[ { "id": 206530, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1972", "page_number": 78, "title": "RAS-1972", "content_text": "72\n\nHENRY JAMES LETHBRIDGE\n\ntheir duties effectively. Of this latter group, student-interpreters in the Consular Corps probably made the greatest contribution — such names as Herbert A. Giles, E.H. Parker, E.D.H. Fraser, W.F. Mayers, Thomas Watters, G.M.H. Playfair, E.T.C. Werner,44 speak for themselves but Hong Kong cadets, although few in number (from 1861 to 1941 only eighty-five were appointed), also made a significant contribution and one should cite not only Lockhart but Sir Cecil Clementi45 and Sir R.F. Johnston. All these early British 'scholar-officials' helped to lay the foundations in Britain of Chinese studies and were among the first to staff and to head new departments of Chinese studies or to interest people in the study of a unique Asian civilisation and culture.\n\nLockhart, of course, was a busy, conscientious and efficient civil servant who could not spend his working hours brooding over knotty problems of translation or sinological conundrums; but he was always a remarkably energetic man and, according to his daughter, rose early in the morning and did his private work long before his Department was open officially.\n\nLockhart's studies appear to have extended into the evenings as well. There is an interesting reference to him, by T. Kirkman Dealy, in the Preface (1907) to his revised edition of Chambers' English-Cantonese Dictionary:\n\nI still vividly retain very clear recollection of a periodical after-dinner meeting which I was privileged to attend, in the middle eighties, at the former London Mission House, where, round a lamp-lighted table, under the personal presidency of the then venerable head of the London Mission [Dr. John Chalmers], sat the late Dr. Faber, Mr. J.H. Stewart Lockhart (now His Honour the Commissioner for Wei-hai-wei), Mr. (now Dr.) G.H. Bateson Wright, Head Master of Queen's College, Mr. Addys of the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank, the late Mr. A. Falconer, Second Master of the old Government Central School, and others, eagerly discussing, assiduously comparing, commenting on, and revising, translations of portions of a minor Chinese classic made, since the previous session, by individual members of the class.46\n\nThis very Victorian passion for work, which embraced not only his official duties but his private interest in sinology, allowed Lockhart to publish in 1893 his first book, a Manual of Chinese Quota-", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1972.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/gm80qf99h", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 212334, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1990", "page_number": 276, "title": "RAS-1990", "content_text": "253\n\nOther firms\n\nAs mentioned earlier this article is by no means exhaustive. Other old firms still exist. They include Lammert, Atkinson and Company, which was founded by George Rhinegold Lammert, who opened the firm in Stanley Street. Lammert Bros. (as they are now known), present advertisements claim, have been auctioneers in Hong Kong since 1855, and in 1870 the firm was advertised as a naval and general store, auctioneers and commission agents. Some sales were conducted in the medium of Chinese, which was unusual at the time.\n\nAnother old, still-existing, establishment is George Falconer the Jewellers. The founder of the company had previously worked for Douglas Lapraik and Company, watch repairers. Lapraik came to Hong Kong from Scotland, in 1843, and before starting up on his own account worked for L. Just, watch and chronometer makers, in D'Aguilar Street. Lapraik started the Douglas Steamship Company in 1883. He also built the unconventional Douglas Castle, at Pok Fu Lam, now used as a hostel for university students.\n\nAnother early shop in the Colony was Kelly and Walsh, established in 1885. Kelly, the printer, was Irish, while Walsh, the bookseller and publisher, was Scottish. There were about 20 shareholders. The first shop was in Queen's Road. It then moved to York Building (Chater Road), then to Prince's Building (Chater Road), to Swire House, and finally to its present location in Ice House Street. There were branches in Shanghai, Singapore, Hankow and Japan. Their printing presses were in Shanghai and Singapore, and Kelly and Walsh published about 500 titles all told.\n\nLiquidated firms\n\nMany fortunes were made and lost in early Hong Kong, and some once thriving companies ceased business long ago. Not all taipans went back to Britain on retirement as rich men. Recessions can be traced at intervals throughout the history of the Colony and a number of firms were badly affected.\n\nOne of the most important houses to go out of business was Dent and Company (already briefly mentioned), which was founded by William Dent at the end of the 18th century. By the time the three", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1990.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/d79206299", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 212728, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1992", "page_number": 37, "title": "RAS-1992", "content_text": "22\n\nAlthough from several of his comments in his Miscellany Mesny would appear to have remained a God-fearing Christian, at one point, he confessed that he had grown up with a strong inclination to sinfulness and, he continued, in 1865 he had added to his gallantries the vicious habits of gambling and drinking having just lost his 'fair charmer,' a Chinese widow. However, 'having lost my fear of God and drifted from the narrow path that leadeth unto salvation,' fortunately, he wrote, the Revs. Josiah Cox and Griffith John, Dr John Falconer and Wm Grant Gordon never forsook him. They gave him good advice and showed good examples which he followed. His fall from grace appears to have been of short duration and was never again referred to.\n\nHe made the point several times that he was a Christian believer and, for example, he began a lengthy paragraph with the sentences, 'From my earliest departure from home in 1854 unto the present day [1896] the Holy Bible has been my constant companion, and the Lord God Almighty has been my refuge and strong tower, and I have had much reason to praise the Lord, for his mercy endureth forever. The VIII Psalm, and more especially the 4th and 5th verses of that Psalm, also the 1st and 2nd verses of the IX Psalm, have been very appropriate to my personal experience at various times and at various places.' He continued in this vein for the rest of the paragraph, ending with ‘Of late years I have often had reason to apply the prayer of David to my humble self as it is given in Psalm LXXXVI.’\n\nIn a card sent by him in his last year he referred to himself not only as a friend of China but also a 'Student of Primitive Christianity and Christian Science.'\n\nMesny recounted at some length, as was his wont, the cleansing of the soul of a very wild Liverpudlian who roamed the Yangtze in his lorcha and took great pleasure in killing any Chinese with his great sword in revenge for the great harm they had caused him. The Liverpudlian called on Mesny some time in the early 1860s and finding him kneeling in his daily devotions joined him, and begged Mesny first to say a prayer for him. He then asked to be purified and absolved. Mesny did as he requested and the Liverpudlian 'went away very much changed. He came boldly as a lion and departed timid as a sheep.' Mesny heard later that the Liverpudlian had disappeared from the river [the Yangtze] and was never heard of again.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1992.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/qf85tx75x", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 216148, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-2002", "page_number": 447, "title": "RAS-2002", "content_text": "381\n\nTHE COLOURFUL DOUGLAS LAPRAIK (1818-1869)\n\nPETER HANSELL\n\nA year or more ago I purchased what appeared to be an interesting clock at an auction of the residue of the estate of an elderly spinster lady domiciled in the UK, but without any surviving relatives.\n\nMy instant reaction to the likely function of this clock was that it had been used or owned by a merchant traveller or campaigner and so it turned out to be. Similar in substantive construction to a ship's chronometer, but with a lever escapement, it had been lovingly embellished with a gilt oriental bow and strut at some later date and was contained in a mahogany travelling case, which could be laid flat, carried by a flush brass handle, or hung from a concealed bracket. The silvered dial is cursively engraved Douglas Lapraik, Hong Kong.\n\nHaving no provenance from the previous owner, my researches had to begin. Many residents of Hong Kong will know the legend of Douglas Lapraik, but it is worth paraphrasing here. He left Scotland as 'a young businessman' in 1839 at the age of 21 in order to seek further fortunes in the Far East. He spent some time in Macao before moving to Hong Kong, which had recently become a British Dependency. Before arrival there in 1842 in somewhat straitened circumstances he had become acquainted with a fellow ex-patriot and clockmaker, Leonard Just, to whom he became apprenticed. There were several Justs who were devoted to the clock making industry, but Leonard had been supplying clocks and watches to the Chinese market before he emigrated from Scotland a little earlier. His son Leonard Just Junior was listed as an apprentice along with Lapraik. During this time, Douglas Lapraik must have become acquainted with numerous mariners, their ships and their clocks, which he undoubtedly repaired. After a few years he is recorded as setting up his own clock making business, which, after his final departure from Hong Kong, became \"Falconer Jewellers', a trading name that survives to this day.\n\nPerhaps a more important development was that pari passu with this horological activity he became commercially interested in ships and shipping, the building of docks and warehouses and the establishment of a very successful shipping line chiefly concerned with", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-2002.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mp4901278", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 216149, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-2002", "page_number": 448, "title": "RAS-2002", "content_text": "382\n\ncoastal trading. He offered cheap fares to Chinese workers to encourage them to engage with Hong Kong. In this he was hoist with his own petard as some of the imported bandits crawled up the storm drains and burrowed into his clock and jewellery business premises, removing many valuables. He ultimately left a line of eight coastal steamers to be managed by his nephew and great-nephew.\n\nIn short, Lapraik became a wealthy merchant prince, building a castellated residence for himself and his company; he was a respected civic dignitary and benefactor, but not without his detractors. Memorials to his achievements included the presentation of a civic clock for the clock tower at Pedder Street and Queens Road, but the tower itself was demolished in 1913 and the clock itself has been lost. Much later, his nephews had an elaborate stained-glass window installed in St John's Cathedral and dedicated to his memory; it was regrettably destroyed during the WW2 occupation and few substantial records remain.\n\nAt the relatively youthful age of 48 he retired and returned to England, leaving his nephews to run the shipping business and Mr Falconer, a one-time employee, inherited the clock and jewellery enterprise. That same year he married a lady from the Isle of Wight, having settled a trust for his Chinese concubine before leaving Hong Kong. Sadly, he died a few years later of a malignancy at the age of 51, but with a smile on his face, it is said.\n\nOne of the beneficiaries of his will was a Douglas Dixson, the son of a late colleague who was a newspaper proprietor in Hong Kong and we discover circumstantially that the lady who previously owned my clock had documented connections with that particular family. So, who knows, with such slender conjecture, I may have the master's own clock.\n\nThis is but a thumbnail sketch of the life of an extraordinary man, stitched together from information provided by very many kind people both here in the UK and in Hong Kong. In the interim, I should like to thank in particular Mr Philip Kemp, related to Lapraik through marriage; Dr Dan Waters and Dr Solomon Bard of Hong Kong; and Bernard Hui of the Hong Kong Public Records Office, who made available to me some archival record cards compiled by the Reverend Carl Smith. My searches are not complete and I shall be ever grateful to receive any further anecdotal recollections about Lapraik and particularly about his clocks.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-2002.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mp4901278", "rank": 0 } ]