§ SIR WILLIAM PLOWDEN (Wolverhampton, W.)I beg to ask the First Lord of the Admiralty whether any instructions for guidance in the applica- 1170 tion of compositions have been drawn up by Commander Pitt; whether he will lay these upon the Table of the House; whether the experts on the late Committee, or the technical dockyard officers, have been consulted as to the efficacy of these instructions as applicable to the various compositions used upon the bottoms of Her Majesty's ships; whether any of those supplying compositions to the Admiralty have been consulted by Commander Pitt with reference to these instructions, and, if so, what firms or agents; and what are the names of "the more costly and less durable compositions" reported against by Commander Pitt?
§ THE FIRST LORD OF THE ADMIRALTY (Lord G. HAMILTON,) Middlesex, EalingMy answer to the first two questions is in the affirmative. As regards the next two questions, I am unable, in the absence of Commander Pitt from London, to give the information required. As regards the last question, the least invidious and simplest method of answering it is to state that at the present moment the Admiralty have only standing contracts for four compositions, namely, Hay's, Peacock's, Crease's, and Rahetgin's.