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These lots are on the precipitous side of the hill on the south side of the Queen's Road opposite Spring Gardens, lot 54 being measured 100 feet deep and lot 53 50 feet deep from the Queen's Road. On a portion of the first measuring about 50 feet in depth, we have built a house and on the other 6 Chinese shops measuring say 25 feet, say 50 feet in No. 54 and the whole of No. 53 making a total stand, and ever if land was so valuable as to justify the expense of a deeper cutting, there is no available spot where the soil could be transferred.
We bought these lots with the object solely of preventing the establishment of what might have been a nuisance to the occupiers of the Marine lots. We had no option in the purchase of naming the quantity of square feet. A total of 7500 square feet is, owing to the precipitous nature of the ground, perfectly unavailable, the Hills where the cutting ceases being actually above the roofs of the Chinese shops, and above the first floor windows of the two-story house. We may mention, as a proof of the impracticability of making the remainder of these lots available, that the whole of the earth in Spring Gardens from the spot on which the buildings stand was excavated either because it was required or were willing to level and excavate. The Committee will see from the above Statement that, not being calculated on our rent for the space occupied on the surface as registered in the Land Office, we are paying rent on more than double the quantity of Land that is now or can be made available to us. The amount of rent of lot No. 54 is £27.8.9 and of lot No. 53 is £13.14.4½, and we submit that half of that...
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