Deducting the total expenditure from the total income, there remained

Total income expenditure

Rs. 50,72,988 3 2

43,61,088 04

Rs. 7,11,902 2 10

at close of the year under review a balance of Rs. 7,11,902-2-10 at the disposal of the Justices, as shown in the margin.

Last year's report noticed the position of the Justices' loan account up to date, the extension of their borrowing powers to 85 lakhs by Act I (B.C.) of 1872, the establishment of a reserve or sinking fund, and the fact that the Justices had already borrowed or arranged for loans nearly up to the extreme limit of these extended powers. No further change has taken place in these respects, but work has been steadily pushed on in connection with the drainage, water-supply, and other schemes, on account of which the money was borrowed.

Up to the close of the year 1872 six lakhs had been drawn of the 21 lakhs sanctioned as a loan for the drainage extension, and Rs. 2,70,000 from the Rs. 4,10,000 sanctioned for the water-supply. The sinking fund for general loans amounted on 1st January 1873 to Rs. 3,99,700 in Government 4 per cent. paper, and Rs. 1,44,097 in cash. Rs. 4,05,000 in 5 per cents were in the Comptroller-General's hands on account of the sinking fund towards the refund of the water-supply loan, and a cash balance of Rs. 52,303.

Since the close of 1872 the following sums have been drawn by the Justices of the loans already sanctioned:

Loans since close of the year.

The legal limits of the Justices' borrowing power (outside the 55 lakhs under heading A above) was, as already noticed, fixed by the Act above quoted at 85 lakhs. They may, therefore, still borrow Rs. 8,30,000. Rs. 7,90,242 of this are, however, already arranged for, being the balance of the drainage extension and market loans, so that the Justices have borrowed or arranged to borrow to within Rs. 39,758 of their maximum limit.

Last year's report stated that it had been arranged to carry out the main drainage of the northern part of Drainage works. the Town, and the sums borrowed have been devoted to pushing on this very important work, which may now be said to be about two-thirds completed. Only the first and second class sewers are being made, as the cost of arterial and house-drainage over such a large area is at present beyond the means of the Justices. But in a selected area round the Medical College Hospital a thorough system of drainage has been carried out; Government paying half the cost with a view to effecting, if possible, some improvement in the sanitary state of that great institution, and testing by experiment the effect of complete drainage on a very bad part of the native town. The water-supply during last rains was by no means satisfactory, being insufficient in quantity and bad in quality. The scheme of providing for street-watering by laying down pipes from the river at Chandpal Ghât, and so increasing the quantity of drinking water available for the growing demands of the Town, was noticed last year, but has not yet come into operation, though a good deal has been done towards the completion of the necessary works by laying down pipes and commencing the erection of the pumping engines. The filtering beds at Pultah were found to act very unsatisfactorily during a great part of the rains. The river water being then charged with silt, did not pass through the filters readily, and it became necessary to rake up the beds frequently to get the requisite supply through them-an operation which of course did not improve the appearance of the water. Some change in the filtering arrangements will probably be necessary.

Water-supply.

In fact, it is probable that a heavy additional expenditure in connection with the water-supply will be necessary, and the subject is one of much difficulty.

The building of the municipal market was greatly delayed by the discovery of an error in its construcMunicipal market. tion. It was found that the solid arched roofs which have answered so well in other municipal buildings were not safe when resting on iron pillars, as arranged in the plans for the market. It has been necessary therefore to replace the outer iron pillars by masonry. Recently, however, the work has gone on more rapidly, and the southern block is advertised to be opened on the 1st January. The municipal offices are fast approaching completion, and will form a handsome addition to the part Municipal offices. of the town in which they are situated. The reclamation of the Salt Water Lake, into which all the sewage and sweepings of Calcutta are discharged, has been a matter of some

Salt Water Lake.

anxiety and difficulty. Various experiments have been made in sewage cultivation with more or less success; but it appeared that the officers of the municipality have enough to do in town, and were unable to take the thing in hand with any prospect of success. It is understood that the municipality now propose to let their rights at an annual rental of Rs. 15,000, including the right to the carcase platform, and the dead bodies of animals brought there, but this matter has not come before Government.

Tramway.

A tramway from Sealdah Railway Station to Dalhousie Square was opened in February, but at present it does not seem to be remunerative, and the Justices are contemplating selling it into private hands. This also has not come under the consideration of Government.

The Jute Ware-house Act (II of 1872), designed to bring the store-houses and screws under inspec

Jute Ware-house Act and Fire-brigade. tion to prevent fires and protect the town, was introduced and vigorously worked. Under the same Act an efficient fire-brigade was organised which, having its head-quarters at the Police Office in Calcutta, attends fires either in town or in any part of the surrounding suburbs.

Census.

Reform called for in the present municipal system of Calcutta.

The census of the town was, it is feared, to a great extent a failure; but this matter has been dealt with in the census chapter of the general report. The above information has been given in general terms, for in fact the Government is very insufficiently informed as to the proceedings of the Calcutta Municipality, and does not exercise much control or supervision over them. In the last report the opinion of the Lieutenant-Governor was expressed, that the constitution of the municipality required reform. During the present year 1873 there has been less friction between the Chairman and the Justices than in 1872, but the relations with the Government have certainly not been improved; on the contrary, some of the Justices have more than ever taken a line adverse to the Government in regard to several small things in which the Government was necessarily concerned, and the Lieutenant-Governor feels that the Government has not exercised all the influence which it is right that it should exercise as regards the affairs of this great metropolis. In truth, peace between the Chairman and the active members of the Justices has been secured by too great concession to the pretensions of the latter, and the Government has felt that it could not interfere much, without creating collision and difficulty, till it was prepared to undertake a revision of the municipal constitution. The task of giving a fit constitution to a city so very peculiarly situated as Calcutta is one of extreme difficulty; the Lieutenant-Governor has been unsuccessful in his attempt to settle the municipal arrangements of the interior; he has thought it well to watch the reforms lately made in Bombay; recently the anxiety occasioned by failure of the crops has made it impossible to undertake an additional labor; and so altogether it has happened that the task of reforming the Calcutta Municipality has not been attempted. Meantime, in the main, things have not gone very wrong, the improvements commenced by Mr. Hogg,

and the system of management which he introduced having been so far carried out, in spite of some friction in the working of the machine. The loans already sanctioned for great public objects have been on the whole fairly utilised. But these funds are now nearly exhausted; it seems likely that, to carry to completion the improvements which have been undertaken, and to give full effect to them, it will be necessary in some way to raise a good deal more money,-in fact, large sums of money. As observed in last report, the Lieutenant-Governor feels that great questions and great amounts must be dealt with, in respect of which it is necessary that there should be an efficient and responsible power competent to decide, and that the Government should have a sufficient controlling voice. The main practical drawback to the present municipal system is that, while the Justices are not responsible to any constituency (being the mere nominees of the Government and yet not responsible to Government, since no term of office is prescribed), things are so arranged that in practice the main body of the Justices have no sufficient voice, and the affairs of the municipality are almost monopolised by a small number of gentlemen who are good enough to render much service, a great part of which is no doubt useful, but who are not alone a body sufficient to dispose of weighty questions affecting both this and future generations without the control of the responsible Chairman and of the Government. Most of the able and influential men whose names appear on the list of Justices are busy business-men; they cannot afford to give very much time to the affairs of the municipality. The business is done either at meetings which are public meetings and where reporters encourage long speeches, or in committees which require much time. It is found that no man can take much part in the proceedings who cannot devote a very large portion of his time, and listen for hours to speeches before he gives a vote; and the result is that most of those whose assistance would be most valuable are deterred and take little or no part, while the business rests, as has been said, with a very limited number of gentlemen. If the salaried and responsible Chairman exercises a sufficient influence over them, the system may work well; but if he ceases to do so, sooner or later a reform will become inevitable.

CHAPTER XI.

MARINE.

THE number of vessels belonging to the Bengal Marine during

Pilot brigs, survey vessels, light ships, buoy vessels, reserve

pilot vessels, boats, &c....

River-going steamers

Ditto flats

37
8

5

The value of work done by the vessels of the Bengal Marine during the year was estimated by the Marine authorities at Rs. 7,94,642, while the maintenance of the vessels cost Rs. 9,61,460; but the statement of the earnings is for the most part fictitious. A sea-going steamer for this Government is still the most urgent want of the Marine Department, and its necessity has repeatedly been urged upon the consideration of the Government of India.

The steamer Agitator was, towards the end of the year, transferred to the Overland Transport Department for use in the Suez Canal. The steamer Nemesis was attached to British Burmah. The Undaunted was stationed at Port Blair, her place in the river being supplied by the Celerity, which is a very unseaworthy craft; so that we have not at Calcutta or in Bengal a single Government steamer of any kind fit to go to sea. No change has taken place in the survey and pilot and light vessels, but several of them are old, and must soon be replaced by new ones. This is more especially the case with the surveying brigs. The condition of this department has led to complaints by the Chamber of Commerce regarding the want of proper means of recording with sufficient rapidity the changes which take place in the channels of the Hooghly. The subject had already been noticed by Admiral Mends, and the Government of Bengal has urged on the Government of India the necessity for carrying out his proposals to substitute steam vessels with improved appliances for the present sailing vessels of the Survey Department.

Several important points regarding the working of the Shipping Acts have come under the consideration Working of the Shipping Acts. of the Government. The LieutenantGovernor has urged upon the Government of India the necessity of