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action of the Government of Hongkong as therein set forth
and whereby your Petitioners humbly prayed that Hie kajesty'a
Principal Secretary of State for the Colonies might be pleased to direct that compensation be paid to your
Petitioners for the lose they had thereby suffered,
2.
With such Petition were algo forwarded documenta setting out the history of your Petitioners' Ferry Service and the history of their negotiations with the Government of Hongkong.
3.
On the 29th day of October 1920 your Petitioners! Solicitors received from The Honourable The Colonial Secretary of Hongkong a letter informing them that the Secretary of State for the Colonies had expressed his opinion that your Petitioners should be paid compensation in respect of the Taumati Ferry Service for all loss actually incurred by them (1.0. excluding loss in respect of future profits) and requesting your Petitioners to furnish the Government with a statement of particulars of the losses claimed,
4. Your Petitioners thereupon instructed keseru. Lowe, Bingham & Matthews Chartered Accountants of this Colony to prepare a statement showing the loss suffered.
5. The preparation of such a statement involved an investigation by Messrs. Lowe, Bingham & Matthews of the accounts of all the Companies concerned in such Ferry Service which investigation took up a considerable amount of time as practically all the books of the said Companies were written in the Chinese language.
6. On the 28th day of April 1921 your Petitioners' Solicitors at the request of Messrs. Lowe, Bingham & Katthews wrote to The Honourable The Colonial Secretary of Hongkong
2.
stating