CO885-(10-11) — Page 779

525,

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

mmmmmm.C.O. 885

11 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

MY LORD,

No. 622.

(NEW SOUTH WALES.)

(QUEENSLAND.)

LAW OFFICERS to COLONIAL OFFICE.

Temple, January 11, 1870.

We are honoured with your Lordship's commands, signified to us in Sir F. R. Sandford's letter of the 29th December, stating-

1st. That he was directed by your Lordship to transmit to us the accompanying papers which had been printed for the use of the Foreign Office and the Colonial Office.

2nd. That in those papers would be found full statements of the abuses which were reported to have sprung up-

First, in connexion with the introduction of natives from the South Sea Islands into the Australian Colonies, and notably Queensland.

Secondly, in connexion with what might be termed inter-insular immigration, that is the introduction of natives from the South Sea Islands into the Fiji and other islands. And that the state of things in the latter case had become so serious (see amongst other instances the letter of Captain Palmer, Colonial Office paper, p. 96) that it was imperative to consider what check, by Imperial legislation or otherwise, could be put upon operations which, in the absence of any such check, bid fair to degenerate into a slave trade,

3rd. That upon the first case he was directed to refer us to the Queensland corre spondence in the first part of the Colonial Office paper, to the letters of Mr. Murdock in pp. 57, 61, and 147 of the Colonial Office paper, to the Despatch of Lord Belmore to Lord Granville (p. 91, Colonial Office paper), and to the. Despatch of Governor Blackall, Foreign Office paper, and to the progress report of the Select Committee

of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland, and that a copy of the Queensland Aot, p.73pf (H.C. which is in operation, though not yet sanctioned by Her Majesty, was annexed for 39k)-1868.

reference.

4th. That upon the second case he was directed to observe that without assuming all the statements made by the New Hebrides Mission (pp. 6 and 30-34, Foreign Office paper), by the Governor of Caledonia (p. 14, Foreign Office paper), and by Mr. McNair (pp. 40-43, Foreign Office paper), to be well founded, still they served to show what are the abuses to which the emigration is liable, and which it is desirable to prevent, if not to put down. Sir F. R. Sandford was pleased also to refer us to the report of a Royal Commission which sat in New South Wales to inquire into those charges.

5th. That certain powers had been vested in the courts of New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land by the 4th section of the Imperial Act, 9 Geo. IV. c. 83., for the trial of offences committed by British subjects in the South Seas, but it was believed

that that power had proved practically very inadequate from the difficulty and expense See p. 133 of

of obtaining proper evidence, and it was plain that the action of those courts cannot C.O. paper.

be sufficiently prompt or certain to prevent or punish violence and disorder amongst British subjects, and that some remarks upon the admissibility of evidence of native witnesses would be found in the Despatch of Lord Belmore, No. 149, of the 5th October, a copy of which was annexed for reference, and he was also desired, with regard to that part of the case to transmit to us a copy of a Draft Bill, which was prepared at the Colonial Office some years since, to facilitate the conviction in the Australian Colonies of offences committed by British subjects in the islands of the North and South Pacific Ocean.

6th. That proceedings had, however, been taken under that Act in New South Wales in the case of the "Young Australian," which resulted in the conviction of the master and one of the crew of that vessel for the murder of certain South Sea Islanders on board the vessel. And that with respect to these proceedings he was 46-58. pleased to refer us to pp. 81, 84, 98, and 100, Colonial Office paper, and to pp. Foreign Office paper.

16978.-778. 25.-5/86.