SIR,
10
Enclosure 2 in No. 13.
ADMINISTRATOR to GOVERNOR.
(Saint Vincent. No. 95.)
Government House, Saint Vincent, July 15, 1901.
I HAVE the honour to report that the Secretary of State's circular despatch of 1st June making enquiry as to whether the relations between the Crown Agents and the Colony in regard to the commercial business entrusted to the former, are entirely satisfactory, was laid by me before the Executive Council on the 12th instant.
2. The Council were not aware of any instances in which the Crown Agents had failed to adequately protect the Colony's commercial interests.
11
Colonies of mistakes or neglect on the part of the Crown Agents in regard to the com-
12 mercial business entrusted to them.
2. In compliance with the request made in paragraph 3 of this circular despatch, and as the result of inquiries which have been called for from the several Presidencies. of this Colony, I have the pleasure of reporting that I am entirely satisfied with the relations between it and the Crown Agents.
I have, &c.,
GEO. MELVILLE.
His Excellency
I have, &c.,
EDWARD J. CAMERON,
Administrator.
33739
No. 16.
BRITISH GUIANA.
33551
Sir R. B. Llewelyn, K.C.M.G.,
&c.,
&c., &c., Grenada.
No. 14.
SEYCHELLES.
ADMINISTRATOR SWEET-ESCOTT to COLONIAL OFFICE.
(No. 189.) SIR,
(Received September 25, 1901.)
Government House, Seychelles, August 29, 1901.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt on the 20th instant of your Circular despatch of the 1st June last, and to inform you that I am entirely satisfied with the relations between the Crown Agents and this Government.
2. On more than one occasion I have thanked the Crown Agents officially for the great trouble taken in their department to comply with the requests of Colonial Govern- ments here and elsewhere. On no occasion, so far as I am aware, have the Crown Agents hesitated to give this and other Governments the advantage of their great experience in all matters of public business and finance. It would be impossible to substitute for the Crown Agents Department any other arrangement for conducting the business in England of Crown Colonies, which would be of equal efficiency, or would so thoroughly safeguard the interests of these Colonies, and I am glad to have been afforded this opportunity of recording my grateful appreciation of their good
work.
3. There is one suggestion, and only one, which I would venture to make, and that is, that, save under exceptional circumstances, the Crown Agents should not incur expenditure on behalf of a Colonial Government, unless the amount of that expenditure has received the previous sanction of the Colonial Government or of the Secretary of State. In connection with this suggestion, I beg to refer to my despatch, No. 168, of the 6th instant.*
I have, &c.,
مر
ACTING-GOVERNOR ASHMORE to MR. CHAMBERLAIN.
(No. 317.)
SIR,
(Received September 26, 1901.)
Government House, Georgetown, Demerara, September 11, 1901.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your circular despatch of the 1st June, with regard to the execution by the Crown Agents of commercial business entrusted to them by the Governments of the British Colonies.
2. In reply I have to state that the relations between the Crown Agents and this Colony have been shown by the enquiries that have been made into the matter to be generally of a most satisfactory kind, and that the only complaint is of occasional delay in meeting requisitions. In regard to this source of complaint I attach an extract from a report by the Colonial Civil Engineer noting particular cases between 1898 and 1901.
3. In all cases the quality of goods supplied is reported excellent.
(Extract.)
Enclosure in No. 16.
J
I have, &c.,
A. M. ASHMORE.
COLONIAL CIVIL ENGINEER 10 GOVERNMENT SECŘETARY,
July 9, 1901.
Out of the 34 indents sent home, between 22nd April, 1898, and 31st March, 1901, 20 took over four months to satisfy, and of these seven were six months or over. Out of these I specify the following as seeming to me to have really entailed undue delay. The date of receipt is when received here, which would be about one week after arrival in Colony.
No of Demand.
Articles ordered.
33661
SIR,
No. 15.
E. B. SWEET-ESCOTT,
Administrator.
LEEWARD ISLANDS.
ACTING GOVERNOR SIR G. MELVILLE to MR. CHAMBERLAIN. (Received September 26, 1901.)
(No. 509.)
Government House, Antigua, September 6, 1901.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your circular despatch of the 1st June last, on the subject of complaints which have reached you from certain
* 29859-; not printed.
Date.
Date of Receipt,
236
Tanks, Lunatic Asylum
Feb. 11, 1899
Mar. 26, 1900
Over 13 months.
978 2231
| Sanitary buckets, Georgetown
Hospital.
June 28, 1899
Nov. 17, 1899
Nearly 5 months.
1132
Prison locks, Smildie
July 26, 1899
Mar. 16, 1900)
1374 5206
Fire appliances, Penal settle-
ment.
Sept. 8, 1899
Mar. 7, 1900
Nearly 8 months.
Six months.
1824
Hose and reel, Lunatic Asylum
Sept. 5, 1900
Mar. Q_1901
Six months.
On the face of it these seem very lengthy intervals, but it is quite possible they
were unavoidable. There is no doubt of the excellence of the goods which the Crown Agents insist on.
B2
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference:
T ། ། T| ། །། CO. 885
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO