CO129-358 - Governor Sir Lugard - 1909 [10-11] — Page 451

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Department with the capitalized value of the Crown Rent,

when reimposed, would cause a diminution of the said

defence fund and thus contravene paragraph 3 of the

Circular of the 30th. December, 1894, which requires that

the integrity of the fund should be preserved in kind or

value. The fallacy in this argument is the use of the word

"permanent" for the waiver of the Crown Rent of £150 by

the Colony was expressly declared at the time to be

temporary and conditional on the lot remaining the property

of the War Department. The rental of £150 per annum is

not therefore to be regarded as a permanent contribution

but as a temporary augmentation of the defence fund.

8.

But I entirely demur to the view

that the defence fund of the Colony included in 1894 the

こ

Crown Rent of Spring Gardens: that Crown Rent was waived

by the Colonial Government under a clearly defined condi-

-tion: and, as the Circulars of 1890 and 1894 make no

provision for such a case as that of Spring Gardens, the

Colonial Goverment objects to new conditions being now

read into the agreement made in 1859 respecting it.

I regret therefore that I am un-

-able to agree in the view of the Army Council and that I

must in justice to the Colony adhere to the terms of my

Despatch