T
liquidators should be given the
power to disclaim contracts.
In the
case of the West African Colonies
such power has been given without
restriction, and I have refused to
approve of compensation being given
either from the funds of the Colonial
Governments or from the assets of the
German firms in British West Africa,
in respect of losses which may have
been incurred by British firms upon
orders which they were unable to
complete and deliver.
3. In this decision I was influenced
by the following considerations (a) in
the case of goods ordered by firms in
Germany before the outbreak of war,
the contracts were automatically
suspended or cancelled by the outbreak
b
of war, and during the war the British
manufacturing firms in question have no
legal claim on the firms in Germany in
respect of such contracts; (b) in the
case of goods ordered by German firms
in
DRAFT.
424
in British West Africa which could not
be delivered owing to the closing down
of these firms, these firms were being
wound up by the action of the Government
based on considerations of military
necessity.
4.
It was not in my opinion
equitable to make firms which through
causes entirely outside their own
control were debarred from carrying out
their contracts during the war, compen-
sate the other parties to those contracts
out of their assets; and the Colonial
Governments could not be regarded as in
any way liable to do so.
5.
But the case of Hong Kong
appears to be radically different from
thet of the West African Colonies where
the fact that the liquidators were all
officials precluded any system of
liquidations which would have entailed a
general carrying on of contracts by the
liquidators