We deeply regret to record an appalling disaster in the
French Navy on Monday, when the battleship Liberte ' was destroyed by an explosion in Toulon harbour. Two hundred and seventeen officers and men were killed and 184 were injured. The force of the explosion was so great that some men were killed on the decks of other ships near by, and the ships themselves were injured. The ' Republique,' for example, had to be taken into dock with a heavy list. On Tuesday a seaman was found still alive in the turret of the 1Liberte ' and was extricated. The cause of the disaster is as yet unknown. One explanation is that there was a short circuit; another, more generallyaccepted, that there was spontaneous combustion of the powder. A great deal of suspicion has fallen on what is known as B powder, as it is said to be peculiarly liable to sponta- neous combustion after it has reached a certain age. The similar disaster to the 'Dna ' was attributed to this powder. It has been suggested also that in many of the French ships precau- tions have been sacrificed to the desire to have the powder as near as possible to the guns, with the consequent splitting-up of the magazines in such a way that careful keeping of the powder is unduly difficult. We offer our deep sympathy to the French nation, who have made a great and very successful effort lately towards a real naval revival.
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