CO885-(15-16) — Page 473

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3189

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

TTILEC.O.885

No. 59.

((SOUTH AFRICA. TRANSVAAL. SWAZILAND.)

LAW OFFICERS to COLONIAL OFFICE.

[Questions concerning certain Concessions in Swazilaud acquired by the late Government

of the South African Republic.]

Royal Courts of Justice,

MY LORD,

January 25, 1907. We were honoured by your Lordship's commands, signified to us by Mr. Graham in his letter of the 21st December last, stating that he was directed by your Lordship to request the favour of our report upon questions which have arisen concerning certain concessions in Swaziland acquired by the Government of the late South African Republic.

That the Government of the South African Republic had from time to time acquired in Swaziland certain concessions and monopolies. That these concessions and monopolies were obtained by the Government with a view to the acquisition of control over the country.

That by a Convention between His Majesty's Government and the South African Republic, dated the 10th December, 1894, it was provided that without the incorporation of Swaziland into the South African Republic the Government of the South African Republic should, subject to certain conditions and provisions therein prescribed, have and be secured in all rights and powers of protection, legis- lation, jurisdiction, and administration over Swaziland and the inhabitants thereof, and that our predecessors in office (Sir R. T. Reid and Sir F. Lockwood) in a report to the Secretary of State for the Colonies of July 2nd, 1895,* expressed their opinion that under this Convention the position of Swaziland was that of a protected dependency administered by the South African Republic.

That upon the conquest and annexation of the South African Republic the position of Swaziland was considered again by the Law Officers, and on the 12th June, 1903,† Sir R. Finlay and Sir E. Carson reported that His Majesty's Govern- ment, as successors of the Government of the South African Republic, had power by Order in Council to provide for the administration of Swaziland and expressed their approval of the terms of a draft Order in Council, which was subsequently passed, which conferred on the Governor of the Transvaal the powers of His Majesty In that respect.

That His Majesty's Government had decided, in view of the conferring of Responsible Government on the Transvaal, to remove Swaziland from the control of the Governor of that Colony and to transfer it to the control of His Majesty's High Commissioner for South Africa, and on the 6th instant an Order was passed by His Majesty in Council for this purpose.

That, in consequence of the transfer to the High Commissioner of the rights of the Governor of the Colony with respect to Swaziland, the question had been raised whether the Colonial Government were entitled to compensation in respect of the concessions and monopolies which the Government of the South African Republic had acquired in Swaziland, some of which conferred rights which obviously could only be properly exercised by the Government of the territory and must be in future so exercised, and that it was desirable, in the first instance, to consider whether these rights were now vested in the Government of the Transvaal at all.

That it was true that certain proclamations, passed by the Governor of the Transvaal under the powers conferred upon him by the Order in Council of 1903, had treated these rights as vested in the Government of the Transvaal, as, for instance, Proclamation 3 of 1904, Section 12 (14) of which referred to concessions held by the Government of the Transvaal, and Proclamation 2 of 1905, which referred to a concession, called the Private Revenue Concession, as held by that Government, and proceeded to cancel it; but that although the powers of legis- lation conferred upon the Governor of the Transvaal by the Order in Council of

No. 87 in Vol. V.

25 W 1619 207 DLS ʊ 27514

† No. 190 in Vol. VI.

16 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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