Peiyang Women's Hospital
Tientsin, China.May 15th, 1936.
My dear Miss Turner:
It has been sometime since I wrote you last. By the time this letter gets to you it would be time for summer vacation. I have wondered if you are going away this year. How I wish that you could take a summer trip to China. The round trip is very attractive for it is one and one fifth rate on Dollar Boats. Many American teachers are taking advantage of this special summer rate. Recently Miss Hlen [sic] B. Calder was here. She is Mrs. Thurston's sister. Just now Miss Calder has gone to Peiping visiting Yenching University and other institutions of interest to her. We are going to beach as usual for we have ourown [sic] cottage. Children do have a good time there with swimming and donkey riding. I shall go to beach every two week ends as usual for summer months are busy for hospital people. As Mary Jean and Abby are bigger now and they do not need so much care as in their younger days. Their two older brothers will assume the responsibility of their welfare. I have secured a very good woman to do house keeping for us. She is interested in thier [sic] welfare. Formerly we had little bit trouble becuase [sic] Abby would not do this and that.
I guess the other house keeper we had was little bit irritative to Abby. But this one is very gentle with her and Abby just loves her. Abby went to school this term and she is doing well. We are building this year so soon we shall have a little home for all. As it is now we are in an apartment and we are crowded. On Sundays we all go to our little farm to get sun and air. There is a boat and they can learn to row it. School work is so heavy here that our students have too little time for play. Sunday is the only holiday in the week so I do not insist on their going to church any more.
Miss Carolyn Sewall is coming home this June. I have asked her to call upon you personally and give you my and our personal greetings and love. She would be able to tell you something about my home and professional life in Tientsin.
Since I last sat at my desk it has been more than two weeks. One of our doctors was away for vacation and I had part of her work on top of myown. [sic] Thus I was kept rather busy with many duties. Are you getting the Chinese Journal of Physiology? Now our chemists are goving [sic] much attention to old Chinese drugs. In Vol 10 No . 2 there is an article by Dr. T. G. Ni on the Effects of Donkey Skin Gelatin Upon Nutritional Progressive Muscular Dystrophy. The article is of special interest to me from two view points. Firstly Dr. Ni was from Michigan University and we were at Ann Arbor the same years. Secondly my father taught me much of Chinese drugs when I was a child. I remember of devoting many evenings at my father's desk in studying them. Among those I studied I recall now the effects of Ah Chiao. With science we are proving some of the clinical side of Chinese drugs. My father was anxious to study Chinese drugs on modern scientific basis but he never had a chance for modern education. But he was a man a head [sic] of his time so today his medical school at Shanghai is recognised by our government. Our national chemical laboratory is devoting much time to scientific study of many old Chinese drugs now and some are proving very useful clinically and are again being used in modern days.
Since I last wrote you I am devoting a part of my energy for rural health work. Eighty per cent of our people are farmers and they do not get a chance to come into contact with modern health program. Politically the condition is dark but we must not sit here and mourn over our sad days. A group of Y. M. C. A. workers and our nurses went to surrounding districts in April and gave six thousand free vaccinations against small pox. With vaccaination [sic] campaigns we gave health talks to children of rural schools. Now we have worked out a simple first aid box with ten simple drugs for wounds, cuts and mild infections. With each box we have simple directions. One box is given to each rural teacher. We are giving two weeks simple instructions on first aid to those rural teachers so they would be useful to their communities. I am much interested in this project.
Vung Yuin is doing very well in her first year at Michigan University. Soon her first year will be over. She is having one or two of my old teachers but most of them resigned. I do not know of her summer plan yet.
When this letter reaches you you would be having vacation somewhere. I shall mial this letter to college as the college post office will forward to you whereever [sic] you may be. I wish you a very happy summer. When you have time do write to me. It seems to me that I have not heard from you for six months. Of course we think of you very often. When Miss Calder called at our home Abby thought she was Aunt Abby. I guess because both you and Miss Calder are tall. We hope that soon you would be able to take a trip to China. I wish that you can come while I am still active in my many activities.
With love from all of us.
Yours lovingly.
M. I. Ting.