Enclosure 1.
330
Report of Committee on German Missions.
1.
The Committee appointed by His Excellency the Governor to consider the question referred to them in 7.8.0. 136 in 2590/15 desire to submit the following report.
2.
A list is given in enclosure (1) of all property registered as belonging to the German Missions. We have gone into all the cases and consider that all the property with the exception of Whitfield is the property of the various missions. The vesting order has been registered against all the properties at the Land Office in Hongkong and Teipo.
3.
As regards the property at Whitfield, this was the property of the late Liu Ah Yee a member of the Besel Mission| Mr. Vomel was the executor of the will, and the property is regis| -tered in the Land Office in his name as executor of the late
Liu Ah Yee. Under the will the Mission is entitled to certain benefits from this property. It would be better to substitute for the name of Mr. Vomel as executor some other person, say the Secretary of the Church Missionary "ociety for the time being, or the Official Trustee, or perhaps the affairs of Mr. Tomel might be liquidated under the Enemies Winding up Ordinance. We would suggest that the law officers of the Crown be consulted as to the most convenient way of arranging this matter. occupies No.45 has possession of the deeds.
4.
The widow who
The members of both the Basel Mission and the Rhenish Mission brought forward the argument that most of the property did not belong to the German Missions but to the congre- gations and workers themselves. Various properties had been purchased by subscriptions and collections at Church Services. The money so obtained was used to buy land for chapels, build and maintain the same, pay preachers' salaries and was also used for charitable works. All the property has been registered in the Land Office in the name of the Missions concerned and we
agree