[ { "id": 205329, "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-1967", "page_number": 91, "title": "RAS-1967", "content_text": "84 \n\nA. D. BLUE \n\nChina coasters came from all parts of the Commonwealth, but with a preponderance of English, Irish, Scots, and Welshmen. There was never any lack of Welshmen, and no coaster was complete without its Jones or Evans, invariably prefixed by 'Dai' or 'Taffy'. Australians and New Zealanders were not uncommon, and there were also a few Anglo-Indians. In my time, however, I can recall only one Canadian and one South African. One pleasant feature of coast life was the friendship and harmony between deck and engine departments, something still too rare on home ships. The small number of Europeans on the average coaster may have contributed to this, seldom more than three mates and four engineers, with the radio officer often a Hong Kong Chinese.\n\nThe riverboats were a special species of 'China coaster', and many of their officers spent their entire careers on the Yangtse. The Lower Riverboats, which ran between Shanghai and Hankow, operated a fortnightly schedule, of which three days were spent in Shanghai and two in Hankow. During the summer months of high water, however, some Lower Riverboats continued to Ichang, which extended their schedule to three weeks. Jardines, the China Navigation Company, and the China Merchants Steam Navigation Company each had a daily sailing from Shanghai to Hankow, calling at the intermediate ports, of which the most important were Chinkiang, Nanking, Wuhu, Anking, Kiukiang, and Yochow and Shasi on the Middle River between Hankow and Ichang. The China Navigation Company's Lower Riverboats left the French Bund at three o'clock in the morning, so that they could navigate the tricky Lungshan Crossing at the estuary in daylight, and it was not unknown for junior officers to miss their ship. By catching an early morning train from Shanghai, however, they could rejoin at Nanking in the afternoon, an extreme form of pierhead jump.\n\nIf riverboat men were a special species of 'China coaster', the men who sailed on the Upper Yangtse were a distinct sub-species. The Upper Riverboats ran between Ichang and Chungking, the section of the Yangtse which included the famous and spectacular Yangtse Gorges. The men on these ships had some justification for considering themselves the aristocrats of the China coast. The slightest error in navigation, or the slightest engine mishap, would almost certainly have meant a serious casualty. The Gorge boats", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1967.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/0c488p70g", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 210794, "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-1986", "page_number": 145, "title": "RAS-1986", "content_text": "128\n\nD.L. MICHALK\n\n1940 and 1941. Troops trained on Hainan included part of the 18th Division which was later landed at Kota Bharu and which pushed southward along the Malayan east coast, the 5th Division which was landed at Singora and Patani in Thailand, the Guards Division which was lent to the XV Japanese Army for the early part of the invasion of Thailand and Burma, and then reverted to the XXV Army to support the advance of the 5th Division (Wigmore, 1957). In fact, the 5th Division was shipped in troops transports from San Ya in December, 1941, to the Thai peninsula (Wigmore, 1957).\n\nAnother attraction for the invaders was the rich mineral resources of the island. Industrialists quickly developed a large, open-cut mine at Shi Lu Shan to provide the much-needed iron ore for the Japanese war effort. This necessitated construction of ports at Ba Suo and Yu Lin, and a railway link to transport the annual ore production of 2 million tonnes to these ports. To achieve the development targets demanded by Tokyo, Chinese were indentured and mustered into work-camps. Later Australian and Dutch soldiers captured in Indonesia were transported to a camp at Ba Suo to help with the work (Wigmore, 1957).\n\nA total of 267 Australians from the 2/21st Australian Infantry Battalion (or Gull Force as it was known) and 233 Dutchmen captured at Ambon were transported in the \"Taiko Maru\" to Hainan, arriving at Ba Suo in October, 1942. Conditions at the camp were harsh, and only 110 Australians remained when liberated by American forces on August 26, 1945. The opening of Hainan to foreign tourists enabled ten former Australian prisoners to return to Hainan in 1985 specifically to seek information on the fate of ten Australians who escaped from the camp and joined Communist forces in guerilla campaigns against the Japanese army (Nelson, 1985).\n\nLiberation and isolation\n\nAfter the defeat of the Japanese, the KMT regained control of the island, and when Chiang Kai-shek retreated from the mainland to Taiwan more than 100,000 of his loyal soldiers fled to Hainan. This meant that although the \"People's Republic\" was", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1986.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/jq08c7063", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 210808, "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-1986", "page_number": 159, "title": "RAS-1986", "content_text": "D.L. MICHALK\n\nModel Cattle Farm\", Proceedings of the XVth International Grassland Congress, Kyoto, Japan (in press).\n\nMoninger, M.M. (1919) The Isle of Palms, Commercial Press Ltd., Shanghai.\n\nNalson, J.S., and J.F. Ayres (1984) “Development Projects and the Production Responsibility System in China: A Case Study”, Australian Journal of Chinese Affairs, 11: 131-145.\n\nNelson, H. (1985) “Prisoners-of-War: Australians under Nippon\", Australian Broadcasting Corporation.\n\nO'Leary, G., and A. Watson (1982) \"The Production Responsibility System and the Future of Collective Farming”, Australian Journal of Chinese Affairs, 8: 1-34.\n\nPfister, P.L. (1932) “Notices Biographiques et Bibliographiques sur les Jésuites de l'ancienne Mission de Chine, 1552-1773\", Variétés Sinologiques, Number 59.\n\nPope, C. (1924) “Hainan”, Natural History, 24: 215-223.\n\nPurefoy, J. (1825) “Diary of a Journey from Manchao on the South Coast of Hainan to Canton\", Asiatic Journal and Monthly Register of British and Foreign India, 20: 521-528; 621-628.\n\nSavina, M. (1929) “Monographie de Hainan\", Cahiers de la Société de Géographie de Hanoi, Number 17.\n\nSchafer, E.H. (1952) \"The Pearl Fisheries of Ho-Pu”, Journal of American Oriental Society, 72: 155-168.\n\nSchafer, E.H. (1969) Shore of Pearls, University of California Press, Berkeley, California, U.S.A.\n\nSmil, V. (1983) \"Deforestation in China”, Ambio, 12: 226-231.\n\nSouth China Morning Post (1983) \"Big Anti-Deng Riot Reported in Hainan\", March 3, 1983.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1986.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/jq08c7063", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 211448, "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-1988", "page_number": 164, "title": "RAS-1988", "content_text": "140\n\nthis lady was Mollie Wong Yap, a Chinese-Hawaiian, who became a teacher and later lived on Vineyard Street near the Foster Gardens.) He described his landing at Nawiliwili, his visits to Kapaa, Lihue and Hanapepe where he met Wong Fat, Au Wai Bun and Fong Chock Kee. He enjoyed the sight of a river winding through Waimea and concluded that the land, not yet cultivated, would be good for farming. He was overwhelmed with the warmth and hospitality of the Chinese there, because they offered him food and lodging as soon as they learned who he was, and he felt that one's reputation was very important. Another friend of Father's at Hop Kee ✩ in Kolon wrote that his business was poor and his expenses were great.\n\nFather must have consulted First Uncle about joining friends in Sydney, because First Uncle wrote advising against the move. In a letter dated 22 August 1899, First Uncle said that Grandfather and Aunt Yim were not in favour of this move. Moreover, he felt that one could not become rich on a salary and thought that Hawaii was good for the Chinese and for their investments. Several letters written in 1903 and 1904 brought news from friends in Australia. A newspaper article from them revealed that the Australians were feeling threatened by the Chinese, who undercut wages, sent their savings back to China, and did not assimilate. So Shai Lum, a friend in Tamworth, New South Wales, wrote that he had invested in a business selling groceries, furniture and dry goods, and that it was doing well. Another friend, Ng Yook Tong, ran a fruit store in Sydney but was only able to make a living. A third, Go Bing Mun wrote he was with Sam Kee in Tingha not far from Tamworth.\n\nFather also communicated with friends in Hilo. On 8 September 1899, he received a letter from the Rev. Yee Tin Kui about a job opening with Man Sing Company in Hilo, should Father decide to discontinue his schooling. The salary would be 17 dollars a month and he would take care of invoices, billing and other bookkeeping chores. Furthermore, he would have an opportunity to become a partner. Thereupon, Father wrote Chee Fong, the owner, to ask about the likelihood of employment, explaining that he had already given up his position with the Honolulu Chinese Times and the one following with the Hawaii Hardware Company, because he had been hired without any consideration of his lack of experience. No doubt his application was accepted, for in his undated letter to Au Goon Bick in Kauai Father wrote that he was leaving", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1988.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/ft84gb83q", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 212612, "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-1991", "page_number": 166, "title": "RAS-1991", "content_text": "146\n\nis made up\n\nfor the job with any material handy. It may be fired electrically or by a spring designed specially for the purpose. There are three main kinds of spring: the pressure-switch, which goes off if you press on it; for instance, if you walk on it, or a train goes over it: the pull-switch, which is generally attached to a trip wire: and the release-switch, which goes off when you take a weight off it. When you set the trap, a cap is fitted to the switch. The cap fires a length of instantaneous fuse - this is a third kind of fuse - and that sets the charge off. Setting traps and dismantling them is a battle of wits. If you use the same kind of trap too often the enemy will tumble to it and learn how to discover and dismantle it: so you have to keep on ringing the changes. If you start with a simple pressure switch trap under a loose floor board, you can improve on it by putting a release-switch trap under a loose floor board, you can improve on it by putting a release-switch, duly connected up, under the charge itself. Then when the enemy comes along, he spots your trap, carefully eases up the floor board, maybe detaches the pressure-switch from the charge and thinks he is safe; but when he stoops to pick up the charge, the release-switch is set off and the trap explodes. That is a very simple illustration. In the course of several years of warfare the refinements in booby-trapping have been developed to the nth degree.\n\nIt will be seen that traps can only be used in places which our side is preparing to vacate. They must be carefully tabulated so that they can be located and taken up should our troops return: also, special precautions have to be taken in a district where there are friendly natives, lest they suffer. In many ways the use of booby-trapping can be a two-edged weapon.\n\nAt the end of November in 1941 I was included amongst several officers detailed to proceed to Chungking. Britain was still neutral in the war between China and Japan, and so we were instructed to wear plain clothes. We set out after lunch one day to motor the hundred miles to Lashio, where we were comfortably accommodated in the American hostel operated by the C.N.A.C. Next day, December 1st, 1941, we boarded the aeroplane and touched down on the island airstrip in the Yangking at dusk.\n\nBefore leaving Burma I acquired two useful items of equipment, the one a felt hat, of the kind used by Australians and Gurkhas, a comfortable head-piece, which kept the sun out and also a certain amount of rain:", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1991.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/k356gt84j", "rank": 0 } ]