instructed Tompson to forward the views of Counsel who advised that the decision of the Land Court should be appealed against, and that the Government should obtain powers by legislation to appeal to the Supreme Court.
These powers were obtained by Ordinance No. 13 of 1903. In August 1903, leave was granted to the Government to appeal. Hongkong Land Investment and Agency Company Limited, to whom the Ku Fat Shan property had been assigned, then applied to be parties to the appeal, but on 23 Nov 1903, the Supreme Court refused their application; the opposition having "crumbled away".
On 4 January 1904, the Supreme Court allowed the Government's appeal and reversed the decision of the Land Court, finding that the deed of 1883, on which the whole claim rested, was a forgery.
Ku Fat Shan and the Executrixes of Tong Wai Chim have since been appealing to the Hongkong Government for compensation on the grounds (a) that the 1883 deed had been duly registered by the Chinese magistrate of the Sun On District; (b) that petitioners were innocent purchasers for value.
In the present petition to the Secretary of State, they also lay some weight on the allegation that by Lockhart's letter of Feb 1902, the Government by implication promised to grant relief.
As to (a), the Govt has not the evidence of the Chinese magistrate that the deed and the registration deed upon it are not forgeries; the "deed" is also missing. The tax receipt, while showing that taxes were paid on behalf of Yut Ying, does not, according to the Court's view, help the petitioners, for the only evidence connecting Yut Ying with Law Tak Luk (Lam Cheung Fuk's Seed) is the 1883 deed which the Court found to be forged.
Moreover, as regards the receipts for payment of taxes, there is nothing to show that they relate to the fishing rights in question. (2) It has been found that the fishing rights belonged to the Lam Clan of Sun On, and that Yut Ying never had power to sell the fishing rights of the clan.
The Govt has accordingly paid $1,400 to the Lam clan as compensation for all the fishing rights claimed by the clan in Kowloon City Bay.