Letter from Mattie to Clara, February 28, 1889

noyes_c_cor_505.pdf

Dublin Core

Title

Letter from Mattie to Clara, February 28, 1889

Subject

Clothing; Christian education of girls; Missions--Study and teaching; Family; Travel

Description

Mattie writes to her sister Clara about traveling clothes and the people going to and from Canton. The school has opened up and Mattie is awaiting Harriet's return soon. Everyone working at the school is very tired and Mattie is wishing she could rest with her family.

Creator

Kerr, Martha Noyes

Source

The College of Wooster, Special Collections, Noyes Collection, Box #5

Publisher

Unpublished

Date

1889-02-28

Contributor

Council on Library and Information Resources Hidden Special Collections Grant

Format

PDF

Language

eng (English)

Type

Text

Identifier

noyes_c_cor_505

Text Item Type Metadata

Text

Feb 28th 1889
My dear Clara,
The Dr is in Hongkong
and will be there at least until
Saturday so Dr Niles and I are
here in charge on our side
of the house It has suddenly
grown very cold so we are
bundled up under our thickest
clothing but this kind of
weather will not last very
long. Dear dear I wrote a note
over to Miss Lewis and the fur
at the bottom of my old sacque
trimmed with fur which I am
at this moment wearing smush
ed over the page thus. I have
on that green flannel dress
too that I got from home and
that dress you gave me that
I wore when new to Newark as
a travelling dress is still able to

go to Hongkong as a "travelling" dress
if I go down to meet Hattie
The patient the Drs is attending has
sent up an [Illegible] for me to
come to Hongkong and stay a
week when she is expected and
we may go down on Thurs. and
stay until the next Wednesday
the day the Str. is advertised, Miss
Butler is going is having a new
silk dress and bonnet made for
the occasion. My wardrobe will
consist of said travelling dress
my silk just as it was when I came
out and that light dress not brown
the one trimmed with braid &
buttons. It has not been altered
either Do you not think your
sister is antiquated. Well Hattie
will be all right and now I am
old folks. Miss Wisner came
down yesterday much to the sur
prize of us all, as she was only a
week in Japan, very sea sick going

up and very sea sick coming down
so I do not suppose the trip has
done her much good. Mr Fulton
and family are going home very
soon after Hattie arrives. You
must be prepared to see [?pleasing?]
accounts of them and their work
Mrs Fulton plans to leave her
baby with some friend or other
take the two older children and
go on to the Assembly. You will
probably see the family some time
as they will be in Ashland. I
do not suppose we shall send
any thing by them as they stop so
often by the way. Mrs Hepburn
is in Hongkong and is coming
up to Canton in a few days.
If she comes to us we shall
not go to Hongkong so soon
probably. We have opened up
the school for the year and
the hospital work opened with
18 pupils very good for the beginning

And they all seemed very much inter
ested in the school and very glad
it was opened. Have I told you
we are to have a new school
building small but a great im
provement on anything we have
had. Will begin it after Hattie
comes as the Dr is to go for her and
the workmen would be left
without a head while he was away
I hope it will not prove too
much of a pressure upon him
Our Commission is next Sabbath
do not know of any one from the
hospital who wishes to join the
church this time think there are
some from the school {boarding
school} Miss Butler is not very
well. We shall all feel relieved
when Hattie comes, I do not think
Miss Butler could go on much longer
and now Sophie is going to leave
she is of course under more
pressure. I have tried in every
way to relieve her of company

[Continued vertically on the first page]
had not two guest rooms I do not know. I have not said a word
about home But you write we are going to take tea at Mrs McCoys We
are going to the
Social &c &c and
I seem to know
all about it.
I would like to
just lie down
in that dear
little room I
had up stairs
just for one
day and be
still. I want
some one to
just pet me
a little this
morning just
think of that
and I nearly
50 years old
But if I could
see Edward
Clara and Mary
awhile it would be splendid.

[Continuted vertically on the second page]
It is wonderful how good God has been to us in keeping us so well

[Continued vertically on the third page]
I only did not want to be tired when Hattie came Perhaps I can
go down Monday for her in any case
We had our big wedding here this month
too
Lovingly
Sister Mattie



1889 年 2 月 28 日
我亲爱的克拉拉,
医生在香港,
至少要到周六,
所以我和奈尔斯医生在我们这边负责。
天气突然变得很冷,
所以我们被裹在最厚的衣服里但这种天气不会持续很长时间。
亲爱的,
我给刘易斯小姐写了一张便条,
我的旧长袍底部的毛皮饰有毛皮,
而我此刻正穿着它盖在纸上。
我也有从家里买来的那件绿色法兰绒连衣裙,
还有你给我的那件我刚到纽瓦克时穿的作为旅行装的连衣裙,
如果我去见海蒂,
我仍然可以作为“旅行”装去香港Drs 就诊的病人已经发了一封[Illegible] 让我来香港,
在她预产期的时候住一个星期,
我们可能会在星期四下楼。
并留到下一个星期三的那天。
广告上说,
巴特勒小姐准备为这个场合准备一件新的丝绸连衣裙和帽子。
我的衣橱将包括我出来时的丝绸旅行装和那件不是棕色的浅色连衣裙,
上面有辫子和纽扣。
它也没有改变你不认为你的妹妹是过时的。
好吧,
海蒂会没事的,
现在我老了。
威斯纳小姐昨天下来让我们所有人都感到惊讶,
因为她在日本只有一个星期,
上去很晕船,
下山很晕船,
所以我认为这次旅行对她没有多大好处。
海蒂到达后,
富尔顿先生和家人很快就要回家了。
你必须准备好看到他们和他们的工作令人愉快的叙述富尔顿夫人计划把她的孩子留给一些朋友或其他人带着两个大孩子去参加大会。
您可能会在一段时间内见到这家人,
因为他们将在阿什兰。
我想我们不会让他们送任何东西,
因为他们经常顺便停下来。
赫本夫人在香港,
过几天就要来广州了。
如果她来找我们,
我们可能不会这么快去香港。
我们已经开学了一年,
医院也开学了,
一开始有 18 名学生非常好,
他们似乎都对学校很感兴趣,
也很高兴学校开学了。
我有没有告诉过你,
我们要建造一座小而新的教学楼,
但对我们已有的任何东西都有很大的改进。
将在海蒂来之后开始,
因为博士要去找她,
而他不在的时候,
工人会没有头 我希望这不会对他造成太大的压力 我们的委员会是下一个安息日 不知道任何一位希望这次加入教会的医院的人认为有一些来自学校的{寄宿学校}巴特勒小姐身体不太好。
海蒂来了,
我们都会松一口气,
我认为巴特勒小姐不能再继续下去了,
现在索菲要离开了,
她当然压力更大。
我想尽一切办法让她离开公司 [在第一页垂直续] 没有两个我不知道的客房。
关于家,
我只字未提,
但你写道,
我们要去McCoys 夫人喝茶,
我们要去社交等等,
我似乎知道这一切。
我只想躺在那个可爱的小房间里,
我刚上楼梯一天,
一动不动。
今天早上我希望有人能抚摸我一点,
想想看,
我已经快 50 岁了。
但如果我能看到爱德华克拉拉和玛丽一会儿,
那就太棒了。
[第二页垂直续] 上帝对我们这么好,
真是太好了[第三页垂直续] 海蒂来了,
我只是不想累也许我可以在星期一为她下楼无论如何,
这个月我们也在这里举行了盛大的婚礼,
可爱的玛蒂修女

Original Format

Letter

Citation

Kerr, Martha Noyes, “Letter from Mattie to Clara, February 28, 1889,” Letters from Harriet Noyes: Missionaries and Women's Education in Nineteenth Century China, accessed March 29, 2024, https://noyesletters.org/items/show/559.

Output Formats