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GIBRALTAR

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

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12.

Reference :-

C.O. 885

24 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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

19. The local dispositions made by the Officer Commanding, Captain Thurston, for defence have been in accordance with the prescribed directions and all ranks, both of the Gambia Company and the police, have performed the extra guard and outpost duties devolving on them cheerfully and satisfactorily.

14. The damaging effect of the war on the trade and revenue of the Colony has already been set out to you in other correspondence.

15. Beyond some little degree of excitement on the 18th November last, occasioned by an unexpected and unannounced visit for a few hours of H.M.S. 'Highflyer," there has been no incident of any kind of a nature to disturb in any way the usual quiet and even progress of daily events in this small Colony.

16. The reported proximity of the "Kaiser Wilhelm Der Grosse," and, later, of another German ship, supposed to be the "Karlsruhe," near the Bissagos Islands, was a little disquieting for the moment, but these possibilities are now, it is hoped, removed and not to recur.

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I have, &c.,

EDWARD J. CAMERON,

Governor and Commander-in-Chief.

GIBRALTAR.

No. 57.

THE GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE.

(Confidential.)

(Received 1st June, 1915.)

Gibraltar, 24th May, 1915.

SIR,

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch No. 148, of the 20th November, 1914,* desiring to be furnished, in a form suitable for preserva- tion as a record but not for publication, a statement detailing the various measures which have been taken to meet the situation arising from the war, and, in reply, to report as follows:-

I. General position at the precautionary period. The precautionary period commenced on the night of Wednesday, 29th July. At that time Major-General Johnston was administering the Government during my absence on leave. All the officers on leave, including myself, returned on the 4th August, on which night war was declared. The strength of the garrison on 1st August amounted to 3,844, all ranka. (See Appendix "A.”)

Defence scheme. The defence scheme, as regards its military provisions, was at once put into operation. Difficulties, however, arose in regard to the adminis- trative policy that was contained in the scheme, and circumstances necessitated some departures from it, the most important of which were the relations of civil and military under martial law, the disposal of aliens, financial arrangements, and the administration of supply.

II. Declaration of war.-The warning telegram in regard to the declaration of war was received soon after my arrival on the 4th August. Steps were taken that night to issue the Proclamations (see Appendix "B"), discuss arrangements neces- sary for the regulation of the port, the examination service (which was already in operation), and, with the military staff, to complete those services of defence which were of military necessity. Vice-Admiral Brock. C.B., Senior Naval Officer, was present throughout, and the closest touch between the services has been maintained uninterruptedly.

Arrangements for Military and Civil Government.-The defence scheme pro- vided that the Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster-General should, when directed, assume control of the civil population in time of war, the Chief of Police being attached to his staff to assist him in this duty, and further provision was made for the division of the Colony into seven police districts, under the officers com- manding battalions and the Officer Commanding North Front.

* 45801: not printed.

The task imposed upon the military officers would have been heavy, and its nature would comprise matters with which these officers were unaccustomed to deal. It would further have seriously trenched upon the time of these officers, which was already fully occupied with their military duties. Although possibly some such policy might have been necessitated had active operations of a lengthened character supervened, in the actual circumstances no such arrangements seemed necessary.

Much misapprehension and alarm had arisen amongst the populace; groundless rumours of the suspension of the civil courts, of the substitution of courts martial, and of rigorous military measures arose and increased the financial unrest.

At the meeting which I held to discuss the financial situation on the 5th August I made it clear that, while military law must be declared, it was not intended to disturb the operations of the civil jurisdiction; that the people would not be inter- fered with in their daily avocations; but that the suspicious or evil-disposed person would be liable to instant arrest, and that the gates would be closed at gunfire.

The police remained under the civil power, but the Chief of Police was put into close touch with the military staff, to whom he reports daily.

A notice was issued to the effect that, until further intimation, the civil authorities would continue to exercise their functions and jurisdiction, and the result has been entirely successful and is seen both in the attitude of the people and of the local Press, who have given the authorities every possible support. (See Appendix "C.")

Military arrangements have been made, in conjunction with the police, to provide cover for the people in event of bombardment.

Labour Bureau.-It followed from the above decision as to the treatment of neutral aliens that no need arose for the formation of a Labour Bureau contem- plated by the defence scheme, Chapter VI. (a), paragraph 6, or for the appointment of chiefs of divisions, who should both organize the able-bodied workers and arrange for the feeding of the civil population in their districts. A scheme of this kind is in readiness for eventualities, but it is still in abeyance.

Disposal of Aliens.-The policy to be adopted towards aliens presented itself at once for consideration.

The accepted scheme of defence assumed that in a state of war permits of residence held by aliens would be forthwith cancelled. It was admitted that it was impossible to dispense with the large number of skilled artisans from Linea who are employed in the dockyard, and it was provided that these workmen should proceed to their work by the Reclamation Road without entering the fortress, but access to the Colony was to be refused to daily visitors from Spanish territory.

It was clear that great inconvenience and dislocation of business, both public and private, must result from such measures, and its financial effect is reported later. It would have been hardly less desirable to exclude the alien workmen regularly employed by the Royal Engineers and the Sanitary Commissioners than those of the dockyard, and it would have resulted in the dismissal of a large proportion of indoor and outdoor domestics and inflicted injury on the commercial community.

To have insisted upon all aliens leaving the fortress but to have allowed them entrance on pass daily would have been worse, from a military point of view, than their residence in the fortress.

Apart from the fact that such action would certainly have been resented by Spain and have spread destitution in neighbouring Spanish territory, its necessary corollary would have been the impressment to unaccustomed labour of all able bodied male natives of Gibraltar, who would have been taken from their ordinary pursuits and put to labour which would have been inefficiently performed. would, in fact, have created an artificial state of siege-a result which it was in every way desirable to avoid. It had also to be borne in mind that there are now some 2,000 or more British Gibraltarians residing in neighbouring Spanish terri- tory, and, had Spain retaliated by requiring those to return to the Colony, nothing would have been done towards effecting a reduction of the number of inhabitants of the fortress.

It

It was therefore decided in this matter to depart from the accepted principles of the defence scheme, and there has been so far no reason to doubt the wisdom of the departure. I need hardly add that aliens of hostile nationality were at once expelled by Froclamation.