Joe Hasham

It has been quite some time since I brought out my records to play. When I tried to do it last week, I had an unplesant shock when the stylus came off. I was attempting to dislodge some lint from its end when the stylus dropped off.

No choice then, but to buy a new cartridge from the only reliable audio shop that I knew in Penang: the Wisma Audio Central in the Penang Plaza, Tanjong Tokong. "Just unscrew the headshell from the tonearm and bring it in," the boss told me, which was what I did on Monday. The whole operation set me back RM450 for a new Ortofon MC-1 Turbo cartridge. So here I am, at home again, with a new cartridge on the tonearm and eager to play through some of my old records. and I can say that with a new cartridge in place, my music has taken on a new perspective. They seemed sharper and with more definition in the treble, mid-range and bass in the music.

Side A: Yesterday when I was young, Blowin' in the wind, Father & son, Simon smith and his amazing dancing bear, Nobody loves you when you're down and out, Have you never been mellow

Side B: What'll I do, House of the rising sun, She's my wife, Sad Lisa, Reflections, New world in the morning

I had acquired this record quite a long time ago but thought that I'd bring it out again for a spin. In the 1970s, Joe Hasham was a popular television actor and singer in Australia. In 1984, he migrated to Malaysia, married Penang-born radio and television personality Faridah Merican and set up the Actors Studio in Kuala Lumpur. Hasham's self-titled album contained his interpretation of many popular songs of his time.

Faridah Merican has a connection to the Penang Free School although she did not study there. Her father was Basha Merican, an Old Boy of the Free School who taught in his Alma Mater where he was appointed the Scout Master. Later, he became the Chief Inspector of Schools in Province Wellesley and the Penang Scout Commissioner.

Robert Sparke Hutchings, a jolly good fellow

I made an unscheduled stop at the Protestant cemetery in Northam Road yesterday. Well, maybe it was not an unscheduled stop, because I had been planning to drop by the place for quite some time but never made it. The last time that I had visited this heritage site was on 21 October last year.

The rain had just stopped when I walked in through the gate. As I had expected, there was nobody there. Not a soul. Nothing stirred. The old cemetery was well and truly dead and forlorn. What would you expect? I had heard that plans were underway by one of the state authorities to spruce up the place, perhaps even give them a fresh coat of paint. Someone told me only earlier this week that the work had been completed but I can assure you that nothing of the sort had happened.

I walked in and headed straight for the grave of the Revd Robert Sparke Hutchings. My fellow Old Frees will recognise that Hutchings had established the Penang Free School in 1816. He and his Original Plan had laid the groundwork for the establishment of the Prince of Wales' Island Free School. Hutchings died in 1827 after contracting malaria at his home in Mount Elvira, which he had named after his wife, and was buried at the Protestant cemetery.

Inexplicably, I lost my way and found myself staring at the grave of Francis Light instead. Captain Light was the founder of Penang as a British settlement on 17 August 1786 and he had called it the Prince of Wales' Island. For eight years, he was the Superintendent of the settlement until his death on 21 October 1794. Was it planned or a mere coincidence that the Free School opened on the anniversary date of Light's death? I think it was more coincidental than planned. It was logical to open a school at the beginning of a week, and 21 October 1816 was a Monday after all.

Eventually, I did locate Hutchings' grave a short distance away. Although it looked about the same as last year, minus all the wreaths and flowers, I was surprised to see the grave getting discoloured. Patches of yellow were beginning to show on its top. So here I'm wondering whether the Penang Free School Bicentenary Committee is doing anything to spruce up Hutchings' grave ahead of the Bicentenary celebrations which are less than three months away.

The tradition of visiting Hutchings' grave on the anniversary of the school's founding, that is, on the 21st of October every year, began in 1948 during Dennis Roper's spell as the Headmaster. He started this tradition which continues till today.

I would have thought that during the Centenary celebration in 1916, Ralph Pinhorn would have led his staff and prefects to Hutchings' grave on 21 October 1916 to commemorate the occasion but there is no evidence of this having occurred. The May 1917 issue of the Free School Magazine (Vol IV No V) was devoted extensively to the celebrations but as not a word was written about a visit to the Protestant cemetery, I would conclude that none was made.

The annual visits to the cemetery continued through the decades. The most celebrated one was in 1966 during the school's Sesquicentenary. The Board of Governors, Headmaster, teachers, prefects, scouts and representatives of The Old Frees' Association assembled at Hutchings' grave for a special commemorative service which was then followed by the unveiling of a special plaque to mark the occasion. That particular honour belonged to Tan Ah Fee who in 1964 had retired from teaching in the Free School. Tan Ah Fee was the brother of Tan Ah Tah, one of the school's Queen's Scholars who made a name for himself later as a Supreme Court Judge in Singapore.

In 2012, I decided to join the school representatives at Hutchings' grave at seven o'clock in the morning of 21 October. I had no other reason to go except wanting to have a feel of the old tradition. Since that visit to the Protestant cemetery, it has become quite a routine for me to turn up again in the following years. Last year's ceremony was the biggest yet, with many Old Frees also joining in. I would dare say that in this Bicentenary year, a bigger crowd of people can be encouraged to turn up. I hope The Old Frees' Association can lead to organise their members for this annual visit. One need not be of the Christian faith to be present there. I am not, and there's nothing that will discourage me from attending.

But in all past years, the short service at Hutchings' grave have been nothing but solemnity itself. It puzzles me why this must continue to be so. Is there no other way to celebrate the life of Robert Sparke Hutchings? Sure, the service must be there: the readings, the prayers, the laying of the wreaths and the singing of the School Rally. But how about re-introducing the bugle call? Or even, at the end of it all, a bout of boisterous singing? After all, he was a jolly good fellow to have founded the Penang Free School. Wasn't he?

Bless you, Capt Neo Kim San

In 2011 when we were preparing FIDELIS, the commemorative book of The Old Frees' Association, I received a submission from Captain Neo Kim San from Singapore. Capt Neo was a former secretary and oftentimes committee member of the Old Frees' Association Singapore.

At first, I welcomed his contribution but after I had opened his file to take a look at it, I began having second thoughts about including the story into FIDELIS. And it was a decision that was backed up by the others in the Editorial committee. For you see, no amount of editing could have done any justice to the good captain's rather, umm, colourful story.

But now that Capt Neo has passed on - he died on 24 July 2015 - perhaps I should now reproduce his article as a fitting tribute to this man. He lived his life to the fullest. Here it is.

BLESSED BE THE TIES THAT BIND

In 1963 while I was in Form Six, and due to my involvement with the Four Holes, I was invited as a guest of the State. My father, realising that any prospects I had had were greatly curtailed, decided to send me to Singapore. Through the intervention and recommendation of  my pastor, David Nilsson, I had been slated to attend Trinity Theological College. (more of that later)

Sending me to the ferry point, my father gave me RM50 and a TITONI watch, saying sheepishly that that was all he could afford. He admonished me not to get into trouble again, gave me a pat on my back and sent me on the way to the Prai railway station.

Reaching Singapore, I walked from Tanjong Pagar Railway station to Chin Chew street where my mother had arranged for me to stay with my uncle.

The next day I went to call on Pastor John Nelson at the Dukes’ Road Lutheran Church. He took me to Trinity college on Mount Sophia and enrolled me. However, a few months later, when the semester started, I did not report as I felt I did not have the calling and it would not be fair to the Lord to take up the place and deprive the Lord of a more committed servant were I to take up place. I thus did not commence my studies. After a few weeks of interaction, Pastor Nelson, impressed with my command of the English language, offered me a position as supervisor of the Lutheran church kindergarten at Queenstown at $60/= a month plus the servants quarter to stay in.

IN THE BEGINNING
There being no classes on Saturdays, I had a lot of free time and started missing school life, especially detention class where I was a constant attendee. I had brought a copy of the 1962 School Annual with me and glancing through it, I saw a letter from Mr Lim Thean Soo addressed to the school, under the auspices  of the Old Frees Association, Singapore. The address given was No 13 Jalan Belangkas. I decided to pay him a visit to see if he could connect me to the other Old Frees. Reaching No 13 Jalan Belangkas, I rang the gate bell and instantly a boy came to the gate and asked me what I wanted. He replied in the positive when I asked if Mr Lim Thean Soo lived here. I continued by telling him I am from the Penang Free School and was looking for the Secretary of the Old Frees Association. He said he understood and asked me to wait. Returning to the house, he came back with a sheet of paper. It was a cyclostyled list of members of the Old Frees Association of Singapore. Thanking him profusely, I took my leave. On the way back, I studied the lists, rating names like Ernest Clark, Kok Weng Qn, both of Frasers and Neave, Dr GK Lim, TQ Lim, Dr Chan Kong Thoe and Woo Kam Seng (Shell). I had a hankering to better my station in life and thought that the Old Frees might be able to help me and might have opening where I could fit in.

MAH KAM SENG
That Saturday morning I reserved the office telephone for my use. At about 10am I rang Woo Kam Seng. The reply was “Tadak, tadak, tadak Woo Kam Seng.” Thinking that I might had dialed a wrong number, I asked if this was Shell’s office. The reply was “Ya, ini Shell, Batul.” I reiterated “Mr Woo Kam Seng, Sales Director, please” to which the reply was “Tadak Woo Kam Seng, Ada Makan Singh.” I then realised that Shell works five days a week and the phone must have been transferred to the watchman or jaga whose name must have been Makam Singh.

H3 Double
Still thinking of a higher pay than $60, I looked again at the list but by this time I had met one of my classmates, Lim Weng Yoke, who was working in Singapore. I invited him to join me on a visit to Heah Hock Heng since he was in our class. The address was at Cluny Road. Dropping off the bus at the junction of Farrer and Bt Timah, we made our way to Cluny Road. Cluny Road was very long and after thirty minutes we came to the house. We rang the door bell and a stout gentleman of about 30+ opened the door and we asked whether Heah Hock Heng lived here. He replied that he is Heah Hock Heng. Weng Yoke and I were stunned as he was not the Heah Hock Heng of our year. We apologized profusely and explained that we thought he was the Heah Hock Heng, one of our classmates from the Penang Free School. He said he is an Old Free. We were only too happy to meet him and we chatted for an hour about the school. He asked us for our contact numbers and promised that the OFA Singapore will contact us. With that, we took our leave and left for lunch.

MAIDEN ATTENDANCE AT OFA PICNIC
At the end of march 1967, I received an invitation and application form to join the OFA Singapore. Accompanying the form was an invitation to attend a picnic in one of the colonial bungalows. When Weng Yoke and myself reached the venue, a goodly number of members had turned up. We were welcomed by Mr Heah Hock Heng who introduced us around, especially to a Mr Wee Chong Jin who was Chief Justice then. Both of us were in awe of him but also proud to be Old Frees. Mr Wee sat on an armchair on the porch and watched the members and their families frolicking in the sea and on the shore. A repast had been prepared and everybody had a good time.
In early October 1967 I received a notice to attend an AGM at the Kelong Restaurant, Cathay building. Payment was $30. I sent back my returns declining since attendance would have meant 50% of my pay.

MAIDEN ATTENDANCE AT AGM
For the rest of 1967 and half of 1968, I worked at various odd jobs on top of my supervisory job and managed to accumulate $100, so when I received the notice towards the end of  September, I was prepared to attend the AGM again to be held at the Kelong Restaurant at Cathay Building. When I reached it, I found it to be a small cozy restaurant. I felt at home immediately with the crowd using Penang patois which could be distinguished among the bubble. When the AGM was called to order, I found myself seated next to member Kok Weng On who introduced himself to me. He told me his father was also a customs officer when he heard I was staying in the Customs village, Bukit Glugor. A friendship developed between us and which has been cemented with time. I immediately had a feeling of euphoria enveloping me. The friendship formed that day has withstood the test of time and has in fact grown stronger.

When the meeting concluded, I made a promise to attend every meeting which I did without fail until 1975 when someone made a serious mistake and proposed me for the post of secretary. Well and good. Remembering the first picnic I attended, I hankered for another. So the first function I organised was a picnic, not at the seaside but at Mitsukoshi Gardens in Jurong. My wife had learnt to cook Penang laksa, probably from my kaypoh cousin of Siam Road, so she provided the laksa for the picnic. No doubt the venue had no salt tainted air but all in all we had a good time.

OLD FREES ARE NEVER TARDY
Over my many terms of office, two incidents remained clear in my mind. The first was Dr GK Lim or to give his full name, Dr Lim Geok Khooi. I remember him telling me Somerset Waugham (sic) was a personal friend. Somerset Waugham was the author of “Pygmalion” later made into the film “My Fair Lady”. GK graduated from the Hong Kong Medical College, joined the British Army and was the first Asian doctor of the Royal Medical Corps, He took over Rommel’s’ troupes of the German Africa Corps in North Africa on the surrender of Germany. After he was demobbed, the Military Administration rewarded him with any residence of his choosing. GK chose No 37 Stevens Road. Perhaps he smoke “Abdulla 37?” Who knows?

I had made it my task to fetch GK to and from the committee meetings. On one occasion, I was five minutes late from our appointed time. He was not waiting for me outside his gate, as was his wont. I called out to him. He opened the front door and told me he wasn’t going to the meeting for virtue of  my being late, he will be late and might be labelled as being tardy.

(My note: Capt. Neo got it wrong here. W Somerset Maugham was not the author of Pygmalion. The person who wrote this book was George Bernard Shaw.)

THE SPYROS INCIDENT
Sometime in early October 1978, the committee met at the Goodwill Restaurant in Hong Leong Building to finalise arrangements for 21st October AGM. After the agenda had been dealt with, the Committee sat down to dinner. In the midst of partaking the food, a committee member called Oh Kean Hock said, "I hope you guys do not mind me bringing up an item out of the agenda. It can be itemised under any business.” Ernest Clark gave him the green light to proceed. Kean Hook then went on to state.

“What is the OFA for? To eat, yak and hold useless meetings now and then? Let us do something useful and meaningful for once. I propose we do something to help the families of the 17 victims of the Spyros accident. Don’t just yak and enjoy yourselves.”

GK Lim immediately sputtered with the food he was masticating while Ernest Clark stood up and begged to be excused from the meeting. GK then pronounced that he had never been so insulted in his life but he had best answer Oh Kean Hook.

“Kean Hook,” Dr GK. said. “please consider carefully before shooting off your mouth next time. Do you know that to do what you have suggested we would need to call for an EGM, obtain the approval of the majority of the members before we can even collect one cent? We are on the committee not for our own glory but to plan activities and functions for our members, ex-students of the Penang Free School and also to remember and honour our school.”

Kean Hook had no answer to that except to get up and follow Ernest Clark’s lead and excuse himself from the meeting and leave.

ONE-UP ON ERNEST CLARK
To my memory, the most hilarious committee meeting was during the tenure of Dato Ng Kong Yeam. Following the tradition of the OFAS, whereby the newly elected President had to stand the committee to dinner at the first committee meeting, thus Dato Ng invited the committee to dinner at his Queen Bee Restaurant in Johor Baru, to be followed by drinks at his Queen Bee lounge to watch a strip-tease performance, not surprisingly the full committee turned up. In actuality, the Queen Bee was to give the Merchinta  nightclub, a well established strip-tease club in JB, a run for its money.
Well and good, everyone did not eat but rather gobbled it down, eager to adjourn to the lounge for the show. Dato Ng took us over to the lounge as soon the plates had been cleared. Was he eager also? The lounge manager met us at the door and Dato instructed him to close the doors for a private show.

The manager complied (which manager would not at the behest of his boss) and the music started. Presently a gossamer clad girl sashayed out from behind the curtain, Ernest Clark exclaimed “wow” before moving his chair to the edge of the catwalk to get a closer look (at what?). The dancer went through her moves, moving closer and closer to Ernest Clark (who must have been on cloud nine by now) and before he could realise it, the dancer had plucked his spectacles from his face, did a pirouette and dropped his spectacles down the front of her G-string. She performed another number, edging closer to Ernest again, took the spectacles out of her G-string and gave it back to Ernest. The spectacles were all fogged up with the dancer’s body heat. Asking for a piece of tissue paper to wipe his glasses clear. I quipped him “Careful Ernest, she may be infected with VD.”

Ernest rejoined angrily, “Shut up, stupid, wearing the glasses won’t infect a person with VD.” All this time the committee members were in stitches at Ernest’s discomfiture. To console him, I said, “Ernest, I do not mean Venereal Disease, I meant Visual Diarrhoea.” Ernest harrumphed and came back to our table, receiving hearty claps on the back for his bravery.

APPRECIATION AND THANKS
In all my years as an office bearer of the OFA Singapore, I had tremendous support from the following co-committee members, who were unstinting in their support, never missing a meeting unless more important things cropped up. They include Moey Sek Pan, Chin Pak Kim, Goh Khek Sian and the following members who gave their moral and vocal support, chief of whom were Hwang Tiaw Hoe, Hwang Tiaw Sooi, Wee Chong Lim, Tan Ban Hoe, Lim  Chong Hock, Teng Lye Hock, Loh Peng Chee, Oh Siew Leong, Professor Chan Kong Thoe, Gory Yeang, Khoo Boo Aik, Yam Mow Lam and the happy-go-lucky Larry Lim Yam Hum.

Oh, before I forget, my thanks to each and every member who has encouraged and bolstered my passion for the OFA in their own individual ways.

OLD FREES ARE COMPASSIONATE
The title of this caption has been chosen with care and after much thought for it captures the heart and soul of the Old Frees. I say this with conviction because of two incidents where the Old Frees truly and unstintingly demonstrated their compassion.

One evening, I received a call for Mrs Yip Mun Kong imploring help from Lee Seng Teik to attend to her son, who had just suffered from a deep cut on his cheek. She was frantic, afraid that her son would be saddled with with an ugly scar on his face for the rest of his life. On reflection, it could be that Mrs Yip was afraid that no girl would marry her son, depriving her of grandsons or granddaughters. I thus called Lee Seng Teik who was at dinner. When he heard my request on behalf of another Old Free, he left his dinner there and then, and rushed to the general hospital. The last I heard, Mem Kong’s son has a scar but a very faint one.

WAH SENG’S MAGNANIMITY
Another incident, which strengthens my passion for the OFA Singapore. In 1996, I needed an X-ray report for my employer and my thoughts turned to Chin Wah Seng. Proceeding to his clinic, I registered myself and waited for my turn. When my turn came, I was pleasantly surprised when Wah Seng himself walked up to me and conducted me to his laboratory. Strapping me to a large machine himself and switched it on. The machine rotated for a few minutes and stopped, Wah Seng told me to put on my shirt and I dressed up .

Stopping at the registration counter to make payment, I was taken aback when the receptionist told me that Dr Chin had taken care of it. I did not leave but waited at the receptionist area to thank Wah Seng personally but the number of patients waiting made me leave after an hour so as not to disrupt Wah Seng’s schedule.

DIALYSIS MACHINE
I was diagnosed as diabetic in 1998 and was weak when I visited Yam Mow Lam. A few days later, I received a call to lunch with Ooi Teng San. Over lunch he enquired about my diabetic condition. After hearing about my details, he told me that should I have to be treated by dialysis, he is willingly to sponsor a dialysis machine so that I can self-treat by dialysis at home as treatment at dialysis centres are very expensive.

A word of caution to all readers. Anybody who bad-mouths the Old Frees will have me to contend with.

I cannot recall when we started holding our AGM at Kings Hotel, perhaps when they launched the Penang Food Promotion but I remember when we changed venue for once in 1999 and held it at the Concord Hotel. At the registration desk, three young men approached me and, their spokesman told me they were from Free School and wanted to be members. Handing me their name cards, one name stuck out - Malcolm Tan Ban Hoe. He then asked how they could help out. Having matters under control, I thanked him and told him I will let him know later.

When the AGM started, the president thanked me for the years of accepting and discharging the duties of hon. secretary through the years and since I was leaving to take up a post in China, the OFA would like to present me with a gift in appreciation. He then gave me a Samsonite briefcase by courtesy of Gary Yeang who was the Samsonite representative for South East Asia. As the office bearers had not been elected, I announced to the meeting that we are very fortunate that there are three young Old Frees who have volunteered to help in any way and I suggested that such enthusiasm should be rewarded by being elected to the committee. They stood up and graciously accepted to be elected. Thus Malcolm Tan, Boo Aik and one other (the name which I am unable to recall) were elected.

AN ASIDE
During Chong Soon Khean’s term of office as President, he narrated an incident that occurred just before he left for the meeting. He confessed he is very forgetful (Alzheimer’s?) and many a time had to return home to retrieve items that he had forgotten. He told us that it will be a thing of the past from now onwards as he has formulated a system to overcome his memory lapse. He told us he has composed a ditty to remind himself each time he leaves the house and has pasted the ditty behind his door. The ditty goes like this

KEYS

WALLET

SPECTACLES

TESTICLES

He then recounted to us what transpired between Sue (Mrs Chong) and himself as he left the house. He chanted the ditty and as he chanted, Sue said “Jimmy you can take the first three but leave the last at home” to which Soon Khean rejoined “cannot, lah, I will have no courage to do business if I leave them.”

ADDENDUM- the Advent of OFA Singapore
When I first joined the OFA, I remembered Weng On telling me the OFA was born in 1962. My thanks to Mr. JC Rajarao who corrected me on 15th November 2011 where he was my the guest at the Committee meeting. He pronounced that he has a newspaper clipping and photo  of the Committee taken in 1953 perhaps in tribute to Queen Elizabeth’s Coronation.

Submitted by
Neo Kim San @ Neo Ah San

 

Brexit explained

As the United Kingdom stands on the brink of remaining or leaving the European Union, I am reminded of this excerpt from the Yes Minister television series of long ago. Season One, I believe it was, when this exchange took place:

Sir Humphrey: "Minister, Britain has had the same foreign policy objective for at least the last 500 years: to create a disunited Europe. In that cause we have fought with the Dutch against the Spanish, with the Germans against the French, with the French and Italians against the Germans, and with the French against the Germans and Italians. Divide and rule, you see. Why should we change now when it's worked so well?"

Jim Hacker: "That's all ancient history, surely."

Sir Humphrey: "Yes, and current policy. We had to break the whole thing [the EEC] up, so we had to get inside. We tried to break it up from the outside, but that wouldn't work. Now that we're inside we can make a complete pig's breakfast of the whole thing: set the Germans against the French, the French against the Italians, the Italians against the Dutch. The Foreign Office is terribly pleased, it's just like old times."

A Hatyai shopping weekend

My wife and I took off on a weekend holiday to Hat Yai with some friends last week. This trip had been in the planning since the beginning of the year but only materialised about three weeks ago when the friends we knew suddenly agreed to come along with us.

So there we were at the Bukit Mertajam railway station last Friday morning to await the arrival of the 7.37a.m. KTM ETS train to Padang Besar. Once we arrived at the border and having cleared Malaysian and Thai immigration, we boarded the State Railway of Thailand's diesel railcar service to Hatyai, arriving in the Thai city at about 9.45a.m. local time.

A 10-minute walk took us to the Kosit Hotel. The Kosit was an aged hotel but the accommodation was still clean and comfortable enough. We were allocated a room at the end of the long corridor which turned out lucky for us because it was quiet. However, it was not so lucky for two of our friends who were given a room near to the lift lobby. Throughout the night, there were people loitering around the lobby and chattering away without a care for the guests in the rooms. My friends should have complained to the hotel's reception, which they did not.

Lunch on the first day was at a Thai restaurant across the road from the hotel. Our first authentic Thai meal during our stay. And after we had finished, it was a walk into the business district of Hatyai. We found our way to the Kimyong market for purchases of some foodstuff and cheap clothes. Thereafter, we made our way by the tut-tut to the Central Festival Mall, an upmarket shopping centre catering mostly to tourists. Dinner was at one of the restaurants there which served kurobuta pork.

Our second day in Hatyai began with a filling breakfast of pork porridge at a coffee shop across the road from the hotel. Thereafter, travelling by tut-tut to their main wet market. Nothing much to buy there, seeing how the roads around the market were in a chaotic mess and we not knowing where exactly to go. As a result, we went from the market to the Lee Garden Plaza instead, from where we took a lazy stroll back to the Kosit.

By this time, it was close to checking out time. A quick lunch of chicken rice at the same coffee shop and we were soon on our way to the railway station. We boarded the diesel railcar which left at one o'clock and arrived at Padang Besar at 2.50 p.m. Malaysian time. Seeing that we still had about two hours to kill before the ETS train would depart, some of us made our way to the Padang Besar shopping arcade for, yes, still some more last-minute shopping.

 

The Free School gate

The imposing gate at the entrance into Penang Free School was built only in the 1970s and was never part of the original building plans some 50 years earlier. Here is an insight into the proposal to build the gate and the subsequent approval by the Board of Governors. This is an adapted extract from my forthcoming book on the history of Penang Free School:

In 1975, Goon Fatt Chee first mooted to the Board of Governors the necessity to build a main School Gate and four smaller gates at the other entrances, although real discussions on this ambitious project were only initiated in 1976. Based on his estimates, the cost of constructing the main gate would be about $40,000 while each of the smaller ones would cost less than $10,000. Two years later, he expressed confidence to the Board that funds could be raised for the gates’ construction from donations and the School would not have to bear the expenses. 

A disgruntled voice among the Governors questioned whether the gates were needed at all, but the Headmaster argued that the School deserved a front gate worthy of its stature and prestige. Further, he said, proper school gates would help considerably in tightening security of the school premises and keeping trespassers out. Another of the Governors spoke of adopting a less elaborate design but in the opinion of the Chairman of the Board of Governors, “nothing short of the best and most impressive was worthy of the School.” Eventually, a vote was taken of the Governors with seven in favour of the project and one against. 

In providing more information to the Board, the Headmaster said that the design shown to the Board had been drawn up by the pupils of the School under the supervision of the Senior Art Teacher. Much attention and care had been paid to ensure that the design retained the motifs of the main school building so that it would be in congruity with the architectural design of the parent building. 

In 1977 Dato’ Ch’ng Eng Hye responded generously to the School’s appeal for donations to build the main School Gate. According to the School Magazine, three generations of the Choong family had studied at the School. Ch’ng was a pupil of the Free School from 1919 to 1923 – he was the Head Prefect in 1923 – and his sons, Eddy Choong Ewe Beng, Freddie Choong Ewe Eong, David Choong Ewe Leong and Louis Choong , were also educated here, as well as many of his grandchildren. The other Old Boys that donated to the cause were Loh Kah Kheng, Lim Seng Hock and Teh Choon Beng. 

The main gate, constructed at a cost of about $23,000, was modelled on similar arch patterns found in the School. The slanting roof, pillars, motifs of rings and criss-cross patterns were similar to those on the main school building. The project began in late 1978 and finished sometime near the end of the second term in 1979. The School Gate was declared open officially by Ch’ng on 29^th September 1979. 

The Headmaster, in his school report at Speech Day 1978, paid tribute to the spirit of love and loyalty of the Old Frees who had rallied to the call of the Alma Mater. “The School required some gates that reflect the architectural grandeur of the main building,” he said, “and out spoke generous Dato’ Ch’ng Eng Hye, an Old Free. ‘I’ll donate the main gate to the Grand Old School,’ he had told the Board of Governors. We are proud of him. Other groups of Old Frees came forward too and said they too would donate for the two small gates.” 

Interpretations

So I've been visiting the school again during the school holidays. Nothing stirred except for the odd staff going about their jobs around the grounds. A good opportunity for photography, taking pictures of the nooks and crannies, some from unusual angles, without anyone getting curious, and then coming home to play creatively with the image enhancing software. Here's what I achieved playing about with Google's now non-supported Picasa program:

The incomparable Viktor Korchnoi

It has been announced that Viktor Korchnoi had died at the age of 85. Korchnoi was possibly the strongest grandmaster during the post-Bobby Fischer era never to have become a world chess champion, He had played Anatoly Karpov not once but three times for the world championship title but he faltered each and every time.

In 1974, Korchnoi and Karpov played in the Candidates final match in Moscow, which Karpov won. And because Fischer refused to defend his title, the World Chess Federation declared Karpov as the new world champion. One year later, Korchnoi defected from the Soviet Union and left his family behind. Setting up his base eventually in Switzerland, he advanced to challenge Karpov again in 1978. It was an acrimonious match in Baguio, Philippines which was full of political tension but Korchnoi was unable to dislodge his opponent. In 1981, he played Karpov for a third time in Merano, Italy but by then he was no longer at his best. After this match, Korchnoi's family was allowed to leave the Soviet Union.

I first met Korchnoi in 1979. Together with some other chess players from the Penang Chess Association, we were then playing as the Penang team at the Asian cities team chess championship in Hong Kong. My team mates and I knew that Korchnoi was in town but we never expected to bump into him in the hotel lift. He saw us and immediately demanded our support for his latest cause, which was to petition the Soviet Union to release Boris Gulko, another Soviet grandmaster, from house arrest in Moscow. Effectively, he had us cornered in the lift. We had nowhere to run but to grin sheepishly at him. Later, Korchnoi was to give a simultaneous exhibition in Hong Kong.

In 1982 when the Chess Olympiad was played in Lucerne, Switzerland, I was able to watch Korchnoi from up close in many of his games. My admiration for this man grew. More than anyone else, he brought to the chessboard such boundless energy and attitude which, to me, very few other professional chess players displayed in their games. It was at this event that I witnessed his momentous first game ever with Gary Kasparov.

My last time seeing Korchnoi at work was at the Manila Chess Olympiad in 1992. I was amused to watch a black eye-patched Korchnoi who, despite recovering from a minor eye surgery, spending his recuperation by playing competitive chess and carving up most of his opponents.

Korchnoi's passing closes another chapter in the long history of chess. Rest in peace, Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi, chess player, born 23 March 1931, died 6 June 2016.

Dictionaries and English usage

Am I taking my English language too seriously? In the last few days, I had been bothered about the use of full stops in abbreviated words and I really needed some help to clarify this matter. I remembered that I do have some dictionaries, thesauruses and books on grammar in various places around the house and I set out to search for them. And this was what I found:

• A copy of Advanced Learner's English Dictionary, from the COBUILD series
• A copy of BBC English Dictionary
• A copy of Essential Dictionary, from the COBUILD series
• A copy of Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, by J.C. Wells
• A copy of English Grammar, from the COBUILD series
• A copy of 2,000 Essential English Verbs
• A copy of Mastering Spoken English & Communication Skills
• Two copies of Fowler's Modern English Usage, second edition, revised by Sir Ernest Gowers
• A copy of Current English Usage, by Frederick T. Wood

This set of books do not include my father's copy of the Chambers' Twentieth Century Dictionary. It's still somewhere in the storeroom. I really loved that dictionary. It had kept me occupied during my youth when I really needed help with a lot of words. Plus, there are two or three copies of Roget's Thesaurus in the storeroom. I should dig them out too.

Why I have two copies of Fowler's Modern English Usage, I have no idea. I was pretty surprised to see them myself. This title, together with Current English Usage, were my most commonly used companion reference books in the 1970s and 1980s. I'm glad they are still very useful to me. And yes, I've the answer already to that perplexing question of using full stops in abbreviations....

Really? 200 years of Tamil education?

Will the Penang Free School Bicentenary Committee or the Penang Free School Foundation be doing anything to refute this outrageous claim? Will they permit the Deputy Education Minister to get away with this? Will they allow our bicentenary celebrations to be hijacked on 21 October 2016?

The above report on "Celebrating 200 years of Tamil education", which appeared in The Star newspaper on 19 May 2016, is factually wrong. Like always, there's not been enough evidence to back up the claims of politicians when they start alluding to events that happened a very long time ago.

The Deputy Education Minister, P. Kamalanathan, said this milestone could "trace its roots to Penang Free School, which hosted the first Tamil language class on Oct 21, 1816." Does he have the evidence to support his statement?

As far as I am aware, Penang Free School never had a Tamil language school until 1821 which was five years after the main school was established in 1816. Although the Tamil school was forced to close in 1823 from lack of support and attendance, nevertheless it was still encouraging to know that there was even Tamil vernacular education in those days.

When Rev. Robert Sparke Hutchings submitted his Original Plan to set up the Prince of Wales' Island Free School (the original name of Penang Free School) to the Government in Council for approval on 6 Jan 1816, two of the objectives were:

10th. That the Children of Malay Parents who are not desirous that they should learn English, be instructed by a Malay Teacher to read and write their own Language.
11th. That the same Plan be adopted as far as circumstances will permit, with regard to the Children of Chuliah and Hindustanee Parents.

Unfortunately, some of Hutchings' original objectives could not be realised. One year after the school's establishment, the School Committee conceded to the subscribers at its first annual meeting in October 1817 that: "It was also intended, to Educate in their own national languages, a certain number of Day Scholars, the Children of Malay, Chinese, Hindoo, and Chuliah Parents, for whom Native Teachers, were to be provided. Neither of these objectives have yet to be attained, nor indeed put into progress; the Committee have found it most advisable to limit its first measures to the Introduction of a system of Education in the English Language..."

Therefore, unless Kamalanathan can assert positively that there was indeed a Tamil vernacular school or class at Penang Free School in 1816, all I can say is, definitely there was none. Indeed, circumstances did not permit the Free School to open any vernacular school until 1821. In that year, two Malay schools and the singular Tamil school were opened, while none was ever started for Chinese vernacular education. The Tamil school closed in 1823 while the Malay schools ran a bit longer till 1826.

This was the research of Marcus Langdon in his book "Penang the Fourth Presidency of India 1805-1830, Volume Two" published by the George Town World Heritage Incorporated in 2015. Langdon is the leading authority on Penang's early history under the East India Company, and his works are widely cited by heritage advocates, conservationists and historians.

Having said all this, if Kamalanathan has irrefutable evidence to the contrary that there were indeed Tamil language schools elsewhere in Penang in 1816, do let me know. I shall welcome any new evidence that can re-write the history of education in Penang.

To Perth again and back: Serpentine (Part one)

It's been about six weeks since Saw See and I took a short holiday to de-stress after I had completed about 90 percent of the manuscript for the Penang Free School Bicentenary Book project.

For the second time in seven years, we went to Perth but this time, it was only for five days at the end of March, much shorter than the eight days we spent there in 2009. Actually, Perth did not come into our reckoning at all but we got carried away when Malindo Air launched their new flights to Western Australia last November. We found the price appealing enough and decided to go Down Under again.

So there we were, on 25th March morning, waiting for the ETS electric train service to arrive at the Bukit Mertajam station, which it did at about 7.10 a.m. promptly. As we've done the train journey so many times before, this trip wasn't out of the extraordinary. We arrived at the KL Sentral at about 11 o'clock and were picked up by our daughter. There would be about 12 hours to kill in Kuala Lumpur before the Malindo Air flight took off at 11 p.m.

We arrived at the Perth International Airport after five o'clock in the morning of 26th March, duly went through Australian Immigration and Customs control, and found ourselves queuing up at the Optus counter to buy a pre-paid SIM card for my mobile. Quite cheap, actually, because I paid only AUD10 for five days of usage which included 500MB of data daily. The Optus counter can be easily seen once you leave the arrival hall. Just turn left and you are there.

We next went to the car rental counter to pick up our vehicle from Thrifty. I had expected that they would allocate us the Nissan Tilda but was surprised to be given the Toyota Corolla, a bigger car. Suited us fine, actually, because of our big bags.

Because the holidays were short, we decided on only a few destinations in our itinerary. One of them, however, would have to be a visit to the Bodhinyana Monastery at Serpentine. When Ajahn Brahm visited Penang last December, I had asked him casually whether he would be in Perth during the Easter weekend and he had said yes. As such, not visiting the monastery would be totally out of the question for me as I had really wanted to catch the monk in his liar.

It was a rather quiet drive to Serpentine but for a brief flurry of excitement with my old GPS unit that I had brought along from home. I still had my old Western Australia navigation map installed but I had been unable to find my updated map of the place. Consequently, for much of my driving around the airport, the poor GPS unit kept telling me that I was driving on some undiscovered road in the middle of nowhere although I was definitely on the highway to somewhere. But soon I saw the sign board that said Armadale, and I remembered from long ago that Serpentine was in the same direction.

Pretty soon, the GPS took over and I found myself at the Bodhinyana about an hour later: just in time, actually, to catch the tail-end of Ajahn Brahm's morning prayers. We quickly offered him a dana of robes before joining the other people there for lunch.

I must say that the lunch served at this monastery was quite an eye opener. It was so much unlike the food that we get here in Penang, which is wholly Chinese fare. Here at Serpentine, we have devotees bringing in lasagna, chocolate, salad, biscuits and a cheese bar, assorted bread and yoghurt, among many other types of food. It was quite an experience.

Inevitably, we met a couple from Malaysia when we arrived at Bodhinyana. From Alor Star, they told us, and they had been in Perth for three weeks already. They showed us around the grounds after lunch was over. We went over to the meditation hall and submerged ourselves in the immense silence of the place, which was helped by a fully carpeted floor that completely muffled any sound from people walking around. We also met an elderly lady from Thailand who claimed to be both a Catholic and a Buddhist, if such a thing was ever possible. Anyhow, we couldn't stay too long at the monastery as we had to drive back to Perth. Fremantle beckoned next.

People lining up for food at the Bodhinyana in Australia is no different from people lining up back in Penang, except that they are more multi-racial

Enjoying our first full meal in Western Australia 

The silence of the well-carpeted meditation hall at the Bodhinyana Monastery

Our new-found friends at the monastery

"abok-abok, pang sai boh cheh bok"

An old memory just came to my mind. Remember the rhyming childhood ditty that one used to recite, "abok-abok, pang sai boh cheh bok"?

Back in the 1960s, I would always be hearing a man intoning out loudly, "abok-abok...." as he rode along Seang Tek Road in the evenings to hawk his delectable sweet desserts. As I would remember, whenever someone wanted to buy from this burly and dark-looking old man, he would stop and open up the rattan basket at the back of his bicycle.

The abok-abok was his main dessert - basically a mixture of small sago balls coloured with green pandan extract and steamed with gula malacca and grated coconut in a conical wrap of banana leaf  - but if my memory serves me right, there was also kueh kochi santan too.

On the rare days that my mother agreed to buy me the dessert, which wasn't often, I would gently hold the abok-abok, wrapped in a banana leaf, in my hands but I could never bring them into the house because I would have already finished it even before I stepped through the door!

The abok-abok man went everywhere on his bicycle. I was told that not only had he been seen around the Dato Kramat Road and Perak Road areas but people around the Bridge Street and even Beach Street areas have recalled seeing him through.

Love your trees

The tecoma tree outside my house is blooming again and for the second time this year, the ground is coated with a layer of pink flowers. It's been so for the past week but thankfully, the blooms have not been as intense as the last flowering season. Still, I'm able to refill my compost pail with fresh flowers and thus have a fresh pile of compost heap.

I was outside the house yesterday morning picking up the flowers from around the tree when a "helpful" neighbour from the end of the road sauntered up to me and remarked that I should perhaps do what she did, which was to cut down the tecoma tree.

I was horrified. What, cut down the tree? Typically, a selfish Malaysian who would rather contribute to warming the earth than greening it. And that was what I told her. We shouldn't be so selfish only to think of ourselves and our own convenience. Besides the shade, we need the trees to provide us with the oxygen and to help cut down on the emissions. If everybody were to cut down the trees around them, we shall be denying ourselves the nature around us. Don't ever think that your neighbour's tree is enough to provide both him and you with replenishment and rejuvenation. Play your part too. Plant your trees, nuture your trees and love your trees. For that, I shall endure the yearly tecoma blooms. I shall continue to be grateful for the tree outside my house.

The bicentenary book

I suppose it is time for me to put some closure to my writing of the long history of the Penang Free School. I have spent something like eight months on this project for the School's Bicentenary Celebrations this October 2016 and I still have one last chapter to complete, which is on some of the illustrious deceased alumni who had shone prominently on the national or world stage. But for that, I can write the chapter separately without affecting much of the book's main contents. 

It had been an interesting journey to trace the School's history as much of the pre-Second World War records had been lost due to the Occupation years. Thankfully, the National Library in Singapore, the rare books section of the Penang State Library and the School Archives did provide me with a lot of resources to work on, not to mention too some individuals who helped with information to fill in some gaps.

Khalil Gibran on Giving

You give but little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.
For what are your possessions but things you keep and guard for fear you may need them tomorrow?
And tomorrow, what shall tomorrow bring to the over-prudent dog burying bones in the trackless sand as he follows the pilgrims to the holy city?
And what is fear of need but need itself?
Is not dread of thirst when your well is full, the thirst that is unquenchable?

There are those who give little of the much which they have -- and they give it for recognition and their hidden desire makes their gifts unwholesome.
And there are those who have little and give it all.
These are the believers in life and the bounty of life, and their coffer is never empty.
There are those who give with joy, and that joy is their reward.
And there are those who give with pain, and that pain is their baptism.
And there are those who give and know not pain in giving, nor do they seek joy, nor give with mindfulness of virtue;
They give as in yonder valley the myrtle breathes its fragrance into space.
Through the hands of such as these God speaks, and from behind their eyes He smiles upon the earth.

It is well to give when asked, but it is better to give unasked, through understanding;
And to the open-handed the search for one who shall receive is joy greater than giving.
And is there aught you would withhold?
All you have shall some day be given;
Therefore give now, that the season of giving may be yours and not your inheritors'.

You often say, "I would give, but only to the deserving."
The trees in your orchard say not so, nor the flocks in your pasture.
They give that they may live, for to withhold is to perish.
Surely he who is worthy to receive his days and his nights, is worthy of all else from you.
And he who has deserved to drink from the ocean of life deserves to fill his cup from your little stream.
And what desert greater shall there be, than that which lies in the courage and the confidence, nay the charity, of receiving?
And who are you that men should rend their bosom and unveil their pride, that you may see their worth naked and their pride unabashed?
See first that you yourself deserve to be a giver, and an instrument of giving.
For in truth it is life that gives unto life while you, who deem yourself a giver, are but a witness.

And you receivers... and you are all receivers... assume no weight of gratitude, lest you lay a yoke upon yourself and upon him who gives.
Rather rise together with the giver on his gifts as on wings;
For to be over-mindful of your debt, is to doubt his generosity who has the freehearted earth for mother, and God for father.