, 1873-04-26
COMMITTEE-REPORT
ON
THE DRAFT OF COLONIAL LAW FOR
THE DANISH WESTINDIA ISLAM DIS.
dated 18Th November 1879.
(Concluded.)

of the election of its members, also question re-
garding the withdrawal Of its members accord
ing to 5 % IS "a of the Draft]".
ad 5 AZ.
As, in the Committees opinion, a declaration
on oath to perform with conscientious fidelity
all the duties of a Member Of the Colonial Coun-
Gil, can by no means be regarded in the same
light as an oath on a certain Constitutional Law
where the oath has a sufficiently defined object,
whereas in the present case the object OF the
oath pretty much is defined merely by the in
depreciation of the party himself, and therefore
is Of no great Importance, the whole Committee
is unanimous in proposing
No. 29. THAT the word "on oath" be
omitted.
ad s 50.
Although st. Croix is not for the present in
terested in the question treated of in this 5, the
sO-call0d contribution to the general State Ex-
penseS, in SO far as St. CroiX for the first 5
years is not to be called upon for any contribu-
ton, and it cannot be imposed except by q
Law, on which the Colonial Council will be
having an opportunity to give its opinion,-still,
the Committee would recommend to the Council
to make some remarks as to whether it really is
right to establish the payment of such contribu-
ton as a principle in the relation between the
Nothercountry and the Colonies, 50 that the
non -payment thereof be characterized as a con-
cession or eXemptiOn,-in order that the eXemp-
tiOns being tacitly accepted now, may not,
when the question after the expiration of the 5
yearslagaln comes on, appear aSan acknowledge
ment ofthe obligation. The exemption granted
st. Croix temporarily, for 5 years, and which
is transferred from the Colonial Law of 1868, is
based On the incompetency of this Island, as
sheWn by calculations in the Motives to the said
i.ayU IN baar tho aOn+rib0tiOp mhiIn tho Oh1ipq-
ton was laid on ST. Thomas in consideration of
that Islands competency to bear it, and it was
fixed at $4,000, becausa this was the surplus
on which the finances of the MOtherCOuntry
would have reckoned, if the financial separation
had not been effected the amount being under
the old regime TI862I the result of a surplus
from st. Thomas 0fabout $4,000, with deduo-
lion for the deficit from St. Croix, between
$40, 600 and $1,000. Under the anew organ
i3atiOn ST. Croix was supposed to be barely able
to defray It's expenses a surplus OF about S2Q0
The contribution" was, then, in reality, to
be considered as a compensation to the Mother
country for the decrease Of reyenGe, which the
calculation Showed it would be- suffering by the
separation Of the finances Of the colonies for,
as 80 contribution towards sac general state
expenses, it was quite arbitrarily fixed. 1t
was, however, at the time, and has ever been
dQF LIOtuJ ILdu II6 lNldilSl9 Ou5hI w O21 " P4O
portiona e part Of those ~State-eXpeGes, that are
not directly connected with their Administra-
tioa, slch as for the Civil List for diplomacy,
army and navy, amortization Of the state-debt,-
but which in an indirect manner benefit the Is
lands but here it must be remembered that
the Colonies are under the necessity of having
an Administration Of their own, which, from the
very reason Of the impossibility Of its being had
in common with any other part Of the State, be-
comes a very costly one, and a military force
SO that their contribution towards general
state-purposes might thereby well be consider
ed as being paid. AS far as We know, the
British Colonies here, whose relations to the
Mothercountry mostly will have served as a
guide when the organisation Of ours was effec-
ted. and with whom we should compete, have
not to defray any such payment, whereas their
Governments are paid by the Grown. But if the
contribution is 10 be considered as a cOmpensa-
ton for the financial separation, there has in
the Draft already been departed therefrom, in
as much as the amount is here reduced to al
most the half, and the question is now put
thus what amount can the Islands afford to
pay but tits is of course a question of q rela-
tive nature, as it must entirely depend on what
degree of communal prosperity we shall be at
liberty to attain, before a contribution be de-
manded; and we are, now, of the opinion that
in this Island-we nave only the right to speak