'Volume II. MEMORANDA REGARDING OTHER EXTERNAL AFFAIRS. 1905.' [‎95r] (194/228)

outote f01 ' any S1I0,, ba ^arou S
T, n as the torture and murder of the three
bv there™?’ ? COndition that no assistance
a for? f ?° PS m ' ght be needed > a ’«l that
employed 861 250 men should not be
, , Government of India, in reply
stated that they desired to adhere to the prin
ciple of accepting no responsibility for the
protection of life and property beyond the
administrative line of British territory, and that
they had no desire to hasten the day when the
outlying tribes in question would fall under
their administration. They were not therefore
convinced of the necessity for making the
general announcement recommended by Sir
H. White, as such a declaration might afford
unintended encouragement to British subjects
to wander far afield beyond the administrative
line. They recognised, however, that occasions
might arise when the action of a barbarous
neighbour might compel them temporarily
to abandon their policy of non-interference,
whether, in pursuance of their duty as a civil
ised Power, to put a stop to the commission of
barbarous offences or to allay serious unrest
amongst their own subjects caused by the
immunity enjoyed by the offenders. They
were of opinien that each case should
be decided according to its special cir
cumstances, as instances of outrage might
conceivably occur which, although falling
under the category proposed by the Local
Government, might nevertheless not justify
the undertaking by Government of punitive
measures, either on account of contributory
provocation or negligence on the part of the
victims, or owing to the distance from the
British frontier and the scale upon which
operations would have to be conducted. They
preferred, therefore, to receive a separate
report in each case in which it might be pro
posed that officers should cross the frontier for
punitive purposes. With reference to the
particular case of the murder of the three
Lungno villagers, the Government of India
agreed that the facts as reported appeared to
indicate that punishment was required. Before
sanctioning the despatch of an expedition,
however, they called for more precise inform
ation from the Burma Government with
regard to the case.
28 The British Consul-General at
Yunnait-fu forwarded to the Government of
Burma on the 5th May a copy of a note which
he had received from the Governor-General o
Yunnan asking for information with regard
to a school established by the Government o
Burma at Bhamo, to which he stated he would
like to send students from the Province of
Yunnan. The Governor-General has already
sent students during the current year to a
iipir
111.