The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1907-07-23

could understand what caused the
| leaders, cry OF warning there was q
! binding flash as the burning powder
exploded
! Flames, smoke and nauseous gases
filed the little superstructure, in
which more than a score of men were
confined Inasmuch as the powder
was not confined, there was no deaf
ening report, and every nook and
Granny Of the turret was filled witt
fame.
Blinded by the smoke and fame.
choked by the acrid penetrating
fumes, and maddened with pain, the
men screamed in agony. Some stag
gered blind1y up the ladder to the
hatchway in the top of the turret,
while others crept along the turret
floor, crying for assistance.
Lieutenant Goodrich and Seaman
Maleck became crazed, staggered up
the iron ladder to the top of the tur-
ret, and threw themselves headlong
into the sea, in a despairing effort to
escape death by the fire that was
consuming their clothing.
Meanwhile some of the burning
powder had cleared away, and the
shipmates of the unfortunate men
rushed to their assistance. Tenderly
the suffering sailors were lifted out
of the fire-blackened turret and taken
to the ships hospital, where the sur
geons attended them.
Lieutenant Goodrich and Seaman
Maleck, struggling in the sea, were
seen by men in launch returning
from an inspection of the target, and
we're rescued.
Bhe surgical staff of the Georgia
was soon reinforced by the surgeons
of the other vessels in the fleet, sum-
moned by wireless telegraphy, signal
flags and the wig-wag.
Lieutenant Goodrich had his eye
sight destroyed and was otherwise
badly burned. He was brought back
to the Charlestown yard alive and
fingered In agony until 1f.45 o'clock
p. m. Happily he survived until his
father, who took the first train for
Boston, reached his bedside.
There we're twenty-one in the tur-
ret at the time. Not one of them es-
capped injury. The ship was not dam
aged, and Immediately after the ca
tastrophe made record breaking
dash to Boston to land the wounded
at the United States Marine Hospital
at Chelsea.
Then the full story of the terrible
catastrophe was told-a story
Astounding at once in heroic deeds
and unutterable suffering. In five
minutes of modern inferno brave
officers and men had their eyes
burned out, their bodies scared with
flames their lives choked out with
noxious gases.
The name of Orly Tagland, a COM
mon seaman. goes down to imperish-
able glory for having, when the dan
ger was at the greatest, thrown him
self upon the body of Midshipman
Kimball, and preserved his superior
officer from the flames which con-
sumed his own body.
Midshipman Cruise refused to have
his burns dressed.
take care of the other fellows"
he cried
Half-masted flags, andscrews drawn
bodies of the dead and dying when
the Georgia steamed into the Navy
Yard.
Rear-Admiral Thomas has ordered
an investigating board to examine
into the cause of the accident. I'M
til it makes it's report the real cause
of the explosion will be in doubt 1t
is uncertain, that the board will be
able to determine definitely what ig-
nited the cases of powder.
One belief is that spark from the
discharge of the after-turret guns
floated back to the turret through
gun port and settled on to the pow
der cases. Another theory is that
the spark that caused the trouble
came from the smokestacks of the
ship and fioated through the ventila-
tor. A floating spark seemed evident.
to naval men, but whether from
gun or a funnel furnished topic for