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with economical problems of the greatest import, problems which are likely to affect seriously the welfare of the Colony.
B
One has only to take into consideration the War depart- ment Reservations, the Waterworks limitations, and the distance from the business part of the Town and from the Tramway station of the plots at present still available on the upper and middle levels, and the defective communications between Kowloon and Victoria, to see that above is no exaggeration. The new High Level Tramway will only benefit existing localities which have been fully built over, and is not likely to open up any new build- ing areas, because when the Tramway leaves the Albany and Queen' Gardens district, the building possibilities are brought to an end by the precipitous confirmation of the land, through which the line passes to the Peak.
It is a matter of common knowledge that the rents obtaining in Hongkong are out of all proportion to the accommodation offered, and that they are far above the rents paid in other colonies for far superior accommodation, and also that houses available in and around Victoria have proved every year insufficient to the needs of the ever increasing population as is instanced by the fact that numerous families are permanent boarders at the different Hotels and Boarding Houses at Victoria. It follows that the dearth of suitable houses is severely felt by all members of the communities alike, and whilst only a few can afford to pay the exorbitant rents charged for the houses on the upper levels, a large portion of the community are compelled to live in other parts of the town, amidst objection- able neighbours where rents are not cheap, and from where, should the occasion present itself (occasion which the projected railway and buildings would give) they would willingly remove.
The many causes which help to keep up the rents in the Colony are not in any way likely to disappear. On the contrary, rents in Victoria in compliance with the uniform law of demand and supply are bound to increase out of all proportion to all economical laws,
Our client's scheme, if at first it would not reduce the rents, would doubtlessly strongly help to steady the present conditions of things by supplying a sufficient number of suitable residences at moderate rents, and the scheme would ultimately relieve the tension and the congestion, and would bring things to a more normal level.
Among the Military contingent alone it would not be diffioult to find numerous families willing to rent suitable houses, if they could be found, while amongst the commercial community many would be willing to remove to more salubrious and sanitary localities, and to better built houses in better neighbourhoods with more congenial surroundings than those in which they are now compelled to reside for want of anything better. It is an undeniable fact that so long as the interests of the community are centred in the City of Victoria and there is no prospect whatever that the business portion of the Town will ever shift across the harbour the majority of people whose interests are closely connected with the business, trade and commerce of the Colony, will be compelled to prefer a resi- dence within convenient and easy reach of the City and their offices, and it is this compulsion which has helped to such an extent to overcrowd the building areas of the Island within a certain radius of the City of Victoria.
Our client submits that all conveniently situated areas in Hongkong are already built upon to their upmost limits and that a scheme should be welcome which will relieve the con- gestion in a manner that must not appeal only to your Government but also to private interests and to every individual member of the community,
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