[
    {
        "id": 206273,
        "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-1971",
        "page_number": 90,
        "title": "RAS-1971",
        "content_text": "84 \n\nCARL T. SMITH \n\ntherefore in the hands of shopkeepers, compradors and pedlars of whom there are many, though their transactions when considered as a whole are but trifling.' \n\n12 \n\nIn his remarks on native trade, Gutzlaff states that an attempt had been made by a Cantonese capitalist to establish himself in Hong Kong. He is referring to Chinam, alias Chan Akuen, who with three other partners operated under the firm name of Tun Wo *. The Colonial Treasurer, R. M. Martin, also refers to him in his report: \"One man of reputed wealth named Chinam, who had been engaged in the opium trade, came to Hong Kong, built a good house, and freighted a ship. He soon returned to Canton, and died there of a fever and cold contracted in Hong Kong. It was understood, however, that had he lived he would have been prohibited from returning to Hong Kong\",13 \n\nIn June, 1843, Chinam bought Marine Lot 54 from Richard Oswald paying $8,000. At the time it had on it a Singapore frame house14 with brick enlargements. On the lot Chinam proceeded to build a large Hong in the Chinese style, but before the building was completed, he died in July, 1844. With his death the firm closed down its operations in Hong Kong and most of the Hong stood unoccupied for a number of years. One of Chinam's partners, Chan Chun-poo, was appointed his administrator, but due to irregularities in his handling of the estate he was imprisoned in 1854, and remained in prison for two years. He petitioned the Government for his release on the grounds of his advanced age. The property of Chinam's firm was sold in 1854 to Ow Yeung Sun, a trader from the San Wui District in Kwang Tung. \n\nAnother Canton firm that established itself in Hong Kong in the early days was Akow and Company. It was not in the same class as Chinam's Tun Wo firm, but its position was above that of the shopkeepers and tradesmen concentrated in the Bazaar areas. The company was granted Inland Lot 22 located at the corner of Queen's Road and Pottinger Street in the European section. The firm consisted of five partners, of whom Cheung Kam Cheong was resident in Hong Kong. He began to speculate in real estate and bought several lots at Government land auctions. His land investments were not successful and \n\nPage 90\n\nPage 91",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1971.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/z029vt43g",
        "rank": 0
    },
    {
        "id": 206274,
        "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-1971",
        "page_number": 91,
        "title": "RAS-1971",
        "content_text": "CHINESE ELITE IN HONG KONG\n\n85\n\nsome of his property was sold at Sheriff's sale in 1847. Akow and Company sold its Queen's Road property in 1850, though Kam Cheong remained in Hong Kong. In 1852 he contributed five dollars to Dr. Hirschberg's Hospital. His last recorded activity in Hong Kong is the sale of two lots in 1855. At this time Akow and Company was operating a hotel for foreigners in Canton.\n\nAfter the death of Chinam the government still had hopes of attracting substantial merchants. A group of Fukienese inquired regarding conditions for settlement. For several generations a number of these merchants had operated large Hongs in Macao and the Hong Kong Government would have liked to induce them to move to Hong Kong. The Government therefore welcomed application from Fukien merchants for land grants. In the light of the ancient rivalry between Cantonese and Fukienese, it was felt that the allocation of land to this group needed to be handled with care. The Governor explains in his report to England that,\n\nThese people constitute a very peculiar race, being far more commercial, migratory, and maritime in their habits than any other natives of China. Their spoken language is altogether unintelligible to the people of Canton, between whom and themselves a species of irreconcilable feud has existed from time immemorial. Hence they cannot inhabit the same neighbourhood without quarrels, and occasionally bloody conflicts. If land is put up by auction the Fokien (or Chinchew men) would in competition with the Cantonese either be excluded altogether, or mingled with the Cantonese be to the prejudice of general peace and order. It is important to secure the settlement of this class of people (in the present instance men of substance). The Council agreed with me to grant them a special location... placed much to their satisfaction in the neighbourhood of East Point, and they have commenced building on five contiguous lots,\n\n15\n\nThis report was dated July 1845. However, in the Surveyor General's return of registered allotments as of 24 June 1846 he reports that the lots granted to the Chinchew merchants had been thrown up by them. So again the prospect of the settlement",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1971.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/z029vt43g",
        "rank": 0
    },
    {
        "id": 207560,
        "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-1975",
        "page_number": 328,
        "title": "RAS-1975",
        "content_text": "320\n\nNOTES AND QUERIES\n\nFoo Akow. In 1877 some of the premises were listed by streets; viz Main Street with forty houses and shops, Back Street with twenty small family residences, the Praya with five substantial buildings recently built, and six wooden houses near the Dock.\n\nIn 1880 the use of the premises are again given, though not all premises used for business purposes may be so recorded. The following summary, however, gives some indication of the business development of the settlement. There were seven chandlers, two eating houses, three barbers, and one each of druggist, rice shop, fruit dealer, and painter. By this date there were four more buildings on the Praya, and a fairly new group of houses opposite the entrance to the Dock premises. It might also be of interest to list the buildings contained within the Dock company's compound: the West Dock, ‘sheer legs', caisson, timber sheds on stone pillars and tiled offices, boiler maker's engine shop, moulder's shop and smith, the East Dock, pumping house, coal sheds, work shop, dwelling house, mat sheds, saw mill, boat building sheds, a new house with stores and new shops.\n\nThe business of the village in 1884 consisted of thirteen grocers, three eating houses, six barbers, two opium shops, two druggists, and on the beach to the west of the village four boat-building establishments. In addition there were single individuals listed as carpenter, fishmonger, shoe dealer, fruiterer, vegetable seller, and painter. This is probably not an exhaustive list of business and trades carried on, but it gives a fair picture of the local tradesmen at that time.\n\nThis year 1884 was a turning point in the physical development of the village, for in December of that year two fires within five days destroyed the major part of the settlement. The first fire broke out in a mat shed on December 11, and twenty-two timber houses with tile roofs for the temporary occupation of workers at the dock were consumed, whilst some dozen other buildings were pulled down to stop the progress of the fire. The newspaper notice (Daily Press, Dec. 12, 1884) remarks that \"the loss of property sustained was not very great, but a number of pigs were burned to death.\" The more serious fire was on December 16th, \"among the matsheds and shanties of a swarm of squatters who have settled down there.” The sight of the flames leaping into the sky seen from the Hong Kong side caused “a decidedly uncomfortable time to some of the shareholders of the Dock Company by the doubt as to whether the",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1975.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/j0995146d",
        "rank": 0
    }
]