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JEN YU-WEN
It is recalled that the area north of the Sacred Hill was known locally by the name of Chiao-pei-shih (Kau-pui-shek in Cantonese) (1). Chiao-pei, or more properly pei-chiao, means two pieces of wood carved in the shape of oyster shells which are used for the purpose of divination in worshipping idols. This has induced me to think that the Sacred Hill just to the south was originally named Chiao-pei-shih, for the two large rocks really looked like a pair of divining blocks.13
On 24th October, 1860, when the Peking Treaty was signed, the area south of Boundary Street in Kowloon was ceded to Great Britain, and on 19th January, 1861 was formally taken over by the Hong Kong Government. Since then the Government has taken a deep interest in, and made special efforts for, the preservation and protection of the Sung Wong Toi. In February, 1899, the Sung Wong Toi Reservation Ordinance* was enacted expressing the popular wish of the local residents to preserve this area as a public resort and to prohibit the leasing of any piece of land within it for constructing buildings or any other purpose. The Government also erected a small stone tablet at the foot of the Sacred Hill bearing the words "Sung Wong Toi Reservation, Quarrying Absolutely Forbidden” and two lines of Chinese characters beneath. In 1915 Prof. Lai Chi-hsi (賴際熙), head of the Chinese Department of the University of Hong Kong, upon hearing that this area was to be sold by auction, appealed to the Government to be sure to reserve this area permanently. Mr. Li Sui-kam (李瑞金), a leading citizen of Hong Kong, lent his support and paid for the erection of an encircling stone balustrade.
When the Japanese occupied the territory 1941-45, they levelled the Sacred Hill for the purpose of extending the Kai-tak Airport. They blasted the engraved rock which broke into three pieces. Fortunately one part retained the original inscription intact. After the Liberation in 1945 the Government held to its former desire to preserve this ancient monument. A small garden was created to the southwest of the airfield, about five hundred feet west of the original Sacred Hill across the Tam-kung Road. The section of engraved rock was trimmed into a rectangular shape and placed within the garden which was to be its permanent and suitable resting place. This, too, fulfilled the public wish. Work on the
* On the initiative of Dr Ho Kai, later Sir Kai Ho Kai (1859-1914).