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willing to purchase bullion at its present Market value and coin it into dollars.
4. Sir Rutherford Alcock animated by similar friendly intentions towards this Colony has written to say that he will instruct the Auditor General to transmit in future the amount required for payment of Diplomatic Services in Hong Kong Dollars, with a view to bringing them into circulation.
5. I am obliged to inform Sir Rutherford Alcock that I am unable to accommodate him in this matter, because I have neither authority nor funds to incur the cost of manufacturing those dollars. Government cannot enter into a speculation of buying Silver for the purpose of turning it out in any particular form, more especially at a time when it is obvious that it would lose 1 per cent on such transactions.
6. As an experiment and with a view to furnishing your Lordship with further information, I have already reduced the Seigniorage to 1 per cent, but nevertheless not a dollar has been coined at the Mint.