The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-01-18
From far off China

work in China, has been received 10y
one of her former sunday school schol-
ars in this city.
Wusih, China, Nov. %, 1897.
Dear James:
Living as we do in Chinese houses,
with no yards, we find it necessary to
go away every sumhmer and spend the
very hot weather in some more health
full place. Dur houses are over the
canal and the rooms on the lower floor
are damp so we have to 1--we mostly in
the upper story. These rooms are small
and right under the tiled roof, each
room has only n small window and
on a hot day they are almost %uninlhaTbi-
table. las the temperature often re-
mains the same day and night for a
week or more, you can see 1T would be
prostrating to a foreigner. 1 have
heard THE Chinese say that sometimes
during the summer they are not able
to sleep in their houses for days at a
time, but spend the nights in the
streets trying to get a breah of air. AS
the streets are not more than ten
feet wide and are full of all sorts of
/, filth the air on them is not the best
you have known.
This past summer we spent in Japan
and the entire change of climate and
) scene helped us very much. The trip
across the yellow sea is usually rough
and we had an unusually hard pas
sage, SO that every one was hankful
when we arrived in We
Were detained there several days get
ting passports for ourselves and our
Chinese servants to go into the interior.
OlIr destination WAS a small mountain
! observation-disclosures, 10S miles from
Yokohama by rail. OUR tickets only
cost us $1.0S (gold) and it was a nine
hours trip with three changes. 1t was
very warm the first part OF the way
but as we approached the mountains
! it grew Delightfully."- c oil. We went
through &c tunnels in the last four
miles emerging each time into the most
beautiful scenery I have ever seen.
THE grade was very steep, one foot
in fifteen and the engine had a ratchet
wheel in the center to keep from slip
ping. KarinZaWa is situated in a per
fectly level plateau surrounded by
mountains. There were several hun
dred Foreigners there, most of them mis-
sionaries, and during the summer the
council of the five Presbyterian bodies
working in Japan meet there. Robert
Specs was there at the time and we all
enjoyed meeting him. The gentlemen
made several trips to places OF interest
near to Nikko, the most beautiful spot
in Japan, UP the volcano Asalma, 5000
feet above sea level; n to the vast
lava beds at it's foot.
1T is good to meet 50 many who are
working in the same cause and to hear
OF their trials and announcements; to
see old friends and to make new ones.
1t gives us food for thought and con-
versation for many months, so that
our minds as we'll as our bodies are
renewed and strengthened.
Our mission meeting took place in
Shanghai during the first we2kS Of
September 50 We had to cave Japan
a5ou the goth Of August We had
a very war; trip but reached Shang-
hal safely and we'll. We spent about
WI weeks there and then came up the
anal to our little home. We had
to spend some time in repairing and
getting straight; hen DIR. Worth open.
ed his ~hispensary and our regular rou-
tine began; medical and evangerlistic
work in the afternoons and often in
the mornings too, and study OF the Ian.
guage in unOccupied time. Il
leaves very little time for
letter writing and none fo1
reading. DIR. Worth and Mrs. Sykes
and 7, when I can, work in the dispen.
IVY oAAo VII dlIu NIL. IIll
talk to the patients who are waiting
their turn outside. We nave accomm
dations for a few hospital patients
and these are preached to and instruct.
ed and given books to read, for we are
more anxious to heal their souls thar
their bodies.
This has been a very wet summer
and fall and the rice fields are so full
of water that much of the rice is
spoiled and in many places the farm.
|, ers cannot plant their winter wheat
This will make food lear and will cause
l much suffering among those who never
have much to eat eve in times o.
; plenty. Where a man can live quite
comfortably on three OF four cents {
day TT seems strange to us that any.
= one should starve, but men are so plen.
: tiful here that it is often hard for
: them to earn wen that much.
Chrysanthemums are in their glcrJ
now and large baskets of them ar
E brought to the 600 nearly every day
t I can buy a dozen or more for abou
$ two cents. The chinese women ar.
fond Of wearing flowers in their hal
Ii now everyone is able to have a
t least II bright blossom which lock:
S very pretty against their glossy blacl
$ coil.
; 1t will be about Christmas time wher
5 you get this and / hope it will be {
: very happy time for you. We ar,
. planning to have a little Christmas tire,
i for our children, none of them hav,
ever seen me. There. are four Child
rem here now, Mrs. Sykes little girl
a Mr.. Hadens little boy and my tw,
;. boys William and Charlie. They hay,
e very few of the pleasures of Ameri
: can children and we want to give then
; all We can.
: Wishing You a merry Christmas an,
a happy new year. I am,
r Yours truly