RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1961
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/vd6724704
Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch

ORASHKB and author

120

Vol. 1 (1961)

ISSN 1991-7295

In the New Territories, there are at present no funeral parlours and few undertakers. As in the agricultural interior of China, practical responsibility still falls mainly on the kinsmen of the deceased. The customary burial of villagers is in two stages: initial coffin burial, and subsequent exhumation and re-interment of remains. Having encoffined the body, the relatives normally sustain the vigil directly outside the home under a temporary shelter. Burial then takes place in a traditional village area, but no monument is erected beyond a small unshaped stone at the head of the grave. After five years or more, the body is exhumed. The bones will be cleaned by the family and be placed either in a funerary urn (kam t'aàp) or in a formal masonry grave (shaan fan) shaped like a horseshoe. In the funerary urn, the bones will be arranged in a manner as if the deceased were sitting in the Buddhist lotus posture.

The siting of funerary urns and horseshoe graves is of particular importance. Relatives will go to great lengths to ensure that the jung shui of the site is propitious. In other words, they wish to ensure that the benevolent influence of the site will protect the deceased, as a member of the family, so that he in turn will look kindly upon his relatives. The site is usually high up, commanding a view of water, and on a ridge or spur which represents, for instance, a dragon, snake, shrimp or crab in its formation. Standing with one's back to a horseshoe grave, one sees a half circle within a radius of ten yards, which is normally regarded as sacrosanct. Disturbance of the ground is regarded with strong disfavour. Traditionally, the left arm of the panorama in front should consist of a long ridge (containing a "green dragon”) and the right arm of a shorter ridge (containing a "white tiger"). In a horseshoe grave, the exhumed remains are buried in a jar in the centre, just in front of a stone plaque (pei shek) that records the name of the deceased, the date of his death, and other details. Important graves of recorded ancestors or founders of a clan are often flanked by a small shrine (haû tỏ) on either side and sometimes another behind, at a distance of ten to twenty feet from the main grave. The object of the shrines is to persuade the earth god to look after the grave.

Whether the exhumed remains are to be placed in a funerary urn or in a horseshoe grave seems to be governed by the sex and general standing of the deceased in the clan, or even by the financial state of the relatives at the time of exhumation. The remains are normally fit for exhumation after a minimum of five years of burial, but, even so, exhumation should not strictly take place unless there has been no pregnancy amongst the deceased's close female relatives in the immediately preceding nine months. This requirement, which would tend to impose some hardship
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1973
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8910rj06r
LEGENDS AND STORIES OF THE 

NEW TERRITORIES 

KAM T'IN 錦田 

SUNG HOK-P'ANG 

Kam T'in is one of the oldest villages in the New Territories. During the dynasty of Hau Chau (後周) A.D. 951-959 most of the villagers belonged to the family of Ch'an (陳) and the place was called Ch'an Tin (陳田) meaning Chan's field. In the 6th year of Hoi Po (開寶) A.D. 973 of Sung (宋) dynasty Tang Hon Fat (鄧漢黻) who is said to be the first Tang (鄧) ancestor to come to Kwangtung (廣東) settled in the village, and built the first house at the bottom of a hill called Kwai Kok Shaan (龜角山) about ¼ of a mile away from the present Kam T'in. It was at first called Sham Lei (岑里), but later on they cultivated the surrounding country and the name was changed to Sham Lei T'in (岑里田) which was soon shortened to Sham T'in (岑田) meaning fields surrounding a small hill. The present name of Kam T'in (錦田) or ornamental fields, was given to the village in the 15th year of Maan Lik (萬曆) A.D. 1587 of Ming dynasty (明朝), and it came about in this way. 

At that time there was a very bad famine in the San On district (新安縣), and the district magistrate Yau T'ai K’în (游大乾) was obliged to open the government granaries and distribute the rice to relieve the people. But when it was finished they were still in need, and the magistrate then sent his officers to all the rich men in the district asking them for donations to help the poor. Most of them contributed a few piculs of rice, but none of them more than a hundred. Then Tang Yuen Fan (鄧元藩) of Sham T'in was visited. He was the richest man in San On district, and was noted for his generosity. He owned over 10,000 Chinese acres of cultivated 

*There are six sections to this long article, each printed in different numbers of The Hong Kong Naturalist. In this reissue the separate parts will be indicated by figures within square brackets. The first three sections, given here, appeared in the issues for December 1935 and April and June 1936. The rest will follow in the next issue of this Journal. 

The romanizations used in the original included figures to indicate tone values. These are now excluded. Ed.
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land, distributed in various parts of the mainland, and on the island, having fields in Kowloon, Ch'eung Sha Wan (*) Kw'an Taai Lo (###) (where the city of Victoria now stands) Causeway Bay, Pokfulum and Aberdeen. He immediately promised to give one thousand piculs. When Yau Tai K'in heard of it he thought there must be some mistake, but the officer said, “At first I also thought he made a mistake, so I asked him again, and he said quite plainly, one thousand piculs!” So Yau T'ai K'in was very pleased, and he at once went off to visit Tang Yuen Fan, who said, “My rice is quite ready in the granary.” The magistrate sent off word to the "Yamen" to have junks sent to collect the rice, and on the day it was collected the river was so covered with the junks that the water could not be seen, and all the people gathered to watch shouted for joy. Yau remained with Tang several days and spent much time walking about the country admiring the scenery. He was much impressed by the fine buildings, open fields and pleasant woods, and exclaimed, “Why should the village have such a name? Sham T'in, it should be called Kam T'in instead!” The villagers were delighted with the new name, and it has remained till the present day.

The name, however, now embraces quite a large collection of villages each with its own name, but most of the villagers still belong to the Tang family and the name of Ch'an has disappeared. There are a certain number of people with other surnames to be found among the Tangs, but they have come in from other places at different times and are not really native to the place in the same way as the Tangs are. A new village which goes by the name of San Ts'uen (††††) new village, has been built very recently for the Cheng (*) family who had to move from the Shing Moon (M¶) district when the reservoir was started.

The only trace of the old Ch'an T'in village that remains is the temple known as Hung Shing Kung (g) in Shui Pin Ts'uen (k). This temple which was built by the Tangs is known in the village as the Big Temple although small, because formerly it was merely a shrine and was enlarged to its present size at a later date. The exact date of the temple is not known. Some say it was built when the first Tang came to Kwai Kok Shaan; others, that it was built first as a small shrine in the time of Shing Fa (✯ft) A.D. 1465-1487 of Ming dynasty when the Tang family built the village
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to Kam T'in he was much taken by it, considering the people were more friendly and honest than those of his own country, and it was said that he came to live there in the 6th year of Hoi Po (HT) A.D. 973 of Sung dynasty. During the 8th year of Shing Fa (APC) A.D. 1472 of Ming dynasty when the Kam T'in people revised their family tree, they added a note which cast doubt on the veracity of this, and instead they were inclined to believe that Tang Foo (#) the great grandson of Tang Hon Fat was really the first to come to Kam Tin, and that he transferred the bones of his father, grandfather and great-grandfather to Kwangtung from Kiangsi. Be that as it may, and although there is no actual proof that one or other was the original Tang to settle in Kwangtung, Tang Hon Fat remains a "first ancestor" as his is the oldest Tang grave near Kam T'in. It can be found at Ah Kai Shaan (Y), Waang Chau (H) village.

Six generations after Tang Hon Fat there were two brothers, Kwai (3) and Sui (). Kwai had two sons called Yuen Ying (* ) and Yuen Hei (†), both of whom left Kam T’in and founded branches of the family elsewhere. Sui had three sons, Yuen Ching (元祯), Yuen Leung (元亮) and Yuen Woh (元和). The first and last of these also left for other districts but Yuen Leung remained behind, and the Tangs in Kam T’in to-day are his direct descendants. These five cousins were known as the "Five Yuens", and after their death their descendants who by then were scattered in various parts of China built an Ancestral Hall, common to all the Yuens, called To Hing T'ong (*). It is at the South gate of the district city of Tung Koon (✯✯), on the Kowloon-Canton railway not far from Sheklung (). In the hall Tang Hon Fat has been given premier place, but the "Five Yuens" are venerated in the same way as he and Tang Yue are, as being "first ancestors”.

As mentioned before, Tang Foo, the great grandson of Tang Hon Fat is said to have found the sites for the graves of his father, grandfather and great-grandfather, himself. They were all acknowledged as being lucky places by the "fung shui" men, who were, of course, consulted. That of Tang Hon Fat is called Yuk Nui Paai T'ong (£#*) jade girl reverence; and his son's grave which is on Yuen Long Hill (₪), is called Kam Chung Fau Tei () gold bell cover ground. The grave of Tang Foo's father is called Poon Yuet Chiu T'aam (#AM) half moon shine lake,

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Tang Foo's own grave is well known, as it was mentioned in the "To Shue Tsap Shing" (4) a large encyclopaedia of 10,000 volumes written in the 4th year of Yung Ching (£) A.D. 1726 of Tsing dynasty, by order of the Emperor. The volume which refers to the grave is known "Chik Fong Tin” (*) and it says, "Tang Foo's grave is in Ab Kai 鄧符墓在横洲丫髻山 Shaan, Wang Chau".

Even if it is accepted that Tang Foo was the pioneer in settling at Kam Tin, or Kwai Kok Shaan as it was then called, there is very conflicting evidence as to when he actually went there. Although his grave-stone records that he passed the Tsun Sz (±) degree, Government civil examination in the 2nd year of Sung Ning (##) A.D. 1103 of Sung dynasty, there is no record of it in the lists of people who passed the Government examinations (Suen Kui Piu ***), in the annals of Canton, Kwong Chau Foo Chi (✯✯), Tung Kwoon, Tung Koon Yuen Chi (4) or San On, San On Yuen Chi (##) which points to the fact that Tang Foo passed his examinations in Kiangsi before coming to Kwang-tung.

Each of the three books mentioned above has a biography of Tang Foo. On the other hand, it is known that after Tang Foo had held the office of district magistrate of Yueng Ch'un (1★-) district and had been promoted to "Naam Hung Sui" ( ) he retired to live in Kwai Kok Shaan, and built a famous school there called Lik Ying Tsai () which was mentioned among “The hundred poems of Po On (Po On Paak Wing (*)" by Yung Ping(), where it was stated that during Sung Ling time A.D. 1102-1106 Tang Foo lived in Kwai Kok Shaan and founded a school called Lik Ying Tsaai (A) and kept a lot of books in the library.

This book has unfortunately been lost, and only two poems are still in existence, neither of which deal with the school. Yung Ping was a native of Tung Koon. He was "Tak Tsau Ming Tsun Sz” (*★21) in the 8th year of K’in To ($) A‚D, 1172 of Sung dynasty.

Another learned scholar, Fok Wai () of Naam Hoi () district, wrote a long article named Lik Ying Tsaai Kei (4) giving an account of the school. During the reign of Shun Hei ( # ) A.D. 1174-1189 the emperor caused Fok Wai to be admitted to the T'aai Hok (*) (Imperial College) as being a "man possessing the eight virtues." Paat Hang Aff.

Only one other scholar...
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LEGENDS & STORIES OF THE NEW TERRITORIES: KAM TIN 117

from Kwantung province Wong Chi Tsoi (£*) of Tung Koon district was rewarded with this privilege.

The Lik Ying Tsaai had a large library which housed many thousands of books, and outside the North gate of the village Tang Foo built several hostels for the students to live in. He cultivated the surrounding fields, and the income derived from them was used for forming scholarships for poor students. Tang Foo lectured to the scholars himself sometimes, but he also paid learned men to teach regularly. In the 24th year of Ka Hing (✯✯) A.D. 1819 of Ts'ing (†) dynasty when "The History of the San On district" was revised the ruins of the school were still to be seen, but now there is no trace of it left.

According to a copy of the family tree belonging to the Ping Shaan (1) branch of the Tang family, the original stone on Tang Foo's grave was replaced in the 45th year of Ka Tsing (†) A.D. 1566 of Ming dynasty, by a man named Tang Shui Faan (†4K) as it was broken and illegible. On the new stone it was said that the date of Tang Foo was not obtainable, but it stated that he lived during the Sung dynasty. In the 33rd year of Hong Hei () A.D. 1694, of Tsing dynasty another stone was erected, and it is this one, that gives the date of Tang Foo passing his Tsun-sz (+) examination to be the 2nd year of Sung Ning ($) of Sung dynasty A.D. 1103, but considering that his great grandson Tang Sin (#) (or Tang Yuen Leung, one of the "five yuens”) is known to have been district officer of Kung Yuen (4) Kiangsi province in the 3rd year of Kin Yim (£ƒ) A.D. 1129 of Sung dynasty, it is probable that Tang Foo lived a good deal earlier. In fact in the 8th year of Shing Fa (1 ) A.D. 1472 of Ming dynasty the Tang family wrote in their family tree the suggestion that perhaps the 2nd year of Sung Ning () was miswritten for 2nd year of Hei Ning ( ) which would put the date of Tang Foo back to A.D. 1069, a far more possible date.

The system of district magistrates in the Sung dynasty was quite different to the system in the modern dynasty of Ts'ing (). When the "Five Dynasties” Ng Toi (£†) A.D. 907-959 began China was in a state of rebellion and disunion. Large armies under their separate generals had to be sent to the various localities to keep order, but far from supporting the Emperor the generals turned the country they were sent to control, into feudatory states, Faan Chan
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LEGENDS & STORIES OF THE NEW TERRITORIES: KAM TIN 119

crow their feathers all fell down on the earth. Nine suns were shot down, but one was too far away to be reached, and that is the sun that still remains to this day. Ngai was very afraid of dying, and he went to a fairy called Sai Wong Mo (1) who gave him some medicine for long life. Sheung Ngoh stole it, and took it in secret. She became lighter and lighter and eventually floated up to the moon where she became a toad. She had a palace to live in which was called the Shim Kung. Another story tells of a Kwai tree growing in the moon, 5,000 Chinese feet tall. A man called Ng Kong (吳剛), who had been sent to the moon as a punishment by the gods for having committed something wrong when learning to become an immortal, was always chopping it with a large chopper. He never managed to cut it down, because as soon as a cut was made in the trunk, it instantly grew together again. Thus the saying "Shim Kung Chit Kwai" which applied to those who passed the highest government examinations, gradually came into use since the T'ong (唐) dynasty, A.D. 618. There were many Kwai trees on the hillsides of Kwai Kok Shaan, either planted by Tang Foo or someone later, and the teachers are supposed to have sent their pupils out from the school to pluck the sprigs of flowers with the idea of encouraging them to further effort.

Another name for the hill is Ngo T'aam Shaan (鵝潭山), turtle pool hill. There is a pool still to be found on the hillside, which, according to one story, used to have turtles living in it. Another story says that it had a rock looking like the head of a large turtle. In olden times all the successful candidates who had passed the government examination, Tsun Sz (進士) went up to the emperor's palace to sit for a further examination named Tin Shi (殿試). Those who passed had their names put in order of merit on a list written on gold paper, and at a ceremony known as Ch'uen Lo (傳臚) the names were read out. The two candidates at the top of the list were led up the steps of the palace by the master of ceremonies, who then presented the first candidate, called the Chong Yuen (狀元) with the list. At the top of the stairs was a turtle carved in stone, and finally the Chong Yuen was caused to stand with his foot on its head. Thus he was known as "Tuk chim ngo t'au" (獨占鰲頭). The scholars at Kwai Kok Shaan when wandering on the hillsides would amuse themselves by standing on the turtle-head rock and shouting “I am the only man to put his foot on the head of the turtle!"
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the name of the hill "Ngo T'aam Shaan" is almost unknown by most of the New Territory people now, a village near, formed recently by people returned from California and elsewhere, still follows the name of the hill "Ngo Taam", but the villagers in the New Territory dialect mispronounce the character #ngo-turtle to + ngau bovine animals and give the name of the village 4 (Ngau T'aam Mei), the end of the bovine animals pool, instead of *(Ngo T'aam Mei), the end of the turtle pool. 

= 

This pool is also called Lit Nui T'aam (♬★i§) meaning virtuous girl pool. About the time of the Sung dynasty there was a village girl called Man Kam So (X), who was about eighteen years old and very beautiful. One day she was out grass-cutting with several older women when she happened to stray away from them, and found herself near the pool. Suddenly she was accosted by a youth, she shouted to her companions for help, but in her terror she did not hear their answering shouts, and to save her virtue she sprang into the pool and was drowned. It is said that the name actually was given by the scholars themselves in her honour, and the pool was also called Yat Waan T'aam (~**), one coil pool. In those days married women had their hair done up in a series of coils, while the unmarried girls put it up in one coil only. 

The word Kok means horn. Thus according to the "To Shue Chaap Shing" the Kok in Kwai Kok Shaan referred to the two peaks of the hill that look like a pair of horns. The book also mentions that if the hill was clouded rain would certainly come. On the hill is a stone called the fairy hair-dressing stone, Sin Nui Soh Chong Shek (446), and at the bottom of the hill a stream called Kwai Kok Ts'uen (††), which is a famous place of scenery. It is recorded in "T'o Shue Chaap Shing" and other books, where it is said that the fountain is sweet and smooth for the tongue. Even now when the scholars of Kam T'in happen to call there, they draw some water from the stream and drink it, saying Yam shui sz yuen, "in drinking the water think of its source," which is a Chinese maxim, or adage for descendants in remembering the virtue and the good work done by their ancestors. Almost at the top of the hill are two big rocks one on top of the other looking like huge grinding stones about 50 Chinese feet tall, with a passage through. A family of tigers are said to have lived there once, so it 

#
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LEGENDS & STORIES OF THE NEW TERRITORIES: KAM TIN

the Emperor Sung Kwong Tsung (***). After her death her eldest son Lam (†) took a letter that she left behind to Sung Kwong Tsung, who ordered that honours should be paid to the dead princess, the name of Wong Kwu bestowed on her, and a thousand Chinese acres of cultivated land given to Lam, the income from which to be spent on her grave for customary rites and worship. The To Shue Tsaap Shing which was written in the 4th year of Yung Ching (£) of Ts'ing dynasty, A.D. 1726, mentions the fields as being still used for this purpose.

The princess was very famous for her humility. When she first came to Kam T'in she willingly helped to do the servants' work in the house, and showed no pride in her high birth. There are two sentences referring to her in a poem written by the poet Kan Sz Leung (MA) which run:—

1. 金枝玉葉無人偶,

2. 凄絕農家執箕帚。

which roughly translated read:

1. Gold branch jade leaves no one dare to make a pair with.

2. Sad utmost farmer family hold dustpan and broom.

When the princess became very old a site for her grave was chosen by a famous "fung shui" man named Lai Paak Shiu (16 #). He selected a hill called Sz Tsz Shaan (#) in Shek Tseng (#) near Shek Lung, which was supposed to resemble a lion, but he first asked her if she would prefer to be buried on the lion's head or its tail. She asked what difference it would make, and she was told that if her grave was on the head her descendants would be very great men; but if on the tail they would be more humble people, perhaps officers of low degree, and, although prosperous, none would succeed to high rank. The princess at once said, “I do not want my descendants to become great. They could never be as high as an Emperor's daughter, and yet even I was in danger of my life. I wish them to enjoy the red rice and the shiny scale fish (the unhusked rice and herrings, farmers' food). If they have that they should be content." So she was buried on the lion's tail, and two more sentences were written about her,

1. 紅米之飯錦鰍魚,

2. 田家風味甘有餘。
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125

been repaired and colour-washed in red and white. For a long time this grave was lost, much to the sorrow of Tsz Ming's descendants. In the 33rd year of Hong Hei (R) of Ts'ing dynasty, A.D. 1694, Tang Lui Taan (12) of Ha Ts'uen (†) happening to read the old history of Tung Kwun came across this passage. "Tang Tsz Ming's grave is in Kau To (A) on Fat Au Leng Shaan. It is now called Ng To (£) of San On district." Lui Taan reported this to a relation, Tang Ng Shaang (£) who immediately collected a party of Kam T'in men to go out to the hill and find it. They found a grave there, but on it was a stone stating that it belonged to Tang Maan Lei (£) a cousin of Tsz Ming and the first ancestor of the Ping Shaan family of Tangs. The Kam T'in men were preparing to go away disappointed, when Ng Shaang discovered another and much older stone nearby with the characters almost obliterated. He took the tea he had brought to drink, carefully washed the stone with it and found the following on it ẞ and part of the two characters Kwan # and Ma which were in Tsz Ming's title. After consultation it was decided to dig up the grave and a sham tomb with bricks inside it of a very old style were found exactly the same as in the princess' grave. At last they found the real tomb itself and Tsz Ming's bone-pot could be seen through a hole in the top. So the Kam T'in men were very glad indeed, and to show their gratitude every year about the third month, at the Ts'ing Ming () festival of worshipping at the graves of their ancestors, the Kam T'in people always presented Ng Shaang with some roast pork taken from the offerings for the husband of the princess.

[3]

During the Sung dynasty the titles of She Yan (4A) or Siu She (J) were used to address young men of high rank. As the four sons of Tang Tsz Ming and the Princess were the nephews of the Emperor they received the title of Kwok She (4) which means "Kingdom's young men." The eldest, Lam (*) was known as Taai Kwok She, the others Kei (2) Waai (†) and Tsz (†) were called Yee, Saam and Se Kwok She respectively. It is the custom in Kam Tin even now for the young people to address their fathers as "She" instead of “Ah Dae" (E) the Cantonese equivalent to "Daddy."
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1) as his son Hoh Wing (f) was a subordinate officer of this general. Hoh Wing was executed, and all his family punished. Hung Chi being considered a relation although it was only by marriage, was sentenced to banishment. His elder brother, who was the father of three sons, thinking him too young and ignorant and having no children to carry on his family, insisted on taking his place. So in the 26th year of Hung Mo (**) A.D. 1393 of Ming dynasty, Hung Yee went up North to Liao-tung (i★★). His banishment only lasted three years, but when he was free again to go where he liked Hung Yee appears to have been without means to get back to Kam T'in, because there is a story of his arriving in Nanking on foot, so poor that he was forced to beg in the streets and earn money by writing poems. One day a rich man named Ch'an (§) passed him in the street and noticing that his appearance and writing were those of an educated man, spoke to him and asked him his history. Touched by his story Ch'an befriended him, and made him the tutor of his children, but all the time Hung Yee longed for his own home and his own children. Eventually Ch'an suggested that if he provided him with a second wife he might be happier, so he arranged a marriage for him with his adopted daughter, Wong (*). Two years later a son was born called Kuen (§§), but after another year Hung Yee died. Then Ch'an provided the widow with money, and taking her little child, she set off to find her way to Kam T'in to bring Hung Yee's ashes back to the place of his ancestors. After many difficulties she arrived in Kam T'in only to find that Hung Yee's three sons Yam (†), Chan (14) and Yui (†) all grown up by now and not knowing anything of their father's history and second marriage, did not believe her story. Then Wong told them many old tales about Kam T'in that her husband had amused her with in the past in Nanking, and finally persuaded them to acknowledge her identity when she produced a fan with characters on it written in Hung Yee's own writing. So funeral preparations were at once made and customary rites performed in Hung Yee's honour, and Wong and her child were taken into the family. A year later the baby Kuen died and Wong was so upset that she threatened to take her life, and she was only prevented from doing so by Yam who promised to give her his son Naam K'ai () to be her grandson, that is, a son for her dead child. He also built her a house on Kwun Yum Shaan (4) where she could serve her husband's spirit tablet and study Bud-
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dhism. This was the origin of the Ling Wan Tsz (+) which still exists at the head of the Kam T'in valley, and is one of the best known monasteries in the New Territories. It was built between A.D. 1426 and 1435 during the period of Suen Tak (✯✯) of Ming dynasty. From Hung Yee's time up to the 2nd year of the Republic it has always been supported by the Kam T'in people. In the 2nd year of the Republic when abbot Miu Ts'aam (A) took charge of the monastery, it was supported by the management of Miu Ts'aam and his successors up to now. Little is known about the early abbots who directed the monastery. It is recorded on a tablet (written by a “mo kui yan” (AKA) of Kam T'in named Tang Ying Yuen (*), which is still to be seen in the monastery, that when some repairs were done to the building in the 1st year of To Kwong (i✯) A.D. 1821 of Ts'ing dynasty, the abbot Tik Ch'an (*) was in charge of raising the necessary funds for the work. Another abbot was Yuen Hung (H) who was in authority in the Ist year of Kwong Sui (✯✯) A.D. 1875 of T'sing dynasty, and when the British leased the New Territories in 1899 Ts'ing Yuen (#) was in charge of the monastery, but later he was promoted to be abbot in another monastery in Loh Fau Shaan (†#). The present building was put in order and enlarged by the late abbot Miu Ts'aam (A) who first held the office in the second year of the Republic. He did much to add to the existing buildings. Now if one visits the monastery a bell is heard being rung day and night. There is a story that when this bell was being cast everyone promised to subscribe to it, and from far and near people brought offerings of money and valuables. When it was completed a hole was found in it that spoilt the tone. In vain the makers tried to fill up the hole but each time the filling fell out. When they were in despair a woman appeared at Ling Wun bringing a gold earring with her. She explained that she had promised to give it as a donation for the bell, but had forgotten to do so. Then everyone said "No wonder! Now the bell is really complete" and they put the earring just as it was into the hole and found it fitted quite tightly. Then they rang the bell and, to their joy, the tone was perfect.*

To be continued

*The photographs illustrating this article will appear with the next instalment in the 1974 Journal,

Page 135

Page 136
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Tang Leung Sz passed Kung Shaang degree in the 38th year of Maan Lik♬ of Ming dynasty, A.D. 1610, and held the office of Fan-to.

Tang Yue Cheung took his Sau-t'soi✯✯ degree in the 2nd year of Yung Ching of Ts'ing dynasty A.D. 1724 and in the following year became a Lam Shang. In the first year of Kin-lung✯✯ A.D. 1736 he passed Kui Yan, second in the list of successful candidates, but just failed to pass the Wui Shi examination the following year. However, his name was put on the Ming T'ung Pong list and he was appointed as Hok-ching of Tak Hing Chau in Kwangtung province.

Tang Yue Cheung's name in the San On Record book is among the “Heung Yin" or "village worthies," and it is said there that:— Tang Yue Cheung was a scholar of a very kind and honest nature. He was very "taan-chik”✯✯ ("to wear the heart upon the sleeve for daws to peck at") and his knowledge of learning was very wide. In all his dealings with his friends he was sincere and faithful, and as a Hok-ching he was very diligent. Once some of his students fell out with the authorities, and found themselves faced with a false accusation, but were too afraid to defend themselves. Tang, however, at once entered into the dispute, and through his clear-headedness kept his students out of trouble. In the 17th year of K'in Lung A.D. 1752 Tang was called to the capital to attend an examination, but he died there, and Fung Shing Sau (a Hon Lam graduate) wrote the epitaph "for his name lives for ever,” to be carved on his grave.

Tang Man Wai was the only Tsun-sz come from the New Territories, and his name is recorded in the San On book under the column devoted to hang yee "men of high repute." He was left fatherless at an early age, and had to work with the fishermen and wood-cutters in great poverty, to earn money to support himself and his mother. But all the while he was a scholar at heart and in his spare time he read his books and people said that he could be heard continually humming his lessons on the road, as he carried wood or worked with the fishermen. His uncle Tang Chan Ng, a Lam Shang, helped him, and his success in later years was greatly due to the old man's teaching. In the 14th year of Shun Chi A.D. 1657, Ts'ing dynasty, he passed his Kui Yan degree, but later failed for Tsun Sz and so returned to Kam T'in where he passed twenty years or more, living as a hermit.
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inhabitants of the New Territories fled. It was said that for three years the country presented the appearance of a battle-field, “The ground was covered with bones, in the day time nothing could be heard but the hum of flies, and at night the voice of weeping." Kam T'in might have shared the same fate as the other villages but for Tang Man Wai. Lei, remembering his former kindness, forbade his soldiers to go near the place, and seeking out Tang he taught him how to build strong walls to protect his village from other marauders. This story is still told by old people in the New Territories now, and, if true, what was stated in H.K.N. Vol. VII, page 255.... “during the civil wars of the Hong Hei years A.D. 1662-1721 of Ts'ing dynasty these three villages were walled

is not correct.* Lei Maan Wing occupied the New Territories from A.D. 1647 until he surrendered to the Manchus in A.D. 1656 which means that the walls of Taai Hong Wai, at least, were built some time during that period. Tang Man Wai is also remembered for having built the old Yuen Long Market ⇓, in the 8th year of Hong Hei A.D. 1669. The date is inscribed on a tablet in the wall inside Taai Wong temple in the market. Tang also made three fish ponds to the west of the market place which can still be seen by the side of the main road.

+ +

Tang Fong was a notable scholar who passed his Kui Yan degree in the 27th year of Kin Lung of Ts'ing dynasty, A.D. 1762. He studied a great number of books especially the canons of Confucius and Books of Histories, and was considered very skilful in writing both poetry and prose. While he was still a Lam Shang he was employed as a professor of arts in Man Kong Shue Yuen * a high grade school in San On district situated in Naam T'au Shing the capital city. Students were prepared there for the Sau-tsoi examination, and it was said that while Tang Fong was there “learning was at its highest pitch."

♬

Tang Ying Yuen was a military officer and passed his Mo Kui Yan A degree in the 54th year of Kin Lung A.D. 1789 of Ts'ing dynasty. Although of a martial disposition, Tang was fond of books and his penmanship was highly thought of. Some of the characters that he wrote to be carved on stone tablets can still be seen in Ling Wan nunnery on Kwun Yam Shaan 音山 and in So Lau Yuen 泝流園 and Tsoi Shui Yat Fong 在水✈both school buildings in Kam T'in. He was a simple man and

* See p. 168.
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SUNG HOK-PANG

Tak (£), A.D. 1513, of Ming dynasty, because there is evidence that after that year the direction of the grave was altered. The grave was repaired in the 12th year of Kin Lung, A.D. 1744, of Ts'ing dynasty, and the inscription on the tablet was composed by Tang Yue Cheung (§§#), a noted Kam T'in scholar.

Tang Wan Kuk is supposed to have owned the whole of Hong Kong island, and his great, great grandsons Tang Shing Ngok (# *) and Tang Yuen Fan (1) both very rich men during the Maan Lik period (A.D. 1573-1620) of Ming dynasty, appeared to have shared the island between them, three-quarters belonging to the former, and the rest to the latter. There seems to have been some rivalry between these two gentlemen, and a story often repeated by Kam T'in villagers to-day, tells how when Tang Shing Ngok built a big hall in Shui T'au village, Tang Yuen Fan's youngsters were filled with admiration. Tang Yuen Fan exclaimed, "Don't waste your time admiring it, but let us do the same thing." So he started building a hall equally big and grand, and at the present time Tang Shing Ngok's hall is no longer to be seen, but the old ruins of Tang Yuen Fan's still remain.

Tang Shing Ngok's grave was in Sheung To (E✯), now Hung Heung Lo temple (#), Wong Nai Ch'ung (✯✯✯). It was repaired in the 16th year of Kin Lung, A.D. 1751 and the name of the grave was Maau Yee Sai Min (#✯6) "the cat washes its face." The people of early times called it Tsau Ma Hoi Kung (ŁSH) "to draw the bow to shoot at a galloping horse." T'o Shi (A), the wife of Tang Shing Ngok, was buried in Kai Lung Wan (#), her grave being repaired in the 14th year of Kin Lung, A.D. 1749. Both the inscriptions of these graves are still visible.

During the Ming dynasty Hong Kong island was known as Ch'ek Ch'ue Shaan (1) "red pillar hill,” (Stanley is still called Chek Ch'ue), and it was under that name that the island was referred to in the records of the lands owned by the Tangs. Even in the map contained in the San On Record book, published as late as the 24th year of Ka Hing A.D. 1819, of Ts'ing dynasty, the island is called Chek Chue Shaan. The land owned by the Tangs amounted to several tens of “King” (4) (one "king" equalled one hundred Chinese acres) and was mentioned under different localities, the names of which are familiar to us now, such as Taai T'aam (✯✯), Wong Nai Ch'ung (✯✯), K'wan Taai Lo (***) “skirt string
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SUNG HOK-PANG 

again, and the judas tree revived, and soon it was covered with blossoms and looked a beautiful sight. 

From this story the three Tangs had learnt a lesson, and realizing that any one branch of the family was unable to build a hall alone, they combined together and completed one hall, naming it Mau King T'ong "The luxuriant judas-tree Hall.” Although there is no record of the year that the hall was completed, the following is what is known of its history. The building was started by Tang Mau Wai, who passed the Tsun Sz degree in the 24th year of Hong Hei, A.D. 1685. The hall was rebuilt by Tang Shiu Chau (RA) who passed Sui Kung A† degree in the 1st year of Kin Lung, A.D. 1736; and was repaired twice, first by Tang Hei Sui (###) who passed Yan Kung Shaang in the 21st year of Ka Hing, A.D. 1816, and secondly by Tang Ming Shiu (*) a Lam Shaang during the To Kwong period (the 1st year of To Kwong was A.D. 1821.) 

The T'in Hau Temple (A) Queen of Heaven Temple, in Shui Mei village, was first built during the Hong Hei period (A.D. 1662-1722) of Ts'ing dynasty and possesses a fine bell of 180 catties in weight which was presented by Tang Ch'un Fooi (**) a Kung Shaang in the 10th year of Kin Lung, A.D. 1745. It is said that the tone of the bell is very clear and can be heard from ten Chinese miles away. The Kam T'in people say that one of the past Governors of Hong Kong heard about it and visited Kam T’in to try the bell, which he agreed was as beautiful as reported. For a long time the temple was in a bad state of repair, and the bell had to be kept in a private house where those wishing to, were allowed to see it. Lately the temple has been repaired and the bell re-instated in it; also an incense burner that was presented by Tang Yiu King (*) and his son Tang Chan Suen (**) in the 11th year of Kin Lung A.D. 1746, 

Kwong Yue T'ong (***) in Taai Hong village is the ancestral hall of Tang Man Wai, who was the only man to pass the Tsun Sz degree in the New Territories (See H.K.N. IV. p. 106). The building is quite a large one, and the ancestral fund belonging to this hall is a very large sum and is considered the richest in the New Territories. For many years $100 was given each year to each family of Tang Man Wai's descendants for their New Year expenses.
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Lei King T'ong (A) is another ancestral hall, and can be found by the side of the main road through Kam T'in. It was built for Tang Ng Shaang (£) (see H.K.N. VII, p. 36).

I Tai Shue Yuen (**) is the new school building built instead of the Man Ch'eung Kok (M) (see H.K.N. VII, p. 256) and is situated in Shui T'au village.

Chau Wong Yee Kung Ts'z (M), (=214) (plate 20) is a hall that was built to record the merit of Viceroy Châu Yau Tak (♬) and Governor Wong Loi Yam (*). After the Ming emperors were expelled from China, an officer of the Ming army named Cheng Shing Kung (4) attacked the coast of South China, using Formosa as his base. All the people in sympathy with the Ming dynasty, along the coast helped him, so as the Manchu government had no navy to send against him, an order was made that all the inhabitants of the coast were to be moved inland for 50 Chinese miles. Later they were moved again for another 30 miles and for seven years, A.D. 1661-1668, the New Territories were deserted. The fields were unattended and allowed to lie fallow, and the buildings fell into disrepair. At the end of that time the people made representations to the Governor and Viceroy, and it was through the mediation of these two men, with the Emperor that the people were allowed to go back to their own land. The full account of this story is very long, but it is hoped to devote an article to it later on.

I have to thank Mr. Tang Paak K'au (1) and Mr. Tang Wai T'ong (**), both elders of Kam T'in, for their co-operation and help in obtaining access to the numerous documents that it has been necessary to consult before this series of articles could be attempted. Also Mr. Tang Ch'ong Yip (##) a teacher in Kam T'in, who gave invaluable assistance in searching out references, copying out paragraphs from books in the possession of various villagers, and deciphering inscriptions from stone tablets. Unfortunately Mr. Tang Wai Man (✯) another elder who showed great interest in these articles and helped considerably, died a few months ago, and is unable to see them completed. Lastly, I am much indebted to Mrs. Herklots for her help in writing these articles in readable English.
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SOCIAL RESEARCH IN THE N.T. OF HONG KONG, 1963 229

her grave was on the head her descendants would be very great men: but if on the tail they would be more humble people, perhaps officers of low degree, and, although prosperous, none would succeed to high rank.' The princess chose the tail because she preferred her descendants to stay humble, she herself having suffered so much. See Sung Hok-p’ang, ‘Legends and Stories of the New Territories”, IV. Kam T'in (continued)', The Hong Kong Naturalist, vol. VII, no. 1, April 1936, pp. 34f.)

62. The term fung shui is often used to mean simply a grave, and there is no need to stress the point that burial lies at the heart of geomancy. But in fact fung shui covers all aspects of men's dwellings on earth. Every territorially defined unit of society has its fung shui, from the household up to the state. The residence of the head of the state affects the prosperity of the country. (For this reason great emphasis is often placed on the geomantic excellence of Government House). The fortunes of cities, towns, and villages depend on their physical arrangement and dominating buildings. Political units take their fate from government offices. (The fung shui of the new Fanling District Court has impressed many locals). The fung shui of an ancestral hall determines the fortunes of members of the clan. (For this reason it is hardly ever to be found inside a wai, a walled enclosure; it must have free access to its site). A house shapes the destiny of its master and those for whom he is responsible. Consequently, geomancers are often employed to advise on the siting, orientation, certain architectural features (especially height), and work—and opening-dates of domestic and other buildings. Indeed, there appears to be some specialisation among fung shui sin shaang in the New Territories, some of them putting themselves out to be experts on graves and others on buildings.

63. Burial and the fung shui associated with it differ markedly in city and countryside. Only the rich among the people in the urban area can afford to escape the regimentation of their dead in cemeteries and seek geomantically favourable sites in private plots. (Some in fact acquire the right to bury their dead in land forming the traditional preserves of village communities. They may have to pay dearly for the privilege. Along one of the main roads in the New Territories there stands a pavilion, now many years old, which was put up as part of the compensation to the local people for the geomantic disturbance caused them by the burial in their area of a
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209

22.7.81, Mr. Yau Taai Hin 23.7.81, 8.81, Mr. Lau 24.7.81, Mrs. Yau née Lau 13.8.81, and Hong Kong Government Administrative Report, 1934 p. M101.

5. For the work of the village teacher, see ints. Mr. Tse Wing 9.6.81, and Mr. Cheng Yung 23.6.81. For naam yam in village, see Mr. Yau T'aam Shang 22.5.81, and Mr. Sung Kw'an 22.6.81.

60 Mr. Chau T'in Shang's father, for instance, owned one of the shipyards in Sai Kung Market, but his mother and his sister-in-law farmed (see int. 3.6.81), and Mr. Lei Shiu Yam entered his father's herbalist's store at eighteen, married at nineteen, and continued to work in the market while his wife farmed in the village at Man Yi Wan (see int. 8.5.81). For shortage of rice see Mr. Chan T'in Po 12.5.81, Mr. Wong Yung Ts'ing 20.5.81, Mr. Lok Shaang 21.5.81, Mr. Sung 22.6, Mrs. Lau 1.7.81. In the 1920's and 1930's, each load of firewood carried into Kowloon sold for 25 to 40 cents, pigs were sold in Sai Kung at approximately 18 dollars per picul, which was the weight of one pig, and rice for 3 to 4 dollars per picul. It was possible for a family to carry firewood into Kowloon quite a few times every month for about five months per year, and to sell two to three pigs. The cash income would have been 50 to 80 dollars per year, enough to buy 15 to 20 piculs of rice, enough for about five adults for the year. In addition, daily wages were 30 cents, and there was employment in the limekilns and in construction. Money was not short for daily necessities, but for weddings, in which the present to the bride's family alone would have been 200 to 300 dollars, many families would have had to resort to borrowing. See ints. Madam Laai Hung Tai 8.5.81, Mr. Lei P'aang Kei 12.5.81, Mr. Chan Tin Po 12.5.81, Mrs. Lau 14.6.81, Mrs. Kong Lei San Kiu 21.6.81, Mr. Kong Hei 21.6.81, Mrs. Cheung 24.6.81, Mr. Lau Hing Lung 16.6.81, Mr. Lei 29.6.81, Mr. K'uet Po Shing 2.7.81, Mr. Cheung Ts'oi 20.6.81, Madam Lo Koon Mooi 21.6.81, Mr. Lau Lui Faat 23.6.81, Mr. Lei Yau 28.6.81, Mr. Yau T'aam Shang 22.5.81, Mr. Lok Foh Kau 20.6.81, Mrs. Tse 21.6.81, Mr. Tsang 25.6.81. For a descriptive account of village production, see Mr. Cheng Ip 4.5.81.

01 Ints. Mr. Yau Taam Shang 8.5.81, Mr. Lei Yau 28.6.81, Mr. Lai Foh 8.5.81, Mr. Hoh Taai 10.6.81, Mr. Cheung T'o 15.6.81, Mr. Hoh Shang 20.6.81, Madam Wan née Lau 21.6.81.

02 Int. Mr. Sung 22.6.81.

03 Yield on good land was 3 piculs of grain per harvest, i.e. 6 piculs per year. In addition to this, there were several piculs of sweet potatoes. On poorer land, e.g. near Mang Kung Uk, it could be as low as 1 to 2 piculs per harvest. Rent was half the produce of grain, and somewhat less if the land was rented from the ancestral trust. See ints. Mr. Sung 22.6.81, Mr. Lau Lui Faat 23.6.81, Mrs. Tse née Lau 24.6.81, Mr. Tse Shui Kam 24.6.81.

04 Madam Yau 10.7.81, and cf. Mrs. Tse 22.6.81.

05

65 Int. Mr. Chung P'oon 13.11.80.

00 ibid.

07 Mr. Chau T'in Shang 13.11.80.

08 Mr. Wan Ts'eung 31.11.80, Mr. Cheung Wing 81, Mr. Tse Koon K'au 9.6.81.

60

6 Mr. Tse Ming 15.1.81, Mr. Yau Kei 8.7.81, Mr. Shing 20.7.81, Mr. Leung Chiu Man 25.7.81.

70 Mr. Chau T'in Shang 13.11.80, Mr. Cheng Ip 14.5.81, Mrs. Tsui née Lei 20.5.81, Mr. Hoh King 5.6.81.
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DAVID FAURE

Dates

Name (and village)

Mr. Chung P'oon

(Wong Chuk Shan)

interviewed

INTERVIEW RECORD

Name (and village)

Dates interviewed

13.11.80

Madam Chiu I Mooi

(Chek Keng)

7.5.81, 18.7.81

Mr. Chau T'in Shang

13.11.80,

Mr. Lau Shaang

8.5.81

(Sai Kung Market)

18.5.81,

(Sai Kung Market)

3.6.81,

Mr. Yau T'aam Shang

8.5.81,

9.7.81

(Wong Keng Tei)

15.5.81,

Mr. Lei Yau

13.11.80,

22.5.81,

(Tso Woh Hang)

28.6.81

26.5.81,

31.7.81

Mr. Lee Yun Shau, J.P.

14.11.80

(Man Yee Wan)

Mr. Wong Yung Ts'ing

8.5.81,

Mr. Tse Kw'an

16.11.80

(Wong Yi Chau)

20.5.81

(Tan Ka Wan)

Madam Laai Hung Tai

8.5.81

Mr. Shek Kwong Lin

16.11.80

(Sai Kung Market)

(Kau Lau Wan)

Mr. Lei Shiu Yam

8.5.81

Mr. Shek Fuk Fung

16.11.80

(Man Yee Wan)

(Kau Lau Wan)

Mr. Lai Foh

8.5.81

Mr. Chan Shing

(Sai Kung Market)

21.11.80

(Tai Long)

Mr. Chiu Lin Shing

(Chek Keng)

11.5.81

Mr. Cheung Hing

28.11.80

(Tai Long)

Mrs. Chiu née Cheung

11.5.81

(presently of Tai Po)

Mr. Wan Ts'eung

31.11.80

(Tai Po Tsai)

Mr. Lei P'aang Kei

12.5.81,

(Shuen Wan)

19.5.81

Mr. Paul Tsui

1.12.80

Mr. Chan T'in Po

12.5.81

Mr. Wan Yat Ngo

15.1.81

(Ho Chung)

Mr. T'ong (headmaster,

12.5.81

Yim Tin Tsai)

Mr. Tse Ming

15.1.81

(Ho Chung)

Mr. Cheng Yip

14.5.81

(Pak Kong)

Mr. Uen Chiu Ming

16.1.81,

(Mok Tse Che)

13.2.81,

Fr. Lau Wing Yiu

18.5.81

7.3.81

Mr. Cheung

19.5.81

Mrs. Uen

17.1.81

(Sai Kung Market)

(Mok Tse Che)

Miss Fung Ping I

19.5.81

Mrs. Uen

18.1.81,

Mrs. Ts'ui, née Lei

20.5.81

(Mr. Uen Tak

24.1.81,

(Pak Kong)

Ming's mother,

7.3.81

Mrs. Liu

20.5.81

Mok Tse Che)

(Sai Kung Market)

Madam Yung

18.1.81

Mr. Cheng Chung T'ing 21.5.81

(Mok Tse Che)

(Pak Kong)

Madam Chan

22.1.81

Mr. Lok Shaang

21.5.81

(Ho Chung)

(Pak Kong)

Madam Lok

22.1.81

Mr. Hoh King

27.5.81

(Ho Chung)

(Nam Shan)

5.6.81

Mr. Chiu Sz

7.5.81

Mr. Chan Tsz K'eung

28.5.81

(Chek Keng)

Madam Yung A Lin

7.5.81

(Chek Keng)

(Sai Kung Market) Mr. Chan Kei Shang (Yim Tin Tsai)

28.5.81
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NOTES AND QUERIES

THE PO TAK TEMPLE

IN SHEUNG SHUI MARKET

The Po Tak Temple (Temple to repay a virtuous deed), also known as the Ts'un Foo Temple (The Governor's temple), in Sheung Shui Market now occupies only a small flat in a multi-storeyed building on Tsun Fu Street, but it was a sizable building until it was burnt down in the fire in 1955. For a long time, it was also the political focus of the Punti villages in the northern and eastern New Territories.

The temple was built to commemorate Chau Yau-tak (H), Governor-General of Kwangtung and Kwangsi from 1670 to 1673, and Wong Loi-yam (E), Governor of Kwangtung in 1669, the two officials who were instrumental in petitioning the Emperor to end the coastal evacuation from 1662 to 1669. No-one remembers when it was built. According to the 1819 edition of the San On Gazetteer, it was one of three temples devoted to these two officials in the county, the other two being located north of Sham Chun Market. This record must not be taken to be exhaustive: there was at least one more devoted to these two officials in Kam Tin (the Chau Wong I Kung Shue Uen).

Village elders remember that before the Second World War and in the 1950s sacrifice was offered annually at the Po Tak Temple to the two officials by two separate but overlapping groups referred to as the Old Alliance (Kau Yeuk) and the New Alliance (San Yeuk). The Old Alliance sacrificed on the nineteenth of the Fifth Month and the New Alliance on the first of the Sixth Month. The account books of both groups are fortunately extant, and they provide valuable documentation on these two important inter-village organizations.

Two copies of the Old Alliance account book are available. Both have written on the front covers: Po Tak Temple temple celebration volume, 12th year of the Republic, Lung Shaan copy (報徳祠神誕冊,民國十二年立,龍山冊). We have compared the introductory texts, and they are identical. It seems
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NOTES AND QUERIES

that one of these is an earlier version, including the annual accounts for only 1911 to 1913. A photocopy of this one was given to James Hayes by the Chairman of the Sheung Shui Rural Committee in 1972, and Dr. Hayes kindly made it available to the Oral History Project at the Chinese University. It is now incorporated into the volumes on Sheung Shui in the Project's Historical Literature of the New Territories. The other copy is held by the British Library, and includes the annual accounts from 1923 to 1960. The British Library also holds the only copy of the accounts of the New Alliance, on the cover of which is written: Temple celebration of the New Alliance, opened on the 1st of the Sixth Month in the 1st year of Hsüan-t'ung, Lung Yeuk Tau copy (新約會神誕,宣統元年歲次己酉六月初一日✰✰✰). It includes the annual accounts from 1906. Both copies held by the British Library are originals, not photocopies.

According to these account books, member villages held shares in these alliances, managed the communal property by annual rotation among the shares, and participated in the annual sacrifices that were paid for from income derived from the communal property. The Old Alliance was made up of four shares and the New Alliance of six. The four villages of the Hau (侯) lineage (Kam Tsin, Ping Kong, Ho Sheung Heung, Yin Kong) together held one share in the Old Alliance, and so did the Liu (廖) lineage of Sheung Shui, the Wan Shing T'ong (雲升堂) of Sheung Shui (a sub-lineage trust of the Liu lineage), and the Tang (鄧) lineage of Lung Shaan, i.e. Lung Yeuk Tau. According to oral tradition in Sheung Shui, the Wan Shing T'ong bought its share from the Man (文) lineage. This is corroborated by an undated document entitled, "Eulogy of the four surnames of Hau, Liu, Tang and Man on the foundation of the Po Tak Temple”(侯、廖、鄧、文四姓立報德祠頌詞) published in a recent commemorative volume (Liu Yun-sham, Commemorative Volume on the History of the Venerable Chau and Wong 廖潤深,周王二公史蹟紀念專輯 Hong Kong, 1982, p. 13). We have not seen the original of this document, but its title suggests that it was written for the Old Alliance at a time before the Man lineage sold its share to the Wan Shing T'ong. In the New Alliance, the four Hau villages, Sheung Shui, Lung
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NOTES AND QUERIES 

273 

Yeuk Tau, Fan Ling (surname P'ang), and San Tin (surname Man) each held a share, and Tai Hang (Man) and Tai Po Tau (Tang) together held another share. Thus, in the New Alliance, but not in the Old, all the five major punti lineages of the northern and eastern New Territories were represented. 

Included in the account books of the Old Alliance is a set of regulations, a translation with brief annotation of which we give below: 

1. Management is to be rotated annually in the following order: first, Kam Tsin heung, Ping Kong heung, Ho Sheung heung, Yin Kong heung; second, the Liu surname of Sheung Shui; third, the Wan Shing T'ong of Sheung Shui; fourth, the Tang surname of Lung Shaan. 

2. Each heung is to keep an account book. When it is its turn to take care of the affairs of the year, ten days before [the annual sacrifice] it should send invitations to the shan-sz of each and every heung, and there must be no delay. [The word heung is clearly not used consistently. In regulation 1, it is used in the sense of a single village. In this regulation, it is used for the groups of villages that together held a single share. We have also not used any English equivalent for the term shan-sz because of the controversy over the term. In an area with a strong tradition of scholarship such as Sheung Shui, a shan-sz before the abolition of the official examinations in 1905 would probably have been a man who possessed an official degree, won in the examination or purchased. It is conceivable, though, that the term was used less rigidly in villages that did not produce a degree-holder.] 

3. Each heung must have contributed [a sum to be used as] capital, that is, ten dollars from each surname. [The text specifies that the money must have been contributed on a "previous day". This is probably a clumsy way of stating that only a contribution at the time of the foundation of the alliance constituted a share.] 

4. To facilitate checking, the field names, rents, and mortgage prices of all plots of land mortgaged or purchased from the different surnames are to be recorded. The right for rent
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278

NOTES AND QUERIES

joined and added one share, making the total six shares as they are now. For each share 25 silver dollars were paid to establish the Sheung Ue tung ferry for the convenience of passengers. [The operation of] the ferry has been given to the highest bidder by auction each year. [Money received] is kept for interest so that sacrifices may be paid for. Sacrifices should be paid for in accordance with former regulations. [Sheung Ue tung was another name for the Sheung Shui area, and the ferry in question took villagers across the river to Sham Chun Market as we found out in interviews in Fan Ling and Lung Yeuk Tau. The passage is, of course, not as clear as it could be. It would seem that except for the half share held by Loi Tung, other shares held before 1908 counted for something in the reconstitution of the yeuk in that year. This something was not necessarily much more than a right to re-join, and Loi Tung was thus effectively barred from re-joining.]

3. Management for the year should be rotated in the following order

First, the Hau surname, Ping Kong, Ho Sheung Heung, Kam Tsin, Yin Kong;

Second, Lung Shaan heung;

Third, Tai Hang, Tai Po Tau;

Fourth, Fan Ling heung;

Fifth, San Tin heung;

Sixth, Sheung Shui heung.

4. Each share [in the alliance] is to keep a book, and in the year it is in charge, ten days before [the sacrifice], it should send invitations to the shan-sz in the villages. There must be no delay.

5. On the occasion of the celebration on the 1st of the Sixth Month, each share is to send four shan-sz to worship the gods. There should also be sufficient masters-of-ceremony and managers. [We know for a fact that some of the member villages of the New Alliance did not have degree-holders: the term shan-sz in this clause, must therefore include people without a degree.]
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70 

LEGENDS AND STORIES OF THE NEW TERRITORIES 

I 

TAI PO 大埔* 

SUNG HOK-P'ANG 

The original name of Tai Po (大埔) meaning big slope, was Tai Po (大步) meaning big stride. There is a story that many thousands of years ago there was a dense forest where Tai Po now stands. It was infested with wild and dangerous creatures, and the villagers round about were afraid to go in it. If they had to go they warned each other, saying "Take long strides, otherwise the tigers and snakes will get you!” So that gradually the place became known as Tai Po. Although the story has been handed down from generation to generation, there is some indication of truth in it, in the fact that when the present road was made through the district the roots of huge trees were dug up. What might be a further proof that the district was originally a densely wooded one, is the fact that there is a hill just outside Tai Po Market known as Kam Shaan (錦山) (embroidered mountain) which until quite recently was very thickly covered with trees. It was originally called Kam Shaan (禁山) (forbidden mountain) being held in veneration as Fung Shui by the villagers of Tai Po Tau, (大埔頭) who had protected the trees for many centuries, until they were cut down and houses built on the hill a few years ago. 

(5) 

From the fourth year of Hoi Po (A.D. 971) of Sung dynasty until the twenty-fourth year of Ka Hing (A.D. 1819) of 

* Sung Hok-p'ang wrote a number of articles on the history of the New Territories which were published in The Hong Kong Naturalist between May 1935 and November 1938. Owing to the difficulty of finding copies of the originals, these articles have been reissued in the Journal. The articles on the history of Kam Tin were reissued in Vol. 13, pages 111-129 and Vol. 14, pages 160-185. The following short articles complete the reissues. The attention of readers is drawn to the Editor's note at Vol. 13, page 111, and to the Note, Sung Hok-p'ang (宋學鵬) (1880-1962) A Memoir by Lo Hsiang-lin, in Vol. 13, pages 130-132. This article on Tai Po was originally printed in The Hong Kong Naturalist for May 1935. Ed.
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308

TABLE 1.3 Partial Genealogical Chart of the Second, Third, and Fourth Branches of the Dang Lineage of Kam Tin

Yeul

Gyun

(Mau Ging Tong) (See Table 1.1)

Ting-Jing

Naam-Kai (adopted from First Branch)

Siu-Geui

Chung

Chung-You

Jak-Sa

Kei-Fong

Gia-Tin

0—0—0-

Generation

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

Gam-Lei

Sung Gok

Gaai Yur (Geui Haam) ↓

Man-Wai (Chyun-Am)

Ng-Sang

O

(Lei

(Gwong Yu

Tong)

Ging↓

Tong)

Jaap-Fan

Naap-Am

(Ji Ga Tong)

Kyun-Hin

Chung-Shaan

Ming-Lyun

Yu-Glai

(Ming Hok)

↓

Ting-Sani (Chi-Naam)
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317

Gaai jou was still studying when his brothers had already built for themselves many big houses. When he got married he got his share of his father's estate, which amounted to more than one thousand daam of rent rice. Oral tradition has it that Sou-Lau Yun was used as a yamen during Dang Kyun-Hin's time when Dang Sin, a provincial official, came to investigate bandits in the county.

This segment dominated nineteenth century lineage and community life in many ways. They have at least ten spirit tablets in the Mau-Ging Tong ancestral hall, and Chung-Shaan and Yu-Gaai were among the five men whose descendants got extra portions of ritual pork in the ancestral worship at the same tong in recognition of their contributions. I have already mentioned that a letter dated 1941 from the head of the clan and others referred to Yu-Gaai's contribution in managing the property of Naam-Kai jou. The only piece of property had been a broken house in the county town which gave an income of 20 yun. Yu-Gaai sold that house and lent the proceeds at interest. In this way he expanded the property to farm land holding that gave a rental income of more than 200 sek of rice. Dang Kyun-Hin and his third son Ming-Lyun donated an incense burner to the Hung-Sing Temple in Shui Tau in 1821. Chung-Saan (alias Ming-Hok) donated another religious article in 1829 and a grandson of his donated an incense burner to the same temple in 1900.

Dang Ting-Sam (known to his descendants as Chi-Naam), a son of Dang Ming-Lyun and a grandson of Dang Kyun-Hin, was an important figure in lineage affairs as well as county politics. He was a sau-choi, and his descendants explained that he was prevented by the death of relatives from taking the examinations for the higher degrees. One story tells how Chi-Naam revealed upon his death that he was the reincarnation of the Mountain God of Tai Mo Shan, which probably explains why he was so clever. Another anecdote is concerned with Chi-Naam's influence. When he married a lady named Ho from Sham Chun to his son, the procession carried banners saying "keep silent and stand aside” (suk-jing wui-bei) and sounding gongs. Some trouble-makers asked who this was. They were told that it was Chi-Naam of Kam Tin. The would-be trouble-makers were scared and went away.

A descendant of one of Ting-sam's cousins knew the exact title of his degree. In this version Ting-sam was a laam-sang, but never attempted higher examinations. His classmates (rung-hok) always wondered why. He spent most of his time enjoying himself at home. When he ran out
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1989
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8336pm92h
Long

Old Marker

Kam Pin Wai

Ng Ling

Yuen Long

New

Kam Tin and its vicinity

Gwai Gok Shaan

Bay

Tin Hau Temple

Shu Mei

Ching Lok

Ancestral Halls

Mau Ging Tong Ancestral Hall

Hung Sing Temple

Jau & Wong Temple

Around Sire

Swamp

Kam Hing/Wa Sa Bui Tai Hong Leng Wai

Ng Ling

Gwong

San Wai

Tsuen

Market

Ko

SHAP

PAT

HEUNG

Shop Per Heung Tin Hau Temple

Kat Hing Wai

Tong Ancestral Hall

PAT HEUNG

Pa Heung Temple

Yuen Kong Temple

Ling Wan Monastery

Approximate boundaries of Kam Tin

(Map taken from Tanaka 1989)

319
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143

THE USE OF HILL LAND FOR VILLAGE FORESTRY AND FUEL GATHERING IN THE NEW TERRITORIES OF HONG KONG.

RICHARD WEBB

While recent economic and social changes in the New Territories of Hong Kong have wrought irrevocable changes to the rural villages, until perhaps twenty years ago, villagers appeared to have used the hillsides much as they pleased, even though some of the larger clans claimed payments for hill land. The villagers of Cheung Sha Wan, west Kowloon, for example, paid regular sums in silver to the Tangs of Kam Tin for their forest land. The Liu family of Sheung Shui was leasing forest land to the villagers of Long Keng under a deed of 1867 (Hayes 1983). However, hill and forest land was usually annexed by the nearest village. Each village had its forestry lot, apportioned to families according to natural boundaries. There was a major difference in people's minds between land under pine tree cultivation (Pinus massoniana) and other hill land used for fuel gathering, grass cutting, and grazing. The British administration carried over the common usage of hill areas for pine cultivation into their village forestry licenses, or "t'sung shaan p'aai", which allowed villagers to occupy Crown Land for the purpose of growing these trees on which they relied for fuel, poles, and timber. It was the 'pine hills' that mattered more to the village families, even though they possessed no proper title to them, save under British rule, an undifferentiated notional share in the village license through being part of its community. Like houses and fields, hillside plots could be passed from father to son.

Daley (1975) provides an account of forestry activities, although it is not clear if this refers to village forestry, in which 211,015 trees were planted in 1880, rising to 1,157,609 in 1883. The British administration established the Botanical and Forestry Department in 1880, with the objective of planting the badly eroded areas and water catchments. From 1881 to 1891, an average of around 647,223 trees were planted every year, of which 95% was Pinus massoniana, a local pine which can establish on very poor soil. By 1938, 70% of Hong Kong island had been afforested with government plantations, and 200 km2 of the New Territories were occupied by leased forestry lots used as a source of firewood. By this time, the government plantations were
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