i,
was only two feet under water where
, the shear occurred.
Witness had taken soundings and hat
| found five fathOmS of water on both
sides of the Maine down to the mud
Taking a 14-pound lead lire and drag.
ging with a wherry for instructions or
the port side. dragging close to where
he thought the water ways would bt
| found. he found no distractions what
ever. On the starboard side he fount
distractions for twenty feet where h,
had reason to believe that the water
ways had originally been
| In answer to questions no On id thor
was nothing left CT the rnrt plating a.
all. He dragged along the outside I,
see If anything had fallen cut an,
found nothing. Witness thought In,
ship on the port side was entirely gon,
opposite points indicated On diagram
handed the court. 1t was ontirel!
blown out.
This concluded Ersirn Powelson:
testimony on the third day
Captain Sig>I,ec's Testimony.
Captain Sigsbee in tcstifying befor
the court of inquiry, which convene,
in the harbor OF Havana Monday, Feb
Il. said that he assumed command o
the Maine on April 10, 1897. and tina
his ship arrived in the barber of Ia
vana the last time Jan. "a. 1893. Til
authorities at Havana knew of tn
Names coming, Consul General lie
having informed the authorities a.
cordinS to official custom. After h
took on an official pilot, sent by tn
captain of the port of Havana the shi
was herthed in the man-of-war anchor
age off the Machina, or the Shears. an,
according to his understanding was on
of the regular buoys Of the place. II
then stated that he had been in Fla
vana in 1872 and again in 1898
He could not state whether the Main
was placed in the usual berth for men
of-war. but said that he had heard re
marks since the explosion, using Can
taiG Stevens, temporarily in commap,
| Of the Ward line steamer City of Wash
ingtOn as authority, for the statemer
that he had never known in all his ex
| perienc.. which covered visits TO Ua
| vana for five or six years, a man-of
war to be anchored at that buoy; tina
he had rarely known merchant vessel
to be anchored there and that it wa
the least used buoy in the harbor.
Surroundings of the Maine.
In describing the surroundings whe,
! first moored to this buoy Captain Sigs
hoo ctnf " ha ;st, .