Newark evening star and Newark advertiser., 1914-11-27
SECRET INQUIRY
into DISASTnl': B.? !. Z! I! !,
at9 hun to y
BULWARK BEGUN
British People Deny Accidental
Explosion Destroyed
BattIeship.
PUT BLAME ON SPY OR
GERMAN SUBMARINE
Sinking of Ship Cost 800 Lives.
English Naval Loss in War
Now s,142.
BY the United Press.

- }
was started today into the blowing
up of the battleship Bulwark off
Sheerness yesterday, when 500 officers
and men were lost. Only fourteen of
the crew were rescued.
Naval experts are totally unable TO
explain the destruction of the Bull
wark upon the theory that the explo-
sion was accidental unless 1t was
caused by deteriorated ammunition.
That such could be the case, however,
is considered most unlikely because of
the frequent tests made aboard the
ship and the fact that the Bulwark's
magazines were protected by the
latest devices.
The contention of the admiralty
that the explosion was internal has
by no means satisfied the public.
Some of the papers criticise the au-
thorlties for the lack of vigilance
about government docks. AS all Lon
don has been wild upon the subject
OF spies for months, it is insisted that
German agents would have little
trouble operating In some of the ship
yards. II is believed that the destruc-
ton of the Bulwark may go down in
history as great a mystery as the
blowing up Of the United States
battleship Maine in Havana harbor.
On the streets, in the lobbies of
House of Commons and in the ad-
miralty offices the destruction of the
Bulwark was the sole topic of discus
sion today. Despite the assertions Of
the admiralty officials, 1t is believed
the warship may have been sent to
the bottom by torpedo launched by
a German ship or a submarine. 1t Is
also suggested her magazines may
have been exploded by a spy or
traitor. That spontaneous combustion
could have caused the terrible disaster
is believed impossible
Whether there is enough left OF
what was once a battleship of $1,000
tons displacement to permit of "a sat
isfactory investigation as to the cause
of the explosion is considered doubt
full. The Bulwark sank within three
minutes. Some reports say her hull
is split in three parts. Her tunnels
and masts are said to be completely
blown away. Wreckage was found six
miles from the scene OF the explosion.
Shortly after the Bulwark was sunk
report was circulated that two sub
merged German submarines had been
sighted in the Sheerness harbor. The
admiralty has stuck to its claim OF
an accidental explosion.
The losses on the Bulwark yester-
day bring the number of officers and
men lost to the British navy since the
opening of the war up to 8,142. The
naval inquiry into the loss of the
Bulwark opened at Sheerness today,
while an inquest was held at Chat
ham.
LONDON, Nov 27.--Mr. Churchill,
speaking in the House of Commons,
concerning the disaster said:
THE loss of the ship does not SEN
sibly affect our military position but
regret the loss of life, which was
very heavy. Only twelve men were
saved. All the officers and the rest
of the crew, which I suppose
amounted to between 700 and 800,
perished.''
The force of the explosion aboard
Sheerness and even in Southend,
seven miles away, and on the other
side of the Midway, were violently
shaken. The people fled into the
streets in alarm. When the great
ship blew up dense clouds of smoke
and flame shot into the air. The
vessel disappeared beneath the waves
in three minutes.
So terribly was the Bulwark rent
that 1t was impossible to render her
any assistance. Immediately after
the explosion the vessel was blotted
out by smoke, and as the veil slowly
lifted a handful of men were seen
struggling in the water Small craft
rushed to their aid and picked them
up. Some of the crew were badly
mutilated.
A touch of the dramatic was added
to the catastrophe by the fact that
the band of the Bulwark was playing
when the explosion came.
Although only IF cen years old and
no longer on the first fighting line, the
Bulwark still was a useful unit. The
loss of the ship, however, was moth
ing compared with the heavy loss in
trained officers and men, with whose
relatives Mr.. Churchill expressed in
the House of Commons his deep SYM
pathy and sorrow. The Bulwark in
her early career was quite favored
ship For long time she was the
flagship of Admiral Charles Beresford
in the Mediterranean.
An eyewitness who was on a ship
short distance from the ill-fated Bull
wark said:
"I was at breakfast at about ten
minutes to o'clock in the morning,
when | heard an explosion and went
on deck. My first impression was
that the report was produced by the
firing of q salute by one of the ships,
but the noise was quite exceptional.
when / got on deck l soon saw
that something awful had happened.
The water and the sky were obscured
by dense volumes of smoke We at
once were ordered to the scene of the
disaster to render what assistance
we could. At first we could see moth
ing. but when the smoke cleared We
were Mortified to find that the battle
ship Bulwark had gone. She seemed
TO have entirely vanished from sight,
but a little later we detected por-
ton of the huge battleship showing
about four feet above the water.
1--WE kept a vigilant lookout for the
unfortunate crew, but saw only two
men. I don't know whether the other
boats rescued anyone. One man We
saw was dead. The disaster was the
result of an accident"
Another eyewitness said that when
the explosion occurred a great volume
of flame and smoke shot into the air.
The ship seemed to split in two and
| then keeled over and sank. She dis
appeared in less than five minutes.