Page 72 - Three Score Years & Ten
P. 72
“THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN” MISSIONARY WORK IN CHINA
Amy Moore
Church of England Hospital for training before she and Arthur went on to finish their furlough in
England.
By 1931 Marjorie had also finished her time at Chefoo and it was thought she might be able to live in
Scotland with "Auntie Grace", the Miss Downie, an old friend of Arthur's, who had done much to help
Percy while he was at the Bible College. So Arthur and Esther with Marjorie went up to Scotland to
stay with Miss Downie and to see something of Percy before he went on to London for his three
months with the Mission there. Marjorie was not happy in Scotland, and found it hard to fit in with
Miss Downie, so she went back to London with her parents and finally to join Jessie in Canada where
she remained.
SHAANXI
On 5 July 1931 Esther and Arthur set their faces once again towards China, but this time they decided
to take the overland route via the trans-Siberian Railway. When they reached Shanghai, Mr. Hoste
invited Arthur to become the Field Superintendent of the Shaanxi province which had been without a
superintendent for some time. Xi'an, the capital was in the north and they had often passed through it
in their comings and goings from Gansu, but they were to live in the next largest city of Hanzhong
which was in the south of the province. To reach it from Xi'an meant a train trip to Baoji, a day on a
bus to Fengxian and then nine days over the Qin Ling range of mountains, either walking or on mule
litters, as the only roads at that time were narrow mountain mule tracks.
The Mission was planning to send a large number of new workers to Shaanxi for "forward movement"
work. They were myself (Amy Weir at that time), Myrie Wood, who later married Jack Beck and
came from New Zealand, and Bertha Silversides from Alberta in Canada. We had already reached
Shaanxi and were settled at Chenggu with Miss Cooke before the Moore party arrived in Hanzhong.
By June 1932 the five young men were all in Shanghai preparing to set off with Arthur and Esther on
the long journey to South Shaanxi. They went by river boat from Shanghai to Nanjing, then by train to
the railhead at Tongguan on the borders of Shaanxi, Shanxi and Henan and from there by truck to
Xi'an. On by truck again to Fengxiang south west of Xi'an where they were entertained in the
hospitable home of Mr. and Mrs. Stevens who had lived and worked there for many years, and were
old friends of the Moore and Andrew families.
Fengxiang was the gateway to the southern mountains and Arthur set about the all too familiar task of
hiring mules and men to take them and their baggage over the mountains. The men would walk or
ride mule-back, but he had the litter for Esther. Up to that time no vehicular traffic had ever crossed
the Qin Ling which was some 13,000 feet high, and the only way to reach Hanzhong from the north
was by following the mule tracks. For the young men it was all a great adventure as they tramped
along the mountain tracks, slept in Chinese inns, ate Chinese meals and revelled in the glorious
mountain scenery which seemed to change with every new day. For Arthur and Esther it was an
opportunity to get to know the character of the young men whom they were to help to mould into good
missionaries.
To come to the end of that long, nine day journey through the mountains, and at last reach the Ji Tou
Guan (Chickens Head Pass) was always a highlight in the journey to Hanzhong. At the pass and as
they descended, the Hanzhong Plain
was spread out before them. It was about 100 miles long and perhaps 20 miles wide, surrounded by
ranges of mountains and covered by towns and villages and prosperous farmlands watered by the
72
Amy Moore
Church of England Hospital for training before she and Arthur went on to finish their furlough in
England.
By 1931 Marjorie had also finished her time at Chefoo and it was thought she might be able to live in
Scotland with "Auntie Grace", the Miss Downie, an old friend of Arthur's, who had done much to help
Percy while he was at the Bible College. So Arthur and Esther with Marjorie went up to Scotland to
stay with Miss Downie and to see something of Percy before he went on to London for his three
months with the Mission there. Marjorie was not happy in Scotland, and found it hard to fit in with
Miss Downie, so she went back to London with her parents and finally to join Jessie in Canada where
she remained.
SHAANXI
On 5 July 1931 Esther and Arthur set their faces once again towards China, but this time they decided
to take the overland route via the trans-Siberian Railway. When they reached Shanghai, Mr. Hoste
invited Arthur to become the Field Superintendent of the Shaanxi province which had been without a
superintendent for some time. Xi'an, the capital was in the north and they had often passed through it
in their comings and goings from Gansu, but they were to live in the next largest city of Hanzhong
which was in the south of the province. To reach it from Xi'an meant a train trip to Baoji, a day on a
bus to Fengxian and then nine days over the Qin Ling range of mountains, either walking or on mule
litters, as the only roads at that time were narrow mountain mule tracks.
The Mission was planning to send a large number of new workers to Shaanxi for "forward movement"
work. They were myself (Amy Weir at that time), Myrie Wood, who later married Jack Beck and
came from New Zealand, and Bertha Silversides from Alberta in Canada. We had already reached
Shaanxi and were settled at Chenggu with Miss Cooke before the Moore party arrived in Hanzhong.
By June 1932 the five young men were all in Shanghai preparing to set off with Arthur and Esther on
the long journey to South Shaanxi. They went by river boat from Shanghai to Nanjing, then by train to
the railhead at Tongguan on the borders of Shaanxi, Shanxi and Henan and from there by truck to
Xi'an. On by truck again to Fengxiang south west of Xi'an where they were entertained in the
hospitable home of Mr. and Mrs. Stevens who had lived and worked there for many years, and were
old friends of the Moore and Andrew families.
Fengxiang was the gateway to the southern mountains and Arthur set about the all too familiar task of
hiring mules and men to take them and their baggage over the mountains. The men would walk or
ride mule-back, but he had the litter for Esther. Up to that time no vehicular traffic had ever crossed
the Qin Ling which was some 13,000 feet high, and the only way to reach Hanzhong from the north
was by following the mule tracks. For the young men it was all a great adventure as they tramped
along the mountain tracks, slept in Chinese inns, ate Chinese meals and revelled in the glorious
mountain scenery which seemed to change with every new day. For Arthur and Esther it was an
opportunity to get to know the character of the young men whom they were to help to mould into good
missionaries.
To come to the end of that long, nine day journey through the mountains, and at last reach the Ji Tou
Guan (Chickens Head Pass) was always a highlight in the journey to Hanzhong. At the pass and as
they descended, the Hanzhong Plain
was spread out before them. It was about 100 miles long and perhaps 20 miles wide, surrounded by
ranges of mountains and covered by towns and villages and prosperous farmlands watered by the
72
