Omaha daily bee., 1905-08-22
CENSURE FOR ENSIGN WADE
Bennington Board of Inquiry Recommends
that He Be Court Msrtialed.
STEAM GAUGE SHUT OFF FROM BOILER
Safety valve Was Not in working
order and Pressure was Prob
ably Several Hundred
Pounds.

| WASHINGTON, Aug. 2.-Secretary Bon
! aparte today received and as soon as he
had himself read. made public the proceed
| ihss and findings of the court of inquiry
which investigated the explosion on the
Bunboat Bennington at San Diego. Cal. on
July q. The findings were a complete sur.
prise for they at once set at rest the
/ stories that had been circulated to the ef
rect that the Bennington's boilers and
perhaps those Of other naval vessels Of the
same age were defective. AS a matter Of
lact the court found the explosion re-
suited from the closing of a valve which
connected the exploded boiler with its
steam gauge so that the pressure on the
boiler may have been several hundred
pounds to the square inch when the acct
dent occurred. While praise was accorded
TO the officers and ships company for their
conduct during the narrowing scenes fol
lowing the accident the officer and men
VINO were responsible, in the opinion of the
court are pointed out and court martial
proceedings suggested in the case of the
only one of them surviving. Ensign Charles
T. Wade
The court consisted Of Commodore Stew
enson retired, and Captain f. ]. Moore
and Captain Thomas S. Phelps The find
Ing recites the arrival of the Bennington nj
SeAh bleBo' ana says:
Wrong Valve Closed.
About s:2O on July 2lst, after both boilers
had been filled and the furnaces started il
was observed that the steam gauge on
boiler 'B' showed about hve pounds OF
sFSeaIh FTspi, pr pressure S and at this time Oier
directed ID. N. Holland fireman. second
eLlass to close the air cock on boiler "B,|
that the said Holland climbed up and closed
a valve and almost Immediately the steoIo
sauge ,a on boiler b. failed to register any
press pressure; that this was apparently not no
hreman and no attention appears to have
been paid to the fact that the steam !
working the fires and firing heavily: tb5t
when the steam gauge on boiler "A" I,
showed lSQ, lS5 pounds, there was no pres |
''IBi.S" showing on the steam gauge Of boile'
Safety valve Out of order.
no one seems to have noticed any es- !
APE OF steam from the safety valves of |
mat any of the safety valves blew OFF al .
any time that morning; that we can find f.
no 1o ,l record Of the safety valve of boiler 1BS
lavlns been overhauled since July, 1894 |
lor any positive evidence of il having
been done, though orders had been given
Lor this to be done in March, 1905: that
here is no record of the sentinel valves
having been Overhauled since July 1891:
hat the safety valves were set at ii5 |.
Dounds, but en- route from Honolulu to this
port orders were given to carry, the steam
pressure at from 1870 to 1876 pounds; not ex-
lot changed; that this order had been /
,learly understood; that the hand gear
or lifting the safety valves was not in
working order, and there is no record nor
'irsHf eE t6dP stRP abs. safAtV--'lal'ae hal
The court is of the further opinion that
'urther proceedings should be had in the
,ase of Ensign Charles r. Wade, L. s. N,
who was in charge of the engineering de-
of the u. S. S. Bennington at the
lime OF the explosion. and since October
1904 in this, that he, the said ensign,
Charles 7. Wade did fail to see that the
safety valve on boiler "B' was overhauled
AZ the proper time and kept in proper re-
pair, accepting the verbal statement OF his
or subcrdinates that II had
been overhauled in March, 1905, and fur
ther that he, the said ensign, Charles 1.
Wade u S. N, did fail to keep the sem
incl valves on the said boiler in good
working order. and further that he, said
ensign, Charles I. Wade, L. S. N, did ran
to cause the sentinel and safety valves TO |
be tested in accordance with article 1903
u, United States navy regula-
ions, 1906, in all of which he, said ensign, /
Charles T. Wade, U. s, N, in charge OF |
the engineering department of the L. 5, >. |
was negligent in the perform
ance of his duty and the court recommends |
that he, the said ensign, Charles I. Wade |
u. s. N, be brought to trial before gen |
eral courtmartial.