CO885-9 — Page 147

6370.

64

No. 114.

NATAL

GOVERNOR SIR H. E. MCCALLUM TO MR. LYTTELTON. (Sent 3:10 P.M., received 4'18 P.M., February 25, 1905.)

(Paraphrase.)

(February 25. No. 1.)

TELEGRAM.

[Answered by Nos. 120 and 122.]

FIRES mentioned in my telegram No. 1 of the 24th February, have been put out. Shall I allow their bunkers to be refilled with another supply, considering their prolonged stay for forty days in this port, and their having filled bunkers ostensibly for Batavia ? With reference to the condition laid down in the letter from the Foreign Office of the 2nd February,† whatever grave suspicions I may have as to their final real destination, these colliers do not seem to have attended the Russian fleet in any previous voyage.

6023.

No. 115.

COLONIAL OFFICE TO FOREIGN OFFICE.

65

Enclosure in No. 116.

CONSUL SAUZIER to the MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE.

(No. 2. Treaty.)

His Britannic Majesty's Consulate, Tamatave, MY LORD,

February 3, 1905. On the 18th of last month I reported the arrival in this harbour of three large empty colliers, one German, the "Dortmund," and two British, the "Tapton

" and Aberlour," chartered by the Hamburg-American line, to which the "Dortmund" belongs.

15

I have now to state that another German collier, the "Dacia," belonging to the Hamburg-American line, came on the 26th January from Nossibé, where it had given coals to the Russian fleet, and had still in her some 2,000 tons, which the "Dacia's captain had to take away with him, as the Russian ships were so full that they could not take any more.

I have it on very good authority that the German colliers, at least those belonging to the Hamburg-American line or chartered by it, had absolutely refused to follow the Russian fleet out of Madagascar waters, and that is the reason why the "Dacia" had to go away with some 2,000 tons of coal and the crew, taken here, of the Hamburg- American steamer "Bengalia," wrecked about a month ago in the vicinity of Ste. Luce, not far from Fort Dauphin, where she would pick up the Captain of the "Bengalia."

It would appear that this steamer was proceeding to Ste. Marie with 12,000 tons of coal for the Russian fleet when she struck a rock at a considerable distance from the shore which is not marked on the charts, and became a total wreck.

His Britannic Majesty's Secretary of State

I have, &c.

ANATOLE SAUZIER.

[Answered by No. 119.]

for Foreign Affairs.

SIR,

Downing Street, February 27, 1905. IN continuation of the letter from this Department of the 22nd instant‡ respecting the presence at Durban of three colliers which applied at that port for coal, and which were suspected of being in attendance on the Russian fleet, I am directed by Mr. Secretary Lyttelton to transmit to you, to be laid before the Marquess of Lansdowne, copies of further telegrams from Sir H. McCallum (1) reporting that two of the three vessels referred to had entered the harbour with bunkers on fire, and (2) enquiring whether they should be allowed to re-coal, considering their long stay at Durban and their having taken coal ostensibly to proceed to Batavia, although they do not appear to have been previously in attendance on the Russian fleet.

I am to state that Mr. Lyttelton would be glad to learn, as soon as possible, what reply should, in Lord Lansdowne's opinion, be returned to the enquiry in the later telegram.

6658.

No. 116.

I am, &c.

H. BERTRAM COX,

FOREIGN OFFICE TO COLONIAL OFFICE. (Received March 2, 1905.)

THE Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs presents his compliments to the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, and, by direction of the Secretary of State, transmits herewith copy of a despatch from Consul Sauzier (Tamatave) relative to colliers suspected of having been in attendance upon the Russian fleet.

Foreign Office, February 28, 1905.

• No. 110.

↑ No. 79.

‡ No. 108.

§ Nos. 110 and 114.

6035.

No. 117.

NATAL.

MR. LYTTELTON TO GOVERNOR SIR H. E. McCALLUM.

(General. Secret.)

Downing Street, March 1, 1905.

"

SIR,

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Secret telegrams of the 22nd and 24th December last," and of your Secret despatchest of the same dates, reporting the treatment of the French steamer "Espérance," the cargo of which was suspected to be destined for the Russian fleet then proceeding to the Far East.

Subsequent information, with which you have furnished me in connection with the case of the steam-ship "Aberlour," is confirmatory of your view that the " had been in attendance on the Russian fleet, and had put into Durban with the object

Espérance of procuring supplies destined for the same service. On that presumption you would have been justified in declining to recognize the "Espérance' merchant vessel, and in refusing her any supplies in accordance with the principles as an ordinary neutral laid down in the enclosures to my Circular despatches of the 3rd and 10th December last.‡

Although the course which you adopted of allowing this vessel sufficient supplies to take her to the nearest French Colony has not led and is not now likely to lead to any embarrassment, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, to whom your despatches have been referred, does not feel able to express approval of such an intermediate course as that adopted by you on the occasion referred to. In his view the 'Espérance" should have been regarded either as a neutral merchant vessel without any belligerent character, in which case she was entitled to full supplies of all kinda, or as a vessel in attendance upon the Russian fleet, in which case she should have been treated in accordance with the instructions already referred to.

6K

Nos. 47 and 50.

[1185]

Nos. 56 and 57.

Nos. 26 and 34 ▲.

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