The Women's Christian College,
Cathedral P.O., Madras, India August 20, 1925.Dear Miss Turner,
It's just four years ago today since I sailed from New York Harbour; and next year by this time I'll be back again! I shall leave in early April, whether via China or England I don't know. I'd like to go by China & come back the other way but of course the college pays only for the shortest route home & the fare across the U.S.A. is no small item. The Stockholm suggestion doesn't seem very feasible, because if I do go via England I shall reach there in early May & should not want to wait around so long. However, no plans are definitely made yet; so please do keep me posted about your movements.
I'm especially writing for your advice about the place for study. It mustn't be Copenhagen this time, for my family's sake. It must be, & I want it to be, somewhere in the East. I want Physiology; if possible, a good general advanced course, and special work along the line of nutrition and food chemistry. You know my preparation. I am teaching physiology again this year after a lapse of two years & I love it; but you can imagine how little we can do in two hours a week! It is my dream to have Physiology for the B.A. The University at present includes it only in the B.A. Honours syllabus and nobody takes it because the men who would give it at Presidency college is deadly. If I can persuade them to insert it for the B.A. pass course, I should be very happy. Annway [sic] I want to take it during my furlough; & if I could get enough background to tackle some particular problem of research when I come back it would be nice. Not that I'm definitely aiming at a doctor's, but if it can be done in the course of time, why not? I should also like some Experimental Zoölogy. I'm so fed up with Systemic that I couldn't look it in the face, although goodness knows I need special training in dissections. I wish I could get that somewhere. Now there's the question of place. At Columbia, there's Wilson's Cytology (a great draw), & Gregory's ? at the Museum, & Morgan's Experimental; also Sherman is there, isn't he? But what about general physiology? The year I was in N.Y. I wasn't at all well, an almost continuous sore-throat & cold. But that may have been partly due to the accident just preceding & not the climate. I've been wondering about Yale; isn't the Physiology there very good? Or about Harvard. There there would be the great advantage of living with Ruth Crosby's family. Not that either Ruth or I has mentioned it! But I somehow feel that it would work that way since Ruth will be studying at Harvard, too. Please, will you give me advice. I'm so far from catalogues & any news of recent developments that I'm not at all sure of what I want. I'll be writing again very soon, but if you could tell me what you think re place, I'll be very grateful.
With much love,
Eleanor