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grogbon lis to mold-
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the ninetyg dini woy dad en behel i pol
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Awsthi I
USA
İlnud mind oved qľmid Ilty woy
LA
Dear Mr. Wei Han,
217
Colonial Secretary's Office, Hongkong, 9th. May, 1911.
In para raph 2 of my letter of the 21st. ultimo, I informed you that His Excellency the Governor would consult the Law Officers as to your request that, if a British subject is arrested in China for offences committed in this Colony and is extradited, a Chinese official should be allow -ed to attend the trial and sit on the Bench beside the Police Magistrate to listen to the case such officer taking no part in the trial. Subsequently, Captain Wu called on me on the 25th. ultimo and explained that the real request of the Canton Government was, that, when a Police Magistrate in Hongkong tries the case of prisoners for whose extradition the Chinese Covern- -ment have applied, the officer deputed to represent the Chinese Government, at the proceedings in the Police Court, should be allowed to sit on the Bench beside the Magistrate without, however, taking any part in the actual trial. It is upon this point that His Excellency has now consulted the Law Officers, who have advised that the question whether an Officer should be invited by the presiding Magistrate to take a seat on the Bench depends upon his position in regard to the proceed- -ings. If he is in the position of a party to the case, such aa a prosecutor he cannot be given a seat on the bench; but, if he i is merely watching the case on be:alf of his Government and is not in any way an interested party, then he may be allowed to sit by the Magistrate. For example, when four or five years ago there were summonses and cross-summonses for assault between two individuals in the Colony and two privates in the Baluchi Regiment then stationed in Kowloon, a Solicitor was retained on behalf of the Regiment and the Colonel and the Senior Major of the Regiment were present at the hearing. Both officers were in full uniform with their swords, but the Magistrate did not ask
M
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