CO129-357 - Governor Sir Lugard - 1909 [7-9] — Page 188

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Enclosure!.

Supreme Court,

-8374

Hongkong, 13th. July, 1909.

I have the honour to acknowledge Your Excel-

-lency's letter of 10th. June enclosing a copy of a despatch

from Lord Crewe, relative to the opinion I expressed with regard

to the proposed new Appeal Court. In that despatch is included

a letter from the Foreign Office containing adverse comments on

my action, in which comments Lord Crewe informs Your Excellency

that he concurs. The effect of these comments is that I allowed

my personal objections to the scheme to influence the advice

I gave with regard to it. I have the honour to state that I am

incapable of giving dishonourable advice; I did not hesitate to

express my personal objection to the scheme; at the same time I

pointed out many reasons why in my opinion it could not work

satisfactorily; but when Your Excellency submitted the draft

Ordinance to carry into effect, I devoted considerable atten-

-tion to it: it seemed to me imperfectly drafted, and I offered

to co-operate in putting it into more perfect shape.

2.

It seems to me much to be regretted that

the question whether the scheme would work was not submitted to

me before it was allowed to go so far that the Council was informed