on the point. Both these gentlemen informed me that such work was delegated by them to their subordinates (it must be remembered that they have no officer corresponding to the local auditor to do the work for them). Mr. Shurburn expressly stated to me that he considered that the full need of blame which should be accorded to me had been given to me by the Commissioners. This is the manager of the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank stated that such work was performed by his accountant and that I was quite justified in reporting confidence in mine.
It thus appears that the foundation on which the Colonial Secretary has reared an accusation, which, if it carried conviction to the mind of the Secretary of State, might well land me in dismissal from Her Majesty's service, rests simply on his own opinion of my duties, based upon a practice existing in the Ceylon Treasury, a practice which, as I have shewn above, is of very doubtful utility as a means of checking fraud at any time, and the absence of which can be proved to demonstration to have had no effect whatever in contradiction.
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