FINANCE.
By the Hon. Mr. A. M. Thomson, Colonial Treasurer.
he Colonial Treasurer is the officer in charge of all financial operations, subject to the Financial Instructions and such orders as may be transmitted to him from time to time. He is also Collector of Stamp Revenue. The staff of the Treasury
is of the usual clerical nature, and heads of departments are regarded as sub-accountants under the Treasurer so far as they are required to transact financial business.
In the early days the Imperial Government bore practically the whole of the expenses of the Colony, voting a sum annually for the purpose of carrying on the business of the Government. During the Governorship of Sir George Bonham (1848-54) this grant, which had been reduced to £25,000, was further reduced to £9,200, and soon afterwards was withdrawn altogether. Two grants of £10,000 each, however, were rendered necessary by public works in 1857 and 1858. Since that time the Colony has been self-supporting.
The revenue for 1907 amounted to $6,602,280, of which the principal portions were derived from the opium farm and assessed taxes. The former is now let at $1,452,000 per annum, and the latter item is practically a general charge of 13 per cent. on rateable property in the Colony, yielding something like $1,397,730 per annum. Land sales form an item of extraordinary revenue, but the amount derived from them in 1907 was only $159,750. Two factors have contributed to the decline in the receipts from this source. In the first instance, most of the vaiuable land in the business centres has been alienated; and, in the second, owing to the general depression of trade during the last two years very little capital has been put into new enterprises for which land might have been required, though there are plenty of suitable factory sites available. For the first few years of the Colony's existence leases were granted for a term of 75 years, but, in accordance with the general wishes of the community, a change was made, and leases were granted for 999 years. About ten years ago, however, the Secretary of State issued a new rule to the effect that the original term of 75 years should again be introduced, and that rule remains in force at the present day. All Crown leases are sold by auction. Hongkong being a free port, there are no customs or excise duties in the Colony.
The rateable value of the city of Victoria for 1907-8 was $8,892,205, a decrease of 3·42 per cent. on that of the previous twelve months, while that for the whole Colony, $10,654,338, showed a falling-off of 2·52 per cent.
The expenditure for 1907 came to $5,757,203, including a sum of $728,650 spent on extraordinary public works, exclusive of the railway to Canton, which is being provided for by advances from a special fund to a special account. The Colony pays a military contribution of 20 per cent. on its annual revenue, exclusive of land sales.
The following table shows the revenue and expenditure of the Colony during the last ten years :—
| Revenue. | Expenditure. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $ | c. | $ | c. | ||
| 1898 | ... | 2,918,159 | 24 | 2,841,805 | 20 |
| 1899 | ... | 3,610,143 | 25 | 3,162,792 | 36 |
| 1900 | ... | 4,202,587 | 40 | 3,628,447 | 13 |
| 1901 | ... | 4,213,893 | 22 | 4,111,722 | 49 |
| 1902 | ... | 4,901,073 | 70 | 5,909,548 | 51 |
| 1903 | ... | 5,238,857 | 88 | 5,396,669 | 48 |
| 1904 | ... | 6,809,047 | 99 | 6,376,235 | 30 |
| 1905 | ... | 6,918,403 | 85 | 6,951,275 | 26 |
| 1906 | ... | 7,035,011 | 78 | 6,832,610 | 68 |
| 1907 | ... | 6,602,280 | 25 | 5,757,203 | 47 |
At the end of 1907 the excess of assets over liabilities, exclusive of loan liabilities, was $1,444,738, as will be seen from the following statement:—
| Assets. | $ | c. |
|---|---|---|
| Balance in bank | 393,541 | 38 |
| Advances | 168,501 | 50 |
| Crown agents' deposit | 569,897 | 96 |
| Subsidiary coins in stock | 645,521 | 75 |
| Profit on Money Order Office | 10,000 | 00 |
| Suspense account (advanced for railway construction) | 863,271 | 40 |
| Total | $2,650,733 | 99 |
| Liabilities. | $ | c. |
|---|---|---|
| Bills on Colonial Office in transit | 395,876 | 29 |
| Deposits not available | 656,505 | 90 |
| Military contribution in excess of estimate | 64,590 | 00 |
| Pensions not paid | 30,400 | 00 |
| Balance overdrawn in London | 27,503 | 71 |
| Miscellaneous | 31,119 | 23 |
| Total | $1,205,995 | 13 |
The above does not include arrears of revenue, amounting to $88,978·33.
The first loan ever raised by the Colony was negotiated in 1886, when £200,000 was borrowed for public works—chiefly the Tytam Waterworks. In course of time this loan was repaid. The existing consolidated loan amounts to £1,485.732. There is a credit of £60,704 (present market value of securities) at sinking fund account, and it is expected that the whole liability may be extinguished about 1943, including the amount which may be advanced from the special fund for railway construction, The first portion of the consolidated loan was raised in 1893, when £342,000, approximately, was borrowed at 3½ per cent. for the purpose of extending the Praya Reclamation, constructing the Central Market, and carrying out other public works extraordinary, in addition to paying off the balance of the 1886 loan, amounting approximately to £142,000. The remaining portion, borrowed in I905, costs the Government £3 13s. per cent, for interest annually, but this last loan was raised to provide an advance of £1,100,000 to the Viceroy of Wuchang, repayable by him in yearly instalments of £110,000, and bearing interest at 4½ per cent. These repayments and the interest on the balance, form the special fund above referred to.
There is a Widows' and Orphans' Pension Fund in existence, on the same lines as in other Colonies, the finances being managed by the Treasurer, There is no Government Savings Bank.
THE COLONIAL TREASURER.—A brief biographical: sketch of the Hon. Mr, A. M. Thomson, the Colonial Treasurer, will be found under the heading “Executive and Legislative Councils,”
MR. HUGH RICHARD PHELIPS, who has been in the service of the Hongkong Government as Local Auditor since December, 1904, was born on January 6, 1869, and was educated at Weymouth College and at Queen’s College, Oxford. He was appointed Local Auditor for the Niger Coast Protectorate, West Africa, in October, 1894, and two years later became Assistant-Auditor of the East Africa Protectorate. He was Local Auditor of Uganda in 1897, and held a similar position in the East Africa Protectorate in 1901. For services rendered to the Government in 1897-9 he was awarded the Uganda Mutiny medal and clasp. Since his arrival in the Colony Mr. Phelips has been made a Justice of the Peace. He is attached to Somerset
