Chapter 5 Hurst Estate,Ulu Sapetang,Taiping

Hurst Estate was initially a European owned concerned which was sold away just before our Independence.Hurst I was informed mean a land full of trees.Wonderful name at least it was named after some one else.

The plantation was a piece of estate shaft away in the interior.Extremely undulating.It was fully established with rubber.During my stay there the main clone appeared to be the seedlings plants of PBIC,TJ 1 and GT 1.RRIM clones like RRIM 600 was then slowly gaining popularity with our replanting going into it.

The plantation had its own rubber factory,producing own rubber smoked sheets.While I was there was a rather bad incidence happened,where the smoke house was completely demolished by over heating.

That happened because of the mistakes of our drunken smoke house watch man.He overloaded the fire place with wood with intention to keep the fire burning a long long time.It backfire for that was never how it worked.

The loss were a total lost all the rubber within for curing.That was why when employing a smoke house watchman it was imperative he be a sober man never a drunkard.When a smoke house was over heated there were no ways to lower its temperature.

When over heated rubber combusted easily should  the main door were opened (to cool down the heat within???) and the fresh air rushing in would only  feed the burning fire,making it burned more fiercely.By the time the fire engines arrived all would have been completely destroyed.In fact their arrival offered no help.Maybe just to out out the burning ambles.

Our drinking water in the estate those days were from or own catchment area which were only a short distance from our sheeting factory.Water from a nearby swamp were diverted into that catchment especially during rainy seasons.

Clear as it was to be,the water was never safe for drinking.It definitely had to be boiled before drinking.Thinking back brought back much scary moments for at times we had seen tiny red worms lurking in those water and we had been drinking it.

Come to think of it those "orang putih"who first started the plantation wrote so much about how t bring a clean and holdsome water were utter rubbish.They do not walk the talk.

No need to go far,this Hurst Estate for example.The catchment area was so near the factory but also the line sires.Worst still most the workers were Indians who were not used to toilets.Most eased themselves in the fields,day or nights,snakes or no snakes. Men and females alike they would prefer to perform those rituals in the fields.

The swamp which supplied the catchment with water was later drained for planting of rubber.It had an acreages of roughly about fifteen acres I was of the opinion that draining the swamp would deplete our catchment of water supply.I think the Boss's differed in that.

Another fifteen acres pf rubber would definitely bring in more revenue for the plantation.The water supply would be down where would come from thereafter?.Well,not for me to say or it would not be my problem as I was transferred off in due course.

While there the Manager put me in charged of the far division some three hundred an fifty acres,sufficient for a green horn like me.Most of the tappers were Chinese tappers both males and females.Assisting me was a "kapala". Chinese tappers were a noisy lot especially the females.

Production was not high because the clone was PBIG seedlings.It was here that I learned how to tap rubber.There were two types of tapping knives used.Whatever it was I learned them all.Not difficult but to to tap about 600 trees would be tiresome for me.

To supervise others I believe that we ourselves should know what we be taking about not referring to books etc.Another thing with these seedlings trees there would be much untapped trees.Tappers would just simply ignored them by declaring them as brown blast even not so because of low yielding.

To find out  it ought to tested by tapping.So should we be ignorant then how are we to test it?. Should you request the tapper to test it  .He or she could easily proved to you that it was not yielding bu shallow tapping but if you know how to tap they could never play you out.

Tapping rubber  were an art.To be able tap to extract a good yield, the tapper had to be very artistic.Tapping to the required depths sufficiently which were near the cambium  to bring out most of the latex from latex vessels without wounding the tapping panels.A tapper was considered bad should there be many wounds on its tapping panel.Of course these were the old.old ways.Presently tapping is more different very modern 

It was in this far division that I came across an old old planter that I once knew as a kid.He never did recognized me though but I knew him d from our meeting.However I was just a tiny tot compared to him so I just let it drift away.

It would not had made any difference anyway.In the past post war days this plantation office had been a  military out post.They were then fighting with the communists.In fact by the side of the office was a small shed housing the soldiers there.

A railway track cut through part of the plantation.IT was believe that during the Japanese occupation many executions by the Japanese were done along those track.Rumours of headless ghosts very strong over there.Just imagine headless ghosts on  the railway track begging for the returned of their heads.

I remember having to cross over there to do some replanting those days ,Thinking back as a young recruit I was damn scared those days  whenever crossing there by foot,even on board day light There was another way by vehicle from the main road to reach that replanting.

In the replanting area I had to stand directly under the hot and merciless blazing sun almost the whole day long.Not only that had to move around supervising those replanting of budded stumps.The budded stumps ought to be planted with budding patch facing the correct direction and planted firmly in the ground.

Talking about ghost once I had a bad encounter with a ball of fire on the entrance road back to the bungalow.It was one of those days where I though staying back until late was nothing accept when going home would be a problem.

It was only 10 p.m. not late by any standard but the taxi could only serviced me until our entrance gate.In any case I had no key to that gate either.On arrival thereafter I was to be on my own.I took a deep breath before I continued my journey homeward

The road was pitch dark and I could actually see a short distance as I walked along.Then in fright I surged ahead running slowly then picked up speed a little at a time.Both sides of the rad were darker and nothing can be seen.Then out of no where up front I saw a ball of fire flying (the size of a small ball) floating about three feet above  the ground.

Now some might suggest those were lights of rubber tappers tapping the fields with head lamps.No there was no human being near it. At about 10.00 p.m.no body tapped rubber at that hour.That old rubber with its thick inter rows early morning tapping were surely out.

Seeing that I focused my eyes straight ahead , increased my speed in the running.I think I ran the fastest 100 metres in my entire life.The ball of fire was drifting in the inter rows of the old rubber. I dared not even looked side ways as I ran past it.Fortunately that thing did not chased me,otherwise it be the unthinkable 

I reached home panting real hard sweating profusely all though.Everyone were in bed then and the lights were still on.I rested a while then retired to my room.Following the lights were out  as normal.,anyway I was already dead tired and went on to bed.

There was another incidence where we  saw a ball of fire drift floating around the garden of the bungalow.It happened at about midnight when the Manager saw a ball of fire flying about a short distance away from his window.

He called out to see that ball of fire.It floated around for an hour or so before disappearing into the darkness.It was never hostile towards anyone  just minding its own business.Later I learned that these were actually little  ghosts kept or bred by some "bumoh".

These were released in the late evening to seek their own food.Their food were normally human wastes mostly women's.In days passed women giving birth at home had their wastes hanged out on trees, high so no wild beast could disturbed them.

It was believed that those little ghosts fed on them By day light they returned to their home .Many a time a magical bottle at the "Bomoh" house.These little ghosts used to assist the "bomoh" to locate lost things  or maybe healing of those very sick.Many do not believe in them but you be damn wrong should you ignored it.

There were some fly by night "bomoh". But be aware that there are still many powerful ones around.Perhaps many had read of a case where a petty thief was "locked" in a shop he tried to ransack.Having gone round the shop although it was quite small he seem  unable to locate his way to out. 

Apparently he walked and walked within that shop until he collapsed in total exhaustion..A week later he was saved only when the shop proprietor returned from his leave.The weak thief just simply was too glad to surrender himself.Anyway he was to weak to resist arrest.

That house had been charmed by a :bomoh" although the shop keeper denied it flatly.Otherwise what explanation can anyone suggest?.That really happened in a border town in Kelantan. Some "bomoh" are known for the healing power for those erection  malfunction.Believe me some one in Kedah really can.

Talking about ghost I had a scary morning. It was a stormy and rainy  morning but I was awoken by the cold wild breezing through my windows Shivering within my blanket I suddenly heard cries of a baby some distance away among those rambutan trees.

The cries were whistling into my ears,I slowly peeped through my blanket lifting my head a little to look at the sight where the cries came.How could I to see it as the whole areas were very dark.Accompanying those cries were the pouring rain.

We knew there were no one residing there.Even there was the couple had no small baby.Thinking of it further my hair begin to stay upright standing on ends.That cries were ghostly 0f a baby ghost.Oh!!! my goodness a baby ghost.Those cries were never heard again thereafter while I was there.

When the Manager was away I stole the opportunity to learn to drive on the plantation's land rover.A college guided me the finer points on how to drive.While learning I nearly ran out of control by wrong stepping on the accelerator heavily.Fortunatey I released the pressure in time to save the day.Failing which would had been fatal.

Beside playing the guitar in our space time we also played badminton and that was where I improve my standard of playing.Those new friends were very good in the game.The badminton court was within the Manager's bungalow compound.Plantation life can be boring and lonely.That was why we had to take some thing to keep busy......
.