Following discussions on the subject. witness said they proceeded to Prepare further memoranda, he, himself, preparing a very exhaustive one in which he voiced the opinion émphatically that both in law and equity, he considered that unregistered land in the Settlement or within its boundaries was liable to assessment in the way of land tax.
In explanation he said that up to the time when the city government was beginning to carry out a campaign for the exchange of old fang-tans into other titles, the Council entered into an agreement with them to make the required survey of the land to assist them in their work in exchange for information supplied by them to the Council. This was done, and they provided each other with the information required and the old informal titles were acknowledgea purely as prima facie evidence of ownership.
Mr. Bryan then asked witness it Justice Feetham intended to express the opinion that unregistered or fan-tan land was not taxable. Witness replied that there was no mention in the report that unregistered land was not assessible, but rather that it was not assessed. He added that in his discussions with Justice Feetham the latter never stated anything to the contrary. In fact, he declared, he would have been very much surprised to hear Mr. Justice Feetham express a divergent view. owing to their discussions on the matter. Witness said thet Mr. Justice Feetham expressed a fact, not a legal opinion. Justice Feetham, he asserted,-had never expressed the opinion. either verbally or in writing that fan-tan land was not taxable, and had shown surprise thas it was not taxed:
Without going further, witness said that as à result of the suggestions of Justice Feetham. Mr. Harper and he prepared the memorandum which ultimately led the Council to levy the land tax on fan-tan land.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.