Ir. framing accordingly a code of Laws for the government of British Subjects in China, where the territorial Sovereign has thus delegated to the British Crown the exercise of a jurisdiction inherent in the Chinese Crown, the first point for which it was the duty of the British Government to provide was, that Her Majesty's Subjects within the Chinese dominions should duly observe the Treaty engagements subsis- ting between the Two Crowns, and should conduct themselves in a peaceable and orderly manner.
The next point was, that, in fulfilment of the engagements contracted by Treaty, facilities should be provided for Chinese Subjects to obtain within the Chinese Territory, redress from British Subjects in suits and differences of a civil nature which might happen to arise between them.
But Her Majesty's Government would have shown a strange disregard for the social interests of British Subjects resorting to China, if they had withheld from them the means, if those British Subjects should think fit to have recourse to them, of hav- ing suits and differences arising among themselves, decided within the Chinese Terri- tory. In other countries, such suits may be heard and determined by the Municipal Tribunals of such countries, but such is not the case in China.
Moreover international comity and mutual convenience require that the subjects or citizens of other Christian Powers resorting to the Chinese dominions, and similar- ly exempted from the jurisdiction of the Chinese Tribunals, should have the means of prosecuting within the Chinese Territory suits against British subjects; for if the British Corsulate should refuse to entertain such suits, the Consulates of the other Christian Powers fight reasonably decline to entertain suits which British subjects might be desirous of prosecuting against the subjects or citizens of such Powers.
Her Majesty's Government are moreover bound to provide that the renunciation by the Territorial Sovereign, as far as British subjects are concerned, of his inherent right to take cognizance of, and punish crimes and offences, by whomsoever commit- ted, within his dominions, should not serve as an encouragement and pretext for the commission by British subjects of crimes and offences, which, in all civilized com- munities, subject the perpetrators of them to punishment, and the enactinents of the Order in Council relating to matters of a criminal nature have been framed with that view. The Penalties, which Her Majesty's Consular Officers are empowered to inflict on criminal offenders, may indeed in some cases appear to be inadequate to their offences; but in such cases the Consular Officers will have the power of sending the criminals to Hongkong, to be there tried by the Supreme Court of the Colony. Her Majesty's Government are however of opinion, that the certainty, that Crime, though committed in a foreign country, will be followed by punishment, to be inflic ted by the sentence of a British Tribunal, will operate as a salutary check upon the Commission of crime by British subjects in China.
I do not think it necessary to enter into a detailed explanation of the several Articles of the enclosed Order in Council. The main provisions of them are essen- tially similar to the provisions of the Ordinance applying to the same points.
I cannot, however, omit observing, that Her Majesty's Government attach great importance to the assistance, which they trust Her Majesty's Consular Officers will continue to derive from the co-operation of the British community in giving effect to the provisions of the Order in Council. As regards
As regards indeed, the enforcement of the observance by British subjects of the Treaty engagements of the British Crown, that matter is one which could not properly be provided for otherwise than. by placing it exclusively in the hands of Her Majesty's responsible Officers; and as regards matters, whether of a civil or criminal nature, in which the sum in dispute or. the penalty on conviction is moderate, such matters may doubtless be most convenient- ly left to the unassisted jurisdiction of the Consular officesr. But as regard cases of
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