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BARBARA E. WARD
expected to be ruled out. Nevertheless this was not so. Each boat had its own unmistakable style. Nearly all were kept unbelievably clean, but some were a good deal tidier than others; some families had very few possessions, some a great many; some decorated the wooden partitions with family photographs, or took greater care to keep their New Year's decorations fresh and bright; some made a point of serving food from trays, others insisted upon keeping it piping hot by bringing the chatties on which it had been cooked to the meal, still others always kept a brightly coloured thermos flask of tea at hand for guests on their arrival. One family had a complete set of rattan cup and teapot holders woven by one of the women, another always used glass tumblers, and so on. They were small differences, but unmistakable and nearly always to be traced back to the women in whose charge matters of this kind mostly were, though some men had their own views and imposed them. The highest quality that was looked for in a woman was industriousness, and most did indeed work very hard. There were, however, a few sluts and, inevitably, some who were less skilled than others. The quality of life on a particular boat was probably most obviously apparent at meal times: the food itself, its presentation and cooking, the degree of participation of the different generations and sexes, all these were indications of the management skills of the women and the extent of their integration into their husband's families. No two boats were in fact exactly the same.
6. THE ORGANISATION OF WORK: FAMILY AS CREW
All the fishing boats of Kau Sai are owner operated. In this they simply follow the traditional pattern of the fishing fleets of South China. Even in post-war industrial capitalist Hong Kong approximately 96 percent of the 8,000-odd fishing craft are run by the men who own them. If the non-traditional types of boat are excluded the figure rises to 98 percent. As far as inshore boats are concerned it remains at 100 percent. It is the general rule that father is captain, and family is crew.
Family as crew
It would certainly be incorrect to claim that status within (or