Enclosure: Vicâ evre evidence.
nterviews.
Complaints from
listressed
tenants.
Cases under + (1) (e).
Cases under + () ()).
Hardship of
tenants.
108
Enclosure 6 containing cuttings from the local Press, and extract from speech of Vice-Chairman of Kowloon Residents' Association at their last annual meeting, on the subject of Reservations. Enclosure 7.-Map of Hongkong showing proposed British Reserva-
tion.
6. In addition to the above documents, we have taken the following viva voce evidence (Enclosure 8), namely:
(1) Evidence of 4 witnesses employed in His Majesty's Naval Yard. (2) Evidence of Mr. Lam Woo, contractor, on various points referred
to in the letters in Enclosure 1.
(3) Evidence of the late Mr. J. W. White, the officer then in charge of
the Buildings Office, together with certain papers he handed in. (4) Evidence of Mr. L. C. Parker Rees, Superintendent of Crown Lands, together with papers which he handed in, and also has since sent to the Chairman.
(5.) Evidence of the Hon. Mr. H. T. Jackman, Acting Director of
Public Works.
(6.) Evidence of Mr. L. G. Bird, partner in the firm of Palmer & Turner, Architects, together with letter since sent to the Chairman.
7. We or the Chairman have also had interviews with the following gentlemen:-
(1) Father Robert, who expressed the willingness of his Mission to invest money in erecting new buildings on fresh sites, provided that cheap land could be obtained from the Government. He is in favour of the Hon. Mr. A. G. M. Fletcher's scheme for encouraging the erection of more houses, which is dealt with in para. 36 of this Report.
(2) Mr. F. P. de V. Soares on a scheme which he, in association with a number of wealthy Chinese gentlemen, submitted by letter to the Colonial Secretary, for the levelling and development of the ring of hills surrounding the Cemetery site in the centre of the Kowloon Peninsula for the purpose of building houses thereon for accommodating British, Portuguese and Chinese residents of moderate means, and also the Chinese working, classes. This scheme is again referred to in para. 37.
(3) Mr. Fred Ellis, who is interested in a scheme for the formation of a Development, Building and Savings Society. Further reference to this project will be found in para. 36.
(4) Mr. H. W. Cowling, an expert in cement-concrete structures, who
was on a visit here from Bombay.
8. The Chairman has also, with the approval of the other members of the Commission, dealt both orally and by letter with numerous applications made to him by distressed tenants who had been given notice to quit under Section 4 (1) (e) or Section 4 (I) (ƒ) of the Rents Ordinance, 1922.
9. In all the cases falling under 4 (1) (e) the Chairman was able to assure the tenants of their right to remain where they were.
10. In some of the cases under 4 (1) (f)--the clause re three months' notice to quit, on reconstruction--the Chairman had to appeal to the Hon. Acting Colonial Secretary, who worked hard in the matter, to provide the displaced tenants with other accommodation. Even, however, with such Government help, these tenants have undoubtedly suffered much hardship in many cases, not only by being turned out of their previous dwellings (some of them stated by the Building Authority to be in "good" or "fair" condition, see items in Enclosure 5, marked with a red cross), but also by being in many instances obliged to pay higher rents than before. This subject of recon- struction is again referred to in paras. 104 to 106 of this Report.