HC Deb 30 April 1891 vol 352 cc1761-2
MR. GOURLEY (Sunderland)

I beg to ask the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he has received any detailed information from the Commander of the British Squadron in Chilian waters relative to the encounter between the Chilian ironclad Blanco Encalada and the torpedo cruisers Almirante Lynch and the Almirante Condell; is so, will he be good enough to state what it is; and whether he has issued special instructions, requiring the British Commander to advise the Admiralty in detail of any naval engagements which have occurred, or which may occur, during the Chilian Civil War?

LORD G. HAMILTON

The only Report as yet received from the Commander-in-Chief in the Pacific is a telegram from Valparaiso, dated April 24, as follows:— Ironclad Blanco Encalada taken by surprise, and sunk with torpedoes by Almirante Lynch and Almirante Condell at Caldera yesterday morning; over 100 drowned; captain saved. Special instructions are not required, as the Commander-in-Chief will, as a matter of course, furnish the Admiralty with full details of any matters of interest to the Navy.