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time. Should suspicions arise, however, with regard to any particular vessel during the precautionary period, a confidential report should be furnished by the Collector to the Board of Customs and Excise, and clearance should be delayed, if not already granted, pending the receipt of a reply to this report.

*14. The Home Ports Defence Committee are informed that the Admiralty consider that, on the outbreak of war, an Order in Council should be issued prohibiting the export or carriage coastwise of stone, cement, concrete, bricks, or similar cargo at the following ports :—

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Ports where naval or military interests are affected.----Cardiff, Penarth, Barrow, Barry, Newhaven. * Ports where commercial interests are affected-Weymouth, Avonmouth, Swansea, Dublin, Belfast, Londonderry, the Clyde, Aberdeen, Leith, Hartlepool, Blyth.

"15. The Home Ports Defence Committee understand that this proposal is being inquired into by the Board of Trade and the Board of Customs and Excise, who will inform the Admiralty of the results of their investigations."

8. After further correspondence between the Admiralty, the Board of Trade, and the Board of Customs and Excise (Appendices I to IV to this Memorandum), the question was again referred to the Home Ports Defence Committee, and was considered at the 19th meeting held on the 23rd October, 1912, at which, in addition to the permanent members of the Committee, Sir Nathaniel Highmore attended to represent the Board of Customs and Excise and Mr. G. J. Stanley to represent the Board of Trade.

9. At this meeting, the Committee were informed that the Admiralty no longer considered it necessary that an Order in Council should be issued on the outbreak of war, prohibiting the export or carriage coastwise of cargoes of substances which might be employed for blocking purposes, but were of opinion that the preservation of the fairway could be assured by less drastic measures.

10. They believed that all reasonable danger of vessels with such hostile intentions being able to carry out their designs could in the case of ships clearing outwards be prevented by the carefully arranged co-operation of the Customs Officers and the Const Guard authorities. A Circular containing details of this arrangement, which had been issued by the Board of Customs and Excise to Collectors (Customs) and Officers in charge on 31st July, 1912 (printed as Appendix V to this Memorandum), was also placed before the Committee. The Committee provisionally accepted the views of the Admiralty.

11. Subsequently, however, it transpired that the extent to which the co-operation of the Coast Guard could be counted on was limited by the following considerations :—

(a.) The Non-Signal Section of Coast Guard is liable to be embarked in sea-going ships at any time by order of the Admiralty, and would certainly be so embarked either before or on the declaration of war. (b.) The Signal Section of Coast Guard would be fully employed in their special duties during the period of strained relations and on the outbreak

of war.

(c.) At several ports concerned there is no Coast Guard force.

12. The question was, therefore, again considered by the Home Ports Defence Committee at the 20th meeting held on the 22nd January, 1918, when, in addition to the permanent members of the Committee, Sir Nathaniel Highmore and Mr. E. C. Cunningham attended to represent the Board of Customs and Excise, and Mr. G. J. Stanley to represent the Board of Trade. At this meeting the representatives of the Board of Customs and Excise pointed out that under existing arrangements and with their present legal powers-

(a.) Until the actual declaration of war the Customs could not secure the detention of a suspicious vessel, even at the instance and request of the Admiralty, for want of both a supporting force and a legal warrant.

(b.) After the declaration of war, though the Customs have a supporting force on which they could call, they will have no legal warrant for preventing a British or neutral ship getting under way merely because of a suspicion that her departure is with hostile intentions. They could only take steps to detain her as agents for and on the sole responsibility of the Admiralty.

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