Page 193 - Three Score Years & Ten
P. 193
“THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN” MISSIONARY WORK IN CHINA
Amy Moore
The arrival of such a big party of refugees in Wuhan had not gone unnoticed, and there was quite a
big write-up in the papers about us, with the result that big parcels of second hand clothing began to
come to the Mission Home for us. Mrs. Jackson who was in charge, kept one room upstairs for
clothing and left us to help ourselves to whatever we wanted or could use. We were very grateful
because we had left Shaanxi in wadded winter clothes, but we had been travelling for six weeks and
the weather was all the time getting warmer, so that we were beginning to need summer things.
Percys pyjamas gave us a hilarious evening! He was getting too warm so I rummaged around in the
clothing room to try and find something he could wear as pyjamas. I found a sleeveless silk blouse
cut more or less straight, which would do as a top, but there was nothing at all in the way of trousers.
Finally I did find a pink cotton ladys flared skirt with a waistline just his size. I slashed the skirt up the
middle of the front and back, and stitched it up to make legs, and he had a good pair of shortie
pyjamas! The flare gave a rather startling Hawaiian dancer effect which sent us both into fits of
laughter when he donned them that night. Nothing would do but he must go over the corridor to the
room opposite, where Jack Beck
and Rob Ament were staying. The
shouts of mirth that came from
behind their closed door assured
me they were enjoying the
pantomime too.
Raymond was well supplied with
clothes, lovely ones and far better
than we could ever have afforded to
buy for him. Percys Uncle John,
who was Mayor of Tienjin, had a
little son about the same age as
Raymond, and Auntie Mary sent me
parcels of beautiful clothes which
Johnnie had never worn. I felt
proud and happy to have my small
son looking as well loved and cared
The refugees in Hankou 1935 for as every baby should be. We
Amy is half hidden, holding Raymond just had a big room upstairs in the
in front of Percy and Arthur Mission Home with a nice cot for
Raymond which I could wheel out
on to the balcony each morning and
he would sleep there till lunchtime.
He was a very good baby and I
rarely had to get up to him at nights.
The six weeks of travel had left me exhausted, and by the time we reached Wuhan, I felt I had no
energy to do more than look after my energetic little son, who was growing stronger every day. One
day on the stairs, Mr. Warren held me up and said, “What’s the matter with you?” I told him nothing
except that I felt so tired all the time. He immediately took action and told me I was not to get up and
come downstairs for breakfast like everybody else, but he would see that breakfast was brought up to
me each morning in the bedroom. It helped a lot.
Wuhan was a passing through centre for people going to most of the western provinces, so we met
many old and new friends while we were there. Percy’s friend and Language School room mate,
Stanley Rowe, came there for his wedding, so asked Percy to be his best man. We saw quite a lot of
193
Amy Moore
The arrival of such a big party of refugees in Wuhan had not gone unnoticed, and there was quite a
big write-up in the papers about us, with the result that big parcels of second hand clothing began to
come to the Mission Home for us. Mrs. Jackson who was in charge, kept one room upstairs for
clothing and left us to help ourselves to whatever we wanted or could use. We were very grateful
because we had left Shaanxi in wadded winter clothes, but we had been travelling for six weeks and
the weather was all the time getting warmer, so that we were beginning to need summer things.
Percys pyjamas gave us a hilarious evening! He was getting too warm so I rummaged around in the
clothing room to try and find something he could wear as pyjamas. I found a sleeveless silk blouse
cut more or less straight, which would do as a top, but there was nothing at all in the way of trousers.
Finally I did find a pink cotton ladys flared skirt with a waistline just his size. I slashed the skirt up the
middle of the front and back, and stitched it up to make legs, and he had a good pair of shortie
pyjamas! The flare gave a rather startling Hawaiian dancer effect which sent us both into fits of
laughter when he donned them that night. Nothing would do but he must go over the corridor to the
room opposite, where Jack Beck
and Rob Ament were staying. The
shouts of mirth that came from
behind their closed door assured
me they were enjoying the
pantomime too.
Raymond was well supplied with
clothes, lovely ones and far better
than we could ever have afforded to
buy for him. Percys Uncle John,
who was Mayor of Tienjin, had a
little son about the same age as
Raymond, and Auntie Mary sent me
parcels of beautiful clothes which
Johnnie had never worn. I felt
proud and happy to have my small
son looking as well loved and cared
The refugees in Hankou 1935 for as every baby should be. We
Amy is half hidden, holding Raymond just had a big room upstairs in the
in front of Percy and Arthur Mission Home with a nice cot for
Raymond which I could wheel out
on to the balcony each morning and
he would sleep there till lunchtime.
He was a very good baby and I
rarely had to get up to him at nights.
The six weeks of travel had left me exhausted, and by the time we reached Wuhan, I felt I had no
energy to do more than look after my energetic little son, who was growing stronger every day. One
day on the stairs, Mr. Warren held me up and said, “What’s the matter with you?” I told him nothing
except that I felt so tired all the time. He immediately took action and told me I was not to get up and
come downstairs for breakfast like everybody else, but he would see that breakfast was brought up to
me each morning in the bedroom. It helped a lot.
Wuhan was a passing through centre for people going to most of the western provinces, so we met
many old and new friends while we were there. Percy’s friend and Language School room mate,
Stanley Rowe, came there for his wedding, so asked Percy to be his best man. We saw quite a lot of
193
