Page 208 - Three Score Years & Ten
P. 208
“THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN” MISSIONARY WORK IN CHINA
Amy Moore
In mid March we moved up to Hanzhong to wait for the new baby. Percy could work as easily from
there as from Xixiang as he had a number of Bible Schools booked for the next month or two, and I
didn’t want to leave the travelling too late before Baby came. Percy’s parents were still in Shanghai
and had been held up from returning because of Red movements round Xi’an, so Myrie and Jack were
still in charge of Hanzhong. Esther was hoping to get back in time to be with me when the baby came,
but when time dragged on and they could still not get permission to return over the mountains from
Xi’an, they both decided that Arthur should wait till the road was open again, but she should get a
plane through to Hanzhong as we had an airfield there. Percy was away the day she came and the
weather was so overcast we were afraid the plane would not be able to land as we watched it circle
round and round, but it did come down and Jack went on his bike to the airfield and brought Mother
back in a rickshaw. She arrived just a few days before the baby came and it was good to have her
there. The place began to feel like home at once as she took over and fitted in to her usual place. We
were so sure the baby would be a girl that we had not even chosen a boy’s name, but a few nights
before his arrival, we began to talk about what to call him if he were a boy. We decided on Alan
George. Alan, because I had been very fond of my little farm cousin Alan who had been killed when
he was six from being thrown from the cart on the way to school when the horse bolted. I had
forgotten until later that his name was Alan George too. I think we chose George because it was a
family name on the Moore side.
Alan George arrives
Alan George put in his appearance on 17 April 1937 and though he was 9lbs.2ozs (1lb heavier that
Raymond at birth) I had a very easy time. Six hours from the first pain it was all over. Dr. Xiao
delivered him with Helen Dalton and Percy assisting, and I was able to make a normal recovery with
Helen to look after me and the baby and Grannie Moore delighted to have her little eldest grandson all
to herself. My letter home said,
“I haven’t recovered from the shock of being the mother of two hefty
young sons! Alan looks a strong, healthy little urchin and is already,
at 10 days, holding his head up firmly and looking as if he owns the
world. Raymond is his Grannie’s companion and shadow. He has
been ever so good while I have been in bed and, except for a few
tears the first night when Daddy didn’t say his prayers quite right, and
a few at the first meal when I wasn’t there to put his bib on, he has
taken quite happily to his Grannie and his Dad doing things for him
that I usually do. He is quite in love with his small brother and comes
in half a dozen times a day to see him. If I have him in bed with me,
he wants to get in too, and we have a cuddle together. One day he
came in and stood on a chair in front of the mirror brushing his hair
with Percy’s hair brushes. Alan was having a little cry in the next
room, so Raymond turned and looked at me very seriously and said
to me, “My darling, ni buyao ku, eh?” (My darling, you don’t want to
cry do you?)
The text on the wall calendar for the day Alan was born was ‘Trouble
is near’, Psalm 22:11 and ‘But Thou art near, Oh Lord’ Psalm
119:151. I often called him my’s little trouble after that.”
While we were still in Hanzhong we got news that Jessie had finished Language School, but was
being asked to go to Chefoo to help in the Hospital there as they were short staffed. We knew how
much she wanted to get into work amongst the Chinese and this must have been a disappointment for
208
Amy Moore
In mid March we moved up to Hanzhong to wait for the new baby. Percy could work as easily from
there as from Xixiang as he had a number of Bible Schools booked for the next month or two, and I
didn’t want to leave the travelling too late before Baby came. Percy’s parents were still in Shanghai
and had been held up from returning because of Red movements round Xi’an, so Myrie and Jack were
still in charge of Hanzhong. Esther was hoping to get back in time to be with me when the baby came,
but when time dragged on and they could still not get permission to return over the mountains from
Xi’an, they both decided that Arthur should wait till the road was open again, but she should get a
plane through to Hanzhong as we had an airfield there. Percy was away the day she came and the
weather was so overcast we were afraid the plane would not be able to land as we watched it circle
round and round, but it did come down and Jack went on his bike to the airfield and brought Mother
back in a rickshaw. She arrived just a few days before the baby came and it was good to have her
there. The place began to feel like home at once as she took over and fitted in to her usual place. We
were so sure the baby would be a girl that we had not even chosen a boy’s name, but a few nights
before his arrival, we began to talk about what to call him if he were a boy. We decided on Alan
George. Alan, because I had been very fond of my little farm cousin Alan who had been killed when
he was six from being thrown from the cart on the way to school when the horse bolted. I had
forgotten until later that his name was Alan George too. I think we chose George because it was a
family name on the Moore side.
Alan George arrives
Alan George put in his appearance on 17 April 1937 and though he was 9lbs.2ozs (1lb heavier that
Raymond at birth) I had a very easy time. Six hours from the first pain it was all over. Dr. Xiao
delivered him with Helen Dalton and Percy assisting, and I was able to make a normal recovery with
Helen to look after me and the baby and Grannie Moore delighted to have her little eldest grandson all
to herself. My letter home said,
“I haven’t recovered from the shock of being the mother of two hefty
young sons! Alan looks a strong, healthy little urchin and is already,
at 10 days, holding his head up firmly and looking as if he owns the
world. Raymond is his Grannie’s companion and shadow. He has
been ever so good while I have been in bed and, except for a few
tears the first night when Daddy didn’t say his prayers quite right, and
a few at the first meal when I wasn’t there to put his bib on, he has
taken quite happily to his Grannie and his Dad doing things for him
that I usually do. He is quite in love with his small brother and comes
in half a dozen times a day to see him. If I have him in bed with me,
he wants to get in too, and we have a cuddle together. One day he
came in and stood on a chair in front of the mirror brushing his hair
with Percy’s hair brushes. Alan was having a little cry in the next
room, so Raymond turned and looked at me very seriously and said
to me, “My darling, ni buyao ku, eh?” (My darling, you don’t want to
cry do you?)
The text on the wall calendar for the day Alan was born was ‘Trouble
is near’, Psalm 22:11 and ‘But Thou art near, Oh Lord’ Psalm
119:151. I often called him my’s little trouble after that.”
While we were still in Hanzhong we got news that Jessie had finished Language School, but was
being asked to go to Chefoo to help in the Hospital there as they were short staffed. We knew how
much she wanted to get into work amongst the Chinese and this must have been a disappointment for
208
