3.
572
563
time in which they may remain on hand after arrival and before delivery to the Chinese buyer according to the terms of his contract. To re- move the question of exchange from the European merchant and Banker to the Chinese dealer would probably tend to encourage considerable gambling by the latter, the result of which might be heavy losses and consequent inability to fulfil his contracts with the European merchant. Tera Hongkong placed on a different basis of currency from China the large local trade between north and south China now financed to a great extent through this Colony would be done direct say between Sharhai and Canton. Altogether whatever great desire may exist to have the serious, troublesome and disappointing element of a constant- ly finetuating exchange(irrespective of the balance of trade and move- ments of money) between the great manufacturing centres of Europe and America on a gold basis and the great and prospectively greater buyer in aina with a silver currency, moved from the already sufficiently larga mmber of elements of risk entering into the calculations of the merchant, yet in as far as this Colony is concerned it does not seem
politie to separate ourselves in the matter of the basis of our cur- rency from the great country of which we geographically form a part. Wothing should be done which might in any degree hamper the trade con- dueted at this port between China and the outside world, a trade which
is a perfect marvel if contemplated from the standpoint of fifty years ago and which still continues to grow, probably now at a more acceler-
atad speed than ever before. Now that the exchange value of the dol lar is so low (1/7) it does not seem a particularly opportune time to fix the ratio between gold and silver and temporarily at any rate further discredit silver in the markets of the world. It seems there
is still a possibility of silver maintaining its position considering
it