§ MR. TOMLINSONasked the Under Secretary of State for the Colonies, Whether he can say whether there is any foundation for the statement in The West Indian newspaper, published at Barbadoes, on the 24th October last, that the Legislative Assembly of the Island of Dominica have passed Resolu- 1579 tions recommending that Her Majesty's Government be memoralised to cede the Island to the United States of America; whether half the Members of the Legislative Assembly are nominated by the Crown; and, whether the Government have any information as to the grounds on which the inhabitants of the Island have become dissatisfied with their position as belonging to the British Empire, and expect improvement from becoming connected with the United States?
§ MR. EVELYN ASHLEYsaid, the only knowledge he had of this matter was from the newspaper paragraph referred to in the Question. It stated that the alleged Resolution was caused by the action of the Mother Country in permitting bounty-fed sugar to come into the English market. It was true that half the Members of the Assembly were nominees.
§ MR. TOMLINSONasked if the Government had any information whether the nominated Members supported the Resolution or not?
§ MR. EVELYN ASHLEYreplied, that the report referred to, which was their only source of information, did not state who voted and who did not.
§ MR. TOMLINSONasked if the Government would make further inquiry into this important matter?
§ MR. EVELYN ASHLEYsaid, that, of course, the Government would get official information in time.