Death of Sir H Durand; hopes that appointment of Commons Committee on India will be limited to finance (though that is a wide subject) and will be moved in friendly rather than hostile spirit; astonished at choice of 3ft.3ins for narrow gauge; Mayo's choice of Davies for Punjab universally approved.
Answers charge that tone and terms of his Despatch of 10 February rejecting Govt of India's proposals for increase in Indian Civil Service pensions had offended all members of Govt and that its publication would cause great irritation if published; write this despatch almost entirely himself; des...
Refers to Mayo's despatch on Gwalior and difficulty of making decision which may involve very serious consequences; believes British under no treaty or moral obligation to return Gwalior fort, regrets Mayo should have said anything to contrary, and requests him to hold out no expectations to Scin...
Refers to Mayo's letter of 10 April reporting atrocious mismanagement of Bills for local taxation in Legislative Council; Argyll more concerned at setting maximum percentage for local taxes; permanent settlements being made under Wood's despatch of 1862 and rapidly rising land values make princip...
Refers to Mayo's letter of 23 May; since civil service are apparently satisfied with decision on pensions, acquiesces in non-publication of despatch explaining it since Mayo states it would cause offence, but Argyll believes it will be necessary at some stage to make grounds of decision public; c...