B:—No. m.

PUBLIC DEBTS SINKING EUNDS. New Zealand Loan Act, 1860," being one of the Acts named in the first Schedule to the said " Public Debts Sinking Funds Act, 1868," have been converted or exchanged for debentures issued under " The Consolidated Loan Act, 1867," and that the amount of the debentures still outstanding and unconverted of the said loan of one hundred and fifty thousand pounds is thereby reduced to the sum of ninety-five thousand five hundred pounds : And whereas the sum of twenty-six thousand nine hundred and ninetyone pounds six shillings and twopence is held by the said Commissioners as accumulated Sinking Fund, for the repayment of the said loan of one hundred and fifty thousand pounds ; and the sum of seventeen thousand pounds of the said accumulated Sinking Fund, together with the Sinking Fund hereafter accruing, with the interest thereon, will be sufficient to reproduce the said sum of ninety-five thousand ..five hundred pounds, being the amount of the outstanding and unconverted portion of the said loan of one hundred and fifty thousand pounds, on or before the first day of July, one thousand eight hundred and ninety-one, being the day fixed by law for the repayment thereof: Now know ye, that the Commissioners of the Public Debts Sinking Punds, by this their award in writing, do determine that the sum of nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-one pounds six shillings and twopence, being part of the said accumulated Sinking Fund so held by them for the payment of the debentures issued under " The New Zealand Loan Act, 1860," shall be released and paid over to the Public Account of New Zealand, to the credit of the Consolidated Fund, as by the said Public Debts Sinking Punds Act provided. As witness our hands this fifteenth day of March, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine. James Edwaed FitzGeeald, Controller, Chairman. E. W. Staffoed, Acting Colonial Treasurer. A. Ludeam, M.H.R.

No. 4. Copy of a Letter from Messrs. Julyan and Saegeaunt to Mr. J. E. FitzGeeald. Offices of the Crown Agents for the Colonies, Spring Gardens, London, S.W., 21st May, 1869. Sib, — Adverting to Mr. Julyan's letter of the 19th February last, acknowledging the receipt of your Circular of the Bth of December, 1868,1 have to state that having been advised that we can legally and rightfully make over to the Commissioners appointed by " The Public Debts Sinking Fund Act, 1868," the debentures and other securities held by us as Trustees appointed by Governor's Warrant of the 13th November, 1865, we have the pleasure to inform you that we now hold the securities mentioned in the enclosed statement to the order of the Commissioners. Besides these securities, the following amounts are in our custody, viz., £427 on account of the Sinking Fund of the 5 per cent, debentures, and £2,696 19s. 7d. on account of the 6 per cents, issued under " The Three Million Loan Act, 1863." Both these sums of money, pending instructions from the Commissioners respecting the future investment of these and similar funds, have been placed on deposit at interest with the London and Westminster Bank, and although the rate allowed for deposits is at present higher than it has been for some time past, it is undesirable that the moneys should remain long uninvested. We would therefore request you to be good enough to apprize us what " bonds, debentures, or other securities," may have been prescribed by the Governor in Council under the provisions of section 13 of the Public Sinking Funds Act, as the securities in which investments may be made by the Commissioners, or at any rate that you will inform us to the extent we are at liberty to act on behalf of the Commissioners in the choice of investments. Tou have been already informed that in our opinion the interests of New Zealand will be best advanced by leaving undisturbed the Sinking Punds invested in this country to pay off debentures issued in this market, and that to realize these funds for the purpose of reinvestment in the Colony would damage the credit of New Zealand. We are further of opinion that the Commissioners would be but acting in the interests of the Colony if they continued to invest here the contributions on account of Sinking Punds on loans of the General Government raised in this country under " The Loan Act, 1863." Not knowing who are the Trustees of the Sinking Fund under the Loan Act of 1860, or where the investments on account of that loan have been made, we do not offer any opinion on that subject, except that if hitherto made in this country we would recommend no alteration. The case of the Sinking Funds on the outstanding Provincial Debentures appears to us quite different, for the most of the contributions to those funds we believe have been locally invested, and the purchasers of those debentures have never been informed nor led to expect any other mode of investment. We are, as already reported to you, quite prepared to take charge of any securities which may be handed over to us by the Trustees of other Sinking Funds by direction of the Commissioners; none, however, have been so tendered to us at present. I have, &c, The Chairman of the Board of Commissioners, W. C. Saegeaunt. Public Debts Sinking Funds of New Zealand.