Letter from Hattie to "Dear ones at Home", May 17, 1878
Dublin Core
Title
Letter from Hattie to "Dear ones at Home", May 17, 1878
Subject
Missionaries; Birthdays; Family; Home; Drug addiction
Description
Harriet remembers that two years ago, she was at home with the whole family. She recounts seeing Sarah and Clara meeting her in Cleveland and the ride back home where her parents waved to her from the house on the hill. She thanks everyone for their birthday wishes. Harriet talks about how happy she is and how fulfilling missionary life is for her. She explains some of the issues arising in China and the state of the citizens concerning opium and tobacco (addiction).
Creator
Noyes, Harriet Newell
Source
The College of Wooster, Special Collections, Noyes Collection, Box #2
Publisher
Unpublished
Date
1878-05-17
Contributor
Council on Library and Information Resources Hidden Special Collections Grant
Rights
Format
PDF
Language
eng (English)
Type
Text
Identifier
noyes_c_cor_186
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
Canton China
May 17th 1878
Dear ones at Home -
I will write a few lines
to you all together tonight as it is
just [u]two years[/u] since the days that
we reached [u]home[/u]. I always
look back to that day with so
much pleasure and with so much
gratitude that we were permitted
to have that day in a great
measure unclouded by the
shadows that darkened so many
that followed it. I remember
it all so distinctly our reaching
Cleveland and finding Sarah
and Clara there - just how they
looked and what they said
then the ride homeward past
the green fields and the
blossoming orchards the first
sight of the dear old Home
on the Hill, and Father
Mother and Mary waving their
welcome to us there our reaching
the depot and finding Edward
and Em there. I can
remember it all [u]so perfectly[/u]
and as the picture that I
have kept of it has not faded
at all during [u]two years[/u] I hope
that I can keep it fresh [u]forever[/u]
I remember just what you
all wore and how Ned + Fred
and Jennie looked. I wonder
if I shall ever come home
again, and if I would find
you all in the old homestead .
It is [u]possible[/u]. I could not help
counting up the ages of the old
people that Father has been
writing about and thinking
that Seville seems to have a good
many old people among its
residents . Father says in
my birthday letter that he is
willing I should live 40 or 50
years. I presume if that is
to be my fate that I shall
be willing to have it so. More
than half a year has passed
now since I left you --
I have not half answered all
the nice birthday letters you
sent me. Thank you for your
wishes that the year may be
one of happiness and usefulness.
I hope it will be one of usefulness
and I do not doubt it will
have as much happiness in
it as it is best for me to have.
I begin to think I must have
had more than my share of
happiness during the first six
years of my mission life -
If we are useful now we
shall have time enough to
be happy by and by when
we shall be [u]"satisfied"[/u] and
I doubt not it will seem to
us then not quite as important
as it does now whether we were
happy or not during the
"little while" of our sojourn here.
Yet it always seems such a
pity that we should not be
happy here as well there is so
much in this world to make
us so. I do not mean ourselves
but people in general, and here
in China Especially when there
are such a multitude of people
and they seem to have such a
miserable time getting along so
many of them are so poor and
thin one thinks that if the
money that is worse than wasted
here in buying opium and at
home in strong drink and tobacco
could only be better applied
there would be plenty to make
every one comfortable. It seems
sometimes as if the poor old world
is not used quite right to be
grumbled at as much as it is
I often think of poor Minerva Martin
and all the rest of them - What
a sad life they are having -
But I did not intend to wind
up my letter in this strain We
cannot make the world or the
people in it rather over to suit
ourselves so we must do the
best we can as it is - I know
you will all think about us
to-day as we do of you --
[Note: Letter concludes vertically on page one]
Henry can at least [u]think[/u] of us and bye and bye we
shall be
[u]together[/u] where
[u]she[/u] cannot
interfere with
our happiness.
With ever
so much
love for
you all
from
Your aff
[u]Hattie.[/u]
中国广州
1878 年 5 月 17 日
亲爱的家里人——
今晚我会一起写几行给你们，
因为距离我们回家的日子只有两年了。
我总是怀着极大的喜悦和感激之情回顾那一天，
以至于我们被允许在很大程度上摆脱了那一天的阴影，
这些阴影笼罩了许多人的阴影。
我清楚地记得我们到达克利夫兰并在那里找到莎拉和克拉拉 - 他们的样子和他们所说的话然后骑车回家，
经过绿色的田野和开花的果园，
第一次看到山上亲爱的老家和父亲母亲和玛丽在那里向我们挥手致意，
我们到达车站并在那里找到了爱德华和艾姆。
我可以完美地记住这一切，
因为我保存的照片在两年内完全没有褪色，
我希望我能永远保持新鲜，
我记得你们穿的衣服，
以及内德、弗雷德和珍妮的样子。
我不知道我是否会再次回家，
是否会在旧宅基地找到你们。
有可能的。
我忍不住数了数父亲一直在写的老人的年龄，
并认为塞维利亚的居民中似乎有很多老人。
父亲在我的生日信中说他愿意我活 40 或 50 岁。
我想如果这就是我的命运，
我会愿意这样。
从我离开你到现在已经半年多了——你寄给我的所有美好的生日信，
我还没有回复一半。
感谢您希望这一年可能是幸福和有用的一年。
我希望它是一种有用的东西，
我毫不怀疑它会带来尽可能多的快乐，
因为它对我来说是最好的。
我开始认为，
在我传教生活的头六年里，
我一定获得了超过我那份的快乐——如果我们现在有用，
我们将有足够的时间来快乐，
到那时我们将“满足”，
我怀疑在我们看来，
在我们在这里逗留的“一小会儿”期间，
我们是否快乐并不像现在那么重要。
然而，
我们不应该在这里快乐，
这似乎总是很可惜，
因为这个世界上有太多东西让我们如此。
我指的不是我们自己，
而是一般人，
在中国，
尤其是当有这么多人，
他们似乎相处得如此悲惨时，
他们中的许多人又穷又瘦，
一个人认为如果有钱比浪费在这里买鸦片更糟糕，
在家里喝烈性酒和烟草只能更好地应用，
这样会让每个人都感到舒适。
有时，
似乎这个可怜的旧世界并没有被正确地用来抱怨，
我经常想起可怜的密涅瓦·马丁和其他所有人——
他们过着多么悲惨的生活——
但我不是故意的在这种压力下结束我的信我们不能让世界或其中的人们变得适合我们自己所以我们必须尽我们所能 -
我知道你们今天都会像我们一样思考我们你——
[注：信在第一页垂直结束]
亨利至少可以想到我们，
再见了，
我们将在一起，
她不能干涉我们的幸福。
永远爱你们所有人。
来自，
海蒂。
May 17th 1878
Dear ones at Home -
I will write a few lines
to you all together tonight as it is
just [u]two years[/u] since the days that
we reached [u]home[/u]. I always
look back to that day with so
much pleasure and with so much
gratitude that we were permitted
to have that day in a great
measure unclouded by the
shadows that darkened so many
that followed it. I remember
it all so distinctly our reaching
Cleveland and finding Sarah
and Clara there - just how they
looked and what they said
then the ride homeward past
the green fields and the
blossoming orchards the first
sight of the dear old Home
on the Hill, and Father
Mother and Mary waving their
welcome to us there our reaching
the depot and finding Edward
and Em there. I can
remember it all [u]so perfectly[/u]
and as the picture that I
have kept of it has not faded
at all during [u]two years[/u] I hope
that I can keep it fresh [u]forever[/u]
I remember just what you
all wore and how Ned + Fred
and Jennie looked. I wonder
if I shall ever come home
again, and if I would find
you all in the old homestead .
It is [u]possible[/u]. I could not help
counting up the ages of the old
people that Father has been
writing about and thinking
that Seville seems to have a good
many old people among its
residents . Father says in
my birthday letter that he is
willing I should live 40 or 50
years. I presume if that is
to be my fate that I shall
be willing to have it so. More
than half a year has passed
now since I left you --
I have not half answered all
the nice birthday letters you
sent me. Thank you for your
wishes that the year may be
one of happiness and usefulness.
I hope it will be one of usefulness
and I do not doubt it will
have as much happiness in
it as it is best for me to have.
I begin to think I must have
had more than my share of
happiness during the first six
years of my mission life -
If we are useful now we
shall have time enough to
be happy by and by when
we shall be [u]"satisfied"[/u] and
I doubt not it will seem to
us then not quite as important
as it does now whether we were
happy or not during the
"little while" of our sojourn here.
Yet it always seems such a
pity that we should not be
happy here as well there is so
much in this world to make
us so. I do not mean ourselves
but people in general, and here
in China Especially when there
are such a multitude of people
and they seem to have such a
miserable time getting along so
many of them are so poor and
thin one thinks that if the
money that is worse than wasted
here in buying opium and at
home in strong drink and tobacco
could only be better applied
there would be plenty to make
every one comfortable. It seems
sometimes as if the poor old world
is not used quite right to be
grumbled at as much as it is
I often think of poor Minerva Martin
and all the rest of them - What
a sad life they are having -
But I did not intend to wind
up my letter in this strain We
cannot make the world or the
people in it rather over to suit
ourselves so we must do the
best we can as it is - I know
you will all think about us
to-day as we do of you --
[Note: Letter concludes vertically on page one]
Henry can at least [u]think[/u] of us and bye and bye we
shall be
[u]together[/u] where
[u]she[/u] cannot
interfere with
our happiness.
With ever
so much
love for
you all
from
Your aff
[u]Hattie.[/u]
中国广州
1878 年 5 月 17 日
亲爱的家里人——
今晚我会一起写几行给你们，
因为距离我们回家的日子只有两年了。
我总是怀着极大的喜悦和感激之情回顾那一天，
以至于我们被允许在很大程度上摆脱了那一天的阴影，
这些阴影笼罩了许多人的阴影。
我清楚地记得我们到达克利夫兰并在那里找到莎拉和克拉拉 - 他们的样子和他们所说的话然后骑车回家，
经过绿色的田野和开花的果园，
第一次看到山上亲爱的老家和父亲母亲和玛丽在那里向我们挥手致意，
我们到达车站并在那里找到了爱德华和艾姆。
我可以完美地记住这一切，
因为我保存的照片在两年内完全没有褪色，
我希望我能永远保持新鲜，
我记得你们穿的衣服，
以及内德、弗雷德和珍妮的样子。
我不知道我是否会再次回家，
是否会在旧宅基地找到你们。
有可能的。
我忍不住数了数父亲一直在写的老人的年龄，
并认为塞维利亚的居民中似乎有很多老人。
父亲在我的生日信中说他愿意我活 40 或 50 岁。
我想如果这就是我的命运，
我会愿意这样。
从我离开你到现在已经半年多了——你寄给我的所有美好的生日信，
我还没有回复一半。
感谢您希望这一年可能是幸福和有用的一年。
我希望它是一种有用的东西，
我毫不怀疑它会带来尽可能多的快乐，
因为它对我来说是最好的。
我开始认为，
在我传教生活的头六年里，
我一定获得了超过我那份的快乐——如果我们现在有用，
我们将有足够的时间来快乐，
到那时我们将“满足”，
我怀疑在我们看来，
在我们在这里逗留的“一小会儿”期间，
我们是否快乐并不像现在那么重要。
然而，
我们不应该在这里快乐，
这似乎总是很可惜，
因为这个世界上有太多东西让我们如此。
我指的不是我们自己，
而是一般人，
在中国，
尤其是当有这么多人，
他们似乎相处得如此悲惨时，
他们中的许多人又穷又瘦，
一个人认为如果有钱比浪费在这里买鸦片更糟糕，
在家里喝烈性酒和烟草只能更好地应用，
这样会让每个人都感到舒适。
有时，
似乎这个可怜的旧世界并没有被正确地用来抱怨，
我经常想起可怜的密涅瓦·马丁和其他所有人——
他们过着多么悲惨的生活——
但我不是故意的在这种压力下结束我的信我们不能让世界或其中的人们变得适合我们自己所以我们必须尽我们所能 -
我知道你们今天都会像我们一样思考我们你——
[注：信在第一页垂直结束]
亨利至少可以想到我们，
再见了，
我们将在一起，
她不能干涉我们的幸福。
永远爱你们所有人。
来自，
海蒂。
Original Format
Letter
Collection
Citation
Noyes, Harriet Newell, “Letter from Hattie to "Dear ones at Home", May 17, 1878,” Letters from Harriet Noyes: Missionaries and Women's Education in Nineteenth Century China, accessed April 29, 2024, https://noyesletters.org/items/show/242.