Letter from Hattie to Mother, May 7, 1872
Dublin Core
Title
Letter from Hattie to Mother, May 7, 1872
Subject
Mail steamers; Steamboat disasters; Travel; Death
Description
Harriet writes to her mother about the delay in them receiving their mail and their upcoming travels to the country stations. She then discusses the increase in steamboat accidents and the death of their friend Dr. Thomas of Swatow who was crushed while trying to climb up a single rope to safety in one such accident. Harriet expresses sadness for his mother who is widowed and has no other sons, and blames the officers of the ship for his death as well as ship officers in general for the increasing accidents.
Creator
Noyes, Harriet Newell
Source
The College of Wooster, Special Collections, Noyes Collection, Box #1
Publisher
Unpublished
Date
1872-05-07
Contributor
Council on Library and Information Resources Hidden Special Collections Grant
Rights
Format
PDF
Language
eng (English)
Type
Text
Identifier
noyes_c_cor_081
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
Canton May 7[u]th /72[/u]
My dear Mother,
We should have had
our mail yesterday but instead
of getting it we heard that it
was delayed five days in leaving
San Francisco. So we shall
have to wait nearly two weeks
for it for we have just decided
to go into the country and will
not be back until the last of
next week , so we must write a
little before we go and answer
the letters when we came back as
we hear there are to be two steamers
this month it will not matter
so much. Henry was intending
to visit some of the country stations
but I had not thought of going
until to-day Mrs Happer + Miss
Shaw thought they would like to
go and wanted me to go with
them. At first I did not feel
as though I could go but finally
decided to as I shall be like by
to have another opportunity soon
as after the schools open I would
not feel that I could leave. I hope
it will do Mrs Happer good her
health is very poor. Lucy wanted her
very much to go with her up to Foochow
and I wish she would have gone
but she dreaded the voyage so
much. she is so dreadfully seasick.
There has been a fearful loss of
steamers on this coast the past
few months. Since I last wrote
you the Rona coming down from
Shanghai was run into by the
Ava a French steamers and so
injured that she went down in
a very short time. Nearly all the
passengers and crew were saved
but one of them Dr Thomson of Swatow
a dear friend of ours met his death
under circumstances that make it
seem very distressing. He was in
a boat that reached the Ava but
they only threw down a [u]single rope[/u]
[--and--] for them to climb up by and he
he climbed nearly to the deck [u]three[/u]
times and then his strength would
fail and he fell back and at last
was crushed between the boat and
the steamer. He had been ill and
had made the voyage for his health
and I suppose very few landsmen
in health would be able to climb a
rope up to the deck of a high steamer.
It seems so cruel that he was not
helped when he need so little
assistance so hard that he should
die when he was so nearly saved.
The Officers of the Ava are very much
blamed. We met Dr Thomson first
when he visited Canton on his way
out three years ago and again when
we were in Swatow last winter.
He was a most Excellent man Earnest
and devoted universally beloved and
his loss will be deeply felt by all who
know him. But their loss is his gain
the sadness is [u]all[/u] Earthward and
heavenward only brightness. It will
be sad tidings for his mother whom
he loved most devotedly he was her
only son and she is a widow. It
often seems as though Death takes
those who are best fitted to be useful
here but they are also the ones who
are best prepared to go. I never knew
before what it is to think of a friend
as being buried in the sea. I hoped
that I never should. This is the
second time the Swatow mission has
been thus afflicted two of their number
now sleep beneath the waters of the
China sea. Last night we heard
of the loss of still another steamer
the Douglas which brought us
down from Foochow to Amoy
last winter. She struck a rock and
filled rapidly with water. Fortunately
other steamers were near + took
off the passengers + crew + saved
most of the valuables. I do not know
whether the Officers of the steamers
have been more careless than usual or
not but the number of accidents
during the past five months is
unprecedented. There are many
more things I wish to write of but it is
getting late + I must be up early in
the morning to get ready for our trip
as we want as Early a start as possible.
I intended to write to Mattie this
time but cannot will hope to write
in two weeks With much [u]much[/u] love for all
from Your aff daughter Hattie
广州
1872 年 5 月 7 日
我亲爱的母亲，
我们应该昨天收到邮件，
但我们听说邮件在离开旧金山时被延迟了五天。
所以我们要等将近两个星期，
因为我们刚决定去这个国家，
要到下周最后一天才能回来，
所以我们必须先写一点，
然后再去回信。
正如我们听说的那样，
本月将有两艘汽船，
这并不重要。
亨利打算去一些乡村电台，
但直到今天哈珀夫人和肖小姐认为他们想去并希望我和他们一起去时，
我才想到要去。
起初我不觉得我可以去，
但最终决定，
因为一旦学校开学，
我就会有另一个机会，
我不会觉得我可以离开。
我希望这对哈珀夫人有好处，
她的健康状况很差。
露西非常希望她和她一起去福州，
我希望她能去，
但她非常害怕远航。
她晕船得厉害。
在过去的几个月里，
这个海岸的轮船损失惨重。
自从我上次给你写信以来，
从上海下来的罗娜被法国轮船的 Ava 撞到，
受了重伤，
她在很短的时间内就倒下了。
几乎所有的乘客和机组人员都得救了，
但其中一位是我们的好朋友 Swatow 的汤姆森医生在令人痛苦的情况下遇难的。
他在一条到达阿瓦河的船上，
但他们只扔了一根绳子让他们爬上去，
他三度几乎爬到甲板上，
然后力不从心，
他跌倒了，
最后被压在了甲板之间。
船和轮船。
他病了，
为了自己的健康才出发，
我想很少有健康的陆地人能用绳子爬上一艘高轮船的甲板。
似乎太残忍了，
当他需要如此少的帮助时却没有得到帮助，
以至于在他差点得救时他应该死。
Ava的官员受到了很大的指责。
三年前，
汤姆森医生在离开坎顿的路上，
我们第一次见到了他，
去年冬天我们在斯沃图时，
我们又见到了他。
他是一个最优秀的人，
认真和忠诚，
举世爱戴，
所有认识他的人都会深深地感受到他的损失。
但他们的损失是他的收获，
悲伤是所有地球和天堂唯一的光明。
对于他最爱的母亲来说，
这将是一个悲伤的消息，
他是她唯一的儿子，
而她是寡妇。
似乎死亡往往把最适合在这里有用的人带走，
但他们也是最准备好离开的人。
我以前从来不知道朋友被埋在海里是什么感觉。
我希望我永远不会。
这是 Swatow 任务第二次遭受如此折磨，
他们中的两人现在睡在中国海的水下。
昨晚我们听说去年冬天又失去了一艘从福州到厦门的汽船道格拉斯号。
她撞到一块石头，
很快就灌满了水。
幸运的是，
其他轮船在附近并带走了乘客和船员，
并保存了大部分贵重物品。
我不知道轮船的官员是否比平时更粗心，
但过去五个月的事故数量是前所未有的。
还有很多东西我想写，
但是时间不早了，
我必须早起为我们的旅行做准备，
因为我们希望尽可能早地开始。
这次我打算给马蒂写信，
但不能希望两周后能写信 怀着对所有人的爱。
你的女儿，
海蒂
My dear Mother,
We should have had
our mail yesterday but instead
of getting it we heard that it
was delayed five days in leaving
San Francisco. So we shall
have to wait nearly two weeks
for it for we have just decided
to go into the country and will
not be back until the last of
next week , so we must write a
little before we go and answer
the letters when we came back as
we hear there are to be two steamers
this month it will not matter
so much. Henry was intending
to visit some of the country stations
but I had not thought of going
until to-day Mrs Happer + Miss
Shaw thought they would like to
go and wanted me to go with
them. At first I did not feel
as though I could go but finally
decided to as I shall be like by
to have another opportunity soon
as after the schools open I would
not feel that I could leave. I hope
it will do Mrs Happer good her
health is very poor. Lucy wanted her
very much to go with her up to Foochow
and I wish she would have gone
but she dreaded the voyage so
much. she is so dreadfully seasick.
There has been a fearful loss of
steamers on this coast the past
few months. Since I last wrote
you the Rona coming down from
Shanghai was run into by the
Ava a French steamers and so
injured that she went down in
a very short time. Nearly all the
passengers and crew were saved
but one of them Dr Thomson of Swatow
a dear friend of ours met his death
under circumstances that make it
seem very distressing. He was in
a boat that reached the Ava but
they only threw down a [u]single rope[/u]
[--and--] for them to climb up by and he
he climbed nearly to the deck [u]three[/u]
times and then his strength would
fail and he fell back and at last
was crushed between the boat and
the steamer. He had been ill and
had made the voyage for his health
and I suppose very few landsmen
in health would be able to climb a
rope up to the deck of a high steamer.
It seems so cruel that he was not
helped when he need so little
assistance so hard that he should
die when he was so nearly saved.
The Officers of the Ava are very much
blamed. We met Dr Thomson first
when he visited Canton on his way
out three years ago and again when
we were in Swatow last winter.
He was a most Excellent man Earnest
and devoted universally beloved and
his loss will be deeply felt by all who
know him. But their loss is his gain
the sadness is [u]all[/u] Earthward and
heavenward only brightness. It will
be sad tidings for his mother whom
he loved most devotedly he was her
only son and she is a widow. It
often seems as though Death takes
those who are best fitted to be useful
here but they are also the ones who
are best prepared to go. I never knew
before what it is to think of a friend
as being buried in the sea. I hoped
that I never should. This is the
second time the Swatow mission has
been thus afflicted two of their number
now sleep beneath the waters of the
China sea. Last night we heard
of the loss of still another steamer
the Douglas which brought us
down from Foochow to Amoy
last winter. She struck a rock and
filled rapidly with water. Fortunately
other steamers were near + took
off the passengers + crew + saved
most of the valuables. I do not know
whether the Officers of the steamers
have been more careless than usual or
not but the number of accidents
during the past five months is
unprecedented. There are many
more things I wish to write of but it is
getting late + I must be up early in
the morning to get ready for our trip
as we want as Early a start as possible.
I intended to write to Mattie this
time but cannot will hope to write
in two weeks With much [u]much[/u] love for all
from Your aff daughter Hattie
广州
1872 年 5 月 7 日
我亲爱的母亲，
我们应该昨天收到邮件，
但我们听说邮件在离开旧金山时被延迟了五天。
所以我们要等将近两个星期，
因为我们刚决定去这个国家，
要到下周最后一天才能回来，
所以我们必须先写一点，
然后再去回信。
正如我们听说的那样，
本月将有两艘汽船，
这并不重要。
亨利打算去一些乡村电台，
但直到今天哈珀夫人和肖小姐认为他们想去并希望我和他们一起去时，
我才想到要去。
起初我不觉得我可以去，
但最终决定，
因为一旦学校开学，
我就会有另一个机会，
我不会觉得我可以离开。
我希望这对哈珀夫人有好处，
她的健康状况很差。
露西非常希望她和她一起去福州，
我希望她能去，
但她非常害怕远航。
她晕船得厉害。
在过去的几个月里，
这个海岸的轮船损失惨重。
自从我上次给你写信以来，
从上海下来的罗娜被法国轮船的 Ava 撞到，
受了重伤，
她在很短的时间内就倒下了。
几乎所有的乘客和机组人员都得救了，
但其中一位是我们的好朋友 Swatow 的汤姆森医生在令人痛苦的情况下遇难的。
他在一条到达阿瓦河的船上，
但他们只扔了一根绳子让他们爬上去，
他三度几乎爬到甲板上，
然后力不从心，
他跌倒了，
最后被压在了甲板之间。
船和轮船。
他病了，
为了自己的健康才出发，
我想很少有健康的陆地人能用绳子爬上一艘高轮船的甲板。
似乎太残忍了，
当他需要如此少的帮助时却没有得到帮助，
以至于在他差点得救时他应该死。
Ava的官员受到了很大的指责。
三年前，
汤姆森医生在离开坎顿的路上，
我们第一次见到了他，
去年冬天我们在斯沃图时，
我们又见到了他。
他是一个最优秀的人，
认真和忠诚，
举世爱戴，
所有认识他的人都会深深地感受到他的损失。
但他们的损失是他的收获，
悲伤是所有地球和天堂唯一的光明。
对于他最爱的母亲来说，
这将是一个悲伤的消息，
他是她唯一的儿子，
而她是寡妇。
似乎死亡往往把最适合在这里有用的人带走，
但他们也是最准备好离开的人。
我以前从来不知道朋友被埋在海里是什么感觉。
我希望我永远不会。
这是 Swatow 任务第二次遭受如此折磨，
他们中的两人现在睡在中国海的水下。
昨晚我们听说去年冬天又失去了一艘从福州到厦门的汽船道格拉斯号。
她撞到一块石头，
很快就灌满了水。
幸运的是，
其他轮船在附近并带走了乘客和船员，
并保存了大部分贵重物品。
我不知道轮船的官员是否比平时更粗心，
但过去五个月的事故数量是前所未有的。
还有很多东西我想写，
但是时间不早了，
我必须早起为我们的旅行做准备，
因为我们希望尽可能早地开始。
这次我打算给马蒂写信，
但不能希望两周后能写信 怀着对所有人的爱。
你的女儿，
海蒂
Original Format
Letter
Collection
Citation
Noyes, Harriet Newell, “Letter from Hattie to Mother, May 7, 1872,” Letters from Harriet Noyes: Missionaries and Women's Education in Nineteenth Century China, accessed April 27, 2024, https://noyesletters.org/items/show/137.