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ought to say that I took the most careful precautions myself to preserve the strictest privacy with regard to all the documents of this Commission with the object of their reaching the Australian and New Zealand Governments before anybody knew anything of it all. Accidents will happen and in this case an accident did happen. I should also just like to remind Mr. Deakin that at the time this was going on a colleague of his was in this country, Sir John Forrest, and be brought me a message, I think, in regard to the Convention to which I attended to the best of my ability, and therefore we had through him the advantage of communication with those who are responsible to Australia in these matters. I do not say that in any wav to imply that Sir John Forrest came to me with any authority to represent the Australian Government, but at the same time Mr. DEAKIN : He was a member of it. CHAIRMAN : He was a member of it, and I took advantage of his being here to converse with him on the subject. That was how it stood. We did our best to keep the thing secret until it reached the hands of the Commonwealth Government. I admit we did not succeed entirely in doing so, but there it stood, and then the Governments in Australia and New Zealand had their opportunity of suggesting amendments. Now, Mr. Deakin has referred to a passage which has often been referred to in which it is said that " the draft convention must therefore be confirmed or rejected practically as it stands." I wish to make one explanation in regard to that. Taken by itself that may seem a very peremptory statement, but it really means if you are to accept the Convention at all it is obvious we cannot do very much more with the French in the matter. At the same time an opportunity was given to the Governments to submit amendments, and they did submit amendments. We were prepared to negotiate with the French Government again, and were on the point of doing so, when circumstances arose which induced the Australian Government to advise that we should close with them at once, and we did so. That is the history, and I venture to think that at any rate in intention we did not nesdect the interests ot the Colonies, but did our best to secure them, and also with the full cognisance and revision by the Colonies as far as it was possible to do so. lhat is all I have really to say upon that. It is a question which has caused a great deal of uneasiness. The last thing T should wish to do as far as I personally am concerned is to treat the Colonies in an overbearing manner; and I can only assure the representatives here that every effort will be made to avoid their finding cause of complaint again. But I also wish to put on record that as far as the negotiations are concerned I think that we were well represented. Mr. Deakin asked that our representatives should be well informed and capable. Mr DEAKIN ; I said they were well informed and capable. Ido not take any exception to them now. The only exception that has been taken is that they were not acquainted with the islands themselves or the circumstances of island life as" M. Picanon was directly and Samt-Germain was indirectly. M. Picanon is an extremely able man, and so is M. baintGermain, with the additional advantage that M. Picanon had lived in the Pacific, and the English representatives did not. CHAIRMAN- We admit certainly that they had that advantage; I only wish to say that, having been consulted on these negotiations day by
Fourteenth Day, 9 May 1907.
British Interests in the Pacific. (Chairman.)
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