CO882-(1-2) — Page 22

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

TELEC.O. 882

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1 ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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This disposes of the fallacy of Mr. Anštruá ther in supposing that Lord Torrington's Govern- ment had rushed into "gross extravagance* of expenditure, to the extent of 254,2581. in excess of their income.

But in displaying the very reverse, it does not exhibit the whole case; for the above sum includes an expenditure of 21,5951, to make good the deficiencies of 1841 and 1842, as shown by Mr. Anstruther's despatch of the 7th August, 1844.

X.—Mr. Anstruther's charge of “enormously increased" expenditure by Lord Torrington's Government (7722.)

Mr. Anstruther states that the outlay of the last three years has " 'enormously increased ;" but to substantiate this as a tenable complaint, it would be essential to go further, and to show that the charges incurred were either avoidable or unnecessary, or that being desirable, there was no concurrent increase of revenue to justify such an increase of expenditure.

This, however, is contrary to the facts. "The

average of the revenue and expenditure of the three years before Mr. Anstruther left Ceylon, and the three years after, on which he comments, is as follows:-

Average of the years

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1842-3-4 1845-6-7 -

-

Revenue. Expenditure £388,264 £842,878 437,056 485,000

+

Thus, whilst the expenditure of the latter three years had increased by 92,622(†)!., it will be seen that the annual receipts had likewise so

improved within the same period as to exhibit an

average increase of nearly 54,0001. (or about one-seventh).

But of this 92,6221. of increase, no less than 42,000l. per annum is the result of Mr. Anstru- ther's own direct additions to the permanent charges of the colony, by adding to the salaries and increasing the strength of the fixed estab- lishments between the years 1841 and 1844; the greater portion of which expenditure came into operation in 1845 and the following years, after Ma Anstruther had left the colony-and of the

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difference, which falls under the head of extraor dinary and contingent charges annually voted by the Legislative Council; I shall be prepared to show to the Committee that the greater pro- portion was rendered unavailable by the indirect operation of Mr. Anstruther's previous measures, which required expenditure to be carried on a greatly increased scale, for the completion and upkeep of works undertaken by him, all the pre- vious outlay upon which would have been utterly lost to the colony, had the Government either forborne to complete, or neglected to repair them.

In speaking of his own expenditure for making roads to the coffee districts, he stated to Lord George Bentinck's Committee (16,756), that "25,000l. per annum would not be enough to keep the roads, which were then only half made, passable," and would be utterly insufficient to complete them--and even this item affords an inadequate idea of the liabilities in which his own acts involved his successors.

XI-Mr. Anstruther himself to sqpie extent responsible for the Expenditure of 1845.

Mr. Anstruther (7,724) disclaims all con- nexion with the expenditure of 1848, and says (7,607) that he "ceased all connexion with the Government of Ceylon in February of that year." This is not quite correct--Mr. Anstruther wished to resign in February, 1845; but it was inconvenient at the time to provide a successor on so sudden a movement, and Sir C. Campbell, under Lord Stanley's instructions, retained his services till May, 1845, and by his despatch (9th May, 1845) reports to the Secretary of State, that he had declined to accede to Mr. Anstruther's wishes, and held him responsible for the admin- istration of his department till his embarkation on sie 18th May, 1845.

But so far from being disomniastad financial operations of 1845, Mr.

com year, 1844, hat Supply Ordlames for 1868, by

mura of that yone was ta ha certainly famed