442
chang.
risks. At present bar silver is 11% premium, and recat-
ly owing to political troubles it was 11.40% premium but it
is frequently well below 10.89 premium.
With regard. to British Dollars the silver would
be provided by the Banks, who pay the Bombay Mint 1% for mint-
ing.The charge, we believe, leaves little or no profit, but if
the coinage of small coins should not be sufficient to keep
the Mint constantly working it might be found that the coin-
ing of British Dollars would be an advantage, and tend to
reduce the percentage of cost of coining. It may interest the
Government to know that from commencement of coining British
in
Dollars 1895 up to 5th.May last the following amounts have
been coined on account of;-
Chartered Bank Of India,▲.& C. $56,013,696.
Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corpor: 24,222,794.
Mercantile Bank of India Ltd.,
37,248
Imperial Bank of Persia.
$2,058,780
National Bank of India.Ltd.
$264,876.
Comptoir National D'Escompte de
Paris.
Total
$261.641.
$83.559,035.
Of course by far the greater part of these coins have been
absorbed by the Straits, but as "HongKong Currency consists
of chopped Mexican Dollars (old type) which are now nearly
extinct and at any time command a good premium, there can be
no