ingly. Again, knowing that any money saved at the end of the year was lost to the provincial administration, a Local Government was little anxious to save.' These words, while representing the facts, do not necessarily involve a reproach. In India more money can be spent with advantage on almost every branch of the administration than the revenues will permit.
Lord Mayo clearly discerned that, in order to secure the co-operation of the Local Governments in the work of financial reform, he must invest those Governments with a share of the financial responsibility. After an exhaustive preliminary correspondence with each separate Administration, he issued a Resolution on the 14th December, 1870, which may be called the Charter of the Provincial Governments. By this document, which in due time received the approval of the Secretary of State, a fixed yearly consolidated grant was made to each Government, to enable it to defray the cost of its principal services, exclusive of the Army, but including Public Works. The grants thus made were final, for a period usually of five years, and were liable to reduction only in case of severe financial distress happening to the Supreme Government. They belong absolutely to the respective Local Governments. No savings from any one of them revert to the Imperial Treasury. Their distribution is left to the discretion of the Local Governments, without interfence on the part of the Governor-General in Council.
The services thus made over to them included the
