§ COMMANDER BETHELL (York, E.R., Holderness)asked the First Lord of the Admiralty, What rule is followed in settling the rate of exchange at which the crews of Her Majesty's ships employed on the China station are paid; if he will state the mean rate of exchange 880 during the years 1884, 1885, 1886, and the corresponding rates at which the payments have been made; and, what rules are followed with regard to rate of exchange in paying money into or out of the Naval Savings Bank?
§ THE FIRST LORD (Lord GEORGE HAMILTON) (Middlesex, Ealing)The rate of exchange at which the dollar is reckoned in calculating the pay of the crews of Her Majesty's ships on the China Station is that fixed at the beginning of each financial year by the Treasury. The following are the mean rates of exchange during the financial years 1884–5, 1885–6, and 1886–7, so far as can be ascertained from bills of exchange drawn upon the Accountant General of the Navy—namely, 1884–5, 3s. 9d. per dollar; 1885–6, 3s. 5½d. per dollar; 1886–7, 3s. 4½d. per dollar; the rates of the dollar as fixed by the Treasury for those three years being as follows:—1884–5, 3s. 9d. perdollar; 1885–6, 3s. 9d. per dollar; 1886–7, 3s. 1d. per dollar. In the case of the deposits of money in the Naval Savings Bank, and withdrawn therefrom, the dollar is, in the same manner, valued at the rate laid down annually by the Treasury.
§ COMMANDER BETHELLinquired whether he was right in supposing there was no regular rule?
§ LORD GEORGE HAMILTONYes; the Treasury estimate, according to the average of the preceding year, what should be the rate for the ensuing year; but, owing to the fall in silver, there has been some difficulty in settling the rates of exchange to rule during the present year.