54
In addition to the vocabulary one might expect in these sections (like “Plaintiff”, “Judge”, “Barrister at law”, “Fine”, “Reprimand”, etc.), one discovers “Sly brothel”, “Registered prostitute”, “Utter false money”, “Branded”, “Put in the cangue”, “Squeezing the ankles”, “Strangled (to death)”, and “Slap the mouth”.
In many of the sections of this part of the book, Mok Man Cheung is able to demonstrate considerable expertise in the special or technical vocabulary of different crafts, trades, businesses, and professions. "Silks and Cloths" (p. 110f.), "Timbers” (p. 130f.), “Bamboo and Rattan Wares” (p. 134f.), “Iron Wear” [sic] (p. 135f.), "Vessels and Boats”, “Building Contractor's Terms” (p. 149f.), “Wood Work” (p. 154f.), and the special "Tallyman's Vocabulary" are all examples of a practical acquaintance with the fields or conscientious research. There are, however, other sections of the book where, with a similar sense of confidence and authority, Mok Man Cheung actually betrays his lack of familiarity either with the content or with the precise idiom used. In the second section of “Short Sentences”, for example, Mok Man Cheung ranges from such idiomatic expressions as “He got tight” and "all squared up" to near misses like "The real with the false got mixed up” and “He is pulling your legs”. Even the accuracy of local information is wanting in some places, though this, again, could be the fault of slipshod copy editing or careless proof reading. Under “Roads, Streets and Public Offices in Hongkong”, for example, a reader would have been puzzled to find, right next to Bowen Road and Kennedy Road, a certain "Mac Donald Road”, presumably in error for MacDonnell Road.
17
The tone of the model letters which Mok Man Cheung offers his readers is invariably formal and respectful, even if the matter is one of reminding a client to pay his bills. The nearest Mok Man Cheung gets to expressing irritation is in the brief note at the top of p. 427:
Dear Sir,
I have been to your office and have wasted nearly half an hour to see you, so pardon me for not staying any longer.
Yours faithfully,
A. King.
54
addition to the vocabulary one might expect in these sections (like “Plaintiff”, “Judge”, “Barrister at law”, “Fine”, “Reprimand”, etc.), one discovers “Sly brothel”, “Registered prostitute”, “Utter false money", "Branded”, “Put in the cangue”, “Squeezing the ankles”, “Strangled (to death)”, and “Slap the mouth”.
In many of the sections of this part of the book, Mok Man Cheung is able to demonstrate considerable expertise in the spe- cial or technical vocabulary of different crafts, trades, businesses, and professions. "Silks and Cloths" (p. 110f."), "Timbers” (p. 130f.), “Bamboo and Rattan Wares” (p. 134f.), “Iron Wear” [sic] (p. 135f.), "Vessels and Boats”, “Building Contractor's Terms” (p. 149f.), “Wood Work” (p. 154f.), and the special "Tallyman's Vocabulary" are all examples of a practical acquaintance with the fields or conscientious research. There are, however, other sec- tions of the book where, with a similar sense of confidence and authority, Mok Man Cheung actually betrays his lack of familiar- ity either with the content or with the precise idiom used. In the second section of “Short Sentences", for example, Mok Man Cheung ranges from such idiomatic expressions as “He got tight” and "all squared up" to near misses like "The real with the false got mixed up” and “He is pulling your legs". Even the accuracy of local information is wanting in some places, though this, again, could be the fault of slipshod copy editing or careless proof read- ing." Under “Roads, Streets and Public Offices in Hongkong”, for example, a reader would have been puzzled to find, right next to Bowen Road and Kennedy Road, a certain "Mac Donald Road”, presumably in error for MacDonnell Road.
17
The tone of the model letters which Mok Man Cheung offers his readers is invariably formal and respectful, even if the matter is one of reminding a client to pay his bills. The nearest Mok Man Cheung gets to expressing irritation is in the brief note at the top of p. 427:
Dear Sir,
I have been to your office and have wasted nearly half an hour to see you, so pardon me for not staying any longer.
Yours faithfully,
A. King.
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