Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1906-06-22
NiiE MEN killed
IN blast ON ship
TWO SCORE OTHERS WOUNDED
BY TERRIFIC EXPLOSION
AT LIVERPOOL.
DECK OF VESSEL
LIKE CHARMED HOUSE
Rumor That Horror Was Due to In
fernal Machine Is De1lied-Fire
Follows Catastrophe on British
Liner Haverford.

Liverpool, June 15.-Nine men were
instantly killed and about 40 others
wounded following terrific explosion
ON board the British steamer Haver-
ford Thursday. Some of the injured,
it is believed, will die.
The Haverford with passengers ar.
rived here Wednesday from Phuadel-
phia. The vessel is owned by the In
ternational Navigation company. Aft
er landing her passengers the ship
proceeded to Huskisson dock to I'M
load. The stevedores were In the act
of loosening the steamers matches
when suddenly most violent explo-
sion occurred 1t blew off the hatch
es, rent the decks, and hurled dead
and wounded men in all directions.
Several bodies were dismembered and
the deck resembled the floor Of char
mel house.
Rumor Of Internal Machine.
The explosion, which was heard for
many miles and was. according to ru-
NOR. caused by an internal machine,
was followed by an outbreak OF fire.
| The cargo, consisting of linseed oil
cake, in hold No. 2 and hold No. 8.
was soon blazing fiercely. Firemen
and police hurried to the spot and
the injured were quickly taken to a
neighboring hospital. The work of
/ searching for further possible casual
! ties proceeded with vigor. In spite of
the fierceness of the fire, which soon
assumed alarming proportions, owing
to the inflammable nature of the car
90. After two hours hard fight the
| firemen obtained the mastery OF the
flames. 1t is believed that number
Of the men taken to the hospital will
succumb to their injuries.
7 Later 1t was reported that the dis
| >ster on board the Hayerford was ap-
rently caused by the exposition OF a
bar, eel Of naphtha.
.Ncout Theory Of Foul Play.
Mo export that the explosion on the
Haverfor, 4 was due to an Internal ma
chine aros e from the finding OF a
wooden box foot square in one OF
tho holds. TITS box. which was only
No r+lv shattere =. still contained pieces
If steel machin sry 1t was promt-
nentlv marked "Fcr Manchester, Eng
,and" The officials of the 1nterna-
tiona1 Navigation CON- any have taken
charge of the box, but they do not
attach Importance to the theory OF
foul play and say that the presence
of the box in the hold was mere
accident. The officials say they be-
l,eye the exposicn was due to igni-
tion Of ga given off by naphtha soap
which formed part OF the cargo.
outwardly little harm has beer
: done to tie vessel beyond the rents
in the deck, but inside the damage i
extensive, both by the explosion ans
: the fire.
Manager Wiilet, of the Internationa
/. line, after making an examination O
the holds. accompanied by an analyt
ical chemist. said that at present i
. was impossible to state definitely thu
8 cause of the catastrophe. No explo
siyes of any kind were on board 81
far as known. The holds, however
will be kept just as they were ief
after the explosion until the .arFiya
Of an inspector of explosives fTen
.i,e home office. when a thorough ex
n ert investigation will be made, an
Q r. is hoped to determine the cause 9
the explosion. The inspector is sess
. nec,'ed here from london Friday.
a Sc vera1 of the victims of the dis
aster ars Wnrecognizable. One bod
was found Aeaalless and armless, an
in anot Yer case fhe head was pickle
II nm hut he body had tlSaDpeared.