The record-union., 1898-03-29

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out.
All ammunition was slowed away in
accordance with instructions, and prop
er care was taken whenever ammuni-
/ tion was handled.
/ Nothing was stored in any one of the
magazines or shell rooms which was not
permitted to be slowed there.
/ The magazines and shell rooms were
always locked after having been open
ed; and, after the destruction of the
Maine, the keys were found in their
proper place in the Captains cabin, ev-
erything having been reported secure
! that evening at 5 p. IN.
The temperature of the magazines
and shell rooms were taken daily and
reported. The only magazine which
had an undue amount of heat was the
after 10-inch magazine and that did
not explode at the time the Maine was
destroyed
The torpedo warheads were all slowed
in the after part of the ship under the
ward room, and neither caused nor par
ticipated in the destruction of the
Maine.
The dry gun-cottcn primers and deto-
nators were slowed in the cabin aft and
remote from the scene of the explosion.
The waste was carefully looked after
on board the Maine to obviate danger.
! Special orders in regard to this had been
given by the commanding officer.
Narnishers, dryers, alcohol and other
! combuStibleS of this nature We're slowed
on or above the main deck. and could
not have had anything to 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 were
slowed below in any of the other store
rooms.
| The coal bunkers We're inspected. OF
those bunkers adjoining the forward
magazines and shell rooms, four were
empty: B3, B4, B5, B6.
AID had been used that date and A16
was full of new river coal This coal had
been carefully inspected before receiv-
ms it on board. The bunker in which it
was slowed was accessible on three sides
at all times, and the fourth side at this
! time on account of bunkers B4 and 30
/ being empty. This bunker, A16, had
! been inspected that day by the engineer
officer on duty.
The fire alarms in the bunkers were in
working order, and there had never been
a case of spontaneous combustion of
coal on board the Maine.
The two after boilers of the ship were
in use at the time Of the disaster, but for
auxiliary purposes only, with a com
paratively low pressure of steam and
being tended by a reliable watch. These
boilers could not have caused the eX-
plosion of the ship. The forward boilers
of the ship have since been found by the
divers, and are in a fair condition.
On the night of the destruction of
the Maine everything had been re-
| ported secure for the night at s p m.
by reliable persons. through proper au-
thorities, to the commanding officer At
the time the Maine was destroyed, the
ship was quiet, and therefore the least
liable to accident causd by movements
from those on board.
EXPLOSIONS.
5. The destruction of the Maine
occurred at $40 p. m. on the 18th day
of February, 1898. in the harbor OF
Havana, Cuba, the ship being at the
time moored to the very same buoy to
which she had been taken upon her ar
rival.
There were two explosions of lis
tinctly different character a very short,
but distinct interval between them. and
the forward part of the ship was lifted
! to a marked degree at the time of the
! first explosion.
The first explosion was more in the
nature of a report, like that of gun,
while the second explosion was more
open, prolonged and of a greater vol
ume. This second explosion was, in the
! opinion of the court, caused by the par
/ tial explosion of two or more of the for
ward magazines of the Maine
CONDITION OF THE WRECK.
4. The evidence bearing on this, being
principally obtained from divers, did
not enable the court to form definite
conclusion as to the condition of the
wreck, although it was established that
the after part of the ship was practi-
cally intact and sank in that condition
q very few moments after the destruc-
| ton of the forward part
The following facts in regard to the
! forward part of the ship are, however,
established by the testimony
! That portion of the protective deck
about frame ii was blown up aft and
over to port The main deck. from
about frame 80 to about frame IL was
! blown UP aft. and slightly over - star
| board, folding the forward part Of the
middle superstructure over and on top
of the floor part
This was. in the opinion of the court,
caused by the partial explosion of two
I or more of the forward magazines of
/ the Maine.
! ). At frame >, the outer shell of the
/ ship, from a point eleven and ona-half
feet from the middle line of the ship
and six feet above the keel. which IS
I its normal position has 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 the ship sunk uninjured The
outside bottom plating is bent into o
reversed Y shape, the after wing of
which. about fifteen feet broad and
/ thirty-two feet in length (from frame
/ II to frame 25) is doubled back upon
itself against the continuation of the
same plating extending forward
/ From so the vertical keel is broken in
| two and the fiat keel bent into al an
+ gle similar to the angle formed by the
outside bottom plating. This break is
/ now about six feet below the surface Of
! the water and about thirty feet above
! its normal position.
| SUBMARINE NINE.
In the opinion of the court this effect
could have been produced only by the
explosion of mine situated under the
| bottom of the ship at about frame IS.