!
Meeting
held on the 29th December,
THE TAIPINGSHAN RESUMPTION
ARBITRATION BOARD.
The Taipingshan Arbitration Board, which is composed of His Honour Mr. E. J. Ackroyd, Acting Chief Justice (Chairman), Mr. E. F Alford, and Mr, W. Danby, with Mr. A. Seth as Secretary, sat again on Saturday and continued No the consideration of compensation cases. deoísione have been given in any of the cases, but his Lordship said that to-day (Monday) the Board expected to decide what deductions from the reat would be made and how many years purchase would be allowed in determining the value of the property. He wished, however, the learned counsel to bear in mind that the Board was principally interested in having two namely, the things clearly brought out, sotnal rent earned by the property and the general condition of the buildings and improve- ments. He also said the Board expected to sit three days each week and would push on with the cases as fast as their importance would per mit; and that they would begin on Monday with No. 4, then take up 11 and 14, and on Thursday the case of the Italian Convent.
BORRO
fam
The Court thon turned its attention to the con sideration of the completion of the claim of Mr. Palmer, and subsequently to that of Chan Kwai, No. 10, and in connection with these two,
interesting pointe srasa many consideration, which the Attorney-General the detail. In regard to explained in Chan Kwai case he claimed, on behalf of the Government, that there should be a dedaation made on account of the excessive rentals obtained through overcrowding, the number of fors being practically doabled by the introduction of mezzanine floors and cocklofts and cubicles, and evidence was given to show that having regard to the cubic capacity, if esch tenant were allowed the new 400 cubis feet and paid an average of $4 per year, the buildings, even if orowded, gould not contain enough pople to produce the aunqal rental that was retarded and claimed. The learned counsel for the Government also said that, in this connection, he wished to thank his Honour the Chairman for the statement he had made, at the previous session, of the principles by which the Board proposed to be gaided la determining compensations, and he would like to point aut two things which he hoped the Board would oarefully weigh before ar- riving at their final decision. The first was as to whether this rental should be estimated ou an average of yours or on the return made prior to April last and the last year preceding. Ha contended that the last rabaeus sant in by aq owner, before any plague had broken out and bə- fore any idea of resumption or compensation 17.18 present to the mind of the owner,
basis of rentil og shoull be taken as
pensation and that roats had been going down in Taipingsha and that if the "pro- party had not been rasumad, it wis probabis that roats would have gone down still farther as soðn as the new stringent sanitary requirements were put in foros, and th it, though that law was not in fores in Juge last, it would have ban passað and one into fores now whether Taiping shan had ban resumed or not; therefore the ow Lecs would not hava bean able to continas the illegi- timate state of things that had formerly existað. The second point to which the learned counsel invited the attention of the Board was that the words of section 13 of the Taipingsha Ordin- anoe were very wide in respect to the deductions that the Court might make, and the words “ar otherwise as to it may seem fair and reason: able" gare the Board power to mike dadues. tions whera it seemed to them that the rents were excessive, owing to overcrowding prevailing in the premises. which, he said, eald be proved in aeroral of the gases, and he urged the Bard to follow the analogy of the Housing of the Working Classes Act of 1890, which hu procended
MFC
J458 7326
to quote. He called particular attentiça today R tion 21 nad arged that the circumstances in which Taipingshan was resumed were very similar to those ander which com aensation was provided in the Emperial Act just cited, which gays that, with regard to lands compulsorily taken in pursuance of that Act, evidenos should b ressigable. Ist, "That the rantal of the house or premises was enhanced by reason of the same being used for illegitigate parpses or being so overcrowded as to be dangerous or injurious to the health of the inmates,” in which oase, 2nd. the compensation should galy by based on the rental which would have hon obtainable if the house or promises Wors pccupied for legal purposes and only by the
aber of persons whom the house was fitted to accommodate, without such overcrowding as to be dangerous or injurious to the health of the in. mates." This important. Act also providos in Bection "that the arbitrators are to make ng additional allowance for compulsory purchasa," The learned connael next called the attention of the Board to soc ion 13 of the Taipingshan Orlinınan, which specifies that "the Bard may maks deductions not only in respect to age, character, insanitary condition, and state of repairs." but also "or otherwise as to them may seem fair and reasonable." and that therefore deductions for surroundings should be made and Fere admissible under the words "or others wise," and also that where the house ne premises taken were unfit and not reasonably capable of being made fit, the compensation should be simply the value of the land and the materials of the bailding, And now, your Lrdship, coutinned the Attorney-General, in this particular case that we are now about to continuo, Claim No. 10, we have a good filustration of the desirability of taking the last year's rental as a basis for the compensation, for here we have a lot of different theories and elaborate calculations of experts and to attempt to find one's way through them only leads to con fusion. Why should we take a number of years, and, if so, what is to determine the number! We cannot go into the question of whether the property will be more valuable at some other day or was more valuable sometime in the past. What fairer test gan there be than the returns haaded in by the man himself to the assessor? Aad, farthermore, your Lord- ship, the task of reconciling the rentals sent to the assessor with the amounts received is almost hopeless, the discrepancies being so great.
His LordshipYos, that would be desirable, bat our difficulty comes hore, in that we must allow for forced sale. Even assuming we have the right to act as you argas, there is still no provision for compulsory sale.
The Attorney-General-Ys, but your Lord. ship will also please remember the condition in which the property and surroundings were st the time they were taken and that the owner instead of receiving extra compensation was liable to punishment and in oases even to con- scation of his property as the natural out come of the law I have cited, and cases dan ba citod where not only the property has been sonfiscated, but a penalty has been imposed in addition, and where a man has neglected to send in his rentals for the three years he ought pot to complain if the assessor's valuation is faken as a basis of compensation,
His Lordship-The rents at the time the houses were closed were at their lowest and it is very difficult to decide what is the fair thing to do under the ironmatanees. That the plague broke out is perhaps not the fault of the land. lord and whose fault it is no one can tell.
The Attornoy-General-Granting, your Lord. ship, the correctness of that position, the owner would still not be entitled to additional som- pensation, for irrespective of what penalty he would subject himself to by a continuance of
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