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Colonial Secretary but he returned the same to your Petitioners' Solicitors with the intimation that your Petitioners' claim was largely based on loss of future profits and that the Hongkong Government would not consider the same.
11.
Your Petitioners submit that a perusal of the Petition forwarded on the 7th day of April 1919 and the documents sent therewith will show beyond question that your Petitioners built up the Ferry Service by their own industry organising skill and perseverence in the face of many disappointmenta and without any assistance from the Government. That the business which they carried on was a legitimate commercial enterprise and that they were entitled to be allowed to enjoy the fruits of their laboura. That the Ferry Services were brought to a considerable state of efficiency through your Petitioners' efforts and that to a large extent the demand for such services was increased by the satisfactory nature of the services supplied by your Petitioners. That on the 31st day of December 1918 the goodwill of your Petitioners' business was worth at least $250,000 and that had they in the year 1918 sold their business as a going concern they would have been entitled to at least that sum in respect of the goodwill thereof.
12. Your Petitioners desire to draw attention to the fact (which appears from the original Petition) that the Government of Hongkong expressly stated that in passing the Ferries Ordinance the Government was not actuated by any idea of obtaining revenue. It will be seen however from Messrs. Lowe, Bingham & Matthews' report that the present concessionaires of the Ferry Service pay to the Government for the privilege of running the business which was created and built up by your Petitioners an annual sum of no less than $118,800.
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