§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREasked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies when Germany acquired Nauru Island, and from whom; how many native inhabitants the island contains; and who were the legal owners of the phosphate deposits under the German régime?
§ Colonel L. WILSONThe island was annexed by Germany in 1888; the indigenous natives number about 1,300. The exclusive right to exploit these deposits was granted by the German Government to the Jaluit Geselleschaft of Hamburg, who, with the approval of the German Government, transferred their rights in 1906 to the Pacific Phosphate Company, Limited.