CO129-316 - Governor Sir Blake - 1903 [1-4] — Page 603

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(NEW BEARERo qot aldisaogu:

589

the poorer classes who form the major portion of the community to remit or take away a few dollars to their homes in China without resorting to an exchange bank. It would be equally in- convenient and discouraging to require every small sum of money sent or brought into the Colony from China to be converted through & money changer into local currency before the same could be made

use of.

Lastly, should a gold standard be adopted for Hong Kong at the present moment, Chinese merchants and employers of labour would find it a matter of no little trouble and difficulty in engaging and paying their Chinese employees and workmen. Their wages have always been calculated and paid in silver, which is

the currency of their own native land and any material altera-

tion and modification of such currency would not only create

great inconvenience but would possibly cause a panic among them.

For the above stated reasons and for some others which I

need not here mention, as they do not particularly affect the

Chinese, I cannot for the present advise the Government to es-

tablish a currency on a cold basis in this Colony of Hong Kong

and its Dependencies. In the meantime the British Government,

in conjunction with some of the other Foreign Powers, should en-

deavour to induce the Chinese Government to adopt a gold stan-

dard, in which case is would be easy for this Colony to follow

suit immediately.

Dated this 25th day of March, 1903.