Ross to Cardwell
No 9 Church Street
Inverness
6 May 1864
Sir
I have to apologize to you for troubling you in the matter of
this letter but as I can get no reply to my private letters I have no
alternative but to fall back upon you.
The affixed Note which I would thank you to return is cut from
The Inverness Courier of the 14th August 1862 and refers to my
deceased son.
He was at the time of his death in the service of a firm of the
name of Livingston Fargo & Co who as far as I can learn were due him
a considerable sum of money at his death and
otherwise otherwise he must have
left considerable effects.
In the circumstances I have to request you to take a widowed
mothers feelings into consideration and issue an order on The
Governor of
British Columbia to institute a strict and searching
enquiry into the amount of effects left by him and to order him to
take the necessary measures to cause these to be restored to or
remitted to me.
The Right Honble
Edward Cardwell
&c &c
Minutes by CO staff
Mr Elliot
As the writer represents her belief that a considerable sum of money
was owing to her Son at his decease I think she may fairly be told
that her proper course is to apply to a legal Agent in the Colony to
see after her son's Estate. Cases such as these impose a
considerable correspondence on this Office, & do not form a
legitimate part of our business.
In case the applicant is not
acquainted with the name of any
legal Agent in the Colony we might mention, tho' without
recommending, that of
Mr Crease, the Attorney
Genl.
She thinks two things—1st That he must have died possessed
of considerable effects, and 2nd that his employers must have owed
him money. As to the first point, is there not some general practice
about referring applicants to the Agents for Crown Colonies? I think
I have seen recent instances.
A search & enquiries have been made & we cannot find that any
practice, such as you suppose, exists.
I mean Intestate Estates: this Woman thinks her relative died
Intestate. Is it really the case that the Crown Agents do not attend
to Intestate Estates in the Colonies or receive information about
them?
Mr Elliot
Having ascertained from the several Divisions of the Office that
there was no general practice for referring applications of this kind
to the Agents General, I wrote to
Mr Sargeaunt to ask him whether
they attended to Intestate Estates in the Colonies or received
information about them, and I annex
Mr Sargeaunts note in answer.
Other documents included in the file
Offices of the Crown Agents for the Colonies,
Spring Gardens, London, S.W.
11 May 1864
Dear
Pennell,
We constantly make enquiries of the various Colonial Authorities
about persons and property in the Colonies, if
Mrs Ross would fill
up the enclosed form as altered and send it here I will forward it to
the Government of
British Columbia with a request for information.
Documents enclosed with the main document (not transcribed)
Printed form, "Particulars required to obtain INFORMATION
respecting a COLONIST."
Minutes by CO staff
Tell
Mrs Ross that the S. of State has no information on the
subject of her letter, & that he is unable to undertake inquiry into
the affairs of private individuals, but that if she will address
herself to the Agents for Crown Colonies at N
o (address), they may
possibly be able to give her some assistance in seeking information.
Draft.
Other documents included in the file
Rogers to
Ross,
16 May 1864, advising her to contact the Crown
Agents for further information.