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lose the rates chargeable on buildings to be erected on those
sites.
16. One of the objects of the Military Contribu-
tion is to provide money to help to buy sites that may be
wanted. If it be said that the present Military Contribution
does not support the Garrison and therefore leaves nothing
for purchase of lands, and this is advanced as an argument
why lands should be transferred free or at a nominal figure,
I reply that such an argument is not applicable. Because the
Imperial Government chooses for Imperial purposes to garrison
Hong-Kong, that affords no reason why the Colonists here should
pay disproportionately, or should be expected to do more than
the rest of the Empire towards keeping the garrison. Because
Colchester is a garrison town, one does not hear that the in-
habitants of Colchester are called on or expected to contri-
bute above the average. Hong-Kong, like Colchester, is garrison-
ed for Imperial purposes and cannot reasonably be called on to
contribute more than its fairly apportioned share.
far
17. Lastly, as showing that this Government,
from asking a heavy premium for the Kennedy Road site which
was offered at 15 cents a sq. foot, has undervalued the land I
may state that an application has just been received from the
Land Investment Company for the sale of the site to them at
30 cents a sq.foot.
18
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}