CTION FOR HONGKON
ABANDON SHIP!
IT
was evening in Cuba. The United States battleship Maine . rode gently at her anchor in Havana harbour. All seemed peaceful. Then two explosions split the night. The first, a short, sharp report. The second, a resounding roar.
A sheet of flame went up. Smoke billowed out. And then the Cubans, pouring down to the quay- side saw that the mighty Maine was
As she sank a row
began that led to
war, says HENRY LEWIS
a crippled, sinking friendly naval visits they had wreck. The water was exchanged in the past. dotted with sailors from the ship.
What had happened? Who or what caused the explosion that was to bring
between America and Spain? Today, 60
war
years after, it is still a mystery. Booed them
It was February 1898. Cuba was a Spanish possession but a rebellion was going on and Spain had sent troops to crush it. Hundreds of Cubans had been put in prison camps.
American
had newspapers attacked the Spanish methods and the Spaniards had retorted by throwing bricks through the windows of American newspaper offices.
Then America had sent the Maine to Havana. Spain pro- tested that this was a warlike action but America said
they merely wanted to continue the
The 17-21
Club's five rules
Spain sent their cruiser Vizcaya to New York in retaliation.
Maine's commander, was made Officially Captain Sigsbee, the
welcome. He and his officers
to bullfights. went
But ferry
boat. passengers crossing the harbour booed the Maine's crew. Leaflets were passed around in Havana saying: "Death to the Americans! Long live Spain!",
The wrecked battleship Maine showing above the waterline
The Americans' inquiry found fired mine. Yet no electricity which temperatures in the that the Maine was destroyed by cable had been found in the bunkers were regularly read. a mine which caused the ex- harbour." plosion of two or more of the forward magazines, a mine that
ship, slightly to port. went off under the bottom of the
No fish.
Then a mine explosion was The Spanish inquiry found always followed by dead fish internally by spontaneous com- the water. None had been found. that the explosion was caused being found on the surface of
bustion in the coal bunkers cr a similar cause.
They ruled out an explosion starting in one of the forward magazines because they were
the kept locked,
men wore special shoes in them and all electric cables were properly insulated. Also there were po H.E. shells or detonators-the most easily triggered explosives And it was true to say that -in the forward magazines; at this time, although plenty they were stored aft of ships had been sunk by mines, none had ever had their The boilers were working at magazines exploded by a mine. low pressure because the ship was in harbour. And they were a long way from the magazines in any case.
A month later the United States announced that she was to support the Cuban going
Yet certainly a magazine had freedom fighters and told Spain to get out of Cuba. This meant exploded in the Maine. to the
still war undoubtedly brought about the sooner because of the sink- ing of the Maine.
The leaflets went on: "These Yankee pigs who meddle in our affairs, humiliating us last degree and, far
taunt, order greater man-o'-war of their
a
to us a rotten
squadron, after insulting us in their newspapers....
for
Spaniards, the moment action is come. Do not sleep............'
Lights out
And then came the explosion that sank the Maine. The lights on board went out. She listed to port and began to go down. Captain Sigsbee, who had been writing in his cabin, ran on deck to post sentries in case of an attack.
On shore he could hear people cheering their plight. Some men had been flung in the sea. Others had jumped. The blast had flung men everywhere.
One man standing by the after-funnel was lifted in the on the
air, to come down quarterdeck 40ft. away.
Only
two boats remained but others were lowered from the U.S. steamer of Washington and a within that age group. Spanish cruiser, Alfonso XII. Contributions and all ac- tivities of the Club will be limited to members only.
O Membership in the 17-21 undamaged
Club is open to all City
is
• Contributions may consist
of anything publishable
that
articles,
Then fearing the ten-inch magazine might explode-the six-inch magazine already had -Sigsbee ordered: "Abandon ship." And from the City of Washington he sent a message America's Navy Department telling of the loss of his ship.
More than 250 officers and
letters, stories, photo-men died. Only 90 were saved. graphs, drawings, verses. But only the best will be printed.
When the news reached America a wave of indignation swept the country. No American but that the battleship had been blown up by the Spanish.
• All contributions MUST had any doubt
be original.
• Written
contributions . The Spanish protested in- should not consist of dignantly. They said the ex- more than 350 words, plosions must have been caused American carelessness оп photographs and drow-by
ings will only be accept- ed in black-and-white.
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board.
They would hold an inquiry. they said. America announced she would hold an inquiry too.
Both governments.sent down divers. It was a little difficult for both sides. America wanted 10 prove a Spanish mine or Corpedo was responsible but
could not examine the harbour and shore too closely without causing trouble. Spain wanted
to prove that something inside the ship started the explosion but could not insist on examining the Ameri- cans or their sunken battleship. Nevertheless, not surprisingly, both sides managed to prove their cases to their own satisfac- tion.
Again, a mine causes a spout Could a both have bee of water and makes a dull.
snuggled on board? Captain heavy-explosion. But there had Sigsbee said he had had all American troops landed in been no column of water seen visitors from Havana clastly Cuba, the Spaniards were and the first explosion had been watched just to guard against ousted and Cuba became in a short, sharp one.
such a thing happening. dependent.
The American grounds for
Could it have been a torpedo? But what did cause the loss saying the explosion was not It could have been if the toedo of the Maine?
caused internally?
had been fired from the shore.
The Spanish grounds for
They ruled out spontaneous The Maine was less than hill a saying it was not caused by a combustion in the coal bunkers mile out. But who fired I! and mine were these: No one would because only two bunkers held were did it come from?. have laid a contact mine in a any coal and both had been If the Maine was blown up by busy harbour; there could be no examined on the night of the Spaniards was it done with the telling who it might hit. So it explosion. Both had electric knowledge of the authorities or could only be an electrically alarms and thermometers -on not?
SICK
The Hit Parade By Ted Thomas
NICK songs are here again! After the public outcry after the re- lease of "Tell Laura I love Her" and the like, I felt that even the record dis- tributors had heard enough to put their house in order, but I should have known better.
The people who make records are in the business to give the public what they want, and if the record buying public show a marked, If ghoulish, Interest in violent death and the after life of young lovers, then that's what they're going to get
This leads up to the flip side of the latest Everly Brothers single which features a sad little ditty called "Ebony Eyes" -a young girl who was killed in an air crash.
The song is a good one but
1. Where The Boys Are Connie Francis
2. Yes, I'm Lonesome Tonight Dodie Stevens
3. 1 Will Follow You - Eydie Gorme
Are You Lonesome Tonight Elvis Presley Let's Go Off-Beat —
4.
5.
Kong Ling
6.
You Are the Only One --- Ricky Nelson
7.
Dear John' — Pat Boone
10.
The Clickity-Clack Song
-
11.
I Love You Baby
Brian Hyland Kong Ling
8. The World is Getting Smaller -Mark-Dinning
9. The Story of My Love - Paul Anka
12. If I Didn't Care — The Platters
I'll Save the Last Dance for You - Damita Co
13.
14,
Don't Read the Letter — Patti Page
15.
What a Night for Love — Addrisi Bros.
་
16. Many Tears Ago Connie Francia
17.
C'est 81 Bon- Conway Twitty
18.
Lop-Sided Over-Loaded -
Brian Hyland
19.
Perfidia - The Ventures
20.
Let the Rest of the World Go By - Johnny Nash
*
T AST week, fans of the late Buddy Holly marked the second an- niversary of the death of the subject matter takes a lot singer Holly who was killed of stomaching in the light of
in an air accident just two recent air disasters,
years ago.
THE
THE showing of the film "Expresso Bongo" gives Hongkong popular music fans the opportunity of seeing for the first time the idol of British teen- agers, balladeer Cliff
Richards.
★
*
It has been hinted that the
story told in this movie very closely resembles the life story of this extremely talented lad, and if such is the case then we can only admire him the more for overcoming such tremen- dous adversity in taking his place as the unquestioned top of the polls In Britain.
How much of the Interest in this singer is genuine apprecia. tion of his talent, and how much is sheer morbidity is hard to decide.
For my part Mr Holly never rese above the ranks of the
many rock and roll warblers
whose works cluttered the re- cord counters at that time, but his untimely death spotlighted
his work in the same manner death of film actor as the James Dean gained him the posthumous reputation of being a truly great actor,
However, Holly's "Peggy Sue," "Maybe Baby," "Rave "Oh Boy" havi "On," and stood the test of time and are still to be Heard in the re-
★
★
quest programmes. The ques-- tion remains: Why?
THE
THE Everly Brothers are ·
back scouting Hit Parade honours with a new and lively number colleil, "Wolk Right Back" and it has all the qualities to enable these bright and extremely listenable lads to walk right back into the Hit Parades of the world.
The story line concerns girl friend who has walked
out, and the resulting pleas on behalf of the singing twins for her return.
HITS HERE AND THERE DEPARTMENT America: 1; 1 Will Love You Tomorrow by Shireties; 2 Calcutta—by” Lawrence Wels. Britain: 1. ̄Are You -Lone- Tonight — by Elvis Prestey, 2. Sailor" by Petula Clark,
zome
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