Romaine to Under-Secretary of State
27 September 1858
Sir
With reference to your Letter of the 23rd Instant, 1 with its Enclosures from the Governor of Vancouvers Island, I am commanded by my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty to acquaint you that they quite approve of the Increase of Pay granted to the Crews of Her Majestys Ships Satellite, & Plumper, and my Lords trust a similar grant will be made for the Crews of any of HM Ships, which may arrive at Vancouvers Island, during the period of their detention there.
My Lords request that you willmoveManuscript image move Secretary Sir E.B. Lytton to favor them with his opinion as to this request in sufficient time to enable them to write to the Commander in Chief on the Pacific Station by the next Mail.
I am etc.
W.G. Romaine
Minutes by CO staff
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Lord Carnarvon
I think we must be just before we are generous. It may have been very proper on the part of the Governor to grant extra-pay to the Ships companies of the Satellite & Plumper, who being sent to the Gulf of Georgia for a special surveying service have been employed on a Colonial service, which afforded them abundant opportunities for desertion; but to extend the same bounty "to the Crews of any of HM ships visiting VanCouver's Island," proper also as that step might be, would be adding greatly to ourManuscript image already heavy bill for B. Columbia. All the expenses we have been receiving here for the R. Engineers—all the salaries of the Estt we have unavoidably created—must, as we believe, & hope be repaid to us. To secure that important object is our first consn: & I wd dissuade encouraging the Admy to expect that anything more can be done for the Navy than has been done. In my opinion the ansr to this Letter should be to the effect that [the extra pay to wh allusion is made was granted under peculiar circumstances of difficulty & to guard against the risk of desertion wh was then imminent. That as such it had Sir E's approval as a wise precaution. Further] 2 if the Colonial Authorities have the means of increasing the pay of the Sailors in HMS visiting B. Columbia, and if the circes of the case should in the opinion of the Authorities justify such a step Sir E. Lytton would not object to sanctioning it. But that the Admiralty must distinctly understand that exceedingly heavy charges will devolve at once upon the Colonial resources on account of the establishment of the Colony—that these charges must be first defrayed, and that extra pay to the Crews cannot, under any circes, be given, if by so doing the ways & means of the new settlement are crippled.
ABd 28 Sepr
I quite agree. I suggest a few words in addition. Annex draft.
C S. 28
Other documents included in the file
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Draft, Colonial Office to Secretary to the Admiralty, 30 September 1858, as per minute above.
Footnotes
  1. Merivale to Admiralty, 23 September 1858, with enclosures from Douglas, re pay increase for crew of Satellite and Plumper. FIND
  2. The words in brackets were added by Carnarvon.
People in this document

Blackwood, Arthur Johnstone

Carnarvon, Earl

Douglas, James

Lytton, Edward George Earle Bulwer

Merivale, Herman

Romaine, William Govett

Organizations in this document

Colonial Office

Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty

Vessels in this document

HMS Plumper, 1848-1865

HMS Satellite, 1855-1879

Places in this document

British Columbia

Strait of Georgia

Vancouver Island