14
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The principal items were $30,410 in respect of extensions of the sites of Kowloon permanent piers Nos. 23, 24, 25, and 34, $43,000 on the sale of Kowloon Inland Lot No. 1304, $40,480 on the sale of Kowloon Inland Lot No. 1301, and $15,000 in respect of an extension to Marine Lot No. 321.
In the New Territories the net amount received for premium on sales of land was $144,835 being an increase of $131,593 on the preceding year. The principal items were $75,000 for New Kowloon Inland Lots Nos. 115 to 138 and $48,600 for a large area in the Ping Shan District.
The number of deeds registered in the Land Office was 2,670 or 516 more than the previous year, the total consideration being $42,291,549 as against $30,250,789 in the previous year.
The Government resumed several properties at Hung Hom during the year in connection with the erection of carriage sheds for the railway, and also a large Oyster Bed in connection with the development scheme at Ping Shan.
The total area of land granted during the year was 1,855 acres of which 1,819 acres were situated in the New Territories; the total area of land resumed was 1,345 acres; of which 1,211 acres was the area of the Oyster Bed above referred to.
In the Northern District of the New Territories there was an unprecedented demand for land, the revenue from this source far exceeding that of all previous years.
The scheme for the reclamation of an extensive area in Kowloon Bay is being carried out by a Chinese syndicate for the purpose of making a residential district for Chinese.
III.-LEGISLATION
Fifteen Ordinances were passed during 1916, of which four were amendments of previous Ordinances.
The most important matters with which these Ordinances dealt were the Punishment of Incest (No. 3), Marriage of British Subjects (Facilities) (No. 5), and Pharmacy and Poisons (No. 9).
The Tobacco Ordinance (No. 10) provided for the taxation of Tobacco consumed in the Colony.
The following Ordinances were necessitated during the continuance of the war:-
The False Passports and Suspected Persons (No. 2), the Trading with the Enemy (Extension of Powers) (No. 4), the Registration of Persons (No. 6), and the Trading with the Enemy Amendment (No. 8).
The War Loan Ordinance (No. 12) provided for the raising of a sum of $3,000,000 as a gift to the Imperial Government for the purposes of the war.