cap. 11] CONTROL OVER INTERNAL AFFAIRS 1039 
the Bill, as it affected the interests of persons not resident in 
the Colony. In replying to his request for instructions on 
March 7, the Secretary of State was not prepared to direct 
reservation, as the matter was one for which the Government 
of Newfoundland must be responsible. He desired, however, 
that the rights of the Company should be properly safe- 
guarded ; if this were not done, the Governor should not 
assent ! until a second Bill had been passed. The Legislature 
at once passed a Bill to safeguard all the rights of the 
Company. In reply to his telegram announcing this the 
Governor was authorized to assent to the Bill, which he 
accordingly did. Mr. Chamberlain followed up this telegram 
with a dispatch of March 23, 1898, in which he wrote as 
follows «— 2 
In my telegram of the 2nd instant I informed you that if 
your Ministers, after fully considering the objections urged 
to the proposed contract with Mr. R. G. Reid for the sale 
and operation of the Government railways and other pur- 
poses, still pressed for your signature to that instrument, 
you would not be constitutionally justified in refusing to 
follow their advice, as the responsibility for the measure 
rested entirely with them. 
2. Whatever views I may hold as to the propriety of the 
contract, it is essentially a question of local finance, and as 
Her Majesty's Government have no responsibility for the 
finances of self-governing colonies, it would be improper for 
them to interfere in such a case unless Imperial interests were 
directly involved. 
On these constitutional grounds I was unable to advise 
you to withhold your assent to the Bill confirming the 
contract. 
3. I have now received your dispatches as noted in the 
margin, giving full information as to the terms of the contract, 
and the grounds upon which your Government have sup- 
ported it, as well as the reasons for which it was opposed by 
the Leader and some members of the Opposition. 
4. I do not propose to enter upon a discussion of the details 
of the contract, or of the various arguments for and against 
it, but I cannot refrain from expressing my views as to the 
' Not to reserve, which cannot probably be done in Newfoundland, but 
merely to delay assent, as a Governor can legally do. See p. 1016, n. 1. 
t Parl. Pap., C. 8867, p. 23.