HKG-CAR1844-1886

1841-1886

STATE OF HER MAJESTY'S COLONIAL POSSESSIONS. 109

119

(No. 25.)

HONG KONG.

No. 15.

Copy of a DESPATCH from Governor BONHAM to Earl GREY.

MY LORD,

Victoria, Hong Kong, 2nd April, 1850.

(Received 20th June, 1850.)

I HAVE the honour to transmit to your Lordship the Blue Book of this Colony for the year 1849.

24

HONG KONG

No. 15.

1849 23,617 3 3

Decrease

1,476 16 8

1. The revenue for the year 1849 amounted to 23,617l. 3s. 3d., and that for the preceding year to 25,091l. 19s. 11½d., including 194l. 16s. 7d., recovered by the Colonial Agent in England. The revenue collected is consequently 1,474l. 16s. 8¾d. less than that for 1848. This decrease arises from the under-mentioned items, as shown by the comparative statement for 1848 and 1849, at pages 30 and 31 of the Blue Book, namely:-

Duties on goods sold by auction (abolished from 1st March 1849)£Sd165175 Rents from lands leased for building purposes, including resumption of lots and arrears due2,13997½ Fisheries (discontinued since 1848)718 Arrears of rent from villages and land under cultivation222155¼ Opium Licences300126 Salt brokerage Billiard table Fees of offices, including fees on leases.25868 Fines and forfeitures of courts206 Fees of ditto269167 Over-payments recovered255191 Police superannuation contributions, including clothing and sick stoppages7473 Amounts recovered by the Colonial agent in London25192½ 398135 19167 Forming together a sum of£4,140160¾

But this has been relieved by an augmentation derived from the following sources, namely:-

Police-rate assessment£sd54032¼ Deposits on land sold29111 Rents from buildings6896 Licences15650 Markets45168 Stone quarrying647164 Retail of spirits60481 Pawnbrokers'2151810½ Auctioneers'20140 Serangs'32412 Government property sold3148 Reimbursement of expenses £2,665194

The net deficit, therefore, for 1849 is 1,474l. 16s. 8¾d., as above stated.