Lords Sitting of 11 June 1891

COMMISSION.
The following Bills received the Royal Assent:—Registration of Electors Acts Amendment; Seal Fishery (Behring's Sea).

ANGLO-PORTUGUESE AFRICAN TREATY.
*THE PRIME MINISTER AND SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS (The Marquess of SALISBURY): My Lords, I have to lay on the Table a Treaty between this country and Portugal, which has just been approved by the Cortes at Lisbon, and I therefore think it is not fitting that we should abstain any longer from laying it before the two Houses of Parliament. It does not differ sufficiently from the Treaty already on the Table of the House, which was passed in August last, to justify any very lengthened observations on my part. The differences are, besides several matters of small detail, chiefly territorial, and those are not of a very wide extent. There is a considerable extension of the British sphere upon the Plateau of Manica, where the gold miners are now at work, and there is also an extension of the British sphere on the lower or right bank of the Shiré, which will have the advantage of facilitating the navigation for our gunboats. On the other hand, there is a large extension of Portuguese sphere of influence on the north of the Zambesi, giving to them the country up to the watershed that separates the Zambesi from the Nyassa and the Shiré, but not north of the 14th degree of latitude. There is also a modification, which may be of considerable importance, with regard to the Barutza country, which is towards the east and on the west of the Portuguese territory of Angola. In the former Treaty the British sphere of influence was limited by the upper waters of the Zambesi. It is now declared to be co-extensive with the Barutza kingdom. What the Barutza kingdom is will have to be ascertained by Commission; but, unless we are very much misin-
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formed, it is very much larger than the country which is limited by the upper waters of the Zambesi. There has been a good deal of discussion as to whether the result of the changes has been in bare area of territory on the whole in favour of England or of Portugal. It would be very difficult for me to say until the Barutza question is settled; but whether this difference be in one direction or whether it be in the other, I do not think that it would in any case be very large. But I think the territory which will come to Great Britain will be territory which can be worked and occupied by white men. The territory which will fall to Portugal will, not entirely, but more generally, be territory to be worked by those native auxiliaries of which she can command a considerable contingent. There are also additional facilities for using the rivers; additional facilities for the construction of roads, railways, telegraphs, and landing places, provisions with respect to transit duties, and for allowing gold, if it is found, to be taken out of the country without the payment of any duty. Those are not matters of much importance; but I have principally ventured to detain your Lordships for a moment, because I rather wish to correct an impression which I think has gone abroad with respect to the character of our negotiations and the objects we have had in view. We have heard it stated that the attitude of England has been one of benevolence towards Portugal, and the matter has rather been treated as though it were a question of our own good-will whether we gave more or less to Portugal. Materially that may have been so; but we are going back to a very rudimentary stage of the world's history if nothing but material force is to decide a question between two civilised countries. That has not been the spirit in which we have entered into the negotiation. We have been anxious, so far as we could, to give effect to rights wherever they have existed and could be ascertained to exist, whether acquired by occupation or acquired by Treaty. For instance, as to the land that has been conceded on both sides of the Zambesi, I think, on careful and full examination, there is good ground for saying that between Zumbo and Tété the banks on both sides of the Zambesi

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have been within living memory in the occupation of Portugal. We have, in extending the territory behind those banks, attended to the rule of International Law, not one which is universally or rigidly or mathematically observed, but still one that you will find often cited, and acted upon—namely, that those who possess a coast also possess the plain which is watered by the rivers that run to the coast. But the important matter, as these may seem to be small details, is that which concerns the territory of a Chief with whom your Lordships may have acquired some passing acquaintance known as Gungunhana, who has sent two Ambassadors to this country. Gungunhana claims the whole of the Portuguese territory with a trifling exception south of the Zambesi, the whole of Sofala, and the whole of Gaza down to the sea. There are persons—more persons perhaps in South Africa than there are here—who think we ought to have taken advantage of a certain influence which we have acquired with Gungunhana to have made ourselves masters of those two provinces and to have elbowed out the Portuguese altogether. I daresay we could have obtained them—I am not sure whether some of our fellow subjects have not got—Treaties from Gungunhana going to that extent. I am not going to contend that, judging by the past, the dominion of the Portuguese in those countries has been as fruitful or as advantageous as we could wish; but we had something higher than those considerations to guide us. We had the plain dictates of International Law. By a Treaty signed on behalf of this country in 1817, which was confirmed in fuller terms by a Treaty signed in 1847, the whole of this littoral from the Zambesi to Delagoa Bay which Gungunhana claims, and which some persons would like to claim through him, was recognised by this country as belonging to the King of Portugal. It has seemed to us that that closed the controversy; that we are bound to recognise the Treaties which this country has made, and that no high philanthropic, progressive, or humanitarian considerations would justify us in disregarding that plain rule of right. We have, therefore, done our best to recognise such rights of Portugal as
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seemed to us to be justified either by Treaties which we ourselves have made or by plain and effective occupation on their part. I hope that the agreement to which we have come, though very angry things have been said of us at Lisbon, will be recognised as one dictated by a sense of equity, by an earnest desire to uphold the provisions of International Law, and by a sincere wish to renew and to continue those terms of friendship and amity which have so long distinguished the relations of Great Britain and Portugal.

PRESUMPTION OF LIFE LIMITATION (SCOTLAND) BILL.—(No. 104.)
Read 3a (according to order), with the Amendments.
LORD WATSON: My Lords, I have to move two Amendments to supply omissions which have obviously been made per incuriam. I propose in Clause 7, page 3, after ("this") at end of line insert ("or the repealed"); and in Clause 12 (1) (b), page 4, line 30, after ("situate") insert—
("In which case the Sheriff shall direct such intimation and service and such investigation or inquiry as he may think fit, and the procedure in so far as concerns appeal to and review by a higher Court shall be in all respects the same as in an action in the ordinary Sheriff Court.")
Amendments agreed to.
Bill passed and returned to the Commons.

JUDICATURE ACTS AMENDMENT BILL. [H.L.]—(No. 138.)

  SECOND READING.
  Order of the Day for the Second Reading, read.
  THE LORD CHANCELLOR: My Lords, the objects of this Bill are to remove certain limitations in regard to matters which were not altogether settled in the Judicature Acts. The first clause provides for persons who have held the office of Lord Chancellor acting as Judges of the High Court or of the Court of Appeal. The next has reference to the appointment of the President of the Probate, Divorce, and Admiralty Division. When a distinguished Member of your Lordships' House was recently removed from the presidency of the Probate and Admiralty

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  Court, which office he had occupied so long and with, such distinction, it was ascertained that the appointment of a successor was limited in a way that it was impossible to defend, and for which I confess I have been unable to find any reason at all. It was limited by a number of conditions which seriously fettered the discretion of Her Majesty in filling up the vacancy. No member of the Court of Appeal could be appointed, no person could be appointed, though he was a Judge, under such circumstances as would make him Chief of the Court. In what way that somewhat clumsy arrangement was arrived at originally on the passing of the Act constituting that Court I am unable to say, although I have made several inquiries to ascertain the reason of it. It is obvious that Her Majesty ought to be at liberty to appoint such person as she thinks proper, without any such limitations as are prescribed by the Judicature Acts as they now stand. The first object aimed at by this Bill is to get rid of those limitations, and to enable Her Majesty, subject to the conditions mentioned in it, to appoint any such person as to Her Majesty shall seem right. By this alteration a considerable and important change will be effected. The next object of the Bill is to enable the House of Lords in the case of Admiralty appeals to call in persons skilled in nautical matters to assist them as assessors. Your Lordships are probably aware that in Admiralty cases, where questions involving nautical knowledge and skill arise, the Courts of First Instance have the power to call in as assessors persons familiar with nautical subjects. Those cases frequently come upon appeal before the House of Lords; but when they do so come before your Lord ships' House no such power exists as is possessed by the Court which has already heard the case in the first instance, and by the Court of Appeal, of trying those cases with the assistance of skilled assessors. Therefore the other object aimed at by this Bill is to give your Lordships' House, sitting as a judicial tribunal, the power of obtaining the assistance of skilled persons in matters requiring nautical knowledge, in the same way that Courts of First Instance and the Court of Appeal now have power to do. Your Lordships will, no doubt, think
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  these are matters of importance requiring legislation which are dealt with in this Bill, and with this short explanation of its objects I leave it in your Lordships' hands.
  Bill read 2a (according to Order), and committed to a Committee of the Whole House To-morrow.

MUSEUMS AND GYMNASIUMS BILL. (No. 153.)
Amendments reported (according to Order); and Bill to be read 3a on Monday next.
REFORMATORY AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL CHILDREN BILL.—(No 125.)
Amendment reported (according to Order); and Bill to be read 3a Tomorrow.
BILLS OF SALE ACT (1890) AMENDMENT BILL.—(NO. 159.)
  LOCAL AUTHORITIES (SCOTLAND) LOANS BILL. (NO. 160.)
  Brought from the Commons; read 1a; to he printed; and to he read 2a on Tuesday, the 23rd instant.—(The Lord Herschell.)
  ROADS AND STREETS IN POLICE BURGHS (SCOTLAND) BILL.
  Brought from the Commons; read 1a; to he printed; and to be read 2a on Monday next.—(The Lord Elgin [E. Elgin and Kincardine]). (No. 161.)

  TRAMWATS (IRELAND) ACT (1860) AMENDMENT BILL.
  Brought from the Commons; read 1a; and to he printed. (No. 162.)
  House adjourned at five minutes before Five o'clock, till To-morrow, a quarter past Ten o'clock.