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imported into that country in a foreign ship, and if so, whether it be general, or applicable only to particular articles; what are the rates of duty payable on goods imported into the said country; whether there be any tonnage duty or other port dues (and what), payable on shipping entering at, or clearing from, the ports of that country; whether there be any (and if so, what), ports in that country wherein goods may be warehoused on importation, and afterwards exported with or without payment of any duties, and under what regulations.

§ XIII. Annual returns of trade.-The Consul will transmit to Her Majesty's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, at the expiration of each year, a return of the trade with the principal ports of his consulate, according to the form inclosed in the circular dated the 15th March, 1833, of which copies are herewith annexed.*

§ XIV. Returns quarterly of corn and grain.—The Consul will send to this department, at the expiration of every quarter, an account of the prices in his district of the several articles of agricultural produce, in each week of the preceding three months, made up according to the form herewith inclosed.

He will also, when practicable, transmit with the returns a memorandum, in duplicate, in which he will state any further information which he may have to communicate respecting the prices free on board of the several sorts of corn and grain; the amount of the charge for freight to England at the period at which the returns are made up; the extent of the stock in granary; every peculiarity respecting the course of exchange; whether any restraint is imposed by law, either upon the exportation or importation of corn and grain, and, if so, the nature and extent of such restraint. The Consul will endeavour to render these reports as accurate as possible, and he will add to them any general remarks upon the subject which may suggest themselves to him as of sufficient importance to be conveyed to Her Majesty's Government.

§ XV. Quarantine.-The Consul is herewith furnished, for his inforImation, with the copy of an Act of Parliament (6 Geo. IV., c. 78), intituled, “An Act to repeal the several Laws relating to the performance of Quarantine, and to make other provisions in lieu thereof;" and also with copies of Orders in Council which His Majesty was pleased to issue in furtherance of this Act of Parliament. The Consul will take measures for making as public as possible this Act of Parliament and the Orders in Council; and he will not neglect to report to this department any appearance of yellow fever, plague, or other contagious or infectious disease, or the establishment of any unusual quarantine at the place of his residence.

* Vide Appendix.

§ XVI. Certificates.-The Consul will be careful not to grant a certificate of any fact of which he has not accurately ascertained the truth and whenever he is required to attest or certify a document consisting of more than one sheet, he will unite the sheets by a tape or ribbon to the end of the document by the means of wax or wafer, on which he will place his official seal.

§ XVII. Vessel, definition of a British.* § XVIII. Passes, Mediterranean.*

§ XIX. Trade with the Mauritius. The Order in Council, dated the 28th May, 1819, sanctioning certain modifications of the laws which regulate colonial trade, so far as they affect the Island of Mauritius, having been annulled by the general effect of the Order in Council of the 16th July, 1827 (herewith inclosed), and the trade having been placed on a different footing, the Consul will act in strict conformity with the regulations of the Order in Council before mentioned of the 16th July, 1827, and he will take all proper steps to make these regulations known to the local authorities within the district of his consulate.

§ XX. Flag, pilot.-The Admiralty having judged it proper that the flag henceforth to be used by all British ships throughout the world, as a signal for a pilot, shall be a British jack with a border of white of one-fifth of the breadth of the jack, the Consul will make this known in the most public manner throughout the district of his consulate ; and he is herewith furnished, for his more particular information, with a copy of the flag now adopted.

§ XXI. Flag, merchant.*

§ XXII. Distressed British subjects.*

§ XXIII. British navy.―The Consul will furnish intelligence to the commanders of Her Majesty's ships touching upon the coast, and obtain for them, when required, supplies of water and provisions. In this latter instance, the before-mentioned Instructions from the Admiralty will furnish the Consul with the means of regulating his accounts, and also instruct him with respect to pilotage, and to the apprehension of deserters. He will, on any such occasions, do his utmost, with prudence, to promote the interests of Her Majesty's service. He will also exert himself to recover all wrecks, cables, anchors, etc., belonging to the Queen's ships, when found at sea by fishermen or other persons, and brought into the port where he resides. He will pay to such persons the customary salvage, and will acquaint the Admiralty with his proceedings thereon.

§ XXIV. Precedence between Consuls and Naval Officers.-In order to avoid the inconvenience which has arisen to Her Majesty's service

*Repealed by Instructions annexed, 1855.

from a difference of opinion on a point of etiquette between Her Majesty's Consuls and the Commanders of Her Majesty's ships of war arriving at foreign ports, with respect to the payment of the first visit, it has been decided that whenever the Captain of one of Her Majesty's ships of war, being a Post Captain or a Commodore wearing a blue pendant, shall signify to the Consul, in writing, his arrival at the port at which the Consul resides, the Consul (or Vice-Consul in ports where there is a Consul-General) will take the earliest opportunity of waiting in person on the Commander of the ship, and of affording him such assistance as he may require. Commanders of Her Majesty's navy will, on their arrival at any such ports, wait upon Her Majesty's Consuls, but they will be waited upon by Vice-Consuls. Consuls-General and Consuls will, in all cases, wait upon Flag-Officers and Commanders wearing a red or white pendant, without waiting for any previous communication. The Officers commanding Her Majesty's ships of war have orders to furnish a boat to convey the Consul on board, and to re-land him, on the Consul notifying his wish to have a boat so sent for him. The Consul will strictly attend to the foregoing Instructions. The copy of a Memorandum upon this subject, issued by the Admiralty to Her Majesty's naval officers, is herewith enclosed.

§ XXV. Ionian States.-The treaty of peace, signed at Paris on the 5th November, 1815, having placed the Ionian States under the protection of Great Britain, the Consul will afford the same protection to the subjects, vessels, and merchandise of the Ionian States as to the trade and persons of Her Majesty's subjects. But in extending this protection to them, he will not make any pecuniary advances to Ionian subjects, unless he shall be furnished with specific instructions to that effect by the proper authorities of those States, as it is to them alone that the Consul must look for reimbursement of such advances.

§ XXVI. Slave trade.-The copy of an Act of Parliament amending and consolidating the laws relating to the abolition of the slave trade is annexed.* The Consul will keep a watchful eye upon all undertakings for trading in slaves within the district of his Consulate; and whenever he has reason to suspect that British subjects or British capital are engaged or concerned in the carrying on of this traffic, he will forthwith report the same to the Secretary of State, in order that steps may be taken for putting a stop to such criminal acts, and for bringing to punishment the offenders against the laws of their country. In consequence of the extent of the correspondence upon the slave trade, and the difficulty of preparing it for Parliament, it has been found necessary that all despatches treating upon this subject should form a separate series of despatches distinct by themselves. The * Vide Appendix.

Consul will therefore distinguish all despatches upon this subject, by heading them with the words "Slave Trade;" and he will number them from first to last successively throughout each year, apart from the general series of his despatches.

§ XXVII. Vice-Consuls.-In case it shall appear to the Consul necessary that a Vice-Consul should be stationed at any port within his district, where no British Vice-Consulate has heretofore existed, or whenever a vacancy shall occur, he will report the fact to the Secretary of State, showing at the same time how far British interests require such an appointment; and if suggested as expedient, he will submit the name of some English merchant of respectability for the appointment, with the grounds of his recommendation, but he will in no case give him any commission or sanction to act in that capacity, until the approval of the Secretary of State shall have been given. Upon the receipt of such approval, the Consul will acquaint the individual with his appointment as Vice-Consul, and will furnish him with the necessary authority to act in that capacity, together with instructions for the guidance of his conduct conformable to those under which he himself is acting.

The Consul will not dismiss any Vice-Consul acting within his district without the sanction of the Secretary of State; but if he should be of opinion that good and sufficient grounds exist for the dismissal of a Vice-Consul, he will give information thereof to Her Majesty's Secretary of State, suspending, provisionally, the Vice-Consul, only when the extraordinary nature of the case may appear to require so prompt a proceeding; and awaiting, in all cases, the decision of the Secretary of State previously to taking ulterior proceedings upon the subject.

At the close of every year, the Consul will transmit to the Secretary of State a list (according to the form hereto annexed) of all persons who may be acting within his Consular district, and under his jurisdiction, either as British Vice-Consuls, Deputy Consuls, Provisional Consular Agents, or in any other similar capacity; stating in such return the station, the name of the individual, his Consular rank, the date of his provisional nomination, and the date of the approval thereof by the Secretary of State.

§ XXVIII. Salary and emoluments.-The Consul will bear in mind that his salary, and the fees allowed to him by Act of Parliament, are to cover all his expenses, whether personal or official (excepting such as he may, at any time, be specially authorised to incur, and charge to the public); and that no Vice-Consul or Clerk appointed by him at the place of his residence is to consider himself entitled to any remuneration from Her Majesty's Government.

§ XXIX. Passports.-The Consul will not take upon himself, as a

matter of course, to grant passports. If, however, the regulations of the country wherein he resides require that his visé should be affixed to the passport of British subjects, or that a certificate should be furnished by him, to enable them to obtain passports from the proper authorities, he will, when called upon, affix such visé, or give such certificates.

§ XXX. Absence from his post.—The Consul will not consider himself at liberty to leave his post without permission from this office, or from Her Majesty's Representative in the country wherein he resides. The annexed copy of a circular, dated the 5th July, 1833, specifies the conditions on which a Consul can obtain leave of absence.

§ XXXI. Forms to be observed in official correspondence.-The Consul is herewith furnished with a memorandum relative to the forms to be observed in his official correspondence with this Department; and he will strictly comply with the instructions therein contained.

§ XXXII. Additional Instructions. Illegal Importation of tobacco. Mutinous merchant seamen.-Copies of circular despatches and other documents, which have been more recently forwarded from this, Department to Her Majesty's Consuls abroad, are annexed; and the Consuls will carefully attend to the instructions therein contained. Further instructions will be given to the Consul from time to time, as circumstances may require.*

MEMORANDUM-referred to in p. 16, § v.

INSTRUCTIONS to be observed by Her Majesty's Consuls abroad, in regard to the Accounts which they are required to render, under the provisions of the Act of the 6th Geo. IV. c. 87.

I. You will continue to draw your bills and forward your accounts to the Navy Board in the same maner and form as you did previously to the passing of the Act of the 6th Geo. IV. c. 87, in all cases relating to the relief of British seamen, supplies furnished to Her Majesty's ships, pilotage paid for them, and to any other head of naval service, as more particularly described in the form of account which you have already received from the Navy Board (a copy of which is annexed), and you will in no case include any expenditure of the above description in the accounts to be forwarded by you to the Foreign Office.

II. You are to make up annually an account current to the 31st December in every year, in duplicate, of your receipts and disbursements of every other description, with the exception of your own salary, including in such account the salaries and disbursements, if any, of your Vice-Consuls, as well as the expenditure for the purposes specified in the Act of the 6th Geo. IV. c. 87; and you are to transmit * Vide Appendix and Instructions, 1855.

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