366
subsidiary coin which was paid in as revenue and which does not remain at credit of Goverment Account soon led to a fresh in-
-crease in the overdraft which, on the 22nd. March, stood in the
sum of $1,543,564.
2834 Against this sum the Government had, as report-
5. Geol.
the -ed in my telegram of the 17th. March, an accumulation of cubsidia- -ry coin of the face value of some $1,700,000. As authorised in your telegram of the same date coin to this amount has been sold to the Bank at a rate of 274 pence. The price payable in London, subject to adjustment on ascertaining the exact quantity of silver, will be £142,140 which at exchange 1/11, the Treasury rate for March, is equivalent to $1,467,252, and the loss there- -fore, being the difference between this figure and the face value of the coin, amounts to $232,748. Adding some 81,500 for local expenses in packing the coins for shipment to India, the total loss is $234,250, or at the rate of 13.78 per centum. On the last sale of coin in London, which was made on comparatively favourable terms, the book loss was at the rate of 18.285 per contum, and a similar percentage in the present case would have involved an additional debit of 276,585 in the Colony's accounts.
6.
The present position is that it is at the moment possible to pay off all but one lakh of the overdraft; but as the Crow Agente will have heavy payments to make next month on account of the Loan in addition to ordinary services, and in view of the present high rate of exchange, I propose for the time being to leave the whole of the money, when available, with the Crown Agents. It must also be borne in mind that the adverse balance at the Bank is being regularly increased by the additional revenue received in subsidiary coin in the sum of about $480,000 monthly. This coin being stored instead of being at credit of current account, the Bank balance is less by its amount at face
value