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The only distinction that I am aware of in this respect between Official and Un- official Members of Council is in the nature of a limitation of the rights of the latter, and precludes the Official Members from proposing any increase of expend- iture without the previous authorisation of the Governor. Starting, however, from this misconception, the Memorialists state that they were compelled to move the reduction of certain official salaries "in vindication of their own rights and powers," as well as for the protection of the interests of the Colony. The admis- sion that they were actuated by some other motive besides the very sufficient one of a regard for the interests of the Colony renders it highly probable that the other motive which they have admitted was the real and effective cause of their motion. They felt, as they say, that they must "vindicate their own rights and powers," and they were "compelled to take this step" by reason not only of "their position in the Council," but also of "their treatment on many financial questions." In other words, they moved the reduction of salaries not so much because such reduction was, in their opinion, right and necessary, as because the motion appeared to them a convenient method of asserting their "position," vin- dicating "their own rights and powers," and protesting against the treatment which they had previously met with "on many financial questions." The treatment to which they refer consists, as explained in the rest of the paragraph, of their being used when required, and disregarded when not required, of their being "too often ignored," and "given to understand that their votes and opinions are value- less." I have had the honour of administering several Governments, and I think I may safely claim to be free from any tendency to ignore Unofficial Members of Council or to regard their votes and opinions as valueless. At the same time it must sometimes happen that my duty prevents me from accepting the opinions of the Unofficial Members, and this was the case in regard to the motion for the reduction of salaries. I carefully examined the financial position and prospects of the Colony, and I arrived at the conclusion that the circumstances neither required nor justified the motion made by the Unofficial Members in Finance Committee, and I accordingly directed the Colonial Secretary to oppose the motion if it were brought forward in Council. I had the less hesitation in doing so because the representation of the financial position, on which the motion for reduction was based, was completely at variance with other representations that had only a short time. before been made to me in another connection by the Senior Unofficial Member and endorsed by his colleague, Mr. WHITEHEAD. Your Lordship will most con- veniently be placed in possession of the circumstances to which I allude by a peru- sal of the annexed passage from the speech of the Colonial Secretary on the second reading of the Loan Bill.

"The senior Unofficial Member, though not very decided in his opposition to the Bill, for he does not counsel abandonment of the proposal but merely postpone- ment, has given expression to some doubts as to the prudence of borrowing now, and has also given vent to some forebodings as to the present unprosperous state of affairs. It is a disappointment, sir, to find that the honourable member has not seen fit to give the second reading of the Bill his cordial support, for from what- ever other quarter opposition might come it might fairly have been expected that he at least would have heartily supported the Government in this matter. prospects of the Praya Reclamation are involved in the Bill, and so keenly did he realise very recently the vital importance to the Colony of speedily completing that great work, which he has done more than any other man to effectuate, that only last spring he officially proposed to the Government that it should borrow the amount required to complete the work and advance it to the marine lotholders on their undertaking to repay the advances within twelve months of the completion. of their respective sections."

"Honourable C. P. CHATER-In Hongkong in silver."

The

"The COLONIAL SECRETARY-And he is now in favour of borrowing in gold, but I fail to see how that affects the point. He had then, sir, no doubts as to the prudence of Government immediately borrowing in fact he reversed Polonius's advice, "Neither a borrower nor a lender be," and counselled the Government to immediately both borrow and lend. He based his proposal on the ground that some of the lotholders might find it difficult to meet their calls, and that to the rest of them it would be a boon to be enabled to place the amounts in immediately remunerative undertakings. (He would appear, by the way, to have been mistaken as to his first reason, for since then there have been two calls, one of which has been paid practically in full, and the other is in the course of satisfac- tory settlement.) He pointed out the practical impossibility of suspending the