Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1911-03-22
HURLED
SEVEN AND HALF
MILES SINK TEXAS
Shattered by Long Range
Broadsides B~attIeship Goes
Down in Tangier Sound.

ON BOARD THE TORPEDO BOAT
sTRINGHAM. Lower Chesapeake Bay,
March 22.-Shattered by a veritable
storm of shell, the old battleship Texas
rests today on the mud of Tangier
sound.
The veteran of the United States
navy sank yesterday under the spec
tacular craftsmanship of her w
sisters. Gaping holes In her port side
and two Jagged wounds in her forward
armor, where shells passed completely
through her, showed how she sue
cumbed. Part of both her fighting
masts were shot away, and her deck
was a cluster Of debris.
The craftsmanship test against a
comparatively modern battleship was
conducted with almost uncanny secrecy.
No one was permitted to approach the
San Marcus, the name under which the
old Texas received the fire, except the
observers and one or two naval officers
and officials Secretary of Navy Meyer,
whose private yacht Dolphin was an
chored near, made several trips to the
shattered old ship during pauses in
the firing.
~
The b~roadsides delivered by the bat
tleship New Hampshire at varying dis
lance of from six to seven and one
half miles were considered remarkable
by ordnance officers. More than one
third of all the shots were said to have
gone true, although nothing official
was given out.
The New Hampshire, followed by
the battleship Mississippi, $50 yards in
her wake, drew off to a distance Of ap-
proXimately seven and one-half miles
and began firing. All of the broad
siders were delivered against the San
Marcus while the attacking vessel was
steaming back and forth along the Line
at approximately a ten-knot speed.
There was no slowing down, of firing
on the turn.
After the seventh broadslde the
Texas plainly was IN distress. The
two naval tugs that lay alongside the
monitor Tallahassee, on which were
stationed the naval observers, raced to
her assistance. Secretary Meyer or
dered out his launch and, with Admiral
Wainwright and Representative Rob-
erts, of Massachusetts,, his guests on
board the Dolphin, also was quickly
alongside the stricken ship. The shells
presumably had set the vessel afire,
for hose was run over h side and
the engines were set to work pumping.
Hard humps Drive ship Out of Range.
The San Marcos also had been driven
out of broadside range by the force of
the New Hampshire's shells, n the
tugs Strengthened her out for her
further ordeal Twice afterwards shells
set the hulk afire.
What was practically the finishing
blow to the old warrior, SO far as yes
terday's program was concerned, came
on the nineteenth broadside, when four
twelve-inch and four eight-inch shells
were hurled at her Just as the sun was
setting. The shots poured so thick
around her that it was impossible to
determine how. many Of the eight
struck the vessel. A crashing of steel
against the warship,s side Just at. the
water line was followed by a great
cloud Of flying splinters Of armor and
a burst of smoke.
Admiral Schroeder, In command of
the feet, declined fatty to discuss the
effect of the shell fire on the armor,
the chickens and cats within the turrets
or upon the mannikins placed in the
fighting tops, turrets or bridges.