Ripon, and the publication of it in the columns of the local newspapers, and in pamphlet shape, will, I venture to hope, justify me in the eyes of the public.
5.-I have, as you point out, taken a very prominent part in the movement in favour of retrenchment and in urging the appointment of a Committee of Enquiry, but I deny in the simplest and most straightforward manner that I have ever, at any time, given public assurances of the facility with which large economies could be effected, especially in the cost of establishments, or that I have said or done anything to lend either the public or the Government to suppose that, in my own opinion, my presence on a Committee of Enquiry, or my co-operation in the work, would be of any special value or importance over that of others. You have no justification for such a statement. I have expressed the strongest opinions as to the need for retrenchment, and as to the possibility of great economies being effected in nearly all branches of the public service. I have strongly urged upon the Government and the public the necessity for a comprehensive enquiry into the facts, that it might be ascertained and made clear in what departments and to what extent economies and retrenchments were possible. In my expressed opinion as to the possibility of serious retrenchments I am happily confirmed by His Excellency the Governor, as the result of the enquiries he has been able to make. I am more than justified in my opinion that an enquiry by an independent Committee is an essential preliminary to any scheme of retrenchment, and that private enquiries conducted wholly within the bosom of the Government itself are inadequate, by the decision of the Secretary of State directing a comprehensive enquiry, in spite of the strong protests of His Excellency the Governor that no such public enquiry was necessary or desirable, and that he was in possession of all needful information.
6. His Excellency might well have been surprised if I had consented to act on a Committee which from its composition must utterly fail to push any effective enquiry in any direction about which there may be any serious differences of opinion between the representatives on it of the public and of the Government. If I had done so I should have exposed myself to a charge of inconsistency and folly, in having agitated for an independent enquiry and accepted something which, equally divided in its numbers, lacked the power to push its investigations and the independence that could give authority to its report and recommendations.
7.-Of course, there might have been an anomaly in appointing a Committee on which I had not, at least, been asked to sit; but my refusal to take part in the proceedings of this Committee by no means precludes the appointment of an independent Committee of Enquiry. There are numbers of men in Hongkong, perfectly independent of the Government, convinced, as I am, of the necessity of retrenchment and of the need for that comprehensive enquiry the Secretary of State has ordered, and more competent than I am to aid by their experience and knowledge of affairs in such an investigation. I accept His Excellency's assurance that the abandonment of the enquiry by the Committee (the only one I alluded to) is not necessarily tantamount to the abandonment of all enquiry. I feel confident His Excellency will continue the good work he has commenced; but unfortunately this departmental enquiry is precisely what neither the public nor apparently the Secretary of State have complete confidence in.
8.-I have moved three times for a Committee of Enquiry, twice before His Excellency's arrival in Hongkong and once since, and I have taken an active part in promoting the memorial and petition of January last to the Secretary of State, even after I was aware that Sir William Robinson was alive to the necessity for retrenchment, was making enquiries, and was preparing a scheme; but permit me to state that there is no ground whatever for your assertion that I did so because I knew of further economies that might be effected which were unknown to the Governor, or because I thought a Committee the only means by which I could make my recommendations and opinions heard. I did so because I thought and still think a public independent enquiry, conducted by persons in the main unconnected with the Government service, is the best instrument for ascertaining all the facts connected with the working of the Government departments, the opinions of all competent and disinterested persons as to possible improvements and economies, and of placing on record for the information of future Governors and Colonial Secretaries the facts so ascertained.
9.-Curiously enough, the Secretary of State agrees with the views expressed not merely by me, but by the unofficial members and by the public of Hongkong, and in condemning my views and theirs you have the appearance, at least, of condemning the action of that high official.
10. Again, I accept unhesitatingly your assurance that the Governor on receipt of the despatch of the 21st April last put aside all opposition to the appointment of a Committee of Enquiry, and had no other anxiety than that it should get to work as speedily as possible. But it must be admitted, I think, that his first appointment was very unfortunate. It was neither within the letter nor the spirit of the Marquess of Ripon's instructions. It was unwieldy in number, and it did not consist of the desired majority of persons unconnected with the Government service. It contained two members of the Government service who, for many reasons, were most undesirable and most unpopular as members of any such enquiry. I said nothing on the subject at first, considering it more than probable that His Excellency of his own motion, and enlightened by the public Press, would see fit to make some change. In reply to my first remonstrance one official and one unofficial member were withdrawn. The Committee was less unwieldy, but still wrongly composed. If the official member only had been withdrawn, I should have served. As it was, none of my objections were met by the change. The relative strength of parties remained the same.
11.-I may say here that your attack on the community generally because of the alleged unwillingness of members to serve on Commissions and Committees they have been urgent to pray for is unfounded and unjust. The Treasury Frauds Enquiry, the Quarantine Commission, and many others are proof to the contrary. The Po Leung Kuk enquiry was a failure, and a warning to all interested in the Retrenchment Enquiry, because a majority was appointed on it opposed to the object for which it was constituted, who thought enquiry superfluous and needless, and because the Chairman was the very last man who ought to have been in that position on that enquiry. Your illustration is, I am afraid, rather an unfortunate one.
12.-I have refused to serve on the Retrenchment Committee as appointed by His Excellency because it is not the independent Committee asked for unanimously by the unofficial members of Council and by the public. The object of the Committee, as asked for by the public, and as conceded by the Secretary of State, is not only to recommend, but to enquire, take evidence, and report on the facts of the case. The recommendations of such a Committee are of the least importance.
Please note what the Most Honourable the Marquess of Ripon writes in his despatch of the 21st April:-
"I have further come to the conclusion that, notwithstanding what has already been decided in the direction of economy, additional advantage would be derived from instituting a comprehensive enquiry affecting all departments in the service, so that the facts and the possibilities of reduction in the future may be placed on record, and thus no opportunity of effecting retrenchment allowed to slip by."
In these words are my complete justification. I want an enquiry. I think no enquiry can be properly pushed and bring out all relevant facts unless a majority of the Committee are in favour of enquiry, and free from all adverse influences-in a word, independent of
545
Ripon, and the publication of it in the columns of the local newspapers, and in pamphlet shape, will, I venture to hope, justify me in the eyes of the public.
5.-I have, as you point out, taken a very prominent part in the movement in favour of retrenchment and in urging the appointment of a Committee of Enquiry, but I deny in the simplest and most straightforward manner that I have ever, at any time, given public assurances of the facility with which large economies could he effected, especially in the cost of establishments, or that I have said or done anything to lend either the public or the Government to suppose that, in my own opinion, my presence on a Committee of Enquiry, or my co-operation in the work, would be of any special value or importance over that of others. You have no justification for such a statement. I have expressed the strongest opinions as to the need for retrenchment, and as to the possibility of great economies being effected in nearly all branches of the public service. I have strongly urged upon the Government and the public the necessity for a comprehensive enquiry into the facts, that it might be ascertained and made clear in what departments and to what extent economies and retrenchments were possible. In my expressed opinion as to the possibility of serious retrenchments I am happily confirmed by His Excellency the Governor, as the result of the enquiries he has been able to make. I am more than justified in my opinion that an enquiry by an independent Committee is an essential preliminary to any scheme of retrenchment, and that private enquiries conducted wholly within the bosom of the Government itself are inadequate, by the decision of the Secretary of State directing a comprehensive enquiry, in spite of the strong protests of His Excellency the Governor that no such public enquiry was necessary or desirable, and that he was in possession of all needful information.
6. His Excellency might well have been surprised if I had consented to act on a Committee which from its composition must utterly fail to push any effective enquiry in any direction about which there may be any serious differences of opinion between the repro- sentatives on it of the public and of the Government. If I had done so I should have exposed myself to a charge of inconsistency and folly, in having agitated for an independent enquiry and accepted something which, equally divided in its numbers, lacked the power to push its investigations and the independence that could give authority to its report and recommendations.
7.-Of course, there might have been an anomaly in appointing a Committee on which I had not, at least, been asked to sit; but my refusal to take part in the proceedings of this Committee by no means precludes the appointment of an independent Committee of Enquiry. There are numbers of men in Hongkong, perfectly independent of the Govern- ment, convinced, as I am, of the necessity of retrenchment and of the need for that com- prehensive enquiry the Secretary of State has ordered, and more competent than I am to aid by their experience and knowledge of affairs in such an investigation. I accept His Excellency's assurance that the abandonment of the enquiry by the Committee (the only one I alluded to) is not necessarily tantamount to the abandonment of all enquiry. I feel confident His Excellency will continue the good work he has commenced; but unfortunately this departmental enquiry is precisely what neither the public nor apparently the Secretary of State have complete confidence in,
8.-I have moved three times for a Committee of Enquiry, twice before His Excel- lency's arrival in Hongkong and once since, and I have taken an active part in promoting the memorial and petition of January last to the Secretary of State, even after I was aware that Sir William Robinson was alive to the necessity for retrenchment, was making enquiries, and was preparing a scheme; but permit me to state that there is no ground whatever for your assertion that I did so because I knew of further economies that might be effected which were unknown to the Governor, or because I thought a Committee the only means by which I could make my recommendations and opinions heard. I did so because I thought and
still think a public independent enquiry, conducted by persons in the main unconnected with the Governmennt service, is the best instrument for ascertaining all the facts connected with the working of the Government departments, the opinions of all competent and disinterested persons as to possible improvements and economies, and of placing on record for the information of future Governors and Colonial Secretaries the facts so ascertained.
9.--Curiously enough, the Secretary of State agrees with the views expressed not merely by me, but by the unofficial members and by the public of Hongkong, and in condemning my views and theirs you have the appearance, at least, of condemning the action of that high official.
10. Again, I accept unhesitatingly your assurance that the Governor on receipt of the despatch of the 21st April last put aside all opposition to the appointment of a Committee of Enquiry, and had no other anxiety than that it should get to work as speedily as possible. But it must be admitted, I think, that his first appointment was very unfortunate. It was neither within the letter nor the spirit of the Marquess of Ripon's instructions. It was unwieldly in number, and it did not consist of the desired majority of persons unconnected with the Government service. It contained two members of the Government service who, for many reasons, were most undesirable and most unpopular as members of any such enquiry. I said nothing on the subject at first, considering it more than probable that His Excellency of his own motion, and enlightened by the public Press, would see fit to make some change. In reply to my first remonstrance one official and one unofficial member were withdrawn. The Committee was less unwieldly, but still wrongly composed. If the official member only had been withdrawn, I should have served. As it was, none of my objections were met by the change. The relative strength of parties remained the same.
11.-I may say here that your attack on the community generally because of the alleged unwillingness of members to serve on Commissions and Committees they have been urgent to pray for is unfounded and unjust. The Treasury Frauds Enquiry, the Quarantine Commission, and many others are proof to the contrary. The Po Leung Kuk enquiry was a failure, and a warning to all interested in the Retrenchment Enquiry, because a majority was appointed on it opposed to the object for which it was constituted, who thought enquiry superfluous and needless, and because the Chairman was the very last man who ought to have been in that position on that enquiry. You illustration is, I am afraid, rather an unfortunate one.
12.-I have refused to serve on the Retrenchment Committee as appointed by His Excellency because it is not the independent Committee asked for unanimously by the unofficial members of Council and by the public. The object of the Committee, as asked for by the public, and as conceded by the Secretary of State, is not only to recommend, but to enquire, take evidence, and report on the facts of the case. The recommendations of such a Committee are of the least importance.
Please note what the Most Honourable the Marquess of Ripon writes in his despatch of the 21st April:-
"I have further come to the conclusion that, notwithstanding what has already been decided in the direction of economy, additional advantage would be derived from instituting a comprehensive enquiry affecting all departments in the service, so that the facts and the possibilities of reduction in the future may be placed on record, and thus no opportunity of effecting retrenchment allowed to slip by."
In these words are my complete justification. I want an enquiry. I think no enquiry can be properly pushed and bring out all relevant facts unless a majority of the Committee are in favour of enquiry, and free from all adverse influences-in a word, independent of
545
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