§ MR. SUMMERS (Huddersfield)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what are the engagments referred to by Lord Salisbury in his instructions to Sir L. Simmons of 1st August, 1889, under which it is asserted that Her Majesty's Government have come for the enforcement of the Canon Law in Malta; what is the date of these engagements; and where can a copy of them be found?
*SIR J. EERGUSSONThe engagements referred to are contained in 686 proclamations issued by Mr. Cameron, Civil Commissioner of Malta, dated 15th July, 1801, and Sir Thomas Maitland, the first Governor of Malta, dated 5th October, 1813, copies of which are in the Colonial Office Library.
§ MR. SUMMERS'I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the Canon Law is in its entirety the civil law of Malta; and, if not, what parts of the Canon Law are the civil law of the island, and when and by virtue of what stipulations, proclamations, or enactments did they become so?
§ *SIR J. FERGUSSONIt would not be possible to answer this question without a reference to the colony, but the Governor will be asked to report.