2
3. Sir Samuel Griffith replied in a letter dated the 7th instant, a copy of which, as well as a copy of his letter of the 14th September, I herewith enclose, and I would ask your Lordship to be so good as to obtain the opinion of Her Majesty's Crown Law Officers on the point stated in the last paragraph of the Chief Secretary's letter of the 7th instant.
I have, &c.
(Signed) H. W. NORMAN.
The Right Hon. the Secretary of State for the Colonies.
3
warlike stores than is required for the ordinary use of the vessel can be cleared at any port in Queensland without a license under the hand of the Governor.
I have, &c. (Signed)
י
His Excellency Sir Henry W. Norman, G.C.B.,
&c. Governor.
&c.
&c.
S. W. GRIFFITA.
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
C.O.885
13 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-
COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
1
SIR,
Sir S. W. GRIFFITH to Sir H. W. NoRMAN.
Chief Secretary's Office, Brisbane,
September 14, 1891.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge your Excellency's letter of 29th August enclosing a telegram from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, in which Lord Knutsford informs your Excellency that, in the opinion of the Law Officers of the Crown in London, the prohibition of the export of arms and ammunition to Chili contained in your Excellency's Proclamation of the 19th June last is illegal, and requests that the Proclamation may be withdrawn. I have now the honour to inform your Excellency that the Proclamation in question was rescinded by Proclamation published in the Government Gazette of the 12th ultimo.*
As news that the internal disturbances in Chili, which gave rise to the request of the Chilian Consul-General that the export of arms, &c. to that country might be prohibited had come to an end reached this Government concurrently with Lord Knutsford's telegram, no difficulty arose in giving effect to the request.
With reference, however, to the opinion expressed by the Crown Law Officers, I take leave to offer some observations.
The Proclamation in question was issued under Section 147 of the Customs Act 1872 (Queensland 37 Vict. No. 1), which is as follows:-
46
The following goods may by Proclamation or Order of the Governor in Council be prohibited either to be exported or carried coast wise, that is to say, arms, ammunition, and gunpowder, military and naval stores, and any articles which the Governor in Council shall judge capable of being converted into or made useful in increasing the quantity of military or naval stores, and if any goods so prohibited shall be exported from Queensland or carried coastwise, or be water-borne to be so exported or carried, they shall be forfeited."
The powers conferred by this section have not often been exercised, but on the occasions on which it has been necessary to have recourse to them, it has been, I believe, invariably assumed that the power of prohibiting exportation might be exercised with respect to one or more countries, and need not necessarily be exercised with respect to all the world, otherwise this singular result would follow that it woul not be competent for the Government of Queensland under this statute to prohibit the export of fire-arms to New Guinea or the Pacific Islands (as has before now. been done with beneficial effect) without also prohibiting their export across the border of the Colony to New South Wales or South Australia.
I think that this result was, not contemplated by the Legislature, and I take leave to doubt whether the language of the section requires so limited a construction. If it does, I think that it should be amended, unless there is some reason of which I am not aware for requiring all such prohibitions to be of general application.
I should be glad to know whether the opinion of the Crown Law Officers is founded upon the construction of the language of section 147 of the Customs Act or on general principles.
I have the honour to further point out, for your Excellency's information, that a power of limiting the exportation of warlike stores, in effect the same as that conferred by the provisions of section 147 of the Customs Act as hitherto construed, is also conferred by section 181 of the Navigation Act of 1876 (Queensland, 41 Vict., No. 3), which provides that no vessel having on board a greater quantity of gunpowder or
* The rescinding Proclamation was really issued on 10th September.-H. W. N.
SIR,
Sir S. GRIFFITH to Sir H. W. NORMAN.
Chief Secretary's Office, Brisbane,
October 7, 1891.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Excellency's letter of the 2nd instant, enclosing a copy of Lord Knutsford's despatch No. 38, of the 26th August 1891, sent in continuation of the telegram of 22nd August on the subject of the Proclamation issued by your Excellency on the 19th June last, prohibiting the export of arms and ammunition from Queensland to Chili, except for the Chilian Government, and inquiring whether, after reading the despatch, I desire to add anything to the contents of my letter to your Excellency of the 14th ultimo on the subject.
Your Excellency will no doubt have observed that in that letter I did not particularly advert to the exception in the Proclamation in favour of the export of arms and ammunition for the Government of Chili. This point was not referred to in Lord Knutsford's telegram, and had indeed escaped my attention both then and when your Excellency was advised to issue the Proclamation.
This exception was no doubt improper and should not have occurred. I have therefore nothing to add to my previous letter on this point. But I should still be glad to know whether, in the opinion of Her Majesty's Crown Law Officers in Great Britain, a prohibition of the export of arms and ammunition, discriminating as to the destination of the goods exported, is beyond the powers conferred by the Queensland Customs Act of 1873, or otherwise contrary to law.
His Excellency Sir Henry W. Norman, G.C.M.G.,
&c.
&c. Governor.
&c.
I have, &c. (Signed) S. W. GRIFFITH.
Reference :-
COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-