The most thoroughly equipped wrecking apparatus in the country was sent to the scene of the disaster, but, after consultation between the expert wreckers and the naval officers on the spot, it was decided that all that could be done was to recover as many of the guns and other valuable appurtenances of the Maine as possible, and then leave in Havana harbor the smoke-begrimed wreck above which floated pathetically the ensign of the United States. There was indeed little to save. The great ship was literally riven apart from her keel up and from her sharp-spurred prow to a point aft of her midship section. There was scarcely a plate in her frame that was not sprung or shivered so severely as to preclude the hope that she could ever be made worthy of reconstruction. Work on the wreck was continued until early in April, when the flag which had been kept flying over the remains of the ill-fated ship was hauled down and the U. S. S. Maine declared out of commission.
Immediately after the receipt of Captain Sigsbee’s telegram, the administration ordered an investigation. The order was issued by Admiral Sicard on Febuary 19th, and appointed a Court of Inquiry consisting of Captain William T. Sampson, commanding the Iowa; Captain French E. Chadwick, and Lieutenant-Commander William P. Potter, with Lieutenant-Commander Adolph Marix as judge advocate.
The court met on February 21st, on board the United States lighthouse tender Mangrove, in the harbor of Havana. The first day was taken up with the examination of Captain Sigsbee. The second and third days were largely taken up in the examination of survivors of the explosion, giving their personal experience, and in detail explaining the precautions taken at all times, and particularly while in Havana, against any possible accident.
At the close of the third day, Ensign W. V. N. Powelson, serving on board the lighthouse tender Fern, lying in the harbor of Havana, appeared and gave the first testimony about the condition of the ship as disclosed by the divers. Mr. Powelson is a young man who graduated from Annapolis in 1895. He had paid special attention to construction, and in spite of his youth was detailed to look after the divers. All that he said on the first day was that apparently the explosion had taken place on the port side, forward of amidships, and that the vessel had been shifted by the explosion from port to starboard; that is, from left to right. He was asked to continue his investigation, and the examination of survivors continued, lasting for several days, and including witnesses who were not on board the Maine at the time. The testimony showed that there were two explosions, the first lifting the forward part of the vessel considerably out of the water, and the second, which almost immediately followed, was much louder and longer.
Diver Olsen then appeared and told of what he had been able to discover. As he was not an educated man, and was not familiar with construction, his testimony was not entirely intelligible. An arrangement was then made by which all the divers were to report to Mr. Powelson, who was to summarize their findings and to testify to the same in the presence of the divers themselves.
U. S. S. Katahdin.
Steel harbor defense ram. Twin screw. No main battery. Secondary battery, four 6-pounder rapid fire guns. Thickness of armor 6 inches at top, 3 inches at bottom. 7 officers, 91 men.
The testimony of some of the survivors was thrilling in the extreme. Such hair-breadth escapes as some of them told seemed almost impossible of belief. The court sat only six days in Havana, and then adjourned on February 26th, to meet in Key West on February 28th, to take the testimony of the survivors who had been sent there. In the meantime, Mr. Powelson was directed to continue his work and report when the court resumed.