CO129-496 - Public Offices - 1926 — Page 5

2245/81/378)

ast number in 1925 :

No. 7).

BRITISH CON SULATT-GENERAL,

YUNNANFU.

9th January 1926,

1.

Sir,

s Majesty's

I have the honour to request information as to

whether a woman, possessing a passport in her maiden

name, is permitted, after her marriage, to continue

using her original passport.

I do not find anything in the Consular Instructions

to cover such a case. But it appears inexpedient that a

passport which is not on its face a proper description of

the holder should be permitted to function.

A lady, Miss Florence Ankers, bearing Foreign Office

passport L 035710 of 29th May 1922, recently arrived in

Hongkong, where she was married to a Mr. Hudspeth. On

arrival in Yunnanfu, Mr.Hudspeth presented his own passport

and the passport in the name of Miss Ankers, in order to

effect annual registration. I pointed out that it was in-

convenient that Mrs. Hudspeth should use a passport issued to

her as ise Ankers; and I suggested that a new passport should

be issued to her in her married name, or that she should be

added to the passport already in the possession of Mr. Hudspeth

as his own.

Mr. Hudspeth would consent to neither of my

suggestions. He stated that he had been informed by the

Colonial Secretary's office at Hongkong that provided Mrs.

Hudspeth added a specimen of her married signature to the

passport issued to her prior to her marriage she could

continue to use that passport.

Principal Secretary of State

for Foreign Affairs,

Foreign Office,

London.

Mr./