17
15.
16.
17.
their Service should be one of the gravest concern since it
has had and continues to have a serious and adverse
psychological effect upon your Petitioners who feel that there
now remain so few of the Special Appointments available to
them that the possibility of their being able notwithstanding
their most earnest and active efforts in their present
appointments to secure any more senior appointment is
extremely remote.
That in the year 1939 your Petitioners were requested to elect
whether they would adopt a new and revised scale of salary and
pensions or would continue to serve on the then existing terms.
A number of your Petitioners were considerably influenced in
their decision to elect to serve on the revised scale by the
prospect of future promotion and had they contemplated that
two of the Special Appointments then available to them would
be removed from their Service it is unquestionable that they
would have elected to continue to serve on the then existing
terms.
That while by reason of the action taken by the Colonial
Secretariat in regard to the appointment of Chief Clerk to
the Colonial Secretary your Petitioners can but conclude that
the Honourable the Colonial Secretary is not confident of the
ability of any one of your Petitioners to fill this Special
Appointment it is their conviction that this lack of
confidence is not felt by the Heads of several other important
Departments of the Government of HongKong, many of whom have
expressed themselves as having a high regard for the abilities
and efforts of some of your Petitioners.
That your Petitioners humbly request that before a final
decision is reached regarding the appointment of Chief Clerk
to the Colonial Secretary's Office from outside their Service
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