A.—l

2

the local forces being received on board the Imperial ships to acquire experience and instruction. It is, however, stipulated that the officers so taken on board Her Majesty's ships will not be allowed to take a watch or to perform responsible duties. 3. The Hon. the Minister of Defence has pointed out that these limitations deprive the privilege which has been conceded of much of the advantage to the colonial officers which it was particularly sought to obtain for them. I have accordingly addressed a memorandum to His Excellency the Governor, requesting a reconsideration by the Lords of the Admiralty of this point. 4. Of course, it is not alone the Colony of Victoria that is interested in opportunities being given to colonial naval officers to acquire training and instruction on board Her Majesty's ships. Several other colonies have small permanent naval forces, and all have raised naval brigades or reserves, and great difficulty must be experienced in giving the officers of those forces sufficient training and experience in the duties on board a man-of-war. 5. I would now, therefore, submit the accompanying correspondence to your consideration, and invite your Government to join in representations to the Imperial Government, with a view to the adoption of a scheme by which officers of the permanent naval forces and the naval reserves of the colonies may be appointed to Her Majesty's ships on the station for certain periods of training. 6. In the event of your agreeing to co-operate, I would suggest that, besides making representations through His Excellency the Governor, it would be well also to instruct the Agent-General of your colony to act with the other Agents-General in pressing the matter upon the consideration of Her Majesty's Government. I have, &c, The Hon. the Premier, New Zealand. D. Gillies, Premier.

(1.) The Minister of Defence to the Premier. (Memorandum.) Defence Department, Melbourne, 25th July, 1889. It is of great importance that the officers of our Permanent Naval Force should be given opportunities of gaining greater experience and fuller instruction than is possible to be obtained in a small local force confined, as ours is, to harbour defence. These officers, while they have obtained experience at sea in the merchant service, and can be locally instructed in drills, are deficient in the training required for the management of men and for organization and discipline generally, as well as for the performance of their duties as officers in charge of watches, which training can only be acquired by service in a ship of war at sea with a full complement of officers and men. Bringing our officers into contact with the Imperial service would be the means of enabling them to overcome these deficiencies. Captain Mann is of opinion that six months in one of the ships of the squadron would be more beneficial than the same time spent in a gunnery or torpedo training ship in England. In view, therefore, of the great benefit that would be derived by the colony from the higher training of our officers, I would suggest that His Excellency the Administrator of the Government be moved to communicate with the Bear-Admiral, Commander-in-Chief on the Australian Station, in order to ascertain if he would approve of an occasional exchange of a lieutenant from the Victorian Naval Force with a lieutenant of one of the ships of the squadron. By this means, the lieutenants of our local force might each in turn have the benefit of six months' (or such other term as may be considered advisable) experience and training in one of Her Majesty's ships. If such a course is, in the opinion of Admiral Fairfax, practicable, the colony would bear any extra expense that might be entailed by the arrangement. James Lorimer, Minister of Defence.

(2.) The Admiral Commanding on the Station to the Administrator of the Government of Victoria. Sir,— H.M.S. " Orlando " (at Sydney), 6th August, 1889. I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your Excellency's letter of the 2nd August, with enclosure from the Hon. the Minister of Defence of the Colony of Victoria, suggesting a plan for enabling officers of the local forces to obtain training and experience by being lent to one of Her Majesty's ships for a certain time. I will forward the letter and enclosed suggestion to the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, as I consider that some such plan might be introduced with advantage, but I shall not be able to express concurrence with the proposed temporary exchange between officers of Her Majesty's navy and local forces; as, now that the complements of Her Majesty's ships are so arranged that the numbers borne are only sufficient for proper performance of the duties, the services of an experienced officer could not well be spared, nor could his place be filled by an officer who, being borne for instruction, has presumably not the knowledge or experience required. I have, &c., H. Fairfax, Bear-Admiral and Commander-in Chief. His Excellency Sir William F. C. Bobinson, G.C.M.G., &c., Governor and Commander-in-Chief, Victoria.

(3.) The Admiral Commanding on the Australian Station to the Governor of Victoria. My Lord,— " Orlando " (at Auckland, N.Z.), 28th January, 1890. Beferring to the letter of Bear-Admiral Fairfax, dated the 6th August, 1889, addressed to your predecessor, I have the honour to inform your Excellency that I have received a letter from the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, in which they state they cannot agree to the exchange of officers between Her Majesty's ships of the Australian squadron and ships of the colonial navy,