THE END OF THE JENA.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXIV, Issue 10957, 27 April 1907, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE END OF THE JENA.

MASS OF TWISTED METAL,

EXPLOSION'S HAVOC.

GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION.

A special correspondent at Toulon sends full and graphic particulars of tre condition of the wrecked battleship Jena. Magnificent heroism was displayed by her crew under the most trying ordeal known to man. Ensign Roux gave his life iri an attempt to open tne dock sluices and admit the water to the do "I. m which she lay, and was aided m lis devoted efforts by a number of volun teers from the crew. The conduct of Admiral Manceron was specially admirable. Though severely wounded, he remained at his post amid the explosions until the safety of those who had survived the disaster had been assured. A point of great naval importance v the fierceness of the conflagration which followed the initial explosion., The Jena was a modern ship, and, therefore, h?d little combustible matter hi her hull But she burnt with the utmost fury. Exactly the same results were observed on board the Russian .ships at Tsushima uuder a heavy shell fire. Everything seemed to burn, even steel plates. As there are still many ships m the British Navy with an excessive amount of wood on board, this fire risk should not be overlooked, the less so as it has. been emphasised afresh at each naval battle. Aa to the cause of the explosion, there are many theories. The explosion of an air chamber m a torpedo appears to be ruled out of court by the majority ol experts. An explosion m the air-coni pressing machinery has been suggested but seems improbable. A short circuit m the electric light and power mains is another theory which is not accepted by French officers. They attribute the explosion either to the decomposition of the ammunition, causing its spontaneous combustion and explosion, or to the dropping of a shell. In either case the disaster is one which might occur m any- navy, and has already occurred m the cases ol the Mikasa and the Aquidaban, if not m the instance of the Maine. _ The Jena's hull has been so shattered by the explosion and so damaged by the, fire that the ship will probably have to be almost completely rebuilt, and thus the French Navy has suffered a loss ot something over a million sterling. Even if reconstructed, it is feared that she will never be fit for hard work at sea. The total loss of life m this lamentable affair is over 200, and there are, m addition, a large number of injured. TOULON, March .13. Battered and torn as though sher had fought a fierce battle, the' magnificent first-class battleship Jena, the pnde of the French navy, presented a melancholy spectacle this morning when the sun bur .t over the heights of Toulon. From her forward turrefto her stern gallery the noble ship is one blistered riven mass of twisted steel, rotted cordage, and miscellaneous ruin. At eight o'clock this morning the creeping fires had reached the base oi the lofty signal mast forward, and wilh a mighty crash it fell by the board al most as M. Thomson, the ' Minister of Marine, newly come from Paris, drove alongside. Clouds of smoke were stall pouring m choking volumes from her shattered hulk. '. •. • Twenty- four hours after the disaster, m spite of the ocean of water pumped between her decks by military engineers and dock firemen, the fire had, burned the ship right forward to the fore turret, leaving only one-tenth of her entire length unharmed. The bluejackets washing hanging from the fore rigggmg made a pathetic contrast to the awful scene of devastation. What the Jena was yesterday moraing was shown with striking force by the sister hattleship Suffreu, m the next dock a few yards away. Theu Suffreu is, as the Jena was, one of the grandestlooking fighting ships m the world. The greatest explosion of all occurred exactly under the after turret, immediately abaft the after bridge and nearly under tip officers* quarters. The direct damage to the hull consists of^ one enormous hole blowi> m the starboard quarter, just at the commencement of the starboard rolling chock, and extending nearly 30ft along under the steel bell., and thence downwards nearly ten feet. The force of the explosion tore the stout steel plating, girders, and angle-irons away like the top of a tin can, and tne toru and crumpled plates lie hanging back from the hole toward the stern as if hinged to the "hull. The rivets have been torn clean away, and the area of the hull along the starboard quarter is quite perceptibly bulged .outward for many yardß. . - , At the top of the projectile hoist, leading from the ammunition chamber to the turret guns, the havoc done is immense. The port side of the after-bridge ha_ been ripped from its solid steel stanchions, the military mast deeply dented, the fore-and : aft bridge from the midships barbette to the after-bridge twisted and displaced. The surrounding up per, main, lower, and bilge decks have been simply obliterated. The after-magazine m which the great est explosion occurred is gone, and there remains only a wild tangle ot knotted, tortuous steel plates and stanchions. Just forward of the magazine and the yawning hole m the starboard quarter is 'one of the transverse collision bulkheads, but it, as well as the longitudinal bulkhead near by, is so bulged as to be useless for its purpose. As one of the naval officers remarked to me to-day, "Had the accident happened at sea the vessel must have f ounaercd instantly, especially as she was deprived of the help of so many of her crew from asphyxiation and shock." The fierceness of the flames which burst out and rkged furiously m the interior of the Jena immediately after the explosion astonished the naval officers themselves. That a battleship of modern construction should blaze like a greasebox from an explosion has aroused the gravest questions concerning naval construction. An officer assured me that tho reconstructed Jena will contain the minimum of inflammable material. . The fire completely burned tho Jena, inside and out, to the very summit ol her fore signal mast. It consumed all her boats on deck, completely ate away her deck-planking, destroyed every 1 article of furniture m the officers' and men's quarters, ruined more than ten guns of various calibres, utterly obliterated all the delicate communication apparatus and machinery, and seriously.injured even the heavy guns. CAPTAINS TERRIBLE DEATH. It is not yet ascertained" how much damage has neen done to the splendid engines, but from the stunning violence of the explosion it is feared that there must have been many displacements and breakages. The intense heat generated by the fire is well exemplified by the extraordinary manner hi which every scrip of paint on the hull, the funnels, the masts, and the upper works has peeled off. So furnace-like was the heat whi'e the ship was blazing that the solid timbers of the dock edge were charred. When the explosion occurred, one of the great twelve-inch shells was fhot clear out of the magazine, described a parabola across the intervening docK space, cleared the . Suffren's towering top-hamper, and landed two hundred yards away to tho west, falling harmlessly m the dockyard compound. In the steel hull forming the outer wall of the late Captain Vertier's cabin the explosion burst a hole three feet loug by a foot winde, as if a great shot had passed through. Inside the cabin the gallant commander met an awful death from the fire. The scene is one of pitiable wreck. Not a stick of furniture remains, not a fragment of the carved wood panelling or fittings. All is black, smoking ruin. The steam is still rolling up from the superheated steel walls and deck. The admiral's and officers 'quarters, even the stern gallery itself, present a hideous picture of destruction. The bodies of missing members of the crew are still m the hull, but the heat to-day was too great between decks to permit of a thorough search." The officers warned all strangers that as the fire "was still glowing under the fore-bridge and cunning-tower near the forward magazine, danger was still great. It was, of course, impossible to get at the magazine to remove the ammunition, but vnst quantities of water were ceaselessly poured m to keep down the perilous heat. HEAVY RESPONSIBILITY."

A highly-placed official said to me this morning that, owing to the peculiar composition of the heavy gun explosives aboard the Jena, the Marine Artillery Department bore a very heavy responsibility. There would be an inquiry, and spontaneous combustion might be proved. To M. Thombson, the Minister of .uarine, were introduced the various officers and men of the watch on duty at the time of the explosion. They were lined up on the quay. The Minister shook hands with each and heard his story told m a few simpU> sentences. Their des- i cription of the heroic death of gallant j

young Ensign Roux was most thrilling and affecting. "The young officer," said a brother officer, "set an example of calm bravery m face of terrible danger that sheds a glorious brilliancy on the French Navy." M. Thomson, who was deeply affected by the brief narratives of tho officers and seamen, had at his side Rear-Admiral Manceron, whose face is badly burnt and lacerated from the effects of the explosion and the fire. Yesterday he grimly stuck to his post, though bleeding and m agony, directing his men and seeing the wounded seamen comfortably placed m litters. Many officers scout the idea that the cause of the- disaster was an electrical 6hort-circuit. Such a thing, they say, is impossible on a battleship. The explosion was probably caused, according to a marine artillery officer, by the dropping of a shell m the magazine or the fouling of the powder by some unexplained chemical action. All the morning the military salvage men worked at the hazardous task of rescuing what they could of the ship's papers, treasure, and contents of the safes. Everything brought up was too hob to touch with the hand. Despatch boxes when opened contained nothing but black ashes. Officers swords and metal cabin ornaments half-melted "were among the relics. - ' --, Rear- Admiral Manceron was the last man to leave the blazing vessel by climbing over the stern-gallery as the flames burst through the windows of his own quarters. The water m the dry dock was pumped out to-day, and not until it had sunk to the level of the ship's keelson was the full extent of the disaster disclosed. The explosion blew out the entire hull space at the round of the counter, smashing both propeller shafts and wrenching them away from their supporting braces. A wagon of hay with horses four abreast could be driven through the huge tunnel left by the blast. The distance from the shattered keelson to the under side oi the main deck is fully twenty-five feet. The deck at this point is heaped with twelve-inch -shells, fragments of; steel plate, and the remains of the engines and machinery employed m hoisting the shels to the turret guns. The stone face of the dock opposite the yawning gap m, the Jena's hull is chiDDed and shattered by the flying fragments. RECOVERING THE DEAD. Great streams of ■ water -poured all the afternoon from the ship's interior, and as soon as possible squads of sailors began the search for the dead; Thirty-four bodies were recovered from the lower compartments. Some of them were found huddled up m corners; some lying with hands Outstretched m ' the darkness. Others had__yainly sought escape up -the. ladders 'and compauionways, only to find death from the deadly f umesT Several men were found together m a heap near the entrance to the stokehold. Many of the bodies were terribly torn and burned, the flesh hanging m shreds from their arms, legs, and faces. As body after body wrapped m canvas was borne out of the ship to the quay the dead men's comrades displayed the deepest emotion. Each battered; corpse was quickly searched for marks of identification and then placed" m the ambulance wagons, which conveyed them ; to the mortuary. The number of dead is' announced to* night as fully 200. '■• Several of. the wounded m hospital are not expected to survive the night. .. Thousands of people have flocked m from all parts of Southern France, and the telegraph office has been inundated with messages from soldiers and' sailors containing assurances of safety to their friends. : „ t :[ .