CO885-6 — Page 335

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

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C.O. 882

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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

D

Cadet Scheme.

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if any, and the other privileges or allowances proposed to be attached to each ap pointment, The Cadet Service is classified; the other appointments are grouped in Departments; and there would be no allowances or privileges beyond what are shown on this

paper. I also enclose another similar list (B), which, in the column of remarks, shows all the existing allowances and other privileges, many of which, as you will see, I propose shall be abolished in the case of every officer who comes on the sterling scheme. What is not shown on these papers, but must be borne in mind in a con- sideration of my proposals, is that, at present practically every officer on these lists draws Exchange Compensation on his whole salary, and this privilege raises its dollar value by 50 per cent. when he is at work in the East. What this amounts to, while the dollar is at 2s., can be seen at a glance by adding a cypher to the sterling figures in the third column of the list, and taking the amount as dollars. Moreover, it must be remembered that every officer who joined before the 1st July, 1897, is entitled to leave pay at 4s, and pension at 3s. 8d., while a very few can claim the latter at 4s. All Cadets (and most other Europeans) who joined since 1st July, 1897, are entitled to leave pay and pension at 3s. to the dollar, and with double compensation these officers are already, for all practical purposes, on sterling rates.

8. My only fear is that the sterling salaries which I now propose to you are insuflicient, because I think they compare unfavourably with the salaries and other privileges at present enjoyed by members of the Ceylon Service who live in a cheaper country, are nearer to England, and consequently pay a lower rate of passage money, and because there are many cases where, if officers of this Service were offered this sterling scheme, instead of their present salaries and privileges, they would decline the exchange. I may believe they are mistaken but my opinion of the advantages offered may be wrong, and in any case each man will judge for himself.

9. This brings me to the suggestion I have already made that, when you have sanctioned a sterling scheme, officers now in the Service should be allowed to join it for once and all. I understand you favour that proposal, and even consider the offer should, for a time, be open to everyone. I do not recommend that course, but I do suggest that a time be given (say three or six months) in which all officers may apply to come on to the sterling scheme at the rates approved for their several appoint- nients, but the Government should have the option of accepting or refusing the applications, because, though in far the majority of cases they might properly and I think advantageously be granted, there are others in which it would not be advisable, because the applicant might be undeserving of any increase or on the point of retire- ment on a lower salary.

10. Coming to the scheme itself, it is impossible to say what would be the exact increase in cost of Establishments, because the periodical increments have to be reckoned with, but I estimate that the average increase on the present rates would be about $62,500 per annum ; against which must be set a considerable, but uncalculable, saving in leave pay, and, later on, in pensions.

11. The system of grading adopted in the scheme is one of its principal features, and should prove attractive to candidates who think of entering for the Service, while it will materially relieve the hardships which are entailed by a block in promotion. An officer will receive the increments in his class as he carns them, but he should not be promoted from one class to a higher one without the recommendation of the Head of his Department and the Governor. If there is no vacancy in the class above him he cannot be promoted, and continued service on the highest salary in one class should not, I think, count towards the earning of an increment when eventually promoted to the higher class.

12. Whenever an officer on a dollar salary acts for another whose salary is in sterling, or rice versa, the acting officer will draw half the dollar salary, with the Exchange Compensation to which he is entitled, and half the sterling salary.

13. I have put the salary of the Colonial Secretary at £1,600 a year with a free furnished house, which makes the appointment worth about £1,750

At present the salary is $10,800, with compensation $16,200, or £1,620. For leave purposes the dollar salary is worth £2.160 and for pension, at 35. 8d., £1,980. My proposal is, therefore, a reduction on the present emoluments of the post.

I have put the Resident Councillor of Penang at £1,400, but his present salary

is £1,440, his leave pay £1,920 and his pensionable salary £1,760.

If you should feel inclined to raise the value of the Colonial Secretary's post to £1,500 and that of the Resident Councillor, Penang, to £1,500 I do not think that either would be over-paid. In making my recommendations I have taken into con-

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sideration the value of the free houses, the entertainment allowance at Penang, and the relative amount of these salaries in comparison with those of the rest of the Service. As regards the Colonial Secretary I have a proposal to make, in reference to entertainment allowance, which I will deal with separately.*

14. From this point the sterling salaries I have proposed are, in most ca-es, rather better than the dollar salaries now drawn; though they suffer by comparison with leave pay and pension at 4s. and 3s. 8d. to the dollar. Take for instance two examples--a post on $7,800, for which I suggest £1,200, and one on $4,800, which varies from £660 to £900. The former ($7,800) is worth, for leave pay, £1,560, and for pension, £1,430, and the latter ($4,800) £960 and £880. These figures explain the reluctance of officers now in the Service to resign the special privileges they now possess, for a compara- tively small increase in the number of dollars drawn while on service in the East. On the other hand, when we come to Class V., a salary of £420 rising to £480 is considerably better than $2,400, even with compensation on the full salary.

15. You will notice that I have raised the status and salaries of the Postmaster- General, the Inspector of Prisons, the Director of Public Instruction and the Senior District Officer, Province Wellesley, and I have included in Class II. the two new appointments of Commissioner, Court of Requests, and Deputy to the Public Prosecutor.

16. Similarly I have improved the status and salaries of six posts now included in Class III. and of practically all the posts in Classes IV. and V. My reason is that those whose advice I sought agree with me in thinking that higher rates of salary are far more urgently required in the middle and lower than in the upper grades of the Service.

The Cadets have been entered at salaries which have already received your sanction.

17. I have endeavoured, as far as it was possible, to make a better average of promotion to look forward to; but I cannot conscientiously recommend you to give to some posts higher salaries than I think they deserve, simply in order to put a larger number of appointments in Classes I, and II. The Classified List A, as it stands, does not include every post to which a Cadet may aspire; for there is no reason why, if he shows his fitness, he should not enter the Police, become a Superintendent at one of the Settlements and eventually rise to be Inspector-General. Under the head "Judicial" there are at least three posts, those of Registrar in each of the Settlements, to which, if qualified, a Cadet might properly be appointed and I hold the opinion that some of our best Magistrates might worthily fill the post of Puisne Judge.

18. I do not think I need specially refer to any other post on the Cadets' List. The position and salary of every appointment has been very carefully considered and I can confidently recommend the scheme as a whole.

19. You have suggested that the maximum pension of any Officer should not exceed £1,000 a year, and that might be provided for in the pension regulations, but there is another point, connected with pensions, to which I would invite your attention. I feel strongly that there is no sufficient reason to allow extra years to be added to the service of certain Officers with professional attainments, and I suggest that this allow- ance be entirely abolished for the future. If the allowance has been granted because the education of professional men was supposed to be more expensive than that of, say Cadets, I cannot agree with the contention. In any case, the Government pays the Officer for his professional knowledge in the salary which he receives on joining, and which he continues to receive throughout his service, and I have never heard any convincing reason put forward to show why any distinction should be drawn in this respect between a medical, legal, Public Works or Survey Officer and a Cadet.

20. I do not think the privilege of counting the value of their free quarters for pension purposes need be continued to those who, under this scheme, will hold the posts of Colonial Secretary, Resident Councillor, Penang, and Resident Councillor, Malacca.

Profes

sional and

21. I have no remarks to offer on the Judicial, Medical or Ecclesiastical Depart- other ments except that I have made the salary of the Colonial Chaplain, Singapore, £100 - a year higher than that of the Penang Chaplain, because the work in Singapore Judicial, is much heavier and the cost of living here is greater than in Penang.

ments

Medical, Eclesiasti-

22. propose a reduced salary for the future Director of Gardens, but I have cal. slightly raised the salaries of the Assistants at Singapore and Penang who can help in Miscel-

laneous appoint-

* 6882: not printed.

ments.

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