The Uss maine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Uss maine - Essay Example This war hysteria would ultimately lead to the Spanish-American war. This paper investigates the cause of the blast and rebuts the myth that Spain was responsible for the blast. The huge uproar which resulted after the sinking of the Maine resulted in an investigation by the United States into the cause of the explosion. The US navy conducted an initial investigation using accounts of survivors. It was concluded that the forward six inch ammunition magazines had exploded which caused the blast. However there was a dispute as to what caused the magazines to explode. There have been four major investigations since the blast. The investigations have led to two conclusions. One is that a mine floating in the Havana harbor exploded beneath the USS Maine. The other conclusion is that coal inside the ship spontaneously burned causing a fire which led to the nearby magazines exploding. The cause of the explosion of the magazines remains disputed to this day (Duncan, 58). Each of the investigation concludes that explosion of magazines was the cause of the destruction of the USS Maine. However there is dispute regarding what caused the magazines to explode. Spain was accused of planting a mine in order to prevent the United States from intervening in Cuba. Further speculation is that insurgents in Cuba used the mine in order to ensure that the United States would intervene in Cuba. There is lack of documentation or testimony to prove this accusation. All of the witnesses heard two explosions. This had led to speculation to the existence of an external mine as the cause of the blast. They believe that something besides the magazine exploded which could probably be a mine. However there are problems with this theory. Dead fish were not found in the aftermath of the explosion. A mine explosion would have caused the deaths of fish in the waters. There were no reports of dead fish floating on the harbor. Another problem with this theory