Bulletin No. 1, 2012

Mapping the Present from Old Papers  31  Professor Fan pinpointed, ‘When we forget something, we need to recall them. Bringing back the past can definitely help us solve the problems we are now facing.’ ‘We don’t reminisce, or try to bury our heads in the sand. The past must be remembered and lessons learnt for us to face the future,’ commented Prof. Lo Wai-luen. Columnists usually describe themselves as ‘grid-lined paper crawlers’, After half a century, we now have the good fortune to recapture some of Words of Awakening , edited by Dr. Cheung Wing- mui, committee member of the HKLRC, was originally a column in the newspaper Tai Kung Pao in the 1950s–1960s. The writer was Mr. Lin Jiahong (alias ‘Dreamer’), who created an honest but gullible character named ‘muddle-head’ through whom he portrayed the stories of Hong Kong’s grassroots. Hong Kong’s buried memories. Through the sleight of pen of our talented columnists, we can better understand its fascinating history and renew our connections with our roots. Edited by Prof. Fan Sin-piu, The Sharp Maiden Pen is the first compilation of Miss Fang Shiwen’s (alias ‘Shisanmei’) writings. Born in Vietnam, she was fluent in French, English and Chinese, and introduced ‘new perspectives, new books, new trends and new information’ from western newspapers and magazines to Hong Kong readers in the late 1950s. Her critical and fiery character was reflected in her writings, and people still find her fascinating today. Middleman’s View is edited by Dr. Hung Chi-kum, honorary research associate of the HKLRC. The author was ‘Sansu’ (Mr. Gao Xiong’s alias), nicknamed ‘weird pen’, and his column was well received by readers of an evening newspaper over a decade (1947–58). ‘Agent La’ was a very popular icon in those days. To find business he witnessed all kinds of eccentricities in society. Prof. Lo Wai-luen Prof. Fan Sin-piu