Council to pass an Eviction Prevention Bill, as reported in yesterday's issue demonstrates all the phases of a government suddenly awaking to the realities of a situation, which for a time it had chosen to ignore. With the commencement of hostilities in' China there was an influx of refugees into the colony. There was an increasing demand for housing accommodation, and the landlords,—probably no better and no worse than similar fowl in other lands-—proceeded to make hay while the sun shone. Rents were raised wholesale, old tenants told to get out if they did not want to pay, and in a very short time the agitation of the unfortunate tenants grew to such a pitch that the Hongkong Government was obliged to appoint a commission of investigation, That body returned a reassuring report, and despite renewed agitation the administration preferred to shut its eyes to what was happening, Rents were increased in some instances as much as one hundred per cent, and the case of Mr. S. W. Clark, a former resident of Shanghai, whose rent was raised a mere beggarly 25 per cent. seems to be tame in comparison, Mr. Clark fought against the increase in the Courts, and the law being what it is, lost his case. Eventually an eviction order was issued which was extended. The Bill, which has now been passed, is designed to protect permanent resitients against profiteering landlords, and evi tions in favour of wealthy Chinese. This is not the first occasion Hongkong has been troubled by the profiteering landlord. Only a few years ago the Legislative Council was obliged to pass an act restricting rentals, and to the ord-mary resident in Hongkong it has not been clear why that measure was not reinforced immediately the trouble was brought to the notice of the authorities. The hurried passage of the present enactment looks remarkably Tike a piece of eleventh-hour-legislation, to save situation which would never have developed had the Colonial Government listened even sympathetically to the representations which were made to it. But undignified as it has been in its haste to make the best of a very bad job, it has the consolation that, at last, it really has done something—and that is something after all, is it not?
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.