6.4 taels of rice per day. It was sold in Kowloon, and the village heads organized the collection and distribution. In actual practice, not everyone received this amount. In our interviews, there was also some confusion with the 4 taels of rice that were given as wages to labourers who took part in construction projects that began either in late 1942 or 1943. The practice was to give a small cup of rice to those villagers who had done a day's work, which amounted to 4 taels. Unlike the ration, this the villagers did not pay for. It is likely that villagers who worked on the construction projects did not bother any more to purchase the ration.93
The Japanese Government did not have enough rice to maintain the ration at the 6.4 taels level. As for the construction projects, although the building of the road into Sai Kung and the batteries on the hillside continued possibly past the middle of the occupation years, the wage in rice became irregular. Towards the end of the War, rice was very short in the city, and this shortage affected the amount the Japanese Government could allocate to the rural areas.
The impression that life was harsh must also be considered in the light of disruption of life-style, rather than food shortage as such. Mr. Hoh King of Nam Shan was a teacher, not a farmer, before the War. His mother had some land that they rented out to tenants. At the outbreak of the War, once he was able to return to the village, he had to farm himself. In the same way, Mrs. Ts'ui, née Lei, the fish-monger's wife, gave up the family business in the Market, retrieved their land from tenants, and farmed on their own. The change must have been even greater for those that had to return to their villages from the city, some as the War broke out, and others later as food became short in the city. Many of these had not farmed for many years. By the outbreak of the War, Mr. Yau T'aam Shang, for instance, had for more than twenty years been more a merchant than a farmer. He had been living in Kowloon since 1936. He had various jobs in Kowloon during the first few years of the occupation. Then, in 1943, he was a clerk in the Kowloon City K'ui Ching Shoh, and was given the job of writing out ration cards. His salary included food for himself and his family, and his wife went out to Kowloon City regularly to carry food back to
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6.4 taels of rice per day. It was sold in Kowloon, and the village heads organized the collection and distribution.
and distribution. In actual practice, not everyone received this amount. In our interviews, there was also some confusion with the 4 taels of rice that were given as wages to labourers who took part in construction projects that began either in late 1942 or 1943. The practice was to give a small cup of rice to those villagers who had done a day's work, which amounted to 4 taels. Unlike the ration, this the villagers did not pay for. It is likely that villagers who worked on the construction projects did not bother any more to purchase the ration.93
The Japanese Government did not have enough rice to maintain the ration at the 6.4 taels level. As for the construction projects, although the building of the road into Sai Kung and the batteries on the hillside continued possibly past the middle of the occupation years, the wage in rice became irregular. Towards the end of the War, rice was very short in the city, and this shortage affected the amount the Japanese Government could allocate to the rural areas.
The impression that life was harsh must also be considered in the light of disruption of life-style, rather than food shortage as such. Mr. Hoh King of Nam Shan was a teacher, not a farmer, before the War. His mother had some land that they rented out to tenants. At the outbreak of the War, once he was able to return to the village, he had himself to farm. In the same way, Mrs. Ts'ui, née Lei, the fish-monger's wife, gave up the family business in the Market, retrieved their land from tenants, and farmed on their own. The change must have been even greater for those that had to return to their villages from the city, some as the War broke out, and others later as food became short in the city. Many of these had not farmed for many years. By the outbreak of the War, Mr. Yau T'aam Shang, for instance, had for more than twenty years been more a merchant than a farmer. He had been living in Kowloon since 1936. He had various jobs in Kowloon during the first few years of the occupation. Then, in 1943, he was a clerk in the Kowloon City K'ui Ching Shoh, and was given the job of writing out ration cards. His salary included food for himself and his family, and his wife went out to Kowloon City regularly to carry food back to
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