INDIA. 



number than 80's, a measure which was ex- 

 I to have the effect of diminishing the 

 n \.inio by 200,000. The Indian press and 

 public \voru almost unanimous in condemning 

 that step, and many went so far as to assert 

 that the interests of India were being sacrificed 

 to those of Manchester. Tenders for a new 

 4J per cent, loan of 50 millions of rupees hav- 

 ing been culled for by the Government, a total 

 amount of over 67 millions was tendered in 

 May, of which 40 millions allotted to the low- 

 est tender were accepted at 94 per cent., and 

 the loan was issued at an average rate of 94}, 

 making the actual amount to be received by 

 the Government about 38 millions of rupees. 

 On May 3d a Government order was issued on 

 the subject of the reduction of public expendi- 

 ture. All departments were directed to re- 

 trench expenses, but it was in the public works 

 that the greatest retrenchment was contem- 

 plated. No new works, even if already sanc- 

 tioned, were to be commenced without special 

 orders, and the outlay on reproductive works 

 was to be largely cut down. Military charges 

 were left untouched for the present, but the 

 duty was declared of reducing them to the 

 lowest point compatible with safety. 



A memorial addressed by the Madras Cham- 

 ber of Commerce to the British House of Com- 

 mons was especially severe in its criticism 

 upon the financial administration of the Gov- 

 ernment. It charged Sir John Strachey with 

 direct breach of faith in having applied the 

 famine taxation to the general purposes of the 

 country, and affirmed that any bank or public 

 company, which ignored the solemn pledges it 

 had given to the shareholders in the same way 

 as the Government of India had broken faith 

 with the taxpayers, would forfeit all claim to 

 public confidence. Equally severe was an ad- 

 dress delivered in May by Mr. Yule, President 

 of the Bengal Chamber of Commerce. Speak- 

 ing of the trades' license tax instituted last 

 year for the purpose of raising a famine-insur- 

 ance fund, he asserted that this tax had been 

 levied and collected in such a way as to lead 

 large numbers to conclude that, if there were 

 a choice between famine and tax, they would 

 certainly prefer famine. 



In the latter part of May the Government 

 issued a circular to the local administrations 

 directing that in future no person, not being a 

 member of the Covenanted Civil Service or 

 of the Staff Corps, or a native of India, shall 

 be appointed to any office carrying a salary of 

 200 rupees per month or upward without the 



Srevious sanction of the Governor-General in 

 ouncil. Exceptions, however, are made in 

 favor of persons appointed by the Secretary of 

 State to the financial, educational, and forest 

 departments ; and the circular is to be held not 

 to apply to the appointments to the depart- 

 ments of opium, salt, customs, survey, mint, 

 public works, and police. 



On June 16th the Supreme Government is- 

 sued a financial circular to all the local govern- 



ments, giving a sketch of the actual financial 

 position of the Indian Government. It ) 

 out that orders had already been issued for 

 reducing the expenditure the next year; that 

 altogether in the civil department ulone a sav- 

 ing of 1,000,000 was hoped for; and that an 

 inquiry was even then proceeding with a view 

 to the reduction of the military expenditure. 

 A policy of rigid economy and retrenchment 

 was to be followed in every branch of the pub- 

 lic service. The first step taken by the Su- 

 preme Government toward reducing the cen- 

 tral establishments was the abolition of the 

 separate departments of revenue, agriculture, 

 and commerce, established by Lord Mayo in 

 1871. The business of these departments was 

 divided between the home and financial offices, 

 the former to be henceforth called the Home, 

 Kevonue, and Agricultural, the latter the Fi- 

 nance and Commerce Department. The busi- 

 ness connected with ports and navigation, 

 which had hitherto been transacted in the 

 Revenue, went to the Military Department. 

 The immediate saving would be only the sala- 

 ries of the secretary and the registrar, amount- 

 ing to 50,000 rupees per annum ; but it was 

 expected that a further saving of 40,000 rupees 

 would be ultimately effected. 



In July Mr. Hope introduced a bill in the 

 Supreme Council for the relief of the indebted 

 ryots of the Deccan. Its main points are as 

 follows : All loans are to be registered before 

 village registrars; imprisonment for debt ia 

 abolished; courts of conciliation and arbitra- 

 tion in other words, the old system of village 

 punchayets are recommended; receipts are 

 to be furnished to borrowers, as well as an 

 annual statement of accounts. By these means 

 the ryot, invariably an uneducated man, is vir- 

 tually protected from fraud. It was referred 

 to a select committee, and was passed by the 

 Supreme Council on October 24th. 



On November 14th Sir John Strachey intro- 

 duced a bill in the Legislative Council for 

 amending the license-tax acts, and extending 

 taxation to the official and professional classes. 

 The ostensible object of the measure was to 

 relievo the poorer commercial classes at the 

 expense of the richer professional and salaried 

 classes. The passage of this bill was postponed 

 until 1880, but it was opposed by the Chambers 

 of Commerce of Madras, Bombay, and Calcut- 

 ta, which bodies pointed out, in memorials ad- 

 dressed to the Council, that the proposed tax 

 was but an income-tax under another name, 

 and earnestly protested against the reversal of 

 the policy deliberately adopted after an ex- 

 haustive inquiry six years ago. The memorial 

 of the Calcutta Chamber further pointed ont 

 that the state finances were in a much bet- 

 ter condition than was anticipated when the 

 budget was prepared, and that there was a 

 good prospect of further improvement. These 

 prospects should not be clouded by vex- 

 atious changes of the law, which would have 

 the effeot of adding to the public burdens 



