PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :---
TILLHC.O. 882
9
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-
COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
of business, will do his best to prevent a "lock-up imprudent periods
of the bank deposits for
I have, &c.,
517
GRAHAM BOWER. Officer Administering the Government
No. 94
THE SECRETARY OF STATE to THE ACTING GOVERNOR (Sent 12 10 p.m. 16 January. 1909.)
(Paraphrase)
[Answered by No 95.]
TELEGRAM
Secret. Your telegram of 5 January* I consider that appointment of Com- mission has become desirable, but it should be forced on Colony not by His Majesty's Government but by pressure of circumstances. I am opposed to your bringing forward a motion because if you do officials must support it, and it would then be This would leave others carried by the help of unofficials who advocate enquiry
free to adopt any attitude which they think tactically advantageous, and to repudi- ate responsibility
Preferable course will be for you so to direct events that motion should be brought forward by Unofficial Member, and that you should refrain from showing Officials your hand until the others have committed themselves to definite attitude. should be left free to vote in best interests of Colony
Unless such a motion is supported by a majority of unofficials, I should not, as at present advised, be prepared to take action until we are in the presence of a declared crisis, or until it is indisputably evident that financial collapse cannot be postponed. Moreover, the motion must be sufficiently wide in its terms to ensure that the Commission is invited to cover the whole field of enquiry into the adminis- tration and finances -CREWE
2080
No. 95.
THE ACTING GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE (Received 2.35 p.m., 17 January, 1909.) TELEGRAM.
(Paraphrase)
Secret.
to carry
Your telegram of yesterday.t I will do my best out the policy which you indicate. Policy is rendered difficult by the extension of the agitation to the Indian population, and by strong personal feeling between parties. I therefore ask you to refuse information to all outside the Colonial Office. Two Unofficial Members of the Executive Counci! I learn cabled about a week ago to a friend in London, but I do not know the contents of the telegram. I ask to give my own explanation in my own words to these two members-BOWER
2082
No. 96.
THE ACTING GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE. (Received 18 January, 1909.)
(Secret.)
MY LORD,
Government House, Le Réduit, 16 December, 1908. WITH reference to my Secret despatch of the 5th December, 1908,‡ I have the honour to acquaint you that the following resolution was adopted by the Unofficial
‡ No. 92.
No. 91.
↑ No. 94.
119
Members of the Council of Government yesterday :-"That on the next vacancy the Governor's salary be reduced to Rs. 50,000 annually."
2. The resolution was adopted unanimously by all the Unofficial Members, and I desire to bear testimony to the excellent tone of the mover of the motion, Mr. Duclos. 3. The ground taken was the financial position of the Colony, and no imputation or reflection was made. Indeed, in a conversation which he had with me after the debate, Mr. Duclos explained that he was the first to recognise the generous and charitable use that Sir C. Boyle made of his salary, and that for his part he would have preferred, had it been possible, to teave the Governor's salary at the higher figure.
4. But a significant feature of the discussion now going on in the Council of Government is, that Mr. Leclézio has given notice of a motion asking for the abate- ment of the military contribution for three years. As your Lordship's telegram of the 4th September* has been read to the Executive Council once by Sir C. Boyle and twice by myself, Mr. Leclézio is aware that the effect of his motion is tantamount to the acceptance of a Royal Commission by him.
5. Notice was given yesterday by Mr. Gébert for the reduction of the salaries of a number of heads of departments, and of the better-paid officials, but it is under- stood that no reduction is to take effect till the next vacancy. Dr. Laurent has also given notice of his intention to move for reductions, and I am glad to be able to report that the gravity of the financial situation is being realised by the Unofficial Members generally
3074
I have, &c..
GRAHAM BOWER.
Officer Administering the Government.
No. 97.
THE ACTING GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE
(No. 368.)
MY LORD,
(Received 27 January, 1909.)
[Acknowledged 8 February, 1909. No. 28.]
Government House, Port Louis, 24th December, 1908. I HAVE the honour to enclose, for your information, a copy of a resolution adopted at a public meeting held at Moka to protest against the imposition of new taxes, and to ask for the appointment of a Committee of Enquiry.
2. I learnt on Sunday afternoon, the 20th instant, that a crowd of about 2,000 or more persons were marching on Réduit to present this resolution, and I sent the enclosed memorandum to the Inspector of Police. Unfortunately it did not reach him until the crowd were already in the avenue, and within about a hundred yards of the house. The crowd was, however, stopped, and a deputation came forward to interview me in my private study.
3.
The deputation consisted of the following:-
Dr. Laurent, Mayor of Port Louis,
Mr. René Mérandon,
Mr. Gabriel Bonnefin,
Mr. Jacques Le Vieux,
Mr. Anatole de Boucherville,
Dr. Guibert,
Mr. Henry Lacaze,
Mr. Edouard Laurent,
Mr. Charles Laurent,
د
Mr. Lallah and some Indian gentlemen whose names I did not catch.
4. The deputation urged the necessity for a dissolution of Council and for an enquiry into the position of the agricultural industry in this Colony. As regards the first point I informed them that I saw no constitutional reason for a dissolution, as the Government was, so far as I was aware, receiving the assistance of the Legislature in the problem with which it had to deal.
• No. 74.