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By the time Helen was learning to crawl, Father had a two-bedroom house built with the help of his cousin, Chan Ngit Chiu, and a few of his carpenter friends. They ended up stealing some of the lumber and leaving part of the house interior unpainted. This was something Father should have foreseen, since Ngit Chiu was an opium addict. It did not bother us much for we were utterly happy to be in a new home of our own. This was a two-bedroom house located on Board Road, which ran off Buckle Lane, an area where many upward mobile Chinese had relocated after the Chinatown fire, such families as the Wei's, Lee Lit's, Yee Mun Wai's, Lam Toy's, Lam Quan's, Yee Yap's, C. K. Ai's, to name a few. The narrow roads were of dirt and gravel and I often nursed a scraped and bleeding knee when I fell while running home on the slight incline.
A right-of-way in front of our house led to the home of a Chung family and to a newly-built home of Chun Sun Kee adjoining our lot. Across the way was a very large L-shaped property owned by David Notley, an Hawaiian-Caucasian politician. There were many people and much activity in his spacious home and we enjoyed the sounds of merry-making and sweet music when he had a luau or a political rally. Across from us on Broad Road there was another large piece of property extending the whole length of the road, with the house facing Buckle Lane. Mr. Dutro, the owner, a gruff and fat Portuguese, would descend upon us growling if he caught us trying to "steal" any of his mangoes hanging so temptingly over the fence. I have never seen so many species of mangoes as he had. We were always on the alert for any that would drop onto the road.
Next to the Dutro's on Buckle Lane was a stable occupied by a Mr. Silva, who had a draying business and with whose daughter I had a few casual contacts. I can recall the sight of horses and the smell of hay and manure in his yard. The Ai's lived next to the Silva's until they moved to their beautiful home on Beretania Street in 1915. The Lam Toy's, who had lived across from the Dutro's, sold their home and bought the Ai property in order to better accommodate their large family and visiting relatives.
As there were very few Christians in the neighbourhood, Father introduced Mother to the Ai's whom he had met at church. Gradually Mother began to meet neighbours who were also converts to the Christian
160
By the time Helen was learning to crawl, Father had a two-bedroom house built with the help of his cousin, Chan Ngit Chiu, and a few of his carpenter friends. They ended up stealing some of the lumber and leaving part of the house interior unpainted. This was something Father should have foreseen, since Ngit Chiu was an opium addict. It did not bother us much for we were utterly happy to be in a new home of our own. This was a two-bedroom house located on Board Road, which ran off Buckle Lane, an area where many upward mobile Chinese had relocated after the Chinatown fire, such families as the Wei's, Lee Lit's, Yee Mun Wai's, Lam Toy's, Lam Quan's, Yee Yap's. C. K. Ai's, to name a few. The narrow roads were of dirt and gravel and I often nursed a scraped and bleeding knee when I fell while running home on the slight incline.
A right-of-way in front our house led to the home of a Chung family and to a newly-built home of Chun Sun Kee adjoining our lot. Across the way was a very large L-shaped property owned by David Notley, an Hawaiian-Caucasian politician. They were many people and much activity in his spacious home and we enjoyed the sounds of merry-making and sweet music when he had a luau or a political rally. Across us on Broad Road there was another large piece of property extending the whole length of the road, with the house facing Buckle Lane. Mr. Dutro, the owner, a gruff and fat Portuguese, would descend upon us growling if he caught us trying to "steal" any of his mangoes hanging so temptingly over the fence. I have never seen so many species of mangoes as he had. We were always on the alert for any that would drop onto the road.
Next to the Dutro's on Buckle Lane was a stable occupied by a Mr. Silva, who had a draying business and with whose daughter I had a few casual contacts. I can recall the sight of horses and the smell of hay and manure in his yard. The Ai's lived next to the Silva's until they moved to their beautiful home on Beretania Street in 1915. The Lam Toy's, who had lived across from the Dutro's, sold their home and bought the Ai property in order to better accommodate their large family and visiting relatives.
As there were very few Christians in the neighbourhood, Father introduced Mother to the Ai's whom he had met at church. Gradually Mother began to meet neighbours who were also converts to the Christian
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