PROPOSED CURRENCY CHANGES IN THE STRAITS SETTLEMENTS. The burning question of the hour in this and neighboring districts is undoubtedly that relating to the currency. As soon as it became known here that a commission had been appointed in England with a view to fixing a stable currency for Singapore and the Straits Settlements on lines somewhat similar to that which changed the Indian monetary standard a few years ago, the press took up the subject. Siam, which had apparently been making preparations for the event for some time past, immediately closed her mints to the coinage of silver. In Singapore, Penang, and the Federated Malay States, the principal public bodies have held meetings to discuss the matter, and with one exception (that of the Chinese tin miners and mine owners, who are, however, an important and influential body) the general consensus of opinion has been for a fixed standard. This means either a dollar or rupee on a sterling exchange basis. It has been suggested by many influ ential business men here that this coin should be fixed at is. 8d. (40 cents). At the time of writing, when the Mexican dollar is at its lowest ebb, the bank rate of exchange is fluctuating in the neighborhood of IS. 7d. (38 cents). The currency of Japan, British India, Burma, Ceylon, Java, and Siam has been placed on a gold basis, and proposals for the same are under consideration in French Indo-China and the Philippines. It will probably only be a question of a few months before the change is made here. The principal shipping firms have already fixed the scale of wages of their officers and engineers upon a sterling basis, while several of the more important houses in other lines of business are contemplating the same procedure. SINGAPORE, December 22, 1902. THOMAS DAVIDSON, Vice and Deputy Consul-General. PROPOSED CURRENCY CHANGES IN INDO-CHINA. Mr. Paul Leroy Beaulieu, the eminent political economist, has published an article in which he recommends that the Government of France make a monetary change in the coin used in Indo-China, similar to that made by the British Government in India in 1893. He shows that the piaster of that colony, which ten years ago was worth 5 francs (96 cents), has fallen with the decline of silver until it is now worth less than half that sum. He advises that its value be placed at 50 cents. This is about 25 per cent more than its current value, but he thinks that with the cessation of coinage and the increase of population and business, it can be maintained at that figure. He asserts that during the last few years Indo-China has been inundated with Mexican coins. He advises that hereafter such coins should be outlawed and that all the piasters of the country of domestic or foreign origin should be recast in 50-cent pieces. The finances of India are regarded as being on a gold basis, with the silver rupee as the unit of value, representing one-fifteenth part of the gold contained in the sovereign. A gold reserve of some £9,000,000 ($43,800,000) is held for the purpose of keeping the rupee at par with gold. It is altogether probable that the proposal of Mr. Beaulieu in regard to the finance of Indo-China will be adopted by the French Government, but he does not propose a gold reserve. JOHN C. COVERT, LYONS, January 10, 1903. Consul. CURRENCY CHANGES IN SIAM. Vice-Consul-General J. P. Selden reports from Bangkok, December 6, 1902, that Siam has closed the mint at Bangkok to the free coinage of silver and has taken the initial steps to place herself upon a gold basis. Mr. Selden adds: The tical, the standard coin of the realm, has up to this time had a fixed ratio value to the Mexican dollar of 60 to 100. The steady fall in the value of silver during the last six months has therefore greatly diminished the value of the tical, until during the latter part of the month of November, 1902, £1 was equal to 21 ticals and a fraction. On November 27, 1902, a notice appeared in the several local papers that the royal mint would no longer issue ticals to the public in exchange for gold, silver, or copper, whether presented in the shape of bullion or coins. At the same time, the ratio of 17 ticals to I was fixed as the rate at which the Siamese minister in London would issue demand drafts on Bangkok against pounds sterling in London. This change paralyzed the business interests for the time, as the banks were liable for large amounts. Under date of December 12, Mr. Selden reports that an arrangement has been made whereby the banks will sell drafts on London at 20 ticals per £1 and buy at 19.25 ticals per £1. TENDER FOR RAILS IN SIAM. The Royal Siamese Railway Department has just issued specifications for an open tender on 33,806 tons of steel rails and accessories. These supplies are for the railway which is to extend from Lopburi, the present terminus of the branch line of the Korat Railway, to Chiengmai, a city in the northern part of the country. The time limit for bids on the tender is six months-i. e., from December 15, 1902, to June 15, 1903. All bids must be in on the The sealed bids are for the first time to be opened last-named date. in public. I forward a set of specifications, conditions, and blue prints to the Philadelphia Commercial Museum. I inclose a notice of the tender, which appeared in the local papers last evening. BANGKOK, December 15, 1902. JOSEPH P. SELDEN, ROYAL SIAMESE STATE RAILWAYS. Tenders are requested for the supply of the following permanent way materials: 33,806 Drawings and conditions may be obtained, against payment of 5 ticals (about $1.25), at the office of the Royal Railway Department. Sealed tenders, with the inscription "Tender for the supply of permanent way materials," must be forwarded before the 15th of June, 1903, at 10 a. m. TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILWAY IN AUSTRALIA. Consular Agent C. A. Murphy sends from Adelaide, December 15, 1902, copy of the advertisement for tenders for constructing the railway across central Australia to Port Darwin, as follows: Tenders will be received at the office of the railways commissioner, Adelaide, up to noon of Monday, May 2, 1904, for the construction and working of a line of railway on the land-grant system between Oodnadatta, in the State of South Australia, and Pine Creek, in the Northern Territory, in accordance with the pro visions of the transcontinental railway act, 1902. * 1 ton = 2,205 pounds. Land to be granted not to exceed 75,000 acres for each mile of railway and to be selected in alternate blocks on either side of the railway; length of railway, not to exceed 1,200 miles; route, as per plan in the act, or such alternative route as may be agreed; gauge, 3 feet 6 inches; motive power, steam or other approved power; rails and fastenings, steel (rails to be not less than 60 pounds to the yard); land to be granted in fee simple, with all gold, metals, and minerals thereon and thereunder. The tender must contain the following particulars: 1. The quantity of land required for each mile of railway constructed. 2. The number of miles to be constructed each year from Oodnadatta and Pine Creek, respectively. 3. When construction to be completed. · Copies of the act above referred to and a description of the country through which the proposed railway will pass may be obtained at the office of the chief secretary, Adelaide; at the office of the agent-general for South Australia, at No. 1 Crosby square, Bishopsgate street Within, London, E. C.; and may also be obtained or inspected at the offices of every paper in which this advertisement appears. Tenders should be indorsed "Tender for the construction of Transcontinental Railway, South Australia and Northern Territory," and must be accompanied by a bank-deposit receipt for £10,000 ($48,665) in favor of the treasurer of South Australia at some bank situated within the Commonwealth of Australia. A stipulation will be made with the successful tenderer, says Mr. Murphy, that no time shall be lost in completing the construction of the line. A pamphlet describing the enterprise, forwarded by him, is filed in the Bureau of Foreign Commerce, where it may be consulted by those interested. WOOL PRODUCTION IN AUSTRALASIA. Consul-General J. P. Bray, of Melbourne, under date of December 19, 1902, reports that owing to the drought prevailing in Australia, there is a large decrease in this season's supply of woolestimated at over 200,000 bales. At recent sales prices of both merino and crossbred wools advanced from 20 to 30 per cent. total Australasian wool clip of the past two seasons was: The The estimated clip for 1902-3 is placed at 1,500,000 bales—a decrease of 200,000 bales. This decrease, adds Mr. Bray, has not materially affected the exports to the United States from Victoria, as the number of bales invoiced at the consulate-general is well up to that of last seasonviz, 20,000 bales-and should reach 25,000 or 26,000 bales. HARBOR WORKS AT ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA. The South Australian government has accepted a tender for the construction of an outer harbor in Light's Passage. The amount of the tender is about $2,500,000.. A local firm of well-known contractors (Messrs. Waring & Rowden) has been the successful bidder. The contract includes making a channel with two bends from the present 33-foot depth of water to the site of the harbor. This passage will be 1,000 feet long, 400 feet wide, and have a depth of 33 feet at low water. The swinging berth will be 1,000 feet wide, 2,000 feet long, and 33 feet deep. An area of 3,200 feet by 2,600 feet will be reclaimed out of the material raised from the channel and berth. This will extend from the land to the wharfs, and the seaward side will be protected by an embankment faced with stone, 3,200 feet long. The wharfs are to be 1,500 feet long, with 40 feet of docking, which will carry two or four lines of rails, connecting with Port Adelaide. On the inner side of the channel, a revetment mound 7,000 feet long, running from the wharfs to the site of the old light-house, is to be constructed of random stone and raised to a foot above high-water mark. This is to train the tidal current and assist in maintaining the depth of the channel. Lighting, mooring, and buoying facilities will be provided afterward. After handing over the works, the contractors have to be responsible for their maintenance for twelve months. It is expected that work will be vigorously started at the beginning of April. CHAS. A. MURPHY, Consular Agent. ADELAIDE, December 19, 1902. COAL PRODUCTION IN NEW SOUTH WALES IN 1902. During the year 1902, 2,966,764 tons of coal were exported from Newcastle to places beyond the State of New South Wales. In the previous year the export amounted to 3, 104, 735 tons, or 137,971 tons more. Expressed in money, the falling off in the trade was £43,167 ($210,072. 20). Within the Commonwealth, outside of the |