CO129-405 - Public Offices - 1913 — Page 77

4.

76

amount. Meetings as to the exact division of the joint

working account as a whole still continue, and until a

settlement has been arrived at this claim will have to be

held over.

I am informed that the existing arrangements under

the Provisional Agreement for the administration of this

section, made at my instance after through traffic was re-

sumed, work very antisfactorily. For the purposes of se-

curity and safe custody I had all the title deeds of the

railway company's property deposited in this office. The

now l'anaging Director has lately been pressing for their

return in order that they be verified and resealed by the

present provisional administration. In view of the fact

that holders of Chinese deeds are reluctant up to the

present to surrender them I have demurred to this.

As regards Paragraph 4 of Sir Henry May's despatch

under consideration, it is admitted that the Chinese Sec-

tion is not in a good position financially. During the

last few months gross expenditure, which includes capi-

tal as well as revenue charges, exceeded gross revenue by

about $10,000 per monsem. Falances have been kept on the

right