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printed papers forwarded to one by Your Lordship's despatch 5. 3.4 March Part I find it stated that Lord Carnarvon agreed to a suggestion of Sir Thomas Wade that a member of the Foreign Inspectorate might be appointed to the Chinese Office if he wished it, but the appointment of a joint Commissioner seemed to be more than was contemplated by Sir Thomas Wade and to be ultra vires by Her Majesty's Government. Therefore although I had no objection to the appointment of Sir Robert Hart as joint Commissioner, I thought it right to report to Your Lordship on the subject.
3.
1st April 1877 referred to led
The printed papers before me suppose that some instructions would be sent by the Colonial Office for the guidance of the Hong Kong Commissioners. I have however received no such instructions and as all the Commissioners and the joint Commissioner were present in Hong Kong it became necessary to furnish Mr. Aurell with some instructions for his guidance without delay. With this concurrence the annexed instructions were prepared and were laid before the Executive Council by whom they