[Some paragraph breaks added for ease of reading.]Peiyang Women's Hospital
Tientsin, China.
February 23rd, 1934.Dear Miss Turner:
My silence does not mean that you have been forgotten. For the last two months I have been busy getting our laboratory in shape for work. Now we can do all ourown [sic] bacteriological and serological work right at ourown [sic] laboratory which is a good addition to our hospial. Afer some month we hope to be able to do ourown chemical work also. We have a very good technician who has her training at Nankaing University Hospital. Dr. Chu, a Harvard man is at the head of our laboratory. He supervises our work in this department.
I have had two very serious cases of septicemia last month. Both cases we have given blood ransfusions and they are responding to treatments. They are still at hospital yet but I think their dangerous period is over. It is still a difficult matter to get people to be donors. In our cases our nurses were voluntary donors. People do not understand. When they are asked to give some blood they think they are giving their lives away. At P. U. M. C. they have succeeded to get poor people to be donors. We must try the same method in order to have enough donors.
Our children's department is doing well. But the resident for that department is threatened with beginning tuberculosis and she must leave for her rest. Tuberculosis is the most prevalent of all diseases in China. Now I am busy in getting someone to take her place. It seems to me that soon I shall break also for the strain is getting to be greater every year. The larger the hospital the heavier is the responsibility. The latter is getting to be a heavy load. There are too few doctors in China. We have some doctors at Tientsin but they are only interested in private practice and only few are willing to work in hospitals. So far as material success is concerend [sic] one does not gain much in hospital work.
But one does get experience. Just yesterday I had a case of hydatiform mole. This is a disease of chorion. I have read in books of such a disease of pregnancy but I have never seen one until this one. The specimen was a beautiful one just like the one illustrated in Delee's_ like a bunch of grapes. I have sent this specimen to P. U. M. C. for teaching purpose and I am reporting this case of Dr. Amos Wong, who is interested in such a case. We are so near P. U. M. C. that we get great deal of help from that institution.
Mary Jean and Abby have been sick a good deal with colds this winter. They were at Peiping for their winter vacation. Now they are brown and have gained some with outdoor life. They are doing very well in school. Now they are back to school again. Mary Jean can play quite well. Abby would not touch a piano yet. I would not force anything upon them. Abby is still very slow in her muscle coordination. Her mind is very qucik. [sic] She said that she would like to take up singing lesson instead of piano lesson. I am trying to get a teacher for her. Both are getting tall and big.
I have answered Miss Greene's letter in regard to Barbara Yen. [MHC 1938] I think that she has many good characteristics of her illustrious father and her gentle mother. Dr. W. W. Yen is a fine statesman but like many good people is a man of ordinary means. He has one son studying in England and one in America. Barbara asked for a tutition [sic] scholarship only as the family would be able to be responsible for her other expenditures. If there is a scholarship for Chinese student then Barbara would be a worhty [sic] candidate. Just now Dr. W. W. Yen is in China for a short vacation from Moscow. His political lfe [sic] is a most brilliant and clean one. Every one has high respect for him. Barbara is a very fine student also and has appitude [sic] for hard study.
We are all well. We shall be glad to hear from you when you have time for writing. With love from all of us.
Yours lovingly,
Me_iung[Second letter in the same envelope]
Dear Aunt Abby;
We thank you for your Christmas gift. We love your books. We can read some. We have been to Peiking for vacation.
With love,
Mary Jean and Abby.