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NOTES AND QUERIES
ritual obligations for Kam Tin, officiating at the Kam Tin ta chiu ceremonies.
21. d. The changing of the name of Sham Tin to Kam Tin dates from 1587. We collected a variant of the tale related by Sung. In this account, the magistrate never leaves San On at all, but is moved to praise the delicious quality of their rice. Hence, the name Kam Tin. In general, this tale illustrates the extent of the wealth and power of the Tangs, and their intimate relationship with the local magistracy.
22. Expansion out of the Pat Heung basin into neighboring heung of Yuen Long Valley, Kowloon Peninsula and Hong Kong Island continued throughout the early years of the 16th century. Sung (p. 205) notes that the appropriation of Hong Kong island was completed by the Wan Li reign of Ming Dynasty (app: 1573-1620), as references exist in the Tung Kwun Leung Chak (ĦM) of that date. Our own evidence (see San On Land Dispute below)* suggests an even later date. In any case, the oft-made assertion that Tang land holdings steadily decreased from large Sung grants is clearly in error.
23. The period coinciding with the fall of Ming and the establishment of Ch'ing [especially the K'ang Hsi reign] although devastating in its consequences for most of the lineages of the present day New Territories (southern San On), left untouched—indeed enhanced—the basis of Tang power in the area.
23. a. Sung spends quite a bit of time (as does O'Dwyer) on the tales surrounding Tang Man-wai (*)† This man was a large landowner and eminent scholar who is remembered for 1) his relationship with the rebel Lei Man-wing (‡✯✯), 2) the building of Tai Hong Wai (✯✯✯) dating from 1647-1656, and 3) the establishment, in his pen-name (*) of the Tong which financed and operated the Yuen Long Old Market. It is clear that, throughout the imperial era, whenever the central government was threatened or weakened by rebellion, the Kam Tin Tangs accommodated and shared power with rebel forces. [The extent to which this fact justifies its characterization by surrounding lineages as a "bandit clan" remains in doubt.]
23. b. As Hugh Baker notes in Sheung Shui A Chinese Lineage
* See paras 24-29 below.
† JHKBRAS 14 (1974): 172 - 174.