present occasion, I do not presume to suppose that I can afford to gentlemen so eminent in their profession as are Her Majesty's Law Officers any information which they do not already possess relative to those general principles of Law, which are applicable to any system of administering justice which ought to be established in a British Colony, but merely hope, that I may possibly, in consequence of my having been, owing to the circumstances which I have mentioned, directed to the question for so many years, be enabled to save them some of the time and labour which it might otherwise cost them to collect that information which myself have already collected relative to the proceedings of such Courts of Justice as have from time to time, been established by any European power within the limits of the Chinese Empire.
(Signed) Alexr Johnston