The Tientsin Women's Hospital
Tientsin, China.
December 3rd, 1936.My dear Miss Turner:
I do not want to let the year pass without getting another letter to you. My new home is finished and it has given me little work and some pleasure. Since October the first we have moved into our new home. Now Mary Jean and Abby have space to run and to play. It is also a problem to take care [of] a larger house. Every one in our household shares some housework otherwise our one man would be too busy. Our house keeper is good and she takes care of our clothing. There is a great deal [of] mending to do especially of stockings for two boys and two girls. She helps with dress making also. We are all well and happy. Mary Jean is getting almost as tall as I am. Abby is tall for her age also. They have many lessons to prepare in school so we have to let their piano lessons go for a year. I am very fond of music and I did not have [a] chance to learn in my girlhood; so I wish these girls can learn to play on piano. School life is very busy here.
Just now there is fighting in Suiyuan between bandits and our soldiers. But these so called bandits are bad elements and they have been supplied with ammunition from our neighbouring country. These bandits even have airplanes for bombing. Where do they get their airplanes? This question can be answered by our neighbouring country. We are very foolish that we think in terms of aggressive policy. I noticed in the paper that your president urges econimic unity and political peace.. The price of war leads to destruction and poverty. But our neighbour believes in war madness and land hunger. This time China will no longer tolerate such aggresive [sic] policy on part of our neighbour and actual fighting may start any moment. If we should go into war our war will be war of self defence and not war for aggression. I am sure all sound minded people in every country would want to live in peace with one and other, but militarist party of our neighbouring country believe in aggression at any cost. Mutual safety and mutual good are unknown terms in thier [sic] dictionary.
China wants peace and China asks nothing but to leave her alone to solve her home problems. Our problems are many and we need many years to solve them all. We are very poor and we just cannot afford to spend anything for war. We are forced to resist now. Under the able leadership of General Chiang we have made rapid progress. Now one can go from one province to another in few hours wereas in former years weeks and even months. Now there is direct railway from Peiping to Canton. For thirty years China did not finish Peiping Canton Railway. Under Genral [sic] Chinag [sic] he ordered the railway to be finished in three years and it is finished. The present order is to eradicate opium evil. The law is strict but it is good for our people. All intelligent people are with him. By his magnanimous personality Genral Chinag [sic] has united all parties in China. Britain, America, Italy[,] Germany, France, Soviet Russia etc all pay high tribute to General Chiang. The only country attacks him is our neighbour. All students just worship his personality. He is the man of this hour and we honor his leadership. We have confidence in his guidance of our destiny.
Personally I have been annoyed by bad elements in town. Few bad men even attack me in papers. These papers all belong to our neighbouring country. She is trying to sell opium and morphin [sic] in Tientsin and I am using every bit of my energy to fight against these evils. This hospital has been given free antinarcotic treatments to patients and our methods have been most successful. One must have courage to fight against evils. Just now a many by the name Li is suing me for bad administration of hospital fund. I have given the hospital board the detailed amounts. In fact I have never handled hospital fund as we have hospital treasurer and every detail is in black and white. But the nuisance and annoyance are vexing. Our government is getting to be more efficient and just but her power is limited here in North China. All people who are loyal to central government are looked down by authority as suspects. This is my situation. So far as evidence no one can get any from me. I have never been interested in politics but only interested in my professional work. I look at this annoyance as a rainy day of my calendar. Rain and sunshine are natural events of a year so is true of a life. The latter consists of days happy, pleasant, sad, moody, but all tolerable. Success has rather been too quick for me and this little hinderance will be a valuable experience for me in days to come. I do not have to face any charge as the board must face the puclic. [sic] I am only concerned with the medical affirs [sic] of the hospital now as I have given up the administrative side of the hospital on my return 1930. Our hospital board has been extremely sympathetic toward all and they said that they will get a lawyer to clear up this case. After every evidence is clear of my good and honest administration of the hospital the board will publish all in Tinetsin Newapapers. [sic]
How is college affair getting on at South Hadley? It seems almost impossible that Miss Woolley is of resigning age. Dr, [sic] Warthin used to say a professor should or a person should resign only when he is incapable of work but not according to age for our age is old as our arteries. Chronological age and arteriosclerosis do not correspond a times. Some people fall to pieces before their age. Miss Woolley looks very strong and really can work over her retiring age. Your new president will come in fall of 1937. He has a good record at Yale as I read in the journal of A.A.U.W.
Have you been well? Are you free from your back stiffness now? Do you have large classes in your department of Physiology? Are you taking up any special problem with your advanced students this year? I shall be glad to know all when you have time to write.
Abby is so busy in school that she has not written you at all this term. Mary Jean and Abby asked me to type an evelope [sic] for them and I think that they did get thier [sic] Christmas Greetings to you. Abby is very fond of reading. With a book she can sit in her chair for three or four hours straight. She reads like a grown up person that is her reading is very quick. She skips and reads only parts she likes. But in the end she seems to be able to connect the whole story. With passages she likes she reads over and over again..
With love from all members of our family. Yours lovingly,
Me-Iung