THE MEMOIRS OF MUSTAPHA HUSSAIN - Malaysia Today

88 Memoirs of Mustapha Hussain
console the frightened Chinese boy, I heard the other injured pillion rider
saying in a panicky voice, “Help, I have lost my balls. Help me look for
them!” Everyone within hearing distance laughed incessantly. I shone an
oil-lamp at him, stuck one hand into his pants and found both items intact.
My fears subsided, but the people laughed even more.
This same pillion rider then asked us to look for his dentures, but
the villagers responded, “Where can we find it in this pitch-black night?”
One suggested, “Maybe he has swallowed them!” Again, more guffaws.
The Chinese boy was still lamenting “Aiya!” occasionally. I left my
motorcycle under a villager’s house and all three of us hitched rides back
in to town. In the car, the two pillion riders were engrossed in practising
‘lines’ to tell their parents. I had cuts and bruises, but not serious enough
to skip work. After work, I went to see the Chinese boy’s father. He was
very good to me. He merely said, “Never mind. What can one do?” and
shook his head.
The passenger who thought he had lost his balls, Abdul Aziz (formerly
Jack Ambrose Fenner) initially lied to his family members that he merely
had a bicycling accident at the Tapah Rest House Hill, not a motorcycle
accident out of town, but a few hours later, the truth was out. Just like a
Malay saying, “The wide mouth of a jar can be closed, but not that of
humans.” A few weeks later, Abdul Aziz was seen sporting a row of gold
capped front teeth, and by the grace of God, I was married to his sister
Mariah later, in 1934.
Irish Politics
According to stories I had read, Irishmen were known for their fiery
temperaments, but an Irishman I knew in Serdang, Dr Scott, was so softspoken
and gentle, he could have been Malay. Dr Scott often talked about
politics to me, especially Irish politics. Putting aside whatever he was doing,
he would turn to me and begin a long narration of Irish political struggles.
Then again, the stories about the Reid brothers, two Irishmen living
in Tapah, gave a picture very unlike Dr Scott. For example, there was a
long compensation case pressed by the Reids after the Public Works
Department (PWD) felled one of their mango trees to facilitate road
widening. The Reids wrote to the PWD, with a copy to the Batang Padang
District Officer, requesting compensation for the mango tree, complete
with details of the tree’s fruiting potential. The claim was apparently met.
There were many stories about them that the British District Officer
wrote on the cover of the Reid file, “To be opened only when the bell
rings (at the end of the day).”