352
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
יוז
C.O.
Reference :-
885/25
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-
COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
182
BOND.
Know all men by these presents that we,
(hereinafter called "the purchaser "), and
of
"
of
of
and (hereinafter called "the guarantor "), are held firmly bound unto His Majesty King George the Fifth in the sum of
bind to be paid to His Majesty, his heirs and successors, for which payment we ourselves jointly and severally by these presents.
Sealed with our seal the
day of
191
Whereas the purchaser has purchased from the Receiver (set out a description upon certain of the property purchased), terms and conditions, and whereas one of such conditions is that the purchaser shall enter into a bond in the form of these presents, and whereas the Receiver has in pursuance of the said conditions required the purchaser to enter into the Now the above written bond and has approved the guarantor as surety. condition of the above written bond is such that if, during the continuance of the years from the termination of such War, present War and during a period of neither the said property nor any estate or interest therein or in any part thereof is transferred or mortgaged to or acquired or owned by or held in trust for or in any way so as to come under the control of an enemy subject, enemy corporation, or corporation under enemy control (as these terms are respectively defined in the Enemy Property Disposal Ordinance, 1916), either alone or jointly with another or others, then the above written bond shall be void, but otherwise shall remain in full force.
I,
follows:-
SCHEDULE.
Declaration by an Individual Buyer,
of
I
do solemnly and sincerely declare as
I am a
subject and reside and carry on business at and I do not reside or carry on business in any state or country at war with His Majesty or in any colony or dependency of any such state or country or in any country which is treated as enemy territory under any Act of Parliament, Order in or of Council, or Royal Proclamation for the time being in force.
I further solemnly and sincerely declare that there is no arrangement under which I am to hold the property which I am purchasing from the Receiver for or for the benefit of or so that it shall in any way come under the control of any enemy subject, enemy corporation, or corporation under enemy control as these terms are respectively defined in the Enemy Property (Disposal) Ordinance, 1916. And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true and by virtue of the Statutory Declaration Act, 1835.*
Florennert the
I,
Declared at
this day of
191
.
Before me
of
(hereinafter
183
The corporation is not an enemy subject or a corporation under enemy control as these terms are respectively defined in the Enemy Property (Disposal) Ordinance 1916, and to the best of my knowledge there is no arrangement under which the corporation is to hold the said property or any share or interest therein on behalf of or in trust for or for the benefit of or so that it shall in any way come under the control of any enemy subject, enemy corporation, or corporation under enemy control as these terms are respectively defined in the aforesaid Ordinance.
And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true and by virtue of the provisions of the Statutory Declaration Act of 1835.*
Declared at
SIR,
this
day of
Before me
191
Enclosure 2 in No. 163.
3, Cockspur Street, London, S. W., 1st August, 1916. I HAVE the honour again to call your attention to the necessity of legislation if the sale of the real properties of enemy firms in Nigeria is not to be abortive.
Take the firm of G. L. Gaiser as illustrative. The position is that G. L. Gaiser, who was the sole owner of the business, died about 1884; he devised and bequeathed to one Johann Martin Brettschneider (who had married his sister) his West African business (including the real properties used as factories); the said J. M. Brett- schneider died a few years ago and was succeeded in the West African business and properties by his son, Hans Peter Edward Brettschneider, who at the outbreak of the War was the sole owner of the business and properties. (The above particu- lars are mainly based on information given to me by Mr. Charles Ungebauer, corroborated to some extent by my own personal knowledge and by documents in my possession.)
Now, to take the most valuable property of this firm, namely, the Marina premises, Lagos: the title of the firm is a conveyance to Gottlieb Leonhardt Gaiser, dated 26th December, 1876, and there is no record of any subsequent transmission. It is therefore impossible for you to satisfy a purchaser that you have any title whatever to the property. If I were acting for an intending purchaser I should most emphatically advise him to refuse to accept a conveyance from you, for there might not only be (and very probably are) mala fide transmissions after the outbreak or in anticipation of the War, but also bona fide transmissions since death of G. L. Gaiser, and, according to the law as it stands, the validity of such trans- missions is not affected by non-registration thereof in the Lands Registry at Lagos. In short, in my opinion, it would not be possible to sell the property unless the local Legislature declares that all transmissions thereof subsequent to the date of the above mentioned conveyance are to be deemed null and void,
Some time ago I submitted a tentative draft of an Ordinance to overcome the difficulty, and I now submit a revised draft which I think you should submit to the Governor-General without delay.
As to the leases of enemy firms held from natives, I think there should be inserted in the Ordinance a clause dispensing with the consent of the lessors to assignments, provided always that the Governor approves of the assignments. The Court has only granted you a bare authority to sell the leasehold property; it refused to free you from the necessity of obtaining the lessors' consent where there was a clause in the original lease prohibiting alienation without consent.
I have, &c.,
ROBERT F. IRVING.
Miles of the per-
con molding the
(Hanetary ar
Winners the
mamma of the Cerpaloo.
neurs a da
sertion of the
ofi
Declaration on behalf of a Corporation.
, the s
called "the corporation "), the buyer oft
being duly authorized by the corporation to make this declaration, do hereby solemnly and sincerely declare as follows:-
• If the declaration is not made in the United Kingdom substitute the law which authorizes a declaration.
* If the declaration is not made in the United Kingdom substitute the law which authorizes a
declaration.
The Receiver.