(4)—The Minister Superintendent of the Foochow Arsenal replies to certain queries on the Arsenal accounts for the year 1883.
He has been desired to state, first, why there in an item for superintendence of work for Nanking; secondly, why the superintendents were paid at the rate of Tls. 130 a month, when the rule is that no such officer may receive more than Tls. 50, and thirdly, why there is a change for increased pay to students. He replies that when some fast boats" were built at the Arsenal for the late Viceroy at Nanking, an officer skilled in machinery was sent from there to oversee: the work." His pay was fixed by the Viceroy who appointed him, and was at first debited to the Nanking Government, but was afterwards transferred to the Arsenal accounts, as it was to them that the boats themselves were charged. The students with increased pay had all studied engineering work abroad, and were at the time employed as superintendents. The limit of Pls 50 did not apply to eases such as theirs. It is inid down in the Rules framed by Tso Tsung-tang and approved by the Emperor, that the Arsenal students,
'a8 superintendents and be paid at the same they ire capable of ity should net rate as foreigners. But in the case in question their pay, even as increased, was not half what the foreigners engaged at the Arsenal used to receive.—Reseript: Letthe Board of Revenue take note.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.