§ MR. MORRELL (Oxfordshire, Woodstock)To ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether Sir Gordon Sprigg's offer in 1897, on behalf of Cape Colony, to present to His Majesty's Navy the cost of a first-class battleship, was later commuted in the form of an annual payment representing the interest on such proposed outlay; and, if so, for what amount, and where does it appear in the Estimates; and whether, in addition to the provision of a battleship, the Cape, under The Navy Contribution Act, 1898, contributes a sum of £30,000 a year towards the annual expenditure of the Imperial Government in connection with His Majesty's naval services; and whether Natal continues her gift of 12,000 tons of coal annually for the use of His Majesty's ships, as noted in the Estimates of 1901–2.
(Answered by Mr. Pretyman.) The original proposal to present to His Majesty's Navy the cost of a battleship did not meet with unanimous approval in the colony, and was withdrawn. No payment representing the interest on the proposed outlay was made. Under the Cape Navy Contribution Act, 1898, however, the colony contributed £30,000 per annum towards the expenditure in connection with His Majesty's naval service, which sum, by 1474 The Navy Contribution Increase Act, 1902, was raised to £50,000. The supply free of charge by Natal of 12,000 tons of coal has been discontinued; a cash contribution of £35,000 per annum now being made under The Navy Contribution Act, 1903. Both contributions are shown at pages 8 and 9 of the Navy Estimates for the current year.