Leaves from a Madeira Garden 



matters. But it was a very inadequate con- 

 sideration for the outrageous terms of the 

 concession. These included not only the ad- 

 mission of furniture and appliances for the 

 German hotels free of customs duties — an 

 injustice to the owners of existing hotels, who 

 have paid duties on their imports — but also the 

 right of expropriating land within a defined 

 zone. This zone covered much property be- 

 longing to British subjects, including important 

 business premises of British firms. These firms 

 naturally objected to their property being 

 expropriated and their business being damaged, 

 not for public purposes, but in the interests of 

 a private company formed to run hotels and 

 gambling casinos. A great outcry arose. Sug- 

 gestions, perhaps not wholly without foundation, 

 of German political aggression being at the 

 bottom of it all were freely made in the English 

 press. After a long fight, the English Foreign 

 Office was moved to protest energetically against 

 the threatened expropriation of certain English 

 property, and the Portuguese Government had 

 to inform the German company that it could 

 not carry out the terms of the concession. 

 The company, which had bought a good deal 



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