The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1907-07-20
YOUNG CRUISE DEAD
AFTER GALLANT
STRUGGLE
BattIeship GeOrgia's Death List
Numbers Ten
'MIDDYS" LIFE BLOTTED OUT
Naval Board Of Inquiry Determines
That Disaster was Caused by
a Delayed Flarebaok

BOSTON, July 20. - Midshlpman
Cruise died here. making the tenth
death as the result OF the explosion on
board tho battleshlp Georgia last Mon.
day. lie made brave light against
great odds. Ills parents were with
him at the time he died.
MidshIpman John Thomas Cruise, u.
&. n, was born In Kentucky aud was
appointed 60 the United StatOs Naval
academy nc Annapolis ON July q, lyOS.
from Nebraska. where he was then Nv.
ing He graduated from the academy
with honors aud was assigned 20 the
battleship Georgia when she went m
% commission at the Charlcstuwn ma
W yard on oct. .. iisG. His father u
Major Thomas Cruise. q. \. A., depot
uuaricrmn.icr u the army station az
Onuha. Nsh.
hldshipman Cruise proved himself u
brave officer. fDr after he had been
terribly burned ln the explosion aud
while suncriu. g-sat pain be- helped
take ,hrrg, 1T the work ~ rcscuing
his fellows anil told those who wished
a. direct their attentions 90 him % DE-
vote their work % saving the others
Ills bravery won for him the esteem
aud praise ~ every one on hoard the
baiilrship. where be was popular dur
ins BIZ service.
Major Cruise aud party started for
washington last night. and the body
OF the midshlpmsn was Forwarded this
morning for iniermcnt with naval hon
orr IN the cemetery ~ Arlington.
Mldshipman Alfred W. Brown. Jr.
~ the battlcship Georgia will act a.
honorary guard over the body on the
wsy 20 Washington Brown was q
roommate 81 Cruise aboard the bat.
tleship
The condition ~ Senmen Louis o.
Mecse aud John A. Bush Is less favor
able
The condition Of Seamen Ilarold l..
gilbert. John A. Fone. John q. Malek
aud James T.. Thomas remain about
the same. general Improvement l-lns
shown. chief Woman Orly Taglund.
seaman samuel l.. Roscnlcrgrr ani
Boatswain's Mate y. Schlapp are do.
Ing we'll. seaman g. l.. Eich aud
Gunncr's Mate .. llaussli arr out ~
danger.
By process ~ elimination the ma.
val board which has b~cn iuvcsiiTnt-
Ing the accident whereby the men In
the turrvt ~ the battleship Georgia
lost their lives has arrived NJ the con.
cluslon that delayed narrhack"
caused this catastrophe. In one sense
the verdict h received with n distinct
sense 81 relief by naval officers he-
cause Il shows that they had no new
element of danger a. contend with.
They had experienced "hanbacks" be-
fore aud thought that they knew how
10 deal with them.
A delayed bareback" l. caused by
closing "a too soon the blast ~ com.
pressed air which 4 supposed 10 cXpel
from the borc ~ the gun the unburnt
gases and fragments ~ smoldcrlng
powder covering what might be left
from the last discharge
In the case ~ the Georgia's eight
inch gun. what happened was this:
The breech Of the gun was thrown
open aud the alr blast turned In NJ n
pressure Of lOo pounds 20 the square
inch. This l. sufficient for all ordinary
purposes. with the important qualih-
cation that II should h. continued long
enough 10 drive the last remnant Of
ras or cloth from the gun bore. In
this case the gases or smoldoring cloths
(which 10 not known now were driven
probably more than halfway 20 tho
mnzzle 81 the gun when the air blast
was turned "a. The Georgia was
steaminE NJ ten knots into the wind
which blew into the muzzlc Of the
gun. The unexpected gases or cloths
were driven back by the breeze into
The breech ~ the gun aud out upon
the powder charge which was Just
ai.o,iI Ia Ia tnaartaU Tn. .xt,t.al.t,