Navy Accused of Killing 70,000 Chickens, 1911

We previously posted about the 1911 live fire exercise Atlantic Fleet battleships conducted in the Cheseapeake Bay.  The Navy used the event to train sailors in marksmanship and to test the effectiveness of new ordnance.  The Navy also invited members of the national press to witness the exercise.  The battleships New Hampshire (BB-25), Delaware (BB-28), Kansas (BB-21), and others participated in the mass bombardment of the battleship San Marcos (ex-USS Texas) near Tangier Island.  Except for a disturbance caused by some of New Hampshire's sailors, the operation went very well.  That is, until the Navy read this headline:

We are still trying to confirm this rather bizarre story.