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Sib,— War Office, Bth December, 1900. I am directed by the Secretary of State for War to forward for your information and that of your Government the enclosed copy of instructions which have been sent to the General Officer Commanding Lines of Communications, Cape Town, and the General Officer Commanding, Natal, with a view to the balances due to officers, non-commissioned officers, and men of the Australian New Zealand, and Canadian contingents whose representatives do not live in the United Kingdom, and members of the irregular corps raised in South Africa for the campaign who belong to oversea colonies, being handed over to the Government of the colonies to which the deceased respectively belonged, or in which their representatives live, for distribution by those Governments among those legally entitled thereto. I am to state that on receipt of credit from South Africa for the amounts shown on the statements forwarded to the Governments of the oversea colonies, in pursuance of the instructions in paragraph 1 of the enclosure, this Department will be prepared to hand over the same to the Governments concerned or their representatives. Any amounts due to deceased officers, non-commissioned officers, and men of the oversea colonies dying in South Africa which have been or may be credited to this Department and not notified to the Governments concerned from South Africa will be handed over to those Governments or their representatives by this Department. Mr. Secretary Brodrick would be glad to know that your Government concurs in the course adopted. . . There is at present at the disposal of this office a sum of £243 Is. 3d. due to non-commissioned officers and men of of the Canadian contingent, and it is proposed to pay this amount to you and to furnish you with a statement showing particulars of the same, if you are prepared to accept it, for transmission to your Government for disposal. I am, &c, High Commissioner for Canada, 17, Victoria Street, S.W.

Instructions issued to the Geneeal Officer Commanding Lines of Communication, Capetown, and the Geneeal Offices Commanding, Natal, as to the Distribution of Balances due to the Estates of Colonial Troops (Was Office Lettee of 7th December, 1900, No. 45/ Cape/1049). I am directed by the Secretary of State for War to inform you that it has been decided that the balances due to the estates of officers, non-commissioned officers, and men of the oversea contingents dying in South Africa, and whose representatives do not live in the United Kingdom or South Africa, shall be handed over to the Governments of the respective colonies to which the deceased belonged, for distribution by those Governments among those legally entitled to receive the same, and that the balances due to the estates of members of the above-mentioned contingents whose representatives live in South Africa, and the balances due to members of the irregular Imperial corps dying in South Africa whose representatives live in South Africa or the oversea colonies, shall be handed over to local authorities with a similar end in view. In order .that this distribution may be effected with as little delay as possible, I am to request that the following instructions may be at once communicated to all concerned. 1. At the date of rendering their monthly accounts to this department, Paymasters will prepare a separate statement for the members of each Australian contingent separately, the New Zealand contingent, and the Canadian contingent, dying in South Africa, whose representatives do not live in the United Kingdom or South Africa, and in respect of whose estates any credit is given in the accounts. The statement will show the amount credited to this Department, under the head of "Effects," on account of each officer, non-commissioned officer, and man, and how it is made up (balance of pay, sale of effects, &c), the full name, regimental number (if any) and rank, date of death of the deceased, and whether any trace can be found of his having left a will. Any gratuities due to the deceased under Army Order 150 of 1900, and any subsequent Army Order, will be charged to the vote and credited to "Effects" in the Paymaster's accounts, and included m the statements of amounts due. These statements will then be transmitted respectively to the Dominion Government, New Zealand Government, and the Governments of the Australian Colonies concerned, accompanied, in the case of officers, by the reports of the Committees of Adjustment, and the amounts shown therein as credited to this Department will be deemed to be available for issue by the respective Governments. The latter will in due course prefer a claim direct to this Department for the amounts referred to. Entries will be made on Army Form No. 1509, showing clearly on what date the amounts have been notified to the colonial Government as due. No statement should be made out in respect of any amount credited to this. Department in any account which has been despatched before the receipt of this letter, nor should the gratuities due to any members of the contingents in respect of whom amounts have been credited in those accounts be shown in any statement rendered to colonial Governments, as these cases will be adjusted by this Department. 2. In the case of irregular Imperial corps raised in South Africa for the campaign, the amounts due to the estates of deceased officers, non-commissioned officers, and men dying in South Africa whose representatives appear to be in South Africa, should be handed over, together with any gratuities to which they may be entitled under the above-mentioned Army Orders, to the Master of the Supreme or High Court of the colony to which those concerned belonged, for distribution. The same procedure should be adopted with regard to the'amounts, including gratuities, due to deceased officers, non-commissioned officers, and men of the Australian, New Zealand, and Canadian contingent's whose representatives live in South Africa, and officers, non-commissioned officers, and men of the Imperial irregular corps whose representatives live in the oversea colonies ; but the Master should in the latter case be requested to transmit the amounts to the Governments of the

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