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30
The Secretary of State replied to this despatch in 0.0.
Despatch No.382 of the 23rd December 1898 paragraph 18, and
declined to sanction any general increase of salaries but
approved of increases not greater than those recommended in
the report of the Committee, being granted to the lower paid
Chinese employés who received no increase in 1890..
Increases were accordingly granted, according
to the rates recommended by the Committee, to Chinese
employes drawing salary at the rate of $30 a month and under
who were in the service in 1890 and had received no increase
in that year or subsequently.
The limitations imposed made the increases very
trivial.
In July 1899 in consequence of a representation
from one of the Government Departments of the difficulty in
obtaining Chinese employes, His Excellency the Governor
appointed a Committee consisting of the Colonial Treasurer,
the Senior Unofficial Member, and the Honourable Wei Yuk to
enquire further into the question of the salaries of Chinese
Government servants.
Their report was forwarded to the Secretary of
State in despatch No.324 of the 14th of November 1899.
A reply was received to that despatch by tele-
gram dated the 14th February sanctioning the scheme of
increases recommended in the first Committee's report, but
excepting Salaries of the Chinese Staff in the Post Office
which had in the meantime been separately dealt with and
increased.
In