CO882-(6-8) — Page 217

། ༴། །། ‛། ཱ།

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

19

Reference :---

C.O. 882

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH—NOT TO

8 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

46

But as regards the Indians who have, as yet, only paid a portion of the purchase price of the land, the question is one of extreme gravity.

They have two courses open to them :-

1st. To borrow the money wherewith to pay their annual instalments; 2nd. To trust to the mercy of their creditors, to give them time.

What value can be placed on these hopes? There is practically no money in the market for lending purposes; whilst, as regards the question of mercy, it is doubtful whether the sentiments of the creole creditors towards the Indian debtor, sentiments which are far from friendly, would induce them to show mercy if they had the power.

But have they or will they have the power? I doubt it. The pressure on all classes is very heavy, and I doubt whether any class is in a position to abandon or postpone any claim that the law may give them on realisable property.

In conclusion, I would state that from the facts I have set forth, I have formed the opinion that a financial crisis may be expected in Mauritius, either late in this year or early in next year.

September 16, 1902.

I.

II.

Total

STATEMENT II.

GRAHAM BOWER,

Colonial Secretary.

VIII.

III.

19.

V.

VI.

VII.

Amount

Years.

trop ending in.

Production,

in Pounds,

Cost of Production of Crop.

Average

Realized

Grosa

Total Amount of Loans on Crop (includ

Sale Price.

by Sale

Profit.

ing Interest

Profit or Loss Realized by Planters.

of Sugar.

of Crop.

on Mortgage Debt).

Ra.

1898 | 251,775,000

Rs. 15,610,000

RB,

8.00

1899 371,000,000

23,000,000

7.16

at Rs. 6.25

or

22,260,000

at Rs. 6.00

(cost of produc-

tion probably

lower on account!

of a larger crop).

1900 325,665,000 ||

20,150,000

8.00

1901 384,570,000

23,843,000

8.40

at Rs. 6.25

1902 | 314,833,000

(figure given by

Chamber of

Commerce).

or

23,074.000

at Rs. 6,00

(cost of produc.

tion probably lower on account

of the larger crop). 19,519,000

6.80 ?

Average sale!

price not

yet officially

fixed by

('hamber of

Brokers.

Rg.

! Rs.

Rs.

Rs.

| 20,142,000, 4,532,000 20,610,000| Loss 468,000 26,563,000, 3,563,000|28,000,000 Loss 1,437,000

loss 697,000

or

or

| 4,303,000|27,260,000

or

| 26,053,000 | 5,863,000|25,190,000| Profit 863,000 | 32,303,000 | 8,460,000 | 28,843,000 | Profit 3,460,000

or

Or

ur

|9 229,000 | 28,074,000 profit 4,229,000

21,408,000 1,889,000 | 24,519,000 Loss 3,111,0:0

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the amount of pounds of sugar for each bag, viz., 150, gives the total in pounds of sugar produced for the year. (Column II.)

2nd. By multiplying the average sale price of sugar for the same years, obtained from the Secretary of the Chamber of Brokers (see Column IV.), with the total amount in pounds of sugar produced in a year we get Column V.

I have not been able to gather anywhere any official data for Column III. In the balance-sheets of the Sugar Estates Companies the cost of production is given; but their number does not exceed twenty, I think. We might have a mean cost of production for only 20 estates; but this would not stand as a fair average for all estates. The cost of production of Sugar Estates Companies is rather higher than the normal one. A reduction in cost of production has been made in the two years 1899-1900 and 1900-1901, the years of large crops.

The difference between figures in Column III. and those in Column V. gives the gross profit for each year. (Column VI.)

As regards the amount of loans on crop, as I stated before, very few mortgages are now given to bailleurs de fonds, either in virtue of the common law, i.e., on the property itself, or in virtue of the Ordinance allowing a lien on crops. (Only three have been inscribed in the Mortgage Office for last year.) Hence the insuperable difficulty of getting any official figures in that line.

Even the transaction of the two banks, where most of the bills are negotiated by bailleurs de fonds (who endorse generally the documents subscribed by the planters), would not furnish the information, because many bills are not negotiated at the banks but with private moneylenders, who keep them in their safes.

But when we consider that openings of credit are made, not only to cover the cost of the faisance valoir, but also to pay: 1st, the interest of the mortgage debt; 2nd, the cost of purchase of machinery, of cattle, or mules, or engines, or introduc- tion of immigrants, or any other extra expenditure, we can understand the cause of the large amount of the charge. The yearly interest on mortgage is easily ascer- tained. The mortgage debt burdening the sugar estates of the Colony amounts to Rs. 18,344,000, and taking 8 per cent. as a mean rate of interest might equal Rs. 1,467,520. As to surra, I confess I am at a loss to give any rational basis for the figure I would suggest, viz., a minimum of Rs. 3,000,000 (three millions).

Those who can best offer an opinion on such matters estimate that for the last five or six years, a sum of twenty millions covers the yearly cost of production, and that it requires from four to five more millions to cover the other expenses under items 1 and 2 (interest of mortgage debt, &c.). In other words, bailleurs de fonds generally lend Rs. 80,000 per estimated million of pounds of sugar on the coming crop.

Of this sum four or five millions does not vary, but must by its nature remain every year very nearly the same. I have added five millions to figures in Column III., that is to say, the estimated extra expenditure (as defined above) to the estimated cost of production: the result being Column VII.

The last column is found by taking the difference between the figures in Column V. and those in Column VII.

Explanatory Notes to Statement II.

The only official figures I have been in a position to obtain are the following:-

1st. Total of bags of sugar received in town for each year mentioned (Mauritius Almanac for 1902). The quantity of bags multiplied by

STATEMENT No. III.

Extent in acres of land purchased by Indian population (over and above sugar estates as shown in Statement No. 1), 74,363, to which must be added, approximately, 15,000. (See general footnote.)

Total amount of purchase price of such land, Rs. 13,308,008, to which must be added, approximately, 4 or 5 millions rupees. (See general footnote.)

Number of purchasers, 25,275, to which number must be added, approximately, 8,000 more Indians. (See general footnote.)

Besides the actual number of landowners (whose titles have been duly regis- tered), it is estimated that there are at least 8,000 more who are already in possession of their plot of ground and are planting it; but as they have not completed the payment of their purchase price, they have not yet been granted a complete and regular title (according to usual rule).