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In no other capacity than as a witness, summoned under the hand of the Chairman, did I ever offer myself to the notiee of the Commission; and, even then, I never missed an opportunity, from the first day of the inquiry to the end,[1] of "disclaiming the charges as made out on the charge list."

Nay, my steadfastness in the course I had marked out to myself, of taking no part in the inquiry but as a summoned witness, is made the subject of animadversion, if not of complaint, by the Commissioners themselves.

In their Report,[2] they say that they "had experienced great difficulty in their labours: First, from the nature, arrangement, and wording of the charges; some of which it appeared unnecessary, as it certainly was most distasteful to them to inquire into; Secondly, from the reluctance of witnesses to give evidence; and Thirdly, and especially, from the refusal of the Attorney-General to act as accuser, or to recognise the charges as his charges."

There was, therefore, no "breach of confidence" upon my part; but, on the contrary, the strictest obedience to the Governor's own warrant.

Further evidence has been since then obtained against Mr. Caldwell—both as to his past acts, and as to his continued malpractices.

In one case,[3] a verdict has established the credit of witnesses, whose testimony, if good for any pur-

  1. Minutes, etc., pp. 1—3, 30, etc. etc.
  2. Report, p. 1.
  3. Cheong-shew-Shek v. Endicott; tried at Hong Kong, before the Chief Justice and a special jury, 1 & 2 Dec., 1858. Compare the Caldwell Commission Minutes, pp. 31, 3.

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