Smoked Rubber Sheets were sold in Sibu to a few middle men like Wong Sing Keng (Hock Chiong) and Sia Kie Ming (Ching Chiong).
My maternal grandmother owned a smoke house and my third uncle Pang Sing was the manager. The other brothers had a share and expected good dividens.
Uncle Pang Sing would salvage for wood from Lee Hua Sawmill and forage for floating logs from the Rajang. He would hand saw the logs and wood and dry them for the Herng Boon (smoke house) when the rubber sheets filled up all the wooden poles it was time to smoke them and it would be alike a carnival in the big house. People would start coming to place their last rubber sheets into the smoke house.
And the waiting began.
But what was most wonderful was the day when the motor launch came and the Rubber sheets were ready to be shipped out.
It was called the day for Chuk Sai (moving out). It was again a carnival time. The able bodied Foochow relatives from the village (Nang Chong) would all be around to carry the bales of rubber sheets into the boat. and Grand ma woudl be ready to go to town the next day, very early in the morning when the mist was still low on the Rajang.
The aroma and sweetness of smoked rubber in the air made an imprint in a tiny part of my mind.
Money was coming in and more meat would be on the table. Grandma's basket would be full of biscuits for the little ones.
And there would be stories from the town.
She would be off to Hock Chiong for a day.
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