to say that his symptoms have since been so greatly aggravated as to afford little hope of his being able to resume his office. He, Shelley, the Auditor, has likewise been unwell for some time. I shall, of course, make the best arrangements I can to fill up temporarily Mr. Martin's responsible appointment; a difficult task in this distant and immature colony, and as I perceive that, under the circumstances above stated, there will be some delay in sending home those Colonial Accounts, which ought, in the regular course, to have been transmitted by the 1st July, I trust that Your Lordship, as well as the Treasury Department, will make such allowances as the case seems to call for.
Sickness has already incapacitated Mr. D'Almada, Chief Clerk in the Colonial Secretary's Office, and the continuance of the unhealthy season until next October may perhaps, to a great degree, cripple the working Civil Establishment. I am happy to say that the health of Mr. Bruce still continues such as to enable me to profit by his able assistance.
I have the honor to be, with the highest respect, Your Lordship's Most obedient Humble Servant,
Davis