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CORRESPONDENCE FOR ABSTRACT AND PRECIS. No. 1. Sir W. E. D. Jervois to the Eight Hon. Lord Knutsford. My Lord, — Government House, Wellington, 24th January, 1889. I have the honour to enclose herewith a copy of a memorandum which I have received from my Government urging that, for the sake of the conservation of the seal-fisheries of the colony, Macquarie Island and the islands adjacent thereto should be annexed to New Zealand. This small group lies to the south of New Zealand, between the latitude of 54° and 55° S., and longitude 159° and 160° E. The other islands in that region—namely, the Campbell, Antipodes, and Auckland Island—already form part of this colony, and I think it desirable that Macquarie Island, with its adjacent islets, should also be included. I have, &c, The Eight Hon. Lord Knutsford, &c. W. F. Drummond Jervois.

Enclosure. Memorandum for His Excellency. It being desirable, in connection with the conservation of the seal-fisheries belonging to the colony, that Macquarie Island and the islands adjacent thereto should form part of this colony, His Excellency the Governor is respectfully advised to move the Secretary of State for the Colonies to cause the necessary steps to be taken to have the British flag hoisted and the Queen's sovereignty proclaimed over these islands, with a view of their being annexed to New Zealand. H. A. Atkinson, Government Buildings, Wellington, 16th January, 1889. Premier.

No. 2. ■The Eight Hon. Lord Knutspoed to the Eight Hon. the Earl of Onslow. My Lord, — Downing Street, 7th May, 1889. In reply to Sir William Jervois's Despatch No. 2, of the 24th of January last, respecting the proposed annexation of the Macquarie Islands, I have the honour to transmit to you, for communication to your Government, a copy of a letter which I caused to be addressed to the Admiralty on the subject, and of their Lordships' reply. Her Majesty's Government are willing that the annexation should be effected; and the most convenient mode of carrying out this object would probably be for the Colonial Government to despatch a vessel with one of their officers on board to hoist the British flag at the islands, and to proclaim Her Majesty's sovereignty over them; and on your report that this has been done, and when the New Zealand Parliament has adopted a joint address praying for the annexation of the islands to the colony, steps shall be taken for issuing the necessary letters patent for the purpose. I accordingly authorise you to propose this course to your Government, and, when adopted by them, to give instructions to some suitable officer of the Government to declare Her Majesty's sovereignty over the islands in question, subject to the condition that no evidence is found on the spot of the islands being claimed by any foreign Power. You should cause a notification of the annexation to be inserted in the Government Gazette. I have, &c, Governor the Eight Hon. the Earl of Onslow, G.G.M.G., &c. Knutsfx)rd. No. 3. The Eight Hon. the Earl of Onslow to the Eight Hon. Lord Knutsford. My Lord, — Government House, Dunedin, New Zealand, Ist January, 1890. In accordance with your Lordship's Despatch No. 8, of the 7th May, 1889, the Colonial Government steamship " Hinemoa " was prepared to start, with provisions, and a wooden house for the accommodation of any persons who might land on the Macquarie Islands, having on board Mr. S. Percy Smith, the Surveyor-General, to whom I was about to issue a warrant directing him to make a proclamation declaring Her Majesty's sovereignty over the islands in question, when I received a telegram from the Governor of Tasmania stating that he had read of my intention in the newspapers, and informing me that the Macquarie Islands were included in the letters patent constituting the office of Governor of Tasmania. Under the circumstances, I have directed the captain of the " Hinemoa " to refrain from exercising any act which may be deemed to denote an intention on the part of the Government of this colony to assume any rights over those islands, until I hear further from your Lordship. I have, &c, The Eight Hon. Lord Knutsford, &c. Onslow.

No. 4. The Eight Hon. Lord Knutsfobd to the Eight Hon. the Earl of Onslow. My Lord, — Downing Street, 28th February, 1890. I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Lordship's Despatch No. 1, of the Ist ultimo, reporting the steps which your Government was about to take with the view of declaring the Queen's sovereignty over the Macquarie Island previous to the receipt of a telegram from the Governor of Tasmania.