CO885-(13-15) — Page 15

PUBLIC

RECORD OFFICE

C.O.

Reference :--

885

13 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH—NOT TO

2

under the 4th section of the Ordinance No. 5 of 1873, and if so from what date?

(2.) If it should be thought expedient after Sir J. P. Hennessy's departure from Mauritius to remove his suspension, so as to place him in the position of Governor of the Colony absent on leave, could that object be effected by telegraphic instructions from Her Majesty through the Secretary of State to General Hawley, directing that the suspension of Sir J. P. Hennessy's Commission should cease, or would it be necessary to revoke the Commission to Sir H. Robinson?

(3.) Could Sir H. Robinson's Commission be revoked without revoking the appointment of General Hawley as Administrator under the 4th clause of that Commission ?

(4.) Would the removal of the suspension of Sir J. P. Hennessy's Com- mission have the effect of determining General Hawley's Commission to administer the Government and (in the absence from Mauritius of Sir J. P. Hennessy) causing the administration to devolve upon the Senior Civil member of the Council of Government under the 13th clause of the Lettere Patent of the 22nd March 1879?-and that we would favour you with any other observations which we might think useful for your guidance in dealing with Sir J. P. Hennessy pending the decision to be taken upon the report of Sir H. Robinson under the Commission of Inquiry.

And that Mr. Wingfield was to state that you would be much obliged by our very early consideration of the matter.

In compliance with the request contained in Mr. Wingfield's letter, we

have the honour to

Report

That it is in our opinion very doubtful whether the 4th section of Ordinance No. 5 of 1873 makes lawful a payment to Sir J. P. Hennessy of any salary subsequent to the date of his suspension by virtue of Article III. of the Commission of the 25th September and the proclamation of the 15th December by Sir Hercules Robinson. It may, however, be contended, as suggested, that the suspension of the Commission is not equivalent to its revocation, and although the language of the 4th section did not contemplate such a state of things, no serious objection could, in our opinion, be taken to his being paid half salary from the 15th December.

2. In our opinion Sir Hercules Robinson is now the Governor of Mauritius during Her Majesty's pleasure. If, for any reason, it is considered desirable to remove the suspension of Sir John Pope Hennessy, the Commission to Sir Hercules Robinson and the nomination of General Hawley must be revoked, in which case the suspension of Sir J. P. Hennessy and Mr. Clifford Lloyd would be removed, and their Commissions be in force.

3. If Sir Hercules Robinson's Commission were revoked the Commission of General Hawley would not necessarily be thereby revoked.

4. If the suspension of Sir J. P. Hennessy were removed the Commission to General Hawley would not be revoked, but having regard to the terms of Article V. of the Commission of the 25th September 1886, the position would be somewhat anomalous, and not strictly regular. So far as it is for us we submit that it is not, in our opinion, desirable to attempt to place the matter upon a strictly regular footing, but if such course should be considered necessary the proper method would, in our opinion, be-revoke the Com- missions to Sir H. Robinson and General Hawley, and immediately re-appoint General Hawley, under Sign Manual and Signet under Article XIII. of Letters Patent of 1879, to administer the Government of the Colony. Of course, General Hawley can only act under such Sign Manual when Sir J. P. Hennessy and Mr. Clifford Lloyd are absent from the Colony.

There is no objection to the above course, if taken, being communicated by telegraph.

We have, &c..

(Signed)

The Right Ilon. Sir Henry Holland, M.P.

&c.

&c.

&c.

RICHARD E. WEBSTER.

EDWARD CLARKE.

2323.

No. 82A.

(BRITISH HONDURAS.)

LAW OFFICERS to FOREIGN OFFICE. MY LORD,

Royal Courts of Justice, We are honoured with the commands of your Lordship's predecessor,

January 24, 1887. signified in Sir J. Pauncefote's letter of the 10th instant, stating that he was directed to transmit to us the papers noted in the accompanying list, relative to the claims of British subjects against the Government of Honduras, arising out of a riot in the island of Bonacca, one of the Bay Islands which were ceded to Honduras by Great Britain under a Convention dated November 24, 1859, of which a copy was enclosed.

That questions having arisen in some of the Despatches from Her Majesty's Representative accredited to the Republic of Honduras, as to the status of certain residents in the Bay Islands of British origin, the Earl of Iddesleigh addressed to Mr. Gastrell the instructions of the 4th instant (No. 1), which we should find amongst the accompanying papers.

That in these instructions it was remarked that under the Constitution of 1859 the Bay Islands had been ceded to Honduras, subject to certain conditions, one of which was that if any of the inhabitants should wish to withdraw from the Islands they should be at full liberty to do so, to dispose of their fixed or other property as they might think fit, and to take with them the proceeds thereof; and that a further condition was that the inhabitants should not be disturbed in the enjoyment of any property which they might have acquired thereon, and should retain perfect freedom of religious belief and worship, public and private, but remaining in all other respects subject to the laws of the Republic.

That Lord Iddesleigh pointed out to Mr. Gastrell that it was clear from the conditions recited that the allegiance of those inhabitants who did not within a reasonable period avail themselves of the permission to sell their. property and withdraw from the Islands passed to the Republic of Honduras, and that neither they nor their descendants could claim to be British subjects, but that that fact did not affect the right of Her Majesty's Government to require that they should remain in the free enjoyment of their property and the exercise of their religion, and that any infringement of those privileges by the authorities of Honduras would form a proper subject of remonstrance on the part of Her Majesty's Representative accredited to the Republic.

That Mr. Gastrell was further instructed that the position of. British subjects generally, whether resorting to or resident in the Bay Islands or other parts of Honduras, was in no way affected by the Convention of 1859, and that they were to continue to receive from him the protection to which they were justly entitled.

That the facts attending the riot at. Bonacca, as far as they could be gathered from Mr. Gastrell's Despatch enclosed (No. 72, July 15/86), were as follows:-

That some Honduranian soldiers who had been paid off, and were intoxi- cated, began disputing on a cay belonging to a Mr. Kirkconnell.

That his wife warned them off, was insulted by them, and eventually knocked off the cay into the sea by a soldier named Medina; that the Commandant, who was owner of the grog shop on the cay, and was appealed to by Mrs. Kirkconnell, was powerless to interfere, owing to age and inefficiency. That several persons resident in an adjacent cay, and claiming to be British subjects, came to her assistance, amongst them being Mr. Coe Wood (a native of Grand Cayman, one of the dependencies of Jamaica) and Bonnor, a coloured man, describing himself as a British subject.

That the riot became general, and that Mr. Coe Wood, who had a revolver in his hand, was attacked by a soldier named Margina, armed with a machete or wood knife. That Mr. Wood having ineffectually warned him to stand aside, shot him, it was stated, in self defence, wounding him in the chest, whereupon another soldier, Pedro Ramos by name, who appeared to have been the leader in the riot, cut Wood down, and would have killed him had not Bonner picked up Wood's revolver and shot Ramos dead in defence of Wood. That the attacking party consisted of from 35 to 50 Honduranian

A 500698, 25.-9/87.