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Sir,
385
Inclosure 5 in No. 116.
Colonial Office to Admiralty.
Downing Street, August 14, 1879. I AM directed by the Secretary of State for the Colonies to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 23rd ultimo,* which stated, in reply to the letter from this Department of the 5th ultimo, that the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty would not feel justified in contributing to the construction of a graving dock at St. John's, Newfoundland, from naval votes.
Sir Michael Hicks Beach desires me to state that, since the letter on the subject from this Department, of the date referred to, was forwarded to you, he has received the inclosed papers, con- sisting of four Memorials,† favouring the scheme for a graving dock, and soliciting Imperial assis- tance, each Memorial being accompanied by a copy of the Memorandum already transmitted to you. He has also received the inclosed pamphlett respecting the construction of the dock, being a Report by Messrs. Kinipple and Morris, Engineers.
He would be glad to be informed whether the influential support which is given to the project, as shown by the signatures attached to the Memorials, and the further information given in the Report of the Engineers, will so influence their Lordships' views as to enable them to take a more favourable view of the scheme, and to join in recommending to the Treasury that Her Majesty's Government should jointly undertake to guarantee the interest on 50,000l. for this purpose.
It is understood that the undertaking will return 4 per cent. on the outlay, and, therefore, such guarantee, while politically very desirable, would not be likely to entail any real obligation on this country.
Appendix No. 4. ·
NEWFOUNDLAND.
I am, &c.
(Signed)
ROBERT G. W. HERBERT,
Inclosure 6 in No. 116.
Colonial Office to Admiralty.
Sir,
Downing Street, September 6, 1879. WITH reference to previous correspondence respecting the question of the grant of Imperial aid towards the construction of a dock at St. John's, I am directed by the Secretary of State for the Colonies to transmit to you, to be laid before the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, an extract from a despatch received from the Governor of Newfoundland on this subject.
Inclosure 7 in No. 116.
I am, &c. (Signed)
R. H. MEADE.
(Confidential.) (Extract.)
*
*
Sir J. Glover to Sir M. Hicks Beach.
*
Government House, Newfoundland, August 20, 1879.
*
*
*
6. MR. WHITEWAY informs me that he hoped to obtain from Her Majesty's Government a guarantee on the interest of 50,000. sterling, to be raised by loan, for the construction of a graving dock at St. John's, and has asked his colleagues to sanction a local Government guarantee on 60,000%. sterling, representing the remaining portion of a total of 110,0007. sterling for the cost of construction of the dock and reclamation of the ground near it.
7. To this my Government have assented, and, as I stated in my Confidential communication of the 11th August, I trust that Mr. Whiteway's views on this subject may meet with the approval and support of Her Majesty's Government.
*
*
X
*
*
Sir,
Inclosure 8 in No. 116.
Admiralty to Colonial Office.
Admiralty, September 9, 1879. I AM commanded by the Lord Commissioners of the Admiralty to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 14th ultimo, inclosing certain Memorials and other documents relative to the proposed construction of a dry dock at St. John's, Newfoundland, and inquiring whether their Lordships may be induced by a perusal of those papers to take a more favourable view of the scheme, and to join in recommending to the Treasury that Her Majesty's Government should guarantee the interest on 50,0001. for that purpose.
My Lords are still of opinion that for naval purposes the value of a dry dock at St. John's would be altogether too small to justify them in proposing the application of naval funds towards its con- struction, either in the form of a direct grant or of a guarantee.
* Inclosure 4.
[1103]
† Not printed.
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I am, &c.
(Signed)
ROBERT HALL.
Inclosure 5.
5 F
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