31

A.—4

The sum of £29,213 6s. lid., which is held in a Suspense Account, represents provision against the cost of acquisition of the Engineering and Transport Department, although it is probable that the final sum will be somewhat less than this amount. Land and buildings, furniture and fittings, plant and machinery, stores on hand, and book debts have been included in the assets this year, and these are represented also in the amount shown under the heading " Reserves." Chinese accounts, £9,553 10s. 9d. : This sum mainly represents coolie overhead charges collected for the purpose of importing and repatriating Chinese labourers from and to China. The whole of the credit balance available will be spent within the next few weeks in respect of a Chinese transport due in Apia about the 6th May, 1930. The book debts are, for the major part, outstanding charges due for coolie overhead charges, medical, public - works, and education services rendered by the Administration. Provision to the extent of 10 per cent, has been made to cover those debts considered bad or doubtful. Samoan Note Security Account : The investment fund in connection with this security has been reduced during the year by the sum of £9,790, and this sum now forms part of the advances to the New Zealand Reparation Estates. Interest Suspense Account: This comprises two items, the first being an amount of £1,200 provided for interest accrued in respect of Engineering and Transport assets, and will be finally dealt with in the settlement of the purchase of the assets referred to. The other item represents interest due to Post Office Savings-bank depositors as at the 31st March, 1930. German Reparation Trust Reserve : This represents New Zealand Reparation Estates moneys lent to the Administration some years ago. The bulk has been repaid to the Reparation Estates and the sum appearing in the balance-sheet is held in suspense account pending the early maturing of fixed deposits, when it will be duly repaid to the Reparation Estates. Hydro, transport, and ice plant: This item represents the amount at which the assets of the Engineering and Transport Department stand in the accounts as at 31st March, 1930. Advances, £30,016 Is. Bd.: Of this amount, £26,845 represents advances made in respect of the purchase of the Engineering and Transport Department assets, which subject has been referred to earlier herein. The remaining items in the balance-sheet do not appear to require comment. Referring to the minutes of the sixteenth session of the Permanent Mandates Commission, at page 126, the reference made to the £25,000 gift in the annual report for the year ended 31st March, 1929, was intended to show how the total liability for loan-moneys became reduced to the total sum of £165,200, as set out on page 18 of the same report The circumstances were that the £25,000 was first advanced as a loan and gifted subsequently in reduction of loan indebtedness, so that there is no specific allocation of the amount to any special works or services. The final paragraph on page 18 of the annual report for 1929-30 referred to Public Trust Office funds which were temporarily in use by the Administration for a short period only. They are now entirely separated from Treasury funds. PUBLIC TRUST OFFICE. During the period the activities of the Office have proceeded satisfactorily and efficiently, and the accounts and routine work have been kept up to date. The finalizing of several estates is still unavoidably delayed owing to the difficulty experienced in disposing of the assets, especially land and buildings, at anything approaching reasonable prices. Some small estates have come into the hands of the Office for administration during the period, and these are receiving prompt and careful attention. All investments of the Common Fund are amply secured, and interest has been paid by mortgagors almost invariably on or about due dates. WIRELESS DEPARTMENT. The erection in Apia Township of a new radio-station on modern lines, of which mention was made in the last annual report, was completed during the year under review, and the new station commenced operations on the Bth October, 1929, replacing the old station from that date. The new station is in close proximity to the town and allows of messages being handed in direct by the public, although for the convenience of business houses messages may also be lodged at the post-office and from there telegraphed to the radio-station. Brief details of the new station are as follows : — Mast: 120 ft. steel tubular Marconi type. Main antennae : Four-wire fan type. Battery-charging set: 32 h.p. motor-generator, the motor being driven by the hydro-electric power. Battery : Tudor J 14 cells, 220 volts, 500 ampere-hours. Short-wave transmitter : 1| kw., manufactured by the Amalgamated Wireless (Australasia), Ltd., Sydney. Transmitters for ship work : 100-watt C.W.-I.C.W. valve set. Emergency set: 5 kw. Telefunken quenched-spark set. Receiving sets : One all-wave " Ultimate 4 " four-valve set, one short-wave two-valve set, one long-wave two-valve set. Old Station. —The greater part of the old-station plant is obsolete and will require to be written off, having practically no saleable value. The 400 ft. mast was dropped by releasing one set of stays. Buildings and ground have been taken over by the Police Department for a prison farm.