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Seely that he should be appointed official adviser to the Colonial Office on malarial questions, and for that purpose be empowered to correspond with the Principal Medical Officers in the several Colonies.

Sir West Ridgeway expressed the opinion that to comply literally with Pro- fessor Ross's proposals was out of the question. It was impossible to allow direct communication with medical officers or even with the Principal Medical Officer of the Colony. The result would merely be friction, and anything that was done must be done through the Governor and the Colonial Office in the normal way.

Sir T. Holderness concurred in this view: he mentioned that the India Office had steadily resisted every attempt on Professor Ross's part to be sent to India. The Government of India had examined the whole question carefully, and had reported that they had already the necessary organisation and men, and that his services were not required.

Sir P. Manson's views were communicated by Mr. Read in the unavoidable absence of Sir Patrick. He was of opinion that it was most desirable to do nothing to lower the self-respect and responsibility of the health officers now to be appointed in West Africa, and that from their point of view the placing of an outsider over them in any way was to be deprecated.

Mr. Read explained the new scheme of an Advisory Board for West Africa and East Africa under whose direction the health administration of those Colonies and Protectorates would be carried out, if the proposals under the consideration of the Secretary of State were accepted. The Board would have administrative control of the questions submitted to it, and would also advise as to the selection of candidates. Some discussion then arose as to whether it would not be sufficient and desirable to put Professor Ross on that Board, a course thought well of by Surgeon-General Branfoot, and as to whether the functions of the new Board would not to some extent clash with those of the Advisory Committee. But it was pointed out by Mr. Read that the functions of the Board were locally limited, and that there would not necessarily be any overlapping with the work of the Committee, whose primary function was the allocation of funds for research.

Sir West Ridgeway and Mr. Read finally suggested, and after further discus- sion it was agreed, that the best way to take advantage of Professor Ross's offer and to utilise his services would be to appoint him a Member of the Tropical Diseases Research Fund Advisory Committee; the Secretary of State could then give instruc- tions for all reports on anti-malarial measures to be submitted to the Committee, by which they would be referred to Professor Ross, and Professor Ross's recommenda- tions would be laid by him before the Committee and adopted or modified. The Secretary of State could then, as usual, take such action as he deemed desirable on the advice of the Committee. It was pointed out that the Committee already received annual reports on anti-malarial measures, and that the proposal, while adding considerably to their work, was, nevertheless, not inconsistent with their functions.

As West and East Africa would be looked after by the new Advisory Board referred to above, Mr. Read suggested that the sphere of Professor Ross's activity should be limited to the West Indies and the Eastern Colonies. But Sir W. Ridge- way opposed any limitation on the part of the Committee, it being a matter rather for the Secretary of State to decide.

23926

No. 65.

SOUTH AFRICA.

THE HIGH COMMISSIONER to THE SECRETARY OF STATE.

(No. 428.)

(Received 17 July, 1909.)

Government House, Cape Town, June 30, 1909. [Published as No. 18 in Appendix I, to [Cd. 4999], February, 1910.]

24114

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No. 66.

FIJI.

THE ACTING GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE. (Received 19 July, 1909.)

[Answered January 19, 1910, by 24114 in Miscellaneous No. 252.]

(No. 81.) MY LORD,

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Government House, Suva, Fiji, 24th May, 1909. I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your circular despatch of 12th March* on the subject of the report of the Tropical Diseases Research Fund Advisory Committee for the year 1908.

2. In connection therewith, I beg to enclose copy of a minute by the Chief Medical Officer; and to assure your Lordship that every effort will be made to afford all information possible in the next annual report from Fiji. The happy absence of anopheles from Fiji renders it only necessary to record that anti-malarial measures are called for in but small degree.

3. The Legislature will be invited to continue the annual grant as requested.

Enclosure in No. 66.

HONOURABLE COLONIAL SECRETARY,

I have, &c.,

CHARLES MAJOR.

I HAVE read the despatches enclosed and the report of work done in other Colonies, all of which I think have a Clinical Laboratory or Bacteriological Institute, with a Bacteriologist who is able to devote the whole, or most, of his time to research work. We expect to make a beginning in this respect this year, and in time I hope that our beginning will show good results, and that good use will be made of the material which is at hand to work upon. I certainly am of opinion that the vote of £100 per annum by this Colony should be continued.

19 May, 1909.

24508

SIR,

No. 67.

INDIA OFFICE to COLONIAL OFFICE. (Received 22 July, 1909.)

[Answered by No. 109.]

G. W. A. LYNCH.

India Office, Whitehall, London, S.W., 22 July, 1909.

I AM directed by the Secretary of State for India in Council to advert to the correspondence ending with your letter dated 26th June, 1909, No. 20238,† relative to the grant of £500 a year made from Indian revenues to the Tropical Diseases Research Fund.

I am now to inform you that Viscount Morley is prepared to continue the grant of £500 a year to the fund for a further term of five years if the Crown Colonies agree to renew for that period the grants, aggregating £1,500 per annum, set out in the Colonial Office circular despatch dated 11th March, 1909, of which a copy was enclosed in your letter of the same date, No. 3727.‡ ·

It is noted from your letter of the 26th June that the Lords Commissioners ci His Majesty's Treasury have consented to the continuance of the Imperial grant of £1,000 per annum for five years from 1st April, 1910.

I have, &c.,

ALEXANDER MURRAY.

• No. 21.

† Not printed.

‡ No. 20.

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