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as to convey the idea that the petitioners and the Chinese Community by a long period of self-sacrifice have made this Colony what it is, and that its prosperity is maintained by "their unremitting exertions, by the self-sacrifice of themselves, and by the co-operation and support of the Chinese.
can best be
While admitting the unquestioned importance to the Colony of its present citizens, Hongkong does not, as a matter of fact, owe its importance to the petitioners in any such exclusive manner, but to 53 years of enlightened and prudent government, to a long line of able and esteemed men and firms of all nationalities, to local industries