St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1911-09-30
have been transferred to hospitals.


a crew Of divers who are at work ex
plcring the interior of the hull. Thi
afternoon the Liberte appeared as i
he'' bow had doubled over ON tn,
stern. Men buried in that part O
the wreckage above the water coule
be heard groaning and screaming fol
help, which often the rescuers wer.
unable to give. The lower deck wa,
a horrible sight. One man had hi,
foot held under mass of stee
weighing tons. After three hours
vain effort to lift the mass, a surgeon
amputated the foot. Through hole
in the armor, portions of bodies, con
torted and piled together, could be
preceived, all of them charred by the
flames.
DESCRIBED BY OFFICER.
One of the survivors, a warrant
officer, who came out of the hurri'
cane Office with only slight cut or
the forehead, telling of the disaster
tonight, said:
"The fire broke out in the general
store, among cans of turpentine
paint and other inf1ammables. In
spite of every effort, the flames reach.
ed the coal bunkers, and after that
| it was difficult to prevent their gain.
ing the powder magazines. 1t was
about $3.50 o'clock, and dawn was
breaking before the danger seemed
t. be realized. Assistance then was
being sent to us from the port and
the other warships lying in the har-
bCr.
"Just when the whole ships crew
seemed to have reached the boats in
safety, there was a terrific explosion.
The Liberte was hurled over on her
side, and the forepart, where the
full force of the explosion was felt,
lurched forward heavily, with an ap-
palling crash. Cries resounded on
all sides. The greater part of the
ships boats, with the rescuers and
the men from the Liberte, instantly
sank How / escaped from this
fright calamity I do not know.
From that moment on l was con-
scicus of being carried aboard the
Republique, where l was taken care
of. When l had somewhat recovered
my senses, they told me what had
happened. ssE
after the explosion enormous
fragments or iron, detached from the
Liberte, fell upon the Republique,
smashing the bridge and plunging
between the decks. The bugler of
the Liberte was hurled through the
air from our ill-fated ship to the
deck of the Republique, where he
was picked up badly hurt. In his
hands he still held the bugle with
which he was sounding the alarm"
PREDICTED EXPLOSION.
An eyewitness of the disaster
says: #8%tR
"While walking with my family
this morning about $50 o'clock, /
saw little flames darting out from
The sides of the Liberte. Having
heard a rumor that the vessel was
afire. said to my wife: ....
.zaIA4---sii t,Secyr 4s,-ZEi :
there is sure to be an explosion
Hardly had l spoken the words
when the most appalling report !
ever heard in my life almost threw
III: to the ground. A great sheet OF
fame suddenly appeared, illuminat-
ing the entire roadstead. Then, look
ing up at the sky, / distinguished
black specks whirling through the
air and falling back into the sea. Il
seemed only moment-so rapidly
die the ghasty scene pass-and ehe
Liberte had vanished, leaving in the
place Of the great battleship a shape
less mass on the waters"
A newspaper reporter, who was OH
the quay Immediately after the dis
aster occurred, said the smoke oD-
scured the entire harbor, and the
sun shone red through the veil. On
the way out to the wreck, he met q
sloop from the Patrie, which had
been moored close to the Liberte.
s'The work of secue was in full
swing" said sailors of the sloop,
when an immense pillar of smoke
arose slowly and the flames spread
fast. Suddenly tongue of flame
shot up, there was deafening roar,
and debris of all kinds rained down
upon our heads. All the boats which
surrounded the Liberte were engulf-
ed in the whirlpools caused by the
sinking ship. They vanished amid
the despairing cries of the crew. We
could see nothing of the Liberte. II
DISAPPEARED in the dense, smoke and
tho boiling waters"
Petty Officer Leon, one of the sur
vivors who was taken aboard the Re.
publique, said:
81 was in my hammock and, hear
Ing shouts, got up in. terror. | saw
|smoke and flames all around me, ant
knew nothing more"
Commander De Keraudren of the
Republique said that when the ex
plosion occurred his vessel wa!
shaken from stem to stern. ..
REVIEW SIGNIFICANT.
The Liberte was anchored in tn,
roadstead, where she has been sine,
the review of the fleet by Presiden
Fallieres on Sept. 4. Particula
significance attached to the review
the most imposing in the history O
the French navy, as it was made o.
the very day that France communi
Gated to Germany the terms upol
which the republic offered a settle
ment of the Moroccan dispute.
To the dead must be added 10
rlen from the other ships, who wer
killed. Twenty men were killed an
fifty injured on board the Democrat
and there were fatalities on tn
Verite and Republique. The latte
was obliged to dock hastily Nearl
every vessel of the squadron lost me
from the parties sent to the aid G
the burning battleship. The Verti
was moored nearest. being about 20
Iya.ds from the Liberte. Eight c
the Verite's men were wounded b
flying fragments blown from tn
fr;ghtful spectacle. They ! becam
Targets for the falling debriS