19

A.—2

No. 18. New Zealand, No. 131. My Lord, — Downing Street, 9th April, 1913, I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of Your Excellency's despatch, No. 15, of the 6th February, on the subject of the International Convention for the Suppression of the White-slave Traffic. 2. In reply, I have to request that you will invite the attention of your Ministers to the fact that by Article 11 (paragraph 2) of the Convention it is provided that when a contracting State desires the Convention to come into force in one of its possessions the declaration notifying this desire must communicate the laws which have been enacted in that possession relevant to the object of the Convention, and I shall accordingly be glad to receive as soon as possible twenty copies of any legislation in force in the Dominion bearing on the subject. 3. It is also provided that the demanding State shall communicate to each of the other contracting States which method or methods of transmission of letters of request is recognized for a possession in respect of which the declaration mentioned shall have been made. I would suggest, with a view to the saving of time and correspondence in such transmissions, that either the first or second of the methods specified in Article 6 (or both) should be adopted. If the second method is adopted the intermediary will of course be a Consular Agent, as distinct from a Diplomatic Agent. 4. I take this opportunity of stating that the Government of the Netherlands has adhered to the Convention in respect of the Dutch East Indies. I have, &c, L. HARCOURT. Governor His Excellency the Right Hon. the Earl of Liverpool, K.C.M.G., M.V.0., &c.

A.-l, 1914, No. 17.

No. 19. New Zealand, No. 138. My Lord, — Downing Street, 11th April, 1913. I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of Your Excellency's despatch, No. 25, of the 21st February, reporting the receipt from various institutions, &c, in New Zealand of messages of sympathy and regret at the death of Captain Scott and his companions in the Antarctic. 2. Copies of your despatch have been communicated to Lady Scott, the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, and to the Royal Geographical Society, and I enclose copy of a letter from the society conveying thanks for the messages. I have, &c, L. HARCOURT. Governor His Excellency the Right Hon. the Earl of Liverpool, K.C.M.G., M.V.0., &c.

Enclosure. Sir, — Eoyal Geographical Society, Kensington Gore, S.W., 9th April, 1913. I beg to acknowledge receipt of yours of Bth April transmitting a copy of a despatch from the Governor of New South Wales, forwarding messages of sympathy and regret at the loss of Captain Scott and his comrades in the Antarctic, together with copy of despatch from the Governor of New Zealand reporting the receipt of similar messages from various bodies in that Dominion. May I request you to be so good as to convey, through the Governors of New South Wales and New Zealand, the deep appreciation of myself and the Council of the society of these sympathetic references to the fate of Captain Scott and his companions. These messages will be conveyed to the relatives of the deceased. I have, &c, Ctjrzon of Kedleston, The Under-Secretary of State, Colonial Office, S.W. President, K.G.S.