CO129-412 - Governor Sir May - 1914 [7-8] — Page 295

285

wr nedt un barkup:

OURE TAKE SIZ

|

-12-

286

I now submit that the Government should consider Chan A

Tong's letters of the 5th February 1910 and the 6th May 1911

marked "E" and "N" respectively, and the advances that have been

made : truly, there is something colossal in the Asiatic mind

as will be noted by the following facts;-

Total amount of advances

Advances for timber in 1910(full value

for timber delivered vide Hon.D.P. Wis minute 15.9.10)

Advance for timber

-

purchased by the Hon.D.P.W. in February 1911.

$ 23,500.

3,330.

4,845.26 831, 675.26

It will be noted that the sum of 316 75.26 has been paid

in order to obtain timber to the value of, say $5,000.

A11

that the Contractor actually supplied out of the above to tal

advance was 27 logs for which he received full value in executed

work, the remaining 41 logs being paid for by the Government

upon deliverjag- in the year 1910(vide page 17).

It will also be noted that 67 additional logs were bought

by the Hon.D.P.W. in February 1911 at a cost of $4,845.26 this

being due to waste, theft and other matters incidental to the

Chinese mind when no supervision is exercised by the contractor.

The utmost value that the Government have received out of

the timber transaction can be put down at one half of the sum of

$5,000. referred to previously, say $2,500. i.e. for timber

bought by the Contractor.

Chan A Tong in his letter of the 5th February 1910 only

asked for 75% of the value of wood required, this equals say a

sum of £3,750.

Files to the value of over $3,000. supplied by the Govern-

ment have been lost by careless workmen and theft as previously

reported.

I have also to state that there are about 73 squares of teaki

flooring that I have been unable to trace the contractor was

-