CO882-(6-8) — Page 225

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

CO. 882

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

4

7892

(No. 40.)

62

No. 58,.

GOVERNOR SIR C. BRUCE to MR. CHAMBERLAIN.

(Received February 28, 1903.)

[Acknowledged March 9, 1903, No. 53: 7892: not printed.]

SIR,

Government House, Mauritius, January 30, 1903. I HAVE the honour to acknowledge' the receipt of your despatch, No. 311, of the 23rd December, which crossed my despatches, No. 447, of the 12th, and No. 466, of the 27th December last,† on the subject of the loan to be raised for the assistance of planters.

2. As regards the second paragraph of your despatch, my previous despatches will, I think, have satisfied you that the conditions laid down in Mr. Chamberlain's telegram of the 18th of March, 1898,‡ are fulfilled in the present case.

3. As regards the third paragraph of your despatch, I am afraid that the present state of affairs is much more critical than that which existed in 1898.

4. In reply to the fourth paragraph of your despatch, I am glad to be able to inform you that in the case of every loan applied for by "bailleurs de fonds," the money lent by the Government is to be advanced to their clients at 6 per cent., being the rate charged them by Government.

5. You will have observed by the terms of Ordinance No. 43 that the

purposes to which the loan is to be applied are limited to the cultivation of, and for other purposes connected with, estates from 1st December, 1902, to 31st March, 1903, and it was obviously of prime necessity, therefore, that advances to be made should be made at once. A main difficulty with which we have had to deal has been that of realising locally the proceeds of the loan. This difficulty did not occur in 1898, because specie payments were at the time suspended, and advances were made by the issue of currency notes in accordance with Article 5 of Ordinance No. 2 of 1898. You will easily understand that I was anxious to avoid recourse to the extreme measure of suspension of specie payments.

6. I therefore desired the Financial Officers to make enquiry and let me have a report on the best means of meeting the difficulty that faced us. I transmit a copy of their report, and, with reference to the question of the importation of silver rupees,

I annex a statement showing the movement of specie since 1897.

7. I annex also a statement showing the operations by which we have placed or hope to place the Government promptly in funds to make the necessary advances. 8. In view of the moderate rate of interest charged by Government under the Ordinance, I have made it a condition of every advance that the cost of introduction of the proceeds of the loan is to be borne by the borrowers,

63

purchasers of drafts, as they are vendors, on account of sugars unpaid yet amounting to over 300,000 bags, besides the banks and Bombay merchants, the only persons who are purchasers of drafts, are the firm of Blyth Brothers and Company, who have applied for 200,000 rupees only.

Mr. Aboo Bakar, representing the firm of Issop Mamode Sulliman, in liquidation, informed us that a fortnight ago he purchased 15 lacs of drafts on Bombay for remittance to his principals, for which he had to pay per cent. discount, and that he would have then bought our drafts at par.

The Bombay merchants and the manager of the Mauritius Commercial Bank strongly advocate the importation of silver rupees, as our stock has been considerably reduced since 1898 (see statement E annexed), i.e., by about Rs. 3,000,000.

The manager of the Bank of Mauritius thinks that it would be well to import silver.

The Bombay merchants whom we interviewed (Messrs. Aboo Bakar and Ajum Goolam Ossen) have further given us the assurance that they will not have to export rupees this year, that the next crop will be reached and the new sugars will be in town before it will be necessary to make remittances to India, and then sugar bills will be available.

After carefully examining the question we have arrived at the conclusion that it would be advisable to import at least 1,000,000 rupees by the British India steamer due to leave Calcutta on 31st instant, arriving here on 20th proximo, and that the Crown Agents should be asked by wire to arrange for this shipment on account of the loan.

The scheme for the introduction of the amount of the loan as recommended by us would be as follows:-

=

Produce of £200,000 raised by Treasury Bills by the Crown Agents at 14.91 per £, present Bombay rate Rs. 2,980,000, the whole of which should if need be advanced to planters at 6 per cent, interest.

Mode of introduction of above amount :-

1. Amount laid down in Bombay drafts taken by the Bank at

per cent discount

2. Import of Rs. 1,000,000 in specie from Calcutta at ths per

cent.

3. Remittance to Crown Agents for wants of the Colony, who will raise an equivalent amount on account of loan, 3 lacs

and

4. Remittance to Crown Agents in same manner for investment on account of Commissioners of Currency (see Statement B. annexed)

5. Draft on Bombay and Calcutta in favour of Government of India to meet requirements for November, December, January and February, by anticipation (see Statement C. annexed)

Cost of Transmissiou

Amount.

from Bombay and Caluutta.

RB.

1,000,000

Rs. 5,000

1,000,000

8,750

350,000

176,000

Enclosure 1 in No. 58.

REPORT OF THE FINANCIAL OFFICERS.

I have, &c.,

CHAS. BRUCE,

120,000

Governor'

By anticipation 1st quarter of 1903

6. Draft in favour of Postmaster-General, Bombay, to meet our requirements for Postal Orders as follows: 4th quarter of 1902 (see Statement D. annexed)

Rs. 26,618.31 27,381.69

7. Draft in favour of Blyth Brothers & Co.

54,000

100,000

par

8. Draft in favour of Bank of Mauritius, Limited, at per cent.

discount

80.000

400

2,880,000

14,150

1

9. Draft in favour of Blyth Brothers & Co. at 4th per cent.

premium

100,000

125

Totals

2,980,000

14,025

January 23, 1903.

Having consulted the managers of the local banks and interviewed the principal Bombay merchants, as desired by His Excellency the Governor, we have the honour to report as follows:--

The manager of the Bank of Mauritius has informed us that he does not think that his bank can take more than five lacs of rupees of our drafts on Bombay over and above the million rupees which they have agreed to take; but he has not given us a definite answer.

The secretary of the Mauritius Commercial Bank has informed us (see his letter A that he can do no more.

The Bonbay merchants are not now, nor will they be for some time to come,

• No. 29.

↑ Nos. 32 and 40,

6061: not printed

Admitting that we draw all we can on Bombay, we can only sell five more lacs of rupees, and we would in any case have to import specie to the extent of five lacs or 500,000 rupees.