Letter from Hattie to Mary, November 4, 1889

Letter from Hattie to Mary, November 4, 1889

Disease; Catarrh; Women missionaries

Harriet writes to her sister Mary about the first day of the school reopening. Miss Butler is still sickly but they aren't sure what it is. Mrs. Russel Sage is currently visiting Canton to watch and report on what is going on in the mission. Harriet hopes someone can convince Miss Butler that she needs help with her illness.

Noyes, Harriet Newell

The College of Wooster, Special Collections, Noyes Collection, Box #4

Unpublished

1889-11-04

Council on Library and Information Resources Hidden Special Collections Grant

PDF

eng (English)

Text

noyes_c_cor_444

Canton China
Nov 4th 1889
My dear Mary,
We are back in Canton
and school has reopened
and I am this morning
at my old post by the back
window watching the gate
while the necessary daily
going out and coming in
in making preparations for
another day is going on.
Miss Butler and I have
almost a daily conflict over
the matter as she is determined
to take turns while neither
Miss Lewis nor I think she
ought to do it. She has more
or less cold nearly all the
time and would be soon to
take worse. She has at times
the most dreadful hollow
sounding cough. The doctors

all say that her lungs are
sound and it does not sound
as though it came from her
lungs. I am afraid that
something is the matter with
her stomach after the fever
she had catarrh of the stomach.
There is a lady staying with
us now a Mrs Candict from
America. She is the widow of a
Presbyterian minister who died
a year ago. Her expenses
for a trip around the world
to visit and [u] inspect [/u] mission
work and missionaries are
paid by a wealthy lady in
New York Mrs Russell Sage,
and the idea is that when she
has seen everything she is to
go home and [u] tell [/u] what she
has seen and [u] enthuse [/u]
everybody. Perhaps after a
while they will make a

business of doing this and
returned missionaries will
not be in so much demand
for stirring up people. She
is evidently capable and
will have no difficulty in
telling what she has "seen
and heard" for she is a great
talker. She has not been here
long I think we shall like
her I am sure she is good.
She seems to feel her husband's
death very much and talks of
him a great deal. He had
catarrh of the stomach for
years. When I have a good
opportunity I wish to talk to
her about Miss Butler and
see if she thinks that is the
matter with her. Miss Butler
seems well but I do not see
why she coughs so, it is only
once in days perhaps that

she will have a coughing
spell. Sometimes her food
does not seem to agree with
her. She has always eaten what she
wanted regardless of consequences.
Miss Lewis goes to the other extreme
and we think starves herself
unnecessarily. She is [u] thinner [/u]
than a rail weighs only eighty
pounds. Miss Butler weighs about
the same that I do or did when
we were weighed last. I eat
whatever I like and there
and alas must confess that
I am growing [u] thicker [/u]. I have
not been weighed for some time
My dresses will not be too large
I am afraid the sleeves of some
of them will be too small but
I hope that I shall be able
to wear them all. It is a
[u] great [/u] comfort to have so much
ready made clothing and I

[Continued vertically on the first page]
feel [u] most [/u]
[u] grateful [/u] to
you all for
helping me
make it. I
have on your
pink Mother
Hubbard this
morning but it
is getting very
faded.
Perhaps I can
next summer
put in a white
yoke & sleeves
and wear
it some
more.
With love
Hattie.

中国广东
1889年11月4日
我亲爱的Mary，
我们回广州了
新学期开始
我今天早上回老地方
我在后面的窗户
看着人们进出大门，
我为新的一天做准备。
/
/
/
Butler小姐和我天天吵架
她认为她应该每隔一天轮流一次，
但我和Lewis小姐都不认为她应该这样做。
/
/
她总是感冒，
所以这只会让情况变得更糟。
/
她咳嗽得最可怕。
/
医生都说

她的肺没有问题，
所以那个声音
不是来自她的肺。
我怕她发烧后她的胃有问题。
/
/
/
现在我们有一位客人
她叫Candict太太，
她来自美国，
她是一年前去世的长老会牧师的遗孀。
她正在世界各地访问传教士，
/
Russell Sage太太，
纽约的一位富有的女士为她的旅行买单，
/
她的想法是等她完成后，
/
她会回家告诉大家她所看到的。
/
/
/
也许在未来，

这会更普遍，
所以返回的传教士不必这样做。
/
Candict太太很能干，
/
我不认为她会把她看到的和听到的告诉别人有什么困难，
/
因为她很会说话。
虽然她来的时间不长，
但我相信她是个好人，
我想我们会喜欢她的。
我想她仍然对丈夫的死感到非常难过，
/
因为她经常谈论他。
他患有胃粘膜炎多年。
有机会，
我想问问她，
她觉得Butler小姐哪里不对劲。
/
Butler小姐看起来很好，
但她咳嗽得厉害，
/
也许每天咳嗽一次。

/
有时她吃的东西让她生病。
/
但不管后果如何，
她总是想吃什么就吃什么。
/
Lewis小姐恰恰相反，
她不必要地让自己挨饿，
然后她抱怨说她只有 80 磅重。
/
Butler小姐和我一样重。
我想吃什么就吃什么，
/
我承认我越来越胖了。
/
我已经很久没有称体重了。
/
我的衣服有点紧了。 
/
有些袖子太小了，
但我希望我还能穿。
/
制作精美的衣服真是太棒了，


我非常感谢你们帮助我制作它。
/
/
/
/
我穿着你今天早上做的粉红色连衣裙，
但颜色已经很褪色了。
/
/
/
/
也许
明年夏天
我可以穿上一件白色的衬裙，
再穿一些袖子。
/
/
爱你，
Hattie.

Letter