CO129-329 - Governor Nathan - 1905 [7-12] — Page 624

620

workmen of the same calibre as those now looking after

machines at the Naval Dockyard may be put at $250 per

annum. The annual expense of the staff suggested above will

be on these data 20 × £400 + 60 × $250 $95,000 taking the

pound at $10. For fuel and contingencies $5,000 should be

added bringing up the total working expenses to $100,000

per annum and the sum of interest and working expenses to

some

$130,000. The working expenses of the old mint were

$70,000 a year but the Sterling salaries paid in the years

1866 to 1868 would represent twice as much in dollars if

paid now.

8.

Comparing this estimated expendi-

-ture of $130,000 with the amount of $176,000 calculated

above to be the probable seigniorage on dollars and ap-

-proximate present cost of manufacture of subsidiary coins

it appears that if an annual demand of 4 million British

dollars and about 36,000,000 subsidiary coins can be relied

on, a mint at Hongkong could be worked at a profit of some

$46,000 per annum. Or, in other words, if the demand for

subsidiary coins in the future keeps up to the average

demand of the last ten years the average amount of about

$136,000 per annum hitherto paid for the manufacture of

these