The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1910-07-22

The Dead
Sergeant Harry G. Hess of Phoe-
bus, Va gun commander.
Corporal Charles 0. Adkins, ad-
dress unknown.
Corporal Albert Bradford of Doro-
thy, w. Va.
A. j. Sullivan If Perkins, Ky.
Roy Duffy of kenova, w Va.
II. Adey of Brardonville, w. Va.
c. w. King OF Dayton, o;
John w. Chadwick of Tazewell,
Tenn.
Judd E. Hogan, Of Geyer o.
James Turner Of Ripley, Tenn.
The Injured
Second-Iieut George L. Van Deu-
sen, Orville T. Rauey, Ellsworth Hof-
fman. Charles r.. Parks, William c.
SuiZberger
The death toll Il is believed would
have been larger had 1t not been for
the heroism displayed, both by the
officers and men in the battery. The
wounded forgot their hurts and aided
the unnjured in stamping out the
burning powder that threatened the
sacks in which the charge for a sec
ond shot had been brought up.
The explosion took place in battery
De Russy; No. gun doing the dam
age. The gun was in charge Of Capt
James Prentice who had with him
Lieut. George =. Halves Jr. and Geo.
l.. Van Deusen Lieut. HAYES had
gone forward from the breech to ex-
anime the range wheel when the
charge was exploded. He was thrown
down and momentarily stunned but
otherwise uninjured.
In the thick. heavy smoke the
scene was almost indescribable. Eight
men we're killed outright, their bodies
lying scattered around the emplace
ment. Under the pail the wounded
writhed and moaned Capt Prentice
and Lieut. Halves foresaw a further
sacrifice OF life II the other charges
caught from the smolderlng sparks
and the two sent out call for sur
geons while they attacked the flames
with their bare hands.
Capt Prentice reached the emplace
ment first aud before looking into IN,
extent Of the damage, he pushed his
way through the smoke and sparks
and carried out bag Of powder. II,
then was joined by HAYES and the
two completed the task Of ayerting ;
further explosion. During this tim'
Lieut. Van Deusen lay crumpled be
meath the gun his leg broken In tw,
places. He was suffering agonies
but when his brother officers sough
TO remove him. he would not permi
them to touch him. See to the mel
first" he ordered. and proppel
against the gun carriage, he aided Il
directing the work of the rescue pan
~ and the surgeons.
Corporal Humphreys and Sergean
Brlnkey. a gun pointer also distlr
guished themselves. The former
head. body and arms were filled wit
pieces OF flying concrete that ha
been blown from the emplacemen
when the explosion came. In spit q
his painful wounds. he rushed to hi
dead and wounded comrades, extlI
gulshed their burning clothing an
AA'A NNAil'h W AiN Nthl-NN ANNhlAl
mont for water.
Sergeant nrinkley was close TO On
breech when II blew out He wa
hurled over the right standard, an
when he rcgainod consciousness h
found himself hanging by one arr
from the railing OF the sighting pla
FORM Although severely bruised an
suffering from the shock, Brinkley d
clined to go 10 the hospital or perm
the surgeons TO examine him unit
after he had assisted In the work
rescue.
Col. G. p. Townsley commander
OF the fort promptly ordered an &
yestigat.on. While no decision h,
yet been reached Col Townsley a
yancod his theory of the disaste
1T ia evident he said that the G
plosion occurred during the lnse
ton Of the broeoh block into Il
breoch OF the gun. and before Il hi
been rotated and locked In plac
The safety devices on the gun are /
tended 10 make a premature al
charge IMPOSSIBLE lust how IN,