The Washington herald., 1911-11-11
BOARD TO INSPECT
WRECK OF MAINE
Five Officers Will Leave for
Havana To-day.
THEIR REPORT WILL BE FINAL
Much Dissatisfaction with Finding
of Board Sent to Cuba Soon After
the Disaster in 1s9S-HnIf Mil
lion Dollars Spent in Getting
wreckage Exposed to View.

A board of five army and navy officers
was appointed yesterday to proceed to
Havana and inspect the wreck of the
battle ship Maine and report all possible
data which II can gather, including the
cause of the destruction of the vessel.
The members of the board are Rear Ad-
miral Charles E. Vreeland, aid for in
spections: Chief Constructor Richard NJ.
Watt, Col. William NJ. Black, Engineer
Corps, U. S. A; Commander Charles F.
Hughes, a member of the board of in
spection and survey, and Commander Jo-
seph Strauss, who is on duty in the office
of the aid for material.
The members of the board Will leave
Washington to-day, and expect TO arrive
in Havana early next week. The work or
examining the wreck Of the Maine will
probably take several days. This Will be
the second formal investigation Of the
cause of the wreck OF the battle ship
Maine.
The personnel of the board is signifi-
cant None Of the members was iden-
titled with the first investigation which
! Immediately followed the destruction OF
the vessel. Admiral Vreeland and Com
mander Hughes are members of the board
of inspection, and were selected because
of their familiarity with this sort OF
work.
Strauss a Powder Expert.
Chief Constructor Watt is Chief of the
Bureau of Construction and Repair and
an expert on the structural features OF
naval vessels Commander Strauss is
powder expert. and was formerly in
charge OF the naval proving grounds at
Indian Head. Col. Black was chosen
for membership because of the fact that
he was the president of the army board
which decided to raise the Maine by
means OF a cotferdam. He is senior
engineer officer in charge OF the work of
raising and removing the Maine from
Havana Harbor.
In accordance with legislation passed
several years ago, about $500 900 has al
ready been spent in raising the Maine.
A large cofferdam has been constructed
around the vessel and the mud cleared
away. During the last few weeks no
work has been done until the hurricane
season passed. All danger of an acci-
dent of this sort is now over. and the
army engineers are ready to remove all
the water from the cofferdam and dis
close the hulk Of the Maine for the in
vestIgation of the board.
sampson President of Board.
Immediately after the disaster occurred
on February Is, 1895, a court of inquiry
was appointed, consisting Of Capt Will
lam T. Sampson. president; Capt French
E. Chadwick. and Lieut. Commander
William P. Potter and Lieut.. Command
er Adolph Mark, judge advocate After
hearing testimony for about three weeks.
the court found that the loss of the
Maine was not due to any fault or negli-
gence on the part of any officer or mem
hGr Of hnr
stroyed by the explosion OF a submarine
mine, which caused the partial explo-
sion of two or more of her forward mag
aZines, and that no evidence was obtain
able to fix the responsibility for the de-
struction OF the Maine upon any person
or persons. Much of the testimony upon
which this report was based was from
naval and civilian divers, who investi-
gated the condition of the wreck below
the water line.
The new board, however, will have bet
ter facilities for studying the probable
causes of the wreck. The water will be
entirely removed from the cofferdam,
which will give the naval and army ex-
perts an opportunity of gathering first
hand information, and they will not have
to rely upon the reports Of divers
There has always been a good deal of
comment, not only in naval circles. but
as to whether or not the report of the
court of inquiry IN 1898 was justified bv
the actual conditions of the wrecked
vessel.
Some Doubt Findings.
While the officers who were on hoard
the Maine, and who were connected with
the investigation which followed the
disaster, have always maintained that
the vessel was blown up by a submarine
mine, there has been an element in the
navy and elsewhere who contend that II
is impossible to regard the report of
the court of inquiry as conclusive.
After the board completes its investi-
CATION of the wreck the army engineers
Will lose no time in complying with the
law OF Congress which provides the re-
moval of the hulk from Havana Har-
hor. The afterpart of the ship, accord
ing to reports received here, can be float
ed and a bulkhead will be built so that
this section can be raised and floated
out to sea, where it will be sunk in deep
water. The bow will have to be cut in
sections and placed on scows and dis
posed of In the same manner
The bodies of more than fifty victims
of the disaster have been recovered and
will be buried in the Arlington National
Cemetery. The mainmast of the vessel
will be erected over their graves as a
memorial. The bodies will be buried with
naval honors.