[Some paragraph breaks added for ease of reading.]
Peiyang Women's Hospital
Tientsin, China.June 12, 1933.
My dear Miss Turner;
It has been long time since I have heard from you. No doubt our thoughts have crossed the ocean many many times. At last the bad storm is over at least for the present for there is some kind of military truce between China and Japan. If you could come over to see the suffering from war you would also say - stop war at all cost. China is unable to resist any longer. Japan can bomb any city in China at any moment as she pleases. With what can we resist? It is rainy so much every day that wea re in fear of food again. China is like a person with bad resistance and she is not in position to stand any more disease.
For days I have been busy in taking care of refugees from surrounding districts of city. The only reason that Japan has not bombed Tientsin from air is because there are many other nationalities in this city. Japan dropped two bombs from air at Peiping. People were so frightened that many rushed to Tientsin. People were panic stricken. We [are] a helpless and defenseless people who are now at mercy of Japanese militarism. With what can China resist? People have been reduced to point next to death. People have no vitality to do any more. Many criticized our government for this action of military truce, but I am in favor for it. In one battle China lost ten thousand soldiers. Japanese machine mowed down these poor soldiers like grass.
There are many in favor of this truce especially among professors. For days and nights we lived in uncertainty. But we remained loyal to our task. We continued our work as usual[.] When schools and hospitals in this part of Tientsin were closed, I had my military pass as last year and was able to help my patients whenever they needed me. All suffering has made China more united, more patriotic and more energetic. These are hard days of our national life. I do see a new China is being raised. The spirit has been fierce [?] throughout these difficult days. Our nurses and doctors have been more faithful to their work. I have nothing to complain but I only regret that we have too few trained people to do the needed constructive work.
Just now I am also busy in getting up our new unit. When it is completed I would send you a picture of it. It is fun to see construction going up. It is only a two story building. As we have plenty space we would not want high building for a hospital. It is going to be a Chinese building in exterior decoration with American conveniences inside. Of-course [sic] we have architect and contractor to do the work. I have asked to attend many details of this building also. Soon our capacity will be seventy five beds. We have one of our nurses back from America. She will have charge of this new unit.
Our work is growing. People come to us from Tientsin as well as surrounding districts. This is the last month of our hospital year. I think we have done more this year than any other year. We are sending two nurses to university for further training. We have two university hospitals near Tientsin, one Peiping Union Medical College Hospital, other Cheloo University Hospital. We are employing a man technician from Peiping Union College Hospital and a man pharmacist from Cheloo University. These additional members will help in teaching of our nurses. In former years we doctors have done certain amount of teaching regularly & our pupil nurses. We are only in position to give few important lectures now. The regular teaching work to nurses must be left to an instructor and other members of hospital staff. We will continue to have our affliation [sic] with Peiping Union Medical College Hospital so our nurses will get adequate training.
Now I am going to tell you a little about our home life. Mary Jean and Abby are both well. Their school has been closed for summer. Mary Jean will enter third grade and Abby second grade. They understand almost everything in English and can use it to a fair extent also. They can read very well. Mary Jean has good also. Her mother is a college woman. Laura's father was a doctor graduated from Harvard Medical College. He died very young and left Mrs. Gee [?] with six children. All their children are very bright. Laura is the 5th of her family. Laura has done well in her senior Cambridge examinations. Ruth has invited Laura to stay with her before college opens.
There is another young girl in town whom I am very much interested that is Dr. W. W. Yen's oldest daughter. Barbara [MHC 1938] is her name. I have never seen a girl who has so much poise that age. She is a most studious student. Dr. Yen is brilliant. She has inherited that student mind from her father. I have talked to her several times to enter Mount Holyoke College for her college work. She has one brother in England, one at West Point. Dr. Yen is a scholar but both his sons have selected military colleges. So you see outside of my home activities I am interested in high education of our young women.
By the time this letter gets to you, probably you would be having your vacation somewhere. I wish you a very restful vacation. Are you troubled with your back-ache any more? Are you doing any research work this summer? When you have time I love to hear from you. With love from all of us.