Pre-conceptions began in Nanjing
Where the Treaty of 1842
Gave Hong Kong a lease from Pekin,
Colonial ways conceded too.
My father served on the China Station
1930s - with the Royal Navy
Frigates to quell trouble then would hasten
Tho' time was left to play and be lazy.
While gunboats patrolled upon the Yangzte
Manned by young men dressed in their whites
Little they thought of the future fancy
Mother river being dammed, doubling heights.
China leaving the gold standard
Gave sailors a chance of a killing-
Exchange rates aboard and to landward
Profited some, with many a shilling.
Now it's in China that fortunes are made
Producing iPads, clothes, and even shoes.
When memories of home begin to fade
The artefacts come out, us to enthuse
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