In reply to the letter from Mayor Wood of August 21, 1929, the Ku-Jing Council wrote on August 26, 1929 in part, "The proposal (to do away with Estate boundaries and 8) seems to ignore the fact that the Kuling Estate was obtained from the Chinese Govern ment by purchase, and is held by the Kuling Council under a Government deed in perpetuity, which is registered in the Dritish Consulate at Kiukiang, and the whole Estate, inelading the roads (excepting four Yoads named in the deed) is the property of the Kuling Council, who have issued sub-leases, terminable '999 years to the various Lot-holders. To attempt to dissolve the Kuling Estate 'System' without regard to the Council's rights under their deed, would be an illegal procedure, which we trust the Chinese Government would not wish to take, The Kuling Estate is private property—in no sense a "concession" or "Treaty Port"—and at the times of Purchase when cash payments were made, the transfers of ownership were duly registered in the yamen the Prefect at Kiukiang. For 24 years there has not been the slightest question raised as to the validity of the Council's ownership of the! Estate, or of its administration representing the interests of lot-holders of many nations, nomely, American, British, German, Japanese, Swedish, Swiss, French, Norwogjan, Russian, Portugese, Finnish, Danish and Chinese. It will be soon that the matter is one of international interest and concern, Among other functions of the Kuling Council, one is to pay on behalf of the Jot-holders an annual rent amounting to $761.75 to the Chinese officials. This is the only Payment called for by the purchase deeds. However, though under no legal compulsion to do 80, on the principle of paying for services actually received, the Council also Pays to Chinese officials an annual sum of over $3,000 for police services, In addition, the foreign residents of Kuling have spent over '$80,000 on the mountain road, which is freely used by the public, and, of course, have borne the entire cost of developing the Estate from a bare hillside to its present condition, We await the results of our latest protest with interest, especially. as semi-official rumour has reached us that this third attempt has been, or is about to be, dropped.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.