CO129-371 - Public Offices - 1910 — Page 232

230

29. 1909.

closure No. 7 in 'r. Jamieson's No. 118, Teneral feries, of Documber

CO 4141

Downing Stroot,

Rro II TE 10

4356

• FEB 7_1910.

10th. October 1899.

sir,

I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your

despatch No. 196 of the 21st. July last, with enclosures,

ruising the question whether the Thinese inhabitants of

the leased territory are British subjects.

I caused your despatch and its unclosures to

be submitted to the Law Officers of the Crown, and I

have to inform you that I an advised by them that the

persons inhabiting the new territory, who were before the

cession Chinese subjecte, are to be regarded as British

subjects for all purposes, as from the 16th. April last,

inasmuch as cession of territory affects a change in the

nationality of the inhabitants, and as the territory

in question has buon ceded and is now British territory,

the fact that the cession is for a term of years only

does not affect the conclusion that, by the cession, the

Ar enry A. Blake, f.

• -

Governor of Hongkong.

inhabitants