Calvin Wilson Mateer, forty-five years a missionary in Shantung, China : $b a biographyFisher, D. W. (Daniel Webster)
Religion
Calvin Wilson Mateer, forty-five years a missionary in Shantung, China : $b a biography
Fisher, D. W. (Daniel Webster)
Mateer, C. W. (Calvin Wilson), 1836-1908; Missionaries -- China -- Biography
to set out in the direction of Chefoo, get a lodging for the
ladies and Mr. Corbett by the way, while the rest of us pushed
on to Chefoo to obtain assistance. We started off according to
this plan, but soon found our way stopped by fields of ice,
and we were compelled to turn from our course and seek the
hills which towered up in the distance. The walking was very
fatiguing; indeed, the ground was covered several inches with
snow, and at many places there were large cakes and fields of
ice. After long and weary tramping and turning and disputing
about the best way, we at length reached the hills. I mounted
to the top of the first hill and tried to get the party to go
up over the hill and directly inland until we should find a
house or village. Other counsels prevailed, however, and we
wandered along the foot of the hill the best part of a mile.
At length I got in the lead, and persuaded them that no houses
would be found unless we went inland from the barren beach.
We then crossed the ridge at a low place and retraced our
steps on the other side of it, and finally, after much urging,
persuaded those who wanted to sit down until morning to follow
on inland on the track of some of our Chinamen. We soon came
to a village, which was indeed a welcome sight. We were cold,
and our feet were wet, and we were very tired, especially the
ladies. Our troubles were not over yet, however, for we could
not induce any of the Chinese to let us in. It was now four
o’clock, and we were suffering from the effects of five hours’
wandering in the snow and cold. Yet they persistently closed
their doors and kept us out. Mr. Williamson and Mr. McClatchie
could talk to them some, yet they refused to receive us.
At last, after shivering in the cold about an hour, we
succeeded in getting into a sort of shanty, which, however,
afforded but very poor comfort. There was a heated kang in it,
and the ladies managed to warm their feet on this. When it
began to get light Mr. Riddle and Mr. Wilson started to Chefoo,
thinking the city was only half a mile distant. This was what
Mrs. Williamson understood the natives to say. Some time after
Mr. McClatchie started, supposing it was three miles. We made
breakfast on boiled rice and sweet potatoes which the people
brought us.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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