Page 157 - Three Score Years & Ten
P. 157
“THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN” MISSIONARY WORK IN CHINA
Amy Moore
We spent Sunday with the Ingrams of the YMCA whom Dorothy and I had met in Narrogin while we
were in the West. His sister was Mrs. Yorkston, a CIM missionary, so he was interested in us because
of her. On the way back to the ship that night, we had our first rickshaw ride and were taken along at
a great pace. At the end our pullers stopped so abruptly as they dropped their shafts, that it is a
wonder we were not shot out on the ground! We had one more day and spent it on Hong Kong Island
visiting the Post Office where I was surprised and delighted to be confronted with a familiar text on the
outside wall. It said, ‘As cold water to a thirsty soul so is good news from a far country.’ How relevant
Scripture is to every situation. Dorothy and I were in disgrace with Miss Crystall at this stage because
we laughed at the wrong time! A few days before she had read to us with much emphasis a very
serious poem, the theme of which was, ‘Doest thou well to be angry?’ Now as she was obviously
angry with us for some reason I can’t remember, Dorothy and I whispered to each other, ‘Doest thou
well to be angry?’ and as she stalked down the road ahead of us, we found it harder than ever to
control our mirth.
So we went to the Peak on the funicular railway and spent an hour and a half walking right round the
top getting the most wonderful views on every side.
We continued on to Shanghai and long before we reached it we could see the muddy waters of the
great Yangtse River (Chang Jiang) reaching out in to the clear green of the ocean. When we actually
got into the mouth of the Yangtse on its northern side, it was so wide that we could only just see land
very faintly on both sides and were quite unable to distinguish objects. We were still some miles from
Shanghai and during the afternoon picked up a pilot who took over the helm and steered us through
some of the many islands that dotted the river mouth. It was dark before we got to our destination and
again we had to sleep on board.
ARRIVAL IN CHINA
We were wakened at dawn by noises over our heads as the ship began to move up the Wusong River
(Huangpu) to Shanghai, and by the time breakfast was over, we were all on deck trying to recognise
faces we knew among the little group waiting to welcome us. I saw five I knew at once; Graham and
Elsie Hutchinson who had been the escorts for Allison’s party the year before, Ethel Edmondson who
had been finishing at MBI at about the time I started, Doris Williams who was there of course to meet
Miss Crystall, and finally Mrs. Matthews who was the stepmother of my Chefoo friends in Melbourne,
Mary and Arthur. Mr. Slade, the Transport Manager at the CIM who was responsible for all arrivals
and departures, took charge of us, got our things through Customs in a very short time, and quickly
had us all bundled into cars and off to Xinzha Road to the big Mission buildings which were the world
headquarters of the China Inland Mission.
We were the first party of new workers to be accommodated at Xinzha Road as the old Mission Home
had been at Wusong Road. Generations of CIM missionaries had used them until Mission leaders
had begun to feel we needed bigger, better built and better ventilated buildings, specially as the call
for two hundred new workers for pioneer work had gone out all over the world. They began to pray
for money specially earmarked for the kind of buildings they would need. As they began to think
seriously about selling the old property and enquiring about the possible sale price, they were
surprised to find that the price of land in Wusong Road had so increased that they could now get 65
times the original price they paid for it. So they sold it and bought a new piece of land in Xinzha Road
and, to the amazement of every businessman in Shanghai, were able to pay for it as soon as the
deeds were officially signed and handed over.
157
Amy Moore
We spent Sunday with the Ingrams of the YMCA whom Dorothy and I had met in Narrogin while we
were in the West. His sister was Mrs. Yorkston, a CIM missionary, so he was interested in us because
of her. On the way back to the ship that night, we had our first rickshaw ride and were taken along at
a great pace. At the end our pullers stopped so abruptly as they dropped their shafts, that it is a
wonder we were not shot out on the ground! We had one more day and spent it on Hong Kong Island
visiting the Post Office where I was surprised and delighted to be confronted with a familiar text on the
outside wall. It said, ‘As cold water to a thirsty soul so is good news from a far country.’ How relevant
Scripture is to every situation. Dorothy and I were in disgrace with Miss Crystall at this stage because
we laughed at the wrong time! A few days before she had read to us with much emphasis a very
serious poem, the theme of which was, ‘Doest thou well to be angry?’ Now as she was obviously
angry with us for some reason I can’t remember, Dorothy and I whispered to each other, ‘Doest thou
well to be angry?’ and as she stalked down the road ahead of us, we found it harder than ever to
control our mirth.
So we went to the Peak on the funicular railway and spent an hour and a half walking right round the
top getting the most wonderful views on every side.
We continued on to Shanghai and long before we reached it we could see the muddy waters of the
great Yangtse River (Chang Jiang) reaching out in to the clear green of the ocean. When we actually
got into the mouth of the Yangtse on its northern side, it was so wide that we could only just see land
very faintly on both sides and were quite unable to distinguish objects. We were still some miles from
Shanghai and during the afternoon picked up a pilot who took over the helm and steered us through
some of the many islands that dotted the river mouth. It was dark before we got to our destination and
again we had to sleep on board.
ARRIVAL IN CHINA
We were wakened at dawn by noises over our heads as the ship began to move up the Wusong River
(Huangpu) to Shanghai, and by the time breakfast was over, we were all on deck trying to recognise
faces we knew among the little group waiting to welcome us. I saw five I knew at once; Graham and
Elsie Hutchinson who had been the escorts for Allison’s party the year before, Ethel Edmondson who
had been finishing at MBI at about the time I started, Doris Williams who was there of course to meet
Miss Crystall, and finally Mrs. Matthews who was the stepmother of my Chefoo friends in Melbourne,
Mary and Arthur. Mr. Slade, the Transport Manager at the CIM who was responsible for all arrivals
and departures, took charge of us, got our things through Customs in a very short time, and quickly
had us all bundled into cars and off to Xinzha Road to the big Mission buildings which were the world
headquarters of the China Inland Mission.
We were the first party of new workers to be accommodated at Xinzha Road as the old Mission Home
had been at Wusong Road. Generations of CIM missionaries had used them until Mission leaders
had begun to feel we needed bigger, better built and better ventilated buildings, specially as the call
for two hundred new workers for pioneer work had gone out all over the world. They began to pray
for money specially earmarked for the kind of buildings they would need. As they began to think
seriously about selling the old property and enquiring about the possible sale price, they were
surprised to find that the price of land in Wusong Road had so increased that they could now get 65
times the original price they paid for it. So they sold it and bought a new piece of land in Xinzha Road
and, to the amazement of every businessman in Shanghai, were able to pay for it as soon as the
deeds were officially signed and handed over.
157
