Ma Kiam Poem in Running Script

The seven-character quatrains were composed by Ma Kiam and presented as a gift to Li King-hong. Ma Kiam, a native of Jin County (in Zhejiang province), obtained the xiucai qualification in the late Qing period lectured at Yenching University's Chinese Department. He also pursued postgraduate studies and received a master in education at Columbia University. Well versed in classical Chinese literature, Ma Kiam and his brothers were known as the "Five Mas" for their remarkable contribution to the Chinese academia. Ma first came to Hong Kong in 1936 to lecture on classical literature in the University of Hong Kong's Chinese Department and served as the department head after the Second World War when he returned from China. He retired in 1951 and was well remembered for his contributions to the local theatre. This poem is part of an oeuvre of poetry compositions on azaleas initiated by Li King-hong.