2.
3
590
view to grouping together, the real Expenditure of each department and each Head of Expenditure, so that in every case the line totals book absolutely in themselves, as well as relatively to the Annual Revenue may be kept prominently before Members of Council, and even be fixed on their attention. In that despatch I also ventured to point out the difficulty, which formerly existed in obtaining the above information, owing to the distinct and widely separated subdivisions under which the details of almost every department had previously been arranged, thus rendering it difficult to find, and search them up completely.
2
Being desirous of obtaining further opinion on the form which I had adopted, I sent copies of the Hong Kong Estimates, for 1870, to Governor Sir Henry Ord with a request, that he would get his Auditor General, Mr Jaring Irving, to look at them and report thereon. Sir Henry Ord very kindly complied with my request, and I have
1LOW
The memo enclosed is drawn up by Mr Irving, in which your Lordship will find that he condemns the form of my Estimates and gives a preference to others, such as those of Singapore, which to me appear to be comparatively much more perplexing.
7