738 THE HISTORY AND PRESENT CONDITION OF MALACCA. 
the tenures of these proprietors, and at the same time much puzzled 
to determine what their rights exactly were, for none ot them couhl 
distinctly tell. It had never been worth their while, in the Dutch 
time, to ascertain their rights with any precision, and now that land 
was becoming valuable and their rights of importance to themselves, 
they had not the means of defining them. A meeting of proprie¬ 
tors was called by the local government in 1827, with the view of 
obtaining information on the subject of their rights over the lands 
in the interior. 
1 st. As between government and the proprietors : 
“ On a reference to the records in the Registrar's office, it 
would appear that some grants expressly state the right of govern¬ 
ment to resume the land, and all, so far as the inquiry has gone, 
seem to indicate an ultimate right of this nature. 
“ The grantee by the records, is generally supposed to receive 
the land under an engagement to clear the same of jungles and the 
right of resumption on the part of government would seem to arise 
from the non-fulfilment of this expressed or implied duty on the 
part of the grantee. 
“ In regard to this claim, implied or seemingly understood in fa¬ 
vor of government, the present proprietors state, that without ques¬ 
tioning the absolute right of Government on this point, they consi¬ 
der themselves as possessing, in equity,'a full and inviolable title to 
their grounds, insomuch as the land has been sold to and handed 
over during a series of years to various individuals, without any men¬ 
tion being made of such inherent reservations affecting their title. 
On being required to produce their title deeds and grants, the pre¬ 
sent proprietors can only shew bills of sale. They state that all sales 
or transfers of land were made in the Court of Justice, which body 
detained all previous papers end deeds on delivering the bill of sale 
or transfer, and that the court did not intimate to them the above 
reservations, which it was their duty to do if such a right he recog¬ 
nised ou the part of government. 
“ The proprietors acknowledge that they consider themselves 
bound, on the requisitions of government, to keep in repair all es¬ 
tablished bridges and roads running through their grounds, and to 
clear the banks and bed of the river bordering on their estates from 
nuisances, but that all new roads are to be constructed at the expense 
of government, who can carry such roads through any part of the 
estate, after intimating their intentions to the proprietor of the soil. 
