PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
C.O. 885
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
20 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE. LONDON
7861
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No. 10.
SOUTHERN NIGERIA.
THE DIRECTOR OF MILITARY OPERATIONS to COLONIAL OFFICE.
(Received 5 March, 1909.)
Geographical Section, General Staff, War Office,
Whitehall, S.W., 4 March, 1909.
The Director of Military Operations presents his compliments to the Under- Secretary of State for the Colonies, and begs to acknowledge the receipt of Sir F. Hopwood's note of the 17th February, 1909, on the subject of the proposed employ- ment of Major E. H. Hills on inspection duty in Southern Nigeria.
Major-General Ewart agrees that Major Hills is a very suitable officer for the purpose, and is authorized to inform Sir F. Hopwood that there is no objection to the arrangement by which Major Hills will draw the allowance mentioned without prejudice to his pension from Army funds.
7983
No. 11.
FEDERATED MALAY STATES.
THE HIGH COMMISSIONER to THE SECRETARY OF STATE. (Received 6 March, 1909.)
(No. 54.) MY LORD,
[Answered by No. 29.]
Government House, Singapore, 11 February, 1909. WITH reference to my despatch, No. 386, of the 24th December last,† I have the honour to inform your Lordship that I have now had the opportunity of discussing with the Surveyor-General the question of the best method of recruiting surveyors for the Federated Malay States.
2. I enclose draft of a scheme for establishing Federated Malay States Survey Cadetships, and I should be glad to learn whether it would be possible to carry it out and the terms on which the Civil Service Commissioners and the Ordnance Survey would be prepared to assist in the matter.
3. It would hardly be possible to hold the examinations annually, as the number of vacancies would not make it worth while to do so. At present I have asked for seven more surveyors from South Africa on three-year agreements, and the agree- ments of a number of the Australian and South African surveyors now in the service will not expire for about two years. It is probable that a certain number of these surveyors will be kept on permanently at the expiration of their agreements, There are while perhaps as many as eight will have their services terminated. now two vacancies in the topographical branch and one in the revenue branch, and the Surveyor-General would like these to be filled by young men from England.
4. If, therefore, your Lordship should approve of the creation of Survey Cadetships on the lines proposed or in some other manner, it would be advisable to announce at least six appointments for competition. If suitable candidates were found for these, the next examination would probably not take place till two years later. It must be remembered, however, that although six candidates might qualify in the examination some might fail at later stages of their training, and there would then be so many vacancies to be filled either by an examination the following year or from outside by men on agreement as heretofore.
5. We desire to get young men with a public school education, and, before being accepted by the Colonial Survey Committee, it would be desirable to find out that, by having passed certain examinations of a known standard such as those held by the Oxford and Cambridge Examining Boards, the London Matriculation, &c., the candidates would not be wasting their time and the time of the examiners by proceding further. The subsequent appearance of candidates before the Survey Committee would enable the Committee to judge of other qualities before deciding to admit them to the competitive examination.
• No. 5.
† 1793 not printed.
13
6. I think the scheme might be given a trial, and as vacancies are not likely to occur to any great extent for another two or three years in the Revenue Branch of the Department, there is plenty of time to discuss details before publishing the scheme.
I have, &c.,
Enclosure 1 in No. 11. SURVEY CADETS.
JOHN ANDERSON.
1. With a view of supplying the Survey Department of the Federated Malay States, Survey Cadetships have been established, the holders of which will be required to serve in any of the States of the Federation.
2. Survey Cadets will be selected by limited competition from among candi- dates nominated by the Colonial Survey Committee. The examination will be held by the Civil Service Commissioners, and the subjects will be those set out in Schedule I. to these Regulations.
3. Applications for Survey Cadetships should be made by letter to the Eastern Department of the Colonial Office, which will supply a form containing certain questions to be answered. In the event of the answers being satisfactory, the candi- date will be required to appear before the Colonial Survey Committee, and, if approved, he will receive a nomination and be eligible to sit for the competitive examination.
4. Candidates must be above 20 and under 23 years of age on the first day of July in the year in which the examination is held. They must be unmarried, and if they marry before reaching the Federated Malay States they will forfeit their appointments.
5. Every candidate must be a British subject of European descent. He must be of sound constitution, possessed of good sight and physically qualified for service in a tropical climate. Having regard to the nature of his duties the medical examination will be of a specially stringent nature.
6. Candidates who are successful in the qualifying examination will be required to undergo a course of six months' training at the Ordnance Survey Headquarters at Southampton, and the final acceptance of the candidate will be conditional on a favourable report by the officer in charge of his instruction.
7. The course will be directed to fitting the candidate for the trigonometrical, topographical, or revenue branches of the Survey Department, according to the requirements of the Service at the time, but all officers in the Department are liable to be transferred from one branch to another as circumstances may necessitate.
8. During the course at Southampton candidates will receive an allowance of one hundred pounds, and if finally accepted they will draw pay at the rate of £225 a year from the date of arrival in the Federated Malay States and will have free unfurnished quarters
9. Candidates who are finally accepted will be known as Survey Cadets and will be expected to leave England within two months after the termination of the course at Southampton. A free passage to the Federated Malay States (second saloon by mail steamer or first saloon by other steamers) will be provided for the Survey Cadet subject to an undertaking to refund the cost of his passage in the event of his relinquishing his appointment within two years for any other reason than mental or physical infirmity.
10. Survey Cadets will further be required to go through a probationary period of not less than one year nor more than two years in the Federated Malay States, at the end of which they will be required to pass a practical examination in surveying. At any time during such probationary period the services of a Survey Cadet may be terminated on the ground of ill-health or other cause, and he will receive a free passage to England, unless his conduct shall be considered by the Government to be so unsatisfactory as to render such a course undesirable.
11. On passing the practical examination in surveying, and provided his state of health and conduct are satisfactory, a Survey Cadet will be confirmed in his appointment and will be eligible for higher appointments as vacancies occur.
12. Survey Cadets, for purposes of leave of absence and superannuation, will be subject to the same regulations as other officers in the Service of the Federated Malay States.