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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

FETERIC.O. 882

תיקון דוד

9 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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2. I should be glad in the petitioners could be informed that I have received their memorial. but that I propose to defer consideration of it until the report of the Royal Commission which is about to visit the Colony has been received.

9407

SIR.

(No 105.)

No. 122.

I have, &c.,

CREWE

THE SECRETARY OF STATE to THE GOVERNOR

Downing Street, 14th May, 1909. WITH reference to my despatch, No 67, of the 5th of April,* and my telegram the 13th instant. I have the honour to transmit to you, for your information, I copy of His Majesty's Commissiont appointing Sir Frank Athelstane Swettenham, K.CM.G, Sir Edward Loughlin O'Malley, and Mr. Hubert B. Drysdale Woodcock to be Commissioners to enquire into the condition and resources of Mauritius and appointing Mr. Alfred J. Harding, of this Office, to be Secretary to the Commission.

2. The Commissioners will leave Southampton on the 22nd of May by the Union Castle Royal Mail Steamer “ Kenilworth Castle," which is due at Cape Town on the 8th of June. In addition to their Secretary, they will be accompanied by two shorthand writers. From Cape Town they will proceed in His Majesty's ship

Forte," to Mauritius, where they will probably arrive about the 18th of June.

9407

No. 123

I have, &c.,

CREWE.

THE SECRETARY OF STATE to SIR F. A. SWETTENHAM, SIR E. L. O'MALLEY, and MR. H. B. DRYSDALE WOODCOCK.

(Confidential.)

GENTLEMEN,

Downing Street, 15th May, 1909.

I HAVE the honour to transmit to you the Commission of His Majesty the King appointing you to be His Commissioners to enquire into the affairs of Mauritius, and in doing so I desire at the same time briefly to indicate the various points to which your attention should be more particularly directed.

2. I enclose herewith, for your confidential information, copies of recent correspondence with the Governor of the Colony, bearing on the financial position and explaining the reasons which have led to the appointment of the present Com mission. These papers should eventually be returned to this Department.

3. It will be seen that in 1907, as a consequence of the low price of sugar- the only important industry of the Colony coupled with an anticipated shortage in the crop, efforts were made by the Unofficial Members of the Legislature to obtain the sanction of the Secretary of State to the issue of loans amounting to £800,000 in all, of which £600,000 was to be lent to planters for the purpose of improving their machinery and £200,000 was to be devoted to advances to planters to supply them with funds for the working of their crops. These proposals did not commend themselves to my predecessor, who finally intimated that if the Unofficial Members wished to press their suggestion they should, as a condition precedent to further consideration of the matter, invite by Resolution of the Council of Government the appointment of a Royal Commission, at the expense of the Colony, to enquire into the situation. This offer was not accepted, and the matter dropped for the

moment.

4. But although the anticipations as to the sugar crop of 1907-8 were not

† Not printel.

• No. 117.

Enclosure in No. 123. § Revised print, to date, of this look.

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realized, and that of 1908-9 proved to be above the average, while the ruling prices The were not unsatisfactory, the position of the Colony has grown steadily worse. spending power of the community appears to be seriously impaired, the number of unemployed is increasing; and poverty and distress are alleged to be widespread. The surplus balances accumulated by the Government in former years are exhausted; the Colonial Treasury has an overdraft with the Crown Agents of upwards of £60,000; the present financial year threatens to close with a serious deficit and the Legislature, after devoting much consideration to the possibility of imposing fresh taxation and reducing expenditure, have confessed their inability to devise measures which would restore financial equilibrium. In these circumstances they have revived the question of a Royal Commission, and have invited its appointment. His Majesty's Government have consented to take this step, and, in consideration of the impoverished condition of the Colony, have determined that the cost shall be borne by the Imperial Exchequer.

you

pass

5. Your enquiry will therefore be directed, in the first place, to a consideration of the measures which must be taken for the purpose of balancing revenue and expenditure. You will consider whether the existing sources of revenue are the best that can be devised and whether, in any cases, they can be supplemented or re-adjusted with advantage. In studying the possibility of reducing expenditure, should in review the various departments of the public service, considering in each case whether the department is properly organized and administered in respect of the number of employés, the rates of salary, the hours of attendance, the amount of leave granted, and the general efficiency shown in the discharge of its functions. You will, of course, also review each subhead of the Estimates, and consider whether the expenditure is justifiable, in nature or amount, having regard to all the local circumstances.

6. In this connexion, if you should find that the administrative system of the Colony is not wholly satisfactory it will be advisable that you should very carefully consider whether the present situation can be regarded as in any way a consequence of the political constitution of the Colony. Under the existing Letters Patent and Royal Instructions, there is power to secure a majority for the Government in the Legislature; but hitherto advantage has not been taken of this provision, and Govern- ment measures cannot be passed against the unanimous vote of the Unofficial Members. It has been freely alleged that in the past these members have used their position to advance sectional interests, and have influenced the Government in the direction of expenditure which was not for the benefit of the Colony as a whole. Closely connected with this aspect of the question is the composition of the Executive Council, which at present contains two Unofficial Nominee Members. It has been alleged that this arrangement has not been altogether satisfactory in practice; that it has been used to bring undesirable pressure to bear on the Government in various directions; and that the confidential nature of the Council's deliberations has not been respected, with consequent detriment to His Majesty's Service. This aspect of the question presents considerations of some delicacy and difficulty, but it cannot be left out of account in so far as it bears on the matters which form the subject of your enquiry; and while I refrain from offering any opinion upon it which might have the effect of biassing your judgment, I commend it to your serious attention.

7. In the papers now forwarded you will find correspondence as to the circum- stances in which the Commercial Bank of Mauritius obtained, in 1908, an advance of Rs. 1,000,000 from the Government. Although the explanations furnished are not satisfactory, the incident is now closed, and I do not think that it would be expedient to open a direct enquiry as to the general operations of the Bank. It is possible that schemes will be put before you for the establishment of an Agricul- tural Bank, under Government auspices or management, and in this connexion it is desirable that you should collect all available information as to the system under which advances are made by the Banks to planters, the rate of interest charged, and the security taken. It would also be well to ascertain, as far as possible, whether the Banks, or either of them, conduct their operations solely with regard to business principles, or whether political or personal considerations enter into their trans- actions in any cases.

8. An important part of your mission will be the investigation of the question whether any, and, if so, what, measures can properly be taken by the Colonial Government to assist the development of looal industries. His Majesty's Govern- ment cannot reasonably expect that you should discover new and unexplored fields

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