"I am instructed by my Government to inquire of your excellency what are the intentions of His Majesty's Government in relation to the funds voted by the Chambers."
And I understood you to make the following answer:
"Having written a dispatch to His Majesty's chargé d'affaires at Washington, with instructions to communicate it to Mr. Forsyth, and M. Pageot having read it to Mr. Forsyth, I have nothing to say in addition to that dispatch."
I said:
"I am also instructed to inquire of your excellency whether His Majesty's Government is ready to pay those funds."
And you returned this answer:
"Yes, in the terms of the dispatch."
I added:
"I am instructed to ask another question: Will His Majesty's Government name any fixed determined period when they will be disposed to pay those funds?"
To this question the following was your excellency's answer, as I understood it: