A court of inquiry found that the Maine was blown up by a submarine explosion, but failed to charge responsibility upon anyone.

CAPTAIN SIGSBEE'S COOLNESS.

Captain Sigsbee's conduct in such a catastrophe has been highly commended. His coolness and self-possession are attested by the cable. gram he sent to the Navy Department, as soon as he had learned the nature of the damage done his beautiful ship:

Secnav (Secretary of the Navy), Washington, D. C.

Maine blown up in Havana Harbor at 9:40 to-night and destroyed. Many wounded and doubtless more killed or drowned. Wounded and others on board Spanish man-of-war and Ward Line steamers. Send lighthouse tenders from Key West for crew and the few pieces of equipment above water. None has clothing other than that upon him. PUBLIC OPINION SHOULD BE SUSPENDED UNTIL FURTHER REPORT. All officers believed to be saved. Jenkins and Merritt not yet accounted for.

Many Spanish officers, including representative of General Blanco, now with me to express sympathy. SIGSBEE.

CAPTAIN SIGSBEE'S ACCOUNT OF THE EXPLOSION.

The following description of the blowing up of the Maine was given by Captain Sigsbee to the naval court of inquiry:

"I was just closing a letter to my family when I felt the crash of the explosion. It was a bursting, rending and crashing sound, or roar of immense volume, largely metallic in its character. It was succeeded by a metallic sound-probably of falling debris-a trembling and lurching motion of the vessel, then an impression of subsidence, attended by an eclipse of the electric lights and intense darkness within the cabin. I knew immediately that the Maine had been blown up and that she was sinking. I hurried to the starboard cabin ports, thinking it might be necessary for me to make my exit in that way. Upon looking out I decided that I could go by the passage leading to the superstructure. I therefore took the latter route, feeling my way along and steadying myself by the bulkheads. The superstructure was filled with smoke, and it was dark. Nearing the outer entrance I met Private Anthony, the orderly at the cabin door at the time. He ran into me

and, as I remember, apologized in some fashion, and reported to me that the ship had been blown up and was sinking.

"I reached the upper deck, asked a few questions of those standing about me-Lieutenant-Commander Wainwright, I think, for one— then I asked the orderly for the time. He said that the exact time of the explosion was 9:40 P. M. I proceeded to the poop deck, stood on the guard rail and held on to the main rigging in order to see over the poop awning, which was baggy and covered with debris; also, in order that I might observe details in the black mass ahead. I directed the executive officer to post sentries all around the ship, but soon saw that there were no marines available, and no place forward to post them.

"Not being quite clear as to the condition of things forward, I next directed the forward magazine to be flooded, if practicable, and about the same time shouted out myself for perfect silence everywhere. This was, I think, repeated by the executive officer. The surviving officers were about me at the time on the poop. I was informed that the forward magazine was already under water, and after inquiring about the after magazine was told that it was also under water, as shown by the condition below, reported by those coming from the ward room and steerage.

"About this time fire broke out in the mass forward, over the central superstructure, and I inquired as to the spare ammunition in the Captain's pantry. That region was found to be subsiding very fast. this time I observed, among the shouts or noises apparently on shore, At that faint cries were coming from the water, and I could see dimly white, floating bodies, which gave me a better knowledge of the real situation than anything else. I at once ordered all boats to be lowered, when it was reported that there were only two boats available, namely, the gig and whaleboat. Both were lowered and manned by officers and men, and by my direction they left the ship and assisted in saving the wounded jointly with other boats that had arrived on the scene from the Spanish man-of-war, from the steamer City of Washington and from other sources. long-these two boats of the Maine returned to the starboard quarter Later-I cannot state precisely how alongside and reported that they had gathered in from the wreck all the wounded that could be found, and had transferred them to the other boats-to the Alfonso XII. or to the City of Washington.

"The poop deck of the Maine, the highest point, was by that time level with the gig's gunwale while she was afloat in the water along.

side. The fire amidships was burning fiercely, and the spare ammunition in the pilot house was exploding in detail. We had done everything that could be done so far as I could see.

"Lieutenant-Commander Wainwright whispered to me that he thought the 10-inch magazine forward had been thrown up into the burning mass, and might explode in time. I directed him then to get everything into the boats over the stern, and this was done, although there was some little delay in curbing the extreme politeness of the officers, who wanted to help me into the boat. I directed them to go first, as a matter of course, and I followed and got into the gig.

"We proceeded to the steamer City of Washington, and on the way I shouted to the boats to leave the vicinity of the wreck, and that there might be an explosion. I got Mr. Sylvester Scovel to translate my desire to one or two boats which were at that time somewhat nearer the fire that we ourselves were. Having succeeded in this, I went on board of the City of Washington, where I found our wounded all below in the dining saloon on mattresses, covered up, and being carefully attended by the officers and crew of that vessel. Every attention that the resources of the vessel admitted was being rapidly brought into use. I then went on deck and observed the wreck for a few minutes, and gave directions to have a muster taken on board the City of Washington and other vessels, and sat down in the Captain's cabin and dictated a tele gram to the Navy Department. At this time various Spanish officerscivil, military and naval-appeared on board, in their own behalf and in the representative capacity, expressing sympathy and sorrow for the accident. The representatives of General Blanço and of the Admiral of the station came on board and the civil engineer of the province was on board in person. I asked them to excuse me for a few minutes, until I completed my telegram to the Navy Department.

"After finishing the telegram and putting it in the hand of a messenger to be taken on shore, I conversed for a few minutes with the various Spanish gentlemen around me, thanking them for the visit and their sympathy. I was asked by many of them the cause of the explosion, and I invariably answered that I must await further investigation. For a long time the rapid-fire ammunition continued to explode in the deck. The number of the wounded was reported to me later. I have some difficulty in remembering figures. I think we found about eighty-four or eighty-five men that night who survived. It was also reported to me that the wounded on board Spanish vessels had

been taken to the hospitals on shore, as were also the survivors who had reached the machina, in the neighborhood of the Shears on shore. To keep a clear head for the emergency, I turned in about 2 o'clock, getting little sleep that night, owing to the distressing groans of the wounded. (Signed)

все

C. D. Jigsbee

The following officers constituted the nayal court of inquiry which investigated the cause of the Maine disaster: Captain W. T. Sampson, of the Iowa; Captain F. E. Chadwick, of the New York; LieutenantCommander W. P. Potter, of the New York, and Lieutenant-Commander 'Adolf Marix, of the Vermont. Captain Sampson acted as president, and Lieutenant-Commander Marix as judge advocate.

CHAPTER IV.

DEWEY'S NAVAL VICTORY AT MANILA.

HE NAVAL BATTLE of Manila on May 1, 1898, is without a parallel in naval history, and resulted in placing the name of Dewey on the roll with great naval heroes like Nelson, Farragut and Porter.

On that May morning Commodore (now Admiral) George Dewey, commander-in-chief of the American Asiatic squadron, met the Spanish Asiatic fleet, commanded by Rear Admiral Patricio Montojo y Pasaron, and completely destroyed it, with great loss of life to the Spaniards and without the loss of a man or ship on the American side.

Dewey's only orders from the Navy Department were as follows:

"Find the Spanish fleet, capture or destroy it.

(Signed)

剪

Secretary of the Navy."

This message was received in Mirs Bay after the Commodore had left Hong Kong, where the American Asiatic squadron had been assembled in anticipation of war with Spain. Commodore Dewey's squadron consisted of the following vessels: The Olympia (flagship), Raleigh, Boston, Baltimore, protected cruisers; the Concord and Petrel, gunboats; the Nanshan and Zafiro, supply transports, and the revenue cutter McCulloch, used as a dispatch boat.

The squadron was ordered out of Hong Kong harbor Sunday, April 24th, by Joseph Chamberlain, the English Colonial Secretary, in order to comply with the neutrality laws. It assembled in Mirs Bay, thirty miles distant, where it remained until Wednesday, April 27th, when Commodore Dewey received his orders through the American Consul