Page 219 - Three Score Years & Ten
P. 219
“THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN” MISSIONARY WORK IN CHINA
Amy Moore
PERTH
We arrived in Perth at the end of July or the beginning of August 1939. I had often dreamed of the
day when we would be in the train crossing the Nullabor with its 300 miles of dead straight railway,
and passing through Kalgoorlie with all its childhood memories of the gold mining days and our lives
as children in Brown Hill on the ‘Golden Mile’. Now we were actually doing it all and my excitement
only increased as we left Kalgoorlie and started on the last stretch before we would arrive in Perth.
We were soon passing through the familiar territory around Cunderdin where my Carter cousins still
lived. As I looked through the window I could see the house on the Main Street which Win and
Howard had built for themselves. Finally we were in the Darling Ranges, down through Midland
Junction and Bayswater and on to Perth itself. It was nearly eight years since I had left. We all
peered anxiously through the window trying to catch a glimpse of the family as the train slowly pulled
in. There they were at last, and they saw us, but the train went past them and they had to run to catch
up.
Percy had once laughingly said that he was terrified that my sisters would all want to kiss him! I had
passed this piece of information on to them, so that even though Dora was still in Sydney, the other
three made up for it by throwing their arms round their brother-in-law to give him hugs and kisses.
It wasn’t long before we were home, the home I had left eight years before to go out alone to face the
unknown, with only the certainty that God was with me and I could trust Him. Now I had a husband
and two little boys and another little one expected within a few weeks, and a testimony to share of the
faithfulness of the God Who had led me all the way.
What changes there were in eight years. Mother and Father both looked older, Jim was married to
Hazel McManus with a little son of his own, now six months old. They were living in Swanbourne and
Jim was working in the Customs.
Beth had been doing voluntary work since 1930 among the aborigines working with Miss Belshaw and
Miss McRidge, missionaries of the United Aborigines Mission at Badjaling, some eight miles from
Quairading. It was an aborigine reserve of some 160 people with about 37 children in the school run
by the two ladies. Besides the school, they made themselves available for all the needs of the people
as they cared for the sick and kept a store of second hand clothing to sell very cheaply. Our mother
not only did all she could to support Beth, but also collected and sent to Badjaling sacks of second
hand clothing which people passed on to her to give away. She was often very indignant when she
found the clothes had neither been washed or mended, and sometimes were so filthy that she could
only put them under the copper and burn them. Others she washed and mended before she would
give them to the aborigine people. There were others of course which arrived in beautiful condition
from those who recognised that the dark people of our land were just as much human beings as
themselves and deserved as much consideration as their white compatriots.
In 1933 the two ladies went on furlough and the Reichenbachs were sent to Badjaling. Beth was
prepared to return home and did go for a time, but the Reichenbachs asked her to go back. She
worked very happily with them until she left to go to the Perth Bible Institute. Students from PBI
sometimes helped out at Badjaling during the holidays, one of these being Wilfrid Douglas who went
there over Christmas 1938 and took over the school in 1939. We first met Wilfrid during that year too
as he often came to Wisbeck Street to talk about China with Percy. He had a great love for China and
219
Amy Moore
PERTH
We arrived in Perth at the end of July or the beginning of August 1939. I had often dreamed of the
day when we would be in the train crossing the Nullabor with its 300 miles of dead straight railway,
and passing through Kalgoorlie with all its childhood memories of the gold mining days and our lives
as children in Brown Hill on the ‘Golden Mile’. Now we were actually doing it all and my excitement
only increased as we left Kalgoorlie and started on the last stretch before we would arrive in Perth.
We were soon passing through the familiar territory around Cunderdin where my Carter cousins still
lived. As I looked through the window I could see the house on the Main Street which Win and
Howard had built for themselves. Finally we were in the Darling Ranges, down through Midland
Junction and Bayswater and on to Perth itself. It was nearly eight years since I had left. We all
peered anxiously through the window trying to catch a glimpse of the family as the train slowly pulled
in. There they were at last, and they saw us, but the train went past them and they had to run to catch
up.
Percy had once laughingly said that he was terrified that my sisters would all want to kiss him! I had
passed this piece of information on to them, so that even though Dora was still in Sydney, the other
three made up for it by throwing their arms round their brother-in-law to give him hugs and kisses.
It wasn’t long before we were home, the home I had left eight years before to go out alone to face the
unknown, with only the certainty that God was with me and I could trust Him. Now I had a husband
and two little boys and another little one expected within a few weeks, and a testimony to share of the
faithfulness of the God Who had led me all the way.
What changes there were in eight years. Mother and Father both looked older, Jim was married to
Hazel McManus with a little son of his own, now six months old. They were living in Swanbourne and
Jim was working in the Customs.
Beth had been doing voluntary work since 1930 among the aborigines working with Miss Belshaw and
Miss McRidge, missionaries of the United Aborigines Mission at Badjaling, some eight miles from
Quairading. It was an aborigine reserve of some 160 people with about 37 children in the school run
by the two ladies. Besides the school, they made themselves available for all the needs of the people
as they cared for the sick and kept a store of second hand clothing to sell very cheaply. Our mother
not only did all she could to support Beth, but also collected and sent to Badjaling sacks of second
hand clothing which people passed on to her to give away. She was often very indignant when she
found the clothes had neither been washed or mended, and sometimes were so filthy that she could
only put them under the copper and burn them. Others she washed and mended before she would
give them to the aborigine people. There were others of course which arrived in beautiful condition
from those who recognised that the dark people of our land were just as much human beings as
themselves and deserved as much consideration as their white compatriots.
In 1933 the two ladies went on furlough and the Reichenbachs were sent to Badjaling. Beth was
prepared to return home and did go for a time, but the Reichenbachs asked her to go back. She
worked very happily with them until she left to go to the Perth Bible Institute. Students from PBI
sometimes helped out at Badjaling during the holidays, one of these being Wilfrid Douglas who went
there over Christmas 1938 and took over the school in 1939. We first met Wilfrid during that year too
as he often came to Wisbeck Street to talk about China with Percy. He had a great love for China and
219
