in Malta, and upon their report have been decided by the CH. II. Sovereign in Council1.

The Judicial Committee consists of the most eminent judges in the United Kingdom; and to them have been added, since 1895, certain eminent colonial judges 2.

The jurisdiction of a court in a British possession is limited to the possession and its territorial waters, except so far as a wider jurisdiction is conferred by an imperial Act 3.

In criminal matters this jurisdiction has been conferred in most cases where similar jurisdiction is exercised by English courts. In civil matters, the most important branch of extraterritorial jurisdiction, that of the Admiralty Court, was, until 1890, mainly exercised by Vice-Admiralty Courts established by an instrument under the seal of the office of admiralty, issued in pursuance of authority given to the Commissioners of the Admiralty in England by a commission under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom. In practice, a judge of the Superior Court of the possession was always made judge of the Vice-Admiralty Court; but he held that office by virtue of an appointment from the British Admiralty, and not by virtue of his position as judge of the possession. His jurisdiction therefore was vested in him personally, and not in the colonial court; and if he was incapacitated, could not be exercised by his brother judges.

In 1890, the Superior Court itself was in most of the British possessions made an Admiralty Court, subject to rules to be made by Order in Council; but the power of the King to set up Vice-Admiralty Courts is reserved.

1 See Parl. P., 1894, No. 214; 1896, C. 7982.

2 Under the Act 58 & 59 Vict. c. 44 any one who is or has been a judge of a Superior Court in Canada, any Australasian colony, the Cape or Natal, or of any other Superior Court of the British dominions named by the King in Council, should, if a Privy Councillor, be a member of the Judicial Committee. As the King can appoint any person to be a Privy Councillor, this in effect enables him to appoint any of these judges to be members of the Judicial Committee.

3 [See, however, p. 12, note 2, supra.]

The imperial Act, 53 & 54 Vict. c. 27, empowered the legislature of

CH. II.

Head (d).

Governor.

The King can also appoint a vice-admiral in any British possession, and if none is so appointed, the Governor of the possession is vice-admiral'. He has practically no powers, except in connection with prize courts.

Prize courts are international courts, and exist only in time of war; but in 1894, to meet the exigencies created by telegraphs and other conditions of modern warfare, power was given to the Crown to issue for prize courts in British possessions dormant commissions, which become effective upon a proclamation by the vice-admiral that war has broken out2. The commission may be given to the colonial Court of Admiralty; but the court when acting as a prize court is an imperial court, and not a court of the possession. Appeals from colonial Courts of Admiralty and prize courts lie, as do those from Vice-Admiralty Courts, to the King in Council 3.

As regards head (d), the supreme executive government of a British possession is vested in the Governor, aided (with two or three exceptions) by local ministers; and many, if not all, administrative acts are done in the name of the Governor or his ministers, and not of the King.

The powers of the Governor, and his relations to his ministers and to the Home Government, vary so much that little is common to all British possessions, except the existence of the Governor, and his responsibility to the courts in England and the possession, a responsibility which extends to any other officers appointed by the Home Government 4.

a possession to declare any court of unlimited jurisdiction to be a colonial Court of Admiralty. Any law affecting a colonial Court of Admiralty, unless previously approved by the Home Government, must be reserved, or contain a suspending clause. New South Wales, Victoria, St. Helena, British Honduras, and the Channel Islands, were excepted from the Act until it was applied by Order in Council. The two first colonies did not assent to the application of the Act.

1 55 & 56 Vict. c. 27, s. 10.

2 The Supreme Court of the United States is, under the Constitution, a dormant prize court.

3 53 & 54 Vict. c. 27, s. 6; 57 & 58 Vict. c. 39.

The powers and position of the Governor are dealt with more fully in chapter vi. The title of Governor given to the chief executive officer

The Governor of a British possession and any other officers CH. II. appointed by the Home Government to hold office in the possession are amenable to the High Court in England in respect of their acts done in the possession. They are liable to civil actions brought in that court by individuals, whether inhabitants of the possession or of the United Kingdom, for the recovery of damages for any injury caused by their action, and cannot escape liability because their action was an Act of State or ordered by the Home Government 1.

They are further liable in a criminal court in England to prosecution for offences committed in the possession 2. Both the civil and criminal proceedings are in the ordinary courts, and not before a special tribunal for government officials.

Judges of the Supreme Court of any possession can also be removed by Order of the King in Council 3, and this power of removal is in addition to the power of removal by the Governor and his council, and to any power of removal provided by the law of the possession. The law of the possession usually follows the law of England, i. e. that a judge can

of each state in the United States appears to be a survival from the time when the state was a colony of England with the Governor appointed by the Crown.

1 An action was brought against the Governor of Gibraltar for assault and false imprisonment, Glyn v. Houstoun, 2 M. & G. 337, and for an illegal court-martial, Conner v. Sabine (cited in Fabrigas v. Mostyn); against the Governor of Minorca for assault and false imprisonment, Fabrigas v. Mostyn, 20 St. Tr. 81, see pp. 218, 228, 232; against the Governor of Jamaica, Phillips v. Eyre, L. R. 4 Q. B. 225, 6 Q. B. 1. See also Co. Litt. 391 (a) Hargraves' note; Tarring, Law Col., p. 51; Smith's Leading Cases, 7th ed., vol. i. pp. 670, 679.

2 Under 11 Will. III. c. 12, as to governors, which was extended to all persons in the service of the Crown by 42 Geo. III. c. 85, General Picton was tried for illegally ordering torture while Governor of Trinidad, but judgement was never given, 30 St. Tr. 225, 955. See also R. v. Eyre, L. R. 3 Q. B. 487. The Act does not apply to felonies; but under the Act relating to the trial of murders committed abroad Governor Wall was convicted in England and hanged for murder committed by him when Governor at Goree in West Africa by excessive flogging of a soldier: 28 St. Tr. 51.

3 See memorandum by Privy Council, 6 Moo. P. C., N. S., Appendix IX; Tarring, Law Col., p. 162.

Under Burke's Act, 22 Geo. III. c. 75.

CH. II

Head (e). Internal government.

be removed by the Crown on the address of the two Houses of the legislature, but not otherwise.

As respects head (e), the internal government of a British possession is left almost entirely to the local government except so far as it is affected by its relation to imperial policy or external affairs. Except in those cases the imperial Parliament never interferes; but the position of the possession as member of the empire, and the influence of the Home Government, whether by control over the legislation of the possession, or by advice or direct administrative interference, have more or less influence on the internal government. The extent of that influence, and in particular the financial control, vary so much, that they must be dealt with among the differences between, rather than among matters common to, all British possessions.

CHAPTER III

BRITISH POSSESSIONS OTHER THAN COLONIES

Posses

THE general relations between the Home Government and CH. III. all British possessions have been stated in the last chapter. It now falls to state the differences between various classes sions of British possessions, and for that purpose to state in more not or less detail their constitution and position in relation to the colonies. United Kingdom.

The British possessions which are not colonies, namely the Channel Islands, Isle of Man, and British India, will be first dealt with.

The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, which, together with the United Kingdom, are frequently called the British Islands 1, are the oldest of the British possessions.

which are

Islands.

The Channel Islands indeed claim to have conquered Channel England, and are the sole fragments of the dukedom of Normandy which still continue attached to the British Crown. For this reason, in these islands alone of all British possessions, does any doubt arise as to whether an Act of the imperial Parliament is of its own force binding law. In practice, when an Act is intended to apply to them, a section is inserted authorizing the King in Council to issue an Order for the application of the Act to these islands, and requiring the registration of that Order in the islands and the Order in Council is made by the King and registered by the States accordingly.

'This description is recognized and authorized by the Interpretation Act, 1889 (52 & 53 Vict. c. 63), s. 18 (3).