The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-07-22
Men Serving II Inch Coast
Defence Gun Victims
of Bareback"
BREEcH PLUG NOT LOCKED
Jumps of Unburned Powder
Scattered With Terrific
Force In Gun PIT.

explosion 81 a full s"rviC charge ~ ISpwder
in gun No }. a !? inch rife on a disappear
ing carriage. in Battery Deroussy, Fort
Monroe. to-day caused the death - ten
men. the fatal wounding 81 another aui
the serious injury of four others
Eight ~ those killed died instantly ard
two ~ them shortly after they had heen
removed to the hospital.
The killed and injured belong . the
SiHty-ninth Company Coast Artillery.
The dead are
sERGr HAnErG HT-s ~ PhTbus ~
CORPORAL ALBERT BEABFuRp 81 Doroihv.
" Va
CoBP"RAL CH.RLfs - NrNI>s ~ Pine
bus Va
PKIv,Ts ROY DrTFET Of kenova. Va
PRIVATE CLEyEW MISC III Dayton. Dh'n.
PAiv.rE ALFsDw SHIFTS Of New Work
PRIVATE ANpY = SrLLIV,> Of Persins
Ky
PEivarE JAWS TURNER ~ R,plsv.
Tenn
PRIv.rE JoH~w 'Hsr~icE .; Taz.ee..
Tenn
PErv.rE ,rIrr NAV Of Brandonv,,ls.
" Va
Private Jaid T.. Hogan 90. Cuyer OHIO.
was fatally wounded
Private Amile I Rainy n Fin1lAy.
Ohio. Prvat' Ellsworth " Hoffman ot
Prtt-hurg. Pa. Private " {. sSlsberksr
n Fort Monroe. and Private Charles T..
Parks were seriously hurt.
Second Lieut. Georga l.. Van Deusen u
the sixty mir tn Company Vas ths only
Commissioned ofScer injured. His leg
Was broken.
Three Of thoss killed. Sergt He's and
CorporAls Bradford and Atkins. wers
married and leave families.
The appearance nf the gun pi' after tbs
explosion was r-Tplhng a. the stoutest
heart Tn. dead and wounded were
strewn over the ioor Some of the bodies
had to 10 gathered up piece 10y piecs and
from some 81 them most 81 the clothing
had h-s@n torn.
The wounded were speedily taken over
to the hospital and shortly after ths UNDER
tAker appeared and took the dead To thu
morStIe Ia prepare them for burial.
While the cause ~ the explosion may
never be known, Col. Townsley. COM
mAndant of the fort. said tonight that Il
must have been caused by the premature
pulling Of the line which - used TO dis-
charge the primer on the charge II
powder This may have been due TO tho
catching Of the line Ia the mechanism 81
the gun or u NAV have been accidentally
/ pulled nv one of the men serving tn
! gun in his haste to get the gun into action
/ No other theory a. TO the cause Of the
accident - advanced
The gun had been IN service for several
years. but u had not been previously
fired to-day The projectils which the
charee Of powder was 10 force from IN
gun remained IN Il after the explosion
The bre.-ch block was torn from thu
| gun and hurried into a creek behind thss
| battery a. Was the body OF one Of iho~s
| who was killed
The gun sustained no other injury than
the loss 81 the hreech block. and that -
not thought To have struck any 81 the
men Unconsum-d powder. which when
IL enter- the gun - IN large hard iumT-
killed and wounded those with whom II
came IN contact This powder few IN
all directions and came from the breech
OF the gun with great force.
The gun was b-ing served by two de-
| tarhments of twenty men. All 81 thos.
Who w.r. in the pit when the explosion
occurred were either killed or wounded
| One vas preparing 20 sight the gun and
the remainder were IN the magazine
| Oficers of the fort believe that al who
wer. near enough 20 the br.ech 81 tn
gun at the time % the accident 90 give
any information a. 10 What may have
caused Il were killed.
| Col Townsley has ordered an lnvestika-
ton into the probable cause ~ the expo
SION and a board ~ officers has ben
named 20 make II.
IL 10 evident that the gun Was not out
Of the pit at the time that the charge 81
powder went OF. but Was probably being
aised ana in an inclined position.
The gun wns one % thosa in five bat
tories being used 20 repel the advance
/ o. AN Imaginary feet who~@ object u vas
% force It's way past the fort and on up
the hay II was the most pre'entious
hattie practice ever undertaken by the
coast artillery. In all hfty-ons shots
were 10 have been cred At the attacking
ae~, represented by target RATS being
towed by a tUg.
Observing the gun fire were Gcn
Crozier. chief Il star ~ the army: Major
Gen W n Carter. assistant chief u star
Gen Arthur Murray. chi-f ~ the Coast
s-,,llsry; Gen. Bailey. chief ~ engineer,
and many officers from the chief ~ s's,i =
Office IN Washington and u- Norfol-
Navy Yard They immediately u
spected the gun and PIT after the eHrl
sion
Il ~aa expected that G-n L"rnari
Wood wouh - there. bat i" O. ~ nov
ret away from Washington.
The hring AZ the targ-;s SNs heavy
durtns tie two minut"s and t't-en So
md. which Il lAs.eI shortly Se'or" II
o'clock an army tug towing tT' tirSe'a
appearsd three and hlk u.ties below
the fort. the tArssts, si-ty !es' l0ns u