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CHINA.
Powers and Authority of the Naval Commander- in-Chief.
(Previous
Reference: Cabinet 32 (28), Con- clusion 4.)
8. The Cabinet had before them a Note circulated
by the First Sea Lord of the Admiralty, in the
absence of the First Lorâ, concerning the powers
and authority delegated to Admiral Tyrwhitt, the
Naval Cormander-in-Chief in China (Paper C.P.-181
(28)).
The suggestion was made to the Cabinet that
the present powers of the Naval Commander-in-Chief.
conferred on him during various episodes in the
crisis of the last 18 months, were in fact rather
less than those implicit in his standing instruc-
tions. The former, according to the First Sea
Lord's Note, only authorised the Admiral to take
action consequent on some offensive action or
outrage by the Chinese, whereas the standing
instructions enabled him to take action "in a case
"where British life and property are at stake and
"require immediate Naval interference": in other
words, the standing instructions appeared to
enable him to act in a case of imminent danger,
whereas the special powers, conferred during the
crisis, did not.
The Cabinet asked the First Lord of the Admiralty to consult the First Sea Lord on the question, in order to ensure that the powers of the Naval Commander-in-Chief were sufficient to enable him to act in a case of imminent danger.
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