RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1966
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/bz60k0811
162 

NOTES AND QUERIES 

with a Mexican name, was also brought to the Old World by the Spaniards. All of these plants crossed the Atlantic in Spanish bottoms and were then carried round the coasts of Africa and Asia to South China by the Portuguese. In the same way the sugar-cane, the banana and the yam were established in Brazil by the Portuguese and the cassava was introduced into West Africa where it has become the source of one of the staple foods of several countries.

The sweet potato, of course, presents special problems since there is reason to believe that it may have reached Polynesia in early times as an importation from the Americas. Nevertheless, it is not a native of the vast expanse of islands dotting the Pacific and it is much less likely that it came to China by that route than from the West,

The "kind of melon" of which the author speaks is known today in the Macanese dialect of the Hong Kong Portuguese as bobra Guiné (Guinea pumpkin). This word appears in Chinese characters (romanised as mó-pá-lá kin-ní by Mr. Luis Gomes in his Portuguese translation) in the Ao Men Chi Lüeh,? published towards the middle of the eighteenth century. The Chinese gloss has faan-kwa. It is likely then that this plant was introduced into China from West Africa or Guinea, to use the old name, and that the prefix faan cannot link this plant in any way with the Pacific area.

The rambutan (nephelium lappaceum), related to the lychee, is a Malayan tree and has a Malay name derived from rambut (hair), because of the hairy coat with which it is covered. This coat is of a reddish hue which no doubt explains the first element of its Malayan Cantonese name hung-mo-tán. The other elements are obviously phonetic renderings of the Malay word. This tree and its fruit were probably introduced to China by the Portuguese.

As a last comment on the element faan, are the faan-kwai not more often Westerners than people from the Pacific?

On the peanut, which, as Mr. Barnett says, bears no indication of foreign origin in its name, it appears to me that this plant may have been introduced to South-East Asia by the Portuguese. The botanists seem to agree that it is a native of Brazil and the Spanish chroniclers of the Indies describe it as a food-crop in Hispaniola
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1982
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mk61z420p
BOOK REVIEWS

323

effect a movement by people in power to get rid of those holding different views. Lin Biao, who was designated as Mao's "successor", and his supporters were trying to seize power in a bid to consolidate their stronghold on China's political scene. From this political background emerged the "May 7 cadre schools", which were in name labour camps where people tempered themselves through physical labour, but were in reality concentration camps for those cadres who were excluded from the new regime because they did not follow closely or enjoy the trust of those in power. We as "May 7 fighters" were sent down to cadre schools with our families to make our homes there.

All organs of political power are governed by a process of metabolism whereby the old are superseded by the new. However, it is unprecedented for personnel changes to come about like this. This may be less destructive than resorting to violence; nevertheless, it is not an example to be followed because to do so would merely cause unnecessary damage and waste all over again, in just the same way. It is hard to understand why the Liuhe cadre school, originally intended to accommodate those cadres who were left in the lurch during the power struggle, was later used to take in those from cultural, educational and scientific research institutions. As the saying goes, the "fish in the moat suffer when the city gate catches fire". So many intellectuals who were probably completely uninterested in wielding power were made 'victims' of a power struggle.

While no one can safely guarantee that the new must be better than the old when the change comes about by democratic means, it is certain that any unnecessary damage or waste can be avoided through a democratic and peaceful change. If the present Chinese leadership has finally come to realise this need and allows those who do not want to distinguish themselves in politics but simply want to dedicate themselves to the well-being of mankind to live and work in peace and contentment, then it is still worth our while to have paid "fees" for the "May 7 cadre schools". These are some of my humble opinions and heartfelt expectations.

CHANG HSIN

(Note: This review was written in Chinese, and translated into English by the kindness of Mr. Louis Kong),

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