Directory_and_Chronicle_1882 — Page 932

CHARTER OF THE COLONY OF HONGKONG.

361

eleventh clause shall be and remain repealed: And further know ye, that we, of our special grace, certain knowledge, and mere motion, have thought fit to constitute, order, and declare, and do by these presents constitute, order, and declare, that there shall be a Governor and Commander-in-chief (hereinafter called our said Governor) in and over our Colony of Hongkong and its dependencies (hereinafter called our said Colony), and that the person who shall fill the said office of Governor shall be from time to time appointed by commission under our sin manual and signet: And we do hereby authorize and command our said Governor to do and execute in due manner all things that shall belong to his said command, and to the trust we have reposed in him, according to the several powers and authorities granted or appointed him by virtue of our said Charter of the tifth day of February, 1843, and these present Letters Patent, and of such Commission as may be issued to him under our sign manual and signet, and according to such instructions as may from time to time be given to him, under our sign manual and signet, or by our order in our Privy Council, or by us through one of our principal Secretaries of State, and to such laws as are or shall hereafter be in force in our said Colony.

II.-And whereas, by Article IV. of our said Charter, we did make provision for the constitution of an Executive Council for our said Colony of Hongkong: Now we de hereby declare our pleasure to be that, henceforth, any person or persons may be named or designated by us as members of our said Executive Council of our said Colony by warrant, under our sign manual and signet, as well as by any instruction or instructions aldressed by us to our said Governor, and that our said Governor shall summon to our said Executive Council any person or persons so named or designated.

III.-And we dɔ hereby declare our pleasure to be that, in addition to the power of granting pardons conferred upon our said Governor by Articles VIII. and IX. of our said Charter, our said Governor shall be authorize 1, anl Le is hereby empowered, as he shall see occasion, in our name and on our behalf, when any crime has been committed within our said Colony, or for which the offender may be tried therein, to grant a pardon to any accomplice, not being the actual perpetrator of such crime, who shall give such information as shall lead to the conviction of the principal offender; and to remit any fines, penalties, or forfeitures whatsoever, which may become due and payable to us, notwithstanding that the same may exceed the sum of fifty pounds sterling in any case.

IV. And whereas, by Article XI. of our said Charter we did make provision for the administration of the government of our said Colony, in the event of the death or absence of the Governor for the time being thereof: And whereas we have revoked that Article of our said Charter, and we do hereby further declare our will and pleasure to be that in the event of the death, incapacity, or absence out of our said Colony, of such person as may be commissioned and appointed by us to be the Governor thereof, all and every the powers and authorities by our said Charter, or by these prosents, granted to the Governor of our said Colony, for the time being, shall be, and the same are hereby vested in such person as may be appointed by us, by warrant, under our sigu manual and signet, to be our Lieutenant-Governor in our said Colony, or if there shall be no such Lieutenant-Governor in or said Colony, then in such person or persons as may be appointed by us under our siga manual and signet to administer the government of our said Colony; or in the event of there being no person in our said Colony commissioned and appointed by us to be such Lieutenant- Governor or Administrator thereof, then our pleasure is, and we do hereby provide and declare that the said powers and authorities shall be and the same are hereby vested in the Colonial Secretary, or person lawfully discharging the functions of Colonial Secre❜ary in our said Colony for the time being; and every such Lieutenant-Governor or such Colonial Secretary, or person lawfully discharging the functions of Colonial Secretary for the time being, shall execute all and every the said powers and authorities, until our further pleasure shall be signified therein, and according to such instructions as our said Governor may have received, and such further instructions as such Lieutenant-Governor, Colonial Secretary, or other person as aforesaid, may receive