UDGMENT was reserved by the Court of Consuls, composed of Mr. A. H. George, British Consul-General (President): Mr. Frank P. Lockhart, American Consul-General, and Mr. T. Horiuchi, Japanese Consul-General, yesterday afternoon after hearing the arguments of counsel in the "fan-tan" land case which concluded after the tenth session and which, it will be recalled began in January this year. The Municipal Advocate, Mr. R. T. Bryan, Jr., appeared for the defendants, the Shanghai Municipal Council, while Mr. S. Francis Liu, for the plaintiffs in the case, four "fan-tan" land owners, addressed the court first. Mr. E. A. Long, Secretary of the Consular Body, was appointed special commissioner by the court to take the evidence at the nine previous sessions.
Claiming exempting from payment waived cross-exarinaiion, thereby of land tax on their "fan-tan" land, tacitly admitting that Mr.
Jones's plaintiffs in the case asked for res-testimony was correct, stitution of light and telephone services "The plaintiffs still further argue Which they stated were disconnected that the right of distress' granted to from their property as a result of the Council by Land Regulation 10 Council action following their failure is modified or qualified by Land Re-to pay the tax. They also asked for gulation 13, This question was adequate damages for their deprivathoroughly gone into at page 48 of tion of these amenities and for costs. our Brief. We shall only add at this Addressing the court Mr. Liu said time the statement that the last the facts were quite simple and had clauses of Land Regulation 10 and been admitted by both sides. Plaintiffs, Land Regulation 13, were both added he said, were owners of land which to the Land Regulations in 1869. they had inherited from their 1—It was never intended that one ancestors, who in turn owned the should cancel the other. The remedy land before it was included in the of distress' for taxation is a com-International Settlement. The issue mon, ordinary, and usual procedure involved was purely a question of in England, If the party upon whom law: whether the Council was entitled the distress' is levied claims exempt to levy the Land Tax on the land tion from taxation, he may apply to held by plaintiffs who, he went on to a Court where the case is tried. The say, constituted a class by themselves, plaintiffs have the same remedy. They having been born in the Settlement may apply to this Court where the and being the original inhabit case will be tried, as this case is now and should not be confounded wit being tried, the refugees who -poured into the "The plaintiffs still further argue Settlement after the Taiping rebellion 4), and the capture of the native city, (na! Chinese are not members of the 4 kb Y' voluntary. association, known as the wae agai! thee refuses. Re said; Shanghai Municipal Counc and tat to make them con. therefore, the case of the China Pub-hing Company is no! in point. tribute something towards Municipal Such an argument is conclusively po swered by reference to the Pro-Counsel Claims Servitude clamations of Taotais Lan and Li and Article 2 of the Court Agreement, "You will find," he continued, "that which provides that the Land Regula-Mr. Bryan has contended vigorously tions are applicable to Chinese that the construction of the taxing citizens. In th
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.