The Under Secretary of State,
Colonial Office,
London.
Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation.
Hongkong 8th July 1898. 117
A sy
2 copre
C.O.
17903
(pr 9 AUG 28!
12171
Starts
Sir,
I have the honor to acknowledge receipt of your Despatch of the
4th of June,enolosing an extract from a Despatch of the Acting Gov-
ernor of the Straits Settlements, in which he reported that this
Bank's Note Issue was in excess of its paid up Capital, at the end
of January, the end of February, and the end of March this year.
It affords me satisfaction to be able to inform
you that after considerable effort on our part our issue was on the
30th June well within the prescribed limit.
I sincerely regret that, much against our will, the
force of circumstances.compelled an over-issue commencing in January,
which we expected would be only temporary, but which owing to the
exceptional conditions of trade proved of longer duration.
We had to pay notes for the large requirements
preceding the China New Year settlements, which was unavoidable with-
out creating a crisis. In other years the large disbursements for
the China New Year speedily returned to us, but from January to June
this year the insufficiency of our Note Issue here has been a cons-
tant source of anxiety and worry to us as it certainly will continue
to be until it is placed upon a more elastic basis than the exist -
ing one.
Our present position within limits has only been at-
tained at the cost of a serious interference with current business.
increased very much in
The trade of Hongkong has
late years, and we would draw your attention to the change which has
been gradually going on in the appreciation in which Bank notes