CO885-(10-11) — Page 783

511.

No. 623.

(JAMAICA.)

LAW OFFICERS to COLONIAL OFFICE.

MY LORD,

Temple, January 12, 1870. We are honoured with your commands signified to us in Sir F. R. Sandford's letter of the 24th December last stating that, with reference to our report of the 6th August last, on the subject of the seizure of arms and ammunition on board the British schooner "La Have," he was directed by your Lordship to transmit to us copy of a further Despatch from the Governor of Jamaica enclosing the judgment of the Vice Co. Dec. Admiralty Court in that case, together with a letter from the Colonial law officers, and that your Lordship desired to be favoured with our opinion as to what instructions should be given to Sir John Grant with respect to the different points raised in his Despatch.

In obedience to your Lordship's commands we have the honour to

Report

That we do not doubt the soundness of the view taken by the law officers of the Crown in Jamaica of the proper course to be adopted in the proceedings relating to the cargo of the "La Have."

We adhere to the opinion expressed in our former report to the effect that if a vessel be bond fide bound with a cargo of arms to Port A, and the course of her voyage touches at Port B, with no intention of there landing them, she does not without more than this import them into nor export them out of Port B.

We are unable to follow the reasoning of Sir J. P. Grant whereby he appears to deduce as a consequence of this opinion that" the proclamation against the export of "arms becomes useless," and that "any port in Jamaica may be made a place for insurgents to send the arms they purchase to, and to arm their ships from, whether "the arms have been originally shipped to such port from a British or a Foreign "port." These supposed cases assume the vessel not to have been bond fide bound to some other port, but to have carried arms to a port in Jamaica with a view to making that port a basis for hostile operations against some country at peace with the Queen, and for furnishing and equipping ships of war.

Our opinion did not apply to such a state of facts which would go far to justify the condemnation of arms as "imported."

We may add that we are unable to discover anything in the judgment of Sir Bryan Edwards (which appears to us correct) inconsistent with our former opinion.

The Right Hon. Earl Granville, K.G.

• No. 586.

We have, &c. (Signed)

R. P. COLLIER.

J. D. COLERIDGE. TRAVERS TWISS.

1000.

016278.-394. 25.-5/84.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

TLC.O. 885

11 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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