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(Signed) J. Poke Hennessy 30th October 1879.
(Copy)
MEMORANDUM.
I have read the papers mentioned in His Excellency the Governor's Minute of the 30th ultimo, relative to the Colonial Secretary's duties, and I have conferred with Mr. MARSH on the same subject. I feel some diffidence in expressing an opinion, from the fact that I held the office, but for a very short time. My experience, however, such as it was, I now proceed to give :-
2. I began my duties with two resolutions, first, that the day's work was to be done within the day; and secondly, that all the information I could get was to be obtained and recorded, before a document on which departmental knowledge or previous correspondence could throw light, was sub- mitted for the Administrator's decision.
3. In recording my own opinion, I was very cautious, because I saw that I had much to learn. When, however, there was any subject on which I thought myself qualified to offer an opinion, I did not hesitate to record it.
4. With the exception of purely routine duties, I felt it necessary to have all other business in my own hands.
I saw that I could not keep the run of the work, unless I got familiarized with every document that was transmitted from the various departments.
5. As the Secretariat is the Office towards which all public business conveys, and as few questions that present themselves stand isolated, but are nearly always more or less connected with others that are occurring, or have already occurred, it appeared to me that all documents should pass through the Colonial Secretary's own hands, not merely pro forma, but with the view of ascertaining their exact purport and bearing it in mind. It seems to me that this cannot be attained without an inspection of every document, however formal, as it arrives at the Office.
6. The Colonial Secretary should, under the Governor, have the virtual direction of the various departments; and with a view to the smooth working of every branch of the service, it is necessary that documents should be attended to, circulated, minuted and returned with all possible despatch. To do this occupies much time. I was always in the Office punctually at ten o'clock; I never left it during the day; and yet I can remember only three occasions on which I got away shortly after 4 P.M.
7. A good deal of my time was occupied with personal interviews; but this cannot be avoided for, if it hinders work in one direction, it forwards it very much in another, and is in many ways very useful.
8. As regards Audit work, I was generally so preoccupied with other matters that I felt that I was by no means fit to consider the questions I had to attend to as Auditor; and with the exception of a few points on which the Administrator specially requested my opinion, I may say that the Administrator himself performed the duties of Auditor. He also prepared the Estimates for 1880, which should properly have been drafted by me.
9. With regard now to the question as to what part of the general administrative work might with advantage be imposed on the Colonial Secretary, I cannot speak without some besitation. It seems to me, however, that the question turns on what the Colonial Secretary's duties really are; and on this point, I do not know what, if any, general regulations have been laid down by the Colonial Office. My own idea of the matter is that, if the Colonial Secretary is responsible for the conduct of public business, he should take part in everything connected therewith; and that on questions which require elucidation by reference to Heads of Departaments and to previous documents, he should collect and summarize all the available information, and put the papers before the Governor when the points involved in them are ripe for decision. This would certainly be a great saving of the Governor's time; and if the Colonial Secretary's opinion accompanied the documents, this, while in no way binding the Governor, would, in the case of an experienced Officer well posted in the traditions of his department, be of great service in the final decision.