To the Editor of the Siz,—In your leader of 3rd instant, you refer to the late Sir Walter Medhurat's opinion, or probable evidence, with reference to the matter Intoly in dispute between Mr, Inca and the Municipal Counci I think that it may be interesting to some of your readers to seo what Waiter Medburat's views really were an I therefore haud you for publiestion ox-tracts from several letters bearing upon the subject.
Extract No. Lis from a letter dated April, 1885, from Mr, Win. Harwood (Mr. Iuce'e London Solicitor) to myself, and Nos, 2 and 3 are extracts from letters from Sir Walter Medhurst to Mr. Harwood dated respectively the 17th and 24h June, Yours, &e., R. E. Watsewnicur.
4ch March, T have just ofS Walter Bredhurst 1
who says that he was the Interpreter to Captain Balfour when the Land Regula-ions of 1854 were framed and that he to sure that Luce's land was not wi boundaries of the land debited in those Land Regulations. The Li family former owners of this laud were a very i fiueutial family bear on the Chin their property was excl of the Sotllement eventually they were influenced by the almighty dollar" and voluntarily sold the property to foreigners. Sir Walter Medhurst says that he himself invented the word " Beachground" and that it was never intended in any way to cover the "Foreshore" on the Sunchow Creek but was simply intended to refer to the Foreshore" of the Whangyoo river. Sir Walter was in Shanghai at the tin land was acquired for the Settlement and must know about the matter. understand that Sir Walter has written privately to the Municipal Geuncil Shanghai on the matter with hie views but he treating the communication as a private one declines to ame eae his letter, 3 You are right in understanding that acted as Interpreter between Captain Bslfour and the Chines authorities at the Jneing the period between 1843 and 1846, assivg of the original Land Regulations
but, as I have seen no plan showing the position of the lot which formed the subject latter of the action, and as I cannot clearly carry the features of the locality in my mind, I hesitate to say that the lot was not included within the boundaries of the land set apart by Capt. Balfour, and did not form part of the Settlement either then, or when the subsequent regulations of 1854 were passed. All that I'am prepared to declare is, that the maintenance of a Public road' along the water side, applied only to the four lots first taken up by British subjects on the river face, between what are now the Nanking and Poking R no understanding that this reservation was hat quarter was then not coi templated: that, when sites were subsequently acquired on the Soochow Creek, a reservation of the bank for the purposes of public road was ust made a transfer to the Bri wearer creek which is now occupied by the road passing in front of the Cathedral, but it was not clearly defined at its Northern end, owing to the difficulty then attending the acquirement of laud in that quarter and that the Northern boundary of th ed by Cupt. Balfour at a called "Lo Kia-chang" ad occupied by the British C sulate property as first constituted, not, Sie R. Rennie aksu: at the Soochow Ceeek} for it was only after the Lo Kin-chang and naval ductyard properties had been acquired, that the Northern exteomily of the British site abutted upon the Soochow Creek.
I loft Shanghai in 1846, and did not return until 1849, when Mie, Alovek had already made the further agreement with in, Intendant of Circuit. ment, so far as I remember, ha of removing the Wester Concession further Westward; bu thee it more clearly defined the line us it approaches the Svochow Creek Lam not prepared to say.
I am in receipt & ie of 19ch inst., 3
ally of note dated 22nd inst, with all PaRoferring 10 the" evidence of Afvesr Giles and Parker I may nay as follows Chine ni Pui do not, accurdto my unde 1g of them, lo of the reach" of water marl The fest word Chit, win:
ing out" or "extending i second Pai, menus simply "stream," the two combined mean simple English "extending into theatre am, They involve no definition of the limit to which such exten jou is intended to go. use acceptation, when L was Interpreter, was, aa it now, "low water mark." The word T'an mean the "foreshore," and that is tide. Mr. Giles' description of the Bute boundaries of lute 1,2 and 3, &e., bea out the explanation I hare given you in my letter of 17th inst., as to the circumstances tudor which those lots were placed in foreign possession subject to reservation of a road on the river and my star in same note that ora similar did not apply to lots on the reek is borne out by what Mr. in respect to Int 232, (Exhibit T) con-me in the impression, which I pre-had, that Me. Ince's property was nally the site called " Naval Duck-yard" and which according to the preamble July Sth, 1854, was declared to be exempted from Municipal control, whilst was yet Chines Government property. The Chinese characters which indicate the site (B) mean "Government dockyard" and I remember the property perfectly, as being one which the Chineseauthorities declared to be iualieuable,.al subsequently conceded it to the British Consulate—when the first regulations were Inring Lo Kia-charly (afterwards 1 Consulate) to be the Northern boundary of the Concession, this Naval Dockyard property stood to the North and Out of Lo Kia-chang, and consequently was not included within the Concession limits, this is home out by the fact, that when the preamble of 8: h July 1854 was drawn up and the Dockyard property b cine absorbed within British limits, it was expressly stipulated that it should remain exempted from Municipal couteo!, in common with the Custom House the mple of Reward (which was on the Yang-king-pang) and the B: Consulate site-whether that exemption lapsed with the sale of the property by th Consulate is a question perhaps lots 1.2.3, ete, do not show when the surrender of roads was made, But Lean testify that the surrender of the rod slong the river bank was made a part and parcel of the condition in which that series of lute was transfereed. In fact the first regula-tio provided especially that a road was to be reserved in front of the lots along the shore, This reservation however did nut apply to the Svochow Creek.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.