No. 11 Increase of the Revenue of Prince of Wales Island, between the 1st of January 1804 and the 30th June 1805. I propose 50,000 Rupees 25,000 of cents. 20,000 of do. No. 12 OF COINS. Copper Coins. rupees worth of such size as to have 4,000 whole pice from a maund of a copper,8,000 of half ditto, and 40,000 of those 10 pice to one large-the design of the coin as heretofore circulated at Prince of Wales Island. The Company will gain on the issue of 50 per cent, even at the present high rate of copper. Rupees 25,000 of cupangs. Small silver coins-(doubtful.) 20 half do. do. These may also amount to 50,000 rupees, in design precisely like the pice, the alloy may be 25 per cent copper, which will be all gain, as the coinage is the Company's, but there may be objections, which I am not fully aware of, to depreciating the silver, and which may render it inexpedient to establish the coin. As these may be used in merchandize their fineness must quadrate with the exchange, and as gold is cheap here, the saving of 15 per cent will be made by having the mint and dyes here. The more our copper and silver coins (if the latter be established at all) are carried away, the greater will be our gain from the supply. Copper is now dear, but when it falls to 40 and 45 rupees per maund, there will be a gain of more than one-half. The coinage of pice and doublekies or cupangs, has been a great source of revenue to the Dutch Company. They gain nearly 100 per cent on the issue, and if we can spend annually one lack of rupees, we should in like manner make a very considerable increase to our revenue. The design of the gold coins may follow that of the copper and silver, excepting that they must be milled at the edges. If the government be authorized to establish a mint at Prince of Wales Island, I am convinced it would yield a revenue from the Company's and private coinage, of from 20 to 30,000 dollars per annum, besides paying the expence, which is trifling. Assays and one or two artists may be procured at Calcutta. As every coinage will yield revenue, no means are necessary to prevent export so long as we keep pace with the circulation by coinage, without overloading the market with any one coin. I should think it adviseable to rent the exchange of all coins in the bazar, and fix the discount, which will always prevent any depreciation of value, and yield a surplus revenue to govern ment. No. 13 Ordinary and Established Disbursements at Prince of Wales Island and its Dependencies during the year 1804-5. 22,953 59 Civil Establishment at Prince of Wales Island.... 70,824 20 Marine, including the Pilot and Master Attendant's Hon'ble Company's Plantations.... 10,720 17,670 35 29,952 612 11,909 412 Rent of Government House, Public Offices & Repairs 10,187 18 Artificers.... 5,940 37 146,627 04 Contingencies. Convicts.. Prisoners in Jail 23,315 971 5,220 76 Expence on account of Prisoners of war Ditto for packets dispatched to Go- Police Contingencies.. Expence, Captain Scott for the passage of the Lieutenant-Governor and for other passengers proceeding to Calcutta on the public service... ...... 1,406 04 1,499 20 146,627 041 33,530 681 1,680 48 38,116 401 Extraordinary Disbursements at Prince of Wales Island, and its dependencies, during the year 1804-5. Advances on account of different Presidencies viz: Advances on account of Fortification & buildings. Ditto Public works, being on account of advances for the new Canal and Water works, Public works, Docks, &c...... 221,035 75 50,332 441 42,967 943 Ditto on account of His Majesty's Navy. Profit and Loss.. 1,398 25 33,506 20 51,680 48: 13,980 84 820 270 2,320 677 45 Remarks on Mr Farquhar's Report, by the Governor in Council.-Dated 20th February, 1806. The Board resuming the consideration of the report and appendix by the late Lieutenant-Governor, read on the 17th ultimo, consider it necessary to state their approbation on record of the only views which they conceive Mr Farquhar could have had in compiling and furnishing them with it; namely, that of affording to his successors in office, every possible information that could in his opinion, tend to elucidate points involving the welfare of the island; but as several of the estimates and statements in the said report, appear to have been calculated in many instances on erroneous principles, and the general tenor of the whole paper leads to the conclusion, that every thing has been done on the island, and nothing remains unaccomplished; a conclusion, which the necessary and actually to be incurred expences forbid to be justified, whatever different hopes might arise from the flattering estimates; they also consider it expedient to insert the following remarks, to prevent the probability of these estimates (in themselves plausible, where local information cannot be obtained) tending to mislead by calculations which will not bear investigation, and advantages formed upon hopes too speculative ever to be realized. Fortifications and Defences of the Island. 1. As we have already forwarded to the Honorable Court of Directors, a statement shewing the present condition of the Fort, and the repairs necessary to render it really defensible against an enemy (copy of which is subjoined in appendix No. 1) we feel it unnecessary further to remark upon this head, than that the prediction continued in the latter part of the statement, relative to the New Half Moon Battery, has been since verified by its having completely given way and fallen into the sea. Subjoined to the above appendix is a statement of the expence incurred by the late Lieutenant-Governor, on account of the fortifications of Prince of Wales Island, from January 1804 to September 1805, amounting to Spanish dollars 71,809 533 (Appendix No. 2) which we conclude has been made entirely on the Fort, and Half Moon Battery referred to, as there are no other public works included under that head, the property of the Company; and we can only attribute these repairs having been made at so heavy an expence, and to so little purpose, to the want of a skilful Superintending Engineer; the whole of which would have in our opinion been better bestowed in making a more useful defence of one or more Martello Towers in proper situations near the Point, which indeed appears at one time, to have been a part of the Lieutenant Governor's plan, and is mentioned in his appendix. In this appendix will also be found a proposal for narrowing (by means of Malabar fishing stakes) the northern entrance of the harbour-being a distance of four or five miles, in the hope, doubtless, of thereby embarrassing an enemy's fleet, by this very feeble interruption, liable to be thrown down (as is known to every person at all conversant with such subjects) by the smallest boats. Internal Improvement of the Island. 3. We find in the appendix No 4 accompanying the memoranda under this head, a statement of receipts by the Committee of Assessors, for improving the streets of George Town, amounting to Spanish dollars 52,056, and it will appear that the whole of this sum, with the exception only of Spanish dollars 11,076 levied by assessment, has been defrayed by Government. Without going into the particulars of the several items contained in this statement, we have only to remark generally our disapprobation of the principle of giving up rights and revenues of Government without bringing the consideration thence arising upon the general books, when it would at any time be possible to ascertain what the actual expence to Government of any public improvement might have amounted to. New Canal and Water-works. 4. Too much approbation cannot be bestowed upon the late Lieutenant Governor, for the great importance which he attached to the supplying the town and shipping with water of a good quality, and however expensive the plan may be which has been adopted for carrying this important object into effect, his want of a skilful professional man must plead equally in excuse for that, as for the very defective principle on which this work has been executed. No difficulty whatever could have attended bringing down the whole of the river from the hill to the point in an open clay channel, which could have been done at one third of the expence that has already attended the very insufficient mode adopted, being by confining a small proportion of the stream in a |