CO129-381 - Governor Sir Lugard - 1911 [11-12] — Page 534

CONFIDENTIAL.

Trong làng.

1898/1 1898

11524

Government House.

29th, December, 1911.

Joc 30471/11

do.do.

sir,

On receipt of your telegram of September

25th. I decided after discussing the matter with the late

ir Barnes to write to Sir Francis Piggott (who was in

/

Japan on leave) and inform him that, in view of his retire- ment at the end of April next I should be glad to know

whether he desired to avail himself of three months' full

pay leave prior to that date, in order that I might make

necessary arrangements. I took this course because I was

uncertain whether Sir Francis intended to retire of his

ow motion, and if that should have been the case it would

have enabled me to avoid the very disagreeable duty of

compulsorily retiring him.

2.

In reply he informed me that he had no

intention of retiring at that time. Shortly after the

receipt of this letter I convened a meeting of the Executive Council, and informed them that you had "decided that it was necessary to call upon the Chief Justice to rettre

from the service in order to facilitate the creation of

a satisfactory Appeal Court" (despatch of September 29th. which had just arrived). Many if not all of the Council were aware that there were (as I told them) other cogent

reasons for his retirement, but it seemed unnecessary to

drag these matters in for the Council at once and unan-

imously

E RIGHT HONOURABLE. LEWIS V. HARCOURT.

K.P.

&C.,

&c.,

&C..)

SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE COLONIES.