Lord Roche:-

This is an appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of the State of Johore which set aside a judgment of Savage Bailey, J., in favour of the appellant and ordered that judgment should be entered for the respondent State. The action of the appellant was for damages for breach of contract and was begun by plaint dated 6th June 1933. The circumstances out of which the action arose may be stated shortly as follows:

For some years prior to 1917 the appellant had settled upon certain State land at Jeram Batu in Johore and began to clear and plant it. In 1917 and 1918 he made application that the land in question might be granted to him by the State and pending approval of his application continued to occupy the land. On 25th July 1922, the Collector of Land Revenue by letter of that date dealt with the application and signified approval of the alienation to the appellant of 110 acres of State land on the terms and conditions set out in the Land Enactment 1910 and Rules thereunder and subject to a premium of 5 dollars per acre and an annual rent of 3 dollars per acre. The letter required the premium and first year's rent and certain survey fees to be deposited if the app