University of Nanking - Linguist Yearbook (Nanking, China)

Page 72 text:

THE VOYAGE FROM THE E,-XST 69 THE VOYAGE FROM THE EAST V As we put off toward the Golden Gate, a sum- . mer fog settled down over the Bay, making dim, then I ity, y blotting out those faces, long dear to us, which we -A ix f hope to see again. X 2.3. .The China was American registered, part I Chinese owned and the crew except officers, was WR f Chinese. Our cabin boy wore black silk pants and a pp 15 'Q ,. white coat. When he met us in the passage way he V ' went to the left, a habit we have since learned to el ,D 4, accept out here.. And after a few days he smiled ,iq 5 back at urs, and brought oranges and apples and pears, .' I after the refrigerator was opened. ,iq V YQ: Speaking of refrigerators, we had fresh milk, pg 'yfi1'151ff kept frozen until wanted. The chief steward said ll that inthe old days travellers had milk only now and 4. .ff again, Now when they left the States, and Again ,ig U is 3 when they returned. -L' During the happy, carefree days we played N' -5 shuflleboard, or deck tennis, or swam in the tank. Between times we tried to read books with long -qs, sounding titles, suggested by Sherwood Eddy or some E of the other older men. The new' people persuaded the experienced missionaries to give us lectures, and Mr. Eddy took us through the Sermon on the Mount. At the date line Neptune came on board, an experience never to be forgotten by some, and then there were the children who made things interesting. Little jean Follette was the belle of the boat. VVe had a day in Honolulu: red and green, with here and there atouch of yellow flowers. Blue sea, white surf, brown bodies flashing, rainbow after sudden showers. Then there was a tree which looked like an acacia, had pods like a locust, and love red blossoms, soft as rose petals, or as a skin you love to toucl1, we saw bananas growing where they could be picked from the dining room window, sugar cane in large quantities, and here and there a leaning cocoanut palm, while sweet odors came from far olf flowering trees. Ten days later we were in Yokohama. Here in the cool of the day we walked through the japanese city. Men were home from work, children out from school, boys were catching birds and insects with gummed Iishing poles. Two or three boys had locusts which made perfectly lovely noises when squeezed, but the boys never batted an eye, you would never know they were enjoying it. QChinese boys are more expressivel Women were drawing water from street hydrants with family keys. Before each door were the familyls sandals, all in a neat row. Inside we could see the people resting on mats, or eating or bathing or reading the evening paper. All were sincerely polite, except the richsha men. At Kobe we went through a market street, covered over with matting, to keep out'the heat, small stores, flies on the lishjpeddlers

Page 71 text:

68 THE LINGUIST flowers filling the air. That evening my cabin companion and I sat out on one of these verandas and lazily watched the insects-their wings shone with all sorts of colors in the light. There was no other sound but the noise of the crickets and they were obviously busy. The next strange experience was in Hong Kong, where we went to the top of the peak in the funny little tram. It seemed almost a tempting of Providence to risk one's life trying to climb up an almost perpendicular ascent. I wonder if flies have the same feeling as I had when they try climbing up a window pane. But it was worth even that to see the view of the harbour and to sleep in a civilized bed in a bungalow almost at the top of the peak. It made me hate the idea of having to return to the boat with that terrible engine panting all night-though once it was stopped for two hours and there was a high wind and a heavy swell and very few present at dinner so after that we were not so anxious for the engine to take a holiday. But the longest journey comes to an endI suppose and ours ended at Shanghai, where in spite of muddles and such exeitements as other passengers running off with my baggage by mistake, though it could hardly have been marked in larger letters, I made my way to the hotel. After a seven hourtrain ride I reached Nanking at last and entered the Language School. INIARY G1u1f1fI'r1A1s l -061 T , l I l Our tirst ' reception committee ,-wharf beggars in their boats beside the ship begging for copper e

Page 73 text:

70 TH E LINGUIST calling their wares, while rats ran out of the shops into open sewers and up inside the drain pipes. Most beautiful of all was our trip through the Inland Sea Myriads of little islands, through which our boat very cautiously wound her way. It was most wonderful at night, with a full moon-Q little villages on the islands and hundreds of small fishing boats with lights on their nets. almost like liretlies in the grass on a summer night. ' Landed in Shanghai we heard a funeral band play Johnny Get your Gun, and Over There. At the Missionary Home our room- boy wanted to knowyif we wanted one bath twice or two baths. Wecame to Nanking on a Chinese river steamer. It was to sail' at midnight, bnt all night until four a. m. coolies loaded, shouting,. chanting. and laughing, boatswains whistles. sirens blowing enlivened our sleep At four with much noise fl thought it was a riotj we got off down the Whangpoo from Shanghai to the sea, then up the- Yangtzse. The name of the boat was Chang On, Eternal Peace. Two days later we arrived at I-Isiakwan. Here our veteran- friend gave us an exhibition of bargaining for carriages. We now believe he prolonged it for our pleasure and editication. At least there was no doubt the drivers enjoyed itas with good spirits and quick retort they bantered back and forth. Having agreed, there was still tea money'3 to talk about. Finally with many words, a few more coppers and many grins, we were off, up the Bund, over the old' wooden bridge, past the American consulate, up the Drum Tower hill' and home to Nankingf' Happy day long looked forward to! How good tasted the pleasant. dinner that was steaming hot and' awaiting us. - -- XV. li. S. One thing. an ocean voyage brings out all there is in a fellow. With tnost of us all we could keep on our stomachs was our hand. Most of us did the whale stunt on the way over, but we retnembered Jonah, that he came out all right, and we knew we would too. --W When one new missionary reached China, she wrote home to her Mission Board that she had thrown up every thing but her appoint- ment. ml--Q A new missionary was breaking in some new territory on the district where no foreign woman had ever travelled. In the inn where she was to eat her lunch, such 'a great crowd had gathered that she decided to eat Chinese food with chop sticks rather than have the table spread in foreign style. U An old woman tisted her way through the crowd until at last she could see the missionary. Then she called out to the crowd who could not see O Look, sheis civilized just like we arc and uses chopsticks. V . After being in China for awhile, all the .foreign women say that there is no place in the world where a foreign woman is so safe to travel alone as in China. One always feels perfectly safe at night out anywhere with one's ricksha man or, sedan chair carriers or boatmen.