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5. In compliance with the terms of my minute the Board submitted to me on the 19th February a resolution in the following terms:-

•

"The Board of Commissioners have examined and advised on applications to the value of Rs. 2,796,936.42, which, in their opinion, may reasonably be granted.

"The Board, having examined a list of the estates, consider that the estates which have not yet sent in applications may be expected to apply for Rs. 500,000.

This would make a total of approximately Rs. 3,300,000 as the probable amount of the loan required to meet the probable applications which may reasonably be granted."

On the evening of the same day I sent you a telegraphic despatch*asking your authority to increase the amount of the loan to £220,000, and on the 21st you informed me by wire of your approval of the proposals I submitted for your favourable con- sideration.

6. On the 26th February the Council of Government met in Special Session and the Ordinance I have now the honour to transmit to you was passed through all its stages.

7. I am satisfied that the exceptional circumstances of the occasion justify me in the course I have taken. The crop on the ground is of unusual promise, but the means of transport, in consequence of the mortality caused by surra, especially among mules, horses, and draught oxen, will be utterly inadequate to harvest the crop without a large extension of means of mechanical transport. Such an extension very few of the planters of the Colony are in a position to provide without Government aid. I have no hesitation in saying that to have refused the aid sought would have been to bring certain disaster on the Colony.

8. The minutes of the meetings of the Board will show you that I am mindful of the necessity of bestowing the most careful consideration on the applications sub- mitted as regards the sufficiency of the security offered. I may add, as regards the legal validity of the agreements to be made, every application recommended by the Board is submitted to the Procureur-General, and the necessary deeds are examined by him before the advance is finally submitted for my approval.

9. I am collecting statistics as to the actual mortality caused by surra among animals in the Colony, and its consequences. In the meantime I enclose a succinct statement of the mortality, which may be taken as approximately accurate so far as regards sugar estates; as regards other areas the statement has been prepared by the Receiver-General on the basis of licences taken out for horses, mules, &c., but there are no reliable means of ascertaining the mortality among draught oxen.

I have, &c..

75

meeting of the Council of Government. In order to comply with the provisions of Article 2 of the Ordinance, a resolution was first moved in the following terms:-

"That the sum to be borrowed under Ordinance No. 34, of 1902, shall not exceed £220.000." The Ordinance was then introduced and passed.

Article 1.-The Secretary of State had sent a cable with instructions that the last sentence of Article 2 (1) should be deleted, the object being to make it clear that no further money was to be borrowed under the Ordinance. As no money had, in fact, been raised, I deleted Article 2 (1) and substituted for it a new clause, limiting the borrowing power to £220,000.

Article 2. In accordance with the Secretary of State's instructions an amend- ment was introduced into Article 4 (i) allowing the notice to be given by the Crown Agents in case of it being found necessary to extend the currency of any of the debentures, to be by advertisement in the "Times."

Article 3.-The exigencies of the situation made it apparent that the delay of six months given in Article 10 was too long, as it would have necessitated suspending all advances until 13th June. As the calculations in respect of future applications had been made with great care, it was determined to deal at once with applications which had already been recommended, taking the date, February 19th, when the Board had made its calculation, and to allow the extra Rs. 500,000 together with any balance which might remain out of the Rs. 2,800,000 to be a reserve to meet future applications. At the same time in order that the Government might know at as early a date as possible the exact amount required, it was resolved that the applica- tions should all be sent in not later than 25th March.

Enclosure 4 in No. 66.

F. T. PIGGOTT, Procureur-General.

♪

STATEMENT showing the mortality on draught animals during the year 1902.

District.

Horses and Ponies

Mules.

Donkeys.

176

182

19

Oxen.

Total.

Port Louis...

Rural Districts:-

Outside of Suger Estates

392

2,475

176

On Sugar Estates

237

3,137

47

6,830

Totals

805

5,794

212

6,830

13,671

GRAHAM BOWER,

Colonial Secretary.

CHAS. BRUCE,

Governor.

12775

No. 67.

Enclosure 2 in No. 66.

EXPLANATORY REPORT ON ORDINANCE No. 1, OF 1903.

March 4, 1903.

The Board of Commissioners having taken a considerable number of applications for advances for tramways into consideration, and having found that they had recommended applications to an amount of about Rs. 2,800,000, and that it was probable that further applications would be received, were invited by His Excellency the Governor to express an opinion as to the maximum amount which was likely to be required to satisfy all the applications, both present and future. The Board thereupon went through the names of the estates which had not yet applied, and came to the conclusion that Rs. 500,000 would be sufficient to cover probable applica- tions; and that therefore Rs. 3,300,000 would be required, or £150,000, in excess of the £70,000 sanctioned by Ordinance No. 34, of 1902. The sanction of the Secretary

of State having been obtained, the Ordinance under report was introduced at a special

SIR,

(No. 85.)

GOVERNOR SIR C. BRUCE to MR. CHAMBERLAIN.

(Received April 6, 1903.)

[Answered by No. 59,]

Government House, Mauritius, March 7, 1903. WITH reference to my despatches, No. 78 and No. 79, of the 5th and 6th instant,* I have the honour to submit to you the measures I have adopted with a view to secure the revenues of the Colony against loss in the matter of advances made to planters under the provisions of the Mechanical Transport Ordinance No. 34 and the Sugar Estates (Advances in Aid) Ordinance No. 43 of 1902.

2. Two questions had, generally, to be considered :—

(A) The sufficiency of the security offered in respect of the amount of the

advance applied for; and

(R) The legal validity of the agreements entered into.

Nos. 65 and 66.

• No. 52.

† No. 54.

19231

K 1

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O. 882

8 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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