Page 155 - Three Score Years & Ten
P. 155
“THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN” MISSIONARY WORK IN CHINA
Amy Moore
hoping to join, made me attracted to her. Unfortunately, she fell off my idealistic pedestal at one
mealtime during our stay in the Upwey Guesthouse! Miss Doris Williams was her constant companion
at that time and obviously adored her. One day, the unfortunate girl who was serving at tables,
happened to spill some soup into Miss Crystalls lap. With all the high ideals of a Bible College
student, I expected her to react in a ‘real Christian’ way, but instead she muttered angrily under her
breath and was obviously upset. Miss Williams tried to calm her down and eventually lead her away
from the table to her room to change. The atmosphere was decidedly stormy and I decided that she
was not quite as saintly as I had thought! Now I was to know her better as she took charge of our little
group.
From Brisbane we moved up the coast to
Townsville where we spent a day. We
anchored some distance from shore so had
to be taken in by launch, but found little of
interest and were glad to return to the ship
which by now was beginning to feel like
home. We hadn’t left Townsville long
when a young stowaway was discovered
on board, and we had to anchor again off
Cairns so that a police launch could come
out and take him away. I felt quite sorry for
him.
We now aimed in the direction of Rabaul,
sailing between small islands as the
1931 Australian/New Zealand ladies’ party weather became hotter and the sea
at Brisbane en route to China. Amy is third changed colour to a delicate pale green
from right. On her right is Dorothy Holland with glimpses of fish in the clear depths
with Marjory Smith next and then Muriel and sometimes flying fish leaping high
Ament enough to fall on our deck. We sailed for
some time up the coast of New Britain until
we reached Rabaul just at sunset one lovely tropical evening.
We passed through the narrow entrance to Rabaul into a large circular harbour surrounded by
mountains covered by dense tropical vegetation. There was not a ripple on the water, and with the
sky tinged with the last rays of the setting sun and the peaks of several mountains standing out
against it, it all made a never to be forgotten picture of natural beauty. We anchored in the bay all
night and drew into the wharf next morning. We were all longing to get on shore for a stroll after our
long period on the ship, but even at that early hour and though we were walking under the shelter of
huge shade trees, we soon began to feel limp. For most of us it was our first experience of a foreign
land, and we found it fascinating. The natives were dark brown and well built with a mop of fuzzy
hair. They dyed their hair and I saw some with hair bleached white, some dyed red with betel nut, and
others with yellow. We saw women squatting on the ground pounding sugar cane and chewing betel
nut. Their lips were covered with the red juice and their teeth were stained a horrible brown with
continual chewing. They had a pile beside them as they worked, and were even giving them to their
babies to chew.
We were about a week between Rabaul and Manilla in the Philippine Islands and the weather became
increasingly hot as we went further north. During this long interval without a break, Miss Crystall
started us on language lessons. She gave us an hour morning and evening and we became an object
155
Amy Moore
hoping to join, made me attracted to her. Unfortunately, she fell off my idealistic pedestal at one
mealtime during our stay in the Upwey Guesthouse! Miss Doris Williams was her constant companion
at that time and obviously adored her. One day, the unfortunate girl who was serving at tables,
happened to spill some soup into Miss Crystalls lap. With all the high ideals of a Bible College
student, I expected her to react in a ‘real Christian’ way, but instead she muttered angrily under her
breath and was obviously upset. Miss Williams tried to calm her down and eventually lead her away
from the table to her room to change. The atmosphere was decidedly stormy and I decided that she
was not quite as saintly as I had thought! Now I was to know her better as she took charge of our little
group.
From Brisbane we moved up the coast to
Townsville where we spent a day. We
anchored some distance from shore so had
to be taken in by launch, but found little of
interest and were glad to return to the ship
which by now was beginning to feel like
home. We hadn’t left Townsville long
when a young stowaway was discovered
on board, and we had to anchor again off
Cairns so that a police launch could come
out and take him away. I felt quite sorry for
him.
We now aimed in the direction of Rabaul,
sailing between small islands as the
1931 Australian/New Zealand ladies’ party weather became hotter and the sea
at Brisbane en route to China. Amy is third changed colour to a delicate pale green
from right. On her right is Dorothy Holland with glimpses of fish in the clear depths
with Marjory Smith next and then Muriel and sometimes flying fish leaping high
Ament enough to fall on our deck. We sailed for
some time up the coast of New Britain until
we reached Rabaul just at sunset one lovely tropical evening.
We passed through the narrow entrance to Rabaul into a large circular harbour surrounded by
mountains covered by dense tropical vegetation. There was not a ripple on the water, and with the
sky tinged with the last rays of the setting sun and the peaks of several mountains standing out
against it, it all made a never to be forgotten picture of natural beauty. We anchored in the bay all
night and drew into the wharf next morning. We were all longing to get on shore for a stroll after our
long period on the ship, but even at that early hour and though we were walking under the shelter of
huge shade trees, we soon began to feel limp. For most of us it was our first experience of a foreign
land, and we found it fascinating. The natives were dark brown and well built with a mop of fuzzy
hair. They dyed their hair and I saw some with hair bleached white, some dyed red with betel nut, and
others with yellow. We saw women squatting on the ground pounding sugar cane and chewing betel
nut. Their lips were covered with the red juice and their teeth were stained a horrible brown with
continual chewing. They had a pile beside them as they worked, and were even giving them to their
babies to chew.
We were about a week between Rabaul and Manilla in the Philippine Islands and the weather became
increasingly hot as we went further north. During this long interval without a break, Miss Crystall
started us on language lessons. She gave us an hour morning and evening and we became an object
155
