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A system of keeping a vacant appointment on the Estimates, & giving bits of salary to other people.
As to W. Ball, this despatch appears to me to show more clearly than ever that his place was made for him, that is that if he had not turned up the appointment would not have been created.
Sir A. K. speaks well of him, has likely it does not look as if he was to be such a competent interpreter as to be able to get rid of the necessity for native interpreters.
I had a long talk with M. Cecil Smith on this subject a few days ago, & it would perhaps be well if you would see him also; as his ideas do not altogether correspond with Mr. Pickering's; he does not think it would be advisable to send out from England any people of a lower social scale of education than the old Cadets, even merely to do interpreting work. He thinks that Chinese teachers similar to the native ones when he himself learnt could easily be sent to the Straits to teach Chinese to cadets at less expense & difficulty than sending cadets to China.
He also agreed with me as to the objection to sending out people young, which Mr Pickering wishes; but he himself was a University man.
As Mr Pickering told me there was nobody to be found in China who could succeed him or serve in a similar capacity, I asked Mr Smith as to a successor & W Rosario the chief Interpreter of H.K. he told me that all right be trained up to this place, starting he might eventually expect a salary of £700 or £800 a year; Mr Rosario has only about £500. Mr Pickering's idea was that Interpreter need hardly go up to £300 a year.
M Smith himself thought it would be a pity if we discontinued...