-
N
Cruiser Maine Destroyed
in Havana Harbor
BEAT LOSS OF LIFE
Two Hundred and Fiftyeight
American Sailors Dead
SUSPECT M SPANIARDS
Belief That the Terrible Affair
Was Not Accidental
WILD TALK OF WAR
Many Americans Would Wipe Span
ish Off the Earth
Powerful United States Naval Vessel
Sent by This Government to Cuban
Waters Lies at the Bottom of tlie
Bay a Charred and Torn Hulk Ca
tastrophe Took Place at 10 Oclock
at Night Wben All tlie Sailors Ex
cept Tliose Detailed for Duty Were
Sleeping Explanation Wbicli Seems
to Best Fit Circumstances Is That a
Torpedo Was Exploded Under the
Ship
United States battleship Maine
THE at the bottom of Havana har
bor a charred and torn hulk and a
tomb for over 250 of her crew She
was blown up about 10 oclock Tuesday
night by a terrific explosion said to have
been an accident The explosion occur
red in the bow of the vessel and at an
hour when the honest sailors had retired
while most of the officers had returned
from tlie gayeties of the city Whether
the magazine of tlie ship was fired by ac
cident or treachery whether bomb or
placed beneath the bow sent the
Maine to the bottom of Havana bay and
its blue jackets to their long home per
haps no man shall ever know All that
sailors and officers of the fated craft could
say was that there was a crash and a roar
that men were hurled headlong from
their bunks upon the cabin floors and that
out of the darkness the grinding of burst
ing timbers the surging of the water rush-
COMMANDER SIGSBEE
dng back to fill the great chasm torn by
he explosion came the screams of wound
ed men and long red jets of flame
Ten minutes later and the Maine all
afire from stem to stern began to settle
in the water Over the side went the sail
ors half clad or clad not at all flinging
themselves into the bay still dazed bruis
ed and bleeding Out of the red murk and
the horrible uproar could be heard the
loud voices of officers ordering and di
recting cool and plucky in the face of
death showing even in that hour of horror
the grand courage and the steady disci
pline that won at New Orleans and Mo
bile the grandeur of Farragut the iron
nerve of the Kearsarges crew upon the
rock -of Roncador There were no weak
souls nor cowards there the officers held
place and power even as at a dress review
and to their coolness and their courage
is due the fact that the panic did not re
sult in ven heavier Joss of life than the
explosion and the water caused combined
The nation mourns for those who per
ished with the Maine Such a startling
vision of sudden death has not for years
been presented to the public mind The
tragedy appeals to all American hearts
For all must feel that the lost stood ready
at an instant call to make of their bodies
a rampart between their country and their
countrys foes There hav been few such
disasters in modern times The catastro
phes to the Roval George to the Victoria
and in Apia harbor to the Nipsic the
Vandalia and the Trenton are among the
few comparable to it
A dispatch from Havana said that the
wildest excitement prevailed in the city
The wharves were crowded with thou
sands of people There was a rush and
iiurry and it is claimed that the Spaniards
leut every energy to the saving of the
doomed Americans Out from the great
black sides of the Spanish warships says
the dispatch flew boat afr boat and the
Spanish sailors never pulled faster oars
Over the bay they skimmed seizing here
on arm extended from the water in the
Jasf struggle of the drowning man grasp
jug there a drenched blue jacket until the
boats were full of rescued men and no
more living bodies eould be found upon the
surface of he water
The shock of the explosion wrecked ev
ery window in Havana Capt Gen Blan
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY EIGHT AMERICAN SAILORS DEAD
Terrible Destruction of tlie Magnificent Battleship Maine Was the Greatest Calamity that Has
Ever Befallen the Navy of the United States
a WiMmaA
- i imiii r
- iniTL
co was among the first to realize what
had happened and he spared no exertion
to aid Capt Sigsbee s men Admiral
Mauterola and Gen Solano proved wor
thy coadjutors and the Spanish sailors
and soldiers alike did all that was in their
power Capt Sigsbee was not hurt al
though the earlier dispatches represented
him as severely wounded The explosion
took place directly under the quarters of
the common sailors missing the officers
cabin by many yards
The wounded sailors in hospital declar
ed that they were utterly at a loss as to
the cause of the explosion that they were
all asleep when the crash came and that
all they could do was to pick themselves
up from the floor grope their way amid
falling timbers smokcand flame and take
to the water and the Spanish boats
Capt Sigsbee says the explosion oc
curred in the bow of the vessel He re
ceived a wound in the head Orders were
given to the other officers to save them
selves as best they could The latter
who were literally thrown from their
bunks in their night clothing gave the
necessary orders with great self-possession
and bravery The first theory was
that there had been a preliminary explo
sjon in the Santa Barbara magazine with
powder or dynamite below the water Ad
miral Manterola believes that the first
explosion was of a grenade shell that was
hurled over the navy yard When the ex
plosion occurred Captain Sigsbee was be
low but he rushed up on deck in his shirt
sleeves and gave orders Efforts were at
first made to save the vessel but when
Captain Sigsbee realized the extent of
the damage done and that many casualties
had occurred he bent all his energies to
assuring the safety of his men
Report of Captain Sigsbee
The Secretary of the Navy at Washing
ton received the following telegram from
Capt Sigsbee Maine blown up in Ha
vana harbor 940 and destroyed Many
wounded and doubtless more killed and
drowned Wounded and others on board
Spanish man-of-war aiu Ward line steam
er Send lighthouse tenders from Key
West for crew and few pieces of equip
ment still above water No one had
other clothes than those upon him
Public opinion should be suspended un
til further report All officers believed to
be saved Jenkins and Merritt not yet
accounted for Many Spanish officers in
cluding representatives of Gen Blanco
now with me and express sympathy
SIGSBEE
WE ARE READY TO STRIKE
Within 24 Hours Our Ships Could
Blockade Every Cuban Port
A New York dispatch says Three flag
officers of the United States navy are
watching events at Washington Madrid
and Havana with groat interest They
are Rear Admiral Montgomery Sicard
commanding the North Atlantic squad
ron Rear Admiral John A Howell com
manding the European squadron and
Capt Colby M Chester senior officer in
command of the South Atlantic squadron
Each of these three commanders received
telegraphic orders to hold his ship in read
iness for active service and to keep it fully
coaled and provisioned at all times There
is an American flag floating over frown
ing broadsides of guns within easy strik
ing distance of every port on the northern
and southern coasts of Cuba
HOUSE PASSES RESOLUTIONS
Sympathy Expressed for the Families
of the Dead
In the National House of Representa
tives Wednesday Mr Boutelle chairman
of the Committee on Naval Affairs offer
ed the following resolution which was
unanimously adopted
Resolved That the House of Repre
sentatives has learned with great sorrow
of the calamity which has caused the de
struction of the United States battle ship
Maine and the appalling loss of more than
250 lives and the wounding of many oth
ers cf the gallant defenders of our flag
and that the House expresses its sympa
thy for the injured and its sincere condo
lences with the families of those avIio have
lost their lives in the service of the na
tion
WAR SPIRIT AT WASHINSTON
Feeling That the Maine Disaster Re
sulted from Spanish Treachery
Washington was aflame Wednesday
with the war spirit Everybody eagerly
read the extra newspapers carrying latest
dispatches from Havana and the strained
efforts of those high in official life to show
the blowing up of the Maine to have been
an accident only added to the impatience
of the general public Both houses of
Congress assembled at noon under the
most exciting conditions since war times
From the advices received from Lee
and from other sources in Havana said
Secretary Long I am not inclined to
think it was an act of Spanish hostility
I have no explanation to make but the
fact that Capt Sigsbee has asked that
public opinion be suspended leads us to
believe that those who are in a position
to have the best information do not regard
it as a hostile act The dispatch from
Consul General Lee says the cause of the
explosion is yet to be investigated but it
also says that the Spanish have rendered
all possible assistance Nothing yet re
ceived indicates that the disaster was the
result of Spanish treachery and we will
proceed with care until we have further
particulars
Public opinion however refused to be
suspended and to say that the capital was
excited over the report of the destruction
of the Maine is but to give but a meager
and inadequate idea of the real condition
of affairs Wednesday It was the only
topic of conversation There were extra
papers on the streets every fifteen min
utes people wildly shouted their opinions
of the catastrophe and on all hands were
talk of war and demands for more infor
mation Treachery was the word on all
lips No one could be persuaded that the
affair was not of Spanish origin It was
thought that some Spanish agent secured
access to the vessel and exploded a gren
ade near the ammunition magazine
If Spanish treachery did not destroy the
magnificent battle ship Maine and
Hichborn said that an accidental explo
sion was impossible leaving the infer
ence that he believed the explosion to
have been due to treacherous hands
The President and his cabinet tried to
keep down the excitement until full re
ports could be received from Captain
Sigsbee They did not care to base their
judgment on dispatches that must be pass
ed upon by the Spanish censors in charge
of the telegraph wires at Havana They
therefore followed the theory of an acci
dental explosion because it would be very
serious for the administration publicly to
assume that the Maine could have been
destroyed in any other way until they
had the full details of this affair from tlie
commander of the ship
It is asserted by naval officers that the
harbor of Havana is full of submarine
torpedoes which need only an electrical
connection to make an explosion possible
The theory that the Maine was destroyed
by a torpedo found ready believers No
body was willing to assert that the Span
ish Government was primarily responsi
ble for touching off a torpedo but among
the hotheads roaming the streets of Ha
vana in the state of excited feeling now
existing there are many it is believed
who would not hesitate to commit such
an outrage
COUNTRY GREATLY EXCITED
Seems as Thougli Providence Were
Leading Two Countries to War
The agitation and suppressed excite
ment that prevail throughout tlie coun
try are shown by the telegrams of inquiry
that have been received at the various
departments and newspaper offices and
by members of Congress as to the proba
ble cause of the explosion And it is
clear that however it may be explained
this awful calamity must seriously in
crease the tension between the United
States and Spain by provoking excitement
suspicion and irritation The comments
of many public men as furnished in the
press dispatches cannot be overlooked by
BIRDS EYE VIEW OF TEE HARBOR OF HAT ANA
der more than 250 American seamen
Spain must produce the proofs that the
Maine was blown up by some other power
than that of a Spanish torpedo Wash
ington advices on Thursday stated that
officers of the navy did not believe that
there could have been an accidental ex
plosion on the Maine from spontaneous
combustion or any other cause when the
battle ship was lying at anchor without
steam in her boilers or coal in her for
ward bunkers and with only projectiles
and such ammunition as might be explod
ed by concussion in her forward maga
zine While some officials at the Navy
Department talked of accidental explo
sions there were few of practical expe
rience who did not privately scout such
theories and said that to advance them
means to condemn the modern war vessel
The corps of constructors at the Navy
Department insisted that the explosive
power must have come from the outside
of the vessel because it is their business
to prevent accidents of this kind occurring
within the hull and they claimed that it
is impossible for the vessel to have been
destroyed by an explosion in one of the
magazines Chief Naval Constructor
the Spanish And if the explosion is not
satisfactorily explained it may be expect
ed that similar opinions will be offered
in Congress and elsewhere in such form
as to give great provocation The feeling
in Congress has reached a more acute
stage than ever before The Dupuy de
Lome incident intensified the prejudice
against Spain and developed i hostility
that was never so bitter as to day in any
quarter and is particularly pronounced
among tliose who have been preserving
ah impartial judgment and a conservative
attitude The excitement from one inci
dent does not subside before another even
more aggravating occurs And it seems
as if Providence were leading both coun
tries into war
WAS A FLOATNG FORT
Maine One of the Best War Ships in
the American Navy
The great explosion that rattled the
foundations of the Cuban capital and
struck terror to the heart of every human
being in XIavana at the same time in a
few seconds obliterated nearly 3000000
worth of public procerty and rendered use
less the great mass of steel that had been
called the battle ship Maine She was a
proud strong ship and she will go down
into history alongside the Royal George
the Victoria and other men-of-war which
were wiped out of existence with their
crews under appalling circumstances
The Maine was one of the best ships in
the American navy In an up and up
fight she would have stood her own
against any boat of her class afloat She
Avas not a cruiser She was built to fight
and she was a floating fort All the in
genuity of modern naval architecture was
brought to bear upon her construction
ffilfM If ft
CONSUL GENERAL LEE
For six years the labor of men was put
into her Her keel was laid in the Brook
lyn navy yard in October 1SSS She was
launched on Nov 19 1S90 The construc
tion of the Maine was authorized by an
act of Congress passed Aug 3 lSSGThe
act provided that the new boat should
cost 2500000 and over that sum was
expended upon her In size the Maine
was a goodly ship Her length over all
was 324 feet at load water line 31S feet
her beam 57 feet her draught 2iy feet
her displacement 0048 tons She was
designed for a flag ship but the great
changes in modern methods of naval con
struction were the cause of her being fin
ished up as a lighter
MORRO CASTLE
Frowning Guardian of Havanas Gate
way and come of Its Uses
Morro Castle the guardian of Havanas
gateway stands upon an imposing height
at the east entrance of the harbor Ha
vana was founded eighteen years after
Columbus visited the island and the site
of El Morro was the earliest location
among fortifications The castle of solid
masonry and stone parapets looks secure
against all oncomers Less a fortress
than a prison however is the Morro Cas
tle of to day It has ramifications under
the sea and chambers that have not been
explored for a hundred years at least br
others than Spaniards The castle has
come to be used principally as a prison
for political offenders and its moldy
draiuless cells are a horror to Cubans
T 1 111
MORRO CASTLE
who of course are the political offenders
It is the place of execution when political
prisoners are not to be shot publicly
Flags Half Hasted
President McKinley has ordered the
flags at all navy yards and on naval ves
sels at posts army headquarters and on
-Jail
public buildings at half mast
COURT OF INQUIRY
NAVAL BOARD TO SEARCH OUT
THE FACTS
Several Days May Elapse Before a Ver
dict Is Reached but There Will He No
Unnecessary Delay Investigation to
Be Rigid
V
Four Men to Decide
On Thursday the court of inquiry to in
vestigate tlie cause of the Maine disaster
was called to meet in Havana by Admiral
Sicard It is composed of the following
officers Capt William T Simpson Capt
French E Chadwick Lieutenant Com
mander William P Potter and Lieuten
ant Commander Adolph Marix judge ad
vocate The verdict of these four naval
experts writes a Washington correspond
ent may mean var with Spain
Under the direcVon of Admiral Sicard
says the corresponnnt writing immedi
ately after the callinV of the court the
members will hear evidbpee and examine
the debris The splintered and twisted
hulk is expected to tell its own story The
plates will be bent in or out ffill point
outward the disaster was causetk from
carelessness or probably treachery on
board the ship if they point inward then
to Spanish treachery from without Be-
neath the waters of the harbor the divers
will turn their electric searchlights as
they search the deep for the submerged
debris of the once mighty battle ship
They will report speedily to their su
periors There will be no unnecessary de
lay Public opinion will not stand indefi
nite suspense The verdict of the court
of inquiry will go to the Secretary of the
Navy and to the President There will
be a cabinet meeting There will be no
splitting of hairs no quibbbng over offi
cial etiquette This matter is executive
it will not follow precedents there are
none to follow
AS VIEWED BY EDITORS
Opinion of Ieadina Metropolitan Pa
pers Upon the Maine Disaster
It seems sufficiently clear that our navy
is lacking in discipline Cincinnati Volks
blatt
Either a great crime has been commit
ted or there has been an amaziug piece
of blundering carelessness Chicago Rec
ord
If the Maine and 250 of her men have
been lost through Spanish treachery let
Spain take the consequences Cincinnati
Enquirer
To attempt to pass judgment on the
Maine disaster with the present informa
tion would be the height of folly De
troit News
The first duty of the country with re
gard to the terrible tragedy is to keep
cool that we may learn the facts Bos
ton Transcript
There is nothing in the reports to offset
the fearful suspicion that the Maine was
deliberately destroyed by a Spanish tor
pedo Cincinnati Times Star
No possible explanation can stifle the s
voice of the people calling for interventiouJ
in tne interest or Juba by our Govern
ment Chicago Inter Ocean
The American people should decide
whether playing at war is not too expen
sive an amusement when it entails such
a terrible cost Chicago Chronicle
The people believe the burden of proof
rests upon Spain to demonstrate beyond
cavil that the blowing up of the Maine
was an accident Cincinnati Commercial
Tribune
Many modern battle ships have been
wrecked in a similar way and just as sud
denly without any reasonable ground for
suspicion of an attempt at wholesale mur
der Chicago Staats Zeitung
AH this occurred in the harbor of a
friendly nation Now let the Spaniards
prove their friendship by absolving them
selves from all responsibility for the ca
tastrophe St Louis Republic
There are scores of possible explana
tions each of which would seem more rea
sonable than the base insinuations against
the nation whose hospitality our repre
sentatives were enjoying Philadelphia
Record
The disaster to one of the finest ships
of our navy and the sacrifice of so many
brave lives not to the formal defense of
the country but to a strange and
ble fate casts a gloom over the whole na
tion St Paul Globe
The American people are not so callous
ed by prejudice as to close their eyes and
ears to the probability that the explosion
was due to causes with which the Span
ish Government could have no remote con
nection Detroit Journal
Sober second thought will carry convic
tion to all fair and open minded men that
it is better to await the results of an inA
vestigation before jumping to the conclu
sion that Spanish malice is at the bottom
of it St Paul Pioneer Pre s
nas treachery been added to duplicity
will be the almost universal inquiry to
which a reply will be awaited with
deepest interest throughout the nation If
such were the case it would take rank as
the crime of the century Chicago Trib
une
The suspicion of Spanish treachery ex
hibited by a section of American opinion
looks ill beside the account of the splen
did gallantly of the suspects in saving
drowning Americans and it indicates an
ugly temper toward Spain London Daily
Mail
It is impossible to refrain from the sus
picion that the explosion may have been
carded by ton means That this terrible
eent should have occurred in the harbor
of Havana renders a solution of the mys
tery of international importance London
Globe
If Hidalgo hatred of Americans blew
up the Maine then the priw of every life
must be paid for in Spanish irold The
amount of bticb dsniaws mlcht r h j -
00OiiU but it utuld to U-
ctn tt tlie bll paid ii blood Cin
cinnati Lvening Post
It is not surprising that tJure should be
many wild rumors afloat for in the pres
ent strained relations between this conn
try and Spain there wiil be a ten
dency to attribute the explosion to the
Spaniards if not to the agents of
the Spanish
News
As disastrous thing- as an acnihllating
explosior have ban ened to Amflran bat
tle ships through accident er inisnjse
ment and the terrible ii the
Havana harbor may Le hut f thui
long series of misfortunes that iv- ue L
fallen our navy in the last fe v
Detroit Free Press r
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