Bookseller Hsü and Chang Wen Ch'ing (Early 1937)

In early 1937, the D.M.S. missionary newspaper published a vignette by Anna Bøg about Bookseller Hsü, an itinerant salesman who sold separate books of the Bible in the countryside around Siuyen. Our readers might remember that Elise Bahnson introduced Mr. Hsü in one of the articles excerpted in our post Difficulties to Overcome (1931-1932).

In the early 1937 newspaper, there was also a vignette by Elise Bahnson about Mrs. Chang, an elderly Chinese woman who had recently been baptized, and Elise Bahnson reported that, thanks to the new motor coach line, Rev. and Mrs. Bolwig had been able to travel to Siuyen from the town where they lived in order to spend Christmas with the missionaries and Chinese congregation. The Bolwigs had many friends among the Chinese Christians in Siuyen.

Here are the two vignettes:

Bookseller Hsü

"Bookseller Hsü has just returned from a trip of a little over two months during which he sold 4,700 individual books of the Bible. Not all homes could pay with cash, but they were willing to trade a bowl of corn for a little book.

"To the question, 'Are you sure they will now read in the books?', he replied, 'I find some parts that I know they would like to read and mark them, because if they begin with Jesus' genealogy they might easily stop there.'

"He had spent a week in the home of a schoolteacher who has previously been a patient at the hospital [in Siuyen]. Food was not so difficult to come by in the country dwellings, but a couple of times it was 1 o'clock in the morning before he found his night's lodging.

"He experienced many answered prayers, spoke with many about God's Word, and witnessed [to them]. If there were sick people in the home, he talked with them and prayed for them. . . .

"On such a trip, one cannot escape a chance encounter with a troop of brethren who live in the mountains [bandits]. But, despite the winter cold, snow, and many other difficulties, the bookseller returned fresh, happy, and empty-handed, having left behind the many books."

Chang Wen Ch'ing

"A truth-seeking soul, eagerly she had served Buddha and other gods for many years. She had abstained from meat with the intention of honoring the gods.

"Now 75 years old, she came with her daughter to the worship service during the month of October, the first Sunday Reverend Cheng was here. During the entire week [of women's meetings] she sat in the first pew, listening. She had reached her destination; she had finally found the truth.

"She lived here in those days, and started to eat meat again, an important sign that she had begun to break away from idols to serve the living God. She was full of questions. Even though she was advanced in age and she could not learn to read, she could go home and do away with all the idols. We told her about Christmas and invited her to come back.

"She came at the appointed time, worn out and motion-sick from riding on the rigid cart. During Christmas, she lived here again in order to be with us as much as possible, and her hope was fulfilled: the Sunday between Christmas and New Years, she was baptized 'Chang Wen Ch'ing'.

"For three weeks, she lived with her daughter and came for further instruction. Now she is back home in the country."

Source:
Bøg-Madsen, Anna; "Smaabreve fra Siuyen - Bogsælgeren," and Bahnson, Elise; "Smaabreve fra Siuyen - Gamle Fru Chang"; Dansk Missionsblad, Vol. 104, No. 9; 1937 (exact date unknown); pp. 127-129. Translation by Marie-Jacqueline.

Image:
Photograph of Mrs. Chang (front), Bible Woman Miss P'ei, and Anna Bøg, from the article cited above.
All D.M.S. items used with permission.

Difficulties to Overcome (1931-1932)

On July 15, 1931, just a little more than two months before the Mukden incident, which over the next few years would transform Manchurian life and constrict the work of Anna Bøg and the other missionaries of the Danish Missionary Society, the missionary newspaper published the following announcement:

"The Board approves the resolution of the Mission Council on the construction of the station in Siuyen:

"There shall be built a women's station in Siuyen, which has hitherto been sorely needed, using the money raised by Miss Bøg Madsen for that purpose during her stay in America. Because the old buildings at the mission station are very worn, they will be replaced. Miss Bahnson has worked out drawings that were presented at the board meeting."

The matter proved not to be so simple, however. On August 11, 1931, architect Elise Bahnson wrote the following report on the current status of the building plans and the state of the work in Siuyen. It was published in the missionary newspaper a few weeks later:

"It is written, 'Pray and you shall receive.' Time and again we have experienced that blessing this year. There was a religious awakening last year and we are still blessed with the five small in-home prayer circles we started then. What we are now experiencing is surely a large harvest of fruit from our prayers. . . .The number of those who read regularly [at the clinic] at least once a week continues to grow and has now reached seventy.

"The work with the women is a cause of great delight. The work with the men, however, is nearly quiescent. The men have suffered greatly from the lack of a minister because after a religious awakening each individual soul is in need of special care.

"We cannot complain that we have not had help from the outside. But those who come from outside lack insight into the [local] situation and therefore cannot assist the individual or the evangelists. The evangelists cannot do this work by themselves and neither can the [Bible] women . . .

"As you know, we were hoping to get a Chinese minister in Siuyen, but it was an impossible undertaking, so now we are working hard to get a house ready for a missionary minister.

"The first of June we moved the school that had been located at the south end of the mission property. We now have a lovely new school, with light rooms and a big play yard. Where we were, the playground was not big enough for all the children.

"At the beginning of Chinese New Year, the school got a Chinese principal, Miss Kuo. She is a former pupil from Siuyen School, and she has great affection for the school. Even though she is only 26 years old, she takes up her work as one entrusted to her by the Lord. There are 100 girls and 20 boys enrolled in the school now, and since there are as yet no restrictions on religious instruction, the school has Morning Prayer and bible study at regular times. On Sunday morning, they gather at the school and walk together as a group to the church for Sunday School.

"We are very pleased that they, as well as we, feel that this new place was prepared by the Lord. And then we have the additional benefit that it is very near the parish hall and across from the home of the president of the parish council. He is very interested in the school and saw to it that the school was maintained at its current size.

"As I have said, we are working hard to get a place ready for a missionary minister. The old houses were mainly built of granite and clay, and have been demolished to make way for a structurally sound building.

"When I came here, I did not know that such a large construction project awaited me, but now I find myself immersed in my old occupation. Our bricklayer and carpenter are both members of the parish council. The bricklayer is also the brother of a Bible Woman and of our cook. They are both nice to deal with and our cook helps me shop for materials. Dr. Nielsen, who built Siuyen Hospital, knows all about construction, and is my good counselor.

"The old mission station is now divided into a men’s station and a women’s station. The entrance to the men’s station is from the old southern gate near the church hall that for many years was a school for boys, but perhaps now can be a meeting room once again. . . .

"After almost two years now without a missionary minister, there is much for the congregation to be taught. They have had to take care of the congregation’s business, most of which was left to the minister until his departure. Now they must take the responsibility themselves. They like making the decisions and . . . are sensitive to outside interference. It is certainly proper for them to learn to take on the responsibility. They must of course also learn from their mistakes.

"We look forward to the possibility of getting a minister here again soon. This is a large rural district that, through the hospital work, has been prepared over many years. The doors are open, and the work has barely begun, while the doors are open to both the men and the women.

"Mr. Hsü, who is married to one of our Bible Women, started in the spring to work as a bookseller for the British Bible Society. The Bibles he sells are mostly for the youth in the rural schools, where in recent years quite a few schools have been started. Every sizeable village now has its own school. Out in the country, it is the season for sowing and probably for many years yet will need a Philip.

". . . [W]e are enjoying a visit from Pastor Yen. It is so great to have a minister here, to give Bible lessons and Communion, but it is also hard to see them go."

The significance of the foregoing article by Elise Bahnson becomes clearer when viewed in the light of an April, 1932, announcement in the missionary newspaper, this time in its "From the Editor" section:

"For several years, the intention has been to construct a new building for the women missionaries. The Board allotted 3,000 yen therefor and Miss Bøg Madsen collected about U.S. $1,400 in America for the project. Some special gifts have also been received in Denmark.

"It was decided to rebuild the men's station first, however, and part of the funds were used. That has been completed and Rev. and Mrs. Bjergaarde are living there. Now, the funds are insufficient to rebuild the women's station, and because of the prevailing economic depression, the Board cannot grant the balance thereof.

"Materials, however, have been purchased, and the ground has been excavated, so everything will be wasted if the work cannot be accomplished before the rainy season.* The mission council has therefore provisionally granted 1,000 gold yen from the fund for the street chapel in Takushan and Miss Bøg Madsen and Miss Bahnson pledged some of their personal funds as a temporary loan. So, in this way, the work continues."

In March, 1932, Elise Bahnson wrote the following touching account, which was published in the same April, 1932 edition of the missionary newspaper:

"Perhaps there are friends who know that we started years ago to renovate the mission station in Siuyen, and that the old station with the school was separated into men's and women's areas. In the picture on page 242 you can see the new Bible Women's house and in the background the new entrance to the women's station.

"In the picture above you can see the end of the new gatehouse and the new entrance under construction. It was completed in autumn.

"On page 245 you can see a picture of the [Rev.] Bjergaarde family on the steps outside the dining room of the minister's home.

"Trusting in God's word in Matthew 6:33,** we have started work on the last of the buildings -- the women missionary's building. The site was excavated in the autumn, and all the materials are ready. God willing, in about 14 days we will start on the construction of the house. Difficulties are everywhere, but difficulties can be overcome."

Such was the zeal of Anna Bøg and Elise Bahnson to bring souls to Christ, that Anna Bøg not only raised the money during her furlough -- a time that is ordinarily devoted to leisure -- and Elise Bahnson not only labored tirelessly with her well-honed building skills, but the two women loaned what money they had saved from their small stipend to bring to completion the women's station that Anna Bøg had envisioned so many years earlier. And, almost certainly, Elise Bahnson laid many of the bricks herself.

Sources:
Bahnson, Elise; "Siuyen;" Dansk Missionsblad; Vol. 98, Nr. 36; September 9, 1931; pp. 576-579. Translated by Betty Christensen.
Bahnson, Elise; "Fra Missionærne i China - Siuyen," Dansk Missionsblad, Vol. 99, Nr. 17; April 27, 1932; pp. 246-247. Translated by Betty Christensen.
Busch, Rev.; Board Resolutions; Dansk Missionsblad; Vol. 98, Nr. 28; July 15, 1931; pp. 446-447.
"Fra Redaktionen," Dansk Missionsblad, Vol. 99, Nr. 17; April 27, 1932; p. 243.

Images:
1 - New Bible Women's House
2 - New gatehouse and gate under construction
3 - New minister's house
Photographs from Dansk Missionsblad; Vol. 99, Nr. 17; April 27, 1932; pp. 244-246.

All D.M.S. materials used with permission.
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*The rainy season in Manchuria is July, August, and September.
**"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things shall be yours as well." (Matt. 6:33, Revised Standard Version.)

Manchurian Rafts, Carts -- and Bicycles

A significant feature of Manchurian life in the 1920s and throughout the time Anna Bog served in Siuyen was the river raft. Such rafts were employed especially for the timber to be used in building construction. The logs would be gathered on the banks of small rivers and floated to a collection point where they waited for spring. Then, during springtime, the logs were bound onto very large rafts and floated down the Yalu River to Antung.

Yosano, a Japanese poetess who traveled up the Yalu from Antung on a steam launch in the spring of 1928, wrote, "It was still too early for the high season of floating rafts, though we were able to spot a few of them here and there . . . these rafts enveloped the clouds at the peaks on the river, each one rising far and above the next. Reflecting the green of reeds and willows, they glistened brightly, and as they leisurely sailed down the river they evoked the happy appearance of ridding themselves of modern machine civilization. From time to time, tattered clouds came and went and a light rain fell . . . "

Another significant feature of Machurian life was the mule- or horse-drawn cart, which was the common mode of transportation. The cartwheels were made of hard wood and the cart was quite sturdy but extremely uncomfortable.

In 1888, James wrote in The Long White Mountain, "The cart has no springs and no seat inside. Natives spread bedding on the floor and squat on that, but the shaking is simply agonizing." James solved the problem by putting a cushion on the shaft and sitting next to the driver -- something that was considered improper.

In the early 1900s, the Irish missionary physician, Isabel Mitchell, found the lack of springs so unbearable that she often walked alongside the cart, leaving her belongings to toss and shift about inside.

Anna Bog, however, had a different solution -- the bicycle. It was not at all unusual even at that time for a girl or woman to travel by bicycle in Anna Bog's native Denmark, but it was unheard of in Siuyen.

Anna Bog relates:

"As the years went on young well-trained Bible women were the result of the work we carried on here. As I was also the first woman in our town to ride a bicycle I made it a point to teach all these young Bible women to ride a bicycle, which caused quite a sensation in town. By and by we were 12 who rode bicycles together with the native pastor, all the [male] evangelists and the Bible colporteur."

Referenced sources:

Bog Madsen, "The Old Missionary's Brief Story", Nazareth Lutheran Messenger (Cedar Falls, Iowa; 1971) Courtesy of Casey Welch.

James, The Long White Mountain or a Journey in Manchuria [1888], First Greenwood Reprinting (New York, 1968)

O'Neill, Dr. Isabel Mitchell of Manchuria (London, 1917)

Yosano, Travels in Manchuria and Mongolia [1928], translated by Joshua A. Fogel (New York, 2001)

The image above, from Dr. Mitchell's biography, shows a typical Manchurian cart and driver, along with the tall dense kaoliang through which so many roads ran.