usually reserved for covenanted civilians.¹⁶⁸ Besides substituting a cheap for a dear agency in the administration, the Government also sought to obtain relief by applying the pruning knife to the rank growth in departmental extravagances.¹⁶⁹ Even with such heroic efforts to increase the revenue and reduce the expenditure the finances of the Government throughout the period of the falling exchange were never in a flourishing state. ¹⁶⁶ Cf. _Report of the Public Service Commission_, C. 5327 of 1887. ¹⁶⁷ This clause of the statutes has been re-enacted into the statute of 1861. ¹⁶⁸ Cf. evidence of Mr. Jenkins, Q. 12. Mit. of Evid. of the Select Committee on East India (Civil Servants), H. of C. 327 of 1890. ¹⁶⁹ Cf. _Calcutta Civil Finance Committee’s Report_, 1886; also _The Report of the Civil Finance Commissioner_ (1887), who completed the work of the Committee after it was dissolved. Much more regrettable was the inability of the Government, owing to its financial difficulties, to find money for useful public works. The welfare of the Indian people [pg 92] TABLE XII _Revenue and Expenditure of the Government of India_ ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── In India. In England. Final Average Result. Rate ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── of Net Net Surplus Net Exchange. Surplus Year. Exchange. Revenue. Expenditure Revenue. Sterling (+) or excluding Revenue. Deficit Exchange. (−) ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── d. R. R. R. £ R. R. ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── 1874–75 22·156 39,564,216 25,897,098 13,667,118 12,562,101 1,045,239 59,778 ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── 1875–76 21·626 40,053,419 24,541,923 15,511,496 12,544,813 1,377,428 1,589,255 ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── 1876–77 20·508 38,253,366 25,355,285 12,898,081 13,229,646 2,252,611 −2,584,176 ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── 1877–78 20·791 39,275,489 27,658,021 11,617,468 13,756,478 2,123,030 −4,262,040