Page 190 - Three Score Years & Ten
P. 190
“THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN” MISSIONARY WORK IN CHINA
Amy Moore
never be brought up to be an atheist. I thought of Percy and it was an awful feeling to think we were
going northwards, and he would arrive a day or two later and find us gone.
We made our way to the North Gate, Grannie and Grandad, Doug and Raymond and me, Fred and
Marj Smith, Rob Ament, Miss Haslam, Joy Betteridge and Bertha Silversides, as well as the two
Bethel men and Dr. Xiao. The doctor had sent his mother and wife and family off to Baocheng on the
Xi’an road just before he came round to tell us we had better leave as the military had left the city and
were obviously not going to hold it. We were only a quarter of an hour behind the Stranges, but when
we got to the gate it was shut and nobody was being allowed to leave the city.
The Stranges and Xiaos must have got out just before it was closed, but when we got there they said
we had to have a pass. Grandad left us there while he hurried back to the military authorities to get a
pass. This didn’t suit the soldier guarding the gate at all, and he soon ordered us away, telling us to
“go back to your Gospel Hall and worship your God.” (“Hui nide Fu Yin Tang, bai nide Shen”) When
we did not move fast enough for him, he got his stick and actually struck Fred and one of the Bethel
men across the legs. Fred was carrying Raymond for me and I was terrified lest that stick should hit
my baby’s head, but it didn’t, and we went back towards the Mission hoping to meet Grandad with a
permit to leave.
We did meet him quite soon with a permit to go out of the North Gate, so we turned back again, but
had only gone a few yards when a soldier came running after us saying the permit had been recalled
and we were not to go after all. We must have looked a very forlorn party standing there in the middle
of the road wondering what to do. Grandad decided we had better go back home and wait there while
he went again to military headquarters.
It was a blessing to get back home as I was able to find a very small case and pack a few things in it
for the road, baby’s powder and soap, as well as a towel and flannel, some nappies and my small
Bible. I knew I could carry that much even if we had to walk all the way over the mountains to Xi’an.
Then, just in case we could get sedan chairs, I gathered together some more of his woollies and
wrapped them with our thermos flask so that they were easily accessible if I could take them. I also
mixed some cocoa into a tin of condensed milk to take with me as I knew I could get boiling water
anywhere, and this would be a help to my milk supply to make sure Raymond had plenty on the way.
It was hours before Grandad got back, so we had a meal as we had had no breakfast, and just prayed
together that the Lord would guide us and protect us. While we were waiting, Dr. Xiao was keeping
his ear to the ground for any news of what the Reds were doing. It was through him that we got news
that the Reds were at Baocheng and holding it, and the Pass into the mountains so that soldiers
coming from Xi’an would not be able to enter the Plain. We were thankful then that we had not been
allowed to go through the North Gate, but trembled for the Stranges and Dr. Xiao’s family. What had
become of them? At long last, Grandad returned with a permit for us to go through the West Gate
towards Chenggu, and one for Dr.Xiao to go through the North Gate to look for his family and the
Stranges if possible and bring them all back to join us in Chenggu. With Reds holding the northern
road it was senseless to go there, but from Chenggu there was another way up to Xi’an through Yang
Xian, the route Miss Parr had travelled when she returned from Shanghai. It seemed we must take a
step at a time and God would guide us for the next step when we had to take it. The first step was to
get out of Hanzhong to Chenggu and find out the next later.
It was after one o’clock when we finally left Hanzhong. To our great amazement, when we opened the
main gate of the compound, we found no less than ten coolies sitting outside on the curb ready and
eager to carry our sedan chairs. A few hours earlier we could not find one, but now, finding
themselves locked inside the city, they could get out only by carrying someone with a permit. We had
Return to Table of 190
Contents
Amy Moore
never be brought up to be an atheist. I thought of Percy and it was an awful feeling to think we were
going northwards, and he would arrive a day or two later and find us gone.
We made our way to the North Gate, Grannie and Grandad, Doug and Raymond and me, Fred and
Marj Smith, Rob Ament, Miss Haslam, Joy Betteridge and Bertha Silversides, as well as the two
Bethel men and Dr. Xiao. The doctor had sent his mother and wife and family off to Baocheng on the
Xi’an road just before he came round to tell us we had better leave as the military had left the city and
were obviously not going to hold it. We were only a quarter of an hour behind the Stranges, but when
we got to the gate it was shut and nobody was being allowed to leave the city.
The Stranges and Xiaos must have got out just before it was closed, but when we got there they said
we had to have a pass. Grandad left us there while he hurried back to the military authorities to get a
pass. This didn’t suit the soldier guarding the gate at all, and he soon ordered us away, telling us to
“go back to your Gospel Hall and worship your God.” (“Hui nide Fu Yin Tang, bai nide Shen”) When
we did not move fast enough for him, he got his stick and actually struck Fred and one of the Bethel
men across the legs. Fred was carrying Raymond for me and I was terrified lest that stick should hit
my baby’s head, but it didn’t, and we went back towards the Mission hoping to meet Grandad with a
permit to leave.
We did meet him quite soon with a permit to go out of the North Gate, so we turned back again, but
had only gone a few yards when a soldier came running after us saying the permit had been recalled
and we were not to go after all. We must have looked a very forlorn party standing there in the middle
of the road wondering what to do. Grandad decided we had better go back home and wait there while
he went again to military headquarters.
It was a blessing to get back home as I was able to find a very small case and pack a few things in it
for the road, baby’s powder and soap, as well as a towel and flannel, some nappies and my small
Bible. I knew I could carry that much even if we had to walk all the way over the mountains to Xi’an.
Then, just in case we could get sedan chairs, I gathered together some more of his woollies and
wrapped them with our thermos flask so that they were easily accessible if I could take them. I also
mixed some cocoa into a tin of condensed milk to take with me as I knew I could get boiling water
anywhere, and this would be a help to my milk supply to make sure Raymond had plenty on the way.
It was hours before Grandad got back, so we had a meal as we had had no breakfast, and just prayed
together that the Lord would guide us and protect us. While we were waiting, Dr. Xiao was keeping
his ear to the ground for any news of what the Reds were doing. It was through him that we got news
that the Reds were at Baocheng and holding it, and the Pass into the mountains so that soldiers
coming from Xi’an would not be able to enter the Plain. We were thankful then that we had not been
allowed to go through the North Gate, but trembled for the Stranges and Dr. Xiao’s family. What had
become of them? At long last, Grandad returned with a permit for us to go through the West Gate
towards Chenggu, and one for Dr.Xiao to go through the North Gate to look for his family and the
Stranges if possible and bring them all back to join us in Chenggu. With Reds holding the northern
road it was senseless to go there, but from Chenggu there was another way up to Xi’an through Yang
Xian, the route Miss Parr had travelled when she returned from Shanghai. It seemed we must take a
step at a time and God would guide us for the next step when we had to take it. The first step was to
get out of Hanzhong to Chenggu and find out the next later.
It was after one o’clock when we finally left Hanzhong. To our great amazement, when we opened the
main gate of the compound, we found no less than ten coolies sitting outside on the curb ready and
eager to carry our sedan chairs. A few hours earlier we could not find one, but now, finding
themselves locked inside the city, they could get out only by carrying someone with a permit. We had
Return to Table of 190
Contents
