Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1904-04-18
Terrible Accident on the Newest Great
United States BattIeshp
Explosion in Tunet While Having First
Regular Target Practice
War Department Shocked--Worst Since
the Loss of the Maine

States army. He was appointed from
New York.
NIidshipman Newman entered the
naval academy from California Sep
TENDER 16. 1899. He was assigned
TO the Missouri in February.
The Newest 6attleship.
The Missouri is the very latest OF
the big battleships to 90 in commits
sion. The flag was hoisted in De
cember last by Captain Cowles. broth
er-in-Iaw OF President Roosevelt She
coIlided with the Illinois of Pensaco-
Ia a few weeks ago and has had very
little firing with her big guns;in fat,
the nine or ten rounds which have
been fired from each big gun was in
the course of the official trials and she
is now going through her first regular
target practice.
Names of the Dead.
Admiral Barker. in a dispatch to the
department. says:
Five officers and q men are dead.
and two more cannot live, as the re
suit of an explosion on the Missouri.
Three rounds had been fired. The
after 13-inch gun and shell had been
seated and two sections of powder
rammed home when the explosion oc-
Cured. killing every officer and man
I'm the turret and all but three in the
handling room. The names of the
dead follow:
Lieutenant w. G. Davidson.
Lieutenant Junior grade) +. A.
Weichert
Lieutenant of Marines J. V. p. Grid
ley.
Midshipmen W. f. T. Newman and
Thomas Ward, Jr.
Boatswain's mate first class) j. p.
Peterson.
Seamen w. J. Bogard. o. n. Sender
and +. II. r. Alison.
Ordinary Seamen c. Rice c. ]. Kill
len. J. Gedris, J. F. Kennedy, ]. p.
Starr. J. c. Num-. c. II. NJ. Franks, c.
II. Meyer. r. c TObin and J. w. Cole.
Landsmen II. s. c. Berbartha, B. j.
Mulligan and J. NJ. Roach.
Electrician, second class, T. F.
ROwlands.
Gunners mate. second class, A.
Smith.
Chief Gun Captain t. z. Braun.
Private marine. w. L. Shipman.
Coxswain ]. BlOxopolous.
Apprentices, second class, j. c
Hardy and p. Z. Oastler.
The men who cannot live are
]. T. J. Donnelly. ordinary seaman,
and o. b. Moe. J. f. knight and r. S.
Starr. apprentices second class. j.
c. Scaub is also among the injured.
Pensacola, Fla, April 14-By an ex-
plosion OF 1000 pounds Of powder in
the after 12-inch turret and handling
room Of the battleship Missouri, 20
men were killed and five injured, two
fatally. About noon charge of pow
der i'm a 12-inch left hand gun ignited
from the gases and exploded and then
dropping below ignited four charges of
powder In the handling room and all ex-
plOded Only one OF the entire turret
and handling crew survives. But foi
the prompt action of Captain Cowles in
flooding the handling room and maya
zine with water one of the magazines
would have exploded and the ship
would have been destroyed. Accord
ing 10 the statement OF Ordinance on.
Ger Hammer after the first pointer had
fired his string aud the second pointer
had fired the third shot 81 his string,
the charge ignitei. as the fourth charge
was being loaded. The first half had
been rammed home and the second was
being rammed when the gases from the
previous shot or portions OF a cloth