H.M.S. Bee, former flagship of the British Yangtze Flotilla, now at the' shipbreakers at Pootung, was the scene of an interesting ceremony yesterday morning when a party of engineers and shipping men, members of the "Boilermakers Union," assembled to pay appropriate farewell to the gallant old gunboat.
Following a reception given by Mr. J. E. Harvey. of Harvey's Shipbuilding Works, who has been entrusted with the job of breaking up the ship, a brief ceremony was held on the bridge when with the standard equipment of the shipbreaker the first rivet was cut, Mr. Eric Davies officiating. In the next few days, the gunboat will be beached -and broken up.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.