The Washington herald., 1907-03-13

Paris, March 12-To the terrible series
Of disasters suffered by the French fleet 4
by the loss Of the sully, Jean Fart Lu-
tin, and Farfadet, was added to-day a
torpedo explosion. causing the loss OF the
battle ship jena. which Admiral Bienaime
called one Of the few units fulfilling the
conditions OF modern naval war. she is
now a mass of shapeless ruins. inelosing
mutilated corpses. Twenty-one officers
and SO men were on board when the ca
tastrophe happened. At O'Clock this
evening 359 men answered 10 the roll CALI
and about 80 were in the hospitals.
At exactly 1.S0 a terrible explosion
shook the air. Every one in Touliu be
lieved that an earthquake had occurred
and rushed outdoors. In few moments
there was another explosion. even more
terrible than the first. and then a third.
At the same time thick clouds Of smoke
arose from the port
Magazine Blows Tn.
a crowd poured ike a torrent toward
the arsenal and the port, but the gate
WAS kept closed and little could be
learned, but whirlwinds OF smoke. which
hid the Missessy deck. while detonation
after detonation followed After a Iorfg
wait, a few human beings were seen be-
ing led forth The work of searching for
the dead and wounded was carried on by
tremendous efforts. for the explosion
wrecked not only the Jena, but three
arsenals and workshops The corpses
found were horribly dishgured and ter
TibIy burned.
II is impossible 90 learn from the sur
vivors how the explosion was caused.
Some say that the torpedo men were
manipulating a torpedo, which. under
some shock, exploded. The violence was
50 great that two shells II the explosive
magazine Of Sgs milIimeters cOIllded ard
exploded, starting the hre. The gases 50
produced being compressed "A. the. maya
zine caused the other explosions h
explosives were hurled Immense tszA
people were injured by the flying debris.
One baby Was killed by she'll
Many Men Able to EScnpe.
A signalulan Of the Jena. named Giudi-
/ celH. who escaped says that a large
number of the crew of the battle ship
were gathered in the fore part OF the
ship listening To "A lecture which WAS
being delivered by an officer. when the
first explosion came. Most of these were
able 20 escape.
There were about go officers and men
| on board the vesse! at the time of the
/ disaster. but many OF them Jumped into
Hr Ia D
that the victims number more than 2a8.
bur the number cannot yet be definitely
asceTtained.
Further explanations ON the Jena con
tnued at short intervals for a Ions time.
and debris few over the dockyard for "a
distance Of go yards. The windows of the
workshop around the scene Of the ex-
plosions are all broken. A shell weighing
twenty pounds was hurled a quarter of a
mile before striking and sinking into the
ground.
Panic in the Arsenal,
4 panic prevailed among the employees
of the arsenal. who were returning to
work from luncheon when the magazine
blew up. Many of them made rush
toward the BIssiessy dock. whence clouds
of thick smoke were arising. An officer
iperemptorily called out. Save your
selves.. and ali the workmen and Others
| then made a rush for the nearest exit
| from the arsenal
Later squads OF workmen and sailors
approached the scene OF the disaster at
the peril OF their lives. and as they neared
the Jena's dock they could dimly observe
I through dense smoke debris. with what
! they thought were fragments of human
bod .
/ further explosion on the vessel. Black
| ened figures also rushed madIy through
/ the lines of spectators. apparently not
/ knowing where they were fleeing.
The Jena was undergoing an inspection
/ of her machinery in the first basin of the
/ Missiessy dock when the explosion came.
| The explosion of the cOmpressed-air tor
PedO set fire to the after-pow6er maga-
zine, blowing up the whole after part of
| the vessel.
Officers on the jena.
The Jena was a turrit ship Of 1851
tons displacement and $3.50 horsepower.
She was built az Brest. and was com
pleted in 1901 The vessel had an armored
| belt from to l53s inches of steel mount
/ ed four Pinch guns eight 6.4-inch guns.
/ eight 39-inch, sixteen 1-S-inch. and about
! twenty smaller rapid-fire guns. Her
speed was more than eighteen knots. and
| her crew consisted of 631 officers and men.
The Jena was the flag ship Of Rear
/ Admiral Manceron. commanding one OF
the divisions OF the French Mediterranean
/ squadron. Capt. T. b. c. Vertier was the
chief-Of-staf. and her commander was
/ Capt. p. Adigard. Among the other Off
! GERS Of the Jena were
/ Second Capt. c. L. de Paris de Boisrou-
| vray Lieut. BOrsat de LaperoUse. of the
/ staff, aid-de-camp of Rear Admiral Man
ceron: Chief Engineer NJ. f B0reui. Dr.
/ j. J. B. Trabaud. principal divisional sur
geon; Lieuts. lie GOuz de Saint-Seine. n.
/ p. Tiercelin, Z. f. Forget J. NJ p E.
/ Calemerd. ]. E G. BaUch, and c. Dubois,
| Ensgns H. NJ F. Paltevin. P. J. a. Lam
| bert. c. II. Raymond, J. B. Clementel. T.
| Pinhede. and J. F. N. lie Roux
Chapter of Naval Losses.
The disaster to-day is the eighth in the
! case Of a vessel of the French navy since
| the beginning of the current year, as fol-
/ lows:
The submarine boat Algerian sank at
her moorings at Cherbourg. January L.
/ There was no loss Of life.
/ The submarine boat X became un-
manageable while at sea of Cherbourg.
CONTINUED on THIRD PAGE,
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Fragrant vioiets, CSC Per Bunch,
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