24
under another. Mr. Jamieson's contention that the principle
of the surrender of fugitive underlies every Treaty is
supported by the Acting Attorney-General who considers
that Article 9 of the Tientsin Treaty involves "an obliga-
-tion by implication on the part of China to hand over a
British subject who commitda crime on British territory.
.
For since China has no jurisdiction to try and punish a
British subject for a erime committed in China (Article 16)
à fortiori she would have no jurisdiction to try and
punish a British subject for a crime committed in British
territory".
5.
With reference to the second
point. Is China compelled to recognise the status of Liang
Tou as being that of a British subject ↑ Kr. Chamberlain
says in the Despatch referred to that the Law Officers of
the Crown state that the inhabitants of the New Territories
are to be regarded as British subjects "inasmuch as
cession of territory effects a change in the nationality
of the inhabitants, and as the territory in question has
been ceded, and is now British territory, the fact that the
cession is for a term of years only does not affect the
conclusion that by the cession the inhabitants become for
that term British subjects". I am not aware whether the Chinese