"Under the present system the Governor is supposed to maintain a personal supervision of the whole service. This is practically impossible, the country being too large to enable him to travel over more than a limited section of it in each season. To relieve him of that heavy duty, and at the same time to maintain a real and close personal inspection, one of the four councillors might be stationed in each department, of which, in the absence of the Governor, he would be the chief officer, and held responsible for all local details, and the various posts in which he should periodically inspect and report upon. Once, or oftener, in each year, a meeting of the Governor and the four councillors should be held, at any time or place most convenient--say, Fort Garry, Montreal, or elsewhere. Aided by such a council, the Governor would be accurately informed as to details in every part of the country, and able to deal satisfactorily with all local questions. "The duty of the Lieutenant-Governor would be to relieve the Governor- in-Chief of some share of his labours, and to act in his absence as President of Council. "The chief traders would, as a general rule, be placed at the head of districts, and the clerks in charge of posts. "The very efficient class of officers known as 'postmasters' would remain as at present. They are usually men who have risen from the ranks from merit; and, being good interpreters, and Indian traders, are commonly placed in charge of small posts. Their scale of pay is rather less than that of clerks, and they are rarely advanced to any higher rank; indeed, their ambition is satisfied when they are made postmasters. "Reverting to the mode of paying officers, and making their incomes to some extent dependent on the success of the business, it might answer to give them an interest as stockholders. Instead of paying a chief trader 300_l_. per annum, he might have 250_l_., and a sum of 1,000_l_. of stock placed to his credit, of which he would receive the dividends only, the stock itself reverting to the Company when his connection with them terminated. "A councillor might have 700_l_. pay and the dividends on 2,000_l_. stock. It would also be a great encouragement to the officers, and secure prolonged service, to give them an annual increase of stock--say, 200_l_. to be added for every year's service. Thus, if a man did not get as early promotion as he expected, he would still benefit by length of service. "The principle of retired interests might be maintained, by allowing the officers to receive the dividends on the stock they held at retirement for--say, seven or ten years, before it reverted to the Company. "To carry out these arrangements, it would be necessary to set aside in trust about 150,000_l_. stock. But the Company would lose nothing by it, as they would save in salaries what they gave in dividends.