CO129-449 - Governor Sir May & Acting Governor Claud Severn - 1918 [7-9] — Page 280

Robert Ho Jung has other houses in which he has hithert's lived, there seemo

Ko Meleda

onddenly

why he and becours so ou

attached to a site which will have to be

surrendered in Id you, except for the purpose

Stroke of business.

of doing a good

I a que

with the Tw. that the schame

for utilising the New Terrline's for erecting Gut. quters is impracticable at the present time, but if any development

does come

about, he had better take care that the

Crimes do not stef in first stake all the best orter.

? telegraph

as at A

65 31/10/18.

egree i We can at the same time agree to the :

I

proposal in par.

(B)

Arc

2.11

G.82.115

NA CONFIDENTIAL.

C

20406

77.

Sir,

C O

5.013

20 OCT IS

277

GOVERNMENT HOUSE,

HONGKONG. 20th. August, 1918.

With reference to paragraph 4 of my

Confidential Despatch of the 1st. March, 1917, I have the honour to inform you that on approaching Sir Robert Ho Tung on the subject of the acquisition of the property know as the "Homestead", I found to my surprise that he himself contemplat- -ed erecting on the site a large house with an annexe connect- -ed by a corridor, the annexe for his own occupation and the main building for the accommodation of his numerous children whose noise disturb him, with extensive gardons and pleasure grounds attached. He had already had plans prepared for this house and had indeed imported iron and steelwork for the buildings. He contemplated spending $150,000 on the house and

grounds. Moreover he informed me that he had refused an offer

of $100,000 for the site. I am informed that this is the fact.

It is probable that the property was desired for an hotel or

for residential flats.

2.

Sir Robert Ho Tung was by no means willing to relinquish the land, and suggested to me a number of other

sites and properties which he thought would suit the Govern-

-ment's purpose. I had no difficulty in pointing out to him

that whereas one of them, formerly the residence of the late

Sir George Philippo, was well adapted for his purposes, none

of them owing to inaccessibility, situation in the Pokfulam

drainage

THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

WALTER LONG,

860..

M.P

&c...

T

1