1
No. 57
Downing Street
29 April 1859
Sir,
I transmit to you herewith the copy of a letter which I have received from Mr John Barnston of Montreal, Manuscript imagecontaining an extract from one [letter] from his son, a canadian Barrister, residing in Vancouvers Island, complaining of his exclusion, as a Colonial Lawyer, from practising in the superior courts of Vancouvers Island, and British Columbia.
Mr Barnston's application that this disqualification may be removed appears to me in itself to be a reasonable one, but it is a matter in which I am unwilling to interfere with your discretion, and I must leave it to you to decide whether his request can properly be complied with. Should you see no objection to the admission of Lawyers educated either in Canada or in the British Colonies generally the local legislature has the power in Vancouver's Island to effect this, Manuscript imageas I have pointed out in my recent despatch No. 45 of the 9th April on a similar application from the Scottish Solicitors, and you will be at liberty to introduce the necessary measure for the purpose. In British Columbia all that would be necessary would be the requisite amendment of the Judges order in Court transmitted with your despatch No. 65 of the 6th January which provides for their temporary admission only.
I have etc.
Carnarvon
In the absence of Sir E.B. Lytton
Footnotes
  1. The original form of this correspondence can be viewed here. Please note that the original was marked initially as part of the Vancouver Island collection, and changed thereafter, presumably after receipt, to the British Columbia collection.
People in this document

Barnston, George

Barnston, John G.

Carnarvon, Earl

Douglas, Sir James

Lytton, Sir Edward George Earle Bulwer

Places in this document

British Columbia

Vancouver Island

Carnarvon, Earl to Douglas, Sir James 29 April 1859, CO 410:1, 198. The Colonial Despatches of Vancouver Island and British Columbia 1846-1871, Edition 2.0, ed. James Hendrickson and the Colonial Despatches project. Victoria, B.C.: University of Victoria. https://bcgenesis.uvic.ca/V597057.html.

Last modified: 2020-03-30 13:22:16 -0700 (Mon, 30 Mar 2020) (SVN revision: 4193)