§ MR. J. M. ROBERTSON (Northumberland, Tyneside)I beg to ask the Under-secretary of State for the Colonies whether his attention has been drawn to the arrest and imprisonment in the Transvaal of some thirteen British-Indian traders for trading without licences; whether these traders tendered the licence money, which was refused with the above consequences because they declined to comply with the formalities of I the registration law; whether these men were residents before the war, already holding certificates of identification and possessed of a clean record; and whether the Secretary of State will make friendly representations to the Government of the Transvaal with a view to their speedy liberation.
§ COLONEL SEELYAccording to a telegram from the Governor of the Transvaal the Asiatics lately prosecuted have been proceeded against for contravention of the licensing laws and not of the Asiatic registration legislation. The men were found by the licensing officers to be trading without licences, and the prosecutions were undertaken at the instance of the municipal authorities. Further inquiry will be made into this matter.