CO885-(11-13) — Page 3

4558.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

PLEFIC.O.

سلسالسا

885

No. 709.

(CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.)

LAW OFFICERS to COLONIAL OFFICE.

MY LORD,

Temple, May 8, 1871. We are honoured with your Lordship's commands, signified in Sir Frederic Rogers' letter of the 6th May instant, stating that he was directed by your Lordship to acknowledge the receipt of our joint report of the 4th instant, relative to the annexation of the Chief Waterboer's terriroty to the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope, and to state that you are very desirous that the annexation should be so arranged that the territory should become part of the Cape Colony at the moment at which it might become British, as it is desirable to place Sir Henry Barkly in a position in which he may be able to take with promptitude such steps as are necessary for the prevention of disorder in respect of which he is at present much hampered.

Sir Frederic Rogers also states that your Lordship desired him to remark that numerous precedents exist of the appropriation of territory by the mere declaration of a local authority, or even of a naval officer under instructions, or even with the ratification of Her Majesty, but in the present instance your Lordship had not the means of describing with precision the lands which it might be necessary to appro- priate, and that under those circumstances your Lordship would be glad to know whether you could by a Despatch convey Her Majesty's authority to Sir H. Barkly to proclaim such lands as he may think fit within certain specified limits, to be British territory provided-

1. That he is satisfied that the sovereignty of the land is in the native Chiefs.

2. That the consent of those Chiefs is obtained.

3. That the Parliament of the Cape of Good Hope has first passed an Act authorising the Governor to declare that the territory so soon as it becomes British shall be part of the Cape Colony, and subject to the laws in force in that Colony.

That in case we were of opinion that such authority as proposed cannot be conveyed by a Despatch your Lordship requested that we would inform you what would be the least formal mode in which it could be given, whether by Sign Manual, Order in Council, or Letters Patent.

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

Report

That the course proposed by your Lordship appears to us to be unobjectionable and not to differ in principle from that we recommended. The consent of the Colony to the proposed annexation being obtained and expressed by an Act of the Legislature, we do not think it matters whether it is obtained before or after the fact of the annexa- tion. As to the particular form in which the prerogative of the Queen is to be exer- cised, or rather in which Her Majesty's pleasure to exercise it is to be declared, we are unable to speak with authority because we are not familiar with the precedents. But a declaration of Her Majesty's pleasure to accept the territory and create Sir H. Barkly Governor of it under the Sign Manual seems to us to be at least sufficient for the pur- pose, and not open to any constitutional or legal objection. The counter signature of the Secretary of State, which we presume is a matter of course, would always show that Her Majesty had acted with the regular and responsible advice of a Minister.

We have, &c. (Signed)

The Right Hon. the Earl of Kimberley,

&c.

&c.

&c.

• No. 706.

R. P. COLLIER.

J. D. COLERIDGE.

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