China and the West

Letter from Lucy Dewey to Dewey family
Tsinanfu, July 22. [1921]
I've got to do this by hand as Mamma is using the machine to write marginal notes in a book of rubbings. We got some more of those books from Chufu with the story of Confucious' life that Evelyn got last year, and Mamma is getting the story translated bit by bit. She's typing the translation in the margin so the thing will be most complete and natty. Some girls who are being sent to U.S. by the provincial government did the translating and they nearly had hysterics over it. Some of the tales are screamingly funny.
[begin TL] Its just occured to me that Dad is lecturing and I can use his machine. We had a wonderful trip to Chufu and Taishan this time, much better than last year as it was cool and we had more time. It rained most of the time we were in Chufu but we went and saw the things anyway. We were taken to call on the Confucian duchess but she refused to see us. The gentlemen who conducted us were furious as it had all been arranged ahead of time and the old lady was too lazy or something to bother with us. The major domo of the palace was toting the baby duke around the court and he was heard to remark that we all wore glasses and they didnt want to have anything to do with people of that kind. They took us out to the tomb of an emperor who died five thousand years ago and to the temple of the king who drove Confucius out of the kingdom of Lu. Confucius certainly has the better of him now. We stayed in a school house and lived on bad Chinese food. It can be trying when it is bad, too. Chiefly eggs and at the end of three days I had reached a state where the sight of an egg made me sick. The Chinese went right on eating them, tho. At Taian we had better luck as we were being taken care of by the magistrate. We slept that night in a school and had a delicious dinner. We started early the next morning and had breakfast at a nunnery about a quarter of the way up. It was a regular feast and the Chinese gentlemen all drank brandy for breakfast. This machine sticks like the devil, I dont see how Papa writes on it at all. The trip up the mountain was lovely. It was a partly cloudy day and the light on the plain below was beautiful. There has been a lot of rain here this spring and the brook bed was full of water, a real mountain stream and clear and nice. We got to the top about half past two. I had a chair this time and got out and walked past the place where Evelyn and I collapsed last year, just to show them I could do it. Its a shame Evelyn never got to the top as it is one of the most stunning views I ever saw. Taishan is the highest mountain around and the lower ranges and the valleys look just like the relief maps in school. You can see the Yellow River and beyond to the north and to the south a great plain. Theres been plenty of rain this year and the country is very rich and green, much more beautiful that I have ever seen it before. In fact there has been about all the rain the country can stand for awhile. There are floods already at places on the Yangtse and the people here are quite worried about the Yellow river. There have been two days without rain now and that ought to give time for some of the water to run off and they say of there is no more for a few days longer they will be all right. In 1917 there were very bad floods, last year famine, and this year floods again, it doesnt give the people much chance to recuperate between catastrophes.
They have resumed the airoplane service between here and Peking after stopping for nearly two weeks because of floods in the landing field. One of the aviators I know came in last night and offered to take me back to Peking today and bring me back again tomorrow. It sounded awfully tempting but quite impossible, of course. I guess I never told you that I was taken up to see Peking from an airoplane. We were up for ten minutes and going beautifully along towards the city when the engine died. We landed in the middle of a corn field and walked three miles back to the aerodrome. And that ended that episode. I was very much disappointed because I loved the sensation of flying and I have wantd to see Peking from an air ship ever since Ive been there Such is life.
We leave here for Tsingtau on Sunday, stay there till the following Tuesday, probably, and then go across to Japan. Its getting quite exciting being so near home, Im beginning to realize that we are leaving China.
Well, I must go and do the family ironing. Evelyn will be pleased to know that we are still carrying the electric iron around. Loads of love to you all and well see you soon.
Lucy