4 NOVEMBER 1916, Page 14

But unfortunately the announcement did not contain all the mews

to our disadvantage. In the House of Commons on Tuesday Mr. Balfour said that we had lost six drift-net boats, and he qualified the statement as to the lossof two German destroyers. He remarked that the Admiralty, had " no ground for thinking " that any German destroyer was sunk by our gunfire, but they had " ground for think- ing " that two German destroyers struck mines and probably sank. He also said that the ' Queen ' could have been saved if it had been recognized that she would stay afloat for six hours ; tbat the ' Flirt' had been surprised in the darkness and fired on at close range ; and that the ',Nubian ' could probably be salved.