Colonial Despatches

I have to acknowledge the receipt of your confidential despatch of the 4th of last May tendering to Her Majesty's Government your interest in the fur-trade, and in the event of that offer being declined requesting the acceptance of your resignation of the Office of Governor of British Columbia and Vancouvers Island.

Having perused the correspondence which has passed on the subject of the Salary of your Office, I find that it amounts briefly to this.

On the establishment of British Columbia as a Colony my Predecessor offered the Government to you, in conjunction with that of Vancouvers Island, with a Salary of £1000 a year for B. Columbia, but when further information as to the expensive character of the necessaries of life in that country reached Sir Edward Lytton he at once stated that the Salary of the Governor of the two Colonies should be increased to £1800 a year payable out of the Parliamentary Grant.

This sum you have since represented as inadequate whereupon Her Majesty's Government desirous of retaining your efficient and valuable Services sanctioned a further addition to your Salary of £1200 out of the local receipts of the current year provided the revenue of British Columbia amounted in the aggregate to not less than £50,000.

This despatch dated about the same time as your despatch now under acknowledgement you will ere this have received, and I am led to hope that you will be satisfied with its contents. You will clearly understand that the above mentioned additional sum of £1200 shall be annually paid to you and not regarded as an addition to your emoluments for this year only; but always on the supposition that the income of British Columbia amount to £50,000 a year.

I shall take an early opportunity of addressing you farther respecting your proposal to place your interests in the fur-trade at the disposal of H.M's Government. In the meantime that interest can remain as at present.