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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
that year reached a lower depth than ever before. Notwithstanding the steady fall in value the production has increased with equal stendiness, and the experience of the past makes us sceptical of the estimates of experts as to the price at which it will pay to produce silver. Some people will tell you that 1s. 6d. an ounce is the real figure at which the metal can be produced in suffici- ent quantity to supply the demand, and that guess is perhaps as likely to be correct as any other. The demonetisation of silver was, we believe, a gigantic mistake, and we still hold, as we have always done, to the bimetallic theory, as a theory, but the time for its practical application has now passed, the mistake has been made, and bimetallism is a lost cause.
Service, notwithstanding recent scandals, is no exception to the rule. But when we leave the general and come to the particular it must be recognised that there are officials and officials, that some are hardworkers and deserve more pay than they get and that others are drones in the hive and could conveniently be dispensed with. In our remarks in Thursday's issue, however, we had no thought of attacking the service either in general or in particular and it never oc- curred to us that we could be giving offence by suggesting that the drop in exchange was a good thing for people who draw their pay either in whole or in part in sterling.
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SILVER PROSPECTS.
"but upon
The Bimetallist for July contains an inter- esting article by FRANCIS B. FORBES on the relative production of gold and silver since 1493. The position Mr. FORBES takes up is indicated in the following paragraph:- "Whatever may be argued by the single yard-stick metrologists of the gold C$ monometallist camp, it is as certain as "the facts of recorded history can make it, that the relative values of the two money metals have never depended upon the current supplies of each, the current demand for coinage of either one or both, resulting "from the monetary enactments of the "nations of the world." Of that there can be no doubt, but the demand for coinage of silver having practically ceased, that factor no longer influences its value, which must now find its mercantile level by the ordinary law of supply and demand. Mr. FORBES says further, "During the years "1851-1870 the supply of gold was un- usually great, and its value in silver "would have fallen had it not been for the "bimetallic link, which the monetary 'legislation of France and the Latin Union was then strong enough to preserve un- "broken. What happened then must hap- pen again whenever a few nations of suf- "ficient monetary power shall so harmonise "their legislative enactments as to establish | among themselves a certain ratio of value between gold and silver. For that "ratio, whatever it may be, will prevail through the rest of the world, just as the "French ratio of 15 to 1 prevailed, ac- cording to the unanimous opinion of the Royal Commission of 1888, during the first "three quarters of this century." But will a few nations of sufficient monetary power ever do anything of the kind? We think not. Various theories have been ad- vanced to account for the recent great fall in the value of silver, but the most probable reason appears to be the final abandonment of all hope of the rehabilitation of the metal by legislation. As the demand for silver for coinage determined the value of the metal while the double standard prevailed, so has the lingering expectation of a renewal of that demand retarded its fall. The abandonment of that expectation kuocks away the last prop, and the metal must now fall to the price at.which it can be produced by the poorest mine that can be made to pay. What that price may be no one can say. It *was said years ago that when silver touched 2s. 6d. an ounce many mines would ha ve to close and that as the production of the remainder would be insufficient to supply the denland the price would begin to rise from that point. So far from that prediction having been fulfilled, the pro- duction of silver in 1895 was larger than in any previous year, although the metal in
"
"the
U
C
TAOTAI SHENG.
[August 26, 1897.
digious squeezing. Squeezing is an insitu- tion of the country and is not generally regarded in the same light that embezzle- ment is regarded by European nations.
HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE
COUNCIL.
A meeting of the Hongkong Legislative Council was held at the Council Chamber on the 23rd August. Present:—
His EXCELLENCY the Governor, Sir WIL- LIAM ROBINSON, G.C.M.G.
His EXCELLENCY Major-General BLACK, C.B. (Officer Commanding the Forces.)
Secretary).
Hon. J. H. STEWART LOCKHART (Colonial
Hon. W. M. GOODMAN (Attorney-Generul). Hon. T. SERCOMBE SMITH (Colonial Treasurer),
Hon. W. CHATHAM (Acting Director of Public Works).
Hon. F. H. MAY, C.M.G. (Captain Super- intendent of Police.)
RUMSEY (Harbour
Hon. R. MURRAY Master).
Hon. C. P. CHATER, C.M.G. Hon. Ho KAI.
Hon. T. H. WHITEHEAD. Hon. E. R. BELILIOS, C.M.G. Hon. J. J. BELL-IRVING. Hon. WEI A YUK.
Mr. J. G. T. BUCKLE (Clerk of Councils).
MINUTES.
The minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed.
PAPERS. The COLONIAL SECRETARY laid the follow- ing papers on the table:-The report of the Secretary of the Sanitary Board for 1896; the Colonial Surgeon's report for 1896; the report on the 1897 census; the assessment for 1897; and
amended statements of water account for 1896.
FINANCIAL MINUTES.
financial minutes Nos. 15, 16, 17, and 18 were referred to the Finance Committee, and the report of the Finance Committee No. 4 was adopted.
On the motion of the COLONIAL SECRETARY
PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
The ACTING DIRECTOR of PUBLIC WORKS moved the adoption of the Public Works Com- mittee's report No. 3. The motion was carried. RETRENCHMENT.
Taotai Sheng, the Director-General of Railroads in China, has acquired an un- enviable reputation amongst foreigners as following to its utmost limit the vicious system of administration that obtains more or less amongst mandarins in general. He has found a champion, however, in the Rev. GILDERT REID, and it is right that the public should know what is to be said in his favour. A paragraph appeared in the N. C. Daily News stating that it was clear the railway from Shanghai to Woosung was to become a means for usual prodigious squeezes on the part of the officials which are the curse of all public works in China," that the old railway road was not being utilised because that would have been far too simple and inexpensive a plan and would not have sufficiently lined the pockets of the officials, that accordingly the new line was to take a large curve crossing the old railway line more than once, that along the track fields had been bought up and were now lying fallow, and that some of the purchase money was to be improperly ap- plied. Thereupon Mr. REID wrote a letter to our contemporary in which he says it appears to him that much of the attack made on SHENG and the lack of confidence in his honesty come from surmises rather than facts. "The rival of SHENG," he says, is a personal friend of mine, Governor "Hu of Peking.
Several of the Cen- sors who are now accusing SHENG before "the Emperor are also personal friends. Naturally I might feel inclined to join "these men
in their denunciations of the man who has received the position of Director-General, but a sense of simple "fairness leads me to say a word in his 'favour." Mr. RIED justifies SHENG in ac- cepting the Belgian loan, and concludes as follows:-"SHENG has put his own money
In pursuance of notice Hon. T. H. WHITE- HEAD asked the following question: Will the "into the speculation, and is working hard Government lay upon the table a return shewing "to make a success of the undertaking. He all sterling payments made in England for any "deserves praise for his diligence, energy, purpose or in the colony on a gold basis with "and ability, and no one can well censure the equivalent dollar amounts disbursed by the "him for dishonesty at this stage of pro-Treasury in respect thereof, such return to "cedure. SHENG is the only man who has "had the courage to enter on the business "with whole soul and give up a lucrative "official position. As to the Woosung line "not following the old course, I have under-
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stood the old line was too crooked and in- "convenient to be used; but thats for the engineers to deeide. What I write is on my own suggestion of being fair, and not by request of SHENG or his staff" This places the Director of Railways in a new and, let us hope, a correct light, but at the same time no one can doubt that the construction of railways in China under official control will be attended by pro.
In pursuance of notice Hon. T. H. WHITEHEAD to the Report of the Retrenchment Commission asked the following question.-With reference will the Government lay upon the table a copy of the despatches and instructions received from the Secretary of State for the Colonies in rela- tion thereto, and in connection with applications in respect of salaries similar to those recently referred by His Excellency the Governor to a
Committee ?
The COLONIAL SECRETARY-The despatches, which have been in the hands of the Com. mittee appointed to inquire into certain applica- tions for increases of salary and which have only just been returned, will be priuted and laid on
the table as desired.
GOLD PAYMENTS.
commence with 1890 and to include the estimated payments for 1897 and 1898 ?
The COLONIAL SECRETARY-I beg to lay upon the table the report asked for by the hon.
member.
TAIPINGSHAN,
In pursuance of notice Hon. T. H. WHITE- HEAD asked the following question:-What steps do the Government now propose to take with a view to the speedy disposal of the Crown land available at Taipingshan and what were the causes of the failure of the Govern- sale by public auction? ment to obtain a bid for any lot at the recent
The
The COLONIAL SECRETARY- ment proposes to adopt the usual course and ot
Govern wait for applications to sell the land by auction.