Enclosure
31st July, 1903.
214
advice of the Executive Council, (at which Major-General
Gascoigne was, however, not present) I decided to introduce a Bill conferring upon the Government a retrospective power of
appeal to the Supreme Court upon good cause shown in cases
where a title had not yet been granted.
6.
The Bill met with some opposition in the
Legislative Council, as the accompanying report of the proceed-
ings in Committee on the Bill will show.
It is but right however to add, for your
information, that it is believed that Mr. Shewan is interested
as one of the Syndicate who has either purchased or contracted
to purchase Ho Lap Pun's claim. It is also to be noted that
Dr. Ho Kai was a witness in the same case for the claimant.
You will observe, however, that the prin-
ciple of the Bill was supported by 3 out of the 6 Un-official
Members of the Council though it found an opponent in Major-
General Gascoigne.
7.
It was not deemed desirable to confine the
scope of the Bill to the two cases in question for there may
be others (though it is not likely) in New Kowloon which
Government may wish to have reviewed.
As regards the rest of the New Territories,
where there are not many disputed claims, very few cases (and
those only of minor importance) have been heard there by the
Land Court, whose time has been principally devoted to the
hearing of claims in New Kowloon. It will therefore not be
necessary to institute any retrospective appeals outside of
New Kowloon as far as I am aware at present.
I
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