CO885(3-4) — Page 397

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the official proceedings of its officers, and from furnishing any articles whatever to a newspaper which, in commenting on the measures of the Government. should habitually exceed the bounds of fair and temperate discussion. the authorship of anonymous articles should be brought home to any officer, or if, in articles bearing his signature, he should discuss any political subject, or the measures of the Govern- ment, or the official proceedings of its officers, he will be liable to be removed from office.

80. No public officer is allowed to receive a grant of money by a colonial legislature, if such grant has not been initiated or authorised by the Governor.

81. As a general rule, and subject to any provisions of the local law, the Governor will, on the vacancy of any ecclesiastical benefice or cure of souls in the appointment of the Crown, present to the bishop for institution or admis- sion to such vacant benefice or cure any clergy- man of the United Church of England and Ireland, whom, upon the recommendation of the bishop, or on other sufficient grounds, he may deem to be the most proper person, and who for six calendar months at least next before such vacancy occurred shall either have been actually resident and officiating within the diocese, or absent, with the requisite leave, from some cure of souls held by him therein.

82. But if at the time of such vacancy occur- ring there shall not be so resident within such diocese any clergyman so circumstanced, and whom the Governor shall deem a proper person to fill such benefice or cure, then he will forth- with report the circumstance to Her Majesty's Secretary of State, to the intent that Her Majesty may nominate some fit and proper per- son to fill the said vacancy.

§ II. Suspension and Dismissal from Office.

83. The following rules, unless otherwise pro- vided for by some local law, must be observed with respect to the suspension of public officers in all cases in which the officer is appointed by commission or warrant from the Crown, or in which the officer's emoluments exceed 1001. a year:-

The offence with which an officer is charged must be communicated to him in writing, with the ground on which it rests, and he will be required to answer the charge in writing.

84. If no answer is given by the officer with- in the time allowed to him for that purpose by the Governor, or if the answer is not so far satisfactory as to obviate, in the Governor's opinion, the necessity of proceeding to suspen- Bion, the Governor must apprise the officer that on a day to be named, and which shall be after Buch an interval as will allow the officer a reasonable time for preparing his defence, the question whether he shall be suspended or not, will be brought before the Executive Council,

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or in British Guiana the official members of the Court of Policy, and that he must defend him self before the Council in writing. The Council may determine whether, in addition to such written defance, the officer shall be required also to defend himself orally.

85. If, in the course of the inquiry before the Council, new charges or new evidence shall be adduced against him, such new charges or evidence shall be fully communicated to him, and sufficient time shall be allowed him to meet them before any final decision shall be pro-

nounced.

86. If the final decision shall be for his sus- pension, the Governor's report of the suspen- sion must be accompanied by copies of the minutes of Council, and of all other material documents relating to it, in order that the Secretary of State may confirm or disallow the

same.

87. No suspension from office, or stoppage of salary, must take place unless such defence has been received and considered, or unless the party makes tlefault in furnishing it when called upon.

88. In a case in which it may be inexpedient for the public service (to leave an officer to whom an offence of a very serious character is imputed, in the execution of his functions (as, for instance, in the custody of public money) during the time necessary for the regular pro- ceeding to his suspension, the Governor may at once interdict such officer from the further exercise of his functions, as a provisional mea- aure; but no such officer can be formally sus- pended from his office or salary, except by the regular proceeding already described, which must in all cases be taken with as little delay as possible.

89. An officer who has been suspended is not entitled to absent himself from the colony during the interval before his ultimate dis- missal or reinstatement, without the leave of the Governor first obtained, as in ordinary cases; if leave of absence should be granted to him, half salary will not be payable to him, if he is ultimately dismissed, nor, in case of his reinstatement, unless so ordered by the Secre- tary of State.

90. If the suspension is not approved and confirmed by Her Majesty's Government, the officer suspended will be entitled, unless other- wise ordered by the Secretary of State, to the full amount of salary which he would have received if he had not been suspended, even though the officer appointed provisionally to perform his duties may be allowed by Her Majesty's Government to receive the half salary of the same officer for the period during which

he so acted.

91. If the suspension from office is approved and confirmed by Her Majesty's Government, all salary will cease from the day of suspen- sion, and although the officer so suspended

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

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4PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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