The Republican journal., 1913-07-31
From Far Off india.
A Letter to Troy Friends from Miss Sadie B.
Cowen, Missionary at Balasore. India.

A Letter to Troy Friends from Miss Sadie B.
Cowen, Missionary at Balasore, India.
KALIMPoNG. BENGAL.
INDIA. May q, 1918.
Dear C. E. Friends: Something more
than month ago your letters reached
me and were very welcome. l have
been waiting for vacation time to come
before answering, and now it is here and
fast passing away.
Balasore is hotter than All oven now.
Often as l sat writing at my desk the
perspiration would drip from my fingers,
and l must always cover my writing pa
per with blotter else it becomes SO wet
l cannot write.
1t seems hardly possible that up here
among the hills there can be place so
cool and comfortable.
Mr.. and Mrs. Frost, whom some of
you know, came to Darjeeling when l
came here. l went to Darjeeling with
them for an hour or two, then took a
horseback ride of Is miles through the
mountains to the place where am now
staying, Kalimpong, large and far
famed mission station of the Scotch
presbyterian church.
In this place are people from many
races as it is near the borders of Tibet
and China, and they differ as greatly in
color. dress and manner as though they
We're OF widely separated countries.
Just below the mission house where |
am staying is long, low, matched house
and IN it are over 200 women and chill
dren, many of them very sad. Recently
there has been serious trouble between
emma and Thibet, so that all the Chinese
soldiers have been driven out and cannot
go back. Having been there for some
time many of them had married Tribe
tan women, but a Thibetan woman can
not go into China on p,ril of her life, SO
the soldiers brought their wives and fami-
hes and left them under the protection
OF the English Government and the mis-
sion and have gone away to their own
country. The women cannot go back to
Ihlbet, because for having Chinese hus-
bands they would be at once killed.
They are spoken Of as ''The Deserted
wives. Government has given some
land to them, and the mission has built
them house. You know no missionary
has ever got far into Thibet to stay, but
some OF them to knowledge of Himself
Or. Graham, the head of the mission
work here, is man of mighty faith.
He believes, he prays, and God does
wonderful works through him.
Up on the side of one of these huge
mountains in sight of Kinchunjunga, the
second highest peak IN the Himalayas, are
fourteen white cottages with Fairgrounds
ana hover gardens, large. commodious
church and schoolhouse, we'll equipped
and modern as to English methods, with
only English teachers or rather Scotch.
In each cottage is a so-called mother and
auntle and from twenty to thirty young
STEERS OF various sizes and colors. In all
about 400 homeless boys and girls have
homes within those walls. They are not
natives OF India, that is, all of them have
some white blood and most of them
have some black. There are in India
many people called Eurasians, meaning
the product of intermarriage between
Dlack and white, and for the most part a
most undesirable product. The native
people despise them, and they, in turn,
look down upon the native, while the
pure white man has no use for the man
OF mixed blood. 1t is a unfortunate
condition, and is like being a man with
, y
stantly taking place. Well, these four
teen cottage homes are for such children,
and in all India there is No other place so
good. They are very good houses, and
the mother" tries to be real mother
to her family The boys and girls, big
and little, 60 barefooted, as shoes are
too great an expense for SO many, and
some OF the missionaries children do
the same all the time to encourage and
help the others. You have heard DR..
Barbados Homes in London, or some
English city. These are confessedIy
copied from mis- homes, and some of the
house mothers" have been in the Bar
nado homes as workers.
l wish l could make you see these cot
tage homes in this wholesome, healthy
climate, we'll managed by refined Scotch
women, the church and schools and the
children Well-cared for who otherwise
would be almost vagabonds, and all set
tied among these gigantic mountains.
Inc older girls are taught good house
Keeping. nursing, trained for teachers
ana various other useful work. The
boys are taught farming and they have
a model farm to work, and those who
are capable are trained for professions
ana various things. All this work is a
side issue of the regular mission work
and is supported entirely by English and
wealthy native people of India, the Gov
eminent also helps. There are, in mis-
sion work and in the cottages, sixty or
more missionaries in this one place. Is
1t any wonder the work prospers?
However, the house mothers and aunties
are not regarded as missionaries, but
just as their names imply.
You can imagine that aside from the
good air and grand scenery land one
fourth the horizon is bordered by snow
capped mountains of Thibet and Bhutans)
II Is an Inspiration to me to be visitor
for three weeks among this great body
of earnest workers for the Master.
However, l am just longing to get back
to Balasore and my own folks. Schools
reopen June 18TH On the 18th we open