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"seeing that His Excellency the Governor informed the
"inhabitants both by proclamation and by speech that the
"tenure of the land would remain practically undisturbed
"and that the Chinese Authorities have repeatedly notified
"the inhabitants that the tenure of the land would remain
"the same as before and that the rights of property would
"be respected."
16. That the procedure of the Government to-day is therefore
not only a breach of the Convention, but also of the verbal and
written promises made to the inhabitants at the time, and that there
is a widespread feeling in the Colony that the acts of the Govern-
ment amount to a breach of faith.
17. That the end aimed by the Government is presumably to
assist in the provision of housing accommodation for the growing
population of the City of Victoria and Kowloon;but that this end
does not benefit your Petitioners and their fellow landholders in
the New Territories,who suffer all the loss and inconvenience with-
out getting any of the advantages.
18.
That if resumption must take place, the most equitable
way of dealing with the owners would be to give, to those that de-
sire it,other lands equivalent in acreage and fertility to the land
taken, together with compensation for cost of removal of buildings
and for crops;and to pay to those who do not want land,compensation
equivalent to the real value of the land they own, and not to an
artificial value created by the Government's own legislative acts.
19. That in the majority of cases it would be unnecessary
to pay any compensation at all. If the Government resumed what was
required for roads, and made the roads, the land owners would accept
licenses to build on the balance of the land in lieu of compensa-
tion. No difficulties would arise if this method was followed, since
the system of Crown Leases would enable the Government to keep full
control of the resulting development,and the landholders would
readily
9.
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