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Show three and four hundred homes have been destroyed. Our mission property in Tientsin is a little dry island (as yet!!) in the middle of a lake! thanks to its mud dyke, and we think with gratitude of our stronger brick-faced eight foot dyke at Tehchow ! We hope this dyke would hold if the; waters came, the: while; we pray it may not be put to the test, Some hundreds of gunny sacks are kept in stock always;, to be filled with earth and used to dam the two gatehouses (the only breaks in the dyke), in ease of need. As though the floods were not enough, poor China, is once more in the throes of internal warfare. It has not yet. reached our immediate vicinity,, though is interfering somewhat with our through railroad connections, with Shanghai, and therefore mails are slow. That is not serious, however, as steamers can bring it, up to Tientsin and from there it can; come south to us, as long as that route is open. If both lines get cut we shall have to take the consequences, but the hospitals are for sick folks and it is not, our affair which side they come from ! Every now and then we must needs quietly remind the nurses that certain patients in the, beds are not "bandits" as far aa we are concerned, but sick men. to be cared for like anyone else. Lawless they have been;, to be sure, but many of them would not, be bandits,, but good soldiers, if they had had a square ~dea7b"fT0m the government. So by giving them the kindest of treatment while; in the Hospital we hope our bread may come back cake ! some day, if we are ever in need of protection by Chinese soldiery, though naturally that is not our first reason ! The hospital has kept unusually full even; through the summer harvest, and the pressure of the spring months presages a, busy winter. Statistically I may report, for these eight months, some 700 inpatients and 9,000 outpatient, treatments. There have been several changes in Chinese staff personnel, and a new class of probation nurses came in the end of June. Many of you have received our May Commencement program, but I have not had time to tell you in detail what a really good time we had. We were most, fortunate in our speakers, securing our own Board Secretary, Mrs. L. 0. Lee, who was able to time her visit, to Tehchow to fit the occasion, and also Miss Cora Simpson,, R. N., General Secretary of the Xurses Association, of China.,. Both gave generously of their time in inspirational talks., and the nurses were very appreciative (not to mention their Superintendent !). Commencement was also happily dated this; year, commemorating the ninth anniversary of the opening of the Hospitals and Training School. We had something of an innovation in our musical program. Discovering that one of the Chinese men doctors and three of the men nurses w^ere versed in the art of producing real music from Chinese instruments, we persuaded them to prepare two selections. The audi' was delighted beyond measure! ! and the writer revised her former ideas concerning Chinese music, for their harmony was truly pleasing to the foreign ear (contrary to all former experiences). In additon a mixed double quartette of nurses rendered an adaptation of the 103rd Psalm (my father's favorite), to the "Sextette from Lucia", and a patriotic selection to "Materna", with Erma Heininger's lovely voice in obligate The two graduating boys were early spoken for by other Missions, one of the girls will remain with us as head ward nurse, and the other will take a hospital position at Pingtu, Shantung, this winter. From the 14th to the: 28th of August a summer conference was held for the church leaders of our entire field. Our neighbors in the London Mission, fifty miles west, sent twenty delegates, Lintsing nine, and the "remaining one hundred and twenty odd were from our own outstations and Tehchow City. It was of interest to note that fully one third of the delegates were women,-a, ratio unheard of a decade; ago. Peter Ch'uan of the National Christian Council, Pastor P'eng of the American Board Church |