Here is the story of a relative who received two dollars for her housekeeping spending for a shopping trip to Sibu. She lived in Engkilo after she was married and raised six children, many pigs, chickens ad ducks, and tapped rubber for a living with her husband.
To receive 2 dollars for housekeeping and a trip to Sibu was a huge sum of money for a rubber tapper in those days.
Early in the morning she would catch the boat for Sibu and would return to cook lunch for the family.
She used to tell her children how big the Rajah's dollar was. And how she enjoyed a special bonus. And the bonus was the fact that her husband allowed her to keep whatever she could save for her pocket money, or for her own shopping.
One week end she went to the Sibu market with her basket and she had already discussed with her husband what to buy for the family of three generations!!
With so many mouths to feed, she carefully bought all the dry and wet rations and put them in her basket. The dry rations were sent ahead by an older child to the boat.
After calculation she had extra money left and she went to the general store to buy herself 4 yards of materials to make herself a suit, a top and a pair of trousers. It was a wonderful shopping spree for her.
This was her shopping list :
tougey 4 cents (enough for a few days)
pork 50 cents (enough for at least three meals)
vegetables 10 cents (enough for three days at least)
sugar 2 cents (enough for a week)
salted fish 10 cents ( enough for a few days)
She had her own vegetable plots which would give the family enough vegetables until her next trip to Sibu.
She had so much more left and she was happy.
(The Foochows in the olden days, planted their own rice, reared their own chickens and ducks and even goats for festivals. Cooking oil was never bought because they could make their own coconut oil and lard.)
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