ERRORS IN FACT

The full judgment contains errors of fact and interpretation of evidence made before the Court. It is essential that we address these contentious little details otherwise the official records will stand without correction. Here are some of the more obvious instances:

1. W.J. Butterworth was the Governor of the Straits Settlements (1843-1855), which included the Settlements of Prince of Wales Island, Malacca and Singapore. He was not the Governor of Singapore. The reference to him as the Governor of Singapore is on page 7 of the summary and page 38 of the full Judgment. On page 56 Butterworth is referred to as Governor Singapore in a 1953 letter addressed by J.D. Higham to the British Advisor, Johore. The office of the Governor of Singapore existed only during the period of the Colony of Singapore and State of Singapore, 1946-1963.
2. In a similar way, J.T. Thomson is mistakenly recognised as Government Surveyor of Singapore when in actual fact he held the post of Government Surveyor Straits Settlements. These errors are found on page 8 of the summary and pages 25, 39 and 46 of the full Judgment.
3. There is a reference to the Acting Secretary of State of Johore instead of the Acting State Secretary of Johore. This error in elevating a humble civil servant to that of a Cabinet Minister is on page 9 of the summary and pages 57 and 61 of the full Judgment.
4. Cape Rachado is wrongly located as 'undoubtedly on Johor territory' on page 51 of the full Judgment.
   
5. James Horsburgh, the celebrated hydrographer after whom the lighthouse was named, is mistakenly called 'John Horsburgh' on page 49 of the full Judgment.
6. On 1 March 1842 representatives of Jardine Matheson & Co. - the famous Hong Kong-based trading company - wrote to Governor Straits Settlements about the possibility of raising funds for the construction of a lighthouse. The Court considered this as the 'first formal communication on behalf of the subscribers to the British authorities'. This is another error of fact since the first communication to the British authorities on the subject of a lighthouse in the Straits of Singapore was actually made in December 1836 in a memorial to the Government of India. This fact is known to the Court and referred to explcitly in para. 127, page 39 of the full Judgment.