HC Deb 06 March 1905 vol 142 cc402-3
MR. SOARES (Devonshire, Barnstaple)

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty on what date were His Majesty's ships "Clio" and ''Cadmus" laid down; when were they completed; what was their cost; and whether it is now proposed to remove them from the active list as being obsolete.

*THE SECRETARY TO THE ADMIRALTY (Mr. PRETYMAN,) Suffolk, Woodbridge

The "Clio" and "Cadmus" were both laid down on March 11th, 1902. The "Clio" was completed in January and the "Cadmus" in April of 1904. The first cost of these vessels is as follows: "Clio," £80,796; "Cadmus," £76,657. They were never designed for fighting purposes but for subsidiary work in peace or war, for which they are still available, and in which they are at the present moment engaged.